June 2012

Adrian Chandler's and La Serenissima's 10th release for Avie – coinciding with the label's 10th Anniversary – has all the hallmarks that have made the Vivaldi specialists one of the best-selling and acclaimed period-instrument bands performing today. Adrian's erudition and his ensemble's crowd-pleasing performances combine to produce recordings that are at once popular and enlightening. Venice by Night evokes an era of the Venetian Republic when the arts flourished, attracting audiences from all over Europe including scores of royalty. Feeding the tourist trade, the resident composers revelled in creating everything from grand operas and serenatas, virtuoso concertos and sinfonias, motets and gondoliers' ballads. As with the chart-topping Vivaldi: The French Connection 2 (AV 2218) which featured the world-premiere recording of the flute concerto Il Gran Mogol, Adrian has once again unearthed numerous works from this period that are recorded for the first time.

Anon ca. 1730 Si la gondola avere, Pollarolo Sinfonia to La Vendetta d'Amore, Albinoni String Sinfonia in G minor, Vivaldi Bassoon concerto in C major RV477, Anon ca. 1730 Cara Nina el bon to sesto, Veracini Fuga o capriccio con quattro soggetti in D minor, Lotti Alma ride exulta mortalis, Albinoni Sinfonia to Il Nome Glorioso in Terra Santificato in Cielo, Anon ca. 1730 No ste a condanarme, Porta Trumpet Sinfonia in D major, Vivaldi Arias - Il fidarsi alla spene (L'Olimpiade), D'ira e furor armato (Motezuma)

Miklos Spanyi continues his traversal of the keyboard concertos of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, a series which Gramophone has called a 'unique monument to one of the 18th century's most underrated composers'. Once again Spanyi has joined forces with the Hungarian period band Concerto Armonico, and together they offer us the first four works in a set of six, the Sei Concerti per il cembalo concertato. Composed during the early 1770s, the Sei Concerti were among the few concertos that CPE Bach didn't write specifically for himself to play. Bach's aim was to make the works appealing to both players and listeners, and the result is a set of highly attractive pieces, with approachable melodies and dance rhythms but also displaying a new freedom with regard to conventional concerto form. For these works, Miklos Spanyi has chosen to perform the solo part on a harpsichord, a copy of an instrument from 1745 by the Antwerp builder Joannes Daniel Dulcken. Inspired by the English harpsichords that were imported in great numbers to Northern Germany during Bach's time, Spanyi has had his instrument fitted with a so-called 'swell device', enabling the performer to achieve dynamic effects consistent with the instructions in Bach's scores.

Concerto in F major Wq43/1 (H471), Concerto in D major Wq43/2 (H472), Concerto in E flat major Wq43/3 (H473), Concerto in C minor Wq43/4 (H474)

A disc without flaws, a true marvel' is how Jean-Jacques Kantorow's previous recording of music by Edouard Lalo was described in the Spanish magazine Scherzo. On the present disc, Kantorow plays two works intended for the great violin virtuoso Pablo de Saraste: the brief Fantaisie-ballet on themes from Lalo's ballet Namouna, and the large-scale Concerto russe. The latter piece, in four movements, borrows themes from two wedding songs included by Rimsky-Korsakov in his collection 100 Russian Folk Songs. A typically expressive and virtuosic composition, it is also one of the first important French works to draw upon Russian Music. Two shorter violin works are included here, but the disc closes with another concerto, the Piano Concerto from 1888. It was the composer's final major work.  Championing this solo part is Pierre-Alain Volondat, and as in the other works orchestral support is provided by the eminent Tapiola Sinfonietta, conducted by Kees Bakels.

Concerto russe for violin and orchestra Op 29, Romance-Serenade for violin and orchestra (1877), Fantaisie-ballet for violin and orchestra (1885), Guitare for violin and orchestra Op 28 (orchestrated by Gabriel Pierne), Piano Concerto

The arresting clarinet glissando at the start of George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue is probably the most famous opening in American music. It also serves as a symbol for an important current in 20th century music - that of merging popular genres and art music into something new. It becomes even more significant through the fact that it wasn't even in the score when the composer first started rehearsals with the Paul Whiteman Orchestra.  Before the premiere in 1924 this particular feature, oozing of smoky jazz clubs, was arrived at in collaboration with the clarinettist of the orchestra. On the present recording, Freddy Kempf and the conductor Andrew Litton have opted for the original orchestration by Ferde Grofe, allowing the musicians of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra to revel in the role of a classic American big band. Also highly successful with its original audience, the Concerto In F employed the rhythms, melodic structures and bluesy harmonies of popular music. Also included on this disc are Gershwin's two remaining works for piano and orchestra, the Second Rhapsody and the infectios Variations on I Got Rhythm.

