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Classic FM Gramophone Awards
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This weeks feature
Winners of the Classic FM Gramophone Awards
Record of the Year
Claudio Abbado and the Berlin Philharmonic receive Record of the Year at the ‘Oscars’ of the classical music industry. Claudio Abbado, conducting the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra received the prestigious Record of the Year Award 2006 for their performance of Mahler’s Symphony No 6.*
James Jolly, Editor-in-Chief of Gramophone commented: ‘Here is a thrilling memento of a great orchestra welcoming back a former music director with playing of Titanic power and sensitivity. Abbado’s Mahler Sixth has matured and grown down the years and it’s hard to imagine this intense and intensely personal music receiving a greater interpretation by any other living conductor.’ The Record of the Year was voted for by Gramophone judges; a voting academy made up of retailers, critics and broadcasters. |
Claudio Abbado |
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Five other finalists
The five other finalists for Record of the Year also reflect the breadth and imagination of the industry. ‘Abendbilder’, - a collection of Schubert songs with the young German baritone Christian Gerhaher (RCA)* was given an award. The Polish pianist Piotr Anderszewski performed music by his compatriot Karol
Szymanowski (Virgin Classics)*. The clarinettist Kari Kriikku was joined by the Finish RSO and Sakari Oramo for Magnus Lindberg’s Clarinet Concerto on the Ondine label** - making it a 100 per cent Finnish winner. |
Kari Kriikku |
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Pianist Mikhail Pletnev was joined by an all-star line-up for a pair of Taneyev chamber works (DG)* and, re-writing musical history, an archive rescue saw a 1955 recording taken live at Bayreuth take its place as the first stereo recording of Wagner’s Ring cycle. Joseph Keilberth conducts a superb cast in this remarkable recording (Testament).
* downloadable from iTunes
** downloadable from iTunes and eMusic.com/ eMusic.co.uk |
Angela Hewitt | The Artist of the Year Award . . .
was given to Canadian pianist Angela Hewitt of whom James Jolly said ‘She made her name with the music of Bach, but Angela Hewitt has demonstrated her musical sympathies in many other composers’ work. Her Chabrier enchants, her Ravel amazes and her Bach continues to reward and impress in equal measure.’ |
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Label of the Year Award
The hotly contested Label of the Year Award In Association with SFH UK Ltd was picked up by Virgin Classics. Jolly said that the decision had been a difficult one but that ‘Under the leadership of Alain Lanceron, Virgin Classics has had a vintage year combining rare repertoire with classics of the repertoire, and matching supreme artists with that music with a sureness of touch and a taste that has few equals’. |
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Editor's Choice Award
This year’s Editor’s Choice Award, went to Gerald Finley’s Stanford Songs of the Sea etc (BBC NOW/Hickox (Chandos)) commended because ‘these hearty, very British songs succeed in doing everything they set out to do perfectly! Finley is on magnificent form and Hickox and his Welsh forces are in their element!’ |
Alison Balsom | Classic FM's Listeners' Choice Award
Classic FM’s Listeners’ Choice Award was given to the glamorous trumpet-player Alison Balsom, Jolly commented: ‘Marrying thrilling musicianship with the looks of a marketeer’s dreams, Alison Balsom is the very model of a modern classical musician. If a single young artist puts the trumpet on the map it will be Alison Balsom!’ |
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Lifetime Achievement Award
Finally this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award In Association with the BPI was presented to Sir Charles Mackerras. Jolly explained when handing over the award ‘No conductor has made such a contribution to recorded music across such a wide range of genres and so successfully as Sir Charles Mackerras. He’s been a towering presence on the music scene for decades and continues to thrill, impress and entertain with his committed, stylish conducting.’ |
Sir Charles Mackerras |
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| For the second year running . . .
