Stephen Hough's recording of Saint-Saëns' piano concertos comes as no surprise: he is our leading champion of once-lost pianistic causes--Scharwenka, Sauer and Mompou being among the composers he has brilliantly committed to disc. For all his fame, Saint-Saëns is a harder cause to champion than any of the above, since his music really is at times mere padding. But what those who deride him fail to ...
This all-star chamber ensemble was specifically formed to play Messiaen's masterpiece. Two decades after this recording was made, it still shows the effects of their intense identification with the music. Some listeners find Messiaen's music longwinded and difficult, and my own opinion varies depending on the work and my mood. But this piece, written in a German concentration camp during the early ...