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September New Releases
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8570293

NAXOS CD OF THE MONTH | 8570293 | CD | 747313029372
WAGNER
OPERA ARRANGEMENTS
Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Jose Serebrier (conductor)

  • All the best bits! Das Rheingold: Entrance of the Gods into Valhalla, Tristan und Isolde: Prelude to Act 1, Liebesnacht & Liebestod, Parsifal: Symphonic Synthesis from Act III, Die Walkure: Magic Fire Music & Ride of the Valkyries
  • Ideal introduction for the beginner, excellent highlights disc for the Wagnerphile
  • Serebrier, who often worked with Stokowski, brings unique insights to his own interpretations of these ravishing symphonic arrangements

WAGNER FOR THE CONCERT HALL Wagner's music remained close to Leopold Stokowski's heart throughout his illustrious career. In the early days, he introduced Wagner to a wide public with extended orchestral excerpts woven together as richly conceived tone poems and given the title Symphonic Syntheses. In these performances by Jose Serebrier and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, these tone poems have a uniquely sumptuous sound.

8557993

NAXOS | 8557993 | CD | 747313299324
RAMEAU
OPERA ARIAS
Jean-Paul Fouchecourt (tenor), Opera Lafayette, Ryan Brown (director)

  • French opera from the time of Louis XV – mythical, magical, romantic and even satirical
  • Tenor Jean-Paul Fouchecourt has worked top Baroque opera conductors William Christie, Marc Minkowski, Rene Jacobs, Philippe Herreweghe, Trevor Pinnock and Christophe Rousset
  • His performances ‘left every listener in awe...sheer elegance’ (Washington Post)
  • Opera Lafayette’s performances of Gluck’s Orphee et Euridice (866018586) and Sacchini’s Oedipe a Colone (866019697) are ‘absolutely gorgeous’ and ‘outstanding’ (Washington Post)

GO FOR BAROQUE This fabulous recording of airs from Rameau’s heroic ballets and lyric tragedies features the renowned tenor Jean-Paul Fouchecourt, one of the main exponents of the French Baroque repertoire for the last decade. In these excerpts from Platée, La Guirlande de fleurs, Castor et Pollux, Naïs, Les Festes de l'Hymen et de l'Amour, Dardanus and Zoroastre, Rameau’s colourful palette of musical characterisation traverses a wide range of emotion, from the profoundly moving to the witty and imaginative.

8570187

NAXOS | 8570187 | CD | 747313018772
NEWMAN
ALL ABOUT EVE SUITE, BEAU GESTE & THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME
Moscow Symphony Orchestra & Chorus, William Stromberg (conductor)

  • Newly restored and reconstructed film scores from the golden age of Hollywood
  • Veteran film composer, conductor and film archivist William Stromberg has conducted many film music albums for Naxos, including Korngold’s The Sea Hawk (857011011)
  • Lush performances by the Moscow Symphony Orchestra

CLASSIC AMERICAN MOVIE SOUNDTRACKS Alfred Newman was one of the most powerful, influential and insightful Hollywood film composers, setting the tone for classic movies with such unforgettable soundtracks as the three presented her. Today, he ranks alongside Korngold and Max Steiner in the triumvirate of great golden-age film composers in the symphonic style. The informative 12-page booklet provides ample background to his marvellous film scores.

8570523

NAXOS | 8570523 | CD | 747313052370
PIAZZOLLA
LIBERTANGO, MARIA DE BUENOS AIRES SUITE & OTHER GREAT TANGOS
Versus Ensemble, Enrique Moratalla (vocals), Maria Rey-Joly (soprano), Horacio Ferrer (reciter)

  • Astor Piazzolla - THE most popular modern tango composer, whose music features on countless best-selling discs
  • Jazz, classical and full-blooded tango make a heady mixture in his sensuous music
  • Horacio Ferrer, who wrote the libretto for Piazzolla’s opera Maria de Buenos Aires, performs on this unique title
  • Versus Ensemble, specialists in Piazzolla’s music, has won many awards and toured around the world

THE THRILL OF TANGO By creating Nuevo Tango (‘new tango’), Argentinian bandoneon-player and composer Astor Piazzolla brought the popular dance form into the concert hall. His own experience as a performer and studies with Nadia Boulanger and Ginastera allowed him to create a new synthesis, including the operatic Maria de Buenos Aires, from which the Suite is drawn. Six further Piazzolla pieces, including the titles track, round off an album of passionate dance music.

812086566

NAXOS NOSTALGIA | 812086566 | CD2 | 0636943286524
VINTAGE COMEDY CLASSICS

Gracie Fields, Stanley Holloway, Laurel and Hardy, Noel Coward, Florence Foster Jenkins and many more!

  • Follows on the runaway success of other locally-produced Naxos titles such as The Ultimate Nostalgia Collections & Experience the Classics
  • Fills an important gap in the discography
  • Specially produced for the Australian market
  • Includes tracks that are genuine comedy classics and some real whoppers, too!

BOOM BOOM! Here's a great 2-CD album of the greatest old-time comedy songs and monologues from performers such as Gracie Fields, Stanley Holloway, Laurel and Hardy, Noel Coward and Florence Foster Jenkins. Compiled and produced in Australia.

K101437

ARTHAUS DVD OF THE MONTH | K101437 | DVD | 807280143799
R STRAUSS: AN ALPINE SYMPHONY
KENT NAGANO CONDUCTS CLASSICAL MASTERPIECES VOL VI
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Kent Nagano (conductor)

  • Ideal for students, teachers and the general music lover
  • Superb combination of documentary, rehearsal and concert performance
  • 6th Volume in an outstanding series featuring one of the world’s great orchestras and conductors
  • Other volumes also available: Mozart Symphony No 41 (K101427), Beethoven Eroica Symphony (K101429), Schumann Symphony No 3 (K101431), Brahms Symphony No 4 (K101433) & Bruckner Symphony no 8 (K101435)

FIRST-CLASS MUSICAL DOCUMENTARY Interviews with Kent Nagano are combined with footage of the orchestra in rehearsal and a technically and visually outstanding concert recording made in the Philharmonic Hall, Berlin. Animated sequences portray episodes from Strauss's life. Altogether, this DVD offers fascinating insights into the working relationship between conductor and orchestra, and the life of one of the 20th century's greatest composers.

CHSA5054

CHANDOS CD OF MONTH | CHSA5054 | SACD | 095115505427
TANSMAN
SYMPHONIES NOS 7, 8 & 9
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Oleg Caetani (conductor)

  • Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in splendid form!
  • Oleg Caetani conducts the MSO during July-August & November-December this year: ‘Caetani focuses on the making of music everything else is secondary.’ (The Age)
  • Premiere recordings (Symphonies Nos 7 & 9)
  • Spectacularly-engineered surround sound hybrid SACD

PREMIERE RECORDINGS The music of Polish-born, Paris-based Alexandre Tansman (1897-1986) was championed by Stokowski and Ormandy, before he fled to America during the Second World War, where he was a friend of Charlie Chaplin and George Gershwin. Neoclassical in style, his powerful symphonies draw together influences from Polish folkmusic, and contemporaries such as Ravel, Scriabin and Stravinsky. 'Tansman's time has come...there's no need to hesitate over Oleg Caetani's performances' (International Record Review)

2055868

EUROARTS | 2055868 | DVD | 880242558688
TANGO ARGENTINA

Leopoldo Federico (Bandoneon), Buenos Aires Philharmonic Orchestra, Tipica Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim (conductor)

  • Fascinating to watch and exciting to listen to – not just for tango aficionados!
  • Enchanting new arrangements of works by Astor Piazzola, Carlos Gardel, Julio de Caro, Alberto Ginastera and Horacio Salgan
  • Performances by the leading tango dancers Mora Godoy and Junior Cervila from Buenos Aires
  • English subtitles & no region coding

A TANGO EXTRAVAGANZA led by the great Argentinian-born Daniel Barenboim and recorded live in Buenos Aires on 31st December 2006. In a seamless fusion of classical and traditional music, the Orquesta Filarmonica de Buenos Aires presented an extraordinary show to a crowd of 10,000 in a free open-air concert at the Plaza de la Republica. Enchanting new arrangements of works by the Argentinian artists Astor Piazzola, Carlos Gardel, Julio de Caro, Alberto Ginastera and Horacio Salgan and performances by the leading tango dancers Mora Godoy and Junior Cervila from Buenos Aires added to the atmosphere of a night of Tangos sinfonicos.

HMC90196466

HARMONIA MUNDI CD OF MONTH | HMC90196466 | CD3 | 794881847969
MOZART
DON GIOVANNI
Johannes Weisser (baritone), Lorenzo Regazzo (bass), Alexandrina Pendatchanska (soprano), Olga Pasichnyk (soprano), Kenneth Tarver (tenor), Sunhae Im (soprano), Nikolay Borchev (bass), Alessandro Guerzoni (bass), RIAS Kammerchor, Freiburger Barockorcheste

  • Mozart’s darkest opera is here revealed as a true black comedy
  • ‘Could a Baroque ensemble do full justice to the work? The answer after yesterday’s performance is an unqualified yes…This was from start to finish a reading of authority, dramatic and full of life.’ (Concertonet.com)

MUCH-ANTICIPATED NEW RECORDING Premiered at the 2006 Innesbruck Festival and recorded shortly afterwards, Rene Jacobs' invigorating interpretation approaches Don Giovanni with the same freshness and musical sophistication that made his recordings of La clemenza di Tito (HMC90192324 – CD, HMC80192324 – SACD), Le nozze di Figaro ( HMC90181820) and Cosi fan tutte ( HMC90166365) so successful. A young cast brings to life Mozart's dramatic and genre-busting score with brilliant effectiveness. Includes music from both the Prague 1787 and Vienna 1788 versions. also available on SACD (HMC80196466).

HMC901983

HARMONIA MUNDI | HMC901983 | CD | 794881847723
THE ELFIN KNIGHT
BALLADS & DANCES FROM RENAISSANCE ENGLAND
Joel Frederikson (bass & lute), Ensemble Phoenix Munich

  • Folky and fresh – this disc has wide appeal to early and folk music fans alike
  • ‘Outstanding bass Joel Frederiksen brings a bedroom voice to love songs’ (The Boston Globe) ‘He warms the heart’ (South German Times)
  • He sings songs as if telling the oldest tales for the very first time, drawing the listener into a magical realm
  • Includes Greensleeves and other ballads both popular and of rare worth

STORYTELLER IN SONG Joel Frederiksen's rich bass voice transports us into another world - of chivalry, love lost and won, high drama and low life - in this remarkable recording that combines English and American ballads from the 16th and 17th centuries. Greensleeves is given a complete make-over, popular songs rub shoulders with magical folktales, such as that of the Elfin Knight - the result is very special indeed. Frederiksen is 'sonorous elegance personified' (Fanfare), 'an impeccable madrigalist and crooner' (Le Monde).

