New Release Round-up,
New Release Round-Up - 9th August 2024
Following their multi-award-nominated set of the complete Sibelius symphonies and a widely acclaimed recent concerto recording with Janine Jansen, the Norwegian orchestra and their Chief Conductor turn to a composer whose music has been central to their relationship since before his official appointment. In a four-star review yesterday, The Guardian's Andrew Clements singled out the 'beautifully controlled and paced' account of the Sixth (Mäkelä's favourite Shostakovich symphony) as the highlight.
Available Formats: 2 CDs, MP3, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV
As well as two works which Bliss composed for brass band (Kenilworth and The Belmont Variations), this album includes three new arrangements of works which were originally scored for other forces: Robert Childs’s suite from the ballet Adam Zero, and Michael Halstenson’s arrangements of Welcome the Queen & music from The Royal Palaces. The recording was recently praised in The Guardian for the band's 'authoritative, atmospheric and virtuosic' playing under its honorary president.
Available Formats: SACD, MP3, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV
This third instalment of the Sitkovetsky's Beethoven series couples the Op. 1 No. 1 trio (published in 1795 and dedicated to Prince Lichnowsky) with the 'Ghost' Trio from fifteen years later; the programme is rounded off by cellist Isang Enders's arrangement of the Ukrainian Cossack folksong 'Schöne Minka, ich muß scheiden', which Beethoven included in his 29 Songs of Various Nations. The recording received four stars in The Times last week, thanks to the 'precision, flair, and conversational intimacy' of the playing.
Available Formats: SACD, MP3, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV
The title-work on this album celebrating the composer's eightieth birthday is a new concerto written for Jess Gillam, and inspired by the Venetian carnival (Gillam was introduced to the instrument at the Barracudas Carnival Centre in Barrow at the age of seven). Gillam will perform the work at the BBC Proms on Monday, with Nil Venditti and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales; this will be the first time that Jenkins's music has been featured at the festival.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV
After two instalments of the first set of 'London' symphonies, the Hungarian conductor continues his Haydn survey by moving onto the group which were written for the composer's second visit to the city in 1794: the album comprises Symphony No. 99 (composed in Vienna in anticipation of the trip), the 'Military' and the 'Clock'. Reviewing the previous volume, Gramophone noted that 'after half a century’s immersion in these symphonies [Fischer's] delight in the composer’s unpredictable inventiveness and (in the finales) darting wit is as palpable as ever.'
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, Hi-Res+ FLAC/ALAC/WAV
Franchetti & Wolf-Ferrari: Orchestral Works
Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma, MiNensemblet, Francesco La Vecchia
The son of an Italian baron and a Viennese Rothschild, the composer and racing-driver Alberto Franchetti (1860-1942) was best known in his lifetime for his operas; his Symphony in E minor was written during his studies under Felix Draeseke at the Dresden Conservatory, whilst the 'Impressione sinfonica' Nella Foresta nera dates from 1900 and was inspired by the forests of the Rhine valley. The album is completed by an early work by his younger contemporary Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari: the Sinfonia da camera, composed in Germany in 1901.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC/ALAC/WAV
Currently a member of the Mandelring Quartett, Andreas Willwohl has previously recorded the Brahms Viola Sonatas with Daniel Heide, with whom he has performed for over twenty-five years; this second joint album comprises Schubert's Arpeggione Sonata and Shostakovich's Viola Sonata (the composer's final work, written for Beethoven Quartet violist Fyodor Druzhinin in the summer of 1975).
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV
A prize-winner at the 2021 Sydney International Piano Competition, the Australian pianist makes his recording debut with three variation-inspired works by Romantic composers: Schumann's Études Symphoniques (including variations on a theme by Baron von Fricken which Schumann described as 'the composition of an amateur'), Liszt's Mozart-inspired 'Grande fantaisie' Réminiscences de Don Juan, and Brahms's Variations on a Theme of Paganini.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV
Born in Avignon in 1682, Jean-Joseph Mouret moved to Paris in his mid-20s, where he began his career under the patronage of the Duchess of Maine before going on to be appointed as official composer of the Comedie-Italienne in 1717 and artistic director of the Concert Spirituel a decade later. This album includes motets which he composed for the latter group (Usquequo Domine, Laudate Nomen Domini and Cantate Domino), plus a selection of Airs à danser.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV
Katherine Cooper - Head of Editorial
