BBC Proms: Akhmetshina, LPO, Gardner review - liquid luxuries

★★★★ BBC PROMS: AKHMETSHINA, LPO, GARDNER Liquid luxuries

First-class service on an ocean-going programme

Water surged through this Prom from first spray to last drop. But there was nothing damp or diluted about Edward Gardner’s helmsmanship as he steered the London Philharmonic Orchestra through a succession of liquid rhapsodies: three from the early 20th century; one from 1993.

Immersive Night Music Show, Makita, Londinium Ensemble, World Heart Beat Embassy Gardens - multimedia musings on a midsummer night

★★★ IMMERSIVE NIGHT MUSIC SHOW, MAKITA, LONDINIUM ENSEMBLE, WORLD HEART BEAT EMBASSY GARDENS Multimedia musings on a midsummer night

This intriguing musical/visual collaboration was best when it was boldest

To mark this year’s summer solstice, a small audience gathered at London’s newest concert venue, the World Heart Beat Embassy Gardens, a small and perfectly formed hall bristling with “state-of-the-art” acoustics and digital facilities. On a balmy midsummer’s evening, the pianist and composer Rieko Makita invited us to reflect on the different moods and aspects of the night, in a programme that combined music with digital art projections.

Classical CDs: Bells, whistles and bowing techniques

CLASSICAL CDS Bells, whistles and bowing techniques

A great pianist's early recordings boxed up, plus classical string quartets, French piano trios and a big American symphony

 

Michel Beroff BoxMichel Béroff: Complete Erato Recordings (Erato)

Classical CDs: Funeral marches, festivals and film noir

CLASSICAL CDS Choral music, solo piano recitals and the best violin concerto you've never heard

Choral music, solo piano recitals and the best violin concerto you've never heard

 

Brother Tree SoundQuartets Through a Time of Change: music by Ravel, Durey, Tailleferre and Milhaud Brother Tree Sound (First Hand Records)

Classical CDs: Chorales, cathedrals and hardwood floors

CLASSICAL CDS Three discs of piano music, two choral collections, a German romantic anew

Three discs of piano music, two choral collections and a German romantic in new clothes

 

Beethoven LepauwBeethoven: Diabelli Variations, Debussy: Préludes George Lepauw (piano) (Orchid Classics)

Classical CDs: Cigars, cognac and tarantulas

CLASSICAL CDS Concertante works for cello & orchestra, plus music for pianos, winds & solo strings

Concertante works for cello and orchestra, plus music for pianos, winds and solo strings

 

Tim Posner celloBloch: Schelomo, Bruch: Kol Nidrei, Dohnányi: Konzertstück Tim Posner (cello), Berner Symphonieorchester/Katharina Müllner (Claves)

Morison, Big Noise Wester Hailes, RSNO, Søndergård, Usher Hall, Edinburgh - shimmering delicacy and surging swell

★★★★ MORISON, RSNO, SONDERGARD, USHER HALL Impressionism and youth shine

Fine Impressionism from resident orchestra, but young players bring the broadest smiles

While it is an incontrovertibly good thing that the classical music world has set about rediscovering the work of neglected female composers, not all rediscoveries are equally worthy of being found. Particularly on a day like International Women’s Day (IWD), concert programmers run the risk of unearthing work that tends towards the mediocre, and which can end up being tokenistic.

Classical CDs: Smocks, sins and sea swell

CLASSICAL CDS German art song, jazz standards on horn and a water-themed orchestral collection

German art song, jazz standards on horn and a water-themed orchestral collection

 

Anna Lucia challengeLICHT: 800 Years of German Lieder Anna Lucia Richter (mezzo-soprano), Ammiel Bushakevitz (hurdy gurdy, harpsichord, clavichord, fortepiano, piano) (SWR2/Challenge Classics)

Classical CDs: Fireworks, floods and unpleasant glimpses

CLASSICAL CDS Classical chamber music, pianistic impressionism and two intriguing box sets

Classical chamber music, pianistic impressionism and two intriguing box sets

 

Debussy Lee iiDebussy: Piano Works Volume 2 Dennis Lee (piano) (ICSM Records)