Prices shown exclude VAT. (UK tax is not payable for deliveries to United States.)
See Terms & Conditions for p&p rates. | |  | The Romantic Piano Concerto 56 - Kalkbrenner 2 & 3
Howard Shelley (piano & conductor) Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra If the name Friedrich Kalkbrenner is familiar at all, it’s probably for his famous suggestion that Chopin would benefit from three years of study with him (a bold offer the Pole wisely turned down). But, as Hyperion’s ever-expanding Romantic Piano Concerto series has repeatedly shown, received historical opinion and musical quality don’t always go hand in hand. With Volume 56 we reach the second and final instalment of Kalkbrenner’s concertos, dazzlingly played by Howard Shelley, directing the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra from the keyboard. For all that Kalkbrenner wasn’t afraid to write big, bold orchestral introductions, it’s when the pianist makes his entry that you realize what a jawdropping player he must have been, with writing of such glittering, glistening panache that it must have had those polite salon ladies reaching for their smelling salts. “Shelley attacks it all with gleeful extravagance. He is also directing the Tasmanian Symphony from the piano as he plays music of often atrocious difficulty, which is something of a tour de force in itself. It's great fun, just not great music.” The Guardian, 8th March 2012 *** “what is remarkable about Howard Shelley's performances is the insight they offer into the era itself...Shelley is a formidable presence both as soloist and conductor. Yes, he has the technique and dexterity to play this music; but he also understands how to make the most of the orchestral writing...There's a considerable grace to his playing too - his immersion in repertoire of this period has given him an innate understanding of what makes it tick” Gramophone Magazine, May 2012 | 
| | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | The Romantic Piano Concerto 55 - Widor
Markus Becker (piano) BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Thierry Fischer Charles-Marie Widor was born in Lyon to a family of organ builders and consequently became an organist of great skill and an assistant to Camille Saint-Saëns at La Madeleine in Paris at the age of twenty-four. Today, Widor’s compositions for organ have a prominent position in the instrument’s core repertoire, but it is often forgotten that the composer wrote many other significant works, notably his two piano concertos. Surprisingly, these are the first recordings of the concertos and are a much-awaited addition to the numerous world premiere recordings featured in Hyperion’s Romantic Piano Concerto series, now reaching its 55th volume and still unearthing little-known works to consistently dazzling effect. Following the success of his renditions of the Draeseke and Jadassohn concertos, pianist Markus Becker makes a welcome return to the series. The BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the remarkable Thierry Fischer more than do justice to Widor’s imaginative orchestrations. “In between [the Concertos] comes the Fantasie for piano and orchestra (1889), a thematically taut score that finds Roscoe and Yates in imaginative dialogue. Highly recommended, this should secure Widor's reputation amongst non-organists at last.” BBC Music Magazine, January 2012 **** | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | The Romantic Piano Concerto 54 - Somervell & Cowen
Martin Roscoe (piano) BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Martyn Brabbins The three world premiere recordings featured here comprise the complete works for piano and orchestra by both composers (an early student concerto by Cowen appears lost). In his day Cowen was a hugely successful contemporary of Stanford and Parry and it is surprising that his music has not yet been revived on disc. The Concertstück was written in 1897 for Padereswki, who gave the premiere to much acclaim. The work is notable for its orchestral colour and a great understanding of virtuoso piano writing and reveals what a master of his art the composer was. Sir Arthur Somervell is best known for his songs and he wrote comparatively little orchestral music. The ‘Normandy’ symphonic variations were premiered in 1913 by the great scholar and pianist Donald Francis Tovey who did much to champion them. The ‘Highland’ concerto is a late work (dating from 1921) which was never published and has consequently been almost forgotten. It was written for, and premiered by, the Scottish pianist Jessie Munro and is an uncomplicated and enjoyable romp based on Scottish-sounding themes which are nevertheless original Somervell. It may not be profound music but once heard, will certainly never be forgotten. Martin Roscoe