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See Terms & Conditions for p&p rates. | |  | Stephen Hough's French Album
Exquis! Stephen Hough presents an enchanting programme of French music, played with the filigree perfection and total command of the music’s expressive world that make him one of the most admired pianists of today. In typical Houghian style this recital is full of surprises and lesser-known gems from the repertoire, as well as works by the masters Fauré, Ravel, Debussy and Poulenc. A particular delight is Hough’s own arrangement of the Massenet song Crépuscule, a ravishing exercise in creative yet faithful transcription. This release is both a tribute to the lyric genius which flowered in nineteenth- and twentieth-century France, and a glimpse into the musical mind of a great pianist. “His latest album recital is among the most enjoyable. “A sort of musical dessert trolley,” he calls it — a trolley where you want to eat everything in sight...The Fauré selections best display Hough’s connoisseur’s touch...The lighter French spirit surfaces in Hough’s own arrangements of Délibes and Massenet, delivered with delicious wit and grace.” The Times, 31st August 2012 **** “it's a superlative performance [of Alborada del gracioso] by any standards, including repeated notes that turn me green with envy.” BBC Music Magazine, October 2012 *** “personal touches make Hough the artist he is, but I can imagine some musical Francophiles balking at his free interpretation of Fauré’s D flat Nocturne, and more so at his eccentric Debussy (Clair de lune). Yet there are compensations aplenty: Ravel’s Alborada del gracioso and Fauré’s F sharp minor Impromptu are glitteringly played.” Sunday Times, 2nd September 2012 “a substantial feast of of masterly pianism...Hough can be too coolly objective at times but in this repertoire, perhaps paradoxically, the expressive simplicity of his playing can make your eyes burn. In Clair de lune and Chaminade's once ubiquitous Automne, now rarely heard, Hough conjures up a heart-catching melancholy that put me in mind of Cherkassy. I can't offer higher praise.” Gramophone Magazine, Awards Issue 2012 “[Hough’s] one of those keyboard polymaths who’s at home in whatever music he chooses to play, invariably casting new light on the familiar in the process. And the better-known items here do delight...But you’ll want this for the rarities...playing and recording are beyond reproach.” The Arts Desk, 6th October 2012 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Fauré - Piano Music
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| |  | Fauré: Thème & Variations & Barcarolles
Giulio Biddau is a young Sardinian pianist who has studied with Aldo Ciccolini, who suggested that he record the complete Barcarolles by Gabriel Fauré. Biddau adds to that the little-recorded, ‘Theme and Variations’. Winner of Spedidam in Aix-en-Provence, Giulio appears regularly on major European stages. This is the first hard evidence of his exceptional qualities, a great pianist of tomorrow. “Biddau's recording is as lovely as the pieces deserve. His tone is liquescent, yet his touch is firm - a happy combination in this context, as when his fingerwork controls the occasional sprays of pianistic fioritura that Faure writes. He also seems to understand the subtle, sometimes elusive quality of Faure's inspiration.” International Record Review, June 2012 | | | Usually despatched in 3 - 4 working days. |
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| |  | Fauré: The Complete Barcarolles & Trois Romances Sans Paroles
Following a critically acclaimed recording of Fauré’s Complete Nocturnes (AV2133), Charles Owen surveys the composer’s Complete Barcarolles, uniquely coupled with Trois Romances sans paroles. Pianist Charles Owens follows a critically acclaimed release of Fauré’s popular Nocturnes (AV2133) with a relative rarity – a complete survey of the composer’s Barcarolles uniquely coupled with Trois Romances sans paroles, Fauré’s first published works for piano. The Barcarolles straddle the turn of the 20th century and span a four-decade period, from 1880 – 1921. The works’ dedicatees were a veritable roll call of Parisian musical elite. Though written and published separately, they hang together well through their combination of mystery, humanity and inner poetry. Yet it is a rare pianist who plays all thirteen, a bill that Charles Owen lives up to brilliantly. “These are the urbane descendants of Chopin's pianistic brilliants, gentlemanly and understated. Charles Owen's beautifully judged and articulated performance deftly reveals the intricacy of Fauré's craft without loss of line, from the seemingly carefree