Best of the Year Discs for 2008

by | Jan 1, 2009 | Best of the Year | 0 comments

CLASSICAL, incl. Hi-Res & Reissues

JOHN ADAMS: A Flowering Tree – Soloists/Schola Contorum Caracas/ London Symphony Orchestra/ John Adams – Nonesuch 327100, (2 CDs)
“Air” – Music of DEBUSSY & TAKEMITSU for Harp, Flute, and Strings – Telarc CD-80694

ALKAN & CHOPIN: Cello Sonatas – Gerhardt and Osborne – Hyperion CDA67624

An American Journey = GERSHWIN: Porgy and Bess Fantasy; O’CONNOR: Trio No. 1; BERNSTEIN: West Side Story Suite – Eroica Trio – EMI 07351

Martha Argerich – Music for Two Pianos by TCHAIKOVSKY, RACHMANINOFF, BRAHMS, PROKOFIEV & LUTOSLAWSKI – with guest pianists – EMI Classics (2 CDs)

J.S. BACH: Cembalo Concertos = BWV 1052 in D minor; BWV 1053 in E Major; BWV 1056 in F minor; BWV 1054 in D Major – Francesco Cera, harpsichord/I Barocchisti/ Diego Fasolis – Arts SACD 47729-8

J. S. BACH: Goldberg Variations – Winfried Bönig, organ – Motette SACD MOT 13494

BEETHOVEN: Symphonies No. 5 and 6 – Polish Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra-Sopot/Wojciech Rajski – Tacet SACD S-164

Beethoven: Sonatas, Vol. 5: Garrick Ohlsson, piano – Bridge 9250

YORK BOWEN: Piano Concerto No. 3 in G minor (Fantasia); Piano Concerto No. 4 in A minor – Danny Driver, p. / BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra /Martyn Brabbins – Hyperion CDA67659

BRAHMS: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 3 – Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra/Marek Janowski – PentaTone SACD PTC 5186-30

BRAHMS: Viola Sonatas Op. 120, nos. 1 and 2; Violin Sonata No. 1 in G; Horn (Viola) Trio in E-flat, Op. 114; Clarinet (Viola) Trio in A-minor, Op. 114 – Onyx 4033 (2 CDs)

BRUCH: Symphonies No. 1; No. 2; No. 3; Violin Concerto No. 2; Concert Piece; Swedish Dances – Ursula Schoch, violin/ New Westphalian Philharmonic Orchestra/ Johannes Wildner – EBS SACD 6141 (3 discs)

BRUCKNER: Symphony No. 7 – Chicago Symphony Orchestra – Bernard Haitink, conductor – CSO RESOUND SACD CSCR 901 706
BYRD & TALLIS: Heavenly Harmonies – Stile Antico – Harmonia Mundi HMU 807463 SACD

“Divertimenti” – BRITTEN: Simple Symphony; GRAZYNA BACEWICZ: Concerto; TERJE BJORKLUND: Carmina; BARTOK: Divertimento – Trondheim Soloists/Øyvind Gimse – 2L SACD + Blu-ray audio-only disc 2L50SABD
DURUFLE: Requiem(3rd version for choir, small orchestra and organ); Quatre motets sur des themes gregoriens; Messe Cum Jubilo; 4 pieces for organ – Fugue, Prélude, Chant donné, Méditation – Harmonia mundi SACD HMU807480

“Fire Beneath My Fingers” – Works of VIVALDI, TARTINI & SAMMARTINI – Musica Pacifica Baroque Ensemble – Dorian DSL-90704

French Romantic Organ Music Arranged for Brass Quintet & Organ “Ajoutez la trompette!” – Audite SACD 92.556

MICHAEL GANDOLFI: The Garden of Cosmic Speculation – Orchestral Suite – Atlanta Symphony Orch./Robert Spano – Telarc SACD-60696

GOMIDAS Songs – Isabel Bayrakdarian, soprano/ Serouj Kradjian, piano/ Chamber Players of the Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra/ Eudard Topchjan – Nonesuch 511487-2

GOTTFRIED AUGUST HOMILIUS: Passion Cantata – Soloists/ Basle Madrigalists/ New Dusseldorf Court Music/ Fritz Naf – Carus SACD 83.262 (2 discs)

Horizon 1: Premieres 2007 =Works of MORITZ EGGERT, COLIN MATTHEWS, THEO VERBEIJ, DETLEV GLANERT – Royal Concertgebouw Orch./ Markus Stenz  – RCO Live multichannel SACD 08003

“In a State of Jazz” – Marc-Andre Hamelin, piano – Works of FRIEDRICH GULDA, NICOLAI KAPUSTIN, ALEXIS WEISSENBERG & GEORGE ANTHEIL – Hyperion DCA67656

MAHLER: Symphony No. 5 in C sharp minor – Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra/Mariss Jansons – RCO Live SACD RCO-08007