Gramophone teamed up with Classic FM, the UK’s largest commercial radio station and largest broadcaster of classical music. The new Classic FM/Gramophone partnership guaranteed substantial airtime for the six Record of the Year nominees throughout October. |
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Previous winners
Some previous winners of Record of the Year
1985 Elgar Violin Concerto with Nigel Kennedy;
1988 Mahler Symphony No 2 conducted by Simon Rattle;
1992 Beethoven Symphonies Nos 1-9 conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt;
1993 Anne Sofie von Otter singing Grieg;
1995 Prokofiev. Shostakovich Violin Concertos No1 with Maxim Vengerov;
1997 Puccini La Rondine conducted by Antonio Pappano; 2001 Vaughan Williams LSO conducted by Richard Hickox;
2003 Schumann string quartets played by the Zehetmair Quartet. 2004 The Marriage of Figaro conducted by Rene Jacobs.
2005 J.S Bach Cantatas conducted by Sir John Eliot Gardiner
Previous winners of Artist of the Year
2005 Michael Tilson Thomas -
2004 - Magdalena Ko_ená
2003 - Marin Alsop;
2002 - Maxim Vengerov;
2001 - Cecilia Bartoli;
2000 - Antonio Pappano;
1999 - Martha Argerich;
1998 - Riccardo Chailly;
1997 - Yo-Yo Ma;
1996 - Anne Sofie von Otter;
1995 - Pierre Boulez;
1994 - Sir John Eliot Gardiner;
1993 - Sir Simon Rattle;
1992 - Dame Kiri Te Kanawa;
1991 - Luciano Pavarotti
Previous winners of Lifetime Achievement Award
2005 Marilyn Horne -
2004 - The London Symphony Orchestra;
2003 Leontyne Price;
2002 - Mirella Freni;
2001 - Victoria de Los Angeles;
2000 - Carlo Begonzi;
1999 - Isaac Stern;
1998 - Menahem Pressler;
1997 - Mstislav Rostropovich;
1996 - Yehudi Menuhin;
1995 - Sir Michael Tippett;
1994 - Klaus Tennstedt;
1993 - Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau;
1992 - Sir Georg Solti;
1991 - Dame Joan Sutherland |
Gramophone
Gramophone is the world’s oldest and most respected classical record review magazine; THE guide to the best in recorded classical music. From its peerless - and fearless - reviews to its penetrating interviews with the world’s leading classical music artists, Gramophone is simply unmatched. Gramophone writers are acknowledged as world experts in their respective fields, and Gramophone is acclaimed globally for the independence and intelligence of its editorial. That is as true today as when the magazine was founded in 1923 by Sir Compton Mackenzie and Christopher Stone. |
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| Classic FM
Classic FM is the world’s largest classical music radio station, with six million listeners tuning in each week. As well as broadcasting across the UK on 100-102FM and on DAB Digital Radio, the Classic FM is a multi-platform brand appearing as a TV station on Sky and NTL, in print as The Classic FM Magazine and online. |
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VARIOUS DVD's
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DVD of the month - The other Archers
Forget David Lean, John Schlesinger and co - 2005 was the centenary of the birth of Britain’s greatest film director, Michael Powell. With producer and co-writer Emeric Pressburger, Powell was resonsible for some of the most innovative and adventurous British movies ever made.
The partnership, known as The Archers, ran from 1939, with ‘The Spy In Black’, to 1966, when they worked together for the last time on ‘They’re A Weird Mob’, made in Australia while Powell was in professional exile following the critical disaster of his masterpiece ‘Peeping Tom’. |
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Steamy dramas
Their output ranged from war movies like ‘Battle Of The River Plate’ to steamy dramas like ‘Gone To Earth’ and ‘Black Narcissus’, and included the magnificent ‘Life And Death Of Colonel Blimp’ - which so incensed Winston Churchill he tried to have it banned - and the visual wonder that was ‘A Matter Of Life And Death’ (see picture), described by Martin Scorsese as one of the best movies ever.
Powell’s film career began in 1927 as a director of ‘quota quickies’. In 1937 he produced his first major work, ‘The Edge Of The World’, a powerful film based on the evacuation of the remote Hebridean island of St Kilda. After meeting Hungarian emigre Pressburger, the pair co-wrote ‘49th Parallel’, using a stranded Nazi U-Boat crew attempting to escape from Canada to the neutral USA as a way to argue that America should enter the war.
