RACHMANINOFF - PIANO CONCERTOS 2 & 3       RCA RED SEAL   82876 55269 2

This album features fine performances two of Rachmaninoff’s most popular and impassioned works. Belfast-born pianist Barry Douglas, who has enjoyed a major international career since winning the 1986 Tchaikovsky Competition Gold Medal,  plays the well-known Piano Concerto No. 2, with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas. Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto is given a touching performance by another internationally renowned pianist, Byron Janis, with the Boston Symphony Orchestra conducted by Charles Munch. In 1960, Janis was chosen as the first American artist to be sent to the Soviet Union, opening a period of cultural exchange between the USSR and the United States. As well as being a hugely gifted pianist he is also a composer and has been awarded many honours, including the French Legion d'Honneur for Arts and Letters. ‘Barry Douglas...in brilliant form, offered refinements of phrasing and colouring that were utterly magical’ - The Guardian. ‘Janis has long been a significant artistic presence, establishing new standards in the performance of virtuoso repertoire’ - Great Pianists of the 20 Century.

SHARON KAM - CLARINET CONCERTOS       BERLIN CLASSICS 0017792BC

The Israeli clarinettist Sharon Kam is one of the most exciting young musicians on the international scene. She made her orchestral debut at the age of only 16 with with Zubin Mehta and the Israel Philharmonic and is a graduate of the Juilliard School, where she studied with Charles Neidich. Since winning top prize at the Munich (ARD) International Competition in 1992 Sharon Kam has performed with some of the world’s finest orchestras, including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic, the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra (with Kurt Masur) and the Toronto Symphony. She has given recitals in New York and Tokyo, as well as many other cities, and has appeared at leading music festivals. Her new album features Mendelssohn’s Two Concertante pieces for Clarinet, Bassetthorn and Orchestra, Louis Spohr’s Concerto Nr. 4, Weber’s Concertino and Gioacchino Rossini's Introduction, Theme and Variations. Johannes Peitz plays Bassetthorn and the MDR Symphony Orchestra Leipzig is conducted by the acclaimed German conductor Gregor Buehl. Sharon Kam virtuoso playing is technically superb and wonderfully expressive, with a warm tone and precise musical phrasing that is always at the service of the composer. ‘Sharon Kam is a most imaginative and individual artist, using the widest tonal and dynamic range, and with a very sure technique, with every note clearly in place’  - Gramophone.

RACHMANINOV - THE PIANO CONCERTOS         HYPERION SACDA67501/2

Sergei Rachmaninov (or Rachmaninoff) was born in 1873 near Novgorod in Russia, into a wealthy family who later moved to Saint Petersburg. Rachmaninov studied at the conservatory there and in Moscow before going on to become one of the greatest Romantic composers and piano virtuosos of his day. He developed a highly individual musical style, writing symphonies, works for piano and orchestra, sonatas, choral works and solo keyboard music. Among his best-known and best-loved works are his four piano concertos. The second of these was written following the composer’s nervous breakdown that resulted from the hostile reception to his first symphony. The concerto was enthusiastically received at its premiere, with Rachmaninov himself playing the solo part, and is still one of his most popular compositions, gaining additional fame from its use in the film Brief Encounter. Rachmaninov toured the United States as a pianist and emigrated there after the Russian Revolution. His third piano concerto and Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini became favourite works, but the fourth piano concerto, with its more emotionally detached style, was less popular with audiences. On these immaculately produced SACD recordings, Stephen Hough and the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Andrew Litton, give assured and warm performances of all four piano concertos as well as the Paganini Rhapsody.

THE BUTTERFLY LOVERS CONCERTO         NAXOS  8.557348

Chinese violinist Takako Nishizaki studied as a child with her father, Shinji, the co-founder of the Suzuki Method, and with Shinichi Suzuki himself, becoming the first student to complete the famous Suzuki course. She started performing in public at the age of five and is today an international concert violinist as well as a prolific recording artist Over 100 CDs in all). Her various recordings of the Butterfly Lovers Concerto, by  Chen Gang and He Zhanhao, have sold more than three million copies in China and in this new recording she plays with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra conducted by James Judd. Musically, the concerto is a synthesis of the Eastern and Western traditions although the melodies and overall style are derived from the Shanghai opera, in the spirit of which the work conveys aspects of a traditional Chinese painting in its light and calm mood. The album also features Peter Breiner’s delightful Songs and Dances from the Silk Road, based on traditional melodies from Western China.

