Our latest reviews

Virtuoso Clarinet

Reviewed by Kate Rockstrom

This new recording from London-based clarinettist Michael Collins comprises arrangements of famous works that are well-suited to Collin’s virtuosity and musical ability. This will suit fans of the clarinet, as the intimate chamber aspect of every track really gives the…

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Peace of Utrecht

Reviewed by Evan Meagher, Readings Hawthorn

This beautifully packaged disc brings together works by Handel and William Croft, commissioned to celebrate the Treaty of Utrecht. In 1713, this treaty helped to end the Spanish War of Succession and brought about the first peace achieved through diplomacy…

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Arvo Part: Taula Rasa

Reviewed by Richard Mohr, Guest Reviewer

Over the last couple of decades, the solitary Estonian mystic composer Arvo Part has laboured away, quietly producing some of the most starkly beautiful music in modern - well, to be honest - any times. By way of a seventy-fifth…

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Mozart: Requiem

Reviewed by Kate Rockstrom

ABC Classics does it again, taking standard repertoire and making it shine. Lovingly recorded by Antony Walker, conducting the Orchestra of the Anipodes, he has the choir Cantillation lending their beautiful blended tone to Monzart’s Requiem. Also included are Mozart’s…

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Ravel: Piano Concertos & Miroirs

Reviewed by Kate Rockstrom

Ravel’s* Piano Concerto in G Major* is loved and hated by all musicians - let’s just put that out there. One of the most stunning piano concertos ever written, it’s also one of the hardest, both for the soloist and…

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Karen Geoghegan Plays Mozart, Rossini, Kreutzer, Crusell Bassoon Works

Reviewed by Kate Rockstrom

Karen Geoghegan seems to be the next big thing in the bassoon, or in face the classical world. Discovered on BBC Two’s Classical Star, she’s gone to record three solo albums, which let’s face it, is unheard of for…

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ReVisions, Steven Isserlis

Reviewed by Kate Rockstrom

Steven Isserlis is becoming increasingly known as one of the world’s greatest cellists currently alive. In this new CD he takes works originally for cello and piano, and handpicks his arrangers, he asks his friends and colleagues to rearrange the…

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Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos 3 & 4

Reviewed by Phil Richards, Readings Carlton

Leif Ove Andsnes and Antonio Pappano team up once again on this new recording of Rachmaninov’s third and fourth piano concertos. This completes the cycle for Andsnes and Pappano which began back in 2005 with the first two concertos. The…

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Shack: In Praise of an Australian Icon by Simon Griffiths

Reviewed by Margaret Snowdon, Readings Carlton

The moment I saw the title of this book, I was hit by a wave of nostalgia for the many wonderful times I’ve spent in shacks – shacks that are sadly no longer part of my life. So how envious…

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Noah's Law by Randa Abdel-Fattah

Reviewed by Callie Martin, Kids' Book Specialist at Readings St Kilda

Randa Abdel-Fattah is one of the most impressive Australian YA authors around. She writes with passion and understanding, and doesn’t shy away from difficult topics. Her latest, Noah’s Law, is somewhatlighter fare – a legal thriller set in Sydney’s…

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