The relationship between Welsh composer Daniel Jones and the BBC was a close one. In the third installment of Daniel Jones’s symphonic recordings, Lyrita presents two prime examples. Symphony No. 3 was completed in 1951 and premiered the following year in a BBC broadcast. David Jones conducted the BBC Welsh Symphony Orchestra. Jones’ fifth symphony […]
CD Review
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Salvatore Di Vittorio release not up to par
To me, this release is something of a puzzle. We have a composer conducting the orchestra he founded in a program of his own works. I enjoyed Salvatore Di Vittorio and the Chamber Orchestra of New York before. Their Respighi release is a knockout. But not this. The compositions are fine. They’re well-constructed. Di Vittorio, […]
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Pál Hermann’s music revived, thanks to Toccata Classics
When I saw the title for this release, I thought I might want to review it. When I read the subtitle, I knew I had to review it. I’d never heard of Pál Hermann, and I’m always looking for new composers to discover. But “Complete Surviving Music?” What did that mean? What did it survive? […]
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Respighi Works for Flute and Orchestra work for me
Many people only know of Ottorino Respighi through his trilogy of tone poems celebrating Rome. This release helps fill out the composer’s profile with some very unusual works. With the exception of Gli Uccelli, these selections come from the early part of Respighi’s career. Those early works only exist in manuscript, and it’s not clear if […]
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Roxanna Panufnik – Heartfelt chamber music
The past few Roxanna Panufnik releases from Signum Classics have focused on her choral works. And with good reason — Panufnik is one of the premier choral composers of the 21st Century. This new release presents a collection of her chamber music. And (no surprise), her talent extends into this genre as well. Members of […]
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Anton Bruckner Chamber Music Worth a Listen
For most audiences, the equation is simple. Anton Bruckner = symphonies. And while symphonies may have been the best form of expression for Bruckner, he did write in other genres. This release features two of his chamber works. Albeit these are early compositions, and it’s easy to hear Brucker’s influences in them. But still, these […]
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Elizabeth Llewellyn’s Heartfelt Debut
For her debut recording, Elizabeth Llewellyn presents a recital of songs by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. In the liner notes, she writes, “I could have recorded some Puccini or Verdi… But I felt passionately that, if I was going to spend much time, energy, and money on an album, it was important to create something which had […]
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Johann Gottlieb Graun Chamber Works – Music in Transition
The title for this release is a little deceptive. True, it’s a collection of chamber music from Frederick the Great’s court. But it’s not all by Johann Gottlieb Graun. Rather, it’s a collection of music from Graun and his colleagues at court: Johann Gottlieb Janitsch, Franz Benda, and brother Carl Heinrich Graun. And that, I […]
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Pancho Vladigerov Orchestral Works 2 has the good stuff
This installment of Capriccio’s reissues features Pancho Vladigerov’s shorter orchestral works. It includes the Bulgarian Rhapsody “Varda” — Vladigerov’s most-performed work. The collection also includes his Seven Symphonic Bulgarian Dances, his Romanian Dances and Symphonic Sketches suites, and the Bulgarian Suite. In his country, Vladigerov’s music is the embodiment of Bulgarian classical music. Capriccio’s series […]