“British forces set a new benchmark in Americana.” *****

"...Via Crucis, composed in Rome in 1878 for choir and keyboard instrument (here piano), is spare but profound music that sometimes reduces to a single line. De Leeuw, playing and conducting, and the Collegium Vocale Gent give this work, and three shorter late sacred masterpieces, with apt intensity." 

“Falla struggled to get his only opera, Life Is Short, performed in his home town, Madrid, and it remains a fringe work despite its outstanding quality… this is a worthy successor to classic accounts … Nancy Fabiola Herrera (as Salud), Aquiles Machado (as Paco) and Mena are powerful advocates for this pinnacle of Spanish “verismo”.”

"...The recorded sound is rich and beautifully balanced, but that is practically a given with this label.  This is a very impressive omnibus from one our most gifted composers of music for film and television..."

Recommended

“Music steeped in the European tradition, embodying an American idiom and revealing the composer’s Southern roots… The Fort Smith Symphony deliver riveting performances of these two symphonic works, under the direction of their charismatic conductor John Jeter. This compelling music could have no better advocates. This constitutes a good starting point for those who haven't already encountered Price's music and are curious.”

“… Both works are attractive, varied and easy to enjoy. The soloists here are those for whom the works were written. The Antwerp Symphony Orchestra (formerly the Royal Flemish Philharmonic) play with gusto and Martyn Brabbins conducts with sympathy …”

Recommended

“An already promising cycle just got a whole lot better; super sonics from Soundmirror, too. “

“A substantial addition to the discography.”

Recommended

“…This is an outstanding release, not just the extraordinary music but also the performances. This music is hard and needs work and talent to bring it alive as well as courage and imagination. The recording is clear and powerful “

“…This is a beautifully performed, recorded and presented production of one of Monteverdi’s final masterpieces, and I look forward to revisiting it on many occasions. I wonder if Gardiner will now be persuaded to re-record the other two surviving operas. It would be fascinating to hear on disc the fresh insights the passing years will surely have afforded him.”

“Great fun and some superb musicianship – this will be the only album this year to combine the likes of Dutch death metal, Kurt Weill, Muse, and Emil Tabakov.”

“… Here are two very different musical homages to Brahms, both of which are well worth hearing, and to find them coupled together is unique. The performances are first class: on this evidence the Gälve Symphony Orchestra is a very good ensemble and Jaime Martin conducts them very well. Ondine’s recording is ideal and Anthony Short’s notes are very useful.”

"A deserved tribute to almost 40 years with the label"

RECOMMENDED

“…Throughout this recording Tasmin Little and John Lenehan are in excellent form, their choices of tempi, though some might find them a little too fast and forceful at times, are intelligent and certainly bring the best out of this wonderful music. They are helped by Chandos’ usual brilliant recorded sound and sympathetic acoustic at Potton Hall, as well as excellent booklet notes, with the result being a disc that will certainly be a front runner in my deliberations for my choice for Recording of the Year.”

"... For all of the disc's self-positioning in modernist contexts, the result is strikingly emotive. This is atmospheric music. As a final note, SOnic Fictions deserves serious praise for its sound quality. The impeccable detail and welcoming balance of each recording communicate a sense of proximity to the surface of the music. When combined with a music so consumed by its own internal dynamics (and in some way so indifferent to the listener's preference), this closeness feels chilling."

"... Engaging throughout, Redgate's ominvorous predilections and superlative musicianship are eclipsed only by his excellent taste in collaborations."