Guitar Concertos

Advantages: A little known gem of a piece, performed brilliantly
Disadvantages: None

...Henry Litolff is by no means a well known composer, which is a great shame as these two piano concertos from the Romantic era are definitely worth adding to any collection. If, like me, you enjoy listening to virtuosic piano skills then you will not be disappointed. Peter Donohoe puts on a polished performance, effortlessly racing up and down the piano to make this the best recording available. The Scherzo of the No. 4 is the best known movement and is the most virtuosic. If you enjoy piano concertos by Rachmaninov and Beethoven, give this a try.... Read review

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Advantages: Excellent recordings on one CD
Disadvantages: Competing with so many other recordings

...These recordings of the Brahms and Sibelius Vioin Concertos are performed by Tasmin Little and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. As you would expect, the quality is excellent. Tasmin has no difficulties with the technical side of the music, giving a first rate performance. There is little I can say about the CD. There are a few recordings of these concertos competing for top place, and this one is certainly in the running. However, it might be worth comparing this to the recordings by Kennedy and Maxime Vengerov before parting with your money, but it is really down to a matter of personal preference.... Read review

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Advantages: amazing interpretation of a classical piece
Disadvantages: Let me think about that.....hmmmmmm...........aaaaaaaaa...no

..., John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, Bill Evans, Jimi Hendrix if he was not dead and many many others that I would need pages to enumerate them(actually 10 lines would be sufficient but anyway). It is in the late 50's when Miles after he introduced the cool jazz idiom as a kind of an answer to the hard-bop idiom of the time, he decides to reorchestrate the whole "Concerto d' Aranjuez" for guitar, by Rodrigo, in a more Miles way. His main assistant? Famous jazz orchestrator and composer Gill Evans, not to be mistaken with the other great jazz pianist Bill Evans, who also as mentioned above collaborated with Miles from times to times. The result is a completely personal interpretation of a classical piece of music, that for sure stands at least as equal to the original concerto. Gill's orchestration throughout is ideal(I love those bell chimes... Read review

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