‘Bach’s monumental late work … [With] The Art of the Fugue, Hewitt has now tackled this set of 18 fugues and canons, which she describes in her detailed booklet notes as 'completely overwhelming, both intellectually and emotionally'. Hewitt’s stylistic trademarks are here—dancing rhythms, nuanced touch and sparkling clarity. She colours each voice so distinctively, you can hear right into the complex textures. But her greatest achievement is to reveal the spiritual depth that suffuses this work’ (The Whole Note, Canada)» More

'What matters here is that this live recording preserves personalised music-making of real distinction. If the opening movements feel a little undercooked, Gergiev’s distinctive brand of theatrical intensity builds as the narrative unfolds … bar for bar, the ‘Dream of a Witches’ Sabbath’ is certainly more viscerally exciting and driven than Sir Colin’s. Whether it provides the same kind of symphonic inevitability and/or dreamy poetic truth is of course a moot point but you don’t turn to Gergiev for the finer points. The Waverley Overture is similarly rousing' (Gramophone)

'When Birtwistle introduced the UK premiere of The Moth Requiem at a 2013 Prom, he initially engaged his audience by suggesting that our negative view of moths was conditioned by the havoc they wreak on our precious cashmere garments. Maybe we should consider the message herein. The Moth Requiem is a Requiem to nature in peril and our own wider commemoration of loved ones lost. This poignant piece engages our full attention for its relatively brief running time' (Gramophone)

‘In the opening Allegro of the Third Concerto, Jack Liebeck projects the combined rhetoric and supplication of the main theme with assurance, finding due tenderness in the ruminative melody that follows. The BBC Scottish Symphony is heard to advantage in the bracing initial and central (7'15") tuttis, Martyn Brabbins ensuring a close coordination with the soloist in this avowedly symphonic conception … an impressive reading, then, of a work that may yet receive its due in terms of performance’ (International Record Review)» More

‘The Brabants have never ventured this early before but on this showing I hope very much that they will do so again’ (Gramophone)

'Conductor and author Andrew Gant brings classic carols to life with his choir Vox Turturis. Performances include hardy annuals such as The Angel Gabriel, Adeste fideles and Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, as well as lesser known gems such as Celebrons la naissance and Tempus adest floridum. The CD booklet includes an essay highlighting some of the fascinating stories behind the works. An ideal stocking filler' (The Northern Echo)

«Ce n'est pas la première fois que sont enregistrés des concertos pour piano de Jan Ladislav Dussek, mais on n'a ici, dans les meilleures conditions, que des premières mondiales. Le pianiste Howard Shelley est fait pour cette musique» (Classica, France)» More

'The choir's glory remains its boy trebles, whose gleaming descants, vibrato-free production and tonal freshness are invariably the icing on the cake in these typically polished, debonair performances' (BBC Music Magazine)

«L'interprétation de Shelley, chef et pianiste à la fois … bénéficie de sa maîtrise du grand style international de l'épique romantique et nous convainc pleinement de la valeur de ces œuvres» (Classica, France)» More

‘Gough has an exceptional group of singers here. They are impressively responsive, shifting from the rich homophony of Howells’s A Hymn for St Cecilia (anchored always in the bass), to the fidgety contrapuntal writing of Britten’s ‘I have no shadow’ episode and embracing the bluesy harmonies of Richard Rodney Bennett’s Verses on St Cecilia’s Day’ (Gramophone)

'The sound image is compelling on its own terms, with the homogeneity typical of ensembles with countertenors on the top lines. But it’s a flexible interpretation nonetheless, for Gallicantus have grasped that which not all their predecessors have … details are tellingly lingered over, repetitions properly emphasised and the score’s illumination of an inner drama sensitively rendered. The odd glitch of intonation (very rare, in truth) is a negligible price to pay for such an involving experience' (Gramophone)

'Gallicantus sing this cycle of sacred madrigals and its climactic motet with all the gravity and respect it requires as the major milestone in the development of art music that it was. Live, on a rainy Sunday afternoon at th e Wigmore Hal, it was one of the most profound musical experiences of my year; on disc it comes almost that close'' (Gramophone)