LUKAS FOSS
Foss: Ode / Renaissance Concerto / Three American Pieces / Symphony No. 1 in G major Amy Porter (flute) Nikki Chooi (violin) / Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, JoAnn Falletta [ Naxos American Classics / CD - due 24/May/2024 ] Berlin-born Lukas Foss studied music in Paris before settling in Philadelphia in 1937. Though he freely explored diverse compositional styles, three of the works in this recording fall into his early neo-Classical period and exemplify his dictum that... |
BRUCE BROUGHTON
Broughton: And on the Sixth Day / String Theory / Concerto for Horn and Orchestra Olivier Stankiewicz (oboe) William VerMeulen (horn) / London Symphony Orchestra, Jonathan Bloxham [ Naxos American Classics / CD - due 21/Jun/2024 ] Although Bruce Broughton is best known for his many film and television scores, over the past five decades he has composed scores for a diverse array of projects from film and TV to concert music and even theme parks. His work has been recognized... |
MARGARET BROUWER
Brouwer: The Art of Sailing at Dawn / Rhapsody, Concerto for Orchestra / Symphony No. 1 "Lake Voices" ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, Marin Alsop [ Naxos American Classics / CD - due 21/Jun/2024 ] Margaret Brouwer is a composer renowned for her music's lyricism, imagery and emotional power. The five premiere recordings on this album span 24 years. |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 and 2 / Rondo, WoO 6 Boris Giltburg (piano) / Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Vasily Petrenko [ Naxos / CD - released 1/Nov/2019 ] "Here's a very promising start to what I assume will be a new Beethoven piano concerto cycle...Fine playing, fine conducting, fine engineering-in short, a really fine release generally." ClassicsToday |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos 3 & 4 Boris Giltburg (piano) / Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Vasily Petrenko [ Naxos / CD - released 10/Feb/2023 ] For 19th-century audiences Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3 was the most loved of all his piano concertos, a work in which the balancing of high drama, tenderness, lyricism and humour is most pronounced and in which a coda resolves inner tensions... |
FERDINAND RIES
Ries: Piano Concertos, Vol. 4 (Incls 'Concerto Pastoral in D, Op. 120') Christopher Hinterhuber (piano) / Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Uwe Grodd [ Naxos / CD - released 1/Nov/2010 ] "...If you've yet to make this composer's acquaintance, this is an excellent place to start." International Record Review |
FERDINAND RIES
Ries: Piano Concertos Vol. 2 (Incls Piano Concerto No 3) Christopher Hinterhuber (piano) / Gavle Symphony Orchestra / Uwe Grodd [ Naxos / CD - released 8/Oct/2007 ] "The Austrian pianist Christopher Hinterhuber plays with commitment and is a fine advocate for these works, just as able to command attention with flashes of fire as he is to lead the ear through the most delicate figurations. Grodd and the Gävle... |
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY
Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 2 / Concert Fantasia Eldar Nebolsin (piano) / New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Michael Stern [ Naxos / CD - released 20/Sep/2016 ] "Nebolsin hardly puts a foot wrong, and Michael Stern secures rhythmically vibrant playing from the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra" BBC Music Magazine |
EDWARD ELGAR / FRANK BRIDGE
Elgar: Cello Concerto / Bridge: Oration Gabriel Schwabe (cello) / ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, Christopher Ward [ Naxos / CD - released 19/Nov/2021 ] "..That plaintive quality is much in evidence in the Elgar, and I admire so much Schwabe's approach to this work, surely one of the most recorded concertos in the catalogue." MusicWeb Recommended Jan 2022 |
JENNY McLEOD
