Oct. 9, 2017
This September, our reviewers found many recordings of symphonies from a wide variety of composers. These included Haydn, Bruckner, Mahler, Franz Schmidt, Vaughan Williams, Shostakovich, and Michael Nyman. Piano music also was well represented, with music by Mozart, C.P.E. Bach, Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Bernstein, and Gershwin arranged by Earl Wild in the mix, as well as the official commemorative album by this year's Van Cliburn gold medalist, Yekwon Sunwoo.
Blair Sanderson
Stefan Blunier, Beethoven Orchester Bonn - Schmidt: Symphony No. 2; R. Strauss: Festival Prelude, Op. 61
Martyn Brabbins, BBC Symphony Orchestra - Vaughan Williams: A London Symphony (1920 Version)
Semyon Bychkov, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra - Franz Schmidt: Symphony No. 2; Richard Strauss: Dreaming by the Fireside
Angela Hewitt - Domenico Scarlatti: Sonatas, Vol. 2
Steven Isserlis - Haydn, CPE Bach: Cello Concertos
Mariss Jansons, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra - Mahler: Symphonie Nr. 5
Rafael Kubelik, Seiji Ozawa, Boston Symphony Orchestra - Béla Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings, Percussion & Celesta
R. Andrew Lee, Seth Parker Woods - Michael Vincent Waller: Trajectories
Kayleen Sánchez, Johnandrew Slominski - Franz Peter Schubert: Schwanengesang
Wolfgang Emanuel Schmidt, Metamorphosen Berlin - Tchaikovsky: Serenade
Christian Thielemann, Staatskapelle Dresden - Anton Bruckner: Symphonie Nr. 4 Es-Dur "Romantische"
James Manheim
Giovanni Antonini, Il Gardino Armonico - Haydn 2032, No. 4: Il Distratto
Emanuel Ax, Leonidas Kavakos, Yo-Yo Ma - Brahms: The Piano Trios
The Boys of St. Paul's Choir School - Ave Maria
Simon Callaghan, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Martyn Brabbins - The Romantic Piano Concerto, Vol. 78: Coke
Silvia Dalla Benetta, Maxim Mironov, Antonino Fogliani - Vincenzo Bellini: Bianca e Gernando
Del Sol String Quartet, Gyan Riley - Dark Queen Mantra: Terry Riley, Stefano Scodanibbio
Duo Tal & Groethuysen - Colors: Claude Debussy, Richard Strauss
Ensemble Marsyas - Edinburgh 1742: Barsanti & Handel
Isabelle Faust, Freiburger Barockorchester, Pablo Heras-Casado - Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto; Symphony No. 5
Nelson Freire - Brahms
John Georgiadis, Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra- Eduard Strauss I: A Centenary Celebration
Boris Giltburg, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Carlos Miguel Prieto - Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 2; Études-tableaux, Op. 33
Gloriæ Dei Cantores, Peter Jermihov - Rachmaninoff: All-Night Vigil, Op. 37
Manfred Honeck, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra - Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5; Barber: Adagio
Guy Johnston - Tecchler's Cello: From Cambridge to Rome
Evgeny Kissin - Beethoven: Piano Sonatas No. 3, No. 14 "Moonlight", No. 23 "Appassionata", No. 26 "Les Adieux", No. 32; 32 Variations in C minor
L'Arpeggiata, Christina Pluhar - Händel Goes Wild
Longleash - Passage
Alexei Lubimov - Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach: Tangere
Leann Osterkamp - The Complete Solo Piano Works of Leonard Bernstein
Francesco Piemontesi, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Andrew Manze - Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 25 & 26
Joanne Polk - Gershwin & Wild
Portland State Chamber Choir, Ethan Sperry - Eriks Esenvalds: The Doors of Heaven
John Potter - Secret History: Josquin & Victoria
Edmund Rubbra - Edmund Rubbra: Sinfonia Concertante Op. 38; Violin Concerto Op. 103
Martin Rummel, Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz, Karl-Heinz Steffens - Ralph Vaughan Williams: The Poisoned Kiss; The England of Elizabeth; Bucolic Suite; In the Fen Country; Fantasia on Sussex Folk Tunes
Sacconi Quartet, Mark Padmore, Charles Owen - Jonathan Dove: In Damascus
Fazil Say - Chopin: Nocturnes
Mila Shkirtil, St. Petersburg State Symphony Orchestra, Yuri Serov - Georgy Sviridov: Russia Adrift; Snow is Falling; Music for Chamber Orchestra
Robert Smith - Georg Philipp Telemann: Fantasias for Viola da Gamba
Ashley Solomon - G.Ph. Telemann: Twelve Fantasias for Solo Flute
Yekwon Sunwoo - Cliburn Gold 2017: 15th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Yaara Tal - Polonaise: Franz Xaver Mozart, Frédéric Chopin
