TIPPETT: PIANO CONCERTO, BRITTEN: DIVERSIONS, WALTON: SINFONIA CONCERTANTE
Clare Hammond, BBC Symphony Orchestra, George Vass/BIS
Few would argue with the fact that one of the most ambitious recording programmes of any CD company is that of the ever-enterprising BIS label, and this new issue is a very welcome reminder of the company’s reach. In the expert hands of pianist Clare Hammond, the BBC Symphony Orchestra and conductor George Vass, we are given an all-British programme which – while essentially sharing the same musical language – nevertheless demonstrates the considerable range of music from the British Isles. The Britten and Walton pieces are dispatched with both musicality and verve, and something of a rescue job is performed on Tippett’s Piano Concerto which has been somewhat neglected in recent years. Hammond and Vass demonstrate that it is absolutely in the exalted company of the other pieces here, and, of course, the usual impeccable BIS sound does full justice to all the music.
HOMELAND: GRIEG: PIANO CONCERTO, FALLA: NIGHTS IN THE GARDENS OF SPAIN
Judith Jauregui, Orquesta Sinfonica de Castilla Y Leon, Kaspar Zehnder/Eudora
Given that the corpus of orchestral work by Falla is relatively small, it is hardly surprising that his handful of masterpieces in the idiom have been recorded many times over the years. This SACD from Eudora, a label committed to recording in sumptuous surround sound, is a particularly enjoyable entry. And the disc also boasts a cherishable coupling, a strong performance of the Grieg piano concerto by Judith Jaureghui and the Orquesta Sinfonica de Castilla Y Leon under Kaspar Zehnder. Those new to the Eudora label might wish to sample two other highly attractive discs, both distinguished by an effortless musicality: SANTIAGO DE MASARNAU PIANO WORKS by Claudia Dafne Sevilla & Josep Colon and CASTRATO ARIAS by Lucia Caihuela & La Madrilena under Jose Antonio Montano.
HOLST: THE PLANETS, BAX:TINTAGEL
London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Antonio Pappano/LSO Live
There are those who have argued that a moratorium should be placed on certain over-recorded pieces of music, but it’s an argument that is contradicted by issues such as this, a truly dynamic and nuanced reading of Holst’s masterpiece. And anyone doubting that assertion should sample just a few bars of the opening movement, Mars, which is among the most dramatic takes on the piece that it has ever received. And if that were not enough, there is as a bonus a truly impressive reading of Bax’s signature tone poem, Tintagel, with the London Symphony Orchestra under Sir Antonio Pappano teasing out every delicious aspect of this calling card piece.
STEVE REICH: SEXTET/DOUBLE SEXTET/SIX MARIMBAS/DANCE PATTERNS
Colin Currie Group
This is an ambitious recording project setting down all of Steve Reich’s pieces in this format, delivered with maximum conviction and – perhaps counterintuitively – a large degree of affection.