MAHLER: Symphony No. 6 – London Symphony Orchestra/Valery Gergiev – LSO SACD 066

MAHLER: Das Lied von der Erde (The Song of the Earth) – Skelton, tenor Hampson, baritone/San Francisco Symphony/ Michael Tilson Thomas – SF Symphony SACD 821936-0019-2

Meridian Arts Ensemble – Timbrando – Channel Classics SACD CCS SA 25508

MONTEVERDI: Vespro della Beata Vergine, 1610 – Soloists/La Capella Reial/Coro del Centro Musica Antica di Padova/Jordi Savall – AliaVox Heritage SACD AVS9855 A+B, (2 discs)

FRANCIS POULENC: Gloria; Salve Regina; Quatre motets pour un temps de penitence; Quatre motets pour le temps de Noel; Exultate Deo – Polyphony/Choir of Trinity College/ Britten Sinfonia/ Stephen Layton, conductor – Hyperion CDA 67623

PROKOFIEV:  Romeo and Juliet – Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra/ Andrew Litton – BIS SACD-1301

PURCELL:  Fantasias for the Viols, 1680 – Hespèrion XX – Jordi Savall – Alia Vox SACD

ALBERT ROUSSEL: Symphony No. 3 in G minor; The Spider’s Feast ballet – Orchestre de Paris/Christoph Eschenbach – Ondine 1107-2

LA SARDANA: Cobla Sant Jordi – World Village WV 498021

SCHNITTKE: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 – 3 – Ewa Kupiec, Maria Lettberg (No. 3), piano/ Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra/ Frank Strobel – Phoenix Edition SACD 103

SHOSTAKOVICH: Symphony No. 5 in D minor; Seven Romances on Poems of Alexander Blok – Philadelphia Orchestra/Christoph Eschenbach/soloists – Ondine SACD ODE 1109-5

SHOSTAKOVICH: String Quartets Nos. 2 and 4, arr. for Chamber Orchestra – Amsterdam Sinfonietta /Candida Thompson – Channel Classics SACD CCS S26007

SIBELIUS: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 4 – London Symphony Orchestra/ Sir Colin Davis – LSO Live SACD LSOO601

STRAVINSKY: Firebird (1910 version); The Rite of Spring – Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra/ Mariss Jansons – RCO Live SACD RCO 08002

STRAVINSKY: Symphony of Psalms; Symphony in C; Symphony in Three Movements – Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra/ Sir Simon Rattle, conductor – EMI Classics 20763008

STRAVINSKY: Jeu de cartes; Danses concertantes; Scenes de Ballet; Variations; Capriccio – Mark Wait, piano/ various orch./ Robert Craft – Naxos 8.557506

RANDALL THOMPSON: The Peaceable Kingdom; Alleluia; The Last Invocation; Mass of the Holy Spirit; Fare Well – Schola Cantorum of Oxford/ James Burton, conductor – Hyperion CDA67679

“Tutti!” – Orchestral Sampler – Selections by VIVALDI, CHADWICK, STRAVINSKY, MOZART, PARAY, BRUCKNER, ARNOLD IBERT, R. STRAUSS, JANACECK, MUSSORGSKY-RAVEL & others – Reference Recordings RR-906SACD

Venetian Composers in Guatamala and Boliva – Albalonga/Aníbal Cetrangolo – Arts SACD 47722-8

“Vintage Cinema” –  Classic film score themes from 1933-1962 – Cincinnati Pops Orchestra/Erich Kunzel – Telarc SACD-60708

VIVALDI: Sinfonie d’opera – I Virtuosi delle Muse/Stefano Molardi – Divox Antiqua 2+2+2 SACD CDX-70501-6

VIVALDI:  The Four Seasons; Concerto RV 317; Concerto RV 257 – Polish Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra/Daniel Gaede (violin)/Wojciech Rajski – Tacet Tube-Only TACET 16

VIVALDI: 12 Violin Concertos – Florian Deuter, violin & director/ Monica Waisman, director/ Harmonie Universelle – Eloquentia EL 0815, (2 CDs)

WAGNER: (arr. by de Vlieger) Tristan und Isolde – Philharmoniches Orchester Hagen/Antony Hermus – Acousence ACO-CD 20707

MIECZYSLAW WEINBERG:  Fantasia for Cello and Orchestra; Concerto No. 2 for Flute and Orchestra; Concerto [No. 1] for Flute and String Orchestra; Concerto for Clarinet and String Orchestra – Soloists/  Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra / Thord Svedlund – Chandos SACD CHSA 5064

JAZZ incl. Hi-Res

Carla Bley Big Band – Appearing Nightly – ECM WATT 33

Chick Corea & Gary Burton – The New Crystal Silence – (2 CD set, 1 duet with Sydney Sym.; 2 duo) – Concord Jazz CCD2-3063

The Larry Coryell Organ Trio – Impressions – Chesky Records SACD 337

Miles Davis – Kind of Blue 50th Anniversary Collector’s Edition – Columbia/Legacy Set 88697-33552-2 – 2 CDs + DVD + blue vinyl LP

Echoes of Swing – 4 Jokers in the Pack – Echoes of Swing Productions  EOSP 4505 2

