Search - Igor Stravinsky, Michael Tippett, Benjamin Britten :: Klassizische Moderne, Vol. 2

"It is always refreshing to encounter a disc in which consideration has been given to providing a balanced and thought-provoking programme. This is the second installment in Christopher Hogwood?s ?Modern Classicists? series, and is built upon an eclectic group of Stravinsky?s smaller-scale works, with substantial historically influenced interjections by Tippett and Britten. The result is in marked contrast to the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra?s foray into the world of Stravinsky?s miniatures (DG), in which the scattergun whole somehow falls short of the sum of the delightful parts. By separating the two Suites for small orchestra to form a frame, Hogwood heightens awareness of their individual features, throwing into relief the intervening works, with the vocal and small-scale items on the disc providing an intimate heart at its core...Emma Kirkby is predictably delectable, floating through the Pastorale and an ideally innocent Anne Truelove in the excerpt from The ! Rake?s Progress, while the Basel Chamber Orchestra is heart-rending in the ?Lament? from Tippett?s Divertimento...by far the most satisfying disc as a self-contained programme." (**** rating!) BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE