Album Review
Defiantly playful
A composer worth discovering and rediscovering
Major and minor talent
Rott’s influence, Mahler’s genius
The bore of the world
Give this one a miss
Schumann/Mahler: Symphonies 1&2 (Naxos)
Schumann cannot be ignored
Ralph Vaughan Williams: Sixth Symphony (Hyperion/ICA Classics)
As shattering as any work of its era
Gustav Mahler: 5th symphony (Pentatone)
Its ethos in Mahler remains inimitable
Franz Schubert: String quintet/Quartettsatz (Chandos)
Intimations of life’s fragility
Jean Sibelius: Orchestral songs (LAWO)
The themes are cruel and cold
John Adams: Slonimsky’s Earbox (Alpha)
Among his best work
Nico Muhly: Stranger (AVIE)
This new album of three works offers quiet empathy more than overwhelming emotion