There followed one of the most fruitful artistic partnerships in movie history, until Pressburger declined to participate in the controversial ‘Peeping Tom’. The film is now seen as one of Powell’s greatest works, but Pressburger may have been right at the time, since the vitriolic critical reaction effectively destroyed Powell’s career.
Powell spent the Sixties mainly in Australia, where he made a couple of features, including ‘Age Of Consent’, which kick-started the career of Helen Mirren. Then, in the Seventies, the Archers canon began to be rediscovered by a new generation of film-makers and critics, not least the US ‘new wave’ led by Martin Scorsese and Francis Coppola. Before his death in 1990, Powell became Director in Residence at Coppola’s American Zoetrope Studio.
Granada Ventures has now issued a DVD box set of Archers films. As well as ‘49th Parallel’, ‘The Battle Of The River Plate’, ‘Ill Met By Moonlight’, ‘Colonel Blimp’, ‘A Matter Of Life And Death’ and ‘They’re A Weird Mob’, the set also includes ‘The Red Shoes’, probably the greatest dance film ever made, with Moira Shearer as a ballerina torn between art and marriage; ‘I Know Where I’m Going’, a quirky tale about a woman set on marrying for money who falls for a penniless naval officer; and ‘The Canterbury Tale’, loosely based on Chaucer, which centres on the mystery of a man who pours glue on the hair of young girls. It’s a great collection - guaranteed to send any movie lover back to the store to pick up the rest of The Archers’ oeuvre. |
| DVD SELECTION - A choice number of DVD's now available from various outlets
QI SERIES 1
“Fry’s QI is that miraculous thing, a funny quiz show”
The Independent
“Fabulously bonkers”
The Sun
“Utterly pointless and utterly irresistible”
The Daily Telegraph
Hosted by Stephen Fry, with permanent guest Alan Davies, Quite Interesting – or QI to its friends – could loosely be described as a comedy panel quiz... but where the answers are infinitely more entertaining than the questions. With points awarded for being interesting or funny (and, very occasionally, right), and deducted for answers that merely repeat common misconceptions and urban myth, each week’s guests and viewers are guaranteed a very amusing - and enlightening - evening! Created by long-time TV comedy guru John Lloyd. |
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The Q1 Series 1 DVD contains all twelve thirty minute episodes and some fantastic extras including deleted scenes, out-takes and the original pilot episode that was never shown on television. A Quite Interesting Talkback Production for the BBC, a fourth series will be shown this Autumn on BBC TWO.
QI Series 1 DVD, RRP: £19.99 (2 discs)
Feature running time: 360mins |
THE SMOKING ROOM – Series 1 & 2
“This is easily one of the best scripted comedies around” Daily Mail
In the world of work, there is only one place where seniority counts for nothing, where shop-talk is banned and where the last bastions against fresh air and desk-based massage gather regularly to discuss the minutiae of their lives. Welcome to the Smoking Room.
The action never leaves this refuge but smokers (and the occasional non-smoker) flit in and out continually. The Smoking Room brings together personnel of all ranks; it doesn’t matter how much you earn, only whether your lighter works, whether you can spare a cigarette and whether you can remember the theme tune to Little House On The Prairie.
The Smoking Room is where you’ll find a microcosm of all human life – personal foibles, insecurities and longings rolled up into a rich, satisfying, addictive comedy, lit by a bluey grey haze of smoke. |
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The Smoking Room (Series 2)
Series Two finds the team with issues of ambition (mainly unfulfilled, obviously) when they find a box of old photos of themselves dating back to 1987. How different their dreams were then to the reality that has befallen them. But is it too late to do anything about it? Sharon is on the warpath when she finds someone has broken in and scrawled 'TWATS!' on the wall. When Sally is offered a new job she is in two minds - until Gordon urges her to think of her career (like he has) and then promptly has a heart attack. And, a 'no smoking' seminar goes badly awry when Lilian takes a shine to the facilitator - a man dressed as a giant cigarette...
