The Rock

The youngest Music Director in the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra's illustrious history and winner of the Classic FM/Gramophone Young Artist of the Year award in 2007, charismatic conductor Vasily Petrenko is a native of St. Petersburg and here appropriately continues his exploration of Russian repertoire with the first in a series of orchestral works and concertos by Sergei Rachmaninov. The RLPO and Petrenko won the 2009 Gramophone for Best Orchestral Recording with their thrilling Manfred Symphony on Naxos (8570568).

Toccata in F Major BuxWV156, Praeludium in A minor BuxWV153, Ciacona in E minor BuxWV160, Te Deum Laudamus BuxWV218, Von Gott will ich Nicht lassen BuxWV220, Von Gott Will ich nicht lassen BuxWV221, Praeludium in G minor BuxWV148, Toccata in D minor

As the composer that Johann Sebastian Bach at the age of twenty walked more than 400 kilometres in order to meet, Dietrich Buxtehude holds a place of honour in the history of German music. Having spent his childhood and early years in Helsingborg and Elsinore, on either side of the strait that divides Denmark and Sweden, Buxtehude was recruited as organist by the congregation of the great Marienkirche in the wealthy city of Lübeck. Though Masaaki Suzuki is most widely known for his ongoing, highly praised series of Bach’s cantatas on BIS, he in fact began his professional career as a church organist at the age of twelve, later studying the instrument both in Tokyo and in Amsterdam. On this disc, he brings Buxtehude to life with a vibrant energy and meticulous attention to detail, passing with ease through the labyrinthine passages penned by this revered composer.

During a career lasting more than six decades, Hilding Rosenberg composed a large number of works, including eight symphonies and twelve string quartets, testimony both to an extraordinarily creative imagination and to the composer’s profound respect for tradition and craftsmanship. Intriguingingly Rosenberg was also unusually open to the modernist currents of the early 20th century and, to the fairly provincial Swedish musical establishment at the time, he soon became a symbol of everything that was incomprehensible in ‘modern music’. In retrospect, Rosenberg's compositional style is closer to that of Stravinsky and Scriabin than that of the serialists like Schoenberg  and Berg.  His Third Symphony was actually first presented as a ‘radio play’ entitled ‘The Four Ages of Man’ in the early 1930's. Written in 1951, The Sixth offers ample proof that Rosenberg still composed on the basis of a strongly individual attitude towards the expected and traditional.

Lauded as 'the finest Shostakovich interpreter of his generation' by BBC Music Magazine, Mark Wigglesworth began his cycle of Shostakovich symphonies with BBC National Orchestra of Wales, continuing since 2005 on the other side of the English channel with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra. On this recording Wigglesworth and the Netherlands Radio philharmonic orchestra perform Symphony No 11 'The Year 1905', comissioned by the Soviet Authorities in order to commemorate the events on the so-called Bloody Sunday. This massacre of peaceful demonstrators by the tsar's Imperial Guard inflamed popular feeling, thus contributing to the 1905 Revolution and laying the foundations for the Revolution of 1917. In the Symphony these historical aspects come to light through the movement titles.

Pettersson's large scale String Concerto No.3 exceeds traditional definitions and conventions of the genre. Characterized by dynamic culminations and intricate writing, Petersson deftly weaves and expands his use of a few choice motifs which balloon into panoramic soundscapes. Pettersson, who passed away in 1980, has found a present day champion in Christian Lindberg who continues to tirelessly record many releases through BIS.

In 2008, to great acclaim, Thomas Dausgaard and the Swedish Chamber Orchestra completed their 3-disc cycle of Schumann's symphonies. Gramophone described it as 'riveting', and together with Dvorak's Sixth and Ninth released in 2007 the Schumann discs belong to a series entitled 'Opening Doors', 19th-century symphonic works performed with a chamber sized band. Dausgaard now turns his attention and unique approach to Schubert's final works within the symphonic genre: the 'Unfinished' (Symphony No. 8) and 'the Great C Major' (No.9). Considered by many Schubert's finest work within the genre, Dausgaard brings much elan, bravery and skill in realizing these works.

The complete orchestral music from the BBC's popular adaptation of Elizabeth Gaskell's novel Cranford, starring Judi Dench and Michael Gambon. Performed by the BBC Studio Orchestra, Carl Davis's charming score captures the essence of life in Cranford: 'such a small one-street town through which all the populace moves in its day-to-day goings gave rise to the concept the main title theme is based upon.' -Carl Davis. 2010 marks the bicentenary of Elizabeth Gaskell's birth.

