New from Chandos: Sinfonia of London, John Wilson: French Orchestral Favourites
5 May 2026
Sinfonia of London release their twenty-sixth album on Chandos, and their first devoted entirely to French repertoire. Worth knowing about.
John Wilson's Sinfonia of London has been building one of the more quietly remarkable orchestral catalogues of recent years. Twenty-six albums in, and the consistency still holds.
The programme covers the ground you would expect, Debussy, Ravel, and their contemporaries, music where the colour lives in the texture as much as the melody. Wilson draws that out carefully. The strings have a particular clarity here, each line placed with care so you can hear the layers settle. Nothing crowds. The orchestral palette opens up in the way this repertoire asks for, without ever feeling demonstrative.
The recording itself is worth noting. Captured in surround sound and available in Dolby Atmos Spatial Audio as well as hybrid SACD, it is the kind of release where the format genuinely adds something. The spatial dimension suits the music. You feel the orchestra around you rather than in front of you.
I have been following this ensemble since the relaunch, and French Orchestral Favourites sits comfortably alongside their best work.
Worth your time.