McLeod: The Emperor and the Nightingale / Rock Concerto / etc Helen Medlyn (narrator) & Eugene Albulescu (piano) / New Zealand Symphony Orchestra / Uwe Grodd [ Naxos / CD - released 1/Oct/2011 ] New Zealand-born composer Jenny McLeod's wide musical background is here distilled into three works of highly enjoyable directness. The Emperor and the Nightingale is a colourful score which accompanies the narration of a Hans Christian Andersen... |
ROSS HARRIS
Harris: Violin Concerto / Symphony No 5 Ilya Gringolts (violin), Sally-Anne Russell (mezzo-soprano) / Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, Eckehard Stier & Garry Walker [ Naxos / CD - released 15/Jul/2016 ] "orchestral tone and clarity is smooth and clean" (MusicWeb) |
VARIOUS COMPOSERS
Warsaw Concerto and Other Piano Concertos from the Movies Philip Fowke (piano) RTE Concert Orchestra. Proinnsias O Duinn, conductor [ Naxos / CD - released 30/May/2009 ] "Philip Fowke plays all the pieces with affection and panache" - Gramophone |
ALAN RAWSTHORNE
Rawsthorne: Violin Concertos Nos 1 & 2 / Fantasy Overture: Corteges Rebecca Hirsch (violin) / BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Lionel Friend [ Naxos / CD - released 22/Dec/2000 ] "The performances bring out the best in this intense and very engaging music" Fanfare |
JACOB WEINBERG
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Weinberg: Piano Concerto 2 / String Quartet Op. 55 / etc Jorge Federico Osorio (piano), Patrick Mason (baritone) / Bingham String Quartet, Barcelona Symphony, National Orchestra of Catalonia [ Naxos American Classics / CD - released 3/Apr/2006 ] This compact disc features world premiere recordings of three works by JACOB WEINBERG (1879-1956), who was born in the Ukraine to a cultured, assimilated family and studied first at the Moscow conservatory and then in Vienna. |
GERALD FINZI
Finzi: Clarinet Concerto / Five Bagatelles / Three Soliloquies, etc Robert Plane (clarinet) / Northern Sinfonia / Howard Griffiths [ Naxos / CD - released 3/Jul/1999 ] "A highly accomplished, indeed commanding performance of Finzi's gorgeous Clarinet Concerto....another remarkable British music bargain from Naxos" - Gramophone |
J. S. BACH
Bach: Brandenburg Concertoss 1-3, 6 Jurgen Schuster (trumpet) Nadja Schubert (recorder) Christian Hommel/ (oboe) Winifred Rademacher (violin) /Cologne Chamber Orchestra [ Naxos / CD - released 2/Oct/2000 ] Recorded: March and April 1999 Recording Venue: Studio of Deutschland Radio, Cologne |
ANTONIO VIVALDI
Vivaldi: Bassoon Concertos (Complete), Vol. 4 Tamas Benkocs (bassoon) / Nicolaus Esterhazy Sinfonia / Bela Drahos [ Naxos / CD - released 4/Mar/2007 ] "On balance though, this is an eminently worthwhile and enjoyable series, and this latest volume continues the good work begun by its predecessors. The recorded sound is pleasingly clear and well balanced." (MusicWeb March 2007) |
RODION KONSTANTINOVICH SHCHEDRIN
Shchedrin: Carmen Suite / Concerto For Orchestra, "Naughty Limericks" Ukranian State Symphony Orchestra, Theodore Kuchar [ Naxos / CD - released 1/Oct/1994 ] "The experience is even more exciting with this impressive Naxos release. In fact this may very well be the best version of this suite currently available...this record will certainly win Shchedrin more than a few new friends" American Record Guide |
GEORG FRIDERIC HANDEL
The Best Of Handel Johann Aratore (organ), Jozef Cejka (oboe), Miroslav Kejmar (trumpet) Cappella Istropolitana, Budapest Strings, Handel Festival Chamber Orchestra [ Naxos / CD - released 7/May/1997 ] Handel was successful in developing a new form, the English oratorio, which combined the musical felicities of the Italian operatic style with an increased role for the chorus, relative economy of production, and the satisfaction of an English text. |
JOSEPH HAYDN
The Best of Haydn Capella Istropolitana, Kodaly Quartet, Camerata Cassovia, Jeno Jando (piano), and many more [ Naxos Best Of / CD - released 18/Feb/2008 ] The very best of Haydn drawn from the vast Naxos catalogue. |
PETER SCULTHORPE
