‘Driver clears the hurdles of Book 1 with ease, from the fast-flowing first étude to the tumbling, kaleidoscopic sixth. He’s just as adroit when it comes to the mesmeric, rather witty perpetuum mobile that helps to animate the fourth. He also shines in the light, rather wistful fifth. Driver’s aided and abetted in this admirable enterprise by David Hinitt’s top-flight engineering, the sound full and finely detailed, startling in its presence and power … the comparatively short Book 3—études 15 to 18—is technically flawless, Driver’s remarkable dexterity and command of the piano a wonder to behold … superbly played and recorded’ (MusicWeb International)

«La saisissante plongée d’Alina Ibragimova dans ce répertoire soulève une question : pourra-t-on parler un jour d’« interprétations pandémiques » ? On a l’impression que la violoniste scrute le silence, écoute le temps s’écouler … sans moindrement sacrifier à la virtuosité, il y a remise en cause de tous les fondements de l’œuvre, comme la COVID-19 a remis en cause le cours si huilé de nos vies. C’est artistiquement et humainement pétrifiant» (Le Devoir)

‘Much of the focus on Vladigerov’s music has been on his bold, multi-coloured orchestral and concertante music, notably that for violin. There has been significantly less exploration of the solo piano music which makes this disc all the more welcome … Nadejda Vlaeva has recorded Bortkiewicz and Bach transcriptions for Hyperion. I’ve not heard the Bortkiewicz but I have certainly heard the Bach and it’s vividly played, lively and athletic. She brings precisely these qualities allied to a very real virtuosity and tonal sensitivity to this recital, recorded in one of Hyperion’s favoured churches in London. Francis Pott has done a tremendous job with the notes but it’s Vlaeva’s show, and she brings the young Vladigerov to life with bravura and elegance’ (MusicWeb International)» More

‘You feel the rapport between Paul Lewis and Steven Osborne immediately, the 'Berceuse' from Fauré’s Dolly so beautifully coordinated. Phrasing, colour, rhythm; this is like hearing a four-handed pianist. This is a gorgeous collection, two deeply serious musicians in mostly relaxed mood’ (TheArtsDesk.com)» More

‘Esfahani is a passionate performer rather than a scholarly purist and chooses the readings, like his choice of instrument, that make most musical sense to him—the sources he has consulted are all listed … the instrument delivers a smooth and homogenous performance under Esfahani’s nimble fingers, and—as always—his readings, as well as his playing, challenges many of the more conventional ‘period instrument’ assumptions … I recommend this recording not just for its well-argued and committed performances but for Esfahani’s challenging approach. He is on the way to recording all Bach’s keyboard for Hyperion, and if you like his style they will be well worth watching out for’ (Early Music Review)» More

‘The crowning glory of this album is Debussy’s Six épigraphes antiques, with which Lewis and Osborne make magic. They create a mysterious and calmly numinous atmosphere for the first two pieces, and convey the tonal ambiguities with what feel like casual flicks of the wrist. The fact that it’s four wrists in perfect accord is typical of this brilliant pianistic team: listening blind, one could imagine it’s a single pair of omnipotent hands’ (International Piano)» More

‘The music affords great delight … The Brabant Ensemble's performances are of excellent quality … and I recommend this CD as a most worthy celebration of the quincentenary of the composer's death’ (Cathedral Music)

‘The stupendous recital on this CD unfolds with a glorious setting of Ave Maria, intensely prayerful and deeply felt—a wonderful by-product of its composer's participation as a course tutor in Aosta in northern Italy. Sonorities are rich and textures focus on middle and lower vocal registers. More athletic choralism emerges from the Stuttgart Psalms, written in 2009 to commemorate the birth of Mendelssohn 200 hundred years before. Mäntyjärvi creates compelling choral textures, and each and every syllable rings crystal-clear to even the most reluctant listener—who would have to be hard-hearted not to be deeply moved by these psalm-based motets with their stunningly delivered solo segments and vocal ‘standout’ features impressively delivered from within the choir … a Rolls-Royce of a recording from Stephen Layton and his singers. It is a ‘must-have' for all serious music lovers’ (Cathedral Music)» More

‘Howard Shelley and Felix Mendelssohn are a fine musical match, as we've found out … in Shelley's complete survey of the sometimes mysteriously neglected solo piano music. Volume five just arrived: some gossamer textures, delicate finger work and, at the end of the album, some favourite Songs without Words’ (BBC Record Review)

‘Tomer Lev has alighted on a two-piano Larghetto and the exposition of an Allegro, known in a completion by Mozart’s friend and musical executor Maximilian Stadler but here augmented into a work for pianos and orchestra … such musical archaeology is nevertheless valuable in turning up such rough diamonds and presenting them in a persuasive fashion. Mozart barely wrote a bad note in his life, so there is plenty of treasure to be mined from works at such an early stage of contemplation that they don’t even make it into the Köchel catalogue … the Russian-Israeli MultiPianists barely put a foot wrong’ (Gramophone)

‘This latest release from The Binchois Consort represents early ‘musicking’ at its finest. The programme is built around music from the Carver Choirbook, thought to be associated with the seat of the Royal Chapel in Stirling and an important source of pre-Reformation music in Scotland. There is, however, another layer: this is a historically informed performance within a historic performance space—Linlithgow Palace—itself recreated in virtual reality. Musicology and music production triangulate James IV’s visits to Linlithgow Palace with the veneration of St Katherine and the Carver Choirbook in this very clever project … the sound is kept bright and perky by the silvery historic pronunciation. There is some really super singing here … the real showstopper on this programme is an anonymous Magnificat, whose verses alternate between joyfully rhythmic polyphony and a rich four-voice chant in the ‘fourth kind of faburdoun’. The immersive experience of this track in particular will stay with me for a long time’ (Gramophone)

‘Alina Ibragimova showcasing her stellar technique, her mastery of all the skills, but, better than that, her ability to let the music sing so clearly even as the fireworks explode around it. Ibragimova doesn't treat Paganini's Caprices purely as heroic showstoppers, and, as the rosin's flying, she finds time to highlight harmonic shifts and spin phrases with delicacy and lightness, and wit as well. Special playing, and the recording frames it so well—all the detail, plenty of air and attractive resonance’ (BBC Record Review)» More