HMD990900809

HARMONIA MUNDI DVD OF MONTH | HMD990900809 | DVD2 | 794881848690
HANDEL
GIULIO CESARE IN EGITTO
Andreas Scholl, Inger Dam-Jensen, Concerto Copenhagen, Lars Ulrik Mortensen (conductor)

  • Brand new recording of the best-loved opera by the composer of Messiah tells the classic love story of Caesar and Cleopatra
  • Title role sung by Andreas Scholl, beloved by Australian audiences, whose recordings are best-sellers, whose concerts sell out worldwide
  • Sung in Italian and fully subtitled; NTSC format; no regional coding
  • An absolute must-have for opera lovers!

MAGNIFICENT MODERN BAROQUE OPERA This stunning production by the Royal Danish Theatre of one of Handel's most lavish and popular operas is set in a modern war-torn world. 'Scholl was phenomenal…he achieved a dazzling ebb and flow in his performance, almost cinematic in its subtlety…His Caesar was a smooth talker...always ready to flirt with Cleopatra...unlikely to be bettered in its musical daring and emotional depth.' (Operanews) Francisco Negrin's direction is compelling, Anthony Baker's contemporary designs are refined.

CDS442713

HYPERION CD OF THE MONTH | CDS442713 | CD3 | 034571142715
HANDEL
OPERA ARIAS
Emma Kirkby (soprano), Catherine Bott (soprano), The Brandenburg Consort, Roy Goodman (director)

  • Brings together three best-selling titles: Arias & Overtures 1704-26, The Rival Queens, Arias & Overtures 1729-41
  • Dame Emma Kirkby is peerless in this appealing repertoire, which features highlights from 23 of Handel’s operas
  • Highly acclaimed by Gramophone, Hi-Fi News, Classic CD, BBC Music Magazine, Goldberg, Fanfare & International Record Review – what a winner!
  • ”It is difficult to pick out a particular highlight, there are so many of them’ (Classic CD)
  • Excellent introduction to the splendours of Baroque opera; marvellous ‘best of’ set for aficionados

A CLASSIC OPERATIC COLLECTION Amazing 3-CD set with the very best arias and duets from Handel's immensely popular operas. Spanning his entire operatic career, from 1704 to 1741, these recordings have been praised to the heavens: 'A right royal feast!' (Classic CD) 'a delight...singing of brilliance' (Fanfare), 'brilliant coloratura...dramatic urgency...compelling interpretation' (International Record Review). Almost 4 hours of extravagant listening pleasure.

CDS443015

HYPERION | CDS443015 | CD5 | 034571143019
BEETHOVEN:SYMPHONIES 1-9
LIVE FROM THE EDINBURGH FESTIVAL 2006
Janice Watson (soprano), Catherine Wyn-Rogers (mezzo-soprano), Stuart Skelton (tenor), Detlef Roth (bass), Edinburgh Festival Chorus, Scottish Chamber Orchestra (Nos 1-8), Philharmonia Orchestra (No 9), Sir Charles Mackerras (conductor)

  • Beethoven’s symphonies are the very heart of classical orchestral music, each a unique dramatic masterpiece of enduring impact and appeal
  • Australian conductor Sir Charles Mackerras is a living legend, renowned for his gripping performances – he tours Australia in October & November
  • ‘There is no more subtle conductor…the whole was a thrilling emotional roller coaster’ (Review of the 9th Symphony, Guardian)
  • Energetic, flawless, totally committed live performances: if you only buy one set of Beethoven’s symphonies, make it this one!

BRILLIANT BEETHOVEN SYMPHONIES Live from the 2006 Edinburgh Festival, Beethoven's nine symphonies have rarely sounded so thrilling! 'A decisive interpretation...totally committed...energy and vitality,' exclaimed the Glasgow Herald. Mackerras' confidence and love of the music is palpable, and the performers respond with gripping performances 'suffused with the shock of the new'. More than 5 1/2 hours of music as shining fresh as a brilliantly restored painting.

OA0978D

OPUS ARTE DVD OF MONTH | OA0978D | DVD | 809478009788
MOZART: SYMPHONY NO 39
SCHUBERT: SYMPHONY NO 2
RAI Turin Symphony Orchestra, Sergiu Celibidache (conductor)

  • Digitally remastered, historic performances: ‘finely balanced and deeply felt interpretations’ (All Music Guide)
  • 32-page booklet, including essay on the legendary conductor and the music
  • BONUS TRACK Cherubini’s Overture to Il portatore d’acqua (‘The Water-carrier’) - a rare treat!

IMPORTANT HISTORIC TITLE Conducting from memory, Sergiu Celibidache mesmerised orchestras with his intensity and brilliance. Mozart's third last Symphony and Schubert's youthful work feature in this historic DVD release of rare footage from a 1969 TV performance. 'One of the greatest names in twentieth century orchestral conducting' (All Music Guide) 'Celibidache is the supreme genius' (Classical Notes.net)

 
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naxos
classical | soundtracks

855744041

NAXOS | 855744041 | CD2 | 747313244027
LECLAIR
COMPLETE FLUTE CHAMBER MUSIC
Fenwick Smith (flute), John Gibbons (harpsichord), Laura Blustein (cello), with Laura Jeppesen (viola da gamba), Christopher Krueger (flute)

MUSIC FROM THE AGE OF ENLIGHTENMENT Leclair is today more commonly remembered as the founder of the French school of violin writing, yet his flute compositions brilliantly exploit that instrument's technical and expressive resources. Of particular note is his magisterial Chaconne, described by John Solum (author of The Early Flute) as ‘one of the greatest movements ever conceived for flute’.
8557498

NAXOS | 8557498 | CD | 747313249824
KRAUS
THE FISHERMEN & OTHER BALLETS
Swedish Chamber Orchestra, Petter Sundkvist (conductor)

CLASSICAL BALLET Joseph Martin Kraus's extraordinary talent caused Haydn to proclaim him one of only two ‘geniuses’ he knew (Mozart being the other). This disc couples Kraus’s two earliest surviving ballets and impromptu insertions for Gluck’s opera Armide with his most important ballet, Fiskarena, a dramatic and forward-looking masterpiece.
8557844

NAXOS | 8557844 | CD | 747313284429
RIES
SWEDISH NATIONAL AIRS WITH VARIATIONS OP 52, INTRODUCTION & POLONAISE OP 174, PIANO CONCERTO IN C SHARP MINOR OP 55
Christopher Hinterhuber (piano), Gavle Symphony Orchestra, Uwe Grodd (conductor)

VIRTUOSO ROMANTIC CONCERTO One of the greatest pianists in Europe and an exceptional composer, Ferdinand Ries (1784–1838) deserves contemporary recognition. His piano concertos are intensely lyrical yet display a rugged Beethovenian power. The Piano Concerto in C sharp minor (composed in Russia in 1812) is a striking work full of spirit and boundless invention. The other pieces combine dazzling virtuosity with exceptional lyrical beauty.
8557971

NAXOS | 8557971 | CD | 747313297122
YAMADA
NAGAUTA SYMPHONY 'TSURUKAME', SINFONIA 'INNO MEIJI', CHOREOGRAPHIC SYMPHONY 'MARIA MAGDALENA'
Vocalists, shamisen players, hayashi musicians, Yumiko Mizoiri (hichiriki), Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, Takuo Yuasa (conductor)

JAPANESE SYMPHONIC MASTERPIECES After studies with Max Bruch and under the influence of Richard Strauss, Koscak Yamada was the first great composer to emerge from Japan after it began to accept western classical music. Nagauta Symphony is an epoch-making work that combines western music and Japanese traditional vocal and instrumental music. Sinfonia ‘Inno Meiji’ is a symphonic poem which juxtaposes orchestra with Asian instruments.
8557980

NAXOS | 8557980 | CD | 747313298020
PENDERECKI
TE DEUM, HYMN AN DEN HEILIGEN DANIEL, POLYMORPHIA, POLISH REQUIEM: CHACONNE
Izabela Klosinska (soprano), Agnieszka Rehlis (mezzo-soprano), Adam Zdunikowski (tenor), Piotr Nowacki (bass), Warsaw National Philharmonic Choir, Warsaw National Philharmonic Orchestra), Antoni Wit (conductor)

MUSIC FOR A POLISH POPE Penderecki enjoys an international reputation for music blending direct emotional appeal with contemporary techniques. The neo-Romantic Te Deum was inspired by the anointing of Karol Wojtyla as the first Polish Pope. Hymne an den heiligen Daniel is a more compact choral piece. This disc closes with two works for strings: the experimental Polymorphia and the expressive Chaconne, written as a tribute to the late Pope John Paul II.
8559315

NAXOS | 8559315 | CD | 6369431523
ROREM
PIANO CONCERTO NO 2 & CELLO CONCERTO
Simon Mulligan (piano), Wen-Sinn Yang (cello), Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Jose Serebrier (conductor)

GREAT AMERICAN COMPOSER Championed by Leonard Bernstein and named Musical America's Composer of the Year in 1998, Ned Rorem has written a significant body of orchestral music, including Symphonies (Naxos 8559149), Violin Concerto and Flute Concerto (Naxos 8559278). His 2nd Piano Concerto is a tour de force, with jazzy rhythms and an exhilarating conclusion. The Cello Concerto was composed in 2002.
8570118

NAXOS | 8570118 | CD | 747313011872
SCHUBERT:UNFINISHED SONATAS
PIANO SONATAS NOS 1, 8 & 15 ‘RELIQUIE'
Gottlieb Wallisch (piano)

A COMPOSER'S WORKSHOP Schubert’s unfinished piano sonatas come from 1815 to 1823 and are among his most innovative and puzzling works, compositional experiments that offer fascinating insight into his creative process. This disc presents his first sonata, three fragments from his middle period and his last sonata fragment, which looks forward to the expressive world of Beethoven and Bruckner. Wallisch’s first recording of Schubert's sonata fragments is available on Naxos 8557189.
8570190

NAXOS | 8570190 | CD | 747313019076
ROZSA
MUSIC FOR VIOLIN AND PIANO
Philippe Quint (violin), William Wolfram (piano)

