Our Choices
The BBC Music Magazine team’s current favourites
Charlotte Smith Editor While attempting to list my favourite string quartet ensembles for an online piece (more difficult than you might imagine) I happened across some fabulous interpretations of Schubert’s (right) Death and the Maiden. From the smooth polish of the Alban Berg to the altogether more emphatic sound of the Amadeus, this one piece proved a brilliant template to compare the interpretative quirks of groups from the past 100 years – and, crucially, to withstand repeat listening by dint of its textural complexity. Jeremy Pound Deputy editor
The first few weeks of 2022 have seen me binge listening to Mozart’s Piano Concertos. I’ve had them with me everywhere and anywhere – at my desk, in the kitchen, relaxing with a late-evening whisky – and have been enjoying a range of recordings, from Malcolm Bilson on a fortepiano to Piotr Anderszewski on a big fat Steinway. I won’t name a favourite performer, as the variety of approaches taken to these 27 constantly surprising, supremely crafted works is part of the pleasure. Alice Pearson Cover CD editor Schubert’s String Quintet really is chamber music at its best. The dialogue between the instruments is perfectly structured and there are some sublime melodies to touch the soul, notably in the first movement where the instruments pair off. A performance by the longstanding Borodin Quartet with cellist Alexander Buzlov still lingers fondly in my memory. Michael Beek Reviews editor
I missed Ron Howard’s documentary film Pavarotti when it was first released, so I was delighted to come across it on BBC iplayer the other day. It’s a beautifully intimate portrait of the man and his music, as told by those who knew and loved him. I particularly enjoyed the filmed excerpts of him singing; the words often cleverly mirrored moments in his own life story. It’s available throughout the year, along with some other great classical documentaries. Freya Parr Digital editor and staff writer Annoyingly, I forgot to download any music before leaving the land of internet to spend a few weeks on the Isle of Harris. The only tracks I had saved on my phone were pieces I’d heard at an electrifying Manchester Collective concert. Some would turn to Mendelssohn or Maxwell Davies in such landscapes, but I was joined by the pulsating electronic textures of Michael Gordon’s Industry, Bryce Dessner’s Aheym and Dobrinka Tabakova’s Insight. Surprisingly invigorating.