The series was written by Brian Dooley who won a BAFTA TV Award for Best New Writer, produced by Pete Thornton and directed by Gareth Carrivick. |
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Undisputed British screen classic
THE SHOOTING PARTY
The fully restored undisputed British Screen classic, starring James Mason in his final film, comes to DVD
Adapted from a novel by Isabel Colgate. It is the autumn of 1913 and Europe stands on the brink of the war to end all wars. British nobleman James Mason invites an assorted group of acquaintances for a weekend shooting party on his huge estate to celebrate a world that is passing into history and gunfire in the depths of the English countryside will soon be heard in the killing fields of Flanders. The film unfolds in a carefully calculated but seemingly impulsive fashion The Shooting Party brilliantly captures a moment in time in a story that will stay with you forever. |
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"A fresh, unexpected and enormous delight...it radiated the very pleasure one gets from curling up in a snug bed with a good read." Sunday Times, Feb 3rd 1985
BONUS FEATURES
• The Shooting Party – A Retrospective; includes interviews with Rupert Frazer, Edward Fox, Robert Hardy, Isabel Colegate, and Julian Bond
• Knebworth – Playing Nettleby, a featurette on Knebworth House
• Location report from BBC’s “Breakfast Time”
• Scrapbook Gallery
Cat Number: CCD30538, RRP: £15.99 |
| Journey to the centre of human struggle
SIMON SCHAMA’S POWER OF ART
This series is not a stroll through a gallery on a drowsy Sunday afternoon, nor is it a demure tour through a museum; instead it takes us on an extraordinary journey to the centre of human struggle and the dark heart of history. A combination of dramatic reconstruction, spectacular photography and Simon Schama’s unique and personal style, it transports the viewer back to the intense moments eight great arts of work were conceived and born. |
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Focusing on iconic pieces of art such as Caravaggio's David and Goliath, David's Death of Marat and Picasso's Guernica, this series reveals the history of visual imagination through the ages: from the murderous world of baroque Rome; paranoid, revolutionary Paris; the carnage of civil war Spain to the paradox of 1950s New York, caught between Cold War jitters and Manhattan glitter.
Eight masterpieces; eight troublemakers; eight stories from the edge.Written and presented by Simon Schama, produced by Clare Beavan and Mark Harrison.
PRICE: £24.99, CAT.NUMBER: BBCDVD1887 |
Robin Hood
SERIES 1, VOLUME 1 (Episodes 1-5)
A brand new re-telling of a classic legend. Packed with comedy, drama, action, adventure, romance and the occasional twist – this is Robin Hood for a new generation.
Robin of Locksley returns home from defending King and country in the Holy Land to find a corrupt and changed Nottingham. The ruthless Sheriff of Nottingham is now in charge, crippling the poor with greedy taxes and severely punishing them for stealing even a loaf of bread. |
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The defiant Robin (Jonas Armstrong) and his faithful, if slightly unenthusiastic, manservant Much are determined to fight for the good of the downtrodden peasants. Our heroes take on the evil Sheriff (Keith Allen) and his sadistic lieutenant Guy of Gisborne (Richard Armitage) with a series of outrageous scams, disguises, tricks and ingenuity, aided by the beautiful and courageous (Maid deleted) Marian (Lucy Griffiths) and a gang of talented outlaws - including Will Scarlett, an ingenious engineer who can construct anything from any material - just as long as it's wood; Little John, a man mountain who can destroy all in his path; and, as the series progresses, Djaq, a talented scientist whose Saracen chemistry and medicine add a new string to the gang’s bow. As each episode unites the gang against the Sheriff and his dastardly deeds, will they succeed in thwarting injustice to relieve the poverty and hunger of the good people of Locksley? And will Robin avenge an assassination attempt on the life of his King and thwart plans to place a usurper on the throne?
This first volume DVD includes episodes 1 - 5 of this landmark new 13-part BBC series and two further volumes will be released early in the new year. Extra features on this volume include the ‘Hood Academy’ featurette which goes behind the scenes to watch the cast learning how to use swords, bows and arrows, ride horses, and learn how to fight and prepare for stunts, and it also features character profiles of Robin, Marian and Roy.