BLISS - PIANO CONCERTOS/SONATA FOR PIANO       NAXOS  8.557146

Arthur Bliss (1891-1975) served in World War I, in which he was wounded, gassed and mentioned in despatches. When he returned to England he gained a reputation of some notoriety with works that were modern and experimental. In 1938 he was an adjudicator at the Ysaÿe International Competition for pianists, where ‘Hearing so much brilliant playing made me wish to write a work for the instrument myself’. A year later, the British Council commissioned Bliss to compose his Piano Concerto to mark British Week at the 1939 New York World’s Fair. The première took place on 10th June, with Solomon as soloist with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Adrian Boult. This grand and romantic work is played here by Peter Donohoe, with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra under David Lloyd-Jones. The album also includes two more works by Bliss: his rhythmic Piano Sonata (composed in 1952) and the colourful Concerto for Two Pianos (with Martin Roscoe as the other featured soloist).

PAGANINI PLAYED ON PAGANINI’S VIOLIN     DYNAMIC CDS 450/1-4

This box set of four CDs - for the price of three - showcases Dynamic’s  complete edition of Paganini’s six Violin Concertos played on the composer’s own violin. These outstanding new recordings, based on autograph manuscripts and new orchestrations, feature the brilliant Massimo Quarta as both soloist and conductor of the Orchestra of Genoa’s Carlo Felice theatre. A 64-page booklet provides exhaustive liner notes and an extra multimedia CD included in the set contains an audio track of the stunning Adagio for violin and orchestra M.S. 49 – a world première performance and recording – together with a videoclip of its recording, a history of Paganini’s violin, as well as photographs and technical drawings of the instrument. This is an unmissable treat for all admirers of virtuoso violin playing.

SIBELIUS - VIOLIN CONCERTO               BIS CD-300500

Leonidas Kavakos (violin) and the Lahti Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Osmo Vänskä, play Sibelius’s Violin Concerto in D minor. This is one of the most popular concertos in the repertoire but this recording features exemplary performances of both the original 1903/04 version and the final version from 1905. It’s available now as one of 30 mid-price CDs re-released to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the BIS label. This exciting, repackaged series also includes an album of Sibelius songs (sung delectably by Anne Sofie van Otter) as well as works by, among others, Shostakovich (Suite on Finnish Themes), Carl Orff (Carmina Burana), Rautavaara (Angel of Light), Debussy (Images) and Dvorak (Cello Concerto).

JOHN CASKEN - CELLO CONCERTO     NMC D086

John Casken’s Cello Concerto was commissioned in 1991 with funds provided by the Arts Council and written for the Northern Sinfonia and soloist Heinrich Schiff, who directs the Northern Sinfonia on this recording. The soloist assumes the lyrical role of a figure in a wintry landscape, evoked by the composer's words: ‘From winter’s tree/on folds of stone/through silvern air.’ This album, an valuable reissue of contemporary music previously available on Collins Classic, also includes three other works by Casken. Maharal Dreaming is a brilliant orchestral fantasy based on the composer’s opera, Golem. The theatrical and exuberant Vaganza uses an organ to create a fairground atmosphere, inspired by Stravinsky’s Petrushka and culminating in ‘an inebriated Chaucerian procession’. The other work here, Darting the Skiff, was written for the strings of Northern Sinfonia. Combining reflective passages with jazzy energetic outbursts; it was inspired by the movement of boats and light on the water of Lake Como.

GUNNAR DE FRUMERIE - VIOLIN/CELLO CONCERTOS     CAPRICE CAP21644

The Norrköpings Symphony Orchestra, directed by the young Asian conductor Lü Jia, play three major works by the 20th Century Swedish composer Gunnar de Frumerie, including world premiere recordings of his Cello Concerto (soloist Mats Lidström) and Violin Concerto (soloist Tobias Ringborg). The cello piece was originally written as a sonata for French horn before being transformed into a cello sonata and eventually into this brilliant concerto (with the solo part almost unchanged). The other work on this album is de Frumerie’s joyful Symphonic Variations for Orchestra, inspired by the composer’s abiding interest and love for Swedish folk music.

