★★★★★ Nolan transcends Widor's scores, truly revelling in the Gothic beauty of this music and the grandiose instruments of the belle époque - Choir & Organ
Joseph Nolan proves himself an excellent Widor interpreter - MusicWeb International
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The fifth volume in our series of Charles-Marie Widor’s Organ Symphonies, performed by Joseph Nolan on the magnificent Cavaille-Coll organs of La Madeleine, Paris and Saint-Sernin, Toulouse. Bridging the generations from Mendelssohn to Messiaen, Empire to Republic, Widor was born to the organ. His Lyonnaise kinsfolk were organ-builders, he showed early talent for the instrument, and for decades was the embodiment of its might and splendour across the Gallic domain – his ‘Organ Symphonies’ were genre-defining in their influence. -
Emmanuel Despax is a rising star on the UK and international piano scene, who has performed at the Wigmore and Cadogan Halls in London, the Salle Gaveau and Louvre Auditorium in Paris, and with orchestras including the CBSO. His debut concerto recording, with the Orpheus Sinfonia under Thomas Carroll, features the premiere recording of Stephen Goss's Piano Concerto, inspired by the designs of Thomas Heatherwick (the work’s premiere performance was the first classical concert in which audiences were invited to bring their ipads and tablets, to watch an interactive display designed to accompany the music). The work is accompanied by two similarly expressive and characterful works, Saint-Saëns’ ever-popular Piano Concerto No.2 and Franck’s Variations symphoniques. Emmanuel Despax is a formidable talent, fleet of finger, elegant of phrase and a true keyboard colourist...a noteworthy achievement - Gramophone Despax displays fine power and urgency with some brilliant piano playing...brings just the right combination of charm, brilliance and depth to the playing - Planet Hugill -
This first release on Signum from one of the UK’s most dynamic string quartets, the Carducci Quartet demonstrate their passion and commitment to bringing contemporary repertoire to a wider audience. On this recording they are joined by oboist nicholas Daniel for three world premieres, all written specially for them and all premiered at the Presteigne Festival: Michael Berkeley’s Oboe Quintet, ‘Into the Ravine’, John McCabe’s String Quartet No. 7, ‘Summer Eves’, and Adrian Williams’ String Quartet No. 4.Compelling playing - Northern Echo -
British composer Julie Cooper presents her commercial album debut, composed during the COVID-19 lockdowns. This musical diary represents Cooper’s reflections on the continuous cycle of life as experienced so vividly by many during this time. This theme is explored most prominently in the central 4-movement work, the ‘Contemplation Suite’, featuring the soprano Grace Davidson, where the changing of light and dark in the day and its effect on our circadian rhythms is brought to light. The album opens with the title track ‘Continuum’, written and narrated by celebrated Bridgerton and Dr Who actor Adjoa Andoh, poignantly setting the tone and message for the rest of the album. Julie Cooper is an award-winning British composer whose music is broadcast extensively on Film, all BBC television and radio channels, ITV, Channel 4 and 5 and all visual media worldwide. She has scored multiple cinematic orchestral and intimate chamber albums for television drama, film, wildlife documentaries, advertising and video game music, along with numerous drama commissions for Theatre, BBC Radio Drama and the concert platform. "[Dusk] (contains) impassioned interjections on solo violin by Elena Urioste alongside luminously floating lines from soprano Grace Davidson…One is constantly reminded in Cooper’s expressively honed music of its power to comfort and inspire in difficult times" - Gramophone -
As 2014 heralds the composer’s 80th year, Harrison Birtwistle remains one of the most popular voices in contemporary composition in the UK and beyond. This new collection of premiere recordings draws together recent commissions with older works to mark the occasion, with characteristically flawless performances from the BBC Singers under Nicholas Kok. They are joined on this disc by the Nash Ensemble and baritone Roderick Williams.
