New Release Round-up,
New Release Round-Up - 25th May 2018
Bartók and Kodály from Jakub Hrůša and the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, CPE Bach from Jean-Guihen Queyras and Ensemble Resonanz, Sibelius and Rachmaninov songs from Jacques Imbrailo and Alasdair Hogarth, and boxed sets dedicated to Rafael Kubelík and Jiří Bělohlávek.
For his first recording with the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Czech conductor tackles two twentieth-century concertos for orchestra by Hungarian composers: Bartók’s folk-inspired masterpiece from 1943 and Kodály’s less familiar baroque-influenced work from four years earlier.
Available Formats: SACD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
The French cellist joins the 18-strong string ensemble (currently artists-in-residence at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg) for CPE Bach’s Cello Concertos Nos. 1 and 3; both soloist and ensemble perform on modern instruments, and the G major Symphony Wq.173 is sandwiched between the two concertos.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
The Royal Wedding: The Official Album
Elin Manahan Thomas (soprano), David Blackadder (trumpet), Sheku Kanneh-Mason (cello), Choir Of St. George's Chapel, Windsor
The complete marriage service of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, including Elin Manahan Thomas and David Blackadder’s performance of Handel’s Eternal Source of Light Divine, Sheku Kanneh-Mason playing Fauré’s Après un rêve, the Choir of St George’s Chapel Windsor singing Tallis’s If ye love me and Rutter’s The Lord bless you and keep you, and The Kingdom Choir in Stand by me.
Available Formats: MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Bach: Dialogue Cantatas, BWV 32, 49 & 57
Sophie Karthäuser (soprano), Michael Volle (bass), Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, Raphael Alpermann
Mozart and baroque specialist Karthäuser and acclaimed Wagnerian Volle are well contrasted in these three sacred dialogues: Liebster Jesu, mein Verlangen (for the first Sunday after Epiphany), Selig ist der Mann (for the Second Day of Christmas), and Ich geh und suche mit Verlangen (for the twentieth Sunday after Trinity).
Available Formats: MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
The South African baritone (who sprung to fame in the title-role of Billy Budd at Glyndebourne and created the role of Horatio in Brett Dean’s Hamlet) has appeared alongside Hogarth on numerous recordings with The Prince Consort; for their first recital-disc together, they explore well-known songs such as Rachmaninov’s Lilacs and Sibelius’s Säf, säf, Susa with lesser-known gems by both composers.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Rameau: Naïs
Chantal Santon-Jeffery, Reinoud Van Mechelen, Florian Sempey; Purcell Choir, Orfeo Orchestra, György Vashegyi
Following their superb recordings of Les Fêtes de Polymnie (‘essential listening for all Ramistes’ - Opera Magazine) and the ‘Versailles entertainment’ Un opéra pour trois rois, the Hungarian conductor and his Budapest-based ensemble tackle Rameau’s ‘pastorale héroïque’ from 1749, which tells of the god Neptune’s attempts to win the love of the fortune-teller Tiresias’s daughter Naïs.
Available Formats: 2 CDs, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Bruckner: Symphony No. 8 & Messiaen: Couleurs de la Cité Céleste
Pierre-Laurent Aimard (piano), London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Simon Rattle
Recorded live at the Barbican in April 2016, this performance of Bruckner 8 prompted The Guardian to declare that ‘Rattle absolutely grasps the sense of personal and tonal struggle that is fundamental to this symphony’. Pierre-Laurent Aimard (currently in the news for his complete recording of Catalogue d’Oiseaux) is the soloist in Couleurs de la cité celeste - see below for Katherine’s interview with him in which he describes the work as one of Messiaen’s most influential scores.
Available Format: DVD Video + Blu-ray
Recollection: Jiří Bělohlávek
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Prague Philharmonia, Brno Philharmonic Orchestra, Jiří Bělohlávek
Recorded between 1971 and 2016, this 8-CD tribute to the great Czech conductor (who died on 1st June last year) includes much of his signature repertoire such as Smetana’s Má Vlast, Dvořák’s New World Symphony, and Janáček’s Taras Bulba and Sinfonietta and numerous works by Martinů, whose music he championed throughout his career.
Available Format: 8 CDs
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