VIVALDI - LE QUATTRO STAGIONI      CLAVES CD 50-2204

Baroque violin virtuoso Duilio Galfetti and the ensemble I Barocchisti, directed by Diego Fasolis perform Antonio Vivaldi's timeless Four Seasons on historical instruments. In addition to strings and basso continuo, I Barocchisti have doubled some string parts with historical wind instruments, a technique that Vivaldi's pupil and friend Johann Georg Pisendel employed with other concertos by the Italian composer. The effect adds highlights and colour to one of classical music’s most famous works. This admirable recording also features four other concertos by Vivaldi - the Concerto for mandolin giving Duilio Galfetti chance to show his mastery of another instrument. This is a joyful album that treats the music with respect and true feeling.

VIVALDI’S FAVOURITES, VOL.3     ESS.A.Y CD1046

This latest album in the excellent series from ESS.A.Y Recordings includes performances of six of Antonio Vivaldi’s most joyful and virtuosic concertos. The CD features the violinist Mela Tenenbaum with the Philharmonia Virtuosi, conducted by Richard Kapp. Volume Two of Vivaldi’s Favourites (ESS.A.Y CD1024) also has six violin concertos, with soloist Paul Peabody. Volume One (ESS.A.Y CD1022) features a wonderfully variety of solo instruments, including flutes, mandolins, trumpets, theorbos and viola d’amore. ‘An especially striking testimonial to Vivaldi's productivity, in performances as exuberant as they are eloquent’ - Classical Net. ‘Utterly distinctive and absorbing: the most pleasurable, sensibility-cleansing surprise in a long time’ - Time Magazine.

THE FOUR SEASONS - VIVALDI     ATOLL ACD 702

Antonio Lucio Vivaldi was born in Venice, apparently during an earthquake, and was probably taught music by his father, Giovanni Battista, a violinist at St Mark's. Vivaldi’s most famous work, The Four Seasons: Le Quattro Stagione, was first published in 1725 as the first four of twelve concerti that make up Il Cemento dell'armonia e dell'inventione (The Contest of Harmony and Invention). The composer prefaced each one with a sonnet 'to explain the music more easily', and his music still dazzles with its musical scene-painting and bravura solo violin part. On this beautifully produced CD the excellent Donald Armstrong leads the New Zealand Chamber Orchestra, bringing true freshness to one of the best-known pieces in the classical repertoire.

SAINT-SAENS - THREE VIOLIN CONCERTOS     CLAVES CD 50-2210

The young Romanian virtuoso Liviu Prunaru plays three elegant violin concertos by the French composer, Camille Saint-Saëns. The brilliant soloist is accompanied on this recording by the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris, directed of Lawrence Foster. Saint-Saëns was a child prodigy and his genius was once wittily described by Berlioz: ‘he knows everything, but lacks inexperience’. Saint-Saëns was a master of melody and his music combines great architectural beauty with breath-taking virtuosity. His first two violin concertos here reflect the composer's youthful enthusiasm and predilection for virtuosity while the third (his last concerto, composed twenty years later) is particularly dramatic and exciting. A 28-page booklet in three languages accompanies the CD.

L’ART DE VERONICA JOCHUM, VOL. 2     TAHRA TAH 487.

Veronica Jochum, daughter of the renowned conductor Eugen Jochum, has performed in more than 50 countries and has a repertoire of over 35 concertos. On this new release she gives delectable and stylish performances of Mozart’s delightful Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 6 (recorded in 1969 with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, directed by Martin Turnovsky) and Robert Schumann’s brilliant Concerto for Piano and Orchestra (recorded in 1982 with the Orchestre National de France conducted by Eugen Jochum). It may not be easy being the daughter of a famous man but Veronica Jochum plays with great assurance and the performance with her father makes rich and poignant listening.

SHOSTAKOVICH - THE OVERCOAT     CBC SMCD 5216.

