Editor's Choice: March 2024 | The best new classical recordings
Friday, February 23, 2024
This month: Janáček's Katya Kabanova from the LSO and Sir Simon Rattle, Handel's Theodora by Arcangelo and Jonathan Cohen, and Marc-André Hamelin plays his own piano music
In every issue of Gramophone, Editor Martin Cullingford chooses 12 albums (10 new releases, plus one DVD/blu-ray and one archive recommendation) as his Editor's Choice. Below, you will find the albums selected as Editor's Choice in the March 2024 issue, beginning with the Recording of the Month.
We've included links to the album reviews in Gramophone's Reviews Database, a digital archive of all of our reviews from 1983 to today. To find out more about subscribing to Gramophone and the Reviews Database, please visit: magsubscriptions.com
Janáček Katya Kabanova
Sols; London Symphony Orchestra / Sir Simon Rattle
LSO Live
Sir Simon Rattle’s extraordinary feel for Janáček’s music, the LSO’s beautiful playing and wonderful soloists make for a superb second release in this series of his operas.
Britten Violin Concerto. Double Concerto
Baiba Skride vn ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra / Marin Alsop
Orfeo
A fascinating pairing of two Britten works, magnificently performed by Baiba Skride.
Auerbach. Dvořák. Weinberg Piano Trios
Trio Zimbalist
Curtis Studio/Platoon
A new release from the in-house label of the famed Curtis Institute, and a debut from an accomplished new piano trio, brings a hugely impressive exploration of three works in the form.
‘Haydn All‑Stars’
Trio Ernest
Aparté
Another debut from another trio, this time matching four brilliantly played Haydn works with century-spanning pieces inspired by the composer and his music from Brahms and Belgian composer Jacqueline Fontyn.
LeFanu ‘The Path Above the Dunes’
Gemini
Métier
A fascinating, hugely engaging recording of works by Nicola LeFanu spanning almost half a century, from a contemporary ensemble celebrating 50 years of advocacy of modern music.
Hamelin Piano Works
Marc-André Hamelin pf
Hyperion
Marc-André Hamelin continues to astonish, album by album, in music by others – here is a further and hugely revealing insight into the pianist’s own compositional voice, brought to life with his ever-present virtuoso brilliance.
Handel Theodora
Sols; Arcangelo / Jonathan Cohen
Alpha
Jonathan Cohen and his superb Arcangelo ensemble, plus a perfectly picked selection of soloists, offer a performance rich in detail and humanity of this late Handel oratorio, a work now recognised as a masterpiece.
Lassus ‘The Alchemist, Vol 1’
Magnificat / Philip Cave
Linn
The launch of a scholarly survey of Lassus’s Magnificat settings conducted by Philip Cave, here pairing the composer’s music with the Italian madrigals these works drew on, gloriously sung throughout.
Vaughan Williams ‘Retrospect’
London Choral Sinfonia / Michael Waldron
Orchid
A fascinating journey through lesser-known music by Vaughan Williams, rich in discovery, whether vocal or orchestral, all assembled with care and performed with conviction and eloquence.
‘A Gardener’s World’
Alessandro Fisher ten Anna Tilbrook pf
Rubicon
A previous One to Watch, the tenor Alessandro Fisher offers a beautiful recital of floral-themed songs spanning styles and centuries, the pianist Anna Tilbrook a perfect partner.
🎧 Podcast: Alessandro Fisher on 'A Gardener's World'
DVD/blu-ray
Cimarosa L’italiana in Londra
Sols; Frankfurt Opera and Museum Orchestra / Leo Hussain
Naxos
‘Animated and entertaining, with some good gags’ is Richard Wigmore’s verdict of this production of Cimarosa’s opera.
Reissue/archive
Joseph Szigeti ‘The European Columbia Recordings, Vol 4’
Joseph Szigeti vn
Pristine Classical
The fourth and final volume of this series from Pristine Audio exploring the recordings of Joseph Szigeti allows us to hear the violinist in a wide range of repertoire.
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