Martin Helmchen / Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin / Andrew Manze BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto 3 - Triple Concerto

 

PIANO CONCERTO 3 - TRIPLE CONCERTO

 

Francesco Piemontesi / Scottish Chamber Orchestra / Andrew Manze MOZART Piano Concertos Nos. 19 & 27 - Rondo K. 386

PIANO CONCERTOS Nos. 19 & 27 - RONDO K. 386

Martin Helmchen / Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin / Andrew Manze BEETHOVEN Piano Concertos 2 & 5 "Emperor"

PIANO CONCERTOS 2 & 5

Martin Helmchen / Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin / Andrew Manze BEETHOVEN Piano Concertos 1 & 4

PIANO CONCERTOS 1 & 4

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra / Andrew Manze VAUGHAN WILLIAMS Symphony No. 7 "Antartica" - Symphony No. 9

SYMPHONY No. 7 - SYMPHONY No. 9

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra / Andrew Manze VAUGHAN WILLIAMS The Lark Ascending - Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis

THE LARK ASCENDING - FANTASIA ON A THEME BY THOMAS TALLIS

NDR Radiophilharmonie / Andrew Manze BEETHOVEN Symphonies 5 & 7

                                                             SYMPHONIES 5 & 7

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra / Andrew Manze VAUGHAN WILLIAMS The Lark Ascending - Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis

Andrew Manze is widely celebrated as one of the most stimulating and inspirational conductors of his generation. His extensive and scholarly knowledge of the repertoire, together with his rare skill as a communicator and his boundless energy, mark him out. Manze’s position as Chief Conductor of the NDR Radiophilharmonie Hannover has been extended until 2023.

James Ehnes has established himself as one of the most sought-after violinists on the international stage. Gifted with a rare combination of stunning virtuosity, serene lyricism and an unfaltering musicality, Ehnes is a favourite guest of many of the world’s most respected conductors including Vladimir Ashkenazy, Marin Alsop, Andrew Davis, Stéphane Denève, Mark Elder, Iván Fischer, Edward Gardner, Paavo Järvi, Juanjo Mena, Gianandrea Noseda, David Robertson and Donald Runnicles

NDR Radiophilharmonie / Andrew Manze MOZART Symphonies 40 & 41

Considered to be the highest triumph of instrumental composition in his own day, Mozart’s final symphonies continue to sweep audiences away. From the famous G-minor opening movement of the 40th symphony that cuts straight to the chase to the unprecedented complexity of the 41st symphony’s majestic finale, Mozart displays his vivid melodic invention as well as the maturity of his “old” musical soul. Even if his untimely death came unexpectedly, these two symphonies fill the listener with a sense of culmination, and may be seen as a sublime conclusion of both Mozart’s musical development and of the eighteenth-century symphony in general.
These extraordinary works are performed here by the NDR Radiophilharmonie and Andrew Manze, and will be followed by a recording of Mozart’s 38th and 39th symphonies.

Isabelle van Keulen / NDR Radiophilharmonie SERGEI PROKOFIEV Violin Concerto No. 1 WILLIAM WALTON Viola Concerto RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS The Lark Ascending

Here is a disc whose contents seem odd as it couples the violin concerto of a (still) Russian composer to the viola concerto of an English one. Instead, the coupling is very clever since Prokofiev’s First Violin Concerto, whose premiere was in 1923 (while the composer was still living in France, a few years before his return to Soviet Union) served as a much-admired model to Walton’s Viola Concerto, whose first performance was played by Paul Hindemith in 1929. The similarities between the two works go beyond the three-movements structure slow-quick-slow and concern themes, accompaniments and the rondo form of the virtuoso central Scherzo.

The smart idea of such unusual coupling came to one of the few great living violinists who can really play the viola with equal skill: Isabelle van Keulen. This glorious disc is crowned by the orchestrated version of Vaughan Williams’ masterpiece The Lark Ascending.
One of German radio best orchestras, the NDR Radiophilharmonie, is conducted by Andrew Manze (Prokofiev), Keri-Lynn Wilson (Walton) and Andrew Litton (Vaughan Williams).

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra / Andrew Manze VAUGHAN WILLIAMS A London Symphony - Symphony No. 8

Andrew Manze is familiar to classical listeners as a violinist and as a specialist in early music, but he has also pursued conducting, performing orchestral music of a more modern vintage. His concert performances have increasingly featured the symphonies of Ralph Vaughan Williams, and this 2016 release on Onyx of the Symphony No. 2 in G major, "A London Symphony" and the Symphony No. 8 in D minor gives a clear idea of his approach to this music. The impassioned reading of "A London Symphony" with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra reveals that Manze has an affinity for expansive melodic lines, poignant harmonies, and rich, atmospheric orchestration, and the sounds the orchestra produces are quite lush and luxuriant, wholly appropriate for Vaughan Williams' post-Romantic phase. The Symphony No. 8, dating from 1955, is Vaughan Williams' shortest symphony, and his use of pitched percussion creates a wonderful atmosphere that is unique in the cycle. Manze draws out marvelous sonorities from the orchestra, and the musicians respond with great warmth and a level of enthusiasm that is easy to perceive. Onyx has produced an exceptional recording with vivid tone colors and a resonant acoustic that gives the music a spacious feeling. (Blair Sanderson)

Andrew Manze / The English Concert MOZART 3 Violin Concertos

Some say it's violinist Andrew Manze's tone that makes him distinctive, that there's a sweetness to his non-vibrato swells and a strength to his flexible bowing that make his playing so attractive. Some say it's Manze's phrasing that makes him distinctive, that there's a lyrical quality to his line and a molded quality to his dynamics that make his playing so appealing. Some say it's Manze's interpretation that makes him so distinctive, that there's a combination of fantasy, intensity, and effortless virtuosity that make his performances so persuasive. Some say it's all these things at once and this 2006 disc of the last three of Mozart's five violin concertos is the proof. For those who find Manze's distinctive playing attractive, appealing, and persuasive, his performances here as soloist and director of the English Consort will be equally convincing. The sweet tone of his line suits the G major Concerto's central Adagio. The lyrical intensity of his fantasy fits the D major Concerto's closing Rondeau Andante grazioso. The molded flexibility of his virtuosity matches the A major Concerto's opening Allegro aperto. The English Consort is light, lean, and wholly as one with Manze's direction. Harmonia Mundi's sound is essentially transparent and without blemish. (James Leonard)