and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra are on scintillating form throughout. An entertaining addition to the renowned Romantic Piano Concerto catalogue. “Martin Roscoe does an impressive job with the fistfuls of notes.” The Guardian, 25th August 2011 *** “Beyond his customary grace and lucid phrasing, Martin Roscoe dispatches the often taxing writing with stylish élan, while the indefatigible Martyn Brabbins once again leads the wonderful (and underrated) BBC Scottish players in three world premiere recordings that sound as if they've been a much-loved part of their repertoire for years” Gramophone Magazine, Awards Issue 2011 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | The Romantic Piano Concerto 53 - Reger & Strauss
Marc-André Hamelin (piano) Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Ilan Volkov The Reger concerto has a formidable reputation – dense, harmonically complex and with far too many notes for the average pianist. Who better then to decipher it than Marc-André Hamelin? In his hands this rarely recorded behemoth reveals both passion and a lyricism so often lost in lesser performances. He is wonderfully partnered by Ilan Volkov and the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester who share the pianist’s desire to elucidate an often misunderstood work. While the Reger concerto comes from the end of his career, the Strauss Burleske is a product of that composer’s prodigious youth. This ebullient work has long been a Hamelin ‘party-piece’, and he plays it with an unmatched brilliance which surely captures the essence of this humorous music and will have the listener on the edge of his seat. “even Serkin would surely have marvelled at Hamelin's stunning authority. While an easy majority of pianists would run for cover when faced with such sheerly physical demands, Hamelin relishes every challenge, clarifying and refining Reger's potential for opacity at every point. His first entry, like a thunderclap, makes you leap to attention but so too does his expressive beauty in the subsequent molto tranquillo.” Gramophone Magazine, May 2011 “One of Hamelin's greatest virtues...is his uncanny and apparently effortless ability, in music of this sort, to bring focus to the main lines - and to do so not by playing down the secondary elements but by making sure that they all contribute, harmonically and especially rhythmically...for all the searing virtuosity, this performance [of the Strauss] is even more notable for its with than for its fireworks...Interplay with the orchestra is exceptionally adroit.” International Record Review, April 2011 “A debt to Brahms is acknowledged in both these pieces, brilliantly played by Marc-André Hamelin, who battles manfully through the emotional thicket of Max Reger's sprawling, dramatic piano concerto...Richard Strauss's mercurial Burleske makes a pleasant antidote to Reger's high seriousness, with the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra in cracking form.” The Observer, 13th April 2011 “this is one of the most lucid, as well as passionate, readings of the [Reger] I have heard. Hamelin never makes the deep left-hand bass writing in the first movement sound heavy, and he plays the very full chords as crisply as they demand...Hamelin gives one of the most stylish and elegant accounts of [the Strauss] I've heard” BBC Music Magazine, May 2011 **** “Both performances are formidable. Marc-André Hamelin does powerhouse things with the Reger, and is notably harrowing in the great central largo. The skittish charm with which he plays the Burleske, meanwhile, belies its often atrocious difficulty. Ilan Volkov and the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra are first rate.” The Guardian, 5th May 2011 ***** “The Reger concerto is regarded as difficult to master with its massive harmonic challenges, but Hamelin dispatches it with aplomb. Richard Strauss’ Burleske, though, is the real treat here...Pianist and conductor present it with both charm and efficiency.” london24.com, 17th June 2011 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | The Romantic Piano Concerto 50 – Tchaikovsky