Sculthorpe: Earth Cry / Piano Concerto / Kakadu / etc William Barton (didgeridoo) / Maria Anna Cislovska (piano) / New Zealand Symphony Orchestra / James Judd, conductor [ Naxos / CD - released 2/Dec/2004 ] "Tasmanian composer Sculthorpe's psychedelic images of primeval times, nature and infinity are well worth your trouble. A superb and breathtakingly inexpensive disc. Miraculously good value at every level." - MusicWeb Nov 2004 |
SALVATORE MESSINA / NINO ROTA / PAOLO PESSINA
Pessini: Concertango / Rota: Concerto for Strings / Messina: La beffa a Don Chisciotte Suite (arr. for string orchestra) Adriatic Symphony Orchestra / Paolo Pessina [ Naxos / CD - released 14/Nov/2006 ] Salvatore Messina composed the opera La beffa a Don Chisciotte, with a libretto by Ettore Romagnoli, between 1926 and 1930. The composer's untimely death did not allow him to complete the orchestration of the score. |
AMY BEACH
Beach: Piano Concerto / Gaelic Symphony Alan Feinberg (piano) Nashville Symphony Orchestra / Kenneth Schermerhorn (conductor) [ Naxos American Classics / CD - released 20/May/2003 ] "Prepare to be thrilled by the melodic invention and charming rhythmic energy of this music. Well worth exploring." - Editor's Choice - Gramophone Magazine (June 2003) |
CHARLES IVES
Ives: Emerson Concerto / Symphony No. 1 Alan Feinberg (Piano) / National Symphony Orchestra Of Ireland / James Sinclair [ Naxos American Classics / CD - released 22/Sep/2007 ] "Alan Feinberg is an ideal exponent of Ives's truculent and tender realism. The National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland partners him well... a very strong recommendation" International Record Review |
C.P.E. BACH / JOSEPH HAYDN
Times of Transition - Cello concertos by C.P.E. Bach and Haydn Andreas Brantelid (cello) / Concerto Copenhagen, Lars Ulrik Mortensen [ Naxos / CD - released 27/Aug/2021 ] The three cello concertos on this disc illustrate that fertile period in the second half of the 18th century when features of the Baroque were gradually replaced by the so-called galant style. Foremost amongst the composers inaugurating this change... |
TOMASO ALBINONI
Albinoni: Oboe Concertos, Vol. 2 Anthony Camden (oboe) / London Virtuosi / John Georgiadis [ Naxos / CD - released 30/Sep/2006 ] "some delectable pickings to be had, particularly among the slow movements...the complete set is hard to resist at super-bargain price." - Gramophone - Sept. 1996 |
J. S. BACH
Bach: Brandenburg Concertos II - Concertos 4 & 5 / "Triple" Concerto Nadja Schubert, Daniel Rothert, Eva Morsbach (recorder) Karl Kaiser (flute) / Cologne Chamber Orchestra, Helmut Muller-Bruhl [ Naxos Bach Complete Orchestral Works 7 / CD - released 2/Sep/1999 ] "It's especially useful to have both versions of Brandenburg No. 4 on the same disc. The sound is detailed and well-balanced..." ClassicsToday |
PYOTR Il'yich TCHAIKOVSKY
Tchaikovky: Piano Concerto No. 1 / The Tempest / Eugene Onegin: Polonaise & Waltz Joseph Banowetz (piano) / Czech-Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, Ondrej Lenard [ Naxos / CD - released 2/Feb/1998 ] "Banowitz is an excellent pianist." American Record Guide |
JOHN FIELD
Field: Piano Concertos, Nocturnes, Sonatas Benjamin Frith (piano), Northern Sinfonia, David Haslam [ Naxos / 6 CD Box Set - released 25/Jan/2019 ] 'Benjamin Frith has done a stellar job in bringing these concertos into the sunlight, brilliantly supported by the Northern Sinfonia under David Haslam' (Pianist magazine). |
FELIX MENDELSSOHN
Best Of Mendelssohn (Incls 'The Hebrides' Overture & Violin Concerto in E minor: II. Andante) Benjamin Frith (piano) Peter Nagy (piano) Takako Nishizaki (violin) / Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra / [ Naxos / CD - released 14/Oct/2007 ] Felix Mendelssohn, grandson of the distinguished Jewish thinker Moses Mendelssohn, the additional surname Bartholdy adopted on his conversion to Christianity, was born in Hamburg, the son of a banker. The family moved to Berlin, where Mendelssohn was... |
SERGEI RACHMANINOV
Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 4 / Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini Boris Giltburg (piano) / Brussels Philharmonic, Vassily Sinaisky [ Naxos / CD - released 14/Apr/2023 ] Rachmaninov's First Piano Concerto was composed while he was a student at the Moscow Conservatoire, then fully reworked before he left Russia in 1917 and again in 1919. It is hard to explain why it never achieved a higher level of popularity. |
SERGEI RACHMANINOV
Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 2 / Etudes-tableaux Boris Giltburg (piano) / Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Carlos Miguel Prieto [ Naxos / CD - released 17/Aug/2017 ] "Giltburg certainly has something fresh to say in Rachmaninov's Second Concerto...and he says it elegantly and eloquently...one of the most appealing aspects of this performance is its grand trajectory." Gramophone Editor's Choice |
SERGEI RACHMANINOV
Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 3 / Variations on a theme of Corelli Boris Giltburg (piano) / Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Carlos Miguel Prieto [ Naxos / CD - released 15/May/2018 ] Rachmaninov's 'Piano Concerto No. 3' is a complex, epic narrative that moves from a simple opening melody to the triumphant apotheosis at its conclusion. The composer ingeniously links motifs, melodies and at times whole sections between the... |
MAX BRUCH / JOHANNES BRAHMS
Bruch/Brahms: Violin Concertos Takako Nishizaki (violin) / Slovak Philharmonic, Stephen Gunzenhauser [ Naxos / CD - released 2/Nov/2012 ] "Recording of outstanding merit" CD Review |
CHEN GANG / XIAN XING-HI
The Yellow River Piano Concerto / The Butterfly Lovers Piano Concerto Chen Jie (piano) / New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Carolyn Kuan [ Naxos / CD - released 20/Nov/2012 ] The Yellow River Concerto is one of the most popular of all Chinese works, a richly melodic exploration of scenic variety, and a forceful expression of patriotic pride. Written in 1958 by Chen Gang and He Zhanhao, The Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto... |
JENO HUBAY
Hubay: Violin Concertos Chloe Hanslip (violin) / Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Mogrelia [ Naxos / CD - released 1/Oct/2009 ] "…Hanslip's radiant artistry and phrasal sensitivity is highly seductive. …witness her first entry in the Second Concerto which is shaped with exquisite finesse...well-balanced engineering rounds out a splendid release." Five Stars BBC Music |
BENJAMIN GODARD
Godard: Violin Concerto No. 2 / Concerto Romantique / Scenes Poetiques Chloe Hanslip (violin) / Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra, Kosice / Kirk Trevor [ Naxos / CD - released 14/Feb/2008 ] "Praise for Chloë Hanslip's confident excursion into unfamiliar territory." Editor's Choice Gramophone Magazine (April 2008) |
FRANCIS POULENC
Poulenc: Organ Concerto / Concert champêtre Philippe Lefebvre (organ) Elisabeth Chojnacka (harpsichord) / Lille National Orchestra, Jean-Claude Casadesus [ Naxos / CD - released 1/Jun/2016 ] "The wind and percussion of the Lille orchestra get a chance to demonstrate their quality in accomplished playing of the spry dances of the Suitefrançaise. This is an eminently recommendable disc." (Gramophone Classucal Music Guide) |
GORDON SHI-WEN CHIN
Chin: Double Concerto / Formosa Seasons Cho-Liang Lin (violin) / Felix Fan (cello) / Kansas City Symphony Orchestra / Michael Stern [ Naxos / CD - released 4/Mar/2007 ] "Formosa Seasons" is based on a series of Haiku-like poems, and is dedicated to the celebrated Taiwanese-American violinist Cho-Liang Lin. |
FERDINAND RIES
Ries: Piano Concertos Vol 5: Piano Concerto in E flat, Op. 42 / Piano Concerto in G minor, Op. 177 / etc Christopher Hinterhuber (piano) / New Zealand Symphony Orchestra / Uwe Grodd (conductor) [ Naxos / CD - released 10/Dec/2012 ] The fourteen works for piano and orchestra of Ferdinand Ries stand alongside those of Hummel as the finest and most important of their kind from the early decades of the 19th century. Intensely lyrical and yet displaying at times a rugged... |