NMC Highlights 2017: awards, accolades and reviews
IMOGEN HOLST: STRING CHAMBER MUSIC
'A touching and beautifully presented tribute to a significant figure in 20th-century British music' The Guardian ★★★★★
'The recorded sound, full of presence and atmosphere, is state-of-the-art' BBC Music Magazine
Simon Hewitt Jones violin | David Worswick violin | Tom Hankey viola | Oliver Coates cello | Thomas Hewitt Jones cello | Daniel Swain piano
(originally released on Court Lane Music)
HOWARD SKEMPTON: THE RIME OF THE ANCIENT MARINER
'If you buy just one disc of contemporary music this year, get this one' The Arts Desk
Roderick Williams baritone | Christopher Yates viola | Birmingham Contemporary Music Group | Martyn Brabbins conductor
BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE ★★★★★
GRAMOPHONE EDITOR'S CHOICE JUNE 2017
PRESTO CLASSICAL TOP 100 RECORDINGS OF THE YEAR 2017
SPOTIFY TOP 100 CLASSICAL RECORDINGS OF THE YEAR 2017
COLIN MATTHEWS' SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT GRAMOPHONE AWARD
Read the full blog with his acceptance speech.
TARIK O'REGAN: A CELESTIAL MAP OF THE SKY
'Luminous beauty ... glows with jewel-like warmth' The Guardian ★★★★
‘Capricious yet cogent, Whitley’s music has admirably user-friendly surfaces that conceal hidden intensities. We will hear much more of her’ The Times ★★★★★
'One of Simon Holt's finest achievements to date ... Unreservedly recommended' The Guardian ★★★★★
THE GUARDIAN TOP 10 CLASSICAL ALBUMS OF 2017
‘An outpouring of grief and outrage’ Financial Times ★★★★
'Totally compelling ... intriguing, vivid new music’ The Guardian ★★★★
'Showcases the incredible diversity of music written for dance ... compelling' BBC Radio 3 'Record Review'
Haunting electronica ... an ambitiously expansive piano trio ... [and] a succinct piece played by Onyx Brass with perfectly balanced wit and melancholy' The Guardian ★★★★
'Every sound is precisely conceived. The performances sparkle with character' Financial Times
'Wry, understated and slightly bonkers' The Guardian ★★★★
'The finest performance of this work I have heard ... NMC's sound, mastered by David Lefeber, is superb' Gramophone
THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP 100 BEST ALBUMS OF 2017