Stephen Hough (piano) Minnesota Orchestra, Osmo Vänskä The Romantic Piano Concerto series reaches Volume 50. This series has been described as a jewel in Hyperion’s crown and one of the glories of the recording industry. Rarely in the history of recorded music has such a rich seam of undiscovered delights been mined to such consistently dazzling effect. These first fifty volumes include 131 works for piano and orchestra: fifty-nine of these works are premiere recordings and many other featured works have only been recorded once before. The performers include some of the greatest pianists, orchestras and conductors in the world, and each disc in itself is a miracle of virtuosity, scholarship and musicianship. For Volume 50, a stellar cast has been assembled for a two-disc set that includes, unusually, one of the most famous concertos in the repertoire. Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No 1 has certainly achieved warhorse status—but in the expert hands of Stephen Hough it is a new creature. With the rest of this fascinating two-disc set we are in more usual RPC territory, with music which is actually not widely known. This is a complete survey of Tchaikovsky’s music for piano and orchestra and includes alternative versions of the second movement of Piano Concerto No 2 as well as some delicious extras. Stephen Hough performed all four concertos at the BBC Proms in 2009 and was described as ‘the epitome of a “golden age” virtuoso with his balletic elegance and dazzling rhythmic reflexes’ (The Independent). Armed with this inestimably important experience, he travelled to Minnesota to record the set live with the Minnesota Orchestra under their acclaimed conductor Osmo Vänskä. The result is a set of unique importance: a winning combination of a pianist at the zenith of his artistry, a world-class orchestra and director, a pre-eminent producer and engineer, repertoire both familiar and unknown, and packaged with even more than the usual care that customers have come to expect from Hyperion. 2 compact discs, with slipcase and series catalogue “Anyone who heard Stephen Hough's barnstorming performances of all the Tchaikovsky piano concertos at last year's Proms will want to own these CDs...Captured live, they recreate all the raw excitement of those memorable evenings at the Albert Hall.” The Observer, 21st March 2010 “His ability to strip off the layers of varnish from a work so that it recaptures much of its startling freshness is remarkable, and his combination of bravura swagger and the most fastidious care with line and texture is utterly convincing.” The Guardian, 25th March 2010 ***** “With Hough at the keys, the First Concerto becomes no warhorse taken for a dutiful trot but a freshly imagined masterpiece bouncing with surprises and invention...But it’s the set’s lesser pieces that offer the most revelations.” The Times, 26th March 2010 “The old warhorse comes up as fresh as paint. Even with 130 alternatives on the market, this is an exceptional reading with brisk tempi and subtle nuances...giving special pleasure...This is a great recording - no doubt about that - and one which, if there is any justice, will garner any number of awards.” Gramophone Magazine, May 2010 “Hough typically refuses to treat it as an overworked warhorse: here it is injected with exhilaration, the bravura tempered with limpid lyricism.” The Telegraph, 7th April 2010 **** “Both soloist and conductor seem committed to emphasising the architectural integrity of Tchaikovsky's musical thinking...Yet by keeping things moving and delivering performances that project an exceptionally high level of adrenaline, Hough brings a much greater degree of coherence” BBC Music Magazine, May 2010 ***** “Sparks fly thanks to his outstanding conductor, who clearly empathises with Hough’s refusal to lay on the romantic rubato with a trowel....He makes the strongest possible case for the restoration of the neglected and often reviled G major concerto” Sunday Times, 25th April 2010 ***** | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | The Romantic Piano Concerto 49 – Stenhammar
Seta Tanyel (piano) Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Manze Welcome to a genuinely outstanding disc in the Romantic Piano Concerto series. Sometimes the works found along the unfrequented byways of the Romantic piano tradition can exhibit no more than surface brilliance, but that cannot be said of these two splendid concertos by Stenhammar, recorded for the first time together on one CD. The original orchestration of Stenhammar’s Piano Concerto No 1 is recorded here: a version which was long thought lost when the publishers were bombed during the second world war – a copy of the original was discovered in the Library of Congress in 1983. The twenty-two year old’s Opus 1 is a masterpiece, majestic and virtuosic at its opening; bringing the listener into a world of Nordic mystery at the start of the third movement; the finale ending with music of sad, reflective sweetness. The second concerto is a distinctly different work, with an novel, some have said ‘improvised’, structure, and a sense of tension between soloist and orchestra which is only resolved in the glorious virtuosic finale. Hyperion is delighted to present the distinguished musician Andrew Manze in his new incarnation as a conductor. Directing the Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra, he is truly a force to be reckoned with. Pianist Seta Tanyel has featured on previous RPC recordings, always