Bryden Thomson, BBC Welsh Symphony Orchestra - Daniel Jones: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 11
Josep Vicent, World Orchestra of Jeunesses Musicales - Michael Nyman: Symphony No. 5, Symphony No. 2
Krystian Zimerman - Franz Schubert: Piano Sonatas D 959 & D 960
Blair Sanderson
Stefan Blunier, Beethoven Orchester Bonn - Schmidt: Symphony No. 2; R. Strauss: Festival Prelude, Op. 61
Martyn Brabbins, BBC Symphony Orchestra - Vaughan Williams: A London Symphony (1920 Version)
Semyon Bychkov, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra - Franz Schmidt: Symphony No. 2; Richard Strauss: Dreaming by the Fireside
Angela Hewitt - Domenico Scarlatti: Sonatas, Vol. 2
Steven Isserlis - Haydn, CPE Bach: Cello Concertos
Mariss Jansons, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra - Mahler: Symphonie Nr. 5
Rafael Kubelik, Seiji Ozawa, Boston Symphony Orchestra - Béla Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings, Percussion & Celesta
R. Andrew Lee, Seth Parker Woods - Michael Vincent Waller: Trajectories
Kayleen Sánchez, Johnandrew Slominski - Franz Peter Schubert: Schwanengesang
Wolfgang Emanuel Schmidt, Metamorphosen Berlin - Tchaikovsky: Serenade
Christian Thielemann, Staatskapelle Dresden - Anton Bruckner: Symphonie Nr. 4 Es-Dur "Romantische"
James Manheim
Giovanni Antonini, Il Gardino Armonico - Haydn 2032, No. 4: Il Distratto
Emanuel Ax, Leonidas Kavakos, Yo-Yo Ma - Brahms: The Piano Trios
The Boys of St. Paul's Choir School - Ave Maria
Simon Callaghan, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Martyn Brabbins - The Romantic Piano Concerto, Vol. 78: Coke
Silvia Dalla Benetta, Maxim Mironov, Antonino Fogliani - Vincenzo Bellini: Bianca e Gernando
Del Sol String Quartet, Gyan Riley - Dark Queen Mantra: Terry Riley, Stefano Scodanibbio
Duo Tal & Groethuysen - Colors: Claude Debussy, Richard Strauss
Ensemble Marsyas - Edinburgh 1742: Barsanti & Handel
Isabelle Faust, Freiburger Barockorchester, Pablo Heras-Casado - Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto; Symphony No. 5
Nelson Freire - Brahms
John Georgiadis, Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra- Eduard Strauss I: A Centenary Celebration
Boris Giltburg, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Carlos Miguel Prieto - Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 2; Études-tableaux, Op. 33
Gloriæ Dei Cantores, Peter Jermihov - Rachmaninoff: All-Night Vigil, Op. 37
Manfred Honeck, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra - Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5; Barber: Adagio
Guy Johnston - Tecchler's Cello: From Cambridge to Rome
Evgeny Kissin - Beethoven: Piano Sonatas No. 3, No. 14 "Moonlight", No. 23 "Appassionata", No. 26 "Les Adieux", No. 32; 32 Variations in C minor
L'Arpeggiata, Christina Pluhar - Händel Goes Wild
Longleash - Passage
Alexei Lubimov - Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach: Tangere
Leann Osterkamp - The Complete Solo Piano Works of Leonard Bernstein
Francesco Piemontesi, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Andrew Manze - Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 25 & 26
Joanne Polk - Gershwin & Wild
Portland State Chamber Choir, Ethan Sperry - Eriks Esenvalds: The Doors of Heaven
John Potter - Secret History: Josquin & Victoria
Edmund Rubbra - Edmund Rubbra: Sinfonia Concertante Op. 38; Violin Concerto Op. 103
Martin Rummel, Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz, Karl-Heinz Steffens - Ralph Vaughan Williams: The Poisoned Kiss; The England of Elizabeth; Bucolic Suite; In the Fen Country; Fantasia on Sussex Folk Tunes
Sacconi Quartet, Mark Padmore, Charles Owen - Jonathan Dove: In Damascus
Fazil Say - Chopin: Nocturnes
Mila Shkirtil, St. Petersburg State Symphony Orchestra, Yuri Serov - Georgy Sviridov: Russia Adrift; Snow is Falling; Music for Chamber Orchestra
Robert Smith - Georg Philipp Telemann: Fantasias for Viola da Gamba
Ashley Solomon - G.Ph. Telemann: Twelve Fantasias for Solo Flute
Yekwon Sunwoo - Cliburn Gold 2017: 15th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Yaara Tal - Polonaise: Franz Xaver Mozart, Frédéric Chopin
Bryden Thomson, BBC Welsh Symphony Orchestra - Daniel Jones: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 11
Josep Vicent, World Orchestra of Jeunesses Musicales - Michael Nyman: Symphony No. 5, Symphony No. 2
Krystian Zimerman - Franz Schubert: Piano Sonatas D 959 & D 960