OSCAR-WINNING COMPOSER One of the pre-eminent composers of Hollywood’s Golden Age (Spellbound, A Double Life, Ben Hur), Miklos Rozsa also wrote for the concert hall. The Hungarian Variations and Peasant Songs and Dances use actual folk melodies. His Sonata for Solo Violin is the most complex and challenging of his late works. Also includes the Duo for Violin and Piano Op 7. Philip Quint performed in Australia in august this year.
8570233

NAXOS | 8570233 | CD | 747313025374
BRAHMS
SYMPHONY NO 4, HUNGARIAN DANCES
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Marin Alsop (conductor)

ALSOP COMPLETES HER BRAHMS SYMPHONIES The fourth and final release in the major new Naxos cycle of Brahms Symphonies presents the 4th, which won immediate success at the time of its 1885 premiere, coupled with seven of Brahms’s Hungarian Dances imaginatively orchestrated by Peter Breiner in a special Naxos commission for this recording. Also available Symphonies Nos 1 (8557428), 2 (8557429) & 3 (8557430).
8570261

NAXOS | 8570261 | CD | 747313026173
TAKEMITSU
PIANO MUSIC
Kotaro Fukuma (piano)

IMPRESSIONISTIC MAGIC This selection of Toru Takemitsu's piano music, spanning 43 years, offers an overview of his development from Romance (1949), his earliest surviving piano work, to the hypnotic Rain Tree Sketch II (1992), his last solo piano work. Pause ininterrompue shows the influence of Debussy, Scriabin and Messiaen, while the meditative For Away was inspired by Indonesian gamelan music.
8570311

NAXOS | 8570311 | CD | 747313031177
BUXTEHUDE
ORGAN MUSIC VOL 6
Julia Brown (organ)

PATHBREAKING BAROQUE ORGAN MASTER A key figure in North German organ music, Buxtehude spent the greater part of his long career in Lubeck, where the young Handel and Bach admired his legendary performances. This sixth volume of his complete organ music includes four influential Praeludia and compositions based on chorale melodies.
8570350

NAXOS | 8570350 | CD | 747313035076
ROZSA
VIOLIN CONCERTO, SINFONIA CONCERTANTE
Anastasia Khitruk (violin), Andrey Tchekmazov (cello), Russian Philharmonic Orchestra, Dmitry Yablonsky (conductor)

FROM CONCERT HALL TO THE BIG SCREEN Combining dazzling virtuosity with Hungarian-tinged lyricism, Rozsa's Violin Concerto, written for Jascha Heifetz in just six weeks, is one of his finest works, later to be adapted for Billy Wilder's film The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes. The Sinfonia Concertante, written alongside the score for Ben Hur, is rich in reminders of the composer’s Hungarian origins.
8570351

NAXOS | 8570351 | CD | 747313035175
SULLIVAN
IRISH SYMPHONY
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, David Lloyd-Jones (conductor)

FROM SONG TO DANCE Sir Charles Mackerras, who arranged ‘the eminently danceable tunes’ of the Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas into the ballet score Pineapple Poll also wrote the notes for this delightful disc. Sullivan was of partly Irish descent and his fluent and melodic 'Irish' Symphony originated during a holiday in Northern Ireland. Mackerras visits Australia in October-November this year.
8570413

NAXOS | 8570413 | CD | 747313041374
BAX
PIANO MUSIC VOL 4
Ashley Wass, Martin Roscoe (pianos)

CELTIC ROMANCE Best known for his symphonic poems and symphonies, Bax also wrote prolifically for his own instrument, the piano. The two-piano music on this disc was written mostly in the 1920s and encompasses captivating miniatures such as The Poisoned Fountain, the impressionistic Moy Mell and Hardanger. The large-scale Sonata for Two Pianos evokes an ancient Celtic world.
8570456

NAXOS | 8570456 | CD | 747313045679
SCHUMANN
BALLADS & ROMANCES
Aquarius, Marc Michael De Smet (director), with Marc Legros (flute), Pieter Martens (horn)

THE ROMANCE OF SONG Schumann regarded 1849 as one of the most fruitful in his career, his compositions including a wealth of choral music, written principally for the choral society he had established in Dresden, both for mixed choir and for female voices. Includes Romances & Ballads I Op 67, II Op 75, III Op 145 & IV Op 146 and the Romances I Op. 69 & II Op 91.
8570500

NAXOS | 8570500 | CD | 747313050079
RITTER
BASSOON QUARTETS OP 1
Paolo Carlini (bassoon), Virtuosi Italiani String Trio

MUSIC BY MOZART'S FRIEND Georg Wenzel Ritter was among the leading bassoonists of his time. He served in the famous Mannheim orchestra before working for King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia, at a generous salary reflecting the high esteem in which he was held. These six quartets are testimony to his skills both as a composer and a player.
8570510

NAXOS | 8570510 | CD | 747313051076
GUITAR RECITAL
2006 GUITAR FOUNDATION OF AMERICA COMPETITION WINNER
Thomas Viloteau (guitar)

BRILLIANT YOUNG GUITARIST Thomas Viloteau studied at the Barcelona Conservatorio Superior de Musica and at the Ecole Normale in Paris. In this fascinating recital he presents some of the finest music for guitar, by Alexandre Tansman, Alberto Ginastera, Leo Brouwer and French-Tunisian Roland Dyens, with whom Viloteau studied.
8570553

NAXOS | 8570553 | CD | 747313055371
ALBENIZ
PIANO MUSIC VOL 2
Guillermo Gonzalez (piano)

VIVA ESPANA! Albeniz helped to create a national Spanish style of composition. This second volume of his piano music combines the early, romantic Recuerdos de viaje, with works composed during the composer’s Parisian period. In his early works Albeniz borrows tunes from native Spanish folk-lore, while his Parisian works are bolder, more experimental with new sonorities. Vol 1on Naxos 855431112.
8570184

NAXOS | 8570184 | CD | 747313018475
STEINER
ALL THIS AND HEAVEN TOO & A STOLEN LIFE
Moscow Symphony Orchestra and Choir, William Stromberg (conductor)

MUSIC FROM BETTE DAVIS CLASSICS Conductor William Stromberg has remarked 'Steiner had a way of composing through scenes effortlessly with every note perfectly placed. The way in which he smoothly utilized memorable themes throughout his scores was unmatched. Steiner was easily the best composer who could mimic the action on the screen, yet still keep it musical.'
8570185

NAXOS | 8570185 | CD | 747313018574
STEINER
THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE
Moscow Symphony Orchestra and Choir, William Stromberg (conductor)

A GOLDEN FILM SCORE B Traven’s most famous novel, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, is a study of human greed and how it affects three gold prospectors in Mexico. At the time of the picture’s release the score was universally hailed, earning Max Steiner the Vienna Cinema Exhibition Award. It glistens with menace, suspense and dramatic brilliance even today.
8570188

NAXOS | 8570188 | CD | 74731301887
SALTER
HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN
Moscow Symphony Orchestra, William Stromberg (conductor)

CLASSIC HORROR FILM SOUNDTRACK Of all the rousing scores Hans J Salter contributed for Universal’s horror films, House of Frankenstein (1944) proved not only the most colourful but also the most significant. It is a none-too-serious, rollicking addition to the Frankenstein saga. The entire score works extremely well, even when heard independently of the film.
 
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AE0751

AEON | AE0751 | CD | 3760058367513
L COUPERIN
HARPSICHORD WORKS
Jovanka Marville (harpsichord)

FRENCH FINESSE Performing on an exquisite Louis Denis harpsichord from 1658, perfectly suited to this refined and intimate music, Jovanka Marville plays with a poetic passion born of her love of 17th century keyboard music. In fact, Couperin himself may even have played on this very beautifully decorated instrument. This is a rare treasure of a recording.
AM129

AMBROISIE | AM129 | CD | 0822186001295
EL FUEGO ('FIRE')
SPANISH RENAISSANCE SONGS
Les Sacqueboutiers

FANTASY, FIRE & FUN The most beautiful ensaladas (Spanish allegorical songs, literally 'salads') are sophisticated vocal compositions of madrigal-like power with poetic fancy. Les Sacqueboutiers has earned a place among the most accomplished early music ensembles, winning many awards.
BISCD190002

BIS | BISCD190002 | CD5 | 7318591900023
THE SIBELIUS EDITION
COMPLETE TONE POEMS
Helena Juntiunen (soprano), Lahti Symphony Orchestra, Osmo Vanska (conductor), Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Neeme Jarvi (conductor)

FIVE CDs FOR THE PRICE OF THREE! Thirty years in the making, The Sibelius Edition is a stunning 13-volume set of the great Finnish composer's complete works – symphonies, tone poems, chamber works, songs, choral works and instrumental pieces – elegantly packaged to create a unique collectors edition. Vol 1 presents En saga, The Wood-Nymph, Lemminkainen Suite including The Swan of Tuonela, Finlandia, Pohjola’s Daughter, Night Ride and Sunrise, and many more orchestral tone poems.
BISCD190305

BIS | BISCD190305 | CD6 | 7318591903055
THE SIBELIUS EDITION
CHAMBER MUSIC
Tempera Quartet, Jaakko Kuusisto (violin), Satu Vanska (violin), Marko Ylonen, Taneli Turunen (cello), Folke Grasbeck, Peter Lonnqvist (piano), Harri Viitanen (harmonium)

SIX CDs FOR THE PRICE OF THREE! Vol 2 of The Sibelius Edition brings together a veritable Who's Who of Nordic chamber musicians to perform the composer's complete string quartets, piano trios and piano quartets - more than 7 hours of music, much of which remains to be discovered and enjoyed by Australian music lovers. Authoritative liner notes by Sibelius biographer Andrew Barnett, photographs from the Sibelius Museum in Finland and elsewhere, and essays on his achievements make The Sibelius Edition a pathbreaking enterprise.
BISCD1419

BIS | BISCD1419 | CD | 7318590014196
TOMASSON
FLUTE CONCERTOS NOS 1 & 2, SKIMA (CONCERTO FOR 2 DOUBLE BASSES)
Sharon Bezaly (flute), Valur Palsson, Havarour Tryggvason (double bass), Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Bernharour Wilkinson (conductor)

HAUNTING ORCHESTRAL SOUNDSCAPES One of Iceland's leading composers, Hauker Tomasson has said 'My aim is to create something that's beautiful - something that has the power to touch an audience…that lifts it off the ground…some kind of magic.' These three concertos certainly achieve that aim, and they're beautifully performed and recorded, as is always the case with BIS recordings.
BISCD1548

BIS | BISCD1548 | CD | 7318590015483
NORDIC TRUMPETCONCERTOS
BY WESSMAN, BYSTROM, JANSON & LINDBERG
Ole Edvard Antonsen (trumpet), Nordic Chamber Orchestra, Christian Lindberg (conductor)

