Archive for MusicWeb International – Page 4
MusicWeb International Praises Woman At the New Piano
Brian Reinhart of MusicWeb International takes a listen through the new Nadia Shpachenko Woman at the New Piano recording and finds a real downside: “If there’s a downside to this release, it’s that we might start expecting a new one every year. Nadia Shpachenko has done heroic work here, and the composers provide stimulating listening. I will be returning with special interest to the works by Matheson and Schoenberg. Adam Schoenberg has an orchestral recording…
Bruckner a MusicWeb Recording of the Month!
Critic Michael Cookson names the Pittsburgh Symphony and Manfred Honeck Bruckner album a MusicWeb International Recording of the Month! “Having reviewed the mightily impressive first two releases in the ‘Pittsburgh Live!’ series I wondered how this third and latest disc would measure up. Enjoying every second of this captivating performance I can report that the series continues to provide an elevated standard of performance and sound. … In the opening movement the sheer force of the…
Organ Polychrome A MusicWeb Recording of the Month!
MusicWeb International names Jan Kraybill’s Organ Polychrome a January Recording of the Month! “The Allegro from Widor’s Organ Symphony No. 6 headlines this new album, which features Kansas City’s Julia Irene Kauffman Casavant (2011). At the console of this magnificent 102-rank instrument is Jan Kraybill, who tackles Widor’s daunting structures with aplomb. Even at this early stage the organ’s tonal subtlety and range of colours are very much in evidence; whether Kraybill’s dissembling quietly or…
Strauss a MusicWeb International 2014 Record of the Year
MusicWeb International has released their critics nominations for Record of the Year and of the 141 nominations, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s Strauss was one of only eight recordings that received two nominations from critics! “…there is excitement, drama and romance aplenty served in top notch sound. For me this recording joins the best.” —Ian Lace “When the horns cut loose in Don Juan, halfway through and near the end, it feels like you’ve been strapped…
MusicWeb International “Digs In” to Dances for Piano and Orchestra
MusicWeb International‘s Brian Reinhart “digs in” to Joel Fan and the Northwest Sinfonietta’s Dances for Piano and Orchestra recording: “For piano lovers, this CD is like an ice cream sundae, with hot fudge drizzle, Spanish peanuts, a ribbon of cream, and a booze-soaked cherry on top. It’s pure pleasure, first note to last, with a generous heaping of sugar … There’s even a Wedding Cake. … Pianist Joel Fan, who presumably herded this programme together,…
Pérez Segovia Archive Featured on MusicWeb International
The Roberto Moronn Pérez Andrés Segovia Archive recordings get a double-review on MusicWeb International: “Roberto Moronn Pérez never puts a foot wrong in his admirable recitals, and occasionally you wonder if mediocre material is being really sold by his excellent delivery. Not so with especially great discoveries by the likes of Pahissa, Donostia, Presti and Martelli. Pérez deserves great credit for unearthing much of this music. … What an excellent series this is proving to…
MusicWeb International Gives Manfred Honeck a Rave Review!
MusicWeb International‘s John Quinn had yet to hear a Manfred Honeck or Pittsburgh Symphony recording before listening to our new Dvořák/Janáček SACD, and based on this review, it won’t be the last: “I very much respect Honeck’s thoughtful and often perceptive approach and I loved the freshness of the performance. I love this symphony – it’s my favourite Dvořák symphony – and I greatly enjoyed this performance. … All of which leads me on nicely…
MusicWeb International Calls Dvořák & Janáček “Stunning”
A new MusicWeb International review finds Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony’s new Dvořák/Janáček SACD deserving of “significant praise”! “This excellent disc is the second in the ‘Pittsburgh Live!’ series. Earlier this year I reviewed the first in the series (Strauss tone poems) and was delighted by the elevated quality of performance and sound. … With playing of such captivating expression in the opening Allegro con brio the PSO conveys a colourful, fresh outdoor effect.…
MusicWeb International Says Miraculous Metamorphoses is “Well Worth Hearing”
MusicWeb International‘s John Quinn has a new review for the Kansas City Symphony’s Miraculous Metamorphoses recording: “Stern has selected a challenging and exciting programme.… Stern and his players put the music across with dash and no little brilliance. This [Hindemith] score has been a favourite of mine ever since I first encountered it through Abbado’s Decca recording over forty years ago. I enjoyed this Kansas performance very much. … There’s much to admire in the…
Traveling Sonata called “a joy” by MusicWeb International
MusicWeb International‘s Oleg Ledeniov reviews Viviana Guzman & Jérémy Jouve’s Traveling Sonata recording: “Chilean-born flutist Viviana Guzmán and French guitarist Jérémy Jouve present a rewarding disc, full of beautiful music, performed with care and affection. The programme combines a few transcriptions of classical pieces with new works that are attractive and merit attention. … “We open with the gentlest and loveliest account of Fauré’s Pavane. The guitar provides the mysterious harp-like arpeggios while the flute…
MusicWeb International Reviews Pittsburgh Symphony Strauss
Michael Cookson has a new review for the Pittsburgh Symphony’s Strauss release in MusicWeb International: “Maestro Honeck conducts the noble introduction to Don Juan with an heroic feel to this moody and colourful score in which a sumptuous and ripe sensuality predominates. With a striking range of orchestral colour the Pittsburgh orchestra’s stormy and robust surges of restless energy are almost overpowering. … Recorded in 2012 by Soundmirror of Boston the satisfying sound certainly serves…