Enjoy new music with our classical music chart for this week. Our weekly selections are based on sales numbers and simply what albums we love and think you NEED to hear.
For the complete top 20, tune into Classical Chartz with the New Classical FM’s Mark Wigmore every Saturday from 3-5 p.m.
Remarkably, the 1, 2, 3, 5 and 9 positions on the Classical Chartz remain unchanged from last week. Ludovico Einaudi and The Summer Portraits have dug in at the No. 1 spot, holding off a serious challenge form the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Gustavo Gimeno with their recording of Stravinsky’s Pulcinella, which holds on to No. 2. Likewise, Alice Sara Ott and John Field Complete Nocturnes is parked at the No. 3 spot.
The other hold outs this week are Renaud Capuçon and his recording of Richard Strauss, and Classical Chartz stalwart Andrea Bocelli, whose Duets (30th Anniversary) has been on the Classical Chartz, and in the Top Ten, for so long we’ve lost count.
Brand new to the Top Ten is Spanish violinist María Dueñas and her release titled Paganini. For her second album on the Deutsche Grammophon label, she takes on Nicolò Paganini’s 24 Caprices, works which have become iconic — and known to be among the most difficult works — in the violin repertoire. Along with Paganini’s own music, she offers a selection of works that were inspired by the Italian virtuoso and composer, including Berlioz, Kreisler, Gabriela Ortiz, Cervelló, Saint-Saëns, Sarasate, and Wieniawski.
In the liner notes, she says, “Paganini’s 24 Caprices are a milestone for every violinist,” explains Dueñas, when asked about her choice of repertoire. “I grew up listening to and performing them, and when we hear the word ‘caprice’ we instantly think of Paganini, but there are so many other caprices, from Saint-Saëns’s Rondo capriccioso to works by contemporary composers like Cervelló, for example. I really wanted to show how a lot of little moments from the musical world all come together.”
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