Music
Songs Without Words by the Grigoryan Brothers
If you say the words ‘Grigoryan brothers’ to most classical music fans, they’ll smile and nod knowingly. Renowned for their musicianship since they were teenagers, they’ve released five albums together: pretty much all of them have been nominated for awards…
Mahler: Das Lied Von Der Erde by Jonas Kaufmann, Wiener Philharmoniker & Jonathan Nott
When Gustav Mahler composed Das Lied von der Erde (‘The Song of the Earth’), he envisaged two singers – a tenor and an alto – performing the cycle. In the absence of an alto, Mahler specified that the second voice…
Humanz by Gorillaz
Gorillaz are back with Humanz, an album loaded with diverse and plentiful guests to further shape the unique audio-verse they’ve been building since 2001. A more frenetic and energetic turn to cruising trip-hop/reggae sound, this is music chiefly to…
Preghiera, Rachmaninov: Piano Trios by Gidon Kremer, Daniil Trifonov, Giedrė Dirvanauskaitė
Twenty-year-old Sergei Rachmaninov was shocked to hear of the death of his friend and mentor Tchaikovsky. He immediately set about composing ‘Trio Elegiaque No. 2’, dedicated ‘to the memory of a great artist’. Tchaikovsky himself did the same six years…
Henriette: The Princess of the Viol by Maddelena Del Gobbo
Princess Anne Henriette of France (1727–1752), daughter of King Louis XV, was a passionate musician and skilled gambist. Her life was short (she died of smallpox aged only 24), but her legacy was great. Jean-Baptiste Forqueray dedicated his virtuosic ‘Pièces…
The Spirit And The Maiden by Muses Trio
Australia’s Muses Trio is unique among chamber music ensembles. Consisting of a fabulous all-female line-up – Therese Milanovic (piano), Christa Powell (violin), and Louise King (cello) – the trio’s prime purpose is to explore, share and promote music composed by…
Pure Comedy by Father John Misty
‘The comedy of man starts like this: our brains are way too big for our mothers’ hips.’ The opening line to the epic title track on Father John Misty’s new album suggests Joshua Tillman has something on his mind and…
J.S. Bach: Trios by Yo-Yo Ma, Chris Thile and Edgar Meyer
For many people, the name Yo-Yo Ma immediately brings to mind the Bach Cello Suites and Ma’s bestselling album; the album that has defined many a young cellist’s ideas about the performance of the works. However, many discerning listeners also…
Elwan by Tinariwen
Elwan (Elephants) is album eight from Sahara Desert rebel-guitar rockers Tinariwen and it shows the band continuing to develop their sound. With three lead guitars and two further guitarists, the band has a much wider and more rock-oriented fan base…
Ironbark by The Waifs
Celebrating 25 years of The Waifs, their latest, Ironbark, is one of their recent best. In fact, it is very difficult to pick a favourite track on this double album.
As a consistent representative of the best of Australia’s…