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
Bruckner: Symphony No. 7 – Nelsons
Anton Bruckner: Symphonie Nr. 7 E-Dur, Richard Wagner: Siegfrieds Tod (Trauermarsch) aus »Götterdämmerung«. Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Andris Nelsons. Deutsche Grammophon 479 8494 (Universal)
Orchestral Music & Concertos
Aram Khachaturian & Krzysztof Penderecki: Cello Concertos
Astrig Siranossian, Sinfonia Varsovia, Adam Klocek. Claves 50-1802 (Klassik Center Kassel)
Chamber Music
Solo – Emmanuel Pahud
Works for flute solo by Georg Philipp Telemann, Marin Marais, Carl Nielsen, Edgard Varèse, Arthur Honegger, Luciano Berio, Siegfried Karg-Elert, Pierre-Octave Ferroud, Robert Helps, Toru Takemitsu, Arvo Pärt, Matthias Pintscher and Jörg Widmann. Emmanuel Pahud. 2 CDs, Warner Classics 0190295701758 (Warner)
Keyboard Music
Olivier Messiaen: Catalogue d’Oiseaux
Pierre-Laurent Aimard. 2 SACDs, Pentatone PTC 5186 670 (Naxos)
Keyboard Music
Bach Gulda Clavichord – The Mono Tapes
Johann Sebastian Bach: Wohltemperiertes Klavier, Bd 2: 6 Präludien und Fugen, Englische Suite Nr. 2, Chromatische Fantasie und Fuge. Friedrich Gulda. Berlin Classics 0301063BC (edel)
Opera
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Naïs
Chantal Santon-Jeffery, Reinoud Van Mechelen, Florian Sempey, Thomas Dolié, Manuel Nuñez-Camelino, Daniela Skorka, Philippe-Nicolas Martin, Márton Komáromi, Purcell Choir, Orfeo Orchestra, György Vashegyi. 2 CDs, Glossa GCD 924003 (Note 1)
Opera
Jacques Fromental Halévy: La Reine de Chypre
Véronique Gens, Cyrille Dubois, Étienne Dupuis, Éric Huchet, Christophoros Stamboglis, Orchestre de chambre de Paris, Flemish Radio Choir, Hervé Niquet. 2 CDs, Ediciones Singulares Palazzetto Bru Zane ES 1032 (Note 1)
Choral Music
English Motets – The Gesualdo Six
Works by William Byrd, William Cornysh, John Dunstaple, Orlando Gibbons, Thomas Morley, Robert Parsons, John Sheppard, Thomas Tallis, John Taverner, Thomas Tomkins and Robert White. The Gesualdo Six, Owain Park. Hyperion CDA68256 (Note 1)
Lieder and Vocal Recital
Das ewige Rätsel – L’Enigme Eternelle
Lieder by Richard Rudolf Klein, Gustav Mahler, Frank Martin and Maurice Ravel. Johannes Martin Kränzle, Hilko Dumno. Oehms Classics OC 1887 (Naxos)
Early Music
L’immagine di Corelli
Arcangelo Corelli: 6 Sonate dell’Opera 5 (Nr. 1, 3, 4, 8, 9, 10). Susanne Scholz, Michael Hell. querstand VKJK 1621 (Klassik Center Kassel)
Contemporary Classical Music
Open Your Ears. Wege zur Neuen Musik
Gerd Albrecht conducts and explains. Works by Krzystof Penderecki, Hans Werner Henze, György Ligeti, Mauricio Kagel, Isang Yun and Jörg Widmann. Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Gerd Albrecht. 6 DVDs with a book, Arthaus Musik 109085
Historical Recordings
Sir Thomas Beecham
Works by Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, Johannes Brahms, Luigi Boccherini, Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, Richard Wagner and Franz Liszt. A BBC recording. Alexander Young, Beecham Choral Society, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Thomas Beecham. 4 CDs, ICA Classics ICAC 5148 (Naxos)
Crossover Productions
Franui: Ständchen der Dinge
»Geht es immer so weiter?«. col legno WWE 1CD 20440 (harmonia mundi)
Music Film
Birgit Nilsson – A League Of Her Own
A Documentary by Thomas Voigt and Wolfgang Wunderlich. DVD/Blu-ray, C-Major 800104 (Naxos)
Jazz
Brad Mehldau Trio: Seymour Reads The Constitution!
Nonesuch 7559-79344-3 (Warner)
Jazz
Cecil Taylor: Conversations with Tony Oxley
jazzwerkstatt jw198
World Music
Arat Kilo, Mamani Keïta, Mike Ladd: Visions of Selam
Accords Croisés AC 172 (harmonia mundi)
Traditional Ethnic Music
I’m Not Here To Hunt Rabbits
Sibongile Kgaila, Solly Sebotso, Western, Batlaadira Radipitse, Ronnie Moipolai, Oteng Piet, Annafiki Ditau, Babsi Barolong. LP, Piranha Records PIR3165-LP (Indigo)
German language Singer/Songwriters
Christina Lux: Leise Bilder
India 471232-2 (Rough Trade)
Folk and Singer/Songwriters
WÖR: SSSHT
Steeplejack Music SJCD019 (Neil Grant Music Production)
Rock
The National Reserve: Motel La Grange
Ramseur Records RR778899
Blues and Blues-related
Philipp Fankhauser: I’ll Be Around
The Malaco Session, produced by Dennis Walker & Wolf Stephenson. Funk House Blues 92117000002 (Membran)
Club and Dance
DJ Koze: Knock Knock
Pampa CD013 (Rough Trade)
R&B, Soul and Hip-Hop
Dabrye: Three/Three
Ghostly International GI-303 (Secretly Distribution)
Spoken Word
Michail Sostschenko: Wie mit Gabeln aufs Wasser geschrieben
Narrations. Boris Mattèrn, Direction: Walter Adler. mp3-CD, hörkultur ISBN 978-3-9524678-4-8
Recordings for Children and Youth
Otfried Preußler: Krabat
Unabridged reading. Felix von Manteuffel. 6 CDs, Der Audio Verlag ISBN 978-3-7424-0501-2