Cover story We reve.1the

Collection One of the world's favourite operas, Camlen,

comes under scruti ny

56

Singertalk Amici forever,

the multimillion pound opera group, confront the crossover market

22

CONTENTS

REGULAR 4 Editor's choice Best new recordings of the month 21 From where I sit Christoph Eschenbach in Philly 22 Singertalk The latest crossover phenomenon isn't bad 25 Readers' letters In defence of OttO Klemperer A1 North American Section (NA edition only)

Cutting-edge quartet Ethel; healthy US audiences 54 Reputations The anti-star, Dame Janet Baker 56 Collection Georges Bizet's pereIUlially popular Carmen 128 Detour... Ian Bostridge on Bob Dylan 148 Live Music ArOlmd the world; on TV, radio and the web 178 My Music Actor Christopher Lee

N EV/ 8 For the record Gil Shaham and Andras Schiff 16 Obituary Susan Chilcott, Tibor Varga and Jack Brymer

FEAT RES 36 Gramophone Awards 2003

in association with Britannia Classical The winners

REVIEWS 64 ( l }{Cj II S'I RAL Vengerov's Lalo and Tennstedt's Choral 81 11 \' 1'1 Rl l )N RL I ~ S ULS Gramophone Award winners 82 CI L \ ~t II I R Takemitsu gems and historic Messiaen 88 I I ' . ' I IZl ~ 11 NT,\ l. Hewitt and Schiff play Ba ch 94 \ '\)( ~, \ 1 A fine Faure choral collection from Tortelier 105 \ '\ ) ( ' ,\1 RIIS o.; Ir" The Sixteen ride agai n 106 (WI R. \ Billy Budd from Venice and historic Wagner 113 o prrc \ R[ I"SU [S 'The Very Best of.. ,' from EM! 114 l l \ () Abaddo conducts Beethoven and Beecham on film 117 S \ Cl ) Round-up reviews of the new medium 124 Rr I' l \ Y Reissues and treasures from the archives 127 T. \ "r r 1 \ ' r Five fiddlers receive a second opinion 130 I10() " Rr\ ' 1[ \ \ 'S Kathleen Ferrier & Vivaldi's Venice

DJ\TA 62 Subscriptions 147 Audio glossary 1 58 New releases 164 Classifieds 176 Reviews index

A UDIO 132 News Another month, another NAD; Townsend tweeters 133 Feedback Your hi-fi questions answered 134 Audio clinic Our audio doctor pays a housecall 136 Tests & Reports Moon 1-3 Integrated amplifier

138 Cable improvement 141 IsoMike system 142 Castle Compact CC3 speaker system 143 NAD C521 BEE CD player 144 Denon ADV-M71 system 146 KEF Reference Model 203 loudspeaker

Interview Hilary Hahn on her new home at DG and her yellow labe l debut disc of Bach concertos 30

From where 1sit Ch ri stoph Eschenbach on the different challenges of being. music director Stateside 21

Reputations In the spotlight, one of the UK's grea test mezzos, Dame Janet Baker 54

Cardiac arrest Lose your heart to DiAural's astoni shing new microphones 141

THIS PAGE. CLOCJ(I.I1SE FROM BOTTOM LEFT L IlMG; 2, PATRIClA SOLEK; J: DPA / VAN r iCK; 4, MICHAEL TAMMARO; 5, ERIC THORBURN

www.gramophone.co.uk

GRAMOPHON E Awards issue 2003 3