Looking back, with both gratitude and joy

Martin Cullingford
Friday, November 29, 2024

Editor Martin Cullingford introduces the December issue of Gramophone

At the end of a year, it’s fascinating to look back over another 12 months of releases, and our Critics’ Choice feature is always a wonderful way to do that. Long-term readers often tell me that one of the things they enjoy about Gramophone is getting to know the distinctive voices, opinions and personalities of our regular writers – so it’s rather fun to see what they pick when given the freedom to hone in on one special album they’d like you to sit down and try for yourself.

We also look back this issue on one of those wonderful chamber music partnerships that last a career and will be remembered fondly – in this case, that of Kathryn Stott and Yo-Yo Ma, a collaboration coming to a close as Stott steps away from the concert stage. Aside from enjoying the warmth that our encounter with them radiates, it also brought to mind how many superb regular partnerships we’re lucky to enjoy, this issue’s Recording of the Month presenting another one: Alisa Weilerstein and Inon Barnatan’s set of Brahms’s cello sonatas is a splendid example of how two artists’ individual characters and ideas can be present while together they create something that also feels like a shared vision. Elsewhere in Editor’s Choice, James Ehnes – swapping his more familiar violin for a viola – and pianist Andrew Armstrong equally demonstrate their distinct rapport in more Brahms, and it was lovely to see a few further such picks in the Critics’ Choice too.

But this time of year particularly draws many towards choral music, and our Christmas round-up is full of recommendations for celebrating the season. In the Vocal Reviews section you’ll find another excellent Editor’s Choice – Gabriel Jackson’s The Christmas Story, a major commission from Merton College, Oxford that takes listeners from Advent to Candlemas via scripture and poetry. Exploring this beautiful recording, released on Delphian, with its conductor Benjamin Nicholas for a podcast, was to be reminded of so much that is remarkable about our choral scene, but which is so deeply woven into the fabric of British society that it can easily be taken for granted. The sheer musicality and professionalism of so many young artists – whether undergraduates or choristers; the amazing breadth of repertoire sung with brilliance in colleges, chapels and churches every day of the week; the fact that these services are welcoming and free. This month I also attended a special Evensong at Southwark Cathedral held by the Cathedral Music Trust, a charity supporting choral music, which featured a recent setting of the Canticles by Nico Muhly. This is a sector that, in its often quiet way, is world-leading, daily delivering brilliance and – whether from Jackson or Muhly – new music that follows in the longstanding tradition of growing the repertoire with new works rooted in each and every era. Such music takes place all year round, of course, but Christmas does concentrate attention on choral music, and many choirs will put on special services and events accordingly. So whether on your hi-fi or in the pews, do set aside time in the coming weeks to appreciate and enjoy this remarkable part of our musical life. And may I wish you all a very happy Christmas.

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