This month brings you another bumper crop of great reviews from the leading music magazines, quality dailies and online review sites. There’s no doubt about it: Naxos releases and distributes some of the best music and audiovisual albums!
‘Compelling and beautiful work from Raphaël Pichon’s ensemble Pygmalion, and François Roussillon’s film direction is admirable.’
– Opera News
‘This is a welcome opportunity to see enjoy an extraordinary opera by one of the most important Baroque composers.’
– new-classics.co.uk
‘Monteverdi’s opera is brought vividly to life by director Robert Carsen and an impressive cast.’
– Gramophone
‘This is a performance of high calibre, rightly celebrated by the audience at the Maggio Musicale in Florence.’
– Pizzicato ★★★★★
‘Awesome music-making, brilliantly supported by Vasily Petrenko and his Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra’
– Classical Music Daily
‘A welcome and highly entertaining release from these two able performers.’
– Lark Reviews
‘…None of the performers is demerited from a musical point of view, in particular Meagan Miller and Joshua Kohl, each one possessing the character and the solid vocal style that suit these heroes. Fabrice Bollon with a fine vigour and a dramatic tension is never lacking.’
– Classica
‘The performances are thoughtful and highly expressive…a fascinating programme of a composer I want to hear more.’
– Gramophone
‘These are convincing renditions by the Navarra Quartet, whose violinist Benjamin Marquise Gilmore…of bristling virtuosity…anyone curious as to Gregson’s exploratory side should certainly investigate this excellently recorded and annotated release. ’
– Gramophone
‘The soloists and the orchestra play with virtuosity and devotion.’
– Record Geijutsu, Critic’s Choice
‘Performances throughout are thoroughly idiomatic and the four soloists genuinely seem to revel in the music. Roberto Tibiriçá guides them through it with the sureness of one who knows the scores inside out.’
– Gramophone
‘Spirited and compelling performances of instantly attractive music.’
– MusicWeb International
‘With Juliane Banse shining with a rich bell-like sound, [an anarchic belief that poetry can be reawakened as a human space of expression] takes on flesh and blood.’
– Klassisk ★★★★★
‘A special CD with songs by a special composer!’
– Opera Nederland
‘Darrell Ang’s meticulous conducting highlights Pierné’s orchestral refinement and energetic texture, and once again we can only admire the fine form of the Orchestre National de Lille.’
– Classica ★★★★
‘A superb five-disc set of Poulenc chamber music with Alexandre Tharaud as the mainstay pianist, which is recommended without reserve. It’s a gem of a set, very well recorded.’
– Gramophone
‘Schiff and Eisenberg, do an exemplary job of bringing this music to the ear in rhetorical and tasteful interpretations.’
– Pizzicato ★★★★
‘Dario Salvi makes a welcome return to the Naxos catalogue with this most unusual and engaging release. ’
– The Light Music Society
‘An enjoyable disc of music for this unusual but highly successful combination of instruments.’
– MusicWeb International
‘Nicolosi conquers these works—saying he “plays” them seems inadequate—and presents them in all their superficial-but-highly-engaging glory.’
– Infodad.com ★★★★
‘Everything is captivating.’
– American Record Guide
‘Most enjoyable, high-quality performances, expertly conducted by Marek Štilec. I certainly recommend this CD to brighten your spirits.’
– Dvořák Society Newsletter
‘Quite remarkable from first minute to last.’
– MusicWeb International
‘Highly recommended to lovers of crossover piano; a standout in the field.’
– AllMusic.com ★★★★★
‘Played and conducted like this, the work’s unity becomes much clearer, and it emerges, at least for me, as the greatest of all symphonies.’
– BBC Music Magazine
‘This is without a doubt one of the finest versions of this epic symphony available’
– ClassicsToday.com
‘The composition becomes a melodically sustained event.’
– Pizzicato
‘Scintillating operatic rarity in sumptuous sound quality and eyecatching presentation.’
– Classical Music Daily
‘All in all, a new reference recording of this repertoire is to be welcomed here.’
– Klassik heute
‘Nicolas Horvath has embarked on an invaluable project… The Monaco-born Horvath’s versatility…lends itself to the chameleon Tailleferre: she switches from neoclassical to radical, tonal to bitonal, rhythmic and familiar to irregular and dissonant. Horvath is a great advocate.’
– The Guardian
‘Gently beautiful Beatles interpretations’
– The Guardian ★★★★
‘There’s a sense of Bacewicz’s compositional imagination really taking wing in these pieces, and Jablonski commits to her vision.’
– BBC Music Magazine
‘All of the music on this splendidly played disc is worth hearing.’
– ClassicsToday.com
‘A work full of brilliance that Danie Müller-Schott interprets with panache’
– Classica ★★★★
‘Franck offers us a tonal, nuanced, emotionally-expressive, detailed performance of the ingenious score’
– Pizzicato ★★★★★
‘A glorious operatic triumph that should grace any collector’s musical shelf.’
– Classical Music Daily
‘An exciting and intensive interpretation.’
– Pizzicato ★★★★★
‘I emerged from listening feeling refreshed and very clean.’
– The Times (London) ★★★★
‘A catchy confluence’
– ClassicsToday.com
‘A novel album that is enjoyable from start to finish.’
– AllMusic.com ★★★★
‘Michael Gielen was one of the champions of the second 20th century. Here is a testimony.’
– Classica
‘The imaginative staging is matched by William Christie’s polished direction at the helm of an enthusiastic cast.’
– Classica
‘A theatrical as well as vocal masterpiece.’
– Diapason
‘This documentary is an invitation to discover a skilful and lively music, well-anchored and the exceptional personality of its composer.’
– ResMusica.com
‘Evelyn Herlitzius’s astonishing Kostelnička, a portrayal of visceral dramatic force…this version is worth seeing for that alone.’
– Gramophone