Quarterly Critic’s Choice
The best and most interesting new releases of the previous three months are awarded a place on the Quarterly Critic’s Choice. Evaluation criteria are artistic quality, repertoire value, presentation, and sound quality. From 2014 onward, the Long Lists are stored directly with each Quarterly Critic’s Choice.
NEW: Long List 2/2024, published on 5th April 2024
Orchestral Music & Concertos
Jean Sibelius: Symphonies Nos. 1-7
Berliner Philharmoniker, Simon Rattle. 4 CDs, 1 Blu-ray Audio, 1 Blu-ray Disc, Berliner Philharmoniker Recordings BPHR150071
Orchestral Music & Concertos
Dutilleux: Tout un monde lointain
Henri Dutilleux: Concerto for Cello & Orchestra »Tout un monde lointain« & »Trois strophes sur le nom de Sacher« for Cello solo; Claude Debussy: Sonata for Cello and Piano D minor. Emmanuelle Bertrand, Pascal Amoyel, Luzerner Sinfonieorchester, James Gaffigan. harmonia mundi HMC902209
Chamber Music
Brahms / Artemis Quartet
Johannes Brahms: Sting Quartets C minor op.51,1 and B flat major op.67. Artemis Quartet. Erato 08256 46126 637 (Warner)
Keyboard Music
Dinorah Varsi – Legacy
Works by Robert Schumann, Frédéric Chopin, Henri Vieuxtemps etc.. Dinorah Varsi. 35 CDs, 5 DVDs, Genuin GEN 15353 (Note 1)
Keyboard Music
Sol de mi fortuna / Diego Ares
Padre Antonio Soler: Harpsichord Sonatas from the Morgan Library. Diego Ares. harmonia mundi HMC902232
Opera
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Zaïs
Julien Prégardien, Sandrine Piau, Aimery Lefèvre, Benoit Arnould u.a., Chœur de Chambre de Namur, Les Talens Lyriques, Christophe Rousset. 3CDs, Aparté AP 109 (harmonia mundi)
Opera
Guiseppe Verdi: Aida
Anja Harteros, Jonas Kaufmann, Ekaterina Semenchuk, Erwin Schrott, Ludovic Tézier etc., Orchestra e Coro dell’Accademia Santa Cecilia, Antonio Pappano. 3 CDs, Warner Classics 7833008
Choral Music
Janáček: Říkadla / Reinbert de Leeuw
Leoš Janáček: Říkadla (Nursery Rhymes), Kačena Divoká (The Wild Duck), Kantor Halfar, Vlčí Stopa (Wolf’s Trail), Elegie na smrt dcery Olgy et al Works. Collegium Vocale Gent, Het Collectief, Reinbert de Leeuw. Alpha 219 (Note 1)
Lieder and Vocal Recital
Julia Lezhneva: Händel
Georg Friedrich Händel: Arias from Operas and Oratorios. Julia Lezhneva, Il Giardino Armonico, Giovanni Antonini. Decca 478 9230 (Universal)
Contemporary Classical Music
Séverine Ballon: Solitude – Works for Cello
Works for Cello by Rebecca Saunders, James Dillon, Liza Lim, Mauro Lanza und Thierry Blondeau. Séverine Ballon, Mark Knoop. Aeon AECD1647 (Note 1)
Historical Recordings
Carl Nielsen on Record. Vintage & other historical recordings
With various Orchestras, Soloists and Choirs and with Yehudi Menhuin, Emil Telmanyi, Herman David Koppel, Fritz Busch, Thomas Jensen et al. 30 CDs, Danacord DACOCD801-830 (Klassik Center)
Crossover Productions
Geoff Berner: We are Going to Bremen To Be Musicians
With Wayne Adams, Brigitte Dajczer, Diona Davies, Josh Dolgin, Keith Rose, Michael Winograd, Joe Keithley Oriente Musik, RienCD89 (Fenn)
Music Film
Amy – the girl behind the name
Documentation by Asif Kapadia. DVD Eurokino 217663 (EuroVideo Medien GmbH)
Jazz
Fay Claassen, Trio Peter Beets
Live At The Amsterdam Concertgebouw. Challenge Records CR 73411 (New Arts International)
Jazz
Daniel Erdmann: Ten Songs About Real Utopia
Daniel Erdmann, Samuel Rohrer, Vincent Courtois, Frank Möbus: Ten Songs About Real Utopia. arjunamusic AMAC-CD 707 (Kompakt)
World Music
Rivière Noire
CPL Music CPL008 (Broken Silence)
German language Singer/Songwriters
Jörg KO Kokott: Solo live
Eigenverlag www.ko-art.de
Folk and Singer/Songwriters
Broom Bezzums: No Smaller Than The World
Steeplejack Music SJCD017 (in-akustik)
Pop
Joanna Newsom: Divers
Drag City (Rough Trade)
Rock
The Libertines: Anthems For Doomed Youth
Virgin/EMI 474 6277 (Universal)
Hard and Heavy
Avatarium: The Girl With The Raven Mask
Nuclear Blast NB 3551-2 (Warner)
Alternative
Julia Holter: Have You In My Wilderness
Domino Recording WIGCD341 (Good To Go)
Electronic and Experimental
Darkstar: Foam Island
Warp B012D68YYC (Rough Trade)
Blues and Blues-related
Hazmat Modine: Extra-Deluxe-Supreme
Jaro 4326-2
R&B, Soul and Hip-Hop
Erykah Badu: But You Caint Use My Phone
Motown 254 7719713 (Universal)
Spoken Word
Laurence Sterne: Leben und Ansichten von Tristram Shandy, Gentleman
Adaption as radio play and direction: Karl Bruckmaier. With Stefan Merki, Peter Fricke, Hans Kremer, Anna Drexler et al. 9 CDs. Der Hörverlag / BR ISBN 978-3-8445-1943-3
Recordings for Children and Youth
Ulrich Hub: Ein Känguru wie du
Mirco Kreibich, Christopher Heisler, Irm Hermann et al. Silberfisch ISBN 978-3-86742-559-9