balletic shimmer of the 1885 G flat major to the darker harmonies of the 1915 E flat major.” The Independent on Sunday, 3rd July 2011 “Owen is the least insistent or interventionalist of pianists. He never invests the music with undue weight or significance. His performances glide gracefully, often in near strict tempo on their own momentum, quite without distortion or idiosyncrasy.” Gramophone Magazine, September 2011 “Fauré's piano music is at last emerging in its full measure of energy and brilliance. Charles Owen buys enthusiastically into this truer picture of the music...On the technical front Owen is absolutely secure, with fine observation of the music's often multiple layering” BBC Music Magazine, September 2011 **** “Owens gives beautifully measured accounts of these charming works, enjoying the lavishness of the writing but carefully teasing out the all-important melodies with a silver spoon. He makes enterprising use of the pedals, and the colour evinced in Nos. 1, 3 and 6 are particularly charismatic.” International Record Review, September 2011 | | | Usually despatched in 4 - 5 working days. |
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Like Chopin’s Barcarolles, Fauré’s work shows equal measures of limpidity and gravity, brightness and great depth. Delphine Bardin started playing the piano at the age of five and went on to study piano as a graduate at the Paris Conservatory under Pierre-Laurent Aimard, and chamber music under Christian Ivaldi. In 1997 she won the Clara Haskil prize, one of the most prestigious piano competitions in the world. Numerous solo engagements followed including invitations from Birmingham, Carnegie Hall, the Concertgebouw, the Wigmore Hall and the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. Since then, Delphine Bardin has been travelling the world both as a chamber musician and soloist. She has also formed two duos: one with the cellist Ophélie Gaillard and another with Sarah Louvion, flute soloist with the Frankfurt Opera. She also regularly plays quintet concert programmes with the Benaïm Quartet. “Delphine Bardin's performances show an admirable and recognisably French clarity and taste...The playing is lucid and clear” Gramophone Magazine, September 2010 | | | (also available to download from $10.50) | Usually despatched in 4 - 5 working days. (Available now to download.) |
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| |  | Belle EpoqueA portrait of Gabriel Fauré
Fauré: | Barcarolle No. 6 in E flat major Op. 70 Nocturne No. 6 in D flat major, Op. 63 Pavane, Op. 50 arr. Roy Howat and Wendy Hiscocks Thème & Variations, Op. 73 Barcarolle No. 5 in F sharp minor Op. 66 Nocturne No. 1 in E flat minor, Op. 33 No. 1 Mazurka, Op. 32 Barcarolle No. 7 in D minor Op. 90 Nocturne No. 9 in B minor, Op. 97 Barcarolle No. 8 in D flat major Op. 96 Nocturne No. 12 in E minor, Op. 107 Souvenirs de Bayreuth Quadrille on popular motifs from Wagner's Ring, composed in collaboration with André Messager Air de danse from Caligula, Op. 52 Premier recording of original piano duet Dolly Suite, Op. 56 Nocturne No. 4 in E flat major Op. 36 Piece en forme de Mazurka Premiere recording Prelude Premiere recording Pièces brèves (8), Op. 84 Nocturne No. 5 in B flat major, Op. 37 Sicilienne, Op. 78 Nocturne No. 7 in C sharp minor, Op. 74 Barcarolle No. 4 in A flat major Op. 44 Nocturne No. 10 in E minor, Op. 99 Nocturne No. 13 in B minor, Op. 119 |
Roy Howat (piano) with Emily Kilpatrick (piano) 2CDs for price of 1 This exquisite collection benefits from Roy Howat’s dedicated scholarship and performance of French music and with duo partner Emily Kilpatrick illuminates Fauré’s piano music, beautifully portraying the elegance and lyricism that was the Belle Epoque. Includes three world premieres. “Stripping away the precious aura of roses and incense...Howat notes the composer's preference for strict tempos, many of which are brisker here than usual...An original concept album, then, that wears its erudition lightly; one that I will return to with great enjoyment many times.” BBC Music Magazine, April 2010 **** | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | Souvenirs of Venice and Naples
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Pierre-Alain Volondat (piano) “Volondat displays poetry and sensitivity, adding introversion or passion as appropriate. With more Faure and works by Franck and Dukas to come, Volondat promises to be a valuable addition to the Naxos stable.” BBC Music Magazine | | | (also available to download from $6.00) | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. (Available now to download.) |
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Gramophone Magazine