Final Fantasy Xiii

Every secret, every side-quest, every mini-game, every bonus, every Achievement and every Trophy revealed and explained in a dedicated Extras chapter.

Presented as full length, beautifully orchestrated suites, one for each of the games included, Final Symphony II features the music of Final Fantasy V, VIII, IX and XIII, as performed by the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra and recorded inside the stunning Stockholm Konserthuset.

‘From a musical point of view, but especially with regard to the stageworthiness of the work, these cuts represent an absolute improvement’ Bartok wrote to his publisher when he had finished his definitive revision of his Wooden Prince – cutting out much of the music relating to specific stage action, but also generally tightening the symphonic structure, making its large-scale mirror form appear clearer. Normally performed and recorded in its non-revised full-length version, it has been a joy now to follow Bartok’s inspired last wish revision of this mystic, vital, otherworldly, and grotesque fantasy music. (Thomas Dausgaard)

‘From a musical point of view, but especially with regard to the stageworthiness of the work, these cuts represent an absolute improvement’ Bartok wrote to his publisher when he had finished his definitive revision of his Wooden Prince – cutting out much of the music relating to specific stage action, but also generally tightening the symphonic structure, making its large-scale mirror form appear clearer. Normally performed and recorded in its non-revised full-length version, it has been a joy now to follow Bartok’s inspired last wish revision of this mystic, vital, otherworldly, and grotesque fantasy music. (Thomas Dausgaard)

Kenneth Hamilton performs a stunning selection of Romantic Piano Encores. This album is a balm: beautifully and sensitively played, bringing a sense of peace and calm. Hamilton writes: "This is an album of pieces I've long loved to play. It's also a paradox: encores without a preceding programme; musical icing without the cake. But the tracks here were at least recorded as "encores"—played in joyful relaxation and relief towards the end of sessions largely devoted to other albums. Some of the pieces are pretty short, including the premiere recording of the elegant arrangement of Saint-Saëns' Swan by one of my teachers, the late Lawrence Glover.

Both works are classics of children's concerts that are enjoying the same worldwide success: the musical tale "Pierre and the Wolf" by Prokofiev and "The Carnival of Animals" by Camille Saint-Saëns, which the latter described – probably with a wink – as a "Great zoological fantasy".