Debussy arr Sally Beamish Suite for Cello and Orchestra, Ravel arr Richard Tognetti Two Hebrew Melodies, Prokofiev arr Vladimir Blok Concertino for Cello and Orchestra Op 132, Bloch arr Christopher Palmer From Jewish Life

Steven Isserlis has earned a reputation as one of the foremost cellists of our day. At the same time he has become known for his ingenuity and innovation in programming, of which this disc is the perfect example. It combines four works for cello and orchestra that wouldn’t even exist without Isserlis – all arrangements made at his personal request, and each of them by the arranger of his personal choice. reVisions includes two Ravel songs arranged by Isserlis’ friend, Australian violinist Richard Tognetti, in order to supplement the concert programme of Isserlis’ 2008 ‘Intense’ tour with Tognetti’s own Australian Chamber Orchestra.

Piano Concerto No 5 in E flat Major Op 73 'Emperor', Choral Fantasia in C Minor Op 80

For the final instalment of his survey of Beethoven’s works for piano and orchestra, Ronald Brautigam has saved ‘the final crowning glory of his concerto output’, as Beethoven specialist Barry Cooper describes the Fifth Piano Concerto in his liner notes. The work has become known as the Emperor Concerto, as it shares its key (E flat major) as well as a certain sense of power and grandeur with the Third Symphony, the ‘Eroica’. It is coupled on this disc with the Choral Fantasia – an intriguing work scored for piano, orchestra and chorus with vocal soloists. The explanation for this unusual combination is that Beethoven wanted to provide a fitting finale for one of his mammoth concerts in Vienna. The concert, which took place on 22 December 1808, included performances of the Fifth and Sixth Symphonies as well as the Fourth Piano Concerto and two movements from the Mass in C major; the Choral Fantasia thus brought all of the evening’s performers on stage once more before the end of the concert.

Krommer, Stamitz, Pleyel, Kozeluch, Wranitzky

Matthias Bamert’s ‘Contemporaries of Mozart’ project is one of Chandos’ longest-running and most successful series. The unquestionable genius of Mozart has tended to eclipse the accomplishments of many other composers who were writing at the same time as he. Many of these composers, successful in their day, suffered neglect in subsequent decades and in some cases were almost forgotten. Matthias Bamert’s series has shown just how rich this area of the repertoire is, and each of the CDs has received superb critical acclaim. This uniquely compiled box set comprises five of the most successful CDs in the series to date (many of the works are poorly represented in the catalogue, if at all) and provides an ideal introduction to the repertoire – all at bargain price. Each CD offers a wealth of classically elegant melodies wrapped up in imaginative orchestration.

Tchaikovsky Nightingale, Rachmaninov Don't Sing To Me, Fair Maiden, Borodin For the Shores of Thy Far Native Land, Medtner Gone Are My Heart's Desires

Operatic superstar Dmitri Hvorostovsky has become the supreme interpreter of the Russian Romance, with its rich resource of music and poetry. The operatic superstar met with international fame over 20 years ago when he was famously chosen as Cardiff Singer of the World over Bryn Terfel in the ‘Battle of the Baritones’. Hvorostovsky is responsible for 'some of the most beautiful and eloquent sounds that can currently be heard from any human throat…His voice is redolent of luxury: beautiful tone, pinpoint intonation, elegant, and impassioned delivery.' The New York Times. His new album offers seventeen songs, or 'romances,' all composed to texts from works of Alexander Pushkin, Russia’s greatest poet. The composers represented here have helped define the true meaning of the Russian Romance, and have created some of the world’s greatest song literature. Also available: Tchaikovsky Romances (DE3393).

Sydney Symphony’s much-anticipated recordings from Maestro Ashkenazy’s 2009 Prokofiev Festival are finally here! The third collection of live and session recordings in Ashkenazy’s series of Sydney Symphony composer festivals, this set of four albums follows recorded festivals of Rachmaninov in 2007 and Elgar in 2008. This first Prokofiev disc includes the sparkling ‘Classical’ First Symphony and the popular fifth. Internationally renowned as one of the finest interpreters of Russian composers, Sydney Symphony’s Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor returns to Australia for concerts in August.

Following their much lauded recording of Winterreise, Mark Padmore and Paul Lewis turn to Schubert’s first song-cycle, Die schöne Müllerin, which follows a lovelorn young man on a melancholy journey of false hope. Two great artists at the zenith of their careers. Paul Lewis garnered rave reviews on his recent Australian tour. Praise for the pair's Winterreise: ‘Padmore sets out on a searing journey of self-revelation…A recording to live with.’ –Gramophone

The Arcanto Quartet includes star players Tabea Zimmermann (viola) and Jean-Guihen Queyras (cello). Here they offer a popular coupling of three sumptuous French string quartets, the second movement of Ravel’s Quartet in F Major one of the most charming and instantly recognisable in the genre. Praise for the Arcanto Quartet: ‘Here are musicians who play music as they feel it within themselves, pull you into their orbit of convictions and offer an uncommon artistic experience.’ –Gramophone

Minnespiel Op 101, Spanishes Liederspiel Op 74

The year 1849 was one of Schumann's most prolific. The inspiration for his opp.74 and 138 was an anthology of Spanish texts translated by Emanuel Geibel. These short love poems were ideal material for music in the tangy ‘Spanish' style tinged with the colours of central Europe. Considerably more intimate, the Minnespiel op.101 takes us from storybook Spain to German Romanticism.

Taubert Piano Concerto No 1 in E Major Op 18, Piano Concerto No 2 in A Major Op 189, Rosenhain Piano Concerto in D Minor Op 73

The Romantic Piano Concerto series continues to surprise and delight with a 51st disc of 19th-century pianistic splendour. This new release includes the two piano concertos by Wilhelm Taubert, as well as one of the two works for piano and orchestra by Jacob Rosenhain. Both composers were near exact contemporaries with Mendelssohn (born 1809), Chopin and Schumann (both 1810), Liszt (1811) and Wagner and Verdi (1813). Taubert’s A major Concerto was described by Schumann as ‘one of the best’ and compared it favourably to Mendelssohn’s Op 25. Howard Shelley directs the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra from the piano; a partnership that has been praised with a 5-star review in The Australian (Volume 48, CDA67720). Discover volumes 1-50 of the Romantic Piano Concerto range! http://www.savd.com.au/ecards/romantic/

Durufle Tu es Petrus Op 1 No 2, Byrd Mass for Five Voices, Palestrina Tu es Petrus in 6 parts

Another fascinating collection from Westminster Abbey, recreating a particular liturgical event. This disc contains music one might hear if visiting the Abbey on its patronal feast, that of St Peter the Apostle, which falls on 29 June. The programme broadly follows the structure of the three major choral services of the Anglican tradition, all of which can in turn be traced back to the worship familiar in the pre-Reformation period when the Abbey was a Benedictine monastery: Matins (or Morning Prayer); Eucharist (Mass); and Evensong (Evening Prayer). The two principal musical elements are William Byrd’s Mass for five voices, and, linking the morning and evening Offices, four movements from Charles Villiers Stanford’s Service in B flat. Also featured is Walton’s choral masterpiece The Twelve. The Abbey choir sings with its usual full-throated joy, expertly directed by James O’Donnell.

Dum esset rex, Maria Magdalena et altera Maria, Post dies octo, Regina caeli, Ave Maria, Regina caeli

The award-winning Cardinall’s Musick have finally completed their Byrd series, and now look outside the British isles to a composer who had to wait for a long time for his genius to be fully recognised, although he was well known to his contemporaries, and produced a considerable output. Guerrero was born in 1528 in Seville and studied with Morales. The main work on this disc is the gloriously sunny and joyful Missa Congratulamini mihi. Based on an Easter motet by Crecquillon (also recorded here), it is full of the voluptuous exuberance of the Paschal season. The five-part texture, with two treble parts, adds to the shining sound.

Also included are a number of Easter motets.

Das Rheingold is the first part of Wagner's epic four-opera cycle – a work of extraordinary scale. Based loosely on characters from the Norse sagas, it is a work that follows the struggles of gods, heroes, mythical creatures, and the eponymous magical Ring that grants dominion over the entire world. The music is richly textured, and grows in complexity as the cycle proceeds - Wagner wrote for an orchestra of gargantuan proportions, including a greatly enlarged brass section with new instruments invented especially for the work. The Bayreuth Festspielhaus was constructed for this work to be performed in, with a specially designed stage that allows singers voices to blend with the huge orchestra without straining - essential for such long performances. Recorded live at the Bayreuth Festival in 2008, this production stars a host of international stars including Michelle Breedt, Albert Dohmen, and Hans-Peter König. Christian Thielemann, one of the most sought-after conductors in the world, takes the baton with the Bayreuth Festival Orchestra.

Recorded live at the Bayreuth Festival in 2008, this production is the fourth part of Wagner’s epic Ring Cycle. Christian Thielemann, one of the most sought-after conductors in the world, takes the baton with the Bayreuth Festival Chorus and Orchestra. 'There is no doubt that this year's Ring at Bayreuth belongs to... Thielemann... [who] creates a musical experience epic in its scale and inexorable in its apocalyptic, shattering power.' -The Guardian

Among the activities undertaken by the Vienna Singverein to commemorate its 150th anniversary during the 2008–9 season was a series of performances of Dvorák’s Requiem with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra under the direction of Mariss Jansons. The concert recordings of the two performances given in Amsterdam in February 2009 have been integrated here to create a captivating presentation of this rarely recorded work. On this double SACD release, Jansons, who has a special affinity with Dvorák’s late works, has paired the Requiem with the Eighth Symphony.  'It's a real performance [of the Symphony] and a worthy makeweight for a magnificent reading of the Requiem, which is a real feather in Jansons's cap'
-Gramophone Editor's Choice July 2010

When the King of Navarre and his three courtiers forswear all pleasure – particularly of the female variety – in favour of a life of study, the arrival of the Princess of France and her ladies plays havoc with their intentions. Using every kind of verbal gymnastics to poke fun, Shakespeare’s most intellectual comedy is brought to hilarious life in Dominic Dromgoole’s highly entertaining production, rich in visual humour and sexual innuendo. Jonathan Fensom’s knot garden and original music by Claire van Kampen create the framework for an engaging performance by an excellent cast. Filmed at the bard's Globe Theatre in London for an unmissable authentic Shakespearean experience! Filmed live in High Definition and true surround sound.
'With a delightful design and jaunty music it has abundant charm… Entirely enchanting' -The Times

View the trailer.