ANONYMOUS
Music for the King of Scots The Binchois Consort / Andrew Kirkman [ Hyperion / CD - due 2/Apr/2021 ] A re-creation of the music combined with a technological reconstruction of the acoustic in Linlithgow Chapel: this is a project which offers a fascinating perspective on how such repertoire might originally have been heard. |
LIGETI
Ligeti: The 18 Études Danny Driver [ Hyperion / CD - due 5/Mar/2021 ] Ligeti's vertiginous studies are breathtaking: extraordinary explorations of the modern piano which test the instrument (and its player) to the limit. |
FRANCISCO GUERRERO
Guerrero: Magnificat, Lamentations & Canciones El León de Oro / Peter Phillips [ Hyperion / CD - due 5/Mar/2021 ] Francisco Guerrero is still insufficiently well known by comparison to his great contemporary and compatriot Victoria. El León de Oro here affirms his rightful place in the history of the Golden Age of Spanish polyphony. |
MultiPiano Ensemble, English Chamber Orchestra
Mozart: The complete multipiano concertos [ Hyperion / CD - due 2/Apr/2021 ] The Larghetto and Allegro in E flat major is mature Mozart-contemporary with Idomeneo and Die Entführung-but remains incomplete. Tomer Lev has finished the job brilliantly, making it the perfect companion for Mozart's official concertos for two and... |
FAURE / POULENC / DEBUSSY
French Duets Steven Osborne (piano), Paul Lewis (piano) [ Hyperion / CD - due 5/Mar/2021 ] A bewitching programme of music often associated with childhood, including favourites by Fauré, Ravel and Debussy; works which amply reward the care lavished on them by Paul Lewis and Steven Osborne in these exquisite accounts. |
CECILIA MCDOWALL
McDowall: Sacred Choral Music Trinity College Choir Cambridge / Stephen Layton [ Hyperion / CD - due 2/Apr/2021 ] McDowall's keen sensitivity to text and her flair for writing vocal lines that are grateful to sing are just two of the virtues which justify the success of her choral music. Her original and distinctive voice is well served by Stephen Layton and his... |
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH
Shostakovich: Cello Concertos Alban Gerhardt, WDR Sinfonieorchester / Jukka-Pekka Saraste [ Hyperion / CD - released 28/Aug/2020 ] International Classical Music Awards 2021 Winner - Solo Instrumental Winner - Concerto |
JOHANNES BRAHMS
Brahms: Violin Sonatas Alina Ibragimova, Cédric Tiberghien [ Hyperion / CD - released 30/Aug/2019 ] Matchless accounts of Brahms at his most lyrically reflective, plus a benedictory encore by Clara Schumann: this is another outstanding release from today's pre-eminent violin and piano partnership. |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Violin Sonatas Vol 3 Alina Ibragimova (violin), Cédric Tiberghien (piano) [ Hyperion / 2 CD - released 26/Mar/2017 ] "Avoiding the twin traps of over-inflation and simpering coyness, the symbiotic partnership of Tiberghien and Ibragimova respect the music's innocence while relishing every tiny opportunity for mischief and humour." Gramophone Editor's Choice |
LOUIS VIERNE / CESAR FRANCK
Vierne & Franck: Violin Sonatas Alina Ibragimova (violin), Cédric Tiberghien (piano) [ Hyperion / CD - released 1/Mar/2019 ] "This is simply superb in every way…Ibragimova and Cédric Tiberghien are typically outstanding throughout, playing with exceptional control without ever forsaking spontaneity…Make no mistake,..." BBC Music Award Finalist 2020 |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Violin Sonatas Vol 1 Alina Ibragimova (violin), Cédric Tiberghien (piano) [ Hyperion / 2 CD - released 1/Apr/2016 ] "It is difficult to imagine [these sonatas] better played" (Five Stars BBC Music) |
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH
Shostakovich: Violin Concertos Nos 1 & 2 Alina Ibragimova (violin), State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia 'Evgeny Svetlanov', Vladimir Jurowski (conductor) [ Hyperion / CD - released 5/Jun/2020 ] Recording of the Month BBC Music Magazine July 2020 |
VARIOUS COMPOSERS
Homage to Godowsky Andrey Gugnin (piano) [ Hyperion / CD - released 27/Mar/2020 ] "Gugnin approaches these works on their own terms so that, far from seeming dated or brittle, they emerge fresh and full of vitality and charm" Editor's Choice Gramophone May 2020 |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: Variations Angela Hewitt (piano) [ Hyperion / CD - released 2/Oct/2020 ] "No qualifications are required for Angela Hewitt's new Beethoven album..Hewitt's touch is remarkably nimble and poetic" The Times |
BENJAMIN BRITTEN
St Nicolas / Hymn to St Cecilia Anthony Rolf Johnson (tenor) Corydon Singers, English Chamber Orchestra, Matthew Best (conductor) [ Hyperion Helios / CD - released 1/Nov/2009 ] "A fresh and atmospheric account of Britten's colourful cantata" Penguin Guide |
J.S. BACH / C.P.E. BACH / J.C. BACH
The Bach Family: Magnificats Arcangelo, Jonathan Cohen (conductor) [ Hyperion / CD - released 16/Feb/2018 ] "You would be hard-pressed to find a more illuminating disc than this latest offering from Arcangelo" BBC Music Choral & Song Choice March 2018 |
RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS
Vaughan Williams: Symphony No 5 / Scenes adapted from Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress Emily Portman (folk voice), Kitty Whately (mezzo-soprano), Marcus Farnsworth (baritone), etc / BBC Symphony Orchestra, Martyn Brabbins [ Hyperion / CD - released 30/Oct/2020 ] Vaughan Williams's incidental music for The Pilgrim's Progress has seldom been heard in its original guise since the 1906 premiere; yet further reason to acquire an outstanding interpretation of the composer's Symphony No 5. |
LUPUS HELLINCK / JOHNANNES LUPI
Hellinck: Missa Surrexit pastor; Lupi: Te Deum & motet The Brabant Ensemble, Stephen Rice [ Hyperion / CD - released 7/Feb/2020 ] Mining the rich musical seam of the Low Countries, Stephen Rice and The Brabant Ensemble have once again unearthed sixteenth-century treasure in the works of Lupus Hellinck and Johannes Lupi. |
ANTON BRUCKNER
Bruckner: Mass in F Minor / Psalm 150 Corydon Singers / Corydon Orchestra, Matthew Best [ Hyperion Helios / CD - released 10/Oct/2011 ] "Quite magnificent … hoping for a better all-round performance than this is probably an impossible dream!" (Gramophone) |
FRANCIS POULENC
Poulenc: Voyage a Paris Felicity Lott (soprano) Graham Johnson (piano) [ Hyperion Helios / CD - released 10/May/2011 ] 'Highly desirable' - BBC Record Review |