This new release is the soundtrack to the film The Overcoat, inspired by the famous short story by Nikolai Gogol. The simple moral fable of a humble, alienated Civil Servant isolated in his own world is set to the music of Dmitri Shostakovich without dialogue, resulting in a seamless piece that operates on a grand scale. Shostakovich’s music is intensely Russian, with taut rhythms and spiky melodies, and seems almost tailor- made for The Overcoat, which feature Piano Concertos Nos. 1 and 2 (with the dazzling Canadian pianist Angela Cheng), selections from the Jazz Suites Nos. 1 and 2 (with trumpeter Jens Lindemann), excerpts from Ballet Suites Nos. 1, 2 and 3, and the second ‘Allegro’ movement from Symphony No. 10. Mario Bernardi conducts the CBC Radio Orchestra. ‘This is a winner on all accounts’ - Sound Advice.

THIS IS THE COLOUR OF MY DREAMS     CBC SMCD 5214.
On this imaginative CD the stunning Canadian cellist Shauna Rolston expands the cello repertoire by commissioning concertos for her instrument, written by Canadian composers. Here she plays exciting new music by Heather Schmidt (Cello Concerto), Kelly- Marie Murphy (This is the Colour of My Dreams, Christos Hatzis (Confessional) and Chan Ka Nin (Soulmates). The composers all worked closely with Shauna Rolston in the creation of their work. Mario Bernardi conducts the fine CBC Radio Orchestra in this celebration of contemporary Canadian music making. ‘One of her generation's most gifted musicians’ - The Strad. ‘There's radiance to spare in the energy and passion that cellist Shauna Rolston brings to her performance...a paradigm of musical imagination and technical assurance’ - Calgary Herald.

NARDINI - VIOLIN CONCERTOS   DYNAMIC CDS 392.

Few people today remember the Tuscan violinist composer Pietro Nardini (1722-1793) but during his lifetime he was highly regarded, his fame reaching well beyond Italy. This CD features four fine Nardini compositions for violin and orchestra, three of which have never been published before. All have been recorded in a way that is faithful to the originals and the musical quality is a revelation. Leopold Mozart, who heard Nardini play in 1763, commented: The Orchestra da Camera Milano Classica are joined by the excellent Mauro Rossi as violinist and conductor.

BAROQUE RECORDER CONCERTOS     LINN CKD 183.

The gifted British recorder player Pamela Thorby gives stunning performances of recorder music from the baroque period. This revelatory CD has three lively and entertaining works by Antonio Vivaldi (including his virtuoso flautino concertos), Georg Philipp Telemann (the folk music-influenced Suite in A minor) and Giuseppe Sammartini (his delightful Concerto in F major). Pamela Thorby’s flamboyant performances are perfectly complemented by the excellent Sonnerie ensemble, directed by Monica Huggett. The other musicians are Emilia Benjamin (violins), Alison McGillivray (cello), Sarah Groser (violone) and Matthew Halls (harpsichord and organ). ‘A deliciously variable spread of music’ - The Scotsman.

LOU HARRISON - CONCERTOS     CRYSTAL CD850.
In his unique concertos, one of America’s most inventive composers, Lou Harrison incorporates unusual sounds such as those from vibrating automobile brake drums, lengths of plumber’s pipes, galvanised washtubs, coffee cans and flower pots. Despite, or perhaps because of, these unorthodox sources, the concertos are cohesive works of great power. William Kraft conducts the lively Los Angeles Percussion Ensemble in Lou Harrison’s Concerto for Violin and Percussion (soloist Eudice Shapiro) and Concerto for Organ with Percussion Orchestra (soloist David Craighead). ‘Marvelous, expressive melodies’ - Fanfare.

BEETHOVEN/CHOPIN - PIANO CONCERTOS     URANIA URN 22.206.

In these eceptional historic recordings dating from 1938 and 1943 the renowned pianist Josef Hofman plays ravishing concertos by Ludvig Van Beethoven (No. 4) and Frederic Chopin (No. 1). The New York Philharmonic Orchestra is conducted by Dimitri Mitropoulos in the Beethoven concerto and by John Barbirolli in the Chopin work.

BRAHMS/WAGNER - FURTWANGLER    URANIA URN 22.207.

The incomparable Wilhelm Furtwangler conducts the Orchestra Sinfonica di Torino della Rai in Brahms’s superb Violin Concerto and the Sigfried Idyll by Richard Wagner in these recordings made in Turin, Italy in 1952. The awesome violin soloist is Giocaonda de Vito.