PRICE: £19.99 (2 DISCS), CAT. NUMBER: BBCDVD2245, DURATION: 225 MINS APPROX |
| Planet Earth
Over the years the BBC has shown viewers the most incredible sights on the planet, but there is an even more amazing world out there that has never been seen, and it is captured for the first time in Planet Earth. The makers of The Blue Planet present the epic story of life on Earth. Five years in production, over 2000 days in the field, using 40 cameramen filming across 200 locations, this is the ultimate portrait of our planet. A stunning television experience that combines rare action, unimaginable scale, impossible locations and intimate moments with our planet's best-loved, wildest and most elusive creatures. From the highest mountains to the deepest rivers, this blockbuster series takes you on an unforgettable journey through the challenging seasons and the daily struggle for survival in Earth's most extreme habitats. The Planet Earth DVD provides an unparalleled view of awe-inspiring landscapes from all across the globe and incredible footage of the rarely spotted, almost mythical creatures that live in these habitats. It takes you to places you have never seen before, to experience sights and sounds you may never experience again. |
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This 5-disc set is the definitive look at the diversity of our planet, narrated by David Attenborough. Special features include ‘Planet Earth-The Future’ a 3 part series to be broadcast on BBC 4. Prepare to be overwhelmed by the beauty of Planet Earth.
CAT NUMBER: BBCDVD1883, PRICE: £39.99 |
Little Britain Live
STARRING MATT LUCAS & DAVID WALLIAMS
Created by and starring Matt Lucas & David Walliams, the triumphant, critically acclaimed Little Britain LIVE tour comes to DVD on November 13th 2006. Featuring everyone’s favourite characters and catchphrases from all three TV series, Little Britain LIVE is a hilarious, fast-paced extravaganza with amazing set changes, incredible props and a spectacular finale that has to be seen to be believed! With venues around the country selling out in minutes, Phil McIntyre’s Little Britain LIVE is THE hot ticket – and now you can enjoy all the laughs, the games, the singing, (and the nudity!), in the comfort of your own home with this fantastic two disc DVD set, priced £21.99. A special limited edition version, featuring a miniature copy of the original tour programme is also available, priced £24.99. Also on sale is a Special Little Britain Series 1-3 Box set, priced £34.99 |
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Recorded at the Blackpool Opera House in May 2006, Little Britain LIVE on DVD contains the entire show, with guest stars Ruth Jones and Anthony Head, and some fantastic extras, including:
• Deleted Scenes • Making the Show documentary • Making the DVD documentary • Exclusive Lou & Andy Blackpool sketch • Big Swim Documentary – the amazing story of David’s Channel swim for Sport Relief • Big Swim Deleted Scenes • Commentaries with Matt & David
Little Britain LIVE on DVD is directed by Geoff Posner, produced by Steve Kemsley, with original music by David Arnold. |
| Fortunes of War
(Complete collection)
Starring: Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Rupert Graves, Ronald Pickup
Set in War Time Bucharest in 1939, British professor Guy Pringle (Kenneth Branagh) arrives in Romania with his new bride, Harriet (Emma Thompson) and becomes trapped in the politics of anti-fascism. Guys’ social circle starts to include members of the British Secret Service who wish to involve him in secret missions against his wife Harriets’ wishes and the incorrigible Prince Yakimov who takes advantage of Guy's generous nature and winds up living with the Pringles. |
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Their marriage is soon tested by accidental betrayal, sensitivity and a world in turmoil.
Fortunes of War won five awards including 3 BAFTAs. The casting is excellent with superb performances from Branagh and Thompson. Ronald Pickup is perfectly cast as the hateful yet endearing and candid Prince Yakimoff. |
New Doctor Who
The Complete Series 2 Box Set
Following Doctor Who’s triumphant return to BBC ONE last year, the second series proved just as popular, consistently topping ratings charts and gaining enormous critical acclaim. The series introduced the sparkling David Tennant as the tenth Doctor, with Billie Piper returning as his companion Rose, Noel Clarke as Rose’s boyfriend Mickey and Camille Coduri as Rose’s mum Jackie.
