Naxos favourites

[Dave2002]

Prompted by Bryn's comments on Bargains - http://www.for3.org/forums/showthrea...007#post113007 - I thought I'd start a Naxos favourites thread.

Years ago I was seriously into Naxos, but that was before the prices of all the other labels crashed, particularly for box sets. It's a label that still does have some very good versions of "standard" repertoire, but it also has some well off the beaten track things.

What do others like?

My recommendations:

For standards:

Wind Music, Oslo PO Wind Ensemble - Dvorak, Janacek, Enescu - 8.554173 - lovely this one.
(they also have a Mozart serenades CD - 8.555943)

Elgar: (Payne) Symphony 3
String quartet and Piano Quintet with the Maggini Quartet and Peter Donohoe - v. good.

Elgar symphonies have done well too, with recordings by Edward Downes and also George Hurst.
[Note though, that Amazon have the 3 CD set - which might work out cheaper than using the cheap Zavvi deal]

Some of the Vaughan Williams symphonies are excellent - e.g the Sea Symphony [I have the surround sound version]

I just noticed the CD of Elgar's Sea Pictures and the Music Makers with Sara Connolly too - could be good.

Haydn Quartets: Kodaly Quartet - most - or the box set.

Any/all of Tintner's Bruckner symphonies. Some of his other CDs are also worthwhile.

The Sibelius sets are very good. For example symphonies by the Iceland SO under Petri Sakari.

I hear also that some of the new CDs with the New Zealand SO under Inkinen are good.

Also the violin concerto, coupled with Sinding's concerto, Bournemouth SO.

Petrenko's RLPO Shostakovich set has been highly praised, though I have to say that I still prefer Haitink, at least in #10.

Mozart quintet for piano and wind plus Beethoven Op 16: 8.550511

The Glazunov symphonies (Anissimov and Moscow SO) are good, though there are cheaper ways of getting all the 1-8 (even 1-9 with Serebrier) with other conductors, some better.

Bax Symphonies - but probably Vernon Handley's set is better, and again, the cost of getting them all is not so competitive. Bax Quintet for harp and strings is a good one.

Arnold Symphonies - these are more off the beaten track, but worth having. What about the Cello concerto, with Raphael Wallfisch?

There are some other good string quartets - e.g Ravel/Faure - Ad Libitum quartet - 8.554722.

I think they also have another version of the Ravel, which is also good.

Some of Marin Alsop's Bournemouth recordings are good, as also some by Serebrier.

Schumann: Concertstuck op 86, American Horn Quartet - though I think there's some slight distortion on that.

Weirder stuff
I'm rather fond of Sallinen's "Some aspects of Peltionemi Hintrinkin's Funeral March" - string orchestra version of Quartet 3, Op 19. 8.553747.

Also the flute concerto is on 8.554185 - coupled with Takemitsu and Penderecki.

Off the beaten track
Symphonies and other by composers such as Kalinnikov (8.553417), Taneyev could all be worth exploring, Grechaninov.

Rautavaara: Cantus Arcticus - good one. They also have piano music played by Mikkola and Symphony 8.

To avoid

Personally, I'd avoid some - including some which have been highly recommended.

These include the Stephen Gunzenhauser Dvorak Symphonies, and the Barry Wordsworth Mozart.

What do others think?

Over to you!

[Chris Newman]

I would add

Ludwig van Beethoven
Beethoven: Fidelio, Op. 72
Inga Nielsen (Leonore), Gosta Winbergh (Florestan), Kurt Moll (Rocco), Alan Titus (Pizarro), Herwig Pecoraro (Jaquino), Edith Lienbacher (Marzelline), Wolfgang Glashof (Fernando), Péter Pálinkás (First Prisoner), Józef Moldvay (Second Prisoner)
Nicolaus Esterhazy Sinfonia, Hungarian Radio Chorus, conducted by Michael Halasz. The principal singers equal any others on record and Halasz moves everything with a great sense of drama. Only the Fernando is weak.
John Ireland:
Piano Concerto in E flat major
Legend
First Rhapsody
Pastoral
World Première Recording
Indian Summer
World Première Recording
A Sea Idyll
Three Dances
John Lenehan (piano)Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, John Wilson
In fact Naxos are serving Ireland proud in many of their recordings.

Sir Michael Tippett:

The String Quartets played by the Tippett Quartet

The Piano Concerto and Ritual Dances, Benjamin Frith, BBCSSO and George Hurst.

Piano Sonatas played by Peter Donohoe

A Child of Our Time Faye Robinson (soprano), Sarah Walker (mezzo-soprano), Jon Garrison (tenor) & John Cheek (bass-baritone)
City of Birmingham Chorus & City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Sir Michael Tippett

There are many good Naxos records in their English Song series. Some have been specially recorded but a lot have come from the now-defunct Collins label.
Grab items in Naxos historical recordings as many will disappear since the changes in copyright laws.

[MickyD]

I wanted to get the Tintner/Bruckner box set on Naxos, but it seems to have curiously disappeared for a while....does anyone know if there are plans to reissue it? It looks like a handy bargain box for someone like me who has yet to get hold of all the symphonies.