RACHMANINOV - 4 PIANO CONCERTOS    DANACORD DAOCOCD 582-583.

In this three-CD set, the impressive young Russian pianist Oleg Marshov plays Sergei Rachmaninov’s four piano concertos and the dazzling Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini. The acclaimed Aarhus Symphony Orchestra is conducted by the Scottish-born James Loughran, who meticulously follows the original metronome markings in the scores to reveal a wealth of orchestral detail. These are grand and forceful interpretations of some of the finest Romantic music ever written.

TRIO WITH ORCHESTRA   CRYSTAL CD749.

On this beautifully produced CD the Verdehr Trio play three unusual and satisfying works by Stanislaw Skrowaczewski and Thomas Christian David. Skrowaczewski’s compelling Triple Concerto is performed with Solista di Praga, conducted by Leon Gregorian. For David’s Carmen Suite the Trio plays with the Janacek Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Jack Bowman, and for his Sinfonia Concertante by the Michigan State University Wind Symphony, conducted by Kenneth J. Bloomquist. The Verdehr Trio are Walter Verdehr (violin), Elsa Ludewig-Verdehr (clarinet) and Gary Kirkpatrick (piano).

TELEMANN/HAYDN/MOZART - HORN CONCERTOS   HUNGARATON HCD 12992.
This outstanding recording features fine horn concertos by Georg Philipp Telemann and Joseph Haydn (including the Concerto in E flat for two horns) as well as the rousing Symphony in G major for four horns and Orchestra (‘Sinfonia da caccia’) by Leopold Mozart. The brilliant Adam Friedrich is joined by fellow horn-players Tibor Marusza, Ivan Borza and Miklos Nagy, together with the Liszt Ferenc Chamber Orchestra of Budapest, conducted by Janos Rolla.

GEORGE LLOYD - CELLO CONCERTO       ALBANY TROY 458.
This brilliantly produced SACD release is perfect for the colourfully scored music of George Lloyd. The Cello Concerto was completed in July 1997, a year before his death at the age of 85, and is in the same spirit and tradition as the famous Elgar Concerto. Anthony Ross is the soloist with the Albany Symphony Orchestra, conducted by David Alan Miller. Also included on this CD is Lloyd’s wonderful Orchestral Suite No. 1 from ‘The Serf’. This recording was made in the great Troy Savings Bank Music Hall and sounds magnificent in Super Audio CD. The informative and helpful program notes were written by the composer’s nephew, William Lloyd. ‘Musically, this is an outstanding issue, which deserves to be in the collection of every music lover whose heart is not made of stone’ - International Record Review.

SCHUMANN - PIANO CONCERTO   CBC SMCD 5218.

Robert Schumann’s Concerto in A minor for Piano and Orchestra at first had a cool reception, but his widow Clara played it throughout a career that lasted 40 years beyond his death and it has become one of his most popular works. Audiences also took time to warm to his Introduction and Allegro appassionato, also included here, despite its beautiful, thoughtful melody. The third work on this fine CD is Schumann’s own highly enjoyable arrangement for piano of his Konzertstück in F for 4 Horns and Orchestra. Anton Kuerti is the dazzling pianist, with Mario Bernardi leading the CBC Radio Orchestra.

FRANCK - VIOLIN CONCERTO       AUDITE 20.034.

The excellent Christiane Edinger (violin) gives a first-rate performance in this premiere recording of the Violin Concerto in D by Eduard Franck. Also included on this admirable CD is Franck’s fine Symphony in B flat major. The Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchetser Saarbrucken is conducted by Hans-Peter Frank.

MOZART - PIANO CONCERTOS NOS. 9 & 14     VANGUARD CLASSICS SVC-116.

The superb Alfred Brendel gives intelligent and resonant performances of two delectable Mozart concertos for Piano and Orchestra. The I Solisti di Zagreb ensemble is ably conducted on this 1965 recording by Antonio Janigro. ‘A special balance between drama and propriety. The concertos sing with a golden sound’ - Winston-Salem Journal.

.VIVALDI - THE FOUR SEASONS     BERLIN CLASSICS 0017362BC.
This sharp new recording brings real freshness to one of the most popular violin concertos of all time - Antonio Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. Roland Straumer, in addition to his many solo ventures, is Konzertmeister with the Staatskapelle Dresden and the Virtuosi Saxoniae. Together with the latter ensemble and its director Ludwig Guttler, the violinist has recorded this most enjoyable CD, which fully hold its own among the many versions available.

