Norman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Shostakovich & Martinu cello concertos
/Two cello concertos, one upbeat, the other pessemistic, make a perfect companions on this new disc.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Ben-Haim orchestral works
/he music of Ben-Haim will not change lives – by 1984, when he died, it was hardly heard in Israel any more – but the musical personality behind it is attractive, smart and persuasive
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Strauss songs
/To sing Richard Strauss, everything has to be just-so, shimmering on the surface and hinting at Freudian urges below. English soprano Louise Alder meets his challenge.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Carbonelli: Sonate da Camera
/ever heard of Carbonelli? Don’t feel too bad about it. Listen to the music, though, and you will wonder how work of such quality and intricacy could vanish so comprehensively into the mists of history.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week: Russia Cast Adrift
/Georgy Sviridov was born in the thick of Russia’s metamorphosis, and his idiom in these lieder – narrative, tonal, almost static at times – reflects the stand-off between political upheaval and the impervious cycles of nature.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Ravel and De Falla concertos
/There is a lot of competition for performances of Ravel and De Falla's work for piano and orchestra, but Steven Osborne's new release belongs among the best.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Shostakovich's First
/There is nothing wrong with this account of Shostakovich's First Symphony it if you count all the notes and admire the sound. It takes no risks at all, and is only partially redeemed by the inclusion of rare juvenalia.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Kathleen Ferrier remembered
/Listening to these Kathleen Ferrier tracks, newly retrieved from BBC broadcasts and never released before, one is struck over again by the great contralto’s overriding characteristic – her natural, unfettered generosity.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Impromptu
/Shai Wosner has released a fine recording of impromptus by various composers. But when you're done listening, where do you put it?
Read MoreNormal Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Mahler's Third Symphony
/There is no wholly recommendable performance on record of Mahler’s third symphony. This performance, by Ivan Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra, is uneven but worthwhile nonetheless.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Lokshin's Clarinet quintet
/A composer uncompromising in his reckless independence, Alexander Lokshin is not always approachable. Consider this release an icebreaker.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Davidsbündlertänze
/Do not be put off either by the coupling of Schumann with a record newbie whose name you may not recognize. Schumann requires intense contemplation before an artist can make more than pretty gallery pictures of his pieces, and Luca Burrato is up to the challenge.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Szymanowski
/I generally receive the springtime festival releases with the same excitement as I’d feel about a Placido Domingo Christmas record. What comes round, comes round. This one, however, is pure class
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Rachmaninov concertos
/It’s raining Rachmaninov concertos and I’m not sure the roof can take any more. This is the third new release in two weeks. Is it any good?
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Verdi's Requiem
/The London Symphony Orchestra has released a marvelous, exhilarating liver performance of Verdi's Requiem, one only slightly let down by its recording methods.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Bach Trios
/It's hard to evaluate an album of Bach for trio, including Yo-Yo Ma, that is so expertly played yet so flagrantly inoffensive.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Hanns Eisler
/A beautifully played album illuminates the expressive film scores of the unjustly overlooked Hanns Eisler.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Nadia Boulanger
/Nadia Boulanger deferred to the music of her short-lived sister Lily and barely spoke of herself as a composer. Two releases, newly landed, may help to adjust that misperception.
Read MoreNormal Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Tishchenko's 8th
/Try as I might, I can’t stop listening to these late works of a Russian composer who was close to Shostakovich but never tried, as others did, to imitate him.
Read MoreNorman Lebrecht's Album of the Week - Hungarian Treasures
/The unique selling point of this release is what appears to be the first recording of Bartok’s piano quartet in C minor. Unfortunately, it's not very good.
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