THRILLING TRUMPET CONCERTOS Top-ranking musician Christian Lindberg is well-known to Australian music lovers. Ole Edvard Antonsen is one of the world’s leading trumpet players. These concertos are by turns expressive, lyrical, at times jazzy, radiantly melodic and dramatic - well worth discovering, even if the composers are not household names in this country!
BISSACD1530

BIS | BISSACD1530 | SACD | 7318599915302
LISZT
PIANO CONCERTOS NOS 1 & 2, TOTENTANZ
Arnaldo Cohen (piano), Sao Paulo Symphony Orchestra, John Neschling (conductor)

ROMANTIC VIRTUOSITY & LYRICISM Liszt's Piano Concertos and Totentanz are among his most popular and virtuosic works. Brazilian-born soloist Arnaldo Cohen has gained Gramophone Editor's Choice (for Liszt Piano Works BISCD1253), and on this recording performs with vigour and brilliance. Neschling's stylish interpretations, and superb recorded sound, make this hybrid SACD a real winner.
CHAN10405

CHANDOS | CHAN10405 | CD | 095115140529
JANACEK & SZYMANOWSKI
STRING QUARTETS NOS 1 & 2
Schoenberg Quartet

BENCHMARK CHAMBER MUSIC RECORDING Grammy Award nominees, the Schoenberg Quartet have said 'We love and care about these for works very much', while Gramophone remarks that their 'emotional daring…makes all the differences in the world. Outstanding.' These Eastern European chamber masterpieces share a passionate, ecstatic spirit - yearning, sensuous, and deeply personal.
CHAN10413

CHANDOS | CHAN10413 | CD | 095115141328
SMETANA
RICHARD III, WALLENSTEIN'S CAMP, HAKON JARL, PRAGUE CARNIVAL, THE PEASANT WOMAN, FESTIVE OVERTURE, MARCH FOR THE SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL, SHAKESPEARE FANFARES & THE FISHERMAN
BBC Philharmonic, Gianandrea Noseda (conductor)

SYMPHONIC POEMS Smetana's My Country has overshadowed his other beautiful orchestral music, such as the symphonic poems and other nationalistic pieces on this disc. Masterfully performed, they confirm Smetana's status as one of the greatest Czech composers of the 19th century, whether inspired by Shakespeare, his native land or contemporaries such as Liszt.
CHAN10423

CHANDOS | CHAN10423 | CD | 095115142325
RUBBRA
TWO MASSES & TWO CAROLS
St Margaret's Westminster Singers, Richard Hickox (conductor)

DEFINITIVE & UTTERLY COMPELLING CHORAL MUSIC Conductor Richard Hickox says 'The Masses, and particularly the two carols, are perhaps the most personal music in Rubbra's output. As…the last session was completed, I went down to the recording room to find Edmund in the corner with tears running down his cheeks.' This disc will surely inspire singers, conductors and listeners alike.
CHAN10444

CHANDOS | CHAN10444 | CD2 | 095115144428
VOICES
OPERA, OPERETTA, ORATORIO, LIEDER, SONGS FROM MUSICALS
Inga Nielsen (soprano)

WONDERFUL DANISH SOPRANO This 2-CD album pays tribute to the 55-year career of Inga Nielsen with a special selection of live and studio recordings spanning 1952 - 2007. She is an extraordinary singing actress worthy of comparison with Nilsson. Includes tracks with Placido Domingo, Antonio Pappano, Lamberto Gardelli and Gustav Kuhn.
CHANCAT07

CHANDOS | CHANCAT07 | CD | 095115000724
VERDI:REQUIEM
PLUS CHANDOS CATALOGUE 2007
Michele Crider (soprano), Markella Hatziano (mezzo-soprano), Gabriel Sade (tenor), Robert Lloyd (bass), London Symphony & Orchestra, Richard Hickox (conductor)

GET THE CHANDOS 2007 CATALOGUE This award-winning recording rated 3 stars in the Penguin Guide and now comes with the new Chandos Catalogue at a great low price. This was the first digital recording of Verdi's Requiem to fit onto a single CD, though it became famous for its all-round excellence rather than the economy of its packaging!
CHSA5051

CHANDOS | CHSA5051 | SACD3 | 095115505120
BANTOCK
OMAR KHAYYAM
Catherine Wyn-Rogers (mezzo-soprano), Toby Spence (tenor), Roderick Williams (bass), BBC Symphony Chorus & Orchestra, Vernon Handley (conductor)

PREMIER RECORDING OF BANTOK'S FINEST WORK Omar Khayyam, Sir Granville Bantock's choral masterpiece, is based on the famous Rubaiyat by the famous 11th-century Persian astronomer, mathematician and poet. This recording fulfils the dream of the composer's grandson and moved the performers deeply, as it will listeners, with its evocative and sumptuous scoring.
CPO7771502

CPO | CPO7771502 | CD | 761203715022
JCF FISCHER
ORCHESTRAL SUITES
L'Orfeo Baroque Orchestra, Michi Gaigg (conductor)

GLORIOUS ORCHESTRAL SUITES Though little is known of his Life, Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer was an important German composer whose orchestral suites influenced JS Bach to compose his Well-Tempered Clavier. Fischer's magnificent Orchestral Suites combine French dance music with German compositional style - perhaps they also influenced Bach's own Orchestral Suites.
CPO7771572

CPO | CPO7771572 | CD | 761203715725
WOLF-FERRARI
COMPLETE WIND CONCERTOS
Diego Dini-Ciacci (oboe & cor anglais), Paolo Carlini (bassoon), Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto, Zsolt Hamar (conductor0

UNIQUELY CHARMING CONCERTOS The serene, almost carefree mood of Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari's Idillio Concertino (Oboe Concerto) beautifully complements his Bassoon Concerto, with its air of musical fantasy. The elegiac character of his Cor Anglais Concerto accentuates the melancholy tone of the solo instrument. booklet written by well-known German writer Herbert Rosendorfer.
CPO7772122

CPO | CPO7772122 | CD | 761203721221
JS BACH
ORGAN WORKS VOL 20
Gerhard Weinberger (organ)

BY BACH OR NOT BY BACH? Nearing completion, CPO's highly acclaimed edition of Bach's complete organ music presents a fascinating selection of compositions of doubtful authenticity which nonetheless are of sufficient quality to warrant serious consideration for inclusion in Bach's oeuvre. Preludes and Fugues, Chorales and the great setting of In Dulci Jubilo BWV751 are presented here.
CPO7772492

CPO | CPO7772492 | CD | 761203724925
TELEMANN
CANTATAS
Dorothee Mields (soprano), Klaus Martens (bass baritone), Accademia Daniel, Shalev Ad-El (conductor)

FESTIVE BAROQUE SACRED MUSIC Telemann had just celebrated his 80th birthday when in 1751 he wrote the cantata 'Smash the Idols' for the consecration of a newly-built church. Such occasional works often include some of his very best music, brimming with imaginative ideas. Two early cantatas, equally lovely, complement this late masterpiece.
CPO7772732

CPO | CPO7772732 | CD2 | 761203727322
MOZART
COMPLETE PIANO TRIOS
Trio Stradivari

ACCLAIMED NEW CHAMBER ENSEMBLE The first duo ever to win the Premio Vittorio Gui in Florence, violinist Federico Guglielmo and pianist Jolanda Violante later joined cellist Pietro Bosna to form Trio Stradivari, hailed by Yehudi Menuhin as 'one of the best chamber ensemble that I have heard in a long time'. They perform Mozart's Piano Trios on period instruments.
CPO7773032

CPO | CPO7773032 | CD2 | 761203730322
LEHAR
THE LAND OF SMILES (COMPLETE)
Camilla Nylund, Julia Bauer, Piotr Beczala, Alexander Kaimbacher, Alfred Berg, Theodor Weimer, Bavarian Radio Choir, Munich Radio Orchestra, Ulf Schirmer (conductor)

GREAT ROMANTIC OPERETTA Lehar's The Land of Smiles, set in China and bursting with unforgettable melodies, is rarely performed complete with its splendid ballet music, wedding procession and three full operatic finales. This marvellous recording reveals Lehar's mastery of drama and orchestral colour. Piotr Beczala is a captivating Sou-Chong.
8226012

DA CAPO | 8226012 | CD | 636943601228
NIELSEN
SERENADES & ROMANCES
Ditte Hojgaard Andersen (soprano), Mathias Hedegaard (tenor), Danish Radio Sinfonietta, Holmens Kirkes Kantori, Adam Fischer (conductor)

SING ME A SONG OF LOVE Danish music is full of serenades and love songs. It is rarely a matter of life or death - more often simply of the girl next door - else the mere dream of love. In these interpretations by young tenor Mathias Hedegaard and The Danish Radio Sinfonietta, you can hear how the beautiful these Romantic songs and serenades are.
8226524

DA CAPO | 8226524 | CD | 636943652428
G BERG
ECLATEMENTS
Erik Kaltoft (piano)

DANISH AVANT GARDE Gunnar Berg (1919-1989) pioneered serialist music in Denmark. This CD features Gunnar Berg's work Eclatements, which is both colourful, complex and full of explosive energy. Berg never managed to complete his work, which is presented in its full length for the first time on this release.
8226541

DA CAPO | 8226541 | CD | 636943654125
WOODWORKS
MUSIC BY ABRAHAMSEN, BRANDT, BUCK, KAYSER, NYORD & NORHOLM
Wood'n'Flutes

WORLD PREMIERE RECORDINGS The Danish recorder ensemble Wood'n'Flutes’ innovative use of instrumentation pushes past the traditional limitations of the instrument. Combining classical and contemporary musical idioms, this CD offers the listener a well deserved introduction to these previously unrecorded works.
KTC1339

ETCETERA | KTC1339 | CD | 8711801101682
ROTTERDAM STRING QUARTETS
MUSIC BY DE VRIES, DE KEMP, VAN DILLEN, KRUISSELBRINK, TOP & KOOLMEES
Doelen Quartet, Wilbert Grootenboer (percussion), Asa Olsson (mezzo-soprano)

ART INFLUENCES ART Rotterdam composers have often been influenced by the other arts, giving their music an extra dimension of interest for the listener. This disc features a major work influenced by three Edvard Munch paintings - Astrid Kruisselbrink's String Quartet. The Doelman Quartet are passionate advocates of new music.
GIMSE403

GIMELL | GIMSE403 | CD | 755138140325
ENGLISH MADRIGALS
BY WEELKES, MORLEY, VAUTOR, GIBBONS, BYRD, FARNABY 7 MORE
The Tallis Scholars, Peter Phillips (director)