Symphony No 3 'Sinfonia Brevis de Bello Gallico' Op 70, Mediterranean Diptych Op 87, Istar Symphonic Variations, Choral Varie for Solo Saxophone and Orchestra Op 55

Composed in 1916 at the climax of the Great War, d’Indy’s last symphony is a reflection of his intense patriotism. In its dramatic and tonal conflicts it portrays the heightened emotions of exaltation and terror experienced by the French nation. D’Indy’s seven-variation programmatic work, Istar, Op.42 is a beautiful, flowing work set in the underworld and inspired by the sixth canto of an ancient Assyrian epic poem called Izdubar, probably written around 2000 B.C. The unconventionally conceived yet well integrated work Choral Varie for Saxophone Solo and Orchestra Op.55 employs an eclectic variety of styles. Like certain other French composers such as Bizet, D’Indy well understood the saxophone’s expressive potential. The solo role is taken by one of Iceland’s most prominent musicians, Sigurður Flosason, four-time winner of the Icelandic Music Awards.

Under Gianandrea Noseda, the BBC Philharmonic’s epic Rachmaninoff series continues with a recording of Symphony No.2, coupled with The Rock. Unlikely his First Symphony, Symphony No.2 is standard orchestral repertoire. ‘Noseda showed his remarkable affinity with Rachmaninoff’s style. He combines an ability to sustain the long structures of its emotional climaxes with a vocalistic approach to phrasing which lifts the tunes out of the texture and lefts them sing. It’s almost operatic in its vividness.’ -City Life.

Sequence for St Michael, By the Waters of Babylon, A Spotless Rose, Gloucester Magnificat, Gloucester Nunc Dimittis, Psalm 142, A Grace, One Thing I Have Desired, Like As The Hart, St John's Nunc Dimittis, Salve Regina, Coll Reg Te Deum

This recording heralds the beginning of an exclusive recording contract between Chandos and the Choir of St John’s College, Cambridge. All performances will be conducted by Andrew Nethsingha, the Choir’s Director of Music since 2007. The disc of choral music by Herbert Howells includes two settings of the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis: one setting was written for St John’s, where Howells was Acting Organist during World War II; the other for Gloucester Cathedral in the composer’s native county. It also features two premiere recordings, A Grace for 10 Downing Street and Psalm 142. 'Herbert Howells was closely associated with St John’s College for several decades. Two major works written for the St John’s Choir, including “Sequence for St Michael” will feature on the CD. The recording of “By the waters of Babylon”, a deeply moving psalm setting for baritone, violin, cello and organ will be another highlight of the disc.' -Andrew Nethsingha

Entry March of the Boyars, Andante Religioso, Mascarade Suite, La Melancolie, Symphony No 1

The first in a four-volume series, this disc offers a mixture of well-known works with rarely recorded repertoire. The Entry March of the Boyars is recurrently in the concert repertoire and is programmed here with the only available recordings of Andante Religioso, the Mascarade Suite and La Melancholie, along with the rarely recorded Symphony No.1. Halvorsen’s music is one of the best-kept secrets of Norway; he was not only an accomplished violinist and conductor, (he was in fact conductor of Bergen Philharmonic in 1885-1886) he was also among the most prominent Norwegian composers in the generation following Edvard Grieg. His compositions develop the national Romantic tradition of his friends Grieg and Svendsen, but his was a distinctive style marked by brilliant orchestration inspired by the French Romantic composers.

Four Etudes

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra gets a head start on the March 2009 cleberation of Boulez 85th birthday with a true rarity: a recording of Stravinsky's complete ballet Pulcinella. Showcasing a stripped down CSO and three endearing young soloists, Boulez's clean aesthetic and disciplined approach to conducting brings this Neo-Classical masterpiece to life. Also included are Stravinsky's striking Symphony in 3 Movements and jaunty Four Etudes, which demonstrate the orchestra's astonishing variety of colour.

Mozart is very much Glyndebourne's signature composer and as a point of fact Glyndebourne was instrumental in putting Mozart back into the repertoire in the UK, so much so that the performing edition of Idomeneo was commissioned by Glyndebourne's music director Fritz Busch. Glyndebourne's 1951 Messel production was the first professional performance in Great Britain. This 1964 recording is from the last staging of the Messel production and an opera John Pritchard had conducted at Glyndebourne since 1952, here featuring Luciano Pavarotti in a legendary performance.

