CRITIC’S CHOICE

Malcolm Hayes

A composer can get pigeonholed for a single work, like Rodrigo’s much-loved Concierto de Aranjuez. Meanwhile, I’ve been happily exploring further in the Spanish composer’s large and widely recorded output (thank you, Naxos and Brilliant Classics). There’s the poignancy, rapture and sense of fun of Tríptic de Mossèn Cinto, an exquisite orchestral song-cycle set in Catalan. And there are surprises everywhere: the choral and orchestral Hymns of the Neophytes of Qumrán sound like a cross between Falla and Messiaen.