Ann Murray

Interpretation of Poulenc's songs never stands still. But this recording reminds us of the impetus these artists gave to this repertoire, both in sound and imagination. — BBC Music Magazine, November 2011, 5 out of 5 stars More…

Another lovely evening in an imaginary salon…a plurality of voices evokes a gathering of friends taking turns…At the heart of the disc, Lorna Anderson’s stillness in Le secret is utterly entrancing,... — BBC Music Magazine, December 2017, 4 out of 5 stars More…

Thomas Allen's delivery of [La bestiare] is suave and secure. In both cycles, Julian Bliss's clarinet playing stands out for silkiness of tone...Catherine Wyn-Rogers finds a steely sensuality... — BBC Music Magazine, October 2015, 4 out of 5 stars More…

This well-filled two-CD set is surely the most wide-ranging single issue of Gounod's mélodies.
The first of the discs confirms the commonly held view of Gounod. Almost without exception the... — Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010 More…

In this cycle of dusk and shadows there are two or three songs that always seem to elude a bright, lyric soprano; and for all her beauty of voice and care for phrasing, Royal doesn't quite catch... — Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010 More…

In the piano pieces and songs alike, Johnson plays with luminous tone and a natural feeling for Schumannesque rubato. And as ever, his sleeve notes alone are worth the price of the disc — The Telegraph More…

Abetted by Johnson's lucid pianism, the singers nicely judge the scale and character of their allotted songs. Susan Gritton, her timbre, richer and more flavoursome than a decade ago, is equally... — Gramophone Magazine, July 2006 More…

The concept of the series mixes singers from different generations – all of them British – which provides a vivid palette of colours for the superb pianist Malcolm Martineau to play with. Everybody... — BBC Music Magazine, October 2021, 4 out of 5 stars More…