GIMELL 25th ANNIVERSARY TITLE Originally released on the Classic for Pleasure label, this release makes available for the first time in more than 20 years twelve classic English madrigals by the best-selling Tallis Scholars. BONUS TRACKS Seven anthems by Thomas Tomkins. It's a winner. Happy Anniversary, Gimell!
CD98208

HAENSSLER CLASSIC | CD98208 | CD | 4010276017189
BEETHOVEN
PIANO SONATAS NOS 25 - 28
Gerhard Oppitz (piano)

BEETHOVEN PIANO SONATAS VOL 8 Four of Beethoven's late piano sonatas, including the famous 'Les Adieux' (No 26) performed by the leading German pianist who visited Australia recently for the Sydney Symphony's Beethoven Festival. Oppitz's interpretations have been praised for their 'sheer inspiration and commitment' (Classics Today).
CD98261

HAENSSLER CLASSIC | CD98261 | CD | 4010276019114
SIBELIUS
PIANO TRANSCRIPTIONS
Henri Sigfridsson (piano)

SIBELIUS'S OWN TRANSCRIPTIONS OF FAVOURITE WORKS Pelleas et Melisande, King Kristian II Suite, Belshazzar's Feast (excerpts), Valse Triste, Karelia Suite and Finlandia are here played in the composer's own transcriptions for piano. Henri Sigfridsson has been praised for his 'communicative intelligence', 'true, scintillating sound' and 'highly developed level of virtuosity' (Geza Anda Competition 2003).
CD98290

HAENSSLER CLASSIC | CD98290 | CD | 4010276020004
KLANG DER STILLE (SOUND OF SILENCE)
MUSIC BY HAYDN, JS BACH, SCHUMANN, CHOPIN, PACHELBEL, BEETHOVEN, DITTERSDORF & MENDELSSOHN
Various Artists, including Isabelle Faust, Iona Brown, Helmuth Rilling, Gerhard Oppitz, Academy of St Martin in the Fields, and many more

CALM INSTRUMENTAL CLASSICS From Pachelbel's famous Canon to Puccini's string quartet 'Chrysanthemums', the Aria from the Goldberg Variations to Schumann's Romance Op 94, here is a delightful disc of gentle and uplifting music, instrumental, chamber and orchestral.
CD98291

HAENSSLER CLASSIC | CD98291 | CD | 4010276020097
IMAGES FROM THE SOUTH
MUSIC FOR 2 GUITARS BY CASTELNUOVO TEDESCA, GARCIA, MONTES, VILLA-LOBOS & OTHERS
Amadeus Guitar Duo

OUTSTANDING GUITAR DUO Canadian Dale Kavanagh and German Thomas Kirchoff have given more than 850 concerts together around the world, attracting the highest acclamations: 'Classical guitar playing at its absolute best' (Ensemble Magazine). This disc presents music from Italy and Spain, Brazil and Venezuela and Britain (Garcia's Lorca Fantasy is based on Spanish melodies).
SACD93198

HAENSSLER CLASSIC | SACD93198 | SAC2 | 4010276019862
SCHOENBERG
GURRELIEDER
Melanie Diener (soprano), Yvonne Naef (mezzo-soprano), Robert Dean Smith, Gerhard Siegel (tenor), Ralf Lukas (baritone), Andreas Schmidt (speaker), Bavarian Radio Choir, MDR Radio Orchestra Leipzig, SWR Symphony Orchestra Baden-Baden & Freiberg, Michael G

SCHOENBERG THE ROMANTIC Schoenberg's monumental song cycle, Gurrelieder, tells the tale of a medieval Danish King Waldemar, his love for the young Tove and the jealousy of Queen Helvig with some of his most lushly-scored and beautiful music, reminiscent of Wagner, Richard Strauss and Mahler. Schoenberg's pupil Berg described the work as an 'elemental force of nature'.
HMC80196466

HARMONIA MUNDI | HMC80196466 | SACD3 | 794881847969
MOZART
DON GIOVANNI
Johannes Weisser (baritone), Lorenzo Regazzo (bass), Alexandrina Pendatchanska (soprano), Olga Pasichnyk (soprano), Kenneth Tarver (tenor), Sunhae Im (soprano), Nikolay Borchev (bass), Alessandro Guerzoni (bass), RIAS Kammerchor, Freiburger Barockorcheste

MUCH-ANTICIPATED NEW RECORDING This is the hybrid SACD version of the CD featured in the Priorities section of this newsletter (HMC90196466). The sound is fresh and rich, allowing subtle nuances of expression as well as wide dynamic range. These studio recordings retain the immediacy of the Innesbruck Festival performances which preceded them.
HMC290148488

HARMONIA MUNDI | HMC290148488 | CD5 | 794881848324
BUXTEHUDE
ORGAN WORKS
Rene Saorgin (organ)

CLASSIC SET ON HISTORIC ORGANS Beautifully packaged with a 56-page colour booklet and 5 CDs designed as replica LPs, this set of recordings was originally made between 1967 and 1970, yet remains an important survey of Buxtehude's imaginative oeuvre for organ. Saorgin plays with authority and a love of the many timbres available on historic organs from the Netherlands and Switzerland.
HMC901945

HARMONIA MUNDI | HMC901945 | CD | 794881848522
BRAHMS
LIEBESLIEDER WALTZES
Marlis Petersen (soprano), Stella Doufexis (alto), Werner Gura (tenor), Konrad Jarnot (bass baritone), Christopher Berner, Camillo Radicke (piano)

CLASSIC CHARMING LOVE SONGS Brahms's 'Love-song Waltzes' run the gamut from cheerful flirtation to brokenhearted despair in the two sets of Liebeslieder Waltzes Op 52 & Op 65, presented here by an outstanding vocal quartet. They quickly proved successful in the Viennese salons of Brahms's time and have remained much loved ever since.
HMC901975

HARMONIA MUNDI | HMC901975 | CD | 794881848225
VIVALDI
DOUBLE CONCERTOS & CONCERTI GROSSI
Akademie fur Alte Musik Berlin

VENETIAN VIRTUOSITY Vivaldi gives pride of place to virtuosity in these concertos, whether for two solo instruments (RV522 & 531), in the Concerti Grossi RV156 & 574 or the Violin Concerto No 12. The Berlin Academy of Ancient Music has been awarded several international prizes (Diapason d’Or, Gramophone Award, Cannes Classical Award, Edison Award, Deutscher Schallplatten-Preis).
HML590822425

HARMONIA MUNDI | HML590822425 | CD2 | 794881819027
LES PLAISIRS DU PALAIS
DELUXE EDITION
Ensemble Clement Janequin, Dominique Visse

EAT, DRINK, SING & BE MERRY! As the title of this now classic (1994) recording suggests, The Pleasures of the Palace await the listener in this sumptuous feast of Rabelaisian verses set to vibrant music by leading French chanson composers. Ensemble Clement Janequin has visited Australia to great acclaim for Musica Viva. Booklet includes 15 Renaissance recipes!
HML590823536

HARMONIA MUNDI | HML590823536 | CD2 | 794881848928
VIVALDI
CELLO CONCERTOS
Roel Dieltiens (cello), Ensemble Explorations

FOREGROUNDING THE BAROQUE CELLO Packaged in a full-colour illustrated 84-page booklet, this releases presents 14 Cello Concertos in which the Red Priest demands as much virtuosity and lyricism from the soloist as he does in his most flamboyant violin concertos. These were pioneering works in their time, and still manage to astonish listeners even today.
HMU807408

HARMONIA MUNDI | HMU807408 | SACD | 093046740863
STOCKHAUSEN
STIMMUNG
Theatre of Voices, Paul Hillier (director)

INNER WORLD OF SPEECH & SONG In 1968, Karlheinz Stockhausen redefined the very notion of vocal music with his composition STIMMUNG, which is built entirely from the musical frequencies of a deep B-flat. This hardly does justice to the sheer mystery and magical atmosphere which this modern classic generates - at once ambient, atavistic & avant garde.
HMU907392

HARMONIA MUNDI | HMU907392 | CD | 093046739225
BRAHMS
VARIATIONS ON A HUNGARIAN SONG OP 21, VARIATIONS & FUGUE ON A THEME BY HANDEL OP 24, PAGANINI VARIATIONS OP 35
Olga Kern (piano)

BRAHMS AT PLAY Variations lie at the heart of much of Brahms's music. Whether inspired by folksong or themes by Handle or Paganini, Brahms creates virtuoso soundworlds that explore the piano's many sonorities and test the performer to the limit. '[Olga Kern's] playing is brilliant, glassy, supremely aggressive and dazzlingly virtuosic in the Horowitz manner' (The Washington Post)
HMU907440

HARMONIA MUNDI | HMU907440 | CD | 093046744021
BYRD
SECOND SERVICE & ANTHEMS
Stefan Roberts (treble), Rogers Covey-Crump (tenor), Choir of Magdalen College Oxford, Ryan Leonard (organ), Fretwork, Bill Ives (director)

MUSIC FOR VOICES & VIOLS The highlight of this gorgeously recorded disc is a new reconstruction of William Byrd's Second Service by David Skinner. The other anthems include much-admired works such as 'Prevent Us O Lord' and a verse anthem, almost lost, in praise of Queen Elizabeth I, interspersed with chamber works for organ, viols and solo tenor.
CDH55235

HELIOS | CDH55235 | CD | 034571152356
MARAIS
LA FOLIA & OTHER MUSIC FOR VIOLA DA GAMBA AND VIOLINS
William Hunt (viola da gamba), The Purcell Quartet

FRESH DANCE SUITES FOR STRINGS Marais's Suites in C and D major and in E minor precede the famous Les Folies d'Espagne ('La Folia'), one of the most popular melodies of the Baroque era. 'Marais' music is full of interest and the strong contrasting characters of the individual movements are well served by The Purcell Quartet' (Which CD)
CDH55301

HELIOS | CDH55301 | CD | 034571153018
ELGAR
PIANO QUINTET & VIOLIN SONATA
The Nash Ensemble

EXQUISITE ELGAR CHAMBER MUSIC On its first release, this disc excited the critics: 'By any standards this is a major Elgar recording. I cannot recommend it too highly' (The Elgar Society Journal) 'My top recommendation' (BBC Music Magazine) 'Consummate refinement and total dedication…heartwarmingly eloquent' (Gramophone)
CDA67547

HYPERION | CDA67547 | CD | 034571175478
HARTMANN
CONCERTO FUNEBRE, COMPLETE SONATAS & SUITES FOR SOLO VIOLIN
Alina Ibragimova (violin), Britten Sinfonia