gaining the highest critical acclaim; however her magnificent playing on this new disc transcends her previous achievements. “Wilhelm Stenhammar's two piano concertos are astonishing works, and their neglect outside the composer's native Sweden is shameful...The performances, bigger in scope and scale than any we've heard before, are exceptional. The soloist is Seta Tanyel, formidable in her declamatory intensity and lyrical weight. Andrew Manze, meanwhile, conducts with steely commitment.” The Guardian, 13th November 2009 ***** “Manze was a shrewd choice of conductor, as was Seta Tanyel as soloist, a pianist whose lyrical grace is matched by a no-holds-barred bravura…” Gramophone Magazine, January 2010 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | The Romantic Piano Concerto 48 - Benedict & Macfarren
Howard Shelley (piano and conductor) Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra With Volume 48 of our groundbreaking Romantic Piano Concerto series we reach very uncharted territory indeed. Sir Julius Benedict has been all but forgotten today but he is yet another composer who gives the lie to the idea that Britain was ‘a land without music’ in the nineteenth century. Though born in Germany, Benedict settled in London in 1835, having already established a career as composer and pianist on the continent. He arrived in a city which had been the pianistic centre of Europe for the previous thirty years (though that role was shortly thereafter lost to Paris and the new generation of Romantic composers we remember today) and was soon performing his two concertinos in A flat and E flat, the latter work later being expanded into the E flat concerto recorded here. The C minor concerto was to follow in 1850. Both works are very much in the tradition of Hummel, of whom Benedict was a pupil, and combine brilliant virtuosity with an easy lyricism. The even-more-forgotten Walter Macfarren was the brother of better-known George, an early Principal of the Royal Academy of Music. Walter was for many years a piano professor there, his pupils including Matthay and Henry Wood. His music is very much in the style of Mendelssohn and his Concertstück proves to be a very attractive work which could easily pass as one by the greater master. “While Julius Benedict's two concertos are hardly profound, they burst with glittering opportunities for the pianist and heaps of charming melody, while Henry Wood's piano teacher, Walter Macfarren, produced a refined Mendelssohnian rhapsody in his Concertstück.” The Observer, 2nd August 2009 “Neither of these concertos reaches profound regions, yet both contain arrestingly characterful and lovely things. Benedict’s aim is to dazzle his listeners with dashing brilliance, according to the ethos of the time. Walter Macfarren’s Concertstuck, his only surviving work for piano and orchestra, shows an easy gift for flowing melody. Shelley is a beguiling player of all of these — fresh, fluent, lucid, suave and never tempted to oversell.” Sunday Times, 26th July 2009 **** “Pianophiles and collectors of rarities will gravitate to this beautifully performed disc. It’s a tour-de-force of pianism-plus-directing from Howard Shelley” Classic FM Magazine “Howard Shelley, conducting from the keyboard, produces blistering accounts of the solo parts, and his Tasmanians play their hearts out. The recorded sound is fine, too. Recommended with every enthusiasm: 70 minutes of unalloyed pleasure” International Record Review | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | The Romantic Piano Concerto 47 - Jadassohn & Draeseke
Markus Becker (piano) Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Michael Sanderling Though barely remembered now, both Salomon Jadassohn and Felix Draeseke were major figures in German musical life in the second half of the 19th century. Both began their studies at the conservative Leipzig Conservatory but after independently encountering Liszt and his work at Weimar in the 1850s both became disciples of that composer and the New German School he established. Jadassohn subsequently returned to Leipzig where he composed and had a long and distinguished teaching career, his pupils including Delius, Grieg and Busoni, while Draeseke finally ended up in Dresden teaching at the Conservatory there. In a further paralleling of lives, both composers’ concertos were written at almost the same time—Draeseke’s sole example in 1886 and Jadassohn’s two the following year. All three are expertly crafted and feature wonderfully idiomatic piano writing, as one would expect of Liszt pupils. Stylistically they show their links both to Liszt’s single movement forms (Jadassohn 1) and also to more traditional models. While not ground-breaking these are thoroughly enjoyable examples of the genre and one must question why the Jadassohn works