•It shouldn’t have to take an event such as last Thursday’s International Women’s Day to wake up the classical music world to female composers from the past, but let’s be thankful that it did. Radio 3 went to town, reviving the work of five women who, though prolific in their day, have long been neglected. If you missed it, catch on iPlayer the BBC Concert Orchestra’s illuminating performances of works by Leokadiya Kashperova (1872-1940), a Russian pianist who taught Stravinsky; Marianna Martines (1744-1813), an Austrian who enjoyed fame throughout Europe in her lifetime; Florence B Price (1887-1953), the esteemed African American symphonist; Augusta Holmès (1847-1903), a French-Irish writer of oratorios and operas; and Johanna Müller-Hermann (1868-1941), an Austrian renowned for her songs.
• We have become so used to clean, tightly controlled choral singing (The Sixteen, Tenebrae etc) that the arrival of a new professional choir, Sonoro, which, as its name suggests, produces a sonorous, full-bodied sound, is quite an event. You can judge for yourself by listening to its debut recording, Passion and Polyphony (Resonus), which features anthems by James MacMillan and Frank Martin’s mighty Mass for Double Choir. Conductor Neil Ferris encourages his singers to generate a rich, robust texture, abundant in vibrant colour and undoubted excitement. That’s not to say it’s a free-for-all shout. Flexibility is matched by careful attention to blend and nuance. The results won’t please everyone, but it’s refreshing. Give it a try.
• Light Divine (Signum) features the treble voice of Aksel Rykkvin, who, with the Norwegian Min Ensemble, performs baroque music for treble by Handel, Albinoni and Rameau. Actually, that’s a bit of a misnomer because the pieces were all written for soprano, but they suit young Rykkvin’s pure tone and mature musicianship to perfection. A month after the recording, his voice broke and that ethereal sound was lost for ever – but it is now frozen on disc for all time.