MUSIC OF HOPE Karl Amadeus Hartmann (1905-63) remained in Germany during WWII while refusing to become a cultural ornament for the Nazi regime. His Concerto Funebre, Hartmann's response to the invasion of Czechoslovakia, carries a message of hope for troubled times. The two Sonatas and two Suites are majestic works on a grand scale.
CDA67569

HYPERION | CDA67569 | CD | 034571175690
ALKAN
CONCERTO FOR SOLO PIANO OP 39 & THIRD BOOK OF SONGS OP 65
Marc-Andre Hamelin (piano)

ROMANTIC PIANO MUSIC PAR EXCELLENCE Admired by Liszt himself, and as original as Chopin, virtuoso pianist-composer Charles-Valentin Alkan (1813-88) wrote music that requires a surpassing technique and the soul of a poet on the performer's part. Such a transcendent interpreter is Hamelin: 'the greatest living exponent of Alkan's music' (International Record Review)
CDA67614

HYPERION | CDA67614 | CD | 034571176147
GOMBERT
TRIBULATIO ET ANGUSTIA
The Brabant Ensemble, Stephen Rice (director)

FOUR & FIVE-PART MOTETS Music in praise of the Blessed Virgin Mary contrasts with penitential motets by one of the greatest composers of the Renaissance, Nicholas Gombert (c1495-1560). This is vocal music of fiery drama and intense emotionalism, wonderfully sung by an ensemble praised for its 'fluency and rhythmic clarity' (The Guardian)
CDA67616

HYPERION | CDA67616 | CD | 034571176161
SPOHR
SYMPHONIES NOS 1 & 2
Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana, Howard Shelly (conductor)

LEADING GERMAN ROMANTIC Louis Spohr's Symphonies were his most celebrated works, ranked with those of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. The performers on this new disc make an excellent case for rescuing these stylish, highly individual works from the obscurity into which they have lapsed. Includes premiere recording of Grand Concert Overture in F major.
CDA67643

HYPERION | CDA67643 | CD | 034571176437
THE FEAST OF ST MICHAEL & ALL ANGELS
MUSIC FOR MATINS, EUCHARIST & EVENSONG
Choir of Westminster Abbey, Robert Quinney (organ), James O'Donnell (conductor)

MUSIC FOR A WAR IN HEAVEN The Feast of Michaelmas, which falls on 29 September, requires uniquely dramatic music to celebrate the Archangel Michael, victorious leader of the angelic host in its battle against the rebellious Lucifer. Composers include Alcock, Britten, Dering, Harvey, Howells, Langlais Stanford, Tippett and Vaughan Williams. The Choir tours Australia for Musica Viva from 18-30 October this year.
CDS442914

HYPERION | CDS442914 | CD4 | 034571142913
BACH
THE WELL-TEMPERED CLAVIER (48 PRELUDES & FUGUES)
Angela Hewitt (piano)

GRAMOPHONE CRITIC'S CHOICE, BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE BEST OF YEAR PENGUIN GUIDE ROSETTE Angela Hewitt's 4-CD Hyperion set is held by many to be the definitive recording of 'The 48' on piano. This limited edition box set includes a 64-page booklet with uniquely insightful notes about each Prelude & Fugue by Hewitt herself. 'Benchmark recording' (BBC Music Magazine) 'A delight to both ear and mind' (Gramophone) 'Irresistible' (Sunday Times)
SRCD2258

LYRITA | SRCD2258 | CD3 | 5020926225825
LLOYD
SYMPHONIES NOS 4, 5 & 8
Philharmonia Orchestra, Edward Downes (conductor)

LEGENDARY RECORDINGS NOW ON CD There is an earthy, unmistakably English quality to Lloyd's music, which by the late 30s had made the young composer a phenomenon. The three great symphonies presented here date from after WWII and evoke moods of storm and darkness, light and distant peace, quicksilver dances and good humour.
SRCD2271

LYRITA | SRCD2271 | CD3 | 5020926227126
IRELAND
SEXTET, TRIOS & SONATAS
Emmanuel Hurwitz, Ivor MacMahon (violin), Cecil Aronwitz (viola), Terence Weil (cello), Gervase de Peyer (clarinet), Neill Sanders (horn), Andre Navarra (cello), Yfrah Neaman (violin), Julian Lloyd Webber (cello), Eric Parkin (piano)

FIRST TIME ON CD This 3-CD set presents John Ireland's Phantasie Trio, Piano Trios 2 & 3, Sextet, and Sonatas for Cello, Clarinet and Violin with leading performers. Each is a valuable gem of a work from the composer's relatively small output, and well worth discovering. They combine elements of English Impressionism with influences from French and Russian music.
SRCD253

LYRITA | SRCD253 | CD | 5020926025326
MUSGRAVE
CONCERTO FOR ORCHESTRA, CLARINET CONCERTO, HORN CONCERTO, MONOLOGUE FOR SOLO PIANO, EXCURSIONS: EIGHT PIANO DUETS
Gervase de Peyer (clarinet), Barry Tuckwell (horn), Thea Musgrave, Malcolm Williamson (piano), Scottish National Orchestra, Alexander Gibson, Thea Musgrave (conductor), London Symphony Orchestra, Norman Del Mar (conductor)

THE DRAMA OF THE CONCERTO Rich and powerful musical language and a strong sense of drama have made Scottish-American composer Thea Musgrave one of today's most respected and exciting composers. These works explore the concerto in imaginative ways. She has wryly remarked: 'Yes, I am a woman; and I am a composer. But rarely at the same time.'
SRCD289

LYRITA | SRCD289 | CD | 5020926028921
LEIGH
OVERTURE 'AGINCOURT', HARPSICHORD CONCERTINO, MUSIC FOR STRING ORCHESTRA, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM SUITE, THE FROGS & JOLLY ROGER OVERTURE
Trevor Pinnock (harpsichord), London Philharmonic Orchestra, New Philharmonia Orchestra, Nicholas Braithwaite (conductor)

ELEGANT AND CONCISE Walter Leigh, born in 1905 and killed in action near Tobruk in 1942, was a craftsman-composer who wrote with his performers very much in mind. Leigh is most famous for his Concertino for harpsichord and string orchestra. Other famous works include the overture Agincourt and The Frogs of Aristophanes. Conductor Nicholas Braithwaite lives in the hills outside Adelaide.
SRCD296

LYRITA | SRCD296 | CD | 5020926029621
BAX
SYMPHONY NO 6 & OTHER ORCHESTRAL WORKS
New Philharmonia Orchestra, Norman Del Mar (conductor), Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Vernon Handley (conductor)

ELGAR'S SUCCESSOR Considered to be his finest, Bax's 6th Symphony combines a fiery first movement, idyllic second movement and extended finale into a tightly-woven classical masterpiece. The other, shorter works on this disc display his typically colourful orchestration: Rogues Comedy Overture, Overture to Adventure & Overture: Work In Progress.
SRCD321

LYRITA | SRCD321 | CD | 5020926032126
STANFORD
PIANO CONCERTO NO 3 & CELLO CONCERTO
Malcolm Binns (piano), Alexander Baillie (cello), Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Nicholas Braithwaite (conductor)

AN ENGLISH ROMANTIC The music of Sir Charles Villiers Stanford is gaining renewed recognition, and with high-calibre performers such as those on this disc, its easy to hear why. Influenced by Schumann and Brahms, he taught Holst, Vaughan Williams and Howells, and his music is worthy to stand beside theirs. Conductor Nicholas Braithwaite lives in the hills outside Adelaide.
MELCD1000190

MELODYIA | MELCD1000190 | CD | 4600317001903
SCRIABIN
SYMPHONY NO 3 OP 43 'DIVINE POEM', SYMPHONY NO 5 'PROMETHEUS (POEM OF FIRE)' OP 60
Svyatoslav Richter (piano), TV & Radio Large Chorus, USSR Symphony Orchestra, Evgeni Svetlanov (conductor)

FAR-REACHING SYMPHONIES The shaping of the human spirit as it breaks free of its past and forges towards a universal state of freedom and unity forms the basis of these spiritual symphonies. For Scriabin, Prometheus represented 'fire, light, life, fight, effort, thought', and his richly orchestrated music expresses such philosophical strivings to stunning effect.
MELCD1000195

MELODYIA | MELCD1000195 | CD | 4600317001958
TCHAIKOVSKY
SYMPHONY NO 3, ROMEO AND JULIET FANTASY OVERTURE
USSR Symphony Orchestra, Evgeni Svetlanov (conductor)

A MIS-NAMED SYMPHONY Nicknamed the 'Polish' after the folktunes that appear in its final movement, but nowhere else in the work, Tchaikovsky's 3rd Symphony is actually Russian through and through. Drawing inspiration from Shakespeare's play, his Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture is one of his most popular orchestral works. Recorded in 1967 and 1970 respectively.
MELCD1000990

MELODYIA | MELCD1000990 | CD | 4600317009909
MENDELSSOHN: VIOLIN CONCERTO OP 64
WIENIAWSKI: VIOLIN CONCERTO NO 1 OP 14; HELLER: VIOLIN CONCERTO
Victor Pikaizen (violin), All-Union State Radio & TV Symphony Orchestra, Gennady Rozhdestvensky (conductor), Estonian State Symphony Orchestra, P Lilje (conductor)

ROMANTIC VIOLIN CONCERTOS Recorded in 1969, '70 and '85, respectively, here are three Romantic yet highly contrasted violin concertos; Mendelssohn's beloved masterpiece, Wieniawski's pyrotechnical and seldom-performed 1st Violin Concerto and the B minor Concerto of Heino Heller (also spelled Eller), the 'father of Estonian classical music'.
MELCD1001063

MELODYIA | MELCD1001063 | CD | 4600317010639
LISZT: PIANO CONCERTO NO 1 & TOTENTANZ
BARTOK: MUSIC FOR STRINGS, PERCUSSION AND CELESTA
Pavel Serebriakov (piano), Moscow Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, Kirill Kondrashin (conductor)

MUSIC OF DEVILISH DRAMA Demonic virtuosity and dreams of love seem to vie for supremacy in Liszt's 1st Piano Concerto, while the Totentanz ('Dance of Death') recalls the terrors of the Last Judgement. These extremes of Romanticism are eerily echoed in Bartok's Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta, a work full of foreboding written during the lead-up to the Second World War.
MELCD1001130

MELODYIA | MELCD1001130 | CD2 | 4600317011308
EMIL GILELS LIVE 1976

Emil Gilels (piano)

