Bach The Art of Fugue
Akademie fur Alte Musik Berlin
HARMONIA MUNDI | HMC902064 | CD | 794881982820

Since Bach was more than cryptic in indicating the instrumentation of what is often regarded as his musical testament, The Art of Fugue has been subjected to an infinite variety of arrangements for all sorts of instruments. This recording follows a series of performances in which the musicians of the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin tested a highly unusual concept: rather than play uniformly one after the other the contrapuncti and canons Bach left us, they have made great efforts to diversify both the instrumentarium and the macrostructure - an exciting musical game for several players!

American Music for Clarinet and Piano
Jon Manasse (clarinet), Jon Nakamatsu (piano)
HARMONIA MUNDI | HMU907508 | CD | 93046750824

Acclaimed duo partners Jon Manasse and Jon Nakamatsu turn their focus on American composers in this jazz-inflected program of clarinet and piano music by Leonard Bernstein, George Gershwin, and, in premiere recordings, John Novacek and Paquito D'Rivera. 'A brilliant, if unusual, clarinet-and-piano team'. 'Jon Manasse's beautiful legato and Jon Nakamatsu's incisive pianism are a delight' -The Sunday Times.

Schubert Piano Duets
Paul Lewis, Steven Osborne (piano)
HYPERION | CDA67665 | CD | 34571176659

Schubert is unusual and indeed unique among composers in that some of his greatest works are written for piano duet. He wrote as much music for duet as for solo piano, and reaches emotional depths which take this repertoire far away from its domestic origins. The most celebrated of these pieces, the Fantasie in F minor, with its austere yet heartbreaking opening melody and dramatic double fugue, is one of the great piano achievements of the early 19th century. Who better to commit these works to disc than two of the brightest stars in the British piano scene, Paul Lewis and Steven Osborne? As well as their individual achievements, they also have a long-standing friendship and performing relationship which you will hear reflected in their magisterial performances on this marvellous disc.

Ralph Fiennes Reads Kipling
Ralph Fiennes (reader), Ruggiero Ricci (violin), Ernest Lush (piano), London Philharmonic Orchestra, Adrian Boult (conductor)
ORCHID | ORC100014 | CD | 5060189560141 |

Acclaimed British Hollywood actor Ralph Fiennes reads Rudyard Kipling’s poems and excerpts from The Jungle Book, Kim, and the Just So Stories. The classic short stories and children’s favourites (including ‘Rikki-Tikki-Tavi’) were recorded in the study at Bateman’s, Kipling’s Jacobean house where he wrote many of his books. These imaginative readings are interspersed with traditional Indian music and works by Elgar, reflecting Kipling’s deep association with the country of his birth.