Gershwin Piano Concerto in F, Rhapsody in Blue (original jazz band version orch. Grofe), Second Rhapsody for piano and orchestra (original 1931 orch. by the composer), Variations on I Got Rhythm

A humble attempt to build a metaphysical time bridge' is how Vadim Gluzman describes his latest recording project: a disc which combines two partitas by J S Bach with two works by Eugene Ysaye and Lera Auerbach, each representing a view of Bach through the prism of the 20th and 21st century respectively. Gluzman opens with the Partita No 2 in D minor with its towering final Chaconne, followed by Lera Auerbach's par.ti.ta, composed specifically for Vadim Gluzman. The disc also features Bach's Partita No 3 in E major and Ysaye's Sonata in A minor. Highly recarded by reviewers worldwide, Gluzman is regularly compared to the great violin virtuosos of the early 20th century, both for the sound he makes on his ex-Leopold Auer Stradivarius violin and for a playing with is wholly committed.

Bach Partita No 2 in D minor BWV1004, Partita No 3 in E major BWV1006; Auerbach par.ti.ta for violin solo (2007); Ysaye Sonata in A minor for solo violin Op 27 No 2

One year after the successful release of the 2nd and 3rd symphonies by Johannes Brahms, the present double CD now completes the full cycle of Brahms' symphonies, as performed by the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks under the direction of Mariss Jansons and recorded in Munich's Herkulessaal. Along with his First Symphony (“Beethoven’s Tenth”), the Fourth Symphony puts the finishing touch on the complete performance of Johannes Brahms' symphonic works, compositions oriented around the creativity of his great role model, yet in many ways also forward looking and innovative.

The Great Service, consisting of setting os liturgical texts from Matins, Communion, and Evensong, is among the finest music by William Byrd for the Anglican Church. He wrote this grand-scale work for two five-part choirs who, for added contrast, would sing their respective parts facing each other from either side of the church. As well as constantly changing the combination of voices, Byrd was exceptionally inventive in countless other ways, varying phrase lengths and rhythms, throwing in unexpected harmonies, and repeating lines in ever more elaborate ways. The endless variety with which Byrd payed with the available combinations gives the Great Service a kaleidoscopic character, which is very rare in late Renaissance music. Musica Contaxta translates literally as 'music interwoven', reflecting the group's primary aim of presenting Renaissance music in the context of its original conception and function. They are joined on this recording by The English Cornett and Sackbut Ensemble and the harpsichordist Steven Devine.

With her winning combination of consummate technical brilliance, fine musicianship, and personal verve, the pianist Xiayin Wang captures the hearts of audiences wherever she appears.This is Wang's second disc for Chandos Records. Her previous disc, of piano music by Earl Wild, was an 'International Piano Choice' in International Piano. The six Moments musicaux constitute a set of solo piano pieces, each representing a different but complementary musical form, such as the nocturne, song without words, barcarolle, virtuoso etude or variations. The Variations on a Theme of Corelli was the last original solo piano work that Rachmaninov wrote, and the only one he composed outside Russia. The theme of this cycle is actually not by Arcangelo Corelli, but an old Spanish-French folk dance. The Variations were written in 1931, the same year that the composer boldly denounced the Soviet Union, referring to its leaders as 'Communist grave-diggers'. Stalin consequently banned Rachmaninoff's music, but, recognising its more appealing and generally less radical nature, rehabilitated it three years later.

