BERTHOLD GOLDSCHMIDT
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Goldschmidt: Beatrice Cenci (complete opera with libretto) Roberta Alexander, Stefan Stoll, Simon Estes, Della Jones / Berlin Radio Chorus, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Lothar Zagrosek [ Sony Classical / 2 CD Box Set - released 7/Feb/1995 ] "The cast is a strong one, dominated by the burnished tone of Roberta Alexander in the title role of the abused daughter. Della Jones as her stepmother Lucrezia is equally fine" BBC Music |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 24 and 25 Ronald Brautigam (fortepiano) / Die Kölner Akademie, Michael Alexander Willens [ BIS SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 1/Sep/2011 ] "Bis has given all performers excellent surround sound that is wide, deep, and comforting to the ear. A most definite recommendation." (AudAud.com) |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Don Giovanni (complete opera recorded in 2014) BLU-RAY Royal Opera House, Covent Garden / Mariusz Kwiecien, Alex Esposito, Alexander Tsymbalyuk, Véronique Gens , Antonio Poli / Nicola Luisotti (cond [ Opus Arte Blu-Ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 20/Nov/2014 ] Mozart's sublime tragic comedy offers boundless scope for directors, and Kasper Holten has chosen it to follow his directorial debut of Eugene Onegin. He wanted to shift the emphasis from Don Giovanni's sex life into a darker place, showing... |
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
Shakespeare: All's Well That Ends Well (recorded live in 2022) Royal Shakespeare Company / Claire Benedict, Benjamin Westerby, Rosie Sheehy, Jamie Wilkes, Will Edgerton, Bruce Alexander [ Opus Arte DVD / DVD - released 22/Sep/2023 ] Bruce Alexander [The King of France] is best known as Superintendent Mullett in A Touch of Frost and has appeared in many other TV shows such as Berkeley Square, Casualty and Peak Practice. He has also played major roles in the theatre. |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: The Lovers' Garden (complete ballet recorded in 2016) BLU-RAY Teatro alla Scala / Roberto Bolle, Nicoletta Manni, Marta Romagna, Claudio Coviello / Alexander Titov (cond) [ C Major BLU-RAY / Blu-ray Disc - released 10/Apr/2018 ] With lightness and irony, this journey into the universe of Mozart tips its hat to the 1700s also with the scenery and costumes, and fills the garden with fun and passionate virtuoso dances, which follow each other dynamically and quickly. |
ROSSINI / SCARLATTI / TURINA / GRANADOS / FALLA / GUERRERO / etc
Brava Berganza! - Rossini: Arias / Canciones Espanolas: Spanish Songs & more Teresa Berganza (soprano) Félix Lavilla (piano) London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Alexander Gibson, Benito Lauret, Gerardo Gombau [ Australian Decca Eloquence / 2 CD - released 1/Apr/2018 ] "I called her performance of [the Falla songs] incomparable, and it still remains so, with her completely idiomatic interpretation, vitality, exemplary enunciation, beautifully clean melismata, and wide range of colour" Gramophone |
BEETHOVEN / RIES / PUNTO / DANZI
Horn and Piano: A Cor Basse Recital Teunis van der Zwart (horn), Alexander Melnikov (paino) [ Harmonia Mundi / CD - released 28/Jan/2022 ] "van der Zwart exploits the disruptive contrasts between registers, and between stopped and open notes, as vividly as I've ever heard...A winner, and not only for horn fanciers." Gramophone Editor's Choice March 2022 |
VARIOUS COMPOSERS
My First Violin Album [Incls 'Salut d'amour' & 'fantasy on Carmen'] Ilya Kaler (violin), Takako Nishizaki (violin), Jenö Jandó (piano), Alexander Jablokov (violin), Chloë Hanslip (violin) [ Naxos / CD - released 27/Feb/2012 ] From folk music to film music, the violin is the star of instruments. Millions of children all over the world learn how to play it and the top performers make it sound beautiful. They can also do clever things on it, with their fingers whizzing up... |
CHARLES VILLIERS STANFORD
