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... |
VALENTIN SILVESTROV
Silvestrov: Symphony for Violin and Orchestra / Postludium for Piano and Orchestra Janusz Wawrowski (violin) Jurgis Karnavičius (piano) / Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, Christopher Lyndon-Gee/ [ Naxos / 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... |
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. |
PETROS PETRIDIS
Petridis: Saint Paul Soloists / Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Byron Fidetzis [ Naxos / 2 CD - due 21/Jun/2024 ] Petros Petridis was one of the leading composers of the Greek National School. In Saint Paul he sought to combine the polyphonic approach of Byzantine music with the form of the oratorio. The libretto follows the Acts of the Apostles with fourteen... |
DONIZETTI / LEONCAVALLO / MASCAGNI / PUCCINI / VERDI
Italian Tenor Arias Azer Zada (tenor) / Kiev Virtuosi Symphony, Dmitry Yablonsky [ Naxos / CD - released 10/Oct/2021 ] The Italian operatic repertoire offers some of the most passionate and much-loved music in the classical canon. In this outstanding collection, Azer Zada has selected music of moving intensity, dramatic power and spiritual resolve. |
CAMARGO GUARNIERI
Guarnieri: Chôros, Vol. 1 Olga Kopylova (piano) Claudia Nascimento (flute) Alexandre Silverio (bassoon)/ São Paulo Symphony Orchestra, Isaac Karabtchevsky [ Naxos / CD - released 28/Aug/2020 ] Camargo Guarnieri's catalogue of works represents a legacy of incalculable worth for Brazilian culture, as has his influence as a teacher on several generations of younger composers. |
RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS
Vaughan Williams: Complete Symphonies / The Wasps (Overture) / Flos campi / etc Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Kees Bakels, Paul Daniel, with Paul Silverthorne (viola) [ Naxos / 6 CD Box Set - released 28/Apr/2008 ] "Kees Bakels draws ravishing sounds from the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra." Penguin Guide |
JOHN ADAMS
Adams: Shaker Loops / Wound Dresser / Short Ride in a Fast Machine Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra / Marin Alsop (conductor) [ Naxos / CD - released 16/Nov/2004 ] "Bristling energy to aching desolation: a bargain survey that has real impact" Editor's Choice Gramophone Magazine November 2004 |
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) |
KARL GOLDMARK
Goldmark: Rustic Wedding Symphony / In the Spring Ireland National Symphony Orchestra Stephen Gunzenhauser, conductor [ Naxos / CD - released 8/Feb/2005 ] "Gunzenhauser gives a fresh, bright-eyed account of the Rustic Wedding Symphony...the overall performance is spontaneous and enjoyable...In Italy is especially vivacious and sparkling" - Penguin Guide |
RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS
Vaughan Williams: A Vaughan Williams Anthology [8 CD set] Joan Rodgers (sop) Christopher Maltman (bar) Jennifer Pike (violin) / Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, New Zealand Symphony, Royal Liverpool Philharmon [ Naxos / 8 CD Box Set - released 8/Apr/2022 ] Ralph Vaughan Williams is one of Britain's most illustrious composers, and this specially curated selection of works demonstrates the sheer breadth of his achievement. |
CAMILLE SAINT-SAENS
Saint-Saens: Carnival Of Animals (with Ravel-Mother Goose Suite) Johnny Morris (narrator) / Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra / Ondrej Lenard (conductor) [ Naxos / CD - released 30/Jul/2008 ] The French composer Camille Saint-Saëns was prolific and lived a long time, although by the time of his death in 1921 music had changed beyond anything he could have conceived. He was a gifted pianist and, in common with many other well known French... |
LEONARD BERNSTEIN
Bernstein: Mass Jubilant Sykes (baritone) / Morgan State University Choir / Peabody Children's Chorus / Baltimore Symphony Orchestra / Marin Alsop [ Naxos American Classics / 2 CD - released 15/Aug/2009 ] "It's all fabulously recorded with a glittering impact that never turns unduly aggressive. The multi-textural layering in the climactic Dona Nobis Pacem comes across as both musically and physically overwhelming." (10/10 ClassicsToday) |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN / FRANZ LISZT