Moments musicaux Op 16, Etudes-tableaux Op 33, Variations on a Theme of Corelli Op 42

This disc comprises some of cinema's most memorable musical moments, as chosen and arranged for four guitars by the members of the Aquarelle Guitar Quartet. Without music, movies would not be what they are today, and the Quartet here explores the full stylistic spectrum of the film music genre. 'It is in the interpretation of this variety', they explain, 'that the guitar truly comes alive.' Many, if not most, of the film scores represented on this disc are classics, and they have the awards to show for it. Music from the Academy Award-winning scores for Frida, Titanic, Schindler's List, and Il postino rubs shoulders with 'Minor Swing' from Chocolat, which received a Golden Globe for Best Original Score. Music from these and many other famous films is here performed by the Aquarelle Guitar Quartet, a dynamic and innovative ensemble that captivates audiences with eclectic repertoire and spell-binding performances. Since its formation, the Quartet has performed extensively across the UK and abroad to great critical acclaim.

Horner Titanic, Reinhart Minor Swing (Chocolat), Kamen Have you ever really loved a woman (Don Juan de Marco), Oldfield Tubular Bells (The Exorcist), Santaolalla De Usuahia a la Quiaca (Motorcycle Diaries), Theodorakis The Fire Inside (Zorba), Cardel Por Una Cabeza (Scent of a Woman), Sakamoto Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence, Myers Cavatina (The Deer Hunter), Nyman The Heart Asks Pleasure First (The Piano), Williams Theme from Schindler's List, Morricone Cinema Paradiso, Bacalov Il Postino, Karas Was It Rain? (Theme from The Third Man), Steiner Theme from A Summer Place,  Chopin Nocturne No 20 in C sharp minor (The Pianist), Lai Theme from Love Story, Goldenthal Themes from Frida

This two-disc set of choral works by Sir John Tavener forms part of the new and ongoing Richard Hickox Legacy series on Chandos, leading up to the fifth anniversary of the conductor’s death in November 2013. The three works in this Tavener set reflect two major influences on the composer's music: the culture of Greece, and the tradition of the Greek Orthodox Church. In the words of Tavener himself: 'In everything I do, I aspire to the sacred... music is a form of prayer, a mystery.' This manifesto is evident in the choral work We Shall See Him as He Is, which was recorded live at the BBC Proms in the Royal Albert Hall in London. The concert led Gramophone to the following conclusion: 'an extraordinary work in an extraordinarily committed and spellbinding performance'. The Mumbai-born British soprano Patricia Rozario has made recordings of numerous works by Tavener, and she was in fact the composer's own personal choice of soprano for this work, as well as for Eis Thanaton. Eis Thanaton (Ode to Death) arose from personal tragedy: it is dedicated to the memory of Tavener's mother who had died in 1985. Tavener describes the orchestral Theophany as 'an attempt to redefine the presence of God in all things as seen from the earliest days of creation to the Psalmist'.

Richard Hickox Legacy (rereleased from CHAN9128 and CHAN9440)
2 CDs for the price of 1

We Shall See Him As He Is, Eis Thanaton, Theophany

The works on this disc all date from the first half of the composing life of Saint-Saëns – with one exception, the Marche du couronnement, which he wrote for the coronation of Edward VII in 1902. In Spartacus, the composer depicts Alphonse Pagès's tragedy on the revolt headed by the ill-fated gladiator in 73 BC by use of bold, chromatic notes, followed by a military allegro which integrates them. After a tender theme, the bold notes return, now with a downward turn at the end, probably evoking Spartacus's defeat, and the concert overture ends with a march that recalls the tender theme. Equally dramatic is Saint-Saëns’s symphonic poem Phaëton. In ancient Greek myths, Phaëton, the son of Helios, is reluctantly given permission to drive his father’s sun chariot. As Phaëton fails to control the chariot, and carries the sun too close to the earth, Zeus intervenes and brings the unfortunate ride – and Phaëton himself – to an abrupt end by means of a thunderbolt. Saint-Saëns's writing for large orchestra (including contra-bassoon, tuba, two harps, and three timpanists) brings with it a pure, raw energy. The intense state of panic is signalled by a menacing low note on the trombone, and further heightened through subsequent imitative entries that crowd in on one another. After Zeus's massive thunderbolt, the music subsides into a feeling of loss and regret. Saint-Saëns's other three symphonic poems are also on this disc – Le Rouet d'Omphale, Danse macabre, and La Jeunesse d’Hercule – as well as the 'Danse bacchanale' from Samson et Dalila and the 'Marche militaire française' from Suite algérienne.

