February

22 – 26 February
LEONCAVALLO – La Nuit de mai
Plácido Domingo, Lang Lang
Orchestra del Teatro Comunale di Bologna
Alberto Veronesi, conductor
Deutsche Grammophon 477 6633

Plácido Domingo sings Leoncavallo’s rarely performed May Night, a beautiful French vocal-symphonic poem based on Alfred de Musset’s romantic dialogue between the poet and his muse. The great tenor is partnered here by conductor Alberto Veronesi – a specialist in this repertoire – and is joined for five of the Pagliacci composer’s equally neglected French and Italian songs by pianist Lang Lang, making his debut recording as a vocal accompanist.

15 – 19 February
ARGERICH PLAYS CHOPIN
Deutsche Grammophon 477 7557

This CD contains over an hour of newly-discovered Martha Argerich solo recitals of Chopin, all released for the first time and taken from radio recordings made in Berlin and Cologne in 1959 and 1967. It includes works otherwise not recorded by her. From the epic First Ballade to the overpowering live Third Sonata – with exquisite performances of Mazurkas and Nocturnes in between – these recitals demonstrate the force of nature she has been since the start of her international career.

8 – 12 February
TURBULENT HEART
Music of Vierne & Chausson
Steve Davislim, tenor; Guillaume Tourniaire, conductor; The Queensland Orchestra
Melba MR 301 123

Turbulent Heart features the world-premiere recordings of the French romantic composer, Vierne. It presents his four symphonic poems for voice and orchestra, as well as Chausson’s masterpiece of nineteenth-century French mélodie, Poème de l’amour et de la mer, recorded here for the first time in the original for tenor voice. Renowned Australian singer Steve Davislim and The Queensland Orchestra are led by the young French conductor Guillaume Tourniaire.