Although Szymanowski later dubbed his Symphony No. 1 a “contrapuntal-harmonic-orchestral monster” and disavowed the influence of Wagner, Reger and Richard Strauss, it is an astonishingly powerful work by a composer only in his mid-20s and still enthralls listeners a century after its première with its sheer opulence. The unusually structured Symphony No. 2 is a work of great impact and invention, with many passionate and varied contrasts in its use of solo instruments, in particular the violin. On their CD release, these thrilling interpretations of Szymanowski’s Symphony No. 1 (8.570722) earned 5 STARS from BBC Music Magazine, while the Symphony No. 2 (8.570721) gained Gramophone Editor’s Choice and 5 STARS for these “deliriously sensual scores” from ClassicFM.

While best known today for having composed the ending to Puccini’s unfinished Turandot, Franco Alfano wrote some dozen operas, including Cyrano de Bergerac (1936) with a libretto by Henri Cain based on Edmond Rostand’s drama of the same name. It is a moving tale of romantic misunderstanding, swashbuckling bravado and heartbreaking loyalty, in which the eloquent Cyrano feels unable to express his love for Roxane because of his famously protuberant nose—except on behalf of his handsome but inarticulate friend, Christian. When Domingo and Radvanovsky sang Cyrano and Roxane at New York’s Metropolitan Opera, Andante magazine wrote: “Incredibly, Cyrano is his 121st role. And it suits him splendidly…Soprano Sondra Radvanovsky was luminous as Roxane, her passionate outbursts showing off her powerful upper register to good effect”.

Jun Markl’s exemplary interpretations of Debussy’s orchestral music have been praised for their ‘subtle and sensitive readings’ (Gramophone). ‘This is bewitching music-making that should on no account be missed…One of the finest discs Naxos has ever released’, declared Classic FM of Volume 1 (8570759). Volume 6 in Naxos’s popular series presents five highly diverse works in gorgeous orchestrations by Debussy’s contemporaries or later admirers. Indeed, pieces such as Clair de lune and Printemps may even be better known in these seductive guises than in their original forms. Of particular interest is Debussy’s sole attempt at composing a symphony, a youthful work imbued with the spirit of French Romanticism, only the first movement of which he completed.

Acclaimed for his Naxos recordings of music by Chopin, Liszt, Dohnanyi and Rachmaninov, Eldar Nebolsin here fulfills a heartfelt ambition to record important piano works by another great Romantic composer, Franz Schubert, for the label. The passion and pathos of the two sonatas, with their song-like melodies and adventurous harmonies, set the scene for one of Schubert’s most powerful solo piano pieces, the Wanderer Fantasy, a work so technically demanding that Schubert himself is reported to have exclaimed ‘the devil may play it!’. Based on his popular song Der Wanderer, the Fantasy is virtually a four-movement sonata in its own right and a path-breaking masterpiece of the piano literature.

Gifted as both a writer – he was the librettist for Verdi’s Otello and Falstaff – and a musician, Arrigo Boito wrote the libretto to his own opera Mefistofele, based on Goethe’s Faust. Much revised between its premiere at La Scala in 1868 and its 1876 production in Venice, Mefistofele is the pinnacle of Boito’s compositional achievement and has retained a place in the operatic repertoire. This 2008 performance was well received by critics: “[Furlanetto] brought real conviction to Boito’s occasionally surreal libretto, and his oaken voice truly filled the theatre”; “Giuseppe Filianoti sang with ideal smoothness of line and ingratiating tone”; “All the singers were well supported by conductor Stefano Ranzani, who paced the work well…a totally absorbing theatrical experience.”

Set in the town of Chalons near the German border at the time of the French Revolution during the Reign of Terror in 1794, Johann Strauss II’s final operetta The Goddess of Reason languished for 111 years until this 2009 in-concert revival. Its light-hearted mockery of the aristocracy, morality and the army, somewhat controversial at the time, seems as harmless now as that of Bernstein’s ebullient opera Candide and its humour stands the test of time. Abounding in waltz tunes and marches, its exuberant music is vintage Strauss. For this recording Christian Pollack has reconstructed the score as it would have been heard on its opening night with additional items that Strauss added for its 25th performance.

