Virtuosity, yes, but tenderness too

Premières Symphonies Works by Bizet, Gounod and Saint-Saëns Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo/Kazuki Yamada Alpha Classics ALPHA1149 89:27 mins (2CD) The most familiar of these three classically

Echoes of Exile Works by Bartók, Ben-Haim, Enescu, Ysaÿe and Zimmermann Sueye Park (violin) BIS BIS-2332 63:06 mins Turbulence from the Second World War impacts most of the composers on this album. Th

Edge of the Storm Works by Bacewicz, Britten and Weinberg Telegraph Quartet Azica Records ACD-71381 74:08 mins The turbulent, destabilising and demoralising impact of the Second World War hovers uneas

Liza Lim A Sutured World*; Mary**; The Compass^ *Nicolas Altstaedt (cello), **^Carin Levine (flute), **^William Barton (digeridoo); Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra/*Edward Gardner; **Franck Ollu;^ C

Zaytoun Songs by JS Bach, Monteverdi, Purcell and Sayed Darwish et al Haitham Haidar (tenor), Sylvain Bergeron (archlute), Abdul-Wahab Kayyali (oud) et al Athene ATH 23027 51:44 mins In medieval Spain

Visiting Rachmaninov Variations on a theme of Chopin, Op. 22; Romances, Op. 21, Op. 26, Op. 34 (selection) Alexander Melnikov (piano); Julia Lezhneva (soprano) Harmonia Mundi HMM 902751 73:45 mins No