Prelude The Kingdom Op 51, The Dream of Gerontius (Elgar's revised version without chorus) Op 38

Following success in the 2009 Classic FM Gramophone Awards (winner of Best Choral Recording for Dream of Gerontius CDHLD7520), the Hallé and Sir Mark Elder return to the music of Elgar, coupling the much-loved Violin Concerto with the Prelude to the lesser known oratorio The Kingdom and Elgar’s own arrangement of highlights from The Dream of Gerontius. This is a stunning new interpretation of Elgar’s masterpiece from one of the world’s most dynamic violinists. The performance is alive with passion and dynamism, yet imbued with the beautiful poetry for which Elder’s interpretations of Elgar have been acclaimed.

The second in Harmonia Mundi’s Winterreise triptych (following the successful Paul Lewis & Mark Padmore recording HMU907484) is again presented by a tenor, the lyric-voiced Werner Güra, but using a Rönisch fortepiano of 1872, played by Christoph Berner. Winterreise, composed in 1827, is the embodiment of Romanticism in music, the ultimate expression of ‘Sehnsucht’, that existential longing which haunts the creations of this artistic movement in all its forms. Born in Munich, Werner Güra studied at the Salzburg Mozarteum and has performed with Rene Jacobs, Philippe Herreweghe and Claudio Abbado. Among his successful lieder recordings for Harmonia Mundi is the delightful Schumann disc (HMC901842) also with Christoph Berner, which garnered a 10/10 rating on ClassicsToday.com: ‘one of those rare, ideally programmed, heart-warming and artistically gratifying vocal recitals’.

Fantasia in C minor, Sonata in Fmajor, Sonata in B Flat Major, Variations on Unser dummer Pobel meint

Fortepiano phenomenon Kristian Bezuidenhout begins his multi-volume traversal of Mozart’s music for solo keyboard. Volume 1 features an instrument by Derek Adlam modeled on an original by Gabriel Anton Walter of the type Mozart owned in Vienna. Bezuidenhout is a frequent guest artist with the world’s leading ensembles and he now has a standing duo with the baroque violinist Petra Mullejans, artistic director of the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra. Their first CD, a disc of Mozart Violin Sonatas, was released on Harmonia Mundi last year to great acclaim (HMU907494).

Manuel Blasco de Nebra was born in Seville in 1750 and died there in 1784. He came from a musical family and his father, the organist Jose Blasco de Nebra, was his first teacher. At this time Seville was in the throes of a major economic crisis, having lost its monopoly on trade with the Americas, and Manuel was therefore forced to leave his native city and try his luck elsewhere. In 1766 he travelled to Madrid, where he was soon renowned for his amazing sightreading abilities and for his remarkably expressive performances on the harpsichord, organ and piano, the last instrument then in its infancy. His uncle, Jose de Nebra, a composer of zarzuelas, was a highly respected figure at court and was able to give his nephew some help in establishing his own musical career. This disc of Manuel Blasco's keyboard sonatas is a sparkling gem in Spanish keyboard repertoire, to be enjoyed by lovers of keyboard works by Domenico Scarlatti and Mozart. Here, Javier Perianes, an Andalusian pianist, performs Nebra with a charming sense of local colour and Spanish flavour.

Two Pieces For Clarinet and String Quartet

Morton Feldman's music sits in an unique place with the 20th-century composition canon. Feldman's fascination with acutely composed dramatic gestures that seem to flit in and out with much elusiveness, discomfort of form, and tension between stasis and movement are somewhat alien to our past experience of music, and require not only a new way of listening but a new way of responding. In this music, doubt and uncertainty abound, a process which Feldman believed was key to more faithful understanding of art. Such shared feelings were no doubt Feldman’s strongest connection to the painters like Guston and Rothko for whom the process of engaging with the work was at the forefront, often consisting of elements that we understand (like colour and recognisable basic shapes) often presented in a stark and oblique manner, requiring a sense of meditation and consideration to achieve any sense of understanding. The Clarinet and String Quartet and Two Pieces For Clarinet and String Quartet (the latter composed twenty-three years earlier), have much in common and successfully reflect Feldman's approach to composition, an encompassing integrity and wonder, turning anxiety into discovery and emotion into art.

