Shostakovich Orchetral

The Suite on Words of Michelangelo (1974) is one of Shostakovich’s most moving late works, its spare orchestration perfectly adjusted to the mood of the texts. Preoccupation with death also haunts the Six Romances, setting of English poets composed in 1942 but not orchestrated with 1971 and characteristic of his bitter humour. Both cycles are superbly sung by the Russian-born bass Ildar Abdrazakov.

This is the world premiere recording of Rudolph Barshai’s arrangements of Ravel and Shostakovich string quartets…

The two piano concertos of Shostakovich, though strikingly different from each other, have both become twentieth century classics. The first has long been one of Marc-André Hamelin's 'party pieces.' Hyperion was pleased to have the opportunity to pair him with Andrew Litton, a conductor who knows these works backwards and forwards (he has even recorded the second concerto as pianist). The resulting performances have a vitality and flair which places them amongst the greatest ever put to disc. The Shchedrin concerto, though less well-known, is no less enjoyable. There is brilliance in both the piano writing and the orchestration and the surprise addition of a jazz trio in the finale - including vibraphone and drum kit - is sure to bring the house down.

John Storgårds and the BBC Philharmonic continue their survey of Shostakovichis late symphonies with this recoding of the 14th, with Elizabeth Atherton and Peter Rose as soloists. Completed in the spring of 1969, and premiered later that year, the symphony is written for soprano, bass and small string orchestra with percussion, setting eleven linked setting of poems by four authors.

After his critically-acclaimed and award-winning 'lieder albums' with pianists Jan Lisiecki (Diapason D'Or, Edison Klassiek Winner) and Seong-Jin Cho (Limelight's 2021 Vocal Recording of the Year) baritone Matthias Goerne concludes his DG lieder trilogy with DG exclusive artist Daniil Trifonov. With this album, Matthias Goerne explores the art song from a metaphysical perspective. In these visionary meditations by Brahms, Wolf, Berg, Schumann and Shostakovich, Goerne and Trifonov's intense, intuitive partnership opens our ears to the awe-inspiring yet consoling voice of the prophets. 'Goerne's forceful vocal stature offers a potent counterpart to Trifonov's elegant flexibility. A great occasion in which two strong individualists interacted with total unanimity.' (Spiegel recital review)

With one single reservation Haitink's account of Babiy Yar is superb. The reservation is that Marius Rintzler, although he has all the necessary blackness and gravity and is in amply sonforous voice, responds to the anger and the irony and the flaming denunciations of Yevtushenko's text with scarcely a trace of the histrionic fervour they cry out for. The excellent chorus, though, is very expressive and it makes up for a lot, as does the powerful and sustained drama of Haitink's direction.

Alban Gerhardt writes admiringly of Rostropovich and the legacy of marvellous works he inspired, but on the evidence of these extraordinary accounts of two of them, he need fear no comparisons with his great Russian forebear.

A decade after its debut performance of the Chamber Symphony Op. 110a by Dmitri Shostakovich (after whom the group is named), The Dmitri Ensemble under Graham Ross performs the composer's String Quartets Nos. 1, 8 and 10, re-worked as thrilling "Chamber Symphonies" for string orchestra by his pupil and advocate, Rudolf Barshai.