in particular, which have truly memorable themes, have been so completely forgotten. We are delighted to welcome Markus Becker in his first concerto recording for Hyperion; expect more soon! “…an enjoyable disc for those who would explore the unfrequented byways of Romanticism.” BBC Music Magazine, June 2009 **** “Hyperion's A-team for concertos (Andrew Keener and Simon Eadon) is on top form, while the Berlin orchestra and Michael Sanderling provide crisp support for the sparkling and industrious Markus Becker who leaves the impression not only of having an affection for the three works but also that he has been playing them all his life.” Gramophone Magazine, May 2009 “These pieces, which burst with less than memorable tunes and lashings of showy arpeggios, are played with admirable swagger by Markus Becker and are a welcome addition to Hyperion's exhaustive study of the romantic piano concerto” The Observer, 1st March 2009 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | The Romantic Piano Concerto 46 - York Bowen
Danny Driver (piano) BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Martyn Brabbins Hyperion’s virtually single-handed rehabilitation of the music of York Bowen (known in his time as ‘The English Rachmaninov’), continues apace with this recording of the third and fourth piano concertos. Piano Concerto No 3 is a vigorous one-movement work with three well-defined sections of varying tempos in Fantasia style. Bowen’s sparkling performances of it drew plaudits from contemporary critics, who hailed it as his best composition thus far. The Piano Concerto No 4 (said by Sorabji to be the greatest work for piano and orchestra ever written by an Englishman) is a large-scale Romantic, virtuoso work, impressionistic solo passages alternating freely with Straussian orchestral textures throughout. It was written for a BBC broadcast, and for the composer himself to perform; Bowen considered the work his best composition for the piano and an important addition to the concerto literature. It has not been given a studio recording until now. The young British pianist Danny Driver, a Bowen specialist, gives a virtuoso performance with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under Martyn Brabbins. ‘Driver boasts an impressive technique and a clear musical intelligence’ (The Observer) ‘Danny Driver is a thoughtful and musical player and the possessor of a formidable technique … [his] control of dynamic and phrasing were exceptional’ (Musical Opinion) ‘Driver has all the makings of becoming a notable musician—one of integrity and intelligence, commodities all too rare … his naturalness, thinking, and understatement reminded, respectively, of Lupu, Brendel and Curzon’ (The Classical Source) “Danny Driver… Brabbins and the punchy Scottish players play Bowen as if he were standard repertoire with the added zest of a live performance. The 1908 four-movements-in-one Third Concerto… with its surging climaxes and souring themes, offers 17 minutes of instant gratification... The much longer... Fourth Concerto (1937) is generally darker in character, no less attractive but even more rewarding. The writing veers between magical impressionism and passionate bravura outburst couched in Straussian orchestral textures. Thrilling stuff.” Gramophone Magazine, November 2008 “The Fourth Concerto of 1937 tells a stronger story. The first movement's smouldering opening at once impresses - as does its recall at the end of the finale, memorably combined with that movement's own themes. The second movement, too, has some wonderful lyrical flights. Danny Driver's pianism is fully and eagerly up to Bowen's considerable demands. He is supported by the BBC Scottish Orchestra's vivid and satisfying contribution.” BBC Music Magazine, March 2009 **** “Soloist Danny Driver emerges as the virtuoso hero of the hour” Classic FM Magazine “Absolutely stunning … what a way to be introduced to the music of York Bowen!” American Record Guide “This disc is the latest and arguably the most impressive so far in the continuing resuscitation of the music of London-born composer-pianist York Bowen (1884–1961).’These two concertos sound more Continental than English, with the single-movement Third (1908) betraying the influence of
Saint-Saëns and the more substantial Fourth (1937) having a Debussy-meets-Strauss late-Romantic palette. Both, though, have enough scintillating character of their own to reward repeated listening, while Danny Driver’s performances are masterly, stylish and full of dazzling pianism” The Telegraph “Sorabji, in the final essay of Mi Contra Fa, declared York Bowen to be 'at the present time [1947], the one English composer whose work can justly be said to be that of a great Master of the [piano]'. Hearing these two works, it's hard to deny that Sorabji had a point.
