Prokofiev’s Symphony No 4 was originally completed in 1930 and shared much of its musical material with his ballet The Prodigal Son, composed around the same time. Though Prokofiev had largely avoided harsh criticism from Soviet authorities in the past, the initial reception of the Fourth Symphony was lukewarm at best.

Recorded live at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, it presents two of Tchaikovsky’s most profound symphonies: a revelatory account of the Fifth, with its shifting balance between fate and triumph, and a searingly personal reading of Symphony No. 6 (Pathétique). The Times praised the ‘explosive chemistry between this conductor and orchestra’ while The Arts Desk declared ‘the LPO has a real treasure in Canellakis.’ Together, they continue the Orchestra’s rich tradition of powerful Tchaikovsky performances, offering a recording that is both steeped in legacy and brimming with new life.

For their first harmonic mundi album, Florent Albrecht and his Ensemble L’Encyclopédie explore the mischievous world of the Mozarts, father and son. Whether in the well-known Toy Symphony, the tinkling bells of Leopold’s A Musical Sleigh Ride or the ‘How to compose all wrong’ tutorial of Wolfgang’s A Musical Joke, joy and fantasy are mixed with a portion of subtle wit – qualities shared by the polished stylistic approach of the performers.

Ning Feng, together with the Konzerthausorchester Berlin conducted by Antony Hermus, releases the violin concertos of Johannes Brahms and Carl Goldmark. This pairing is particularly apt as these works were both written in 1877, and the composers were dear friends. In Goldmark’s lyrical Violin Concerto, Ning Feng plays the original 5-minute cadenza which is seldom heard in its entirety. Written only a few months after the Goldmark, Brahms’ famous Violin Concerto in D, Op.77 needs little introduction. Ning Feng has long been associated with this concerto, having played it when he won First Prize in the International Paganini Competition 2006 as well as First Prize in the 2005 Michael Hill International Violin Competition.