TWO GREAT LIVE RECORDINGS Beethoven Piano Sonatas No 16 Op 31 No 1 and No 12 Op 26, Schumann's Toccata, Brahms's Four Ballades and Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No 2 made for a thrilling recital given by the legendary Russian pianist in the Great Hall of Moscow Conservatory on 12 February 1976.
MELCD1001131

MELODYIA | MELCD1001131 | CD2 | 4600317011315
EMIL GILELS LIVE 1977

Emil Gilels (piano)

FROM THE GILELS ESTATE Schumann's Four Pieces Op 32, Brahms's Four Ballades, Chopin's Polonaise in C minor Op 40 No 2, Piano Sonata No 3 Op 58, Etude in A-flat major and Polonaise in A-flat major Op 53 recorded live on 27 December 1977 in the Great Hall of Moscow Conservatory.
MELCD1001132

MELODYIA | MELCD1001132 | CD2 | 4600317011322
EMIL GILELS LIVE 1980

Emil Gilels (piano)

LEGENDARY INTERPRETATIONS - GILELS IN FULL FLIGHT Beethoven's Piano Sonatas Nos 7 Op 10 No 3, 25 Op 79, 26 Op 81a and 27 Op 90, 'Eroica' Variations Op 35, Henselt's Etude in G major and Liszt's 'The Hunt' Etude No 5. Recorded live on 20 October 1980 in the Great Hall of Moscow Conservatory.
MELCD1001133

MELODYIA | MELCD1001133 | CD2 | 4600317011339
EMIL GILELS LIVE 1984

Emil Gilels (piano)

THE LAST CONCERT For his final recital in the Great Hall of Moscow Conservatory, Gilels performed Scriabin's Piano Sonata No 3 Op 23 and Five Preludes Op 74, Prokofiev's Piano Sonata no 3 Op 28 and Beethoven's 'Hammerklavier' Sonata No 29 Op 106. Tragically, Gilels died the following year as the result of a medical accident.
MELCD1001194

MELODYIA | MELCD1001194 | CD | 4600317011940
ALEXEI SULTANOV RECITAL
MUSIC BY BACH, BEETHOVEN, TCHAIKOVSKY, CHOPIN, SCRIABIN & PROKOFIEV
Alexei Sultanov (piano)

'SPINE-TINGLING' PIANIST Live recital recording from the Great Hall of Moscow Conservatory during the first and second rounds of the XI International Tchaikovsky Competition 1998. Controversial winner of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 1989, Sultanov died tragically at the age of 35. This recording is one of only a handful currently available.
MELCD1001215

MELODYIA | MELCD1001215 | CD | 460031701252
MOZART
VIOLIN CONCERTOS NOS 1 & 4
Oleg Kagan (violin), Moscow Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, David Oistrakh (conductor)

APPRENTICE BECOMES THE MASTER Mozart's violin concertos date from his mid-to-late teens (around 1773-5) and have remained popular for their lyrical Italianate charm. Star violinist David Oistrakh was so enthused by Oleg Kagan's playing that he relinquished the soloist's role for these recordings and conducted instead!
MELCD1001229

MELODYIA | MELCD1001229 | CD | 4600317012299
VIVALDI
CONCERTOS
Evgeni Nepalo (oboe), Oleg Kagan (violin), Natalia Gutman (cello), Moscow Chamber Orchestra, Rudolf Barshi, Lev Markiz (conductor), Albert Gofman (flute), Moscow State Philharmonic Ensemble, David Oistrakh (conductor0

LEADING PERFORMERS Recorded between 1968 and 1974, here are six Vivaldi Concertos - for oboe RV461, for violin and cello RV 278, 546 & 547, for cello RV 424 and for flute RV 439 'La Notte'.
MELCD1001230

MELODYIA | MELCD1001230 | CD | 4600317012152
JS BACH
ORGAN WORKS
Leonid Roizman (organ)

RUSSIAN ORGANIST Flawless taste, precision and sense of style characterise Leonid Roizman's performances of Bach's organ music. On this disc he presents the famous Toccata and Fugue in D minor, the Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor and a selection of thirteen choral preludes. Recorded between 1960-67 on the organ in the Great Hall of Moscow Conservatory.
MIR024

MIRARE | MIR024 | CD | 3760127220244
SCHUMANN
DAVISBUNDLERTANZE OP 6, INTERMEZZI OP 4
Claire Desert (piano)

ROMANTIC PIANO WORKS Schumann's 'League of David' was an imagined society into which he enrolled all right-thinking musicians. The eighteen dances in the Op 6 set reflect the composer's twin aspects, passionate and reflective. The Intermezzi Op 4 contain six fast, short character pieces. Desert has been praised for the grace and depth of her interpretations.
MIR046

MIRARE | MIR046 | CD | 3760127220466
LA ROQUE D'ANTHERON PIANO FESTIVAL
VOLUME 2
Nicolas Angelich, Boris Berezovsky, Anne Queffelec, Brigitte Engerer, Emmanuel Strosser, Claire Desert, Shani Diluka, Andrei Korobeinikov, Jean Frederic Neuburger, Philippe Giusiano, Iddo Bar-Shai (piano)

PIANO FESTIVAL 'With its hundred concerts, the Festival of la Roque d'Antheron is a unique place where everyone can live out his or her own dream of the piano. With the pieces in this selection, performed by some of the greatest pianists and discoveries of the festival, we invite you to share these precious moments of night music.' (Paul Onoratini, President)
OP30438

NAÏVE | OP30438 | CD3 | 709861304387
VIVALDI
ATENIADE
Sandrine Piau, Vivica Genaux (soprano), Guillemette Laurens, Romina Basso (mezzo-soprano), Nathalie Stutzmann (contralto), Paul Agnew, Stefano Ferrari (tenor), Modo Antiquo, Federico Maria Sardelli (conductor)

STUNNING WORLD PREMIERE RECORDING The Vivaldi Edition presents another winner, Atenaide, written for Florence in 1728. In fact, this recording was made in the famous Teatro della Pergola, where the opera was premiered almost 280 years ago. An all-star cast, with Sandrine Piau in the title role, ensures pure gold for Vivaldi fans! Other Vivaldi operas available: Griselda (OP30419), Tito Manlio (OP30413), L'Olimpiade (OP30316), Orlando Furioso (OP30393), La Verita in Cimento (OP30365) & Orlando Finto Pazzo (OP30392).
ODE11152

ONDINE | ODE11152 | CD | 0761195111529
THE ABSOLUTE SIBELIUS
VIOLIN CONCERTO & SYMPHONY NO 2
Pekka Kuusisto (violin), Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Leif Segerstam (conductor)

SIBELIUS 2007 SPECIAL ANNIVERSARY TITLE Here are the Finnish master's two most popular works on one great disc! Young violin star Pekka Kuusisto was hailed by The Guardian as 'the best thing to happen to classical music' when he won the Sibelius Competition in 1995 (available on ODE8722), and his first disc sold more than 40,000 copies internationally.
ORR243

OPERA RARA | ORR243 | CD2 | 792938024325
ENTRE NOUS - FORGOTTEN OFFENBACH

Yvonne Kenny, Laura Claycomb, Elizabeth Vidal, Colin Lee, Jennifer Larmore, Alastair Miles, Geoffrey Mitchell Choir, London Philharmonic Orchestra, David Parry (conductor)

A MAGNIFICENT LINE-UP OF SINGERS offers a treasure-trove of enchanting rarities from 'the Mozart of the Champs-Elysees', Jacques Offenbach. This new disc brings together arias, duets and ensembles - some of the finest moments from his forgotten operas, such as Vert-Vert, Genieve de Brabant, La Jolie Perfumeuse, Le Roi Carotte and La Diva. 240-page booklet.
ORFC698072

ORFEO | ORFC698072 | CD2 | 4011790698229
VERDI
OTELLO
Placido Domingo, Anna Tomowa-Sintow, Renato Bruson, Kaludi Kaludow, Wilfried Grahmlich, Kurt Rydl, Goran Simic, Peter Koves, Margarita lilowa, Vienna State Opera, Zubin Mehta (conductor)

COMPLETE RECORDING OF 1987 OPENING NIGHT Domingo is here heard at the very height of his powers in one of his most famous roles. Tomowa-Sintow gives a dramatic performance as Desdemona, her great scene in Act IV is chillingly inward-looking. Bruson is a sharply-delineated Iago. Mehta brings verve and tension to this unforgettable performance.
ORFC730071

ORFEO | ORFC730071 | CD | 4011790730127
WAGNER & VERDI
OPERA ARIAS
Julia Varady (soprano), with Marjana Lipovsek, Giuseppe Giacomini, Franz Grundheber, Vienna State Opera, Ulf Schirmer, Marcello Viotti, Christian Badea, Stefan Solfesz, Donald Runnicles (conductors)

IMMACULATE VOICE Discovered by Christoph von Dohnanyi in the early 1970s, soprano Julia Varady established a brilliant international career. On this superb disc, she sings excerpts from The Flying Dutchman, La Forza del Destino, Aida, Il Trovatore and Otello with subtlety and power. She added lustre to every production in which she starred.
PTC5186188

PENTATONE | PTC5186188 | SACD | 827949018862
BRAHMS
SERENADES NOS 1 & 2
Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzig, Kurt Masur (conductor)

MASTERFUL REMASTERING Drawn from Philips' original Quadrophonic recording of 1981, this is a stunning performance in glorious surround sound. Brahms's Serenades, more loosely structured than his subsequent symphonies and composed when he was only 25, exploit the full resources of the orchestra to charming effect. Hybrid SACD also plays on regular CD players.
PTC5186307

PENTATONE | PTC5186307 | SACD | 827949030765
BRAHMS
HAYDN VARIATIONS OP 56 & SYMPHONY NO 1
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Marek Janowski (conductor)

NEW LIVE RECORDING German repertoire is central to Janowski's illustrious career, and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra has consistently asked for his re-engagement since 1991, particularly in order to explore this repertoire. More than an hour of great music recorded live in Heinz Hall, Pittsburgh, in March 2007.
PRDDSD250224

PRAGA DIGITALS | PRDDSD250224 | CD | 794881787562
KLEIN
STRING CHAMBER MUSIC
Kocian Quartet

HOMAGE TO CZECH MUSICIAN Influenced by Janacek and the masters of the Second Viennese School, Gideon Klein wrote the works on this disc between 1938-43, some of it in Terezin concentration camp, where he was killed at the age of 26. String Trio, Four Movements for String Quartet, Duos for Violin & Viola and for Violin & Cello, Preludium for Viola Solo, Fantasy & Fugue for String Quartet and String Quartet No 2.
PRSACD2040

