Ladies in Lavender

1	Ladies in Lavender / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 4:06
2	Olga / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 3:30
3	Teaching Andrea / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 2:52
4	Fantasy for Violin and Orchestra / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 3:40
5	Méditation from Thaïs / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 5:03
6	Our Secret / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 1:58
7	On the Beach / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 2:34
8	Introduction and Tarantella Op. 43 / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 5:16
9	The Letter / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 2:25
10	Zabawa Weselna (Polish Dance) / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 2:42
11	Stirrings / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 1:48
12	Potatoes / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 1:49
13	The Girl With the Flaxen Hair / Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields 2:33
14	A Broken Heart / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 3:33
15	Two Sisters / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 2:23
16	The Carnival of Venice / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 9:18

Barnes & Noble

Violinist Joshua Bell headlines Nigel Hess's score for Ladies in Lavender, the charming tale of two British spinsters (Maggie Smith and Judi Dench) who discover a young Polish man (Daniel Bruhl) washed up by the seacliffs of their Cornwall home in the 1930s. Turns out that the man, who speaks only broken English, is actually a gifted violinist, and he goes on to make his mark as a performer in London in the film's climactic moments. Enter Hess and Bell, who take that central story element and run with it, producing some memorably expressive and tuneful music. The title track, in particular, has a bittersweet lyricism worthy of Ennio Morricone, and Hess's stirring "Fantasy for Violin" evokes the Romantic virtuoso tradition at its most dramatic. Violin showpieces such as Sarasate's "Introduction and Tarantella" and Paganini's "The Carnival of Venice," as well as Massenet's Thaïs "Méditation" and Debussy's "The Girl with the Flaxen Hair," add some genuine 19th-century flavor to the disc, all featuring Bell's stylish artistry, accompanied by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and pianist Simon Mulligan. Still other tracks feature Hess himself chiming a delicate piano ("Olga," "Two Sisters") or the RPO in endearing musical scene-paintings ("Our Secret," "Potatoes"). Prior to this effort, Hess has been active primarily as a composer for TV, but Bell is no stranger to film work, with both John Corigliano's soundtrack for The Red Violin and James Horner's for Iris to his credit. Hess has said that hearing Bell perform his music was, "like stepping into a really expensive Rolls Royce." Indeed, their collaboration here is a true class act. EJ Johnson

Classic FM Magazine

This is that rare thing: a dud-free score that requires no prior knowledge of the film for enjoyment. Anna Britten