Best new classical albums – October 2016
Gramophone
Friday, October 7, 2016
The finest recordings reviewed in the October issue of Gramophone magazine, introduced by Editor Martin Cullingford
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Liszt ‘Transcendental’
Daniil Trifonov pf
(DG)
A superb achievement from our Artist of the Year: some of the most virtuoso studies ever written, performed with remarkable command and musicality.
Read the review in the Reviews Database | Download from Qobuz
Mendelssohn Symphonies Nos 1 & 4
London Symphony Orchestra / Sir John Eliot Gardiner
(LSO Live)
Gardiner continues his Mendelssohn exploration with a First and Fourth of great style.
Read the review in the Reviews Database | Download from Qobuz
Berlioz Symphonie fantastique
Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra / Daniel Harding
(Harmonia Mundi)
Daniel Harding’s album of Berlioz and Rameau is thrilling and brilliantly played throughout.
Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No 2, etc
Alexandre Tharaud pf Royal Liverpool PO / Alexander Vedernikov
(Erato)
Rachmaninov’s Romantic masterpiece can justify any number of new recordings so long as they are as exquisite and dramatic as this one.
Read the review in the Reviews Database | Download from Qobuz
Tchaikovsky Symphony No 6, etc
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra / Semyon Bychkov
(Decca)
The beginning of ‘The Tchaikovsky Project’ – and what a way to start: a powerful, devastating Pathétique.
Read the review in the Reviews Database
‘Fin de siècle’
Lawrence Power va Simon Crawford-Phillips pf
(Hyperion)
A disc of delightful discoveries from fin-de-siècle France, played with charm by Lawrence Power and Simon Crawford-Phillips.
Read the review in the Reviews Database
JS Bach Goldberg Variations
Mahan Esfahani hpd
(DG)
This is a disc I’ve wanted to hear ever since I first heard Esfahani play the Goldbergs back in 2010. The intensity and virtuosity are every bit as evident here as then, and the instrument sounds beautiful.
Read the review in the Reviews Database | Download from Qobuz
Beethoven Piano Sonata No 29, ‘Hammerklavier’
Nelson Goerner pf
(Alpha)
One of two excellent Hammerklaviers this month, offering different views of Beethoven; Goerner takes us on a real journey of discovery, revelation, delicacy and joy.
Read the review in the Reviews Database | Download from Qobuz
Schoenberg Gurrelieder
Sols; Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra / Edward Gardner
(Chandos)
There’s a lush richness to the playing (and sound) throughout, and some excellent soloist contributions: another impressive addition to the Gurrelieder catalogue.
Read the review in the Reviews Database | Download from Qobuz
‘Shakespeare Songs’
Ian Bostridge ten Sir Antonio Pappano pf
(Warner Classics)
Ever eloquent, Ian Bostridge pairs the English pastoral with which he began his recording career with songs by Stravinsky, Schubert and others in this tribute to the Bard.
Read the review in the Reviews Database | Download from Qobuz
DVD/blu-ray
‘Europakonzert 2016’
Vilde Frang vn Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra / Sir Simon Rattle
(EuroArts)
A bringing together of repertoire, artists – including our recent Award-recipient Vilde Frang – and occasion made for a memorable concert, happily captured on DVD.
Read the review in the Reviews Database
Reissue/archive
‘Forgotten Ferras’
Christian Ferras vn
(DG/Discovery)
‘A worthy memorial,’ writes Rob Cowan in Replay, ‘to a huge talent tragically lost to us at the all-too-young age of 49.’