Stanford: Cello Concerto / Piano Concerto No. 3 Alexander Baillie (cello) Malcolm Binns (piano) / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra / Nicholas Braithwaite, conducter [ Lyrita / CD - released 1/Aug/2007 ] "This CD is a must for all enthusiasts of Stanford's music. I guarantee that it will not disappoint: in fact it will inspire you and make you want to explore the music of this Great Man in much more detail. And that can be no bad thing!" (MusicWeb... |
Alexander Desplat (music)
The French Despatch - OST [ Search Light / CD - released 27/Jul/2021 ] The eclectic soundtrack features Jarvis Cocker, Grace Jones, Ennio Morricone, Charles Aznavour and more. |
GUBAIDULINA /TARPOLSKI / REDGATE
Alexander Ivashkin Plays Gubaidulina, Tarpolski & Redgate Alexander Ivashkin (cello) [ Alma Classics / CD - released 19/Nov/2013 ] Alexander Ivashkin Plays Gubaidulina, Tarpolski & Redgate |
SERGEI PROKOFIEV
Prokofiev: Piano Sonatas Volume 2 | nos. 4, 7 & 9 Alexander Melnikov (piano) [ Harmonia Mundi / CD - released 18/Oct/2019 ] This first volume in the complete cycle must already be given pride of place in the discography," declared Classica magazine upon the release of Prokofiev's Sonatas nos. 2, 6, and 8 (awarded a "Choc" in 2016). |
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Shostakovich: The preludes and fugues Alexander Melnikov (piano) [ Harmonia Mundi / 2 CD - released 10/Apr/2015 ] "Melnikov unquestionably gives an impression of freshness and daring, as if he's discovering the music for the first time." (BBC Music Award WINNER 2011 - Instrumental) |
ALEXANDER GLAZUNOV
Glazunov: Works for Cello and Orchestra Alexander Rudin (cello) / Moscow Symphony Orchestra, Igor Golovschin [ Naxos / CD ] "I would draw your attention to the Concerto Ballata. Sweet, very Russian, and just the right amounts of melancholy and drama. Recorded only three times." Penguin Guide |
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH
Shostakovich: Symphonies, Vol 11 - Symphony No. 13, "Babi Yar" Alexander Vinogradov (bass), Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Vasily Petrenko [ Naxos / CD - released 1/Oct/2014 ] "Vasily Petrenko's generally sensational Shostakovich cycle concludes with this powerful and gripping performance of the Thirteenth Symphony. Naxos' sonics are also excellent, with particularly well-judged balances between the choir and the orchestra |
MEYERBEER / GOUNOD / J. STRAUSS JR / AUBER / OUCCINI /MASSENET / etc
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Amelia Farrugia - Joie De Vivre! Amelia Farrugia (soprano) / BBC Symphony Orchestra, Alexander Briger [ Decca Records / CD - released 2/Feb/2005 ] "...a coloratura with fine agility, a real trill, a very high extension, and an intelligent way with the texts. She also has an innate sense of rubato that can make even a chestnut-showpiece like Auber's "Laughing Song" seem like a new experience." |
FRANZ SCHUBERT
Schubert: Fantasie in F Minor & other piano duets Andreas Staier, Alexander Melnikov (fortepiano Graf by Christopher Clarke) [ Harmonia Mundi / CD - released 20/Apr/2017 ] "The Graf-style fortepiano's clarity brings out the fabulous textural richness of the F minor Fantasy's third movement and the Rondo in A, illumined by the players' lovely touches" Sunday Times |
GEORGES BIZET
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Bizet: L'Arlesienne [complete incidental music] / Jeux d'enfants Belgium Radio & Television Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir Alexander Rahbari [ Discover / CD - released 10/Feb/2013 ] Currently selling for $35 (US) on Amazon |
PYOTR Il'yich TCHAIKOVSKY
Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 2 Boris Berezovsky (piano) & Henri Demarquette (cello) Sinfonia Varsovia, Alexander Vedernikov [ Mirare / CD - released 29/Dec/2013 ] They are well played, especially the delicious Andante cantabile from the First string Quartet… the lyrical little 'Chanson triste', offer more in the way of Tchaikovskian charm. |