Liszt / Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 (Transcription) Konstantin Scherbakov (piano) [ Naxos / CD - released 14/Dec/2004 ] "This is a magnificent disc and listening to it is a truly uplifting experience." MusicWeb, October 2004 |
DMITRY KABALEVSKY
Kabalevsky: Symphonies Nos. 1 and 2 / Overtures Malmö Symphony Orchestra, Darrell Ang [ Naxos / CD - released 20/Jun/2019 ] Dmitry Kabalevsky found his mature style and achieved international success with his first opera Colas Breugnon, the overture of which was soon picked up as an orchestral showpiece in the West. The Second Symphony was likewise championed by... |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Der Fliegende Hollander [The Flying Dutchman] ( Alfred Muff, Ingrid haubold, Erich Knodt, Peter Seiffert / Austrian Radio Symphony Orchestra & Chorus, Pinchas Steinberg [ Naxos Opera Classics / 2 CD Box Set - released 2/Feb/1992 ] "The recording is both atmospheric and clear, and the set comes with libretto, translation, notes and detailed synopsis, an outstanding bargain." Penguin Guide |
LEONARD BERNSTEIN
Bernstein: Dybbuk / Fancy Free (complete ballets) Nashville Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Mogrelia (Conductor) [ Naxos American Classics / CD - released 4/Dec/2006 ] "Dybbuck, written to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the State of Israel, is one of Bernstein's darkest scores. Over 45 minutes in length, it tells the creepy story of a sinister ghost, with the battle between good and evil." Penguin Guide |
RICHARD STRAUSS
Strauss, (R.): Ein Heldenleben / Macbeth National Symphony Orchestra Of Ireland, Gerhard Markson [ Naxos / CD - released 1/Jan/2010 ] "Markson gets his Irish orchestra to deliver a rousing performance." ClassicsToday |
HAVERGAL BRIAN
Brian: Symphonies Nos. 8, 21 & 26 New Russia State Symphony Orchestra, Alexander Walker [ Naxos / CD - released 10/Oct/2017 ] Each of the three symphonies on this recording represents a significant milestone in Havergal Brian's long musical journey, and each demonstrates the breadth of his symphonic approach. No. 8 was the first of Brian's symphonies to be performed and is... |
GIACOMO MEYERBEER
Meyerbeer: Overtures and Entr'actes from the French Operas New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Darrell Ang [ Naxos / CD - released 10/May/2014 ] "The New Zealand Symphony…plays with spirit and has been well trained. Singaporean conductor Darrell Ang brings to these performances an obvious love for the music, infusing them with taut rhythms, crisp attacks, and bountiful energy." Fanfare |
JOHN ANTILL
Antill: Corroboree / Outback Overture New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, James Judd [ Naxos / CD - released 30/Jun/2008 ] "This excellent recording of the complete ballet by James Judd and the New Zealand Symphony orchestra fills a big gap. With precision and charm, this disc brings out its originality and its primitivist colouristics." (Sydney Morning Herald) |
ALEXANDER ZEMLINSKY
Zemlinsky: Die Seejungfrau / Sinfonietta New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, James Judd [ Naxos / CD - released 1/Aug/2009 ] "James Judd… galvanises the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra into playing this challenging score with sensitivity and a good deal of virtuosity." BBC Music |
EDWARD ELGAR
Elgar: Orchestral Miniatures (Incls Chanson de matin & 3 Bavarian Dances) New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, James Judd (Conductor) [ Naxos / CD - released 9/Sep/2006 ] "Especially impressive are the woodwind, which excel the rest of the ensemble in both beauty of playing and ability to follow their conductor...the horns are also impressive. This orchestra has a great future in front of it." MusicWeb September 2006 |
RICHARD STRAUSS
Strauss, (R.): Tanzsuite Divertimento, Op 85 New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Jun Märkl [ Naxos / CD - released 23/Oct/2020 ] Richard Strauss was appointed co-director of the Vienna State Opera in 1919 and soon set about composing a new ballet for the refurbished historic Redoutensaal in the city. At carnival in February 1923 the work was unveiled - a delectable series of... |