Best Classical CDs of 2014 The Guardian ★★★★★ Recorded after a memorable Proms UK premiere last year, The Moth Requiem is one of Birtwistle's most austerely beautiful works ... The Ring Dance of the Nazarene, featuring a standout contribution from Williams, is similarly striking, as are performances and recording - Classical Music Magazine Birtwistle’s characteristic melodic angularity and rhythmic complexity are duly represented in six pieces written between 1965 and 2012, including two strikingly evocative recent triumphs — the buoyantly mystic Ring Dance of the Nazarene and the shadowy, haunting Moth Requiem — with all of it sung supremely well - The New York Times Birtwistle is scaling new heights just now, and the elegiacMoth Requiem transports us to a sonic world of beguiling mystery. These singers have his music in their bones, presenting it with precision and sensitivity, be it the stark, monumental Carmen Paschale, a glistening gem of a Lullaby or the dynamic Ring Dance of the Nazarene- BBC Music Magazine -
Mark Williams leads the Choir of the Jesus College Cambridge through an evocative selection of choral works inspired in varying ways by the songs of Solomon. Songs of love have been written from the earliest records of human existence. None are more passionately ecstatic than the Song of Solomon, which occupies a unique place in the Holy Bible in both style and content. It contains lyric poems of love and courtship, as might have been sung at Jewish weddings. For Christians, these poems speak to the beauty of the union of Christ and his ‘bride’, the Church. The present collection presents a diverse group of choral works written between the 16th century and the present day, with most inspired by this unique sacred text. Under Mark Williams direction, the choirs make a clear elegant and focussed sound, and clarity is very much the watchword in the performances - MusicWeb International This CD features both the Jesus College Choir (top line women) and the all-male Chapel Choir. The two sounds are well differentiated, the fresh clarity of the boys contrasting with the more mature sounds of the young women - Choir and Organ Superlative singing - Northern Echo -
Five years on from his debut recording, James Rhodes has firmly established himself in the classical world as a pioneering figure – reaching out through concerts, recordings and television documentaries to create new classical music fans whilst remaining unabashedly dedicated to the core repertoire that he performs. In his fifth recital album from his new label Instrumental Records, he returns with a sumptuous programme of works of Bach, Beethoven and Chopin, the Gluck–Sgambatti ‘Orfeo Melody’, and Liszt’s arrangement of Robert Schumann’s ‘Frühlingsnacht’. This engaging CD suggests Rhodes is finally comfortable in his skin. His readings of Bach's Partita No. 1 and Beethoven's Pastoral sonata are fresh and lovingly detailed, while his Chopin Third Ballade is both fiery and judicious. The Gluck encore is exquisite - BBC Music Magazine A sincere, communicative and mindful musician. He always holds your attention, whether or not you agree with each interpretative notion...Rhodes's fusion of instinct, mindfulness and individuality stand out in any era - Gramophone -
Featuring Rebecca Bottone, Cora Burggraaf, Allan Clayton, Klara Ek, Martene Grimson, Jennifer Johnston, Susan Gritton, Anna Leese, Matthew Rose, Andrew Staples & Mark Stone Signum are proud to reissue Classical Opera’s debut CD, ‘The A-Z of Mozart Opera’, selected for Gramophone magazine’s annual Critic’s Choice in 2007. Based on the coincidence that Mozart’s first opera (Apollo et Hyacinthus) begins with ‘A’ and his last (Die Zauberflöte) with ‘Z’, this disc takes the listener on a chronological journey through Mozart’s operatic canon, featuring an aria or ensemble from fifteen of his operas. My personal pick for giving this year is the Classical Opera Company’s glorious The A-Z of Mozart Opera, which is fresh, diverse, insightful and illuminating - GramophoneA lovely disc which manages to introduce both Mozart's genius and a range of lovely lyric voices, all in stylish performances which certainly make you want to hear more - Planet Hugill Page, to my mind one of the most talented of today's younger British conductors, immediately announced himself with this CD as a natural Mozartian - Early Music Review -
Rising star-soprano Elena Xanthoudakis is joined by the Royal Northern Sinfonia under Richard Bonynge in these exhilarating performances of some true Jewels of the Bel Canto aria tradition by Bellini, Verdi, Rossini and Donizetti. -
An invitation to stroll through the world of one of England’s greatest composers The young, virtuoso A Cappella ensemble VOCES8 return to disc on Signum with a sumptuous collection of early works by Henry Purcell. Joined by the specialist early-music ensemble ‘Les Inventions’, the group explores Purcell’s astoundingly diverse output – there is hardly a genre in which he did not express himself: anthems, odes, funeral music, semi- operas, masques, sonatas, consort-music, songs and catches populate his extraordinarily multifaceted œuvre. It is this astonishing diversity that we wish to celebrate by inviting the listener for a stroll through the world of one of England’s greatest composers.If anyone ever doubts Purcell's consummate genius, this CD - beautifully recorded and executed - ought to convince them. A great introduction to Purcell's many guises - Choir and Organ
You won't hear Purcell sung better - Planet Hugill