Perhaps more than any other composer of his generation, Stockhausen realised that serialism had an expressive potential which went far beyond the method of twelve-tone composition devised by Schoenberg. In these three key works works from the 1950s and early 1960s he found ways of using the serial principle to govern not just pitch, but every aspect of sound-types and their distribution in time and space, culminating in Plus-Minus, a score which specified not sounds but rather a system of organising sounds.' Within this work we are given a new understanding in perceiving sound, a 3D world where a voluminous architecture awash with all encompassing sonic possibilities compresses into highly detailed, delicate, miniature gestures that flit by and entrance.

Si tu le veux op 5 No 5, Sept chansons pour Gladys op 151, M'a dit Amour, Tu Croyais le tenir, Prise au piege, La naiade, Le cyclone, La Colombe, Fatum, le cortege d Amphitrite Op 31 No 2, Amphise et Melitta Op 31 No 6, Declin d'amour op 13 No 1

This really must be a find for those who wish to be captivated by some relatively unknown turn-of-the-century French songs' -Hi Fi News
'Claudette Leblanc is a major recording discovery. A model presentation—landmark, classic, and indispensable' -Fanfare, USA

Su le penne de' venti, Confitebor tibi Domine, Iste confessor Domini sacratus, Laudate Dominum omnes gentes, Confitebor tibi Domine, Confitebor tibi Domine 'alla francese'

The last forty years have seen an enormous and extraordinary revival in the knowledge and popularity of Monteverdi’s music. This recording is an offering of Monteverdi’s later church music. Monteverdi and his contemporaries made great efforts to impose formal order on what could be a rather rambling and undisciplined style of music. One favourite technique was the ground bass, which could express the Baroque fondness for diversity within unity, and in particular was a perfect way of setting texts in strophes or verses. Another was the use of repeated string ritornelli enclosing passages of contrasted vocal music, a device first tried out in early opera. Most of the music on this record was intended to be performed during solemn Vespers. On this release we are given a clear and prescient window into the disciplined craftmanship and creative flair that Montiverdi brings to a rather scholastic artform.  Emma Kirkby is at her bewitching best. 'There are few records of Monteverdi's solo vocal music as persuasive as this ... superb.' -Penguin Guide

The quality which most powerfully characterizes Bruckner’s music is its religious mysticism. Not only the sacred choral works, but also the symphonies which form the bulk of his output, display a religiosity which is not grafted on but deeply ingrained. He once remarked: ‘When God finally calls me and asks "What have you done with the talent I gave you, my lad", I will present to him the score of my Te Deum and I hope He will judge me mercifully.’

'Highest honours must go to the outstanding 140-voice chorus who sing with earth-shattering conviction, utmost clarity of diction and enviable precision of ensemble and intonation ... the combined strengths of this Hyperion version guarantee prime recommendation' -BBC Music Magazine Top 1000 CDs Guide

Passacaglia in C minor BWV582, Prelude (Fantasia) and Fugue in C minor BWV537, Prelude and Fugue in G major BWV541, Prelude (Toccata) and Fugue in F major BWV540

Hyperion’s Bach Piano Transcriptions series reaches volume 8, and continues to surprise and delight with a disc containing many first recordings. The controversial figure of Eugen d’Albert was one of the greatest pianists of his day and, although largely forgotten now, a composer of genuinely international renown. A sometime student at the Royal College of Music, d’Albert rejected his British upbringing and nailed his colours to the mast of German music. Bach was an important part of his performing career and like other great nineteeth-century pianists, d’Albert saw in the monumental scale of the organ works an opportunity to synthesize the works of the Master with the expanded capabilities of the modern piano. This recording with Australian pianist Piers Lane is a remarkable addition to the series.

Tu es Petrus in Six Parts, Missa Te Deum laudamus

The celebrated Choir of Westminster Cathedral goes back to its roots with this recording of some of the towering masterpieces of Renaissance polyphony, a genre which the choir has made its own through the ritual of daily liturgical performance. Recent reviews have declared the choir to be at the peak of its powers, and this disc is an important celebration of a great musical tradition. Palestrina’s Missa Te Deum laudamus, a paraphrase Mass based on the ancient chant, is recorded here with Victoria’s vibrant alternatim setting of the Te Deum. Haberl, a late nineteenth-century editor of the complete works of Palestrina, commented that the Mass is remarkable for its 'holy fire’.

