Best Of The Year Discs for 2008

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