Author: Adrian Quanjer
Adrian Quanjer is a site reviewer at HRAudio, with many years of experience in classical music. He writes from his country retreat at Blangy-le-Château, France. As a regular concertgoer, he prefers listening to music in the highest possible resolution to recreate similar involvement at home. He is eager to share his thoughts with like-minded melomaniacs at NativeDSD.
Arabella Steinbacher | Beethoven & Lentz: Violin Concertos
Currently 35% OFF! *Offer valid through Monday, May 05 end of day PST*Discount will be applied automatically at checkout. Just adding another Beethoven Violin Concerto? Only two and a half months after I heard Arabella Steinbacher playing Beethoven’s Violin Concerto at the inaugural night of Poland’s Beethoven Easter Festival, in Warsaw’s Filharmonia Narodowa, with Sinfonia […]
Ricardo Gallén Sets New Standard
Originally written for HRAuido.net There is nothing colloquial about Sergio Assad’s captivating Colloquial Preludes – written for star guitarist, Ricardo Gallén – with which this new Eudora release begins. At first listening, it becomes immediately clear that these are anything but ‘colloquial’. It’s magical. All of it. The composition, the playing and the recorded result […]
Van Poucke, an Unconventional Poet
Quality and quantity are two different things. The best, of course, is getting both. But if a choice has to be made, quality must prevail. Short as this DSD EP may be, it scores high on quality. For the first time, I heard the Dutch pianist, van Poucke, in a carefully crafted Schumann recital – The […]
‘Souvenir de Posen’ from the Meccore String Quartet
A Reputation Only Few Can Hope to Attain. The Meccore String Quartet has built a concert hall reputation that only few can hope to attain. In their home country recognised as ‘the best Polish string quartet’, they also have garnered acclaim after acclaim on many international stages. Their recent tour in The Netherlands, so I […]
David Briggs Pulls All the Stops
In Admiration of one of France’s Most Famous Organists, David Briggs Pulls all the Stops. Notre Dame de Paris … This latest release of Jake Purches’ is special on more than one count. Base 2 Music, being a respected organ music label, has released something that not only marks the centenary of one of France’s […]
A True Contribution to the Classical Catalogue
Prelude Classics is a new label catering to the most demanding lovers of classical music. A previous release ‘Telemann: 12 Fantasias for Viola Solo’ harvested multiple accolades and for this new one the Polish producer/engineer, Michał Bryła, has given ‘tout son savoir-faire’ for the benefit of all those for which only the very best is good […]
Young & Foolish: Mozart & C.P.E. Bach from Café Zimmermann
Music that makes you happy. If there is anything these days that we need in large quantities, it’s music that makes you happy. Well, here it is, thanks to Alpha Classics. It is said that Mozart’s music has a positive effect on the psyche. Studies prove it though others -as always- deny such an effect. […]
Maxwell Quartet ‘Haydn: String Quartets Op. 74 & Folk Music from Scotland’ on Linn Records
A PCM recording needn’t be a dark horse Having spent a fortune on a (multi-channel) system, some classical music buffs can be dismissive about everything that may not meet their expectations. A PCM recording for example. I’ve fallen into that trap several times, too. Not without reason. Depending on your ears, equipment, and mood, it’s […]
Music, Film or Both?
This Stereo & 5 Channel Surround Sound DSD EP has been sourced from the DXD original edit master and is available only at NativeDSD! Check out the full album that was put out by Pentatone, which also contains Berntein’s Serenade: I don’t know anyone who doesn’t know John Williams’s music for Steven Spielberg’s 1993 film […]
Noella Rodiles Continues to Surprise
A growing number of Spain’s classical prominence has gained worldwide recognition thanks to Gonzalo Noqué, the driving force behind the Spanish audiophile label, Eudora Records. Noelia Rodiles is one of them. I’ve greatly admired her interpretation of Schubert’s Moments Musicaux D.780 (Rodiles 1823) with which she joined in my view the ranks of Schubert notables. […]
‘Sibelius Piano Trio’ from Yarlung Records
Get Volume 1 & Volume 2 for 40% off when you buy the Double Album In my possibly somewhat subjective opinion, there is no other interpretation that brings Sibelius’s intent so remarkably to life. Summing it all up: This release is beyond the grasp of anyone else. With this Sibelius you get more Some scholars […]
‘Left Hand Legacy Vol. 2’ from Cobra Records
An in-depth review of ‘Left Hand Legacy Vol. 2’ from pianist Folke Nauta. Accompanied by Lars Wouters van den Oudenwijer and the Prisma String Trio and released on Cobra Records. A laudable initiative that deserves to be fully exploited. With this second volume of the Wittgenstein Project, many will be thrilled to get more out of the legacy discovered […]