FRANZ LISZT
Liszt: Symphonic Poems (Vol. 3) Incls 'Battle of the Huns' New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Michael Halasz [ Naxos / CD - released 8/Aug/2006 ] "There is some absolutely brilliant playing on this disc...With this sort of playing Liszt's orchestrations come fully alive, allowing us to appreciate some music that is very easy to see as inflated." (John Dutton ***** five stars Dominion Post) |
JEAN SIBELIUS
Sibelius: Scenes historiques I and II / King Christian II Suite New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Pietari Inkinen [ Naxos / CD - released 26/Jan/2008 ] "As an addition to the ever-growing Sibelius catalogue this is most welcome" (MusicWeb Feb 2008) |
RON GOODWIN
Goodwin: Drake 400 (includes the New Zealand Suite) New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Ron Goodwin [ Naxos British Light Music / CD - released 9/Sep/2022 ] Ron Goodwin is famous for several iconic film scores such as the rousing 633 Squadron. His was an instantly recognisable musical voice, combining an innate ability to write both memorable tunes and to evoke the many moods demanded by film directors. |
YASUSHI AKUTAGAWA
Akutagawa: Ellora Symphony / Trinita Sinfonica / Rhapsody New Zealand Symphony Orchestra / Takuo Yuasa, conductor [ Naxos Japanese Classics / CD - released 14/Jun/2005 ] "Thanks be to Naxos for continuing to plumb the mines of interesting and unusual music, and presenting it at their ever-attractive price. Highly recommended." (MusicWeb June 2005) |
TOSHIRO MAYUZUMI
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Mayuzumi: Bugaku / Mandala Symphony / Rumba Rhapsody New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Takuo Yuasa (conductor) [ Naxos Japanese Classics / CD - released 15/Jan/2006 ] "Excellent performances from New Zealand and very fine recording throughout." (MusicWeb April 2006) |
FEDERICO MORENO TORROBA
Torroba: Guitar Concertos, Vol. 2 Pepe Romero & Vicente Coves (guitars) / Extremadura Symphony Orchestra, Manuel Coves [ Naxos / CD - released 28/Mar/2017 ] Federico Moreno Torroba composed about one hundred works for the guitar, thereby reinforcing his status as one of Spain's great twentieth-century composers. Homenaje a la seguidilla pays lively tribute to that characteristically Spanish song and... |
WILLIAM ALWYN
Piano Concertos Nos. 1 and 2 / Sonata alla toccata Peter Donohoe (piano) / Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra / James Judd, conductor [ Naxos / CD - released 14/Aug/2005 ] "Peter Donohoe, born-again champion of the British piano concerto, gives tremendous performances of two works he can rarely if ever have played live. This is music well worth discovering: and nestling between the two concerti is the splendid Derby... |
GEORGE ANTHEIL
Antheil: Ballet Mecanique,/ Serenade for String Orchestra No.1 / Symphony for Five Instruments, etc Philadelphia Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra, Daniel Spalding [ Naxos / CD - released 20/Nov/2001 ] "The Philadelphia players sound as if they are enjoying themselves, and at its super-budget price it's an ideal introduction to the 'bad boy of music', who certainly wasn't nearly as bad a composer as many who've come after him." International Record |
DAVID STOCK
Stock: A Little Miracle / Yizkor / Tekiah / Y'rusha Elizabeth Shammash (mezzo-soprano), Stephen Burns (trumpet), Richard Stoltzman (clarinet) / Seattle Symphony, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, etc [ Naxos American Classics / CD - released 2/Oct/2006 ] "..there's no fancy stuff, no hamhanded sophistication and pretentions, to get in the way of the music's simple expression." American Record Guide |
BEDRICH SMETANA
Smetana: Ma Vlast (My Fatherland), including Vltava (Moldau) The Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra / Antoni Wit [ Naxos / CD - released 15/Sep/2000 ] "this new Naxos offering enshrines an interpretation of no mean stature and individuality: an undoubted bargain, I would say" - Gramophone |