This is a lovely collection, reflective of the composer's eclectic talents, and beautifully performed - Early Music Review
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With its vivid poetry and technical ingenuity, Vivaldi’s Four Seasons was ground breaking at the time of its release and to this day remains as influential and transfixing as ever. In this recording, violinist Kati Debretzeni directs the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment in an energetic, historically informed performance. From the commanding heat of the Summer sun, to Winter’s foreboding darkness, the power of Vivaldi’s masterpiece is inescapable. The booklet includes a ‘Guided tour of the Four Seasons’, allowing listeners to follow the poetry that inspired Vivaldi as they hear the performances on the disc, including additional composer’s notes from Vivaldi’s own scores. This is a recording of the evergreen Four Seasons to remember and return to. The playing is sublime. Kati Debretzeni is a breath of fresh air at any time of the year. The chamber ensemble from the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, led here by Alison Bury, includes a core of players that has been there from its formation who continue to play with the same joyful camaraderie and artistic precision - Gramophone Debretzeni sets out to highlight the descriptive aspect of the music by finding many more colours and contrasts in the orchestral texture than are usually heard, and the period instruments give the familiar movements a new attack, making the work sound as fresh today as the day it was written - Classic FMThis is probably one of the noteworthy period-instrument 'Seasons' recordings - Early Music Review
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The first release from the restored organ of the famed Temple Church, London. Performed by associate Organist of the church Greg Morris, the programme includes several highlights of the organ repertoire, centered around Percy Whitlock’s stunning Organ Sonata.
Arthur Harrison's instrument, originally built for Lord Glentanar's ballroom, epitomizes the opulent 1920s with all the grandeur of a fine Rolls Royce. This new recording follows a sensitive rebuild helping the instrument to speak more convincingly into the fine acoustics of the Temple Church, and it has never sounded better - Choir and Organ A singularly impressive release -Gramophone -
A unique programme of works by father and daughter. Sir Andrzej Panufnik was a leading Polish composer of the 20th Century, and his daughter Roxanna has made a name for herself in her own right as a contemporary composer in the 21st. This disc, programmed by Roxanna to combine works by both her and her father, explores the parallels between their two musical languages and forms a touching tribute to Andrzej from his daughter.This is intensely personal music-making, beautifully performed - The Observer -
Early-music pioneers Charivari Agreable perform an engaging collection of overtures from the Italian Baroque Opera, best described by Kah- Ming Ng as being “lucidly crafted for the purpose of turning heads”. In a decadent era when the antics of theatre-goers was often as intriguing as the performances taking place on stage, these works were composed with the express intention of thrilling, beguiling and engaging an often hard-to-impress audience.This disc is full of insight and revelation, and to be highly recommended - Early Music Review An inspired piece of programming ... a sense of sheer delight that brings these enticing scores resplendently to life - International Record Review [The disc] is very enjoyable and the music is brilliantly played... another gem [in an] already impressive discography - Music Web International -
Armonico Consort return to disc on Signum with a festive selection of classic carols and hymns alongside new commissions and arrangements. The programme is rounded off by Benjamin Britten’s timeless A Ceremony of Carols. If you want this particular programme it is hard to imagine it being better performed - Early Music Review Highly recommended - Northern Echo Intimate, small-scale performances of mainly familiar titles - BBC Music Magazine -
A new album bringing classic carols to life under the expert direction of conductor and author Andrew Gant, marking the release later this year of his new book “Christmas Carols, from Village Green to Church Choir.” Everyone loves a carol - in the end, even Scrooge. They have the power to summon up a special kind of midwinter mood, like the aroma of mince pies and mulled wine and the twinkle of lights on a tree. It’s a kind of magic. In this new accompanying recording, Andrew Gant’s choir, Vox Turturis, bring these carols to life with captivating performances of classics such as The Angel Gabriel, Adeste fideles and Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, as well as less-known gems like Célébrons la naissance, Les anges dans nos campagnes and Tempus adest floridum. The CD booklet also includes a short essay by Gant highlighting some of the fascinating stories behind these works. Christmas Carols brims with anecdote, expert knowledge and Christmas spirit. It is a fittingly joyous account of one of our best-loved musical traditions. The recording debut of Gant's youthful professional choir is a spirited one - The Sunday Times The acoustic of St Peter's College Chapel serves these singers well, and the recorded sound is glorious - The Arts Desk This is another well-planned and splendidly performed CD, eminently recommendable - International Record Review