Now fans can own the entire series together on DVD for the first time in this highly collectable lenticular packaging that features a special moving image on both front and back, and with over 4 hours of extras.
Over the second series, the Doctor and Rose continued to have spectacular adventures that were out of this world, battling sinister Sycorax, crazy catwomen, a wicked werewolf, killer Krillitanes, a deadly demon and of course the Doctor’s two ultimate enemies – the Cybermen and Daleks, who did battle together for the first time ever! |
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Episode Guide
• The Christmas Invasion, written by Russell T Davies & directed by James Hawes
1. New Earth, written by Russell T Davies & directed by James Hawes
2. Tooth and Claw, written by Russell T Davies & directed by Euros Lyn
3. School Reunion, written by Toby Whithouse & directed by James Hawes
4. The Girl in the Fireplace, written by Steven Moffat & directed by Euros Lyn
5. Rise of the Cybermen, written by Tom MacRae & directed by Graeme Harper
6. The Age of Steel, written by Tom MacRae & directed by Graeme Harper
7. The Idiot’s Lantern, written by Mark Gatiss & directed by Euros Lyn
8. The Impossible Planet, written by Matt Jones & directed by James Strong
9. The Satan Pit, written by Matt Jones & directed by James Strong
10. Love & Monsters, written by Russell T Davies & directed by Dan Zeff
11. Fear Her, written by Matthew Graham, directed by Euros Lyn
12. Army of Ghosts, written by Russell T Davies, directed by Graeme Harper
13. Doomsday, written by Russell T Davies, directed by Graeme Harper
Cat. Number: BBCDVD2122, RRP: £69.99, Feature Duration: 630 mins approx. |
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Dr Who: The Invasion
Eagerly awaited classic story featuring stunning animation arrives on DVD.
BBC DVD is thrilled to announce that the previously incomplete 1968 Doctor Who Cyberman story – The Invasion will be available to buy on DVD in its entirety, from November 6th 2006, priced £19.99. The two missing episodes from this classic Patrick Troughton story have been recreated using striking black and white animation, thanks to a collaboration between BBC Interactive Drama and Entertainment and Manchester based animators Cosgrove Hall to stunning effect. This unique project used animation, based on the original actors and set designs, to fill in the gaps as seamlessly as possible. The end result brings the second Doctor back to life in a beautiful broadcast quality animation with restored audio recording of the original transmission. |
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First transmitted in 1968, this eight-part story sees the Doctor, Jamie (Frazer Hines) and Zoe (Wendy Padbury) arrive in London in the 1970s, where an eminent computer scientist has been kidnapped. With the help of UNIT, the Doctor discovers he is being held by Tobias Vaughn, the managing director of the world’s leading electronics company, in league with the Cybermen in a plan to invade Earth. Once successful, Vaughn intends on seizing power for himself.
Written by Derrick Sherwin, directed by Douglas Camfield and produced by Peter Bryant, The Invasion on DVD is released as a two disc set and includes the following superb extras:
• Commentary with animation director Steve Maher, BBC producer James Goss and audio restoration expert Mark Ayres on episode 1 and with actors Wendy Padbury, Frazer Hines, Nicholas Courtney and production assistant Chris D'Oyly-John on episodes 2-8
• Flash Frames (dur. 11'30") - a featurette on the creation of the animated episodes
• Love Off-Air (dur. 15' 16") - an affectionate tribute to all those people who ever held a microphone to the TV speaker to capture the audio in the days before video recorders
• Character Design - a short featurette showcasing Steve Maher's character design drawings and animation test for the animated episodes
• Evolution of the Invasion (dur.49'56") - making of feature with cast & crew
• 1993 VHS Links - Nicholas Courtney's links to camera from the 1993 VHS release, in which he fills in the story from the two missing episodes
• Photo Gallery
• 2 x Animation trailers
• Programme Subtitles
• Subtitled Production Notes
Cat number: BBCDVD1829, Price: £19.99 (2 discs), Featuring running time: 192 mins approx. |
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