Martin Cullingford’s pick of the inest recordings from this month’s reviews

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JS BACH Keyboard Partitas, BWV825 830 Igor Levit pf Sony Classical B b 88843 03682 2

STEPHEN PLAISTOW’S REVIEW IS ON PAGE 28

If his Beethoven sonata debut disc for Sony caught the music world’s attention, this set of Bach Partitas will confirm Igor Levit as a pianist of hugely impressive ability and musicianship.

BEETHOVEN Piano Concertos Nos 3 & 4 Maria João Pires pf Swedish RSO / Daniel Harding Onyx M ONYX4125

One of today’s leading pianists, Maria João Pires brings thrilling grace and poetry to these concertos, qualities clearly relished by her performance partners too.

REVIEW ON PAGE 31

MEDTNER. RACHMANINOV Piano Sonatas, etc Steven Osborne pf Hyperion F CDA67936 Quite formidable performances, caught with astonishing drama – you can almost see the physicality in the more thundering virtuoso sections. Osborne impresses again.

REVIEW ON PAGE 67

STRAUSS FAMILY Waltzes & Polkas, etc Vienna SO / Manfred Honeck Wiener Symphoniker F WS005

Honeck is becoming a familiar name on this page of late, this time with some smooth, stylish Straussian fare from Vienna – where else?

REVIEW ON PAGE 41

DOVE Song-Cycles Claire Booth sop Patricia Bardon mez Nicky Spence ten Andrew Matthews-Owen pf Naxos B 8 573080

Poignancy, hope, peace – subjects of so many of the most memorable song-cycles – are here reflected as much in Dove’s beautiful music as in the words.

REVIEW ON PAGE 75

‘PERLA BAROCCA’ Rachel Podger vn Marcin Świątkiewicz hpd/org Daniele Caminiti theo Channel Classics F Í CCSSA36014

Rich Baroque colour – from the music, interpretation and the instruments themselves – surprises and delights throughout, as does the playing’s joyful vibrancy. REVIEW ON PAGE 60

JANÁČEK Glagolitic Mass, etc Soloists; Prague RSO / Tomáš Netopil Supraphon F SU4150 2 A new edition –

‘amounting at times to a quite different work,’ says Rob Cowan – is reason enough to hear this; but an excellent performance is still the main draw.

REVIEW ON PAGE 76

MOULINIÉ ‘Meslanges pour la chapelle d’un prince’ Ens Correspondances Harmonia Mundi F HMC90 2194

Motets from 17th-century France given powerful advocacy, the richly textured music sung and played vividly, and all recorded with real presence.

REVIEW ON PAGE 77

PÄRT Choral Works Polyphony / Stephen Layton Hyperion F CDA68056 The beautifully shaped and precise sound of Stephen Layton’s Polyphony is tailor-made for Arvo Pärt’s spacious music and exposed lines. Exquisite.

REVIEW ON PAGE 80

BARRY The Importance of Being Earnest Soloists; BCMG / Thomas Adès NMC F NMCD197 The eccentricity is so carefully controlled by both composer and conductor – I started off completely perplexed but soon found myself laughing out loud.

REVIEW ON PAGE 88

DVD/BLURAY ‘TOUCHING THE SOUND’ ‘The Improbable Journey of Noboyuki Tsujii’ Noboyuki Tsujii pf EuroArts F◊ 205 9838; F Y 205 9834 A most moving and inspirational account of this young blind pianist’s remarkable life and career.

REVIEW ON PAGE 70

REISSUE/ARCHIVE R STRAUSS Elektra Soloists; Vienna State Opera / Karl Böhm Orfeo M b C886 142I ‘Immensely exciting and deeply moving’ is how Richard Lawrence conveys the importance of this must-hear Elektra from the archives. REVIEW ON PAGE 94

In association with www.qobuz.com

Listen to many of the Editor’s Choice recordings online at qobuz.com gramophone.co.uk

GRAMOPHONE OCTOBER 2014 7