‘I doubt if any other group will ever excel this performance … an essential purchase for the admirers of Machaut’s music, and … a good place for beginners to get to know it’ (MusicWeb International)

«On connaît Stephen Hough comme un grand virtuose, mais aussi comme un grand penseur. Il plonge corps et âme dans les tableaux angoissés (Funérailles de Liszt) sur son piano Yamaha CFX aux couleurs plus ouvertes et brillantes que mordorées» (Le Devoir)» More

‘As Britain’s elder-statesman pianist, Stephen Hough has always thought outside the box, making unexpected juxtapositions, exhuming forgotten treasures, and interlarding things with compositions of his own. This CD offers a tour d’horizon of works on the theme of death, but there’s nothing morbid about it … with Hough, it’s needless to add that the pianism is immaculate throughout’ (The Independent)» More

‘Namoradze captures the magic and romance of these miniature masterpieces [Fragments from Hans Andersen] to perfection … [he] relishes the insouciant romanticism and exuberant virtuosity of the Concert Study No 1 in G Flat; but this almost feels like a warm-up for the Lisztian (Mephistophelian?) Concert Study No 2 in F. Both are tremendous fun to listen to, and no doubt to play—providing you’re equipped with a technique such as the present performer’s!’ (Limelight, Australia)» More

‘It’s early days, but I’ve already earmarked this young Georgian pianist’s dazzling debut disc as a potential Recording of the Year: his sheer technical brilliance will make you catch your breath time and again, but he’s also a born story-teller, bringing Andersen’s Metal Pig and Tin Soldier to life with an abundance of charm, wit and warmth. Despite their rather utilitarian titles, the twelve Op 46 studies are scarcely less characterful in his hands, the alla marcia exercise ‘for the glissando’ a particular delight’ (Presto Classical)

‘This delightful disc is a treasure chest of lesser-known works given beautifully attentive performances from the acclaimed young pianist Nicolas Namoradze’ (BBC Music Magazine)» More

‘El León de Oro have already impressed with their earlier initial release: Amarae Morti (Hyperion CDA68279). Formidable as Peter Phillips’ recordings with his own Tallis Scholars are … his work with these Spanish singers is equally impressive. Not too long ago, Spanish choirs singing their own music left something to be desired; this recording offers one of several reasons why that’s no longer the case. Peter Phillips, as honorary director, has the lion’s share of this new recording and contributes the notes, with their principal director, Marco Antonio García de Paz, rounding the programme off with four excerpts from Guerrero’s Canciones y villanescas espirituales (Venice, 1589)’ (MusicWeb International)

‘Guillaume de Machaut (c1300-77) took special care for the preservation of his output, having his collected works copied into a series of lavish presentation manuscripts—the vocal contents of which the Orlando Consort have been steadily recording for Hyperion since 2012 … most exciting is the final motet Tant doucement m’ont attrait in which, over a slow bass line, the top parts challenge and dodge one another at the double’ (BBC Music Magazine)» More

‘To call this a concept album would be to diminish its power and timeliness. It is both a meditation on the fragility of life and a Bergmanesque game of chess with Death, for which Hough has laid out his pieces and pawns in a masterstroke of programming … there is a poised and noble feel to Hough’s Chopin, subtly embellished as it is with effortless rubatos. Listen to the Trio section of the Scherzo for a masterclass in unselfconscious artistry. Or marvel at the natural flowing tempo for the Funeral March, supporting a cinematographic contrast of ever more invasive death knells and subdued mourning … two of Hough’s own arrangements, of a Korean traditional song and of Gounod/Bach, are at once transcendental and defiant: checkmate Death’ (Gramophone)

‘A fine choice for Machaut newcomers and enthusiasts alike; it brings Machaut's music alive’ (AllMusic, USA)

‘As well as matching the holy with the worldly, Kolesnikov performs Bach’s masterpiece with all the precision of a luxury Swiss watch, combining a powerful inner passion and heightened meditative power … the sound, warm and detailed, is entirely sympathetic to Bach’s monumental courage and ambition’ (Morning Star)

„[Konzertetüde Nr. 2] Das ist wohl so ziemlich das Nonplusultra einer Bravourfantasie, die York Bowen da komponiert und Nicolas Namoradze auf die Tasten gezaubert hat. Alles, was man sich an brillantem Klavierspiel vorstellen kann, wird hier aufgefahren, aber in einer verwegenen Kreuzung der Genres: Denn Bowen lässt die ausufernden Passionen einer romantischen Rhapsodie auf die Unterhaltungskunst der Music Hall prallen: Manchmal klingt es wie der Refrain eines Revuesongs, der zum Mitschunkeln einlädt. Aber was mutet er seinen Interpreten pianistisch zu! Er lässt sie die gesamte Küstenbreite der Klaviatur durchpflügen! Wenn Nicolas Namoradze nicht gerade den Beweis geliefert hätte, müsste man sich fragen, ob es überhaupt jemanden gibt, der so etwas spielen kann, ohne von der Notenlawine begraben zu werden. Aber Namoradze gelingt es nicht nur, den Klaviertumult zu bändigen. Er spielt Bowens Second Concert Study gestochen scharf, mit unwiderstehlichem Schwung und der richtigen Prise Ironie, die es braucht, um diese exaltierte Musik ernst und doch nicht zu ernst zu nehmen“ (SWR2, Germany)