Spartacus, Le Rouet d'Omphale Op 31, Phaeton Op 39, Danse macabre Op 40, La Jeunesse d'Hercule Op 50, Overture to La Princesse jaune Op 30, Une nuit a Lisbonne Op 63, Marche militaire francaise from Suite algerienne Op 60, Danse bacchanale from Samson et Dalila Op 47, Marche du couronnement Op 117

Although he writes in all genres, René Clausen is today one of America's most popular choral composers, and for more than twenty-five years he has been the conductor of the internationally acclaimed Concordia Choir of Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. On this release, several of his choral works are performed by the Kansas City Chorale, another choir of great international renown, whose recording, with the Phoenix Chorale, of Grechaninov's Passion Week scooped a Grammy award in 2008, in the category Best Classical Recording, Engineering. 'Set me as a seal' is arguably the composer's best-known work, long popular at weddings, funerals, and in the concert repertoire. Clausen has described the work as 'various kinds of discussions between God and humans, both from the human aspect and from the God aspect, so a lot of variations... of love, of disappointment, of anxiety, of doubt'. The composer was moved to learn that the work was chosen for the memorial service held after ValuJet 592 crashed in the Everglades in 1996. All that hath life and breath, praise ye the Lord is one of Clausen's earliest works, a favourite of choirs across the world. It was one of only three choral works performed in the 2008 Presidential Office Year-End Concert of Compassion held by the Republic of China (Taiwan), with the theme 'Music brings warmth – Songs spread feeling'. The Mass for Double Choir was commissioned by the Kansas City and Phoenix Chorales. The composer, who had never written a mass before, looked on it as an 'interesting challenge'. In the work emotions ebb and flow kaleidoscopically, taking the listener from the strength of the unison writing at the opening, to the sorrowful falling lines of the Crucifixion of Christ and the bubbling, dancing figures for the Resurrection. Expressions of praise spill forward atop one another in the Sanctus, a choir of angels too exuberant to be contained. In contrast, Prayer sets Mother Teresa's gentle words with long arching phrases and gentle dissonances.

All that hath life and breath, O magnum mysterium, The Tyger, The Lamb, Mass for Double Choir, Magnificat, Prayer, O vos omnes, Set me as a Seal

This is the first complete collection of Carl Nielsen's masterly chamber works available on CD. Music in which the Danish national composer, with his spontaneous and imaginative works, presents himself as a renewer of the classical tradition. Here all the string quartets, violin sonatas and wind works appear in new, definitive recordings by top young Danish musicians. The piano works are played in unique fashion by Herman D. Koppel, who as a young man was priviliged to play them all to the composer himself.

6 CDs for the price of 2

CD 1 - String Quartet in G minor Op 13, String Quartet in F major Op 44, String Quintet in G major (1888)
CD 2 - String Quartet in F minor Op 5, String Quartet in E flat major Op 14
CD 3 - Piano Trio in G major (1883), Serenata in vano (1914), Wind Quintet Op 43, Fantasy Piece for Clarinet and Piano in G minor (c. 1881), Two Fantasy Pieces Op 2, Canto serioso (1913), From Moderen Op 41
CD 4 - Violin Sonata No 1 in A major Op 9, Violin sonata No 2 Op 35, Prelude Theme and Variations Op 48, Preludio e Presto Op 52
CD 5 - Symphonic Suite Op 8, Piano Music for Young and Old Op 53, Theme and Variations Op 40
CD 6 - Chaconne Op 32, Suite: The Luciferian Op 45, Humoresque-Bagatelles Op 11, Five Piano Pieces Op 3, Three Piano Pieces Op 59

When listening to the orchestral music of Charles Koechlin, one is immediately captivated by the intoxicating range of colors he was able to craft into every score. Given his extraordinary sensitivity to instrumental textures, it is hardly surprising that he would, upon occasion rework - or be asked to score - the music of others, giving those pieces new life with a splash of unexpected color. Debussy's late ballet 'Khamma' is such a piece, orchestrated by Koechlin from the composer's short score, as was Fauré's 'Pelléas et Mélisande.' In Franz Schubert's 'Wanderer Fantasy', Koechlin offers an orchestral version of this most symphonic of piano pieces, whereas Chabrier's 'Bouree fantasque' is a delightful fantasy.