MOZART - PIANO CONCERTOS     BERLIN CLASSICS 0094682BC/0094692BC.
On these two CDs the brilliant pianist Christine Schornsheim plays four wonderful Mozart piano concertos (Nos. 17, 18, 19 and 25) on a replica of a fortepiano from the composer’s era. She is accompanied by the Neues Bachisches Collegium Musicum, conducted by Burkhard Glaetzner, who are themselves upholders of the tradition of period interpretation. These performances let you hear Mozart’s great music the way he intended, with all its drama and lyricism intact.

A PORTRAIT OF JACQUES THIBAUD   TAHRA 424-425.
On this rewarding double CD collection the brilliant violinist Jacques Thibaud plays music by W A Mozart, including the Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 34 (with the legendary Arthur Rubinstein). In the Violin Concerto No. 5 Georg-Ludwig Jochum conducteds the Orchestre de chambre de Hambourg, and in the Violin Concerto No. 3 the Orchestre Radio Symphonique is directed by Georges Enesco. There is also a fascinating interview with Jacques Thibaud, dating from 1944.

TASCHNER PLAYS BEETHOVEN       TAHRA 461.
These historic recordings, dating from the early 1950s, feature the violinist Gerhard Taschner. In Beethioven’s Sonata in A No. 9 (better known as the ‘Kreutzer’) he is accompanied by Walter Gieseking. In the Concerto in D for Violin and Orchestra he is joined by the Berliner Philharmoniker, conducted by Georg Solti.

DAME MOURA LYMPANY - PIANO LEGEND       IVORY CLASSICS 70906.

The playing of legendary virtuosa pianist Dame Moura Lympany uniquely combines bravura and tenderness. Those qualities are fully demonstrated on these recordings first issued in the 1960s and now expertly remastered. Moura Lympany’s repertoire includes over forty concertos and here she performs Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto No.1 in G minor as well as Liszt’s Concerto No.2 in A major. There are fine performances of Henry Litolff’s Concerto Symphonique Scherzo and a scinillating Nights in the Gardens of Spain by Manuel de Falla. Sir Malcolm Sargent conducts the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. ‘A glorious reminder of Dame Moura in her prime’ - Gramophone.

CLARINET CONCERTOS - KJELL FAGEUS     OPUS3 CD 8801.

The brilliant Kjell Fageus plays a selection of pieces for clarinet and basset clarinet. The works are by Mozart (Concerto for Basset Clarinet and Orchestra, including the famous lyrical adagio), Bernhard Henrik Crusell (Aria from ‘Den Lilla Slavinnan’), Lars-Erik Larsson (Concertino for Clarinet and String Orchestra) and Gunnar de Frumerie (First Movement from Concerto for Clarinet, Strings, Harp and Percussion). The the warm playing of Kjell Fageus is backed by the splendid Royal Orchestra of Stockholm, conducted by Eri Klas.

CONCERTOS FOR DOUBLE BASS AND ORCHESTRA     OPUS3 CD 8502.

Double bass virtuoso Thorvald Fredin and the Oskarshamn Ensemble, conducted by Jan-Olav Wedin, perform rarely heard works by Lars Erik Larsson (Concertino for double bass and string orchestra), Erland Von Koch (Serenade for double bass and string orchestra) and Giovanni Bottesini (Concertino for double bass and orchestra, Elegia in Re Maggiore for double bass and string orchestra). Fine performances throughout.

JOLY BRAGA SANTOS - CONCERTO FOR STRINGS     MARCO POLO 8.225186.
The Portuguese composer, Braga Santos was an accomplished symphonist and composer for the orchestra. The four works on this CD amply demonstrate his mastery of dramatic and melodic range. They include his Concerto for Strings in D, Sinfonietta for Strings and Concerto for Violin, Cello, Strings and Harp. The Northern Sinfonia is conducted by Alvaro Cassuto and the soloists are Bradley Creswick (violin), Alexander Somov (cello) and Sue Blair (harp).

