Category Archives: CD

Beyond Egmont: a semi-revival for Donizetti’s Le Duc d’Albe

Donizetti: Le Duc d’Albe (Opera Rara) European wrangles in Brussels are nothing new. In Donizetti’s Le Duc d’Albe, Brussels is under Spanish rule, Count Egmont has just been beheaded and his daughter, Hélène, is inciting a Flemish revolt. The hot-headed … Continue reading

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Nézét-Séguin and Jacobs scamper into Mozart’s harem

Mozart: Die Entführung aus dem Serail Mozart’s Singspiel Die Entführung aus dem Serail is suddenly flavour of the month. After a terrific new David McVicar production at Glyndebourne last summer, recent recordings find two conductors scampering into the harem, each with moments … Continue reading

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More than just a clown: Vivaldi’s Concerti per fagotto IV

Vivaldi: Concerti per fagotto IV Sergio Azzolini; L’Onda Armonica (Naïve OP30551) The stream of releases in Naïve Classique’s Vivaldi Edition has dried to a trickle recently, a matter for some concern for all of us who have relished its revelations, … Continue reading

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Interpretations on Disc: Verdi’s Don Carlos

‘I’ve just come from Don Carlos. It is very bad… No melody, no accent. It aims at a style – but only aims.’ Critical reaction was mixed, but Georges Bizet wasn’t alone in his negative response to the première of … Continue reading

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Brooding Rachmaninov 3 from Gergiev and the LSO

Rachmaninov: Symphony No.3; Balakirev: Russia Of Rachmaninov’s three symphonies, the Third enjoys the least popularity. There’s a certain notoriety to the First because of its disastrous première (thanks to a drunken Glazunov conducting), while the Second is adored for its … Continue reading

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