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ANTONIN DVORAK
Dvorak Edition: The Slavonic Soul Pierre-Laurent Aimard (piano) Lucia Popp (soprano) Jacqueline du Pré (cello) Alban Berg Quartett, Concertgebouw Orchestra, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, etc [ Warner Classics / 27 CD/DVD Box Set - released 11/Jun/2021 ] This box provides an illuminating and enriching survey of Dvorak's works, including his complete symphonies. A number of the celebrated performers have Slavonic roots themselves; all their interpretations draw on a deep affinity with the composer. |
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PAGANINI
Violin Concerto No 5 / etc Ivan Pochekin (violin) / Russian Philharmonic Orchestra, Dmitry Yablonsky [ Naxos / CD - released 2/Jan/2013 ] "This stands out for its crisply defined recording and for the exceptional playing of Ivan Pochekin, whose pure tone, wide expressive range and precise articulation and tuning bring Paganini's ideas vividly to life...I'm sure even Paganini himself wo |
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FELIX MENDELSSOHN
Mendelssohn - Double Concerto & Octet Polina Leschenko (piano) Richard Tognetti (violin) / Australian Chamber Orchestra [ BIS SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 1/Feb/2013 ] Among the many child prodigies that have made their mark in the history of music, Felix Mendelssohn is, along with Mozart, possibly the most impressive. By the age of fifteen he had already composed 13 string symphonies and a number of concertos, and... |
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IGOR STRAVINSKY / SERGEI PROKOFIEV
Stravinsky / Prokofiev: Violin Concertos Patricia Kopatchinskaja (violin), London Philharmonic Orchestra, Vladimir Jurowski [ Naive / CD - released 2/Sep/2013 ] " There is a sense of discovery, of spontaneous re-creation of these two masterpieces. Totally stylish yet wholly new; great playing and a truly outstanding issue." (Recording of the Month MusicWeb Dec 2013) |
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PERGOLESI
Stabat Mater / Salve Regina / Violin Concerto in B flat major Rachel Harnisch, Sara Mingardo & Julia Kleiter, Giuliano Carmignola (violin) / Orchestra Mozart, Claudio Abbado [ Deutsche Grammophon Archiv / CD - released 10/Nov/2009 ] "The Stabat Mater is the main work, in a striking performance that manages to be at once devotional and operatic. There's a fiery austerity in the conducting and string playing...The real treat here is the Violin Concerto, played with casual sensual |
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JOHAN HALVORSEN
Orchestral Works Volume 3 Ragnhild Hemsing (hardanger fiddle) & Marianne Thorsen (violin) / Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra / Neeme Järvi [ Chandos / CD - released 28/Mar/2011 ] "As with previous releases in this series, the performances are as good as it gets, and so are the sonics. There is absolutely nothing to criticize about Neeme Järvi's interpretations, the fine Bergen Philharmonic, or the engineers. It's just 79... |
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BACH / VASKS
Distant Light: Violin Concertos Renaud Capucon (violin & director) / Chamber Orchestra of Europe [ Erato Warner Classics / CD - released 20/Apr/2015 ] Renaud Capuçon's first recording as both soloist and conductor is also his first recording with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe. He has chosen to juxtapose Bach's violin concertos in A minor and E major with a haunting concerto written more than 350... |
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BELA BARTOK
Bartok: Violin Concertos Nos 1 & 2 Renaud Capucon (violin) / London Symphony Orchestra, François-Xavier Roth [ Erato Classics / CD - released 18/Apr/2018 ] "Capuçon's keen, lean lyricism in the solo part, and his chamber music-like rapport with the LSO's woodwind soloists, offer compelling perspectives on this well-known, if still not popular, music." Sunday Times |
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FELIX MENDELSSOHN / ROBERT SCHUMANN
Mendelssohn/Schumann: Violin Concerto No.2 / Violin Concerto Renaud Capucon (violin) / Mahler Chamber Orchestra. Daniel Harding, conductor [ Erato / Warner Classics / CD - released 19/Oct/2004 ] A new disc from the brilliant young French violinist Renaud Capuçon brings together two strongly contrasted works: Mendelssohn's luminous E minor concerto, one of the best-loved works in the repertoire, and Schumann's more introverted and... |
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MENDELSSOHN
Mendelssohn in Birmingham - Volume 4 [Violin Concerto / A Midsummer Night's Dream] Rhian Lois (soprano I), Keri Fuge (soprano II) & Jennifer Pike (violin) / City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Edward Gardner [ Chandos SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 10/Jan/2016 ] For this new recording of orchestral works by Mendelssohn, the CBSO and its principal guest conductor, Edward Gardner, join the violinist Jennifer Pike, who made a remarkable debut at Carnegie Hall this year. She here performs the Violin Concerto in... |