DOWNES - CONCERTO FOR TWO GUITARS     CLASSICPRINT COVP013CD.
Andrew Downes' Concerto for Guitar, Bass Guitar and Strings was commissioned by the virtuoso guitarists Simon Dinnigan (acoustic) and Fred T Baker, playing a fretless electric bass guitar and breaking new ground in bringing this 'rock' instrument into a 'classical' medium. They are joined on this exciting CD by players mainly from the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. Other works include Cool Largo, also by Downes, the Usher Waltz for solo guitar by Koshkin, and three transcriptions of works by Bach and Mozart. The Concerto is much influenced by rock music and jazz, as well as non-western (particularly African and Native-American) melodic and rhythmic styles. These are blended with sounds from the European renaissance and medieval and folk music to produce a true fusion of cultures.

RACHMANINOFF - PIANO CONCERTO NO. 3     TELARC CD-80582.
The brilliant young Chinese pianist Lang Lang performs Rachmaninoff’s Concerto No. 3 with the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Yuri Temirkanov, in this stunning live BBC Proms performance recording. His encore, the traditional Chinese folk song ‘Liu Yang River’, is also included. Paired with the live music is a beautiful selection of etudes by Alexander Scriabin, where Lang Lang once again displays poignant lyricism and technical brilliance. ‘Lang Lang is a sensation’ - BBC Music Magazine. ‘This could well be history in the making’ - The Times.

SIBELIUS HUMORESQUES AND GHEDINI CONCERTOS   ESSAY CD1076.5

Mela Tenenbaum and the Czech Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Richard Kapp, give delightful performances of Sibelius's Six Humoresques, marvelous yet little heard on disc before. These miniature jewels are coupled with two concertos by a fine though neglected 20th century Italian composer, Giorgio Frederico Ghedini. These are his Violin Concerto (“Il belprato”) and his Musica da Concerto for Viola, Viola d’Amore and String Orchestra. Pro Musica are conducted by Richard Kapp in live performances, and all the recordings on this CD form an invaluable addition to the repertoire.

JOHN FIELD - PIANO CONCERTOS NOS. 5 & 6       NAXOS 8.554221.

Dublin-born John Field (1782-1837) was a child prodigy and became a pianist of remarkable ability, feted as a performer from London to Paris, Moscow and St Petersburg. The title of his exciting No. 5 Concerto (L’Incendie par l’Orage) refers to the depiction of ‘fire by lightning’. Benjamin Frith is the excellent soloist with the Northern Sinfonia, conducted by David Haslam. ‘Very good, warm recording’ - The Penguin Guide.

THREE CONCERTOS - DAVID WARD-STEINMAN FLEUR DE SON FDS 57946.
The Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra of Olomouc, conducted by David Amos, perform world premiere recordings of works by the prolific modern American composer David Ward-Steinman. These are his Rothko-inspired Cello Concerto (soloist Howard Colf), Cinnabar Concerto (viola soloist Karen Elaine Bakunin) and Chroma Concerto with Loie Flood (celeste, Patrice D Madura (toy piano) and John Charles Flood (percussion).

BEETHOVEN - VIOLIN CONCERTO       ESSAY CD1076.
Violinist Mela Tenenbaum and the Czech Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Richard Kapp, bring fresh musical thought to one of Beethoven’s most popular and most frequently recorded works, his Violin Concerto in D Major. The CD also includes a fine version of the "Adelaide" Concerto, K 294a, attributed Mozart. Mela Tenenbaum's sensitive performances fully express the exquisite beauty of both pieces.

BEETHOVEN - VIOLIN CONCERTO      K & K ISBN 3-930643-80-4.
Ludwig van Beethoven wrote his Violin Concerto in D, op. 61 in 1806, during the same period that he composed the his fourth Piano Concerto, Fifth Symphony, and the ‘Razumovski’ quartets. The solioist on this recording is Mila Georgieva and the New Symphony Orchestra Sofia, an ensemble consisting of excellent young musicians, is conducted by Rossen Milanov. The music was recorded in a fine performance at the National palace of Culture in Sofia.

HAYDN - CELLO CONCERTOS         P & P MUSIC CDC 012.
The gifted Italian cellist Rocco Filippini and the Orchestra da Camera Roma Classica outstandingly perform Franz Joseph Haydn’s Cello Concertos No. 1 (composed between 1761 and 1765) and No. 2 (written some 20 years later). The first includes a sparkling, joyous Finale and the second shows the radical changes music had gone through in the intervening years as Classicism gained ground at the expense of the Baroque.