Ahmad Jamal – It’s Magic – Dreyfus Jazz FDM 46050 369182

“Jazz Side of the Moon” – The Music of Pink Floyd – Chesky Records SACD 338

Roger Kellaway – Live at the Jazz Standard – IPO (2 CDs) IPOC1014

Art Lande, solo piano – While She Sleeps (Piano Lullabies) – Blue Coast Records SACD BCRSA 2012

Claire Martin: Perfect Alibi – Claire Martin, vocals – Linn SACD AKD 316

Pat Metheny Trio – Day Trip – Nonesuch 376828-2

The James Moody and Hank Jones Quartet – Our Delight – IPO

Shota Osabe Piano Trio – Happy Coat – First Impression Music LIM K2HD 031 (Hi-Res CD)

Art Pepper, alto sax – …The Way It Was! – Contemporary Records/Mobile Fidelity SACD UDSACD 2034

Sonny Rollins – Road Shows, Vol. 1 – Emarcy/ Doxy 80012165-02

Horace Silver Quintet – Live at Newport ’58 – Blue Note 5099950

“Stardust Melody” – Beloved and Rare Songs of Hoagy Carmichael – A Records (Challenge) SACD SAAL 75103

Martin Taylor, guitar – Double Standards – P3MusicCD019

Patrick Williams – Threshold – Composed, arranged & conducted by Patrick Williams with 27-piece orchestra – Artist Share AS0080

POP Etc.

David Grier – Live at the Linda – Dreadnought Recordings 0701

Ry Cooder – I, Flathead – Nonesuch 465916-2

Taj Mahal – Maestro – Heads Up HUCD3164

Randy Newman – Harps and Angels – Nonesuch 40005

Dennis Wilson – Pacific Ocean Blue – Caribou/Epic/Legacy 88697 07916 2

Yes – Fragile  – Mobile Fidelity Gold CD UDCD 766

MUSIC DVDs

Karel Ancerl Conducts = SMETANA: My Country; BEETHOVEN: Violin Concerto – Henryk Szeryng, violin/Czech Philharmonic Orchestra/Karel Ancerl – Supraphon DVD

Ray Charles – Live at Montreux 1997, Blu-ray (2008) – Eagle Rock Entertainment EVBRD 33323

Come Together – A Night for John Lennon’s Words & Music, “Dedicated to New York City and its People” – Host: Kevin Spacey; Many celebrity guest stars – Eagle Rock Entertainment GHL 37049

Lionel Hampton, Live in ‘58 – Jazz Icons Series 3 – Reelin’ in the Years Productions 211901

Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Live in ‘63 & ‘67 (2008) – Jazz Icons Series 3 – Reelin’ in the Years Productions

Legends, Live At Montreux 1997, Blu-ray (2008) – Eagle Rock Entertainment EVBRD 33319-9

“Legends of Jazz” Showcase, Blu-ray (2006) – Music highlights from PBS TV Series with Ramsey Lewis – LRS Media DVD 090005

MINKUS: Don Quijote (complete ballet) – Ballet Nacional de Cuba/Viengsay Valdés/Romel Frómeta/Giovanni Duarte – BelAir Classiques DVD BAC-036

Bill Monroe: Father of Bluegrass (1993/2008) – Vision Arts Video

MOZART: Don Giovanni, Blu-ray (2008) – Soloists/Freiburg Baroque Orchestra/Innsbruck Festival Chorus/ René Jacobs – SWR Arte

OFFENBACH: La vie parisienne – operetta (2007) – Soloists, Chorus & Orch. of the Lyon Opera/Sebastien Rouland
– Virgin Classics 50999 5193019

Oscar Peterson, Live in ‘63, ‘64 & ‘65 – Jazz Icons Series 3 – Reelin’ in the Years Production

PUCCINI: Tosca – complete opera – Catherine Malfitano (sop.), Bryn Terfel (bar.) and Richard Margison (ten.)/ Royal Concertgebouw /Riccardo Chailly – Decca  074 3201 DH

The Pyongyang Concert, Blu-ray (2008) – The New York Philharmonic/ Lorin Maazel – Music of WAGNER, DVORAK, GERSHWIN, BIZET, BERNSTEIN, Korean Traditional – Medici Arts 2056944

San Francisco Ballet’s “The Nutcracker” – Opus Arte OA1002D

JOHANN STRAUSS II:  Die Fledermaus (The Bat) – Director: Stephen Lawless – Opus Arte Blu-ray

Tchaikovsky Gala, Blu-ray (2008) – La Scala Ballet corps & guest dancers – Belair Classiques BAC437

Van Cliburn in Moscow Vol. 3 – RACHMANINOV:  Piano Concertos Nos. 2 & 3 and encores (live, 1958) – VAI DVD 4454

Return to the Archives Directory

Back to the Top of This Page

Related Reviews
Logo Pure Pleasure
Logo Crystal Records Sidebar 300 ms
Logo Jazz Detective Deep Digs Animated 01