Debussy (orch. Koechlin) Khamma, Koechlin Sur les Flots lointains Op 130, Faure (orch. Koechlin) Pelleas et Melisande Op 80, Schubert (orch. Koechlin) Wanderer Fantasy, Chabrier (orch. Koechlin) Bouree fantasque

This time, for a change, Joel Frederiksen and his musicians have gone back in time all the way to 1974! That was the year of the death, aged 26, of the British singer-songwriter Nick Drake, who was to achieve fame only some years later. In 1972 he released his finest album, Pink Moon, which became legendary at the end of the '70s and is here revisited in the style of a promenade through the Elizabethan era. A decidedly offbeat musical project that will surely intrigue fans of both Nick and Joel.

Nick Drake Road, Pink Moon, Horn, Place To Be, Which Will, Rider On The Wheel, Time Has Told Me, Horn (reprise in F), Voice From the Mountain, Northern Sky, Harvest Breed, From The Morning; Anonymous Requiem Aeternam; Dowland His Golden Locks verses 1 and 2; Cavendish Wand'ring In This Place; Dowland Rest Awhile You Cruel Cares, Time Stand Still; Frederiksen Ocean; Campion Never Weather-beaten Sail; Anonymous Requiem in F (horn); Dowland Come Heavy Sleep; Anonymous Requiem II

Born in 1912 in Margate, Kent (UK), Alfred Deller recorded for Harmonia Mundi from 1967 until his death in July 1979. These discs, many of them bestsellers (Music for a While, O Solitude), caught the public's imagination and influenced several generations of musicians. 'We had never heard a male alto before, and now this! A magnificent sound, handled with refinement, effortless, light, ideal for our old instruments; exceptionally individual and used with great expressiveness. To accompany him was sheer pleasure.' (Nikolaus Harnoncourt)

CD 1 - Opera and Incidental Music by Henry Purcell, CD 2 - Sacred Music by Tallis, Couperin, Purcell, Gibbons, Palestrina, CD 3 - Solo Songs by Morley, Campion, Blow, Dowland, Purcell, Dupre, CD 4 - Folksongs

Volume 57 in Hyperion's Romantic Piano Concerto series turns up another 'discovery': the music of Swedish composer Adolf Wiklund. These little-known but lusciously tuneful works are characterized by big-boned, symphonic gestures reminiscent of Rachmaninov, yet tempered with the Nordic clarity of Grieg. Wiklund's two piano concertos are central to his output, and in fact they enjoyed considerable popularity in Sweden until as recently as fifty years ago, when modernist sensibilities deemed them unfashionable. This glittering performance from Martin Sturfält and the Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra, directed by brilliant violinist-turned-conductor Andrew Manze, is bound to bring this unfairly neglected music back into general currency.

Wiklund Piano Concerto No 1 in E minor Op 10, Konsertstycke in C major Op 1, Piano Concerto No 2 in B minor Op 17

Hyperion's Record of the Month is the third double-volume release in Marc-André Hamelin’s much-praised series of Haydn's keyboard sonatas. Haydn wrote around sixty keyboard sonatas and this selection of eleven focuses on those from the 1770s, including the great C minor sonata from the composer's 'Sturm und Drang' period, with its dynamic contrasts and virtuoso demands. These are bookended by three from Haydn’s earliest output from the 1750s, most likely penned for his young female pupils to play, and the D major sonata written during the second of the mature composer's triumphant London visits in 1794. In all these fascinating, idiosyncratic works, Marc-André Hamelin wears his renowned virtuosity lightly, while playing with understated wit and the elegant, immaculate musicianship that has come to define one of the greatest pianists of our time.
2 CDs for the price of 1

CD 1 - Piano Sonatas in G major Hob XVI:6, in C major Hob XVI:1, in B flat major Hob XVI:2, in E minor Hob XVI:47bis, in G minor Hob XVI:44, in E flat major Hob XVI:25
CD 2 - Piano Sonatas in C minor Hob XVI:20, in C sharp minor Hob XVI:36, in E major Hob XVI:22, in F major Hob XVI:29, in D major Hob XVI:51

After almost a decade, Hyperion is delighted to welcome back the world-famous St Paul's Cathedral Choir under its new director of music, Hyperion artist and also director of The Cardinall's Musick, Andrew Carwood. Joined by the St Paul's Mozart Orchestra and a quartet of renowned soloists, Carwood leads sparkling performances of a selection of Mozart's sacred music. Although they were commissioned to be sung at church services in Salzburg, all these compositions are suffused with Mozart's typically unerring sense of dramatic pacing and a sensuous, operatic treatment of solo lines, as well as crisp and energetic choral writing.