GATEWAYS - DANIEL ASIA SUMMIT DCD 285.

Pianist Andre-Michel Schub and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, conducted by James Sedares, perform the American Daniel Asia’s brilliant and energetic Piano Concerto. Also included on this CD is another of the composer’s works, the syncopated Gateways, inspired by both Leonard Bernstein, Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring and Aaron Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man.

BEETHOVEN - PIANO CONCERTOS       ANDANTE 1995.

Beethoven's five Piano Concertos are full of poetry, heroism, seriousness and drama, and this splendid 4 CD collection includes many landmark recordings. Among these are a rare 1946 performance of the Second Concerto by William Kapell and Artur Rubinstein’s 1944 recording of the C minor Concerto with Toscanini. There are also strikingly dissimilar versions of the Fourth Concerto (by Walter Gieseking and Clara Haskil) and the Fifth (by Artur Schnabel and Rudolf Serkin). All the tracks have been brilliantly remastered by Andante.

GIULIANI - GUITAR CONCERTO       KOCH KIC CD 7448.

Mauro Giuliani’s Concerto in A major remains the most famous of all 19th century guitar concertos. It is coupled here with the first known work featuring a solo guitar in an orchestral setting - Luigi Boccherini’s Guitar Sinfonia. Richard Savino plays an early 19h century guitar and the excellent Portland Baroque Orchestra is conducted by Monica Huggett. This is the first recording of these works made on period instruments in their original orchestral settings.

J S BACH - THE BRANDENBURG CONCERTOS       ESS.A.Y CD1037/38.
Johann Sebastian Bach’s magnificent Brandenburg Concertos are given fine performances on this double-CD set by the Philharmonia Virtuosi under the accomplished conductor Richard Kapp. Fine musicianship throughout brings these masterpieces alive.

VIVALDI - GUITAR CONCERTOS       OPERA TRES CD 1011-OPE.
The excellent young Italian guitarist Claudio Marcotulli and the Orchestra Internazionale d’Italia perform fine transcriptions for guitar and string orchestra six of of Vivaldi’s lute and mandolin concerti. The conductor is Riccardo Serenelli.

RUSSIAN SOUL - DANIIL SHAFRAN      CELLO CLASSICS CC1008.
The great 20th century Russian cellist Daniil Shafran rarely appeared outside his home country but nevertheless became a cult figure. His rich recorded legacy is well demonstrated by this admirable compilation, chosen by one of his many admirers, Steven Isserlis. The works include the première recording of Dmitri Kabalevsky’s Second Cello Concerto (dedicated to Shafran) and a wonderful live performance of Sergei Prokofiev's Sinfonia Concertante for cello and orchestra, issued for the first time on CD. There is also a delightful, yet little-known suite of Five Pieces on Folk Themes for cello and piano, written for Shafran by the Georgian composer Sulkhan Tsintsadze.

TRIBUTE TO GINETTE NEVEU (1919-1949)     TAHRA TAH 2.355-2.357.

This fine three CD set is a tribute to the wonderful French violinist Ginette Neveu, who died in an air crash in October 1949, at the age of only 30 (the boxer Marcel Cerdan and Ginette Neveu’s brother who was also her accompanist, were also aboard of the airplane). This boxed set includes two interviews of Ginette Neveu with French Radio as well as three previously unissued recordings: the Beethoven concerto recorded in Holland, the Brahms concerto with Roger Desormière (Baden-Baden) and Brahms’ Third sonata with her brother Jean Neveu, which they recorded five weeks before their tragic accident. This is a fine tribute acknowledgment to a great artist.

GLAZUNOV/KABALEVSKY/GLIERE - DAVID OISTRAKH     OMEGA OCD 1025.

The State Symphony Orchestra of Russia, with David Oistrakh, plays wonderful violin concertos by Alexander Gazunov and Dmitri Kabalevsky. The CD also includes a fine performance of Reinhold Gliere’s Romance for Violin and Orchestra, showing again that Oistrakh was one of the greatest violinists of the twentieth century. ‘Comfort food for the soul’ - Dallas Morning News.