CD 1 Romance, Mazurka, Bizarrerie, Serenade, Idylle, Chanson de Matin, Chanson de Nuit, La Capricieuse, Gavotte, Salut d'amour, Etude-Caprice, May Song, Virelai, In Hammersbach, Carissima, Adieu, Etudes Characteristiques for solo violin, CD 2 Elevation, Pastourelle, Bavarian Dances Nos 1 and 3, Sospiri, Petite Reine - Berceuse, Polonaise, Dreaming, Mot d'Amour, Valse on Themes by Elgar, Reminiscences, Interlude from the Crown of India, Allegretto, Violin Sonata, Fugue, CD 3 Violin Concerto in B minor

The career of Argentina’s most famous classical composer began inauspiciously: “One day [as a child] I went into the kitchen and played on all the pots and pans and other things I could get to make a kitchen orchestra. I was spanked”, he recalled. Decades later, and inspired by the renowned cellist Aurora Nátola (whom he married), Ginastera would revise his first Cello Concerto: the provocative singing lines, Latin dance rhythms and virtuosic feats of its solo part were ideally suited to her heroic talents, its intense orchestral colours and abundant percussion perhaps recalling his childhood experiment. His second Cello Concerto, composed as a 10th-wedding anniversary tribute “To my dear Aurora”, includes a brilliant depiction of the rising sun, percussion instruments portraying jungle sounds, and a celebratory rustic finale.

The courage, humanity and humour of VEDEM, the secret magazine published by a group of teenage boys in the Terezin concentration camp during World War II, inspired American composer Lori Laitman and poet David Mason to create a verse drama that, in the composer’s words, ‘captured not only the tragic aspect of the boys’ lives, but also their humanity – their little worries, their spirited response to adversity, their yearnings, and their humor’. Fathers, which sets poems by Sri Lankan poet Anne Ranasinghe and Russian poet David Vogel, explores the bonds between parents and children that were altered by the Holocaust, its dark subject matter illuminated by the ‘healing balm’ of precious memories and necessary forgetting.

The Ice Mountain is a story of the cycle of life, of loss and how to come to terms with death. The cyclical passage of time through the four seasons reflects the work’s emotional journey, while the story itself is based on an old Swiss legend The Old Woman and Death and the music incorporates elements of Swiss folk-music and liturgical chant. Composer and conductor Ronald Corp says ‘the tale is a haunting one and very poignant and I was drawn by the mystical element in the story; I think my music for the opera reflects this’. Pigs Could Fly – Children’s Choral Music (8.572113) and Michael Hurd’s Pop Cantatas Jonah-Man Jazz, Prodigal, Rooster Rag, Swingin’ Samson and Captain Coram’s Kids (8.572505) are also available.

Of Georgian/Russian and Greek/Austrian parentage, British composer Lydia Kakabadse has a number of music theatre, vocal, choral and chamber works to her credit. The rhythms and melodies of Greek and Middle Eastern music are most evident in her Arabian Rhapsody Suite. Equally evocative are her settings of 19th-century poet Thomas Hood’s The Song of the Shirt, which recounts the pitiful existence of a poor seamstress, The Mermaid, based on her own fairy tale, Russian Tableaux, a bitter-sweet tribute to that nation’s landscape, history and culture, and The Phantom Listeners, a musical drama inspired by Walter de la Mare’s poetry.

The versatility of the classical guitar is one of its outstanding characteristics, allowing it to explore music of many eras and styles. The musical selection on this disc is a fascinating compound of romanticism, modernism and the expressive sensibilities of contemporary composers, including Swedish guitarist Johannes Moller himself. He ‘has captivated audiences throughout the world with charismatic and soulful performances. His ability to communicate a musical message to listeners of any cultural background, age or level of musical experience have brought him an international career and numerous prestigious prizes,’ wrote Classical Guitar Review.

