This month our Featured Recordings offer splendid performances of J.S. Bach’s four violin concertos, starting with the Concerto in A minor, BWV1041. Stephen Johnson has chosen a 1961 recording with Nathan Milstein as soloist. The Orchestra of French Radio and Television is conducted by Antal Dorati.

Only a short excerpt is available on the free podcast: subscribers can access the complete work.

This week’s podcast opens with a barnstorming performance of Balakirev’s  `Oriental Fantasy’ for.piano, `Islamey’. Considered one of the towering peaks of the virtuoso repertoire, this 1936 recording features the ironclad fingers of Simon Barere,

Another Russian masterpiece to follow – Mussorgsky’s ever-popular `Pictures at an Exhibition’, wrapped in the shimmering colours of Ravel’s orchestration. Guido Cantelli conducts the New York Philharmonic in a recording made in 1952.

Bonus track for subscribers only:

• Rachmaninov’s most popular piece – his Piano Concerto No.2 in C minor, Op.18, recorded by the composer himself in April 1929 with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski.

As a non-subscriber to our website you can listen to and download our standard quality podcast (65k/bits) including an excerpt of the featured recording. If you become a subscriber today you can stream and download a high quality version of the full 90 minute podcast. You will also be able to download the feature recording from this week's podcast as a superb quality 320k/bits MP3 audio file.

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BALAKIREV Islamey "Oriental Fantasy" [8:01] Simon Barere (piano) Recorded 1936 APR 6002 MUSSORGSKY arr. RAVEL Tableux D'une Exposition [29:49] New York Philharmonic Orchestra Guido Cantelli (conductor) Recorded 27th January 1952 MUSIC AND ARTS 1120 BACH Violin Concerto in A minor BWV1041 [13:52] (Free podcast excerpt only) Nathan Milstein (violin) ORTF Orchestra Antal Dorati (conductor) Recorded 24th September 1961 MUSIC AND ARTS 1168 Full podcast only RACHMANINOFF Piano Concerto No.2 in C minor Op.18 [31:13] Sergei Rachmaninoff (piano) Philadelphia Orchestra Leopold Stokowski (conductor) Recorded 10th and 13th April 1929 BIDDULPH LHW036 [top]

BACH Violin Concerto in A minor BWV1041 [13:52] (Free podcast excerpt only) Nathan Milstein (violin) ORTF Orchestra Antal Dorati (conductor) Recorded 24th September 1961 MUSIC AND ARTS 1168 [top]