‘The first thing that struck me, in the very first track, was an unexpected sense of lonely vulnerability. The fact that Telemann starts many of these fantasias off with a slow movement is hardly unique in and of itself, since Bach’s solo violin works often do the same as do innumerable other sonate da chiesa, but somehow it lends the Fantasia No 1 in B flat, and indeed the album as a whole, a profundity that I simply wasn’t anticipating. Throughout the set of twelve fantasias, Ibragimova reproduces that sense of delicacy numerous times, particularly in slow movements such as the opening Piacevolmente of No 8 in E major … in such capable hands as Ibragimova’s the shaky boundary between music ‘for professionals’ and ‘for amateurs’ breaks down altogether. Telemann’s craft in keeping the music playable is obvious, but Ibragimova shows us the art that he put into these twelve fantasias—each one an assembly of perfectly-formed one- or two-minute miniatures, forming an album of bite-size delights’ (Presto Classical)» More

‘Any recital recording that programmes only shortish pieces runs a risk, and even more so when they’re all by the same composer. I shouldn’t have worried with Steven Osborne in command. Not only are there plenty of lively dances on here to counter the cliché of the ‘wispy’ Debussy, but the contrasts between tracks and the clarity at any dynamic level—and of course Osborne can play with magical refinement—are wondrous … total delight, whether you listen to it in one or more sittings’ (BBC Music Magazine)» More

‘Where Ibragimova is often at her most appealing is when addressing dance metres. Here her lightly articulated bowing and her softly spoken melodic declamation make for considerable appeal. These virtues are especially prominent in the second half dozen of the Fantasias, where the dance assumes prominence over the contrapuntal dominance of the first. Elsewhere Ibragimova demonstrates a playful agility in enlivening the kaleidoscope of Telemann’s canvas’ (BBC Music Magazine)» More

‘Wonderful as it is to hear the Eighth treated with the respect it deserves, the main focus has to be on Symphony No 6. Even against formidable competition, Martyn Brabbins impresses handsomely. Nothing is forced—the fury and the anguish, the grandeur and the desolation seem almost to speak for themselves. What’s surprising on first hearing is how the Symphony’s epic sweep is balanced with such focused clarity. Details catch the ear that tend to get lost in the general melée, while the rhythmic articulation is sharp and muscular. Of course the superb recording helps, but the microphone can’t bring out things that aren’t already there. It’s all beautifully judged, right through to the near-ideal tempo (not hurried but always mobile) for that ghostly, awestruck finale’ (BBC Music Magazine)» More

‘Osborne’s performances are of a superfine mastery. For him clarity rather than misty opalescence is central to Debussy’s genius. He paints in bold primary colours, and yet is as sensitive as he is meticulous’ (International Piano)

‘The Takács beguile the ear with their incisive phrasing, their consistency, and their sense of detail. Compared with their previous recording (Decca, 1991), this new one seems more dynamic, more intense in its highlighting of the contrapuntal dimension … [they] articulate—better than all except a very few—the shifting border between classicism and romanticism that infuses Haydn’s last works’ (Diapason, France)

‘Being steeped in this music, the Takács respond to it with their customary naturalness and confidence. They respond to each other, too, in a demonstration of deep listening that results in moments such as the uncanny unisons of Op 77 No 1’s Adagio or that rare commodity, truly quiet playing, in the hymn-like Trio that undercuts the manic ticking of Op 77 No 2’s scherzo-in-all-but-name Menuetto’ (Gramophone)

‘As always with The Gesualdo Six, the thing that strikes one most forcibly on first listening is the ensemble’s extraordinary vocal blend … the collection, centring on the theme of grief, is extremely well organised in terms of both contrast and similarity (of style and period), and I do recommend listening to it from beginning to end. Richard Rodney Bennett’s sumptuous A Good-Night provides a wholly appropriate finale to this thought-provoking journey’ (Gramophone)

‘No pianist today is more steeped in this idiom than Howard Shelley, who, true to form, dispatches both concertos with mingled flamboyance and limpid grace. Potentially routine passagework is sparklingly alive, while the cantabile melodies unfold with a vocal flexibility. Shelley is a master of rubato and artful timing. The chic opening of No 1’s finale and the waltzing second theme in the opening Allegro of No 2, given an echt Viennese lilt, make the point … Shelley’s crystalline fingerwork duly dazzles in the delicate filigree of the Rondeau brillant, which begins as a polonaise and ends as a skittering galop: a work not to Schumann’s taste, evidently, but hard to resist in a performance of such style and verve’ (Gramophone)

‘Impeccable … performances as wonderful and sonorous as you could hope for’ (The Sunday Times)» More

‘In all, these performances are a marvel. Never has Bach seemed less dry and more full of fantasy’ (The Telegraph)» More

‘A concatenation of music that delivers what it set out to do: exploring shades of positivity and the hope that the good someone has brought into the world will live on after they have passed. Perceptively and sensitively performed with outstanding musicality. Quite simply exquisite’ (Yorkshire Times)