Christmas

A Winter's Night: Christmas music for Choir and Organ

Released back in August 2020, when snow and the suchlike were the last things on anyone's mind, this Signum release brings together the time-honoured combo of choir, brass and organ. And what brass! Onyx Brass is a motley selection of principal brass players from major orchestras that positively

Italian Baroque

Per la notte di Natale: Italian Christmas Concertos

The period instrument Danish group Concerto Copenhagen has appeared on a variety of labels; they offer impeccably polished, beautiful performances of the most famous of instrumental Christmas music here under the direction of Lars Ulrik Mortensen. The idea of the  "Christmas Concerto" is native to Italy. Nice to

Baroque

Telemann Christmas Cantatas

If you're looking for an alternative to the expected Christmas playlist, this might well be what you're looking for

Sibelius

Complete Sibelius Symphonies from Minnesota

A little while ago, Classical Explorer looked at Sibelius' Kullervo [https://www.classicalexplorer.com/sibelius-kullervo-vanska/] and, with it, Osmo Vänskä's second recording in the single-disc format. All of which coincides nicely with the release of the four-SACD boxed set from BIS of Vänskä's latest Sibelius

Beethoven

Beethoven Violin Sonatas from Onyx

This is an ongoing series of consistent excellence: modern performances is state-of-the-art sound. In a year that could have held so much more Beethoven, not least live, it is good to see the ten violin sonatas, now complete, from two fresh, invigroated performers in performances of depth and vision. The

Christmas

Yulefest! Christmas from King's, Cambridge

Five years since its release, Yulefest! remains one of the finest Christmas discs out there

Baroque

Revelatory Legrenzi: 'Compiete,' Op. 7

This is one of the most significant Baroque releases I have come across this year

Cello

Songs of Comfort & Hope: Yo-Yo Ma and Kathryn Stott

A warm glow and a warm hug for these uncertain times

Baroque

An Oratorio for Christmas: Bach's Weihnachts-Oratorium

The Christmas Oratorio is a piece like no other

Handel

Der Messias: Handel's Messiah in Mozart's version, staged

... the adventurous need not hesitate

Christmas

Be All Merry: Christmas Music from Dublin

'Tis the season ... and, despite the live music ravages of CoVID, there is a Christmas feast of music in 2020, both on disc and online. For the latter, the VOCES8 Live from London - Christmas Festival [https://voces8.foundation/events1/2020/12/1/live-from-london-christmas] is surely without rival: we

Opera

Richard, Coeur de Lion: a Grétry rediscovery

Grétry's 'Richard Coeur de Lion' is a treasure-trove of delight

Christmas

Christmas in Puebla

A panoramic exploration of Mexico forms the basis of this fascinating disc from  the group Siglo de Oro under Patrick Allies.  The title refers to a place in Mexico, Puebla de los Ángeles, and the music celebrates the music of one Juan Gutierrez de Padilla (1590-1664), whose music makes up

Opera

Anna Netrebko in Verdi's 'Trovatore'

Only a few days ago, Classical Explorer featured a post on a production of Lohengrin [https://www.classicalexplorer.com/lohengrin-from-stuttgart/] that, while fascinating, played fast and free with what Wagner actually intended. So it makes the perfect contrast to introduce director Franco Zeffirelli's Il trovatore (The Troubadour) in

Mahler

Youth's Magic Horn ... Boulez conducts Mahler

A little while ago, Classical Explorer undertook a comparison post of five recordings of Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde [https://www.classicalexplorer.com/a-tale-of-four-earths/]. Just one disc today: but what a coupling, Mahler's setting of texts from Des Knaben Wonderhorn (Youth's Magic Horn)

Christmas

Britten's Christmas Music: St Nicolas and A Ceremony of Carols

A celebration of Britten's choral mastery at Christmas

Opera

A 'Lohengrin' from Stuttgart

For some, Wagner seems like an unassailable mountain. Where to start? The pre- Ring works seem best; and while both Tannhäuser and Der fliegende Holländer seem fit for purpose, perhaps Lohengrin is the best, for of the three it best introduces the spirituality - and the inspired music that emerges

Choral

Music of Duarte Lobo with Los Cupertinos

Beauty is beauty is beauty; and this is full 70 minutes of it

Beethoven

A Creative Collision, A Bag of Bagatelles

Hodges' disc holds a definite authority, given his working relationship to Birtwistle

Choral

Advent from St John's

The Choir of St John's College, Cambridge on top form

Beethoven

A Tale of "Two" Concertos

Something new for Beethoven year!

Piano

A trip to the opera, on the piano: Vanessa Benelli Mosell

It is not so often posts are tagged as both "Piano" and "Opera," but that's the case here.  Even rarer in music criticism, I would have thought, for two versions of an operatic transcription  by Sigismond Thalberg to come out in close proximity, but

Baroque

Bassoon Cantatas: the revelations of Christoph Graupner

This is actually the third disc on cpo of cantatas by German Baroque composer Christoph Graupner (1683-1760): there has already been one on that label of Epiphany Cantatas, and another of "Solo and Dialogue" Cantatas, plus sundry others of his music. Not only that, but cpo led the

Chamber

Italian Postcards: Quartetto di Cremona at 20

Celebrating twenty years (and their 14th recording - and their first on Avie), the Quartetto di Cremona registers four reactions to Italy by non-Italians in a programme that is wide-ranging and stimulating. It's a lovely idea, not least because it reminds us that Hugo Wolf didn't

Opera

Gluck: an Opera Gala, with Jessye Norman

A celebration of Gluck; and Jessye Norman!