Editor’s Choice recordings – November 2015
Gramophone
Friday, November 6, 2015
Martin Cullingford’s pick of the finest recordings from this month’s reviews
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Recording of the Month
Bach. Rzewski. Beethoven Piano Variations
Igor Levit pf
(Sony Classical)
Igor Levit is clearly one of his generation’s most remarkable pianists. In these three works – all sets of variations – he reveals a virtuosity and reflective maturity that compel attention.
Read the review / Buy from Qobuz
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Casella ‘Orchestral Works, Vol 4’
Gillian Keith sop BBC Philharmonic / Gianandrea Noseda
(Chandos)
A further instalment in Noseda’s commited advocacy of Casella, one which is surely achieving his aim of making people hear this music with open ears and minds.
Read the review / Buy from Qobuz
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Ravel Piano Concertos
Yuja Wang pf Zurich Tonhalle Orchestra / Lionel Bringuier
(DG)
A young virtuoso star, and one who keeps more than justifying her status, with an engagingly played disc of French music.
Read the review / Buy from Qobuz
Audio Editor Andrew Everard writes: 'Well, it’s certainly thrilling: from the beginning of this set, Yuja Wang goes at the Ravel concertos with gusto bordering on all-out attack, and the 96kHz/24-bit download makes it easier to follow every note, and more fully appreciate the performance. It’s certainly a colourful recording, and the high-resolution sound makes the darker passages more atmospheric, while delivering those exciting dynamics with even more power. Similarly the change of venue between the recordings is more apparent in 24/96, switching as it does from the openness of the Zurich Tonhalle to the more intimate Berlin studio used for the Fauré Ballade providing the filling in the ‘sandwich’ – a great demonstration of what ‘hi-res’ recording can bring.'
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Stravinsky The Rite of Spring
MusicAeterna / Teodor Currentzis
(Sony Classical)
A really thrilling, driven and brilliantly played Rite of Spring. It’s all you get for your money – but that doesn’t of course diminish its impact one bit.
Read the review / Buy from Qobuz
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‘Métamorphoses’
Works by Brahms, Haydn and Ligeti
Dudok Quartet
(Resonus)
Into an era rich in really fine young quartets comes an impressive debut from Amsterdam-based Dudok Quartet, with a programme as thoughtfully conceived as it is played.
Read the review / Buy from Qobuz
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Chopin Preludes, Op 28, etc
Dong Hyek Lim pf
(Warner Classics)
Young South Korean pianist Dong Hyek Lim here offers a considered and engagingly played Chopin recital, with a really beautiful set of the Preludes at its heart.
Read the review / Buy from Qobuz
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‘Twelfth Night Recital’
Ivan Moravec pf
(Supraphon)
Playing of warmth and personality from a recital given 28 years ago and due to be released for Moravec’s 85th birthday. Following his recent death, it now stands as a wonderful tribute. Read the review / Buy from Qobuz
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‘Le Concert Royal de la Nuit’
Ensemble Correspondances / Sébastien Daucé
(Harmonia Mundi)
A captivating programme, one rooted in historical research and context, but most importantly in performances full of rhythm, elegance and life. Read the review / Buy from Qobuz
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‘Poetry in Music’
The Sixteen / Harry Christophers
(Coro)
The Sixteen so consistently perform at the highest level that it’s easy to take them for granted; this exploration of English settings of poetry is very beautiful indeed. Read the review / Buy from Qobuz
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Mozart Il re pastore
Sols; The Orchestra of Classical Opera / Ian Page
(Signum)
A superb set of soloists head up a quite delightful performance of Mozart’s early opera, under the inspired baton of Ian Page. Read the review / Buy from Qobuz
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DVD/blu-ray
‘Satiesfictions’
A film by Anne-Kathrin Peitz and Youlian Tabakov
(Accentus)
A fascinating portrait, every bit as quirky and surprising as its composer subject. Read the review
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Reissue/archive
Martland Various works
The Steve Martland Band / Steve Martland; The Smith Quartet
(NMC)
A memorial to this modern maverick, who died in 2013 aged 58. Read the review