Missa solemnis K337, Regina caeli K108, Vesperae solennes de Dominica K321

British countertenor Iestyn Davies is one of the fastest rising stars on the concert and opera circuit. Following his highly acclaimed recording of Porpora cantatas, he returns for a second solo album with Hyperion, a selection of arias written for Gaetano Guadagni. Italian-born Guadagni was the first 'modern' castrato, famed all over Europe for the lyric purity of his voice and his powerful, naturalistic acting style. Not only did he enjoy a close artistic relationship with Handel, who nurtured Guadagni's voice to fit the alto roles in his English oratorios, but he effectively created the role of Orpheus in Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice, an opera he thoroughly made his own. Here, Iestyn Davies is joined again by the renowned period-instrument band Arcangelo, directed by Jonathan Cohen.

Arias by Handel, Hasse, CPE Bach and Gluck

Jean Mouton was a Renaissance French composer and choirmaster, much acknowledged but more rarely recorded, who wrote a body of music that’s both technically inventive and immediately appealing. Here Stephen Rice and The Brabant Ensemble - renowned exponents of sixteenth-century Franco-Flemish repertoire - perform all of Mouton's eight-part music, two four-part motets, and his only five-part Mass setting, the Missa Tu es Petrus. The latter is characterized by light, clear textures and a soaring cantus firmus, while the double-choir Nesciens mater is rightly famous for its ingenious canon. Sheer compositional skill aside, all these works demonstrate Mouton's vivid and original imagination - one that has the ability to speak directly to our time.

Nesciens mater, Ave Maria gemma virginum, Exsultet coniubilando, Verbum bonum et suave, Missa Tu es Petrus, Bona vita bona refectio, Factum est silentium

Premiered in 1962, the War Requiem is one of the twentieth century's defining works. Britten was commissioned to write it for the re-dedication of Coventry Cathedral, which was destroyed during the Second World War. Interspersing the Latin mass of the dead with texts by war poet Wilfred Owen he created a work that both mourned the dead and pleaded the futility of war.

5 Stars - Financial Times (UK), 5 Stars - Rondo (Germany), CD of the Week Sunday Times (UK), Recording of the Month MDT.co.uk

French harpsichordist Blandine Verlet presents Bach's famous Goldberg Variations on a record that became a reference and inspiration for many performances to follow. Released in 1993 on Astree, Verlet's interpretation on harpsichord has been reissued by Naïve to the delight of music lovers everywhere.

Ondine is pleased to announce the first release of an Enescu cycle with the Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of its artistic director Hannu Lintu. George Enescu is Romania's most important conposer, and one of the most neglected composers of the 20th century. This release demonstrates a master of great orchestral colour and impressive imagination. Artistic director of the Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra since 2009, Hanny Lintu has rapidly been creating an international career and is a sought-after conductor. From 2013 onwards he will assume the post of chief conductor of the Finnish RSO. The collaboration of the Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra, Hannu Lintu and Ondine has already produced select fruit, including the Grammy-nominated recording of Einojuhani Rautavaara's opera Kaivos (ODE11742) and a recording with works by young Finnish composer Uljas Pulkkis (ODE11762), which was awarded the Finnish Broadcasting Company's 'Disc of the Year' in 2011. This release will be the first of an Enescu cycle with Hannu LIntu. Two more discs featuring, among other pieces, Symphonies Nos 1 and 3, will follow ing 2013 and 2014.

Symphony No 2 Op 17, Chamber Symphony for 12 Instruments Op 33

Ondine is pleased to announce a new release by famous soprano Veronique Gens, who performs Herminie and Les Nuits d'ete by Hector Berlioz and Sheherazade by Maurice Ravel with the Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire under the baton of its music director John Axelrod. Veronique Gens is internationally recognised as one of the world's greatest sopranos. She has made her career with baroque repertoire and Mozart, but French repertoire, especially Berlioz and Ravel, are 'as natural to her as the air that she breathers'. Having a very special relationship to Berlioz's Les Nuits d'ete and Herminie, Veronique Gens combines them on this release with Sheherazade by Ravel, which conjures up a totally different world. The charismatic conductor John Axelrod has been music director of the Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire since 2009, following the philosophy of being 'open to the world' by playing extraordinarily diverse repertoire and innovative programming. He is also internationally sought after for both concert performances and opera productions.