PROPRIUS | PRSACD2040 | CD | 822359320408
PERGOLESI & A SCARLATTI
STABAT MATER
Susanne Ryden (soprano), Mikael Bellini (countertenor), Stockhom Baroque Orchestra

GLOWING TONES FOR BAROQUE CLASSICS Swedish soprano Susanne Ryden is one of Europe's most renowned early music singers, while Mikael Bellini is Scandinavia's foremost countertenor. In partnership with the acclaimed Stockholm Baroque Orchestra they present ravishing interpretations of two famous Stabat Mater settings.
RCO07003

RCO | RCO07003 | SACD | 5425008375991
MAHLER
SYMPHONY NO 4
Christine Schaefer (soprano), Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Bernard Haitink (conductor)

JUBILEE CONCERT To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Haitink's first appearance with the Concertgebouw Orchestra, this live recording was made on 7 November 2006. The Amsterdam-born conductor was appointed the orchestra's Conductor of Honour in 1999 and was named 'Musician of the Year' by Musical America in 2007. Fabulous performance!
SDG134

SOLI DEO GLORIA | SDG134 | CD2 | 843183013425
BACH
CANTATAS VOL 6
Katherine Fuge, Robin Tyson, Christoph Genz, Peter Harvey, Gillian Keith, Nathalie Stutzmann, Jonathan Brown, Monteverdi Choir, English Baroque Soloists, John Eliot Gardiner

MONUMENTAL, CELEBRATORY, GENIAL BACH Cantatas for the 12th and 13th Sunday after Trinity, recorded in Cothen and Frankfurt, respectively, during the amazing Bach Pilgrimage: Lobe den Herrn meine Seele BWV69a, Lobe den Herrn Konig der Ehren BWV137, Geist und Seele BWV35, Du sollst Gott BWV77, Ihr die ihr euch von Christo nennet BWV164, Allein zu dir BWV33.
SU3835

SUPRAPHON | SU3835 | CD | 099925383527
MOZART
VIOLIN CONCERTO NO 4, CLARINET CONCERTO & GRAN PARTITA
Jiri Novak (violin), Vladimir Riha (clarinet), Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Vaclav Talich (conductor)

TALICH EDITION VOL 15 Recorded in Prague in 1954 (Clarinet Concerto) and 1995, these evergreen works by Mozart feature leading soloists. Talich's immense love of this composer's music shines through every bar. First time on CD.
SU3836

SUPRAPHON | SU3836 | CD | 099925383626
BENDA: SINFONIA IN B-FLAT; DVORAK: STRING SERENADE
SUK: STRING SERENADE; TCHAIKOVSKY: ANDANTE CANTABILE & SONG WITHOUT WORDS OP 2 NO 3
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Prague Soloists Orchestra, Slovak Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra, Vaclav Talich (conductor)

TALICH EDITION VOL 16 Recorded in 1954 (Benda), 1950 (Tchaikovsky) and 1951 (Dvorak & Suk), these works showcase Talich as a chamber-music conductor of sensitive inspiration. Famous works by Dvorak and Suk are complemented with Benda's lovely Sinfonia and Tchaikovsky miniatures, which here appear for the first time on CD.
SU3837

SUPRAPHON | SU3837 | CD2 | 099925383725
JANACEK, DVORAK, SMETANA, SUK & OTHERS
SYMPHONIC POEMS & OTHER ORCHESTRAL WORKS
Mstislav Rostropovich (cello), Ludmilla Dvorakova (soprano), Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra, Vaclav Talich (conductor)

TALICH EDITION VOL 17 The final volume in Supraphon's Talich Edition presents a survey of the great Czech conductor's recordings from 1929 to 1956. Smetana's Vysehrad, Vtava, Sarka, Our Lasses, The Two Widows & Libuse overtures, Prague Carnival; Dvorak's The Noon Witch; Suk's Fairy Tale; Janacek Cunning Little Vixen Suite.
SU3927

SUPRAPHON | SU3927 | CD | 099925392727
DVORAK: PIANO TRIO IN B-FLAT OP 21; FIBICH: PIANO TRIO IN F
MARTINU: PIANO TRIO NO 2
Smetana Trio

AWARD-WINNING CZECH ENSEMBLE The Smetana Trio's third release on Supraphon contrasts the Romanticism of Fibich and Dvorak with Martinu's Neo-classicism. The Smetana Trio's previous album (Dvorak Piao Trios Nos 3 & 4 SU3872) won a 2007 BBC Music Magazine Award and the Diapason d'Or. Also available, Smetana/Suk/Novak Piano Trios (SU3810).
ZZT070601

ZIG ZAG | ZZT070601 | CD | 3760009291454
BARTOK
STRING QUARTETS NOS 2 & 5
Parker Quartet

DEBUT RECORDING OF DYNAMIC YOUNG ENSEMBLE Praised as 'something extraordinary' (The New York Time) and 'a quartet that deserves close attention' (The Washington Post), the Parker Quartet from America gives 'fiercely committed performances' (The Boston Globe). It will release Ligeti's complete quartets for Naxos later this year.
ZZT070902

ZIG ZAG | ZZT070902 | CD | 3760009291553
VIVALDI
VIOLIN CONCERTOS
Ensemble 415, Chiara Banchini (violin & conductor)

VIVALDI THE VIRTUOSO VIOLINIST With Vivaldi, the soloist is established as a highly-expressive individual who sets out to captivate the listener with sheer brilliance - who better than Chiara Banchini and her much-loved ensemble of young players to meet the Red Priest's expressive and technical demands? Violin Concertos RV 549-51, 553, 567 & 580.
 
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arthaus | bel air | euroarts | haenssler classic | opus arte

K101255

ARTHAUS | K101255 | DVD | 807280125597
HARTMANN
SIMPLICIUS SIMPLICISSIMUS
Claudia Mahnke, Frank van Aken, Heinz Gohrig, Michael Ebbecke, Mark Munkittrick, Helmut Berger-Tuna, Márcia Haydee, Staatsopernchor Stuttgart, Staatsorchester Stuttgart, Kwame Ryan

CHAMBER OPERA This new production of Karl Amadeus Hartmanns opera is performed in its first chamber-music version. A symphonic version, which Hartmann composed in the 50s, superseded the chamber-music version. Because of its scantiness and abruptness and also its huge intimate score, Christof Nel decided to bring this chamber-music version on stage.
K101435

ARTHAUS | K101435 | DVD | 897280143591
BRUCKNER: SYMPHONY NO 8
KENT NAGANO CONDUCTS CLASSICAL MASTERPIECES VOL V
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Kent Nagano (conductor)

BRUCKNER'S MASTERPIECE EXPLORED Regarded as the crown jewel of 19th-century music, Bruckner's immense 8th Symphony is close to Nagano's heart: 'This music opened the door to another world.' Recorded live in the Great Hall of the Berlin Philharmonie in 2006, this DVD includes a 52-minute documentary with Kent Nagano. See Priorities section for further titles in this great series.
K101439

ARTHAUS | K101439 | DVD2 | 807280143997
RACHMANINOIV
THE BELLS, SYMPHONY NO 2 & SYMPHONIC DANCES
WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, Semyon Bychkov (conductor)

2 DVDs FOR THE PRICE OF 1 The Bells, Rachmaninov's personal favourite of all his compositions, was written when a girl he had never met sent him a Russian translation of Edgar Allan Poe's poem of the same name. The much-revised 2nd Symphony and the Symphonic Dances are staples of Russian Romantic repertoire.
K101447

ARTHAUS | K101447 | DVD | 807280144796
BACH
GOLDBERG VARIATIONS
Andrea Bacchetti (piano)

VISUAL VARIATIONS From Genoa comes the young pianist Andrea Bacchetti, a multiple prize-winner and highly-acclaimed recitalist. With this DVD he shows that 'the Goldbergs are also beautiful to watch and not only to listen to. Seeing the nimble hands fly across the keyboard with so much ease is a show, like listening to the fall of sounds that those hands created' (MozartBox review of concert performance)
K102109

ARTHAUS | K102109 | DVD | 807280210996
DVORAK
STABAT MATER
Yvonne Kenny (soprano), Eva Randova (alto), Wieslav Ochmann (tenor), Jan Galla (bass), Czech Philharmonic Choir & Orchestra, Vaclav Neumann (conductor)

TESTAMENT TO FAITH Dvorak's powerful and moving setting of the 13th-century hymn to the Virgin Mary expresses the composer's grief at the loss, during its composition, of three of his beloved children. Indeed, the work often moves its performers to tears as Dvorak's music moves from grief to acceptance and ultimately to unshakeable faith.
K102127

ARTHAUS | K102127 | DVD | 807280212792
TCHAIKOVSKY: SYMPHONY NO 4, VIOLIN CONCERTO, 1812 OVERTURE

Viktor Tretjakov (violin), Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra, Vladimir Fedoseyev (conductor)

TCHAIKOVSKY CYCLE VOL 4 This highly-praised series continues with three of Tchaikovsky's most popular orchestral works, recorded live in the Alte Oper Frankfurt in 1991. Also available: Vol 1 (K102121Symphony No 1, Francesca da Rimini, Variations on a Rococo Theme), Vol 2 (K102123 Symphony No 2, Eugene Onegin excerpts), Vol 3 (K102125 Symphony No 3, Swan Lake excerpts, Fantasy for Piano & Orchestra).
BAC026

BEL AIR | BAC026 | DVD | 3760115300262
BOESMANS
JULIE
Malena Ernman, Gary Magee, Kerstin Avemo, Chamber Orchestra of La Monnaie, Kazushi Ono (conductor)

TIGHTLY WOVEN DRAMA Belgian composer Philippe Boesman's 1 act opera is based on Strindberg's classic drama Miss Julie, a tale of destructive passion between mistress and servant. In this chamber opera, Boesmans makes an eighteen-piece ensemble sound positively symphonic. It has been praised for 'the richness of its allusions and its intensity of emotional insight.' (Opera magazine)
BAC028

BEL AIR | BAC028 | DVD | 3760115300286
MOZART
THE ABDUCTION FROM THE SERAGLIO
Shahrokh Moshkin-Ghalam, Malin Hartelius, Magali Leger, Matthias Klink, Loic Felix, Wojtek Smilek, Europa Academy Choir, Les Musiciens du Louvre, Marc Minkowski (conductor)

With a brightly-coloured, 3D cartoon-like setting, this production of Mozart's madcap oriental opera from the Aix-en-Provence 2004 Festival cultivated a witty, at times hilarious, atmosphere. 'Special praise for Malin Hartelius [Konstanze] for her cleanly executed coloraturas and brightly coloured timbre. Matthias Klink as