Barry Forshaw
RACHMANINOV: SYMPHONIC DANCES, PLETNEV: RACHMANIANA, International Orchestra, Mikhail Pletnev/EuroArts
Along with a very persuasive reading of Rachmaninov’s final masterpiece, the glorious Symphonic Dances, there is a particularly tempting piece on this disc for admirers of the composer in the fill up: the world premiere recording of Pletnev’s Rachmaniana: an eight-movement Suite which is essentially transcriptions of Rachmaninov in sumptuous new orchestral dress by the conductor. The piece was first performed in January 2026 in Hamburg and will be particularly attractive to those who feel they already have everything by Rachmaninov on their shelves.
RICHARD STRAUSS: INTERMEZZO, soloists, Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Sir Donald Runnicles/Naxos
While Strauss’s opera Intermezzo has long had its admirers, it has never acquired the popularity of the composer’s operas Der Rosenkavalier and Arabella. That being said, it’s unlikely that the piece will enjoy elsewhere as persuasive an advocacy as it receives here by the Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin under the sympathetic conducting of Donald Runnicles. Of course, a piece such as this stands or falls on the contributions of its principal singers and as the avatars of Strauss himself and his wife Pauline, Philipp Jekal and the luminous Maria Bengsston could not be bettered.
MAHLER: SYMPHONY NO. 5, Grand Teton Festival Orchestra, Sir Donald Runnicles/Reference Recordings
Still with Sir Donald Runnicles, Reference Recordings – always to be counted upon for the dynamic surround sound picture on their discs – here provide a truly authoritative reading of Mahler’s great fifth Symphony, a work that has always been fortunate on disc, and is here couched in typically impressive Reference sound.
NIELSEN: THE ULTIMATE SOLO PIANO COLLECTION, Rikke Sandberg/OUR Recordings
In the various classical lists, there has been the occasional disc of selections of Nielsen’s piano music, but that side of the composer’s talent remains relatively elusive. Not anymore: this triple album gives us the for the first time the complete solo piano works of Denmark’s national composer and, what’s more, in performances of great authority. This is music that will never be as popular as such calling card Nielsen pieces as the Fifth Symphony, but makes a solid bid for the attention of the composer’s aficionados.
COPLAND: SYMPHONY NO. 3, WALKER: SINFONIA NO. 5/London Symphony Orchestra, Antonio Pappano/LSO Live
Those lucky enough to have heard the recent performances at London’s Barbican of Copland’s Symphony No. 3 by the London Symphony Orchestra under Antonio Pappano (and I’m lucky enough to be in their number) will not be surprised to hear that this is quite one of the most powerful and dramatic performances this great piece of Americana has ever received with the final appearance of the Fanfare for the Common Man acting as the perfect final apotheosis. Walker’s Sinfonia No. 5 rounds off a very tempting program in impressive surround sound.
BARBER: VANESSA, soloists National Symphony Orchestra, Gianandrea Noseda/NSO
While never likely to attain the popularity of the composer’s orchestral works, Barbers neglected opera Vanessa is worthy of the occasional performance – and, certainly, it receives a solid reading here. Barber aficionados will be more than prepared to grant the piece the repeated hearings it requires to reveal its hidden appeal, but there is no denying that the composer’s Antony and Cleopatra was not his only considerable achievement in the operatic field. It’s hard to imagine a better summer performance than it is granted here.
ODD SYMPATHIES, Matthew Schellhorn piano/First Hand Records
For over two decades, Mathhew Schellhorn has championed the creativity of living composers through commissions and premières, with the aim of bringing new music to a wider audience. This album draws together a selection of eclectic and captivating piano works, united through shared interpretative concerns and deep artistic connections developed through close collaboration with composers. The programme is conceived as a coherent artistic statement rather than a survey, focusing on repertoire that resists straightforward categorisation and invites the performer to negotiate questions of clarity, responsibility, and expressive ambiguity.