The Gabrieli Consort and Players return to the programme that put them on the musical map when it was originally  recorded and released in 1990: A Venetian Coronation 1595 is a musical re-creation evoking the grand pageantry of the Coronation Mass for Venetian Doge Marino Grimani. His love of ceremony and state fetivals fuelled an extraordinary musical bounty during his reign and formed the background to the musical riches of the period, especially to the works of Giovanni Gabrieli. With cornetts, sackbuts and an all-male consort, Paul McCreesh fully exploits the dazzling polyphony of Andrea and Giovanni Gabrieli's music and captivates the audience in a thatrical and ceremonious performance. Two decades later, the Gabrieli's New Venetian Coronation takes advantage of huge developments in early instruments, performance techniques and research into the pieces that were on the original (as well as advances in recording techniques). This disc follow on from two critically lauded releases with Signum - Berlioz's Grande Messe des Morts (BBC Muisc Magazine Award winner - Technical Excellence) and A Song Of Farewell (5 stars - Classic FM Magazine, Double 5 Stars - BBC Music Magazine).

A musical re-creation of the Coronation Mass for Venetian Doge Marino Grimani with music by Andrea and Giovanni Gabrieli

A national monument in Spain, Manuel de Falla's La vida breve is perhaps the greatest opera ever written in the Spanish language. A kind of 'tragic zarzuela', it unites verismo atmosphere, Andalusian local colour and a score shimmering with reminiscences of French Impressionism. Written in 1905, La vida breve is the story of a poor gypsy and her lover, who is engaged to wed a wealthy girl. 'Simply a stroke of genius', wrote Spain's Opera Viva about Giancarlo del Monaco's austere, minimalist staging at Valencia's Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía. Maestro Lorin Maazel, whom El País hailed as the 'triunfador' of the evening, leads an exquisite array of soloists headed by Chilean soprano Cristina Gallardo-Domâs, Jorge de León and María Luisa Corbacho.

'Simply a stroke of genius' (Opera Viva, Spain)
'Lorin Maazel celebrates a triumph with his splendid orchestra' (El Pais)
''La vida breve' is simply marvelous' (Levante)
'Beautiful scenes, perfectly integrated into the purest theater... Gallardo-Domas in best shape and great presence, dominating the stage from beginning to end' (La Razon)

Also on Blu-ray 710804

This recording, including Schubert's Piano Trios in B flat major and E flat major as well as his 'Arpeggione' Sonata, features three artists renowned for their interpretations of Schubert: pianist András Schiff, violinist Yuuko Shiokawa and cellist Miklós Perényi. Their performance of these three great masterpieces of the chamber music repertoire is by turns joyful, lyrical and melancholy, but they are sensitive throughout to the subtle nuances of the music and to each other.

Piano Trio Op 99, Piano Trio Op 100, Arpeggione Sonata in A minor D821

Back in 1976 Benoit Jacquot - then a very young director - met up with Alfred Deller to make this documentary-interview, which is unique in that it offers one of the very few filmed documents of the most famous countertenor of the modern era. Several excerpts from concert performances (notably with his son) enable this deeply moving portrait to reproduce the same feeling the composer Michael Tippet experienced when he heard Alfred Deller's voice in Canterbury Cathedral Choir: the sensation that 'the centuries rolled back'.

DVD - Documentary by Benoit Jacquot (65 min) comprising filmed concerts featuring works by Campion, Rosseter, Morley et Purcell. An INA documentary, written by Jean-Claude Biette and directed by Benoit Jacquot. CD - Shakespeare Songs

This is The Royal Opera’s first complete presentation of Puccini’s Il trittico since 1965. Leading director Richard Jones staged his witty, darkly comic realization of Gianni Schicchi for The Royal Opera in 2007. The production was revived in 2012 and here he completes the trio with two new productions of Il Tabarro and Suor Angelica. Antonio Pappano conducts an acclaimed cast including Eva-Maria Westbroek, Ermonela Jaho, Lucio Gallo, Elena Zilio and rising star Francesco Demuro. These three one-act works were broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and went to cinemas world-wide in February 2012.

Recorded live at the Royal Opera House 2011

Also on Blu-ray OABD7102D