Naxos has also released some interesting off the beaten track 18th century repertoire, with the likes of Hervé Niquet doing some good Boismortier and Clérambault. Kevin Mallon has also done some fascinating discs, too.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I also buy fewer Naxos CDs now that prices elsewhere are even cheaper, but I wholeheartedly agree with (most of!) your "Highlights" adding only

The Robert Craft Edition of Stravinsky, Webern and (especially) Scho(e)nberg - no better performances of these masterpieces anywhere.

The Peter Maxwell Davies Naxos Quartets (the magnificent Magginis again)

The Elliott Carter String Quartets (the even more remarkable Pacifica Quartet)

Moton Feldman's First String Quartet (PLEASE Mr Naxos, chance your arm with a set of the Second!)

The Scholars Baroque Ensemble discs, especially their glorious Fairy Queen

Jeremy Summerly and either of his Oxford choral ensembles.

The late and very much lamented Tessa Bonner's Byrd disc.

Jenkins: All in a Garden Green

The Ensemble Unicorn.

... and the Gunzenhauer Dvorak Symphonies! (A sparkling set that I love to play: 'though even they can't get me "to" the first two!)



Wish List (besides the Feldman):

Music from the Eton Choirbook and the Old Hall Manuscripts;

Ferneyhough: Carceri d'Invenzione

A survey of the complete Bach Cantatas, OVpP.

The Simpson Symphonies.

Birtwistle: Gawain (they've done other, dare I suggest, less essential Collins Classics reissues!)


EDIT:

Oh, and the discs that Chris and Micky mentions and most of what everyone else is going to say, especially if they include Benjamin Frith's Mendelssohn discs!

[Chris Newman]

Dave mentioned Marin Alsop and the BSO. Her Bartok is superb, for example:

Bela Bartók:
The Miraculous Mandarin, Op. 19, Sz. 73 (complete ballet)
Dance Suite, BB 86, Sz. 77
Hungarian Sketches, BB 103, Sz. 97
Bournemouth Symphony Chorus and Orchestra, Marin Alsop
Her Duke Bluebeard gives Bernard Haitink and Big John T a good run for their money.

She really produces the goods in Dvorak Symphonies with her Baltimore SO and has served her old boss, Leonard Bernstein, well on Naxos.

[Bryn]

There are too many highly recommendable Naxos issues to mention, however, a few that come to mind immediately are the Ives series (looking forward to the 4th Symphony, and hoping they record David G. Porter's realisation of the Universe Symphony). Then there's the Blu-ray issue of the Haydn Piano sonatas, etc., some fine Messiaen issues (though I don't personally get on that well with the Wit Turangalîla Symphonie) ...

[Dave2002]

Chris

Interesting about that Fidelio. Maybe I should try it. If you type in "Bruno Walter Naxos" into Amazon you'll also find his Fidelio, and Don Giovanni, as well as Mahler - some with Kathleen Ferrier.

There are also a couple of Gluck operas with Arnold Ostman and the Drottningholm people, and other odd operas such as Rienzi and Tancredi, though I've not been too thrilled by these. Beecham's Magic Flute is there.

Thanks for reminding me of the Tippett works. Also there are the Maxwell Davies Naxos Quartets - though I've not tried any of those.

[cloughie]

There are so many but I'll start with the Debussy orchestral music Vols 1-7 Lyon NO Markl, which contain all the Debussy orchestral works I know and love plus some more orchestrations of piano music. As I've collected these as they were issued most were at £3.99 or £4.99 at most. Also his Daphnis is worth a hearing.

[vinteuil]

the Weiss lute series by Robert Barto

[Mahlerei]

They've certainly come a long way since those early days. Off the top of my head, recent goodies include the Casella symphonies from La Vecchia, the Mompou piano music (Masó), the Wit Mahler 8, the reissues of Schwarz's Delos Hanson, Loeb's Joplin, Falletta's Respighi, the Griffes collection that includes Kubla Khan, the American Percussion series. And many more.

[vinteuil]

Frederic Rzewski - The People United Will Never Be Defeated! Ralph van Raat, piano

[Biffo]

'Jeremy Summerly and either of his Oxford choral ensembles' - my first ever Naxos disc was his Lamentations collection.

I usually use Naxos for exploring the more out-of-the-way repertoire.

Tveitt was a composer unkonown to me until fairly recently: I have his Piano Concertos 1,4 & 5; Suites 1,2 4 & 5 from A Hundred Hardanger Tunes and a disc of Wind Music, all from Naxos. This has led me to some more expensive Tveitt discs from BIS.

The complete Villa-Lobos/Bachianas Brasileiras from Schermerhorn and the Nashville Symphony Orchestra did well in a (fairly) recent BaL without being first choice. I would recommend them to anyone. I started collecting the Bax Symphonies from David Lloyd-Jones/RNSO but bought the complete Handley set; I would recommend either. I also have an excellent disc of Peter Warlock songs (Thompson/Maltman/Constable); this I think is a reissue.

From Historical Naxos I have the Furtwangler/Die Walkure and a Wagner recital from Flagstad and Melchior.

[Mahlerei]

And there's the Shostakovich film music, New Babylon the latest in the series (some titles culled from old Marco Polo catalogue)

[Thomas Roth]

The Boris Tchaikovsky Andersen Fairy Tales and Four Preludes is marvellous and should not be missed by anyone. A truly great composer.

[Norfolk Born]

I've found Naxos invaluable in building up a collection of works by English composers, such as Alan Rawsthorne and John Ireland, and works by Nordic composers, such as the 2 symphonies by Svendsen.