Missa Tu es Petrus is a parody Mass based closely on Palestrina’s own motet for the Feast of St Peter and St Paul, published in Rome in his second book of motets in 1572, from which a great deal of the musical material of the Mass is drawn. The motet, which precedes the Mass on this disc, is one of the most gloriously sunlit and uplifting pieces in all of Palestrina’s music, and its joyous splendour sets the tone for the Mass.

Loves Pastime, A Jigge, Harke harke, Now I come, Rossamond, Touch me lightly, The Duke of Holstones Almayne, A Souldier Resolution, I am melancholy, Tickell tickell, A French Ayre, Deth, Life, The Spirit of Gambo

Susanne Heinrich’s first solo release for Hyperion was a deliciously atmsopheric award-winning disc of music by Abel (Gramophone Award 2008, CDA67628). She continues her exploration of the world of the viol with this fascinating selection of works by the English composer Tobias Hume. Hume is a paradoxical figure: sometime mercenary solider and popularly described as a dilettante, the suggestive titles of some of these pieces reinforce that picture, a picture that is belied by the music itself. Many of these works show a deep understanding of pure, translucent emotion, as if to take a magnifying glass straight to the core of one’s feelings. A sense of melancholy and sadness, enhanced by Heinrich’s sympathetic playing, entices the listener into a world of dark enchantment.

Although serious illness had forced him to relinquish the Principal Conductorship of the London Philharmonic Orchestra in 1987, Klaus Tennstedt was able to return a number of times in the following years as Conductor Laureate. In February 1989 he conducted two performances of Mahler’s mighty Resurrection Symphony at the Royal Festival Hall in London. The concerts quickly acquired legendary status; those present talked of an incredible interpretation shot through with emotion, conviction, musical depth and tangible atmosphere, captured here in this live recording featuring Australia's Yvonne Kenny at the height of her powers.

Following recordings of Bartok’s Bluebeard’s Castle and Prokofiev’s Romeo & Juliet, LSO Live returns to Valery Gergiev’s acclaimed Mahler cycle with the release of the Fourth Symphony. Using a reduced orchestra, unusually without any lower brass, Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 was influenced by the trend to revive the classical style of Haydn and Mozart, as a reaction against the monumental ‘Wagnerian’ Romanticism of its predecessors. The work is based around the final movement, written some years earlier – its childish and naïve text giving shape to the other movements.

Cantatas for the Second Sunday after Trinity BWV2, BWV10, BWV76, BWV21, Concerto for flute violin and harpsichord BWV1044, Schutz The heavens declare the glory of God, SWV386 Motet

Performing to an audience of more than 1200, we join Gardiner, The Monteverdi Choir and The English Baroque Soloists at the halfway point of their Bach Cantata pilgrimage for a concert in one of the great architectural landmarks of Catholic Europe, the Basilisque Saint-Denis (Basilica Cathedral of Saint Denis). Featuring internationally acclaimed soloists including James Gilchrist, Lisa Larsson, Daniel Taylor and Stephen Varcoe, the programme opens with BWV 2 Ach Gott, vom Himmel sieh darein (Oh God, look down from Heaven), based upon Martin Luther’s German hymn adaptation of Psalm 12. The psalm describes how easily man is led astray by heresy and Bach deals with such grim subject matter by resorting to composing in an archaic motet style. The result is austere beauty and has the engrossing quality of ritualised worship.

With two of the hottest newcomers on today's operatic scene, Aleksandrs Antonenko as Otello and Marina Poplavskaya as Desdemona (described as having 'a timbre like silk, champagne and sandpaper all rolled into one, a great lyric dramatic soprano!') the 2008 Slazburg Festival saw its first new Otello since 1970. British director Stephen Langredge thrilled audiences and critics alike with a dramatically expressive production full of cinematic qualities that Die Welt praised for its 'enlightened realism'. Further enhancing this rich production, Ricardo Muti conducts, widely recognised as one of the foremost Verdi interpreters, bringing his legendary skill and touch to this fantastic release. This production was recently broadcast on SBS.

Images, Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun, La Mer

With his legendary ability to conjure up magical sonorities, Leonard Bernstein offers his definitve reading of Debussy's impressionistic sound worlds. His series of concerts with the Academy of Santa Cecilia in Rome was recorded in 1989, the year before his death, and featured three of the French composer's masterpieces, Images, La Mer and Prelude To The Afternoon of a Faun, in a feast of Mediterranean sensuality. 'Bernstein's Debussy is neither ethereal nor gelatinous, but uncommonly vital, caught in the full light of noon'.