It takes a particular kind of pianistic sensibility to take up Bowen's virtuoso challenges and 'sell' them. Danny Driver certainly lives up to his surname. He, Brabbins and the punchy Scottish players play Bowen as if he were standard repertoire with the added zest of a live performance.
The 1908 four-movements-in-one Third Concerto (aka Fantasia), with its surging climaxes and soaring themes, offers 17 minutes of instant gratification, though it's a pity Hyperion did not provide separate tracks for the work's distinct sections.
The much longer (42'53”) Fourth Concerto (1937) is generally darker in character, no less attractive but even more rewarding. The writing veers between magical impressionism and passionate bravura outbursts couched in Straussian orchestral textures. Thrilling stuff. Driver, again, is firmly in the spotlight. This is his first recording for Hyperion. Here's to many more, including his planned complete York Bowen sonatas.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010 “Danny Driver communicates energetic enjoyment in playing both concertos” The Guardian, 31st October 2008 *** | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |  | The Romantic Piano Concerto 45 - Ferdinand Hiller
Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Howard Shelley (piano/conductor) The Romantic Piano Concerto series continues to bring undiscovered works to the listening public, performed by the greatest piano virtuosos of today. The composer Hiller was admired by Schumann, who described him as the exemplar of ‘how to combine orchestra and piano in brilliant fashion’. One of the most imposing musical personalities of the nineteenth century, close friends with the likes of Rossini, Liszt, Berlioz and particularly Mendelssohn, Hiller was nevertheless largely forgotten less than twenty years after his death as musical fashion changed. The Second Concerto is a genuine forgotten masterpiece, and Hyperion has been looking for the right opportunity to record it for many years. The First and Third concertos are both first recordings, and indeed the Third was never published. A combination of the appealing and the unknown makes this a classic RPC disc. Howard Shelley is a veteran of the Romantic Piano Concerto series. He conducts the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra here from the piano. “Once more, one has to take off one's hat to Howard Shelley for leading such exuberant performances while simultaneously tackling demanding keyboard writing with amazing agility, innate elegance and complete stylistic empathy.” Gramophone Magazine, June 2008 “This must rate as one of the more successful of Hyperion's prodigal disinterments of Romantic Piano Concertos. Howard Shelley's brilliant and stylish playing … gives full value to the lyrical elements.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2008 ***** “These dextrous and remarkably self-confident concertos … are studded with delights … as a pianist, Hiller was known for his delicate touch—and Shelley reflects that characteristic in the breathtaking finesse of his playing. At the same time, there’s plenty of bravura here, too, which Shelley handles with enviable technical panache …
all in all, another triumph in this ear-opening series” International Record Review “History can be a cruel judge, for it is hard to dismiss such a confident, superbly crafted piece as the F sharp minor (Second) Concerto of 1843.
It is one of the gems of the genre, the first to be written in that key and with many surprising features such as the soloist kicking off proceedings fiercely and without any introduction, the written-out cadenza opening with a subsidiary rather than principal theme, and the birdsong figuration and unusual left-hand rhythmic accompaniment in the andante espressivo.
Piano Conerto No 1 (1831) is a brilliant display vehicle in the Parisian manner of the day which, however, owes more to Chopin and Moscheles (its dedicatee) than Herz or Kalkbrenner.
In No 3 (1874), presumed lost until recently, Hiller again strives to be innovative in terms of structure and handling of material, keeping his soloist fully occupied despite the work's subtitle and dominant character. Inferior they may be to No 2 but, especially in perfor- mances like these, well worth hearing.
Once more, one has to take off one's hat to Howard Shelley for leading such exuberant performances while simultaneously tackling demanding keyboard writing with amazing agility, innate elegance and complete stylistic empathy.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
|
|
| |
|
Gramophone Awards 2011
Gramophone Magazine