Dvorak: Cello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104 - CD

“The two concertos on either side of this lovely miniature, ably supported by the Philharmonia, confirm Walton as an artist with secure intuition in terms of style and with a manner of performing that speaks with natural fluency, eloquence and strength of purpose.” The Telegraph, 8th March 2013 ****

“Jamie Walton’s individual phrases are eloquently lyrical and the technical components are accomplished” The Strad, May 2013

“Walton's latest anthology for Signum once again shows him to be an impressive performer in terms of technical acumen, stylish refinement and burnished tone. The Philharmonia, too respond with beguiling poise...[the Schumann] winningly combines strength of personality, expressive reach and big-hearted sincerity.” Gramophone Magazine, June 2013

“[Brunello] plays with great spirit and no little poetry; and, if he is not the most commandingly articulate, tonally seductive or full-throated protagonist...he generates a personable rapport with Sir Antonio Pappano...it's easy to like a performance whose heart is always in the right place...The account of the New World boasts comparable virtues, being abundantly characterful, pliable and consistently involving” Gramophone Magazine, Awards Issue 2012

“Never has the New World Symphony sounded less like a jaded old warhorse than in this vital, unfailingly musical account. Not even Pappano can prevent the finale seeming a letdown, but his élan, scrupulous dynamic control and attention to detail give delight.” Sunday Times, 2nd December 2012

“It is clear from the outset that melody is uppermost in Antonio Pappano's interpretation of the New World. The opening theme is phrased with great tenderness which makes the arrival of the louder, more dynamic material of the introduction a genuine shock. This balance of drama and lyricism makes for some compelling listening in all four movements. Where it falls down is in a slightly literal approach to development.” BBC Music Magazine, January 2013 ***

“Interpretively, Pappano takes nothing for granted in the New World, phrasing with purpose, eliciting vivid, expressive colours. The slow introduction is beautiful and affecting; in the body of the first movement, Pappano infuses the music with a rhythmic buoyancy along with the customary forward drive” MusicWeb International, 10th June 2013

“Gautier Capuçon's account of the Herbert that makes the bigger impression. He captures the work's rhapsodic ambitions and the lyrical charm of its slow movement perfectly, whereas his reading of the Dvorák seems a bit withdrawn and underpowered. Anyone wanting a definitive recording of the Dvorák has plenty to choose from elsewhere, but for the Herbert this version just about has it all.” The Guardian, 6th February 2009 ***

“Gautier Capuçon gives a richly lyrical and sympathetic account of Herbert's Concerto, reaching heights of eloquence in its beguiling slow movement and revelling in the virtuosity of the latter parts of the finale.” BBC Music Magazine, March 2009 ****

“…Gautier Capuçon gives distinctive, characterful and intense performances of both works, well supported by Paavo Järvi and the Frankfurt orchestra, especially strong in its brass section. In the Dvorák the fruity-toned Frankfurt horn gives a beautiful account of the great second-subject melody... In the exposition with soloist, Capuçon takes that section a fraction faster and the result is magical. As in the Herbert the slow movement is deeply elegiac, while the incisive finale leads to a dedicated account of the beautiful epilogue.” Gramophone Magazine, April 2009

“Though the name of Victor Herbert is nowadays associated above all with Broadway musicals like Naughty Marietta, Herbert was in fact a multi-talented musician, one of the world's leading cello virtuosos of the time and the composer of two cello concertos which greatly influenced Dvorák in the United States to write his supreme masterpiece.
That makes this coupling of Dvorák's Cello Concerto with the second and finer of Herbert's an apt one, and Gautier Capuçon gives distinc- tive, characterful and intense performances of both works, well supported by Paavo Järvi and the Frankfurt orchestra, especially strong in its brass section.
In the Dvorák the fruity-toned Frankfurt horn gives a beautiful account of the great second-subject melody even though it is dangerously slow. In the exposition with soloist, Capuçon takes that section a fraction faster and the result is magical.
As in the Herbert the slow movement is deeply elegiac, while the incisive finale leads to a dedicated account of the beautiful epilogue. Altogether a version of this much-recorded work which stands comparison with any in the catalogue, made the more attractive by the coupling.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“Pieter Wispelwey… he does bring exceptional qualities to bear in a reading that has a profound sense of drama. …coupled with a splendid performance of the Symphonic Variations, this issue is a winner from many points of view.” BBC Music Magazine, November 2007 ****

“Here we have an outstanding version of Dvorák's Cello Concerto, one to rival any version in the catalogue and imaginatively coupled with the much earlier Symphonic Variations.
Pieter Wispelwey crowns his previous releases in this electrifying live recording, brilliantly accompanied by the Budapest Festival Orchestra under Iván Fischer.
It includes applause at the end of each performance, suggesting there is far less editing here than in many other live recordings. That ties in with the high-voltage performances, well recorded in atmospheric and finely detailed sound, with the soloist well balanced in the concerto.
Wispelwey's playing is marked by crisp attack and exceptionally clean articulation, and though he allows an easing for the transition into the great second-subject melody, as well as in the mysterious G sharp minor reference to it in the central development section, he keeps romantic freedom well in check.
The Wispelwey first movement climax is triumphant with the orchestra weighty in tuttis, while the slow movement finds the soloist flexible, with magical shading of pianissimi leading to the hushed close. The finale is crisp and clean, with some wonderfully ripe-sounding horns suggesting Viennese influence. The hushed epilogue is refined, leading to a powerful final cadence.
In the Symphonic Variations Fischer holds the structure cleanly together, crisply defining each of the 27 brief variations and the fugal finale. One marvels anew at Dvorák's inventive elaborations on a simple theme, on a par with the SlavonicDances. An outstanding disc.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“An outstanding cellist and a really wonderful musician” Gramophone Magazine

“The accompanying performance of the Dumky Trio is completely captivating; indeed their rendition of the four middle movements is among the finest available” BBC Music Magazine

“what really makes this disc a winner is a thoroughly exciting reading of the Dumky Trio… There's a clarity and intelligence in this performance that puts it up with the very best.” The Independent on Sunday (Outstanding)