Piano Quartet No 1

This DVD includes the new printed EuroArts and Ideale Audience Catalogue for 2010. Recorded live at the ancient Herodes Atticus Odeon in Athens 2004, this was the first European Concert that Sir Simon Rattle gave in his new post as chief conductor of the Berliner Philharmonic. The concert also represents the first musical encounter between Rattle and world famous pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim. This all-Brahms programme features the impressive First Piano Concerto with the romantic Adagio which Brahms wrote as a portrait of Clara Schumann, and Schoenberg’s successful arrangement of the First Piano Quartet for Orchestra. Showing breathtaking views of the nearby Acropolis and spectacular scenery, this state of the art recording brings home a true European musical highlight and includes a 'behind the scenes' bonus feature.

Prelude to Parsifal

Live from the Power and Cable Factory in Berlin, Simon Rattle conducts this 2007 Europa Konzert on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the Berlin Philharmonic. As this impressive 19th-century industrial building is infused with Brahms and Wagner, it all culminates with a performance that brings a powerful quality to bear. The partnership of violinist Lisa Batiashvili and cellist Truls Mork ensures a moving performance of Brahm's last orchestral work, his Double Concerto. It is not let down by what follows: Rattle and the orchestra continue to demonstrate their outstanding musicianship here, delivering an amazingly fresh and dynamic Fourth Symphony.

There are at least 20 million aspiring concert pianists in China. To all of them, Yundi is a hero.' The Young Romantic presents a documentary portrait of Chinese pianist Yundi - formerly known as Yundi Li - and captures the poetic intensity of this young virtuoso as he works with the great Maestro Seiji Ozawa to prepare for his debut with the Berlin Philharmonic. This is interwoven with Yundi on tour in his home country, where we meet his family, gain insight into his upbringing and are exposed to the massive scale of piano culture in China.

'Translucence, transparency and warmth’ are the qualities identified by Bernard Haitink as necessary for an ideal sound performance of Beethoven’s only opera, and all are present in this fantastic recording of Katharina Thalbach’s new production for Opernhaus Zurich. Haitink conducts the Zurich Opera Orchestra in a magnificent performance in which the Leonore Overture No. 3 provides an interlude between the two scenes of the second act, following a tradition started by Gustav Mahler. German soprano Melanie Diener, in the role of Leonore, leads a brilliant cast including Alfred Muff as Rocco, Roberto Saccà as Florestan, Sandra Trattnigg as Marzelline and Christoph Strehl as Jaquino. This high definition recording with true surround sound marks the start of an exciting new collaboration between Opus Arte and Opernhaus Zurich.

Edward Watson takes the role of Crown Prince Rudolf in Kenneth MacMillan's darkly fascinating ballet which lives out the final eight years of Rudolf’s life with its relentless downward spiral of political intrigue, drugs and murder. It culminates with the suicide pact at the hunting lodge - known as Mayerling - between Rudolf and his 17-year-old mistress, Mary Vetsera (Mara Galeazzi). Filmed in high definition and recorded in true surround sound live at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, London. This ominous and powerfully compelling ballet is brought to life under the steady hand of conductor Barry Wordsworth and choreographed by the composer himself, Kenneth Macmillian.

'I, Hector Berlioz, composer, musician, citizen of France, tell you, in this my Last Will and Testament, that my subject is - and has always been -  war.' So begins an epic journey through the terrible struggles that Berlioz endured to get his great Opera The Trojans performed. He never succeeded, and the effort cost him his life.

In 1945, the new Polish Government asked for the heart of Chopin previously buried in Paris. A woman called Paulina Czernika approached the Polish Government claiming to have some love letters from the composer to her great-grandmother, the Countess Delfina Potocka. Alarmed, the Ministry began a witch-hunt against Madame Czernika – Delfina Potocka was the only woman to whom Chopin had dedicated any music – these letters were said to be pornographic, anti-Semitic and thoroughly damaging to the image of the composer as a Polish hero. Czernika is said to have taken her life on 17th October 1949, 100 years to the day after the death of Chopin - though the question of whether she was murdered hovers ominously. Tony Palmer’s dramatised film tells the story of Czernika Potocka, probing a veritable mystery in a series of parallel scenes from 1945 and 1845. New light is shed on Chopin himself, not least in the interpretation of the music brought to life miraculously by the beautiful young Russian pianist, Valentina Igoshina.