2015 Recordings of the Year

[king ubu]

Thought of including this, but I don't like the string tone in the coupled Trio.  She makes a good case for the Schumann concerto. 

I think so, too, but the concert hasn't fully clicked with me yet ... the list posted is that of all 2015 new releases I've bought so far, not of the best ones ... but as I buy what I want to get, I hope there won't be any big clinkers in it. Also I forgot a few, it seems (the two Cavalli discs by Pluhar and Alarcon, Campra's "Tancrède" by Schneebeli - all three sounded good on first listen). The best ones would be the ones on top of the list ...

Would love to hear this one.

Just got it a couple of days ago, but hope to play it soon (though I'm awaiting delivery of the monstrous new Dylan box and I'll be busy with other things this weekend, starting with the Dylan concert on Friday night ...)

[Sergeant Rock]

My Top 5



Bruckner Symphony No.4, Honeck conducting the Pittsburgh



Nielsen Symphony Nos. 1 & 3, Oramo conducting the Royal Stockholm (released in Dec 2014 but I'm including it since these lists always come out early, before the end of the year)



Schumann Violin Concerto and Piano Trio op.110



Bach Partitas 1, 2 & 6 played by Edna Stern



Havergal Brian Symphony Nos. 6, 28, 29, 31, Walker conducting the New Russian State SO

[Mirror Image]

I'm going to have to think about this one... (in Arnold Schwarzenegger voice) I'll be back.

[bhodges]

Two Nielsen sets come to mind: Davis/LSO and Gilbert/NYPO, which Daverz noted. The Davis/LSO set was released earlier individually, but the complete box was released earlier this year.

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Nielsen: Symphonies Nos. 1-6 (Sir Colin Davis/LSO)

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And Sarge's choice I completely agree with: not only a very fine Bruckner 4th, but one of the finest recent Bruckner recordings I've heard.

Bruckner Symphony No.4, Honeck conducting the Pittsburgh

--Bruce

[Artem]

If we're including last year, that disk would definitely be on my list of favorites.

From this year I'd go with the following CD:
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[PeterWillem]

[ritter]

Those that come to mind in my case (and that barely made the November issue date mark):

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And on the reissue front:

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[TheGSMoeller]

Looking back at my 2015 purchases about 80% were recordings from previous years and 20% were from this year. Perhaps someone will start a 2015 Purchases of the Year. Also, could we just go ahead now and announce that Honeck/Pitts' Bruckner 4th receives the GMG Best Orchestral Recording of the Year?
In any case, here are my tops for 2015 in random order...

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[Artem]

This looks very interesting and goes straight into wish list.

[kishnevi]

This looks very interesting and goes straight into wish list.

I put a couple of La Reverdie CDs on my list after seeing that post.

[Brian]

Also, could we just go ahead now and announce that Honeck/Pitts' Bruckner 4th receives the GMG Best Orchestral Recording of the Year?

Not until you've all heard their new Beethoven!!!!!!


...but yeah, probably. 

[Daverz]

Also, could we just go ahead now and announce that Honeck/Pitts' Bruckner 4th receives the GMG Best Orchestral Recording of the Year?

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I also have it (HDTracks download), but haven't quite made up my mind about it.

[jlaurson]

 

listening to the conversation

[Brian]

Here is my final list of 6, as submitted to MusicWeb...



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[jlaurson]

Fresh from Forbes:




DEC 9, 2015
The 10 Best Classical Recordings Of 2015 (New Releases)

It's fair to say to say that such "Best-Of" lists are inherently daft if one clings too
literally to the idea of "Best." Still, I have been making "Best of the Year" lists for
classical music since 2004, when working at Tower Records gave me a splendid
oversight (occasionally insight) of the new releases and of the re-releases that
hit the classical music market. Since then, I've kept tabs on the market as much
as possible. (The 2014 Forbes list for new recordings can be found here, the one
for re-issues here.)

(The entire list on Amazon for CDs and mp3s (incomplete) can be found here.
The complete-as-possible Spotify playlist here. Links to iTunes (where available)
and the high-fidelity streaming/download platform Qobuz are provided individually.)

Making these lists is a subjective affair, aided only by massive exposure and
hopefully good ears and a discriminating, if personal taste. But then "10 CDs
that, all caveats duly noted, I consider to have been outstanding in 2015"
does not make for a sexy headline. You get the point. The built-in hyperbole
of the phrase is a tool to understand what this is about, not symbolic of
illusions of grandeur on part of the author. Because the market lends itself to
it, I distinguish between new releases and re-releases. This is the Top 10 of
the former, the Top 10 of the re-issues will follow. Let's get right to it:...



http://www.forbes.com/sites/jenslaurson/2015/12/09/the-10-best-classical-recordings-of-2015-new-releases/

[GuybrushThreepwood]

Just found the following list through the Harmonia Mundi Facebook page. IMHO both Bach recordings from the mentioned label (Britten Sinfonia with the Goldberg and Staeier with the harpsichord concertos) are true contenders for the prize.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/classical-music/best-new-albums/

[jlaurson]

Fresh from Forbes:




DEC 12, 2015
The 10 Best Classical Recordings Of 2015 (Re-Issues)

The first stage of drafting such a list after listening to hundreds of new albums, is straining
to remember which ones were sufficiently excellent to include. The second stage is to justify
to oneself how not to include the many albums that come to mind only after the Top 10 has
been assembled. On the ionarts website I cheat by creating an "Almost List." Here, as I did
last year, I will merely lament ostentatiously that there was no room to include Zhu Xiao-Mei's
Art of the Fugue (Accentus), Mozart Violin Concertos with Christian Tetzlaff (Hänssler), the
Bruckner Fourth Symphony with the Pittsburgh Symphony under Manfred Honeck (Reference
Recordings), Alice Cooper narrating a new mashup of Peter and the Wolf (DG), the Pavel Haas
String Quartet's superb new recording of the Smetana Quartets (Supraphon), Pentatone's
splendid coupling of Richard Strauss Sinfonia domestica with his forgotten choral work "The
Times of the Day" or the snappy "Sinkovsky Plays & Sings Vivaldi" album on naïve. And off
we go to the list of Best Re-Issues of 2015:...



http://www.forbes.com/sites/jenslaurson/2015/12/12/the-10-best-classical-recordings-of-2015-re-releases/

[Cato]

Is that Fine that fine? 

Yes, it's excellent.  Plus points for repertoire.  The only other recordings are as old as I am.

I recall an article in the Wall Street Journal lamenting the neglect of Fine, so this fills a large hole in the available recordings.

National Public Radio issued this top 10: a Heinrich Biber Missa Salsburgensis which has more parts than the Tallis Spem seems to be an all-around favorite.

http://www.npr.org/sections/deceptivecadence/2015/12/17/459871725/our-10-favorite-classical-albums-of-2015?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=classical&utm_term=music&utm_content=2044

[BitPerfectRichard]

Actually, I don't know how you can possibly propose something unless you've heard all the ones you didn't vote for!