Identity has always been at the center of Gabriela Lena Frank’s music. Born in Berkeley, California, to a mother of mixed Peruvian/Chinese ancestry and a father of Lithuanian/Jewish descent, Frank explores her multicultural heritage most ardently through her compositions. Hilos (Threads) was especially written for ALIAS Chamber Ensemble. The movements mix and match the players to allude to the beauty of Peruvian textiles, not only in their construction but also in their pictorial content of everyday life. Next is Danza de los Saqsampillos, inspired by the Peruvian “saqsampillo,” a rambunctious jungle-dweller. The emotional and mysterious Adagio para Amantaní follows, written in homage to the island—both beautiful and barren—that is situated in the middle of Lake Titicaca. The final work, Quijotadas, is inspired by Cervantes’ Don Quixote.

Always among the most innovative of composers, Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951) wrote several works that deliberately blur the distinction between chamber orchestra and chamber ensemble. Among these, the First Chamber Symphony compresses the classical symphonic format into a tensile single movement scored for only fifteen players, while the Suite draws its seven instruments into a maelstrom of vitality whose inspiration lies in the dance styles that were popular during the 1920s.

The Spanish-born, Mexican-based composer Rodolfo Halffter’s chamber music embraced influences from both the Old and New Worlds, his compositional approach shifting freely between nationalism, neoclassicism and the avant-garde. The works on this second volume (volume 1 is available on 8.572418) span most of his career, from two of the early Piano Sonatas de El Escorial (1928) to Epinicio (1979). Whether referring back to the Renaissance or the time of Scarlatti and Soler or exploring the exciting possibilities opened by modern musical techniques, his music fascinates listeners with its dancing rhythms, delicate sonorities and highly individual character.

Unpublished vocal music. Vocal music comprised around a quarter of Czech composer Bohuslav Martinu’s extensive output, no fewer than 27 songs dating from 1912 alone, and much of it remaining unpublished during his lifetime. Many of these set texts drawn from Czech folk sources and poetry, though old Spanish, German, English and French poetry – sometimes translated into Czech – are also to be found. While echoes of Brahms, Dvorak and Schubert may be heard, Martinu’s own style emerges surprisingly early in his career. Young Czech mezzo-soprano Jana Wallingerová, praised as ‘splendid’ (Der neue Merker) and for her ‘full voice brimming with feeling’ and ‘brilliant technique’ (Hospodářské noviny), joins pianist Giorgio Koukl, whose Naxos recordings of Martinu’s piano music have gained the highest praise.

Astor Piazzolla’s much-loved tangos have been arranged for all manner of instrumental line-ups, this album presenting an exuberant selection specially arranged for the acclaimed Tuscan Brass and Percussion Quintet whose members are professors of their instruments in leading Italian conservatories. The Quintet is joined by guest violinist Andrea Tacchi. The result is a thrilling new take on nuevo tango, passionate yet poised, sharp and shiny as a knife-blade. The centrepiece of this album, Piazzolla’s witty Four Seasons Suite takes Vivaldi’s famous violin concertos for a stroll through the docklands of Buenos Aires, the original home of tango itself.

Morton Gould’s wide-ranging output integrated jazz, blues, gospel, country-and-western and folk elements into masterfully orchestrated and imaginatively conceived compositions that have achieved immense popularity in the USA and internationally. His St. Lawrence Suite, commissioned for the opening of the great St. Lawrence Power Project, is the only original work for wind band nominated for a Grammy® Award for composition. The “West Point” Symphony, Gould’s only wind-band work in this genre, has long been a cornerstone of the repertoire. Jericho Rhapsody thrillingly depicts Joshua’s famous Biblical battle, won by the awesome sound of trumpets. Derivations was composed for legendary clarinetist Benny Goodman, and Fanfare for Freedom was, like Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man, commissioned by Eugene Goossens as a patriotic concert-opener during World War II.

Australian composer and artist. Luxembourg-born Australian composer Georges Lentz’s 60-minute solo guitar work Ingwe (an Aboriginal word meaning 'night') is a truly extraordinary achievement. Here, heavy metal meets musical metaphysics, as shrieking amplified sound clashes with the spirituality of Indigenous Australian cultures. Conceived as part of an open-ended cycle of compositions with the religiously inspired title Caeli enarrant... (The Heavens are Telling, Psalm XIX), it is at once a nod to guitar heroes such as Jimi Hendrix, and a monumental meditation on the human condition, the bleak vastness of the Australian desert and the awe-inspiring radiance of its night skies.

The eminent Swiss-born, German-based clarinetist Eduard Brunner has had an immense influence on the development of modern repertoire for his instrument, commissioning and premiering an extraordinary number of new works from the world’s leading composers. His phenomenal technique underlies an adventurous approach to music without for an instant sacrificing its emotional impact, the absolute beauty of tone he produces or the thrill of discovering previously unheard sonorities. By turns exuberant, introspective, playful and hypnotic, the works on this disc chart rewarding new territories for the inquisitive listener, led by a modern master musician through an unforgettable voyage of musical discovery.

American composer Haskell Small ‘has a rich imagination as a composer and an assured mastery of forms. Highly original without being self-consciously modernistic, this music has a sense of traditional structures and values without losing sight of its own era; it is inventive and accessible’ (The Washington Post). His Naxos debut disc brings together three of Haskell’s finest works: Lullaby of War, commissioned by acclaimed pianist Soheil Nasseri; Renoir’s Feast, a commission by the Phillips Collection to celebrate the return of their beloved painting, Luncheon of the Boating Party; and Three Etudes in Time, which explore the piano’s ‘color and sound control’.

No less an authority than Robert Schumann praised Beethoven’s close friend and protégé Ferdinand Ries for his “remarkable originality”. More recently, pianist Susan Kagan, intrigued by Ries’s Op. 1 piano sonatas went on to record all 14 of his solo piano sonatas and sonatinas, gaining critical acclaim for her eloquent advocacy of these unfairly neglected yet often substantial works. Bridging the divide between the Classical style of Haydn and Mozart and the Romantic impulses of Schubert, Chopin and Mendelssohn, with a healthy dose of Beethoven often in evidence, Ries repays today’s listener’s attention with musical drama, fluent virtuosity and poignant lyrical charm.

“Anger produces menacing sounds. But the voice of tenderness is softer,” wrote French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and much the same could be said of the diverse music on this volume of American percussion music which ranges from Elliott Carter’s enigmatic Tintinnabulation for unpitched percussion instruments made of wood, metal and skin to Fred Lerdahl’s high-spirited The First Voices, Edward Cohen’s gamelan-inspired Acid Rain and Peter Child’s clangorous Refrain to John Harbison’s Cortege, a loving and sometimes angry tribute to his late friend the composer Donald Sur. New England Conservatory is the USA’s oldest independent school of music and recognized internationally as a leader among music schools.

Kenneth Leighton was one of Britain’s most important 20th-century composers, best known for his organ and choral works. His distinctive style is striking for its lyrical melodic idiom, masterful control of counterpoint and dynamic rhythmic energy. Et resurrexit builds into a cataclysmic climax, symbolizing the soul’s struggle for belief in Christ’s resurrection, while his Hymn Fantasies abound in fascinating polyphony. Missa de Gloria ‘Dublin Festival Mass’, based on an ancient plainchant from the Sarum rite for Easter Sunday, uses the colourful registrations of solo organ in place of voices to express the mystery of the Catholic liturgy.

Rachmaninov’s reputation as a composer has waxed and waned over the years, but as a pianist he remains renowned, not least among other pianists, as one of the greatest. His perfect technique, utter clarity and discipline, and supreme musicianship shine undiminished through even his earliest recordings. Ever the
perfectionist, he would often set down multiple takes of even the shortest pieces (no fewer than 22 of Mendelssohn’s Spinning Song, for instance), carefully choosing only the best for release. His account of Beethoven’s 32 Variations in C minor WoO 80 effortlessly negotiates every nuance, from utmost delicacy to
thunderous virtuosity, while his affinity for the Romantics is self-evident.

Sourced from American RCA Victor shellac pressings for Elektra and unpublished-on-78 Ariadne auf Naxos recordings, this Naxos Historical album celebrates the enormous mutual admiration between Richard Strauss and Sir Thomas Beecham. Beecham had introduced Elektra to London in 1910 and presented the first version of Ariadne in London three years later, the recordings heard here of the final scenes from each of these operas were made almost three decades later following performances given in the presence of, and with the approval of, the composer. Erna Schluter, Ljuba Welitsch, Maria Cebotari and Paul Schoffler were also renowned interpreters of Strauss’s music.