LATEST ADDITIONS

Satriani’s latest outing fair shoots out of the traps with the explosive opening of the title-track, placed at the beginning of the album as if to say ‘yup, this is what you’re in for – business as usual’. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, at least provided you’re into the highly distinctive Satriani sound, but this 15th studio album is more like a small ensemble jazz outing, just rocked up a bit. Accompanied by Bryan Beller on drums, bassist Marco Minneman and Mike Keneally on keyboards, this of course is a showcase for Satriani’s guitar playing. Shockwave Supernova ranges from blues to more lyrical pieces, all mixed and mastered by long-time collaborator John Cuniberti, who has delivered a dense, somewhat retro sound.

The young Paris Conservatoire trained cellist’s 2014 debut CD Play was of salon pieces. A year on – Moreau almost 21 – he tackles 18th-century concertos with a period orchestra [see also HFN Album Choice Mar ’15]. The punning title means ‘young lad’. With the finale taken at a real lick, the Haydn C major is the one well-known work here.

Take an artist known for her velvety, soulful voice, add in some class musicians and acclaimed producer Larry Klein, who’s worked with the likes of Tracy Chapman, Madeleine Peyroux, Melody Gardot and Joni Mitchell, and you’re probably onto a winner. That’s exactly the case with this, Lizz Wright’s fifth album, mixing a number of self-composed numbers with two covers: a gospelled-up version of the Bee Gees hit ‘To Love Somebody’ and an unnerving take on Nick Drake’s ‘River Man’, accompanied by Till Brönner on flugelhorn. Wright’s classy, expressive vocals are well-served by Klein’s clean production, imbuing the set with a warm, generous sound. Musicians include Dean Parks and Klein on guitars, Pete Kuzma and Kenny Banks on keyboards, Dan Lutz on bass, and Vinnia Colaiuta and Pete Korpula on drums and percussion.

The Milanese Giovanni Antonini, like Frans Brüggen, came to conducting via the baroque recorder; he was also co-founder of Il Giardino Armonico. So it’s not surprising to find his Beethoven the very antithesis of Karajan’s: a dry attack with sharp dynamic differentiation. (Wonderful how the concerto steals in from nowhere!) Recorded in the modern Luxembourg Philharmonie, the players patently give their all for him. The two ‘serious’ overtures are the most satisfying tracks here, but that’s only because Sony has frequently given the soloists too much prominence in the Triple Concerto – Gabetta being one of its ‘star’ signings.