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CHRISTOPHER GUNNING
Gunning: Violin Concerto / Cello Concerto / Birdflight Richard Harwood (Cello) Harriet Mackenzie (Violin) / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra [ Signum / CD - released 19/Jun/2020 ] Gunning's Violin Concerto was composed after inspiration whilst the composer was out hiking in Wales. The violin is supposed to represent ducking and weaving, rather like the insects and animals found in the Welsh hills and valleys. |
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VIVALDI
The Four Seasons / Concerto in B minor, RV 580 for 4 violins / etc Richard Tognetti, violin & direction / Australian Chamber Orchestra [ BIS SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 10/Jan/2015 ] Countless violinists have recorded Vivaldi's Four Seasons. Now Richard Tognetti and the Australian Chamber Orchestra, a team internationally recognized for its virtuosity, energy and individuality, has recorded their take |
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ANTONIN DVORAK
Dvorak: Violin Concerto in A minor / Legends Op 59 Richard Tognetti (violin) / Nordic Chamber Orchestra, Christian Lindberg [ BIS / CD - released 1/Mar/2010 ] "Tognetti's tone is clean, rather than fruity with vibrato. His reading of the first movement...is marked by a clean attack to bring out the freshness of imagination so typical of Dvorak...The Slavonic dance of the finale is done with exceptional... |
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PHILIP GLASS
Glass: Violin Concerto No. 2 'The American Four Seasons' Robert McDuffie (violin) / London Philharmonic Orchestra, Marin Alsop [ Orange Mountain Music / CD - released 24/Feb/2011 ] "McDuffie responds to Glass's trademark arpeggios and harmonic cycles - embedded, methinks, with sly references to Vivaldi - with an energetic verve that suggests he really believes this is the most important music on the planet; likewise, Alsop's LP |
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GERALD FINZI
Grand Fantasia & Toccata / Eclogue / Nocturne / etc. Rodney Friend (solo violin) London Philharmonic Orchestra, Adrian Boult (conductor, Peter Katin (piano) New Philharmonia Orchestra, Vernon Handley (co [ Lyrita / CD - released 12/Apr/2007 ] "Superb sound and Diana McVeagh's astute notes cap a mandatory purchase for lovers of the English muse, and of course for Finzi lovers in particular." (MusicWeb Recording of the Month Oct 2007) |
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W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Horn Concertos Roger Montgomery (horn) & Margaret Faultless (director/violin) Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment [ Signum / CD - released 31/Dec/2013 ] "Montgomery slips into their varying moods through affecting phrasing, resilient changes in tempo, accentuation and dynamics, partnered by the OAE at its best. Well worth owning." Gramophone |
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LEYENDECKER
Violin Concerto / Symphony No. 3 Roland Greutter (violin) / North German Radio Symphony Orchestra / Johannes Kalitzke, conductor [ Naxos / CD - released 14/Jun/2005 ] "The artists give clean performances, with an extensive series of emotions brought through from the score. A immensely accurate rendering of the concerto is also provided by the soloist and dedicatee, Roland Greutter. The recorded sound is... |
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NICOLO PAGANINI
Paganini: Violin Concerto Nos. 3 & 4 Erno Rozsa (violin) / Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, Michael Dittrich [ Naxos / CD - released 4/Dec/2000 ] "Packed with risk-taking solo playing and complemented by good, detailed sound, this release makes for an unmissable addition to anyone's basic violin library." - Classics Today |
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JON LORD
Durham Concerto Matthew Barley (cello), Jon Lord (hammond organ), Ruth Palmer (violin) & Kathryn Tickell (Northumbrian pipes) / Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra [ Avie / CD - released 28/Jan/2008 ] "Jon Lord has concentrated on composition since leaving Deep Purple. Lord's music is compellingly sonorous, his programmatic narratives are crystal-clear, and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic play with passion and tenderness." (Gramophone) |
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RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS
Vaughan Williams: A Sea Symphony / The Lark Ascending Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir, James Ehnes (violin), Sarah Fox (soprano), Mark Stone (baritone) [ Onyx / CD - released 30/Nov/2018 ] The penultimate album in the critically acclaimed Vaughan Williams symphony cycle from the RLPO and Andrew Manze is of his 1st Symphony 'A Sea Symphony' set to words by Walt Whitman. Premiered in 1910, the start of this work is one of the most... |