Violinist Michael Barenboim makes his second appearance on Linn, this time with pianist and partner Natalia Pegarkova-Barenboim. Together they have recorded some of Mendelssohn’s beloved Songs without Words. Beginning their life as a musical game between Mendelssohn and his older sister Fanny Hensel, these songs were arranged into piano pieces to pass the time during their childhood. The album showcases a selection arranged for violin by violinist and composer Ferdinand David. Hardly known today, David was to become a close friend of Felix and the dedicatee of his famous Violin Concerto Op. 64. These arrangements always remain true to Mendelssohn’s musical aesthetic, and their intimate character calls for a closely shared musicianship, undoubtedly a distinctive quality which the duo has aplenty.

After an acclaimed Respighi recording, Alessandro Crudele makes his second appearance on Linn, this time teaming up with violinist Michael Barenboim who makes his Linn debut, and the Philharmonia Orchestra. The programme offers a glimpse of two contrasting, yet defining figures of British music. Depicting an outsider within an isolated community – very much reflecting Britten’s situation at the time of its composition – Peter Grimes remains his most performed opera. Following its success, Britten extracted four ‘interludes’: brilliantly orchestrated portraits of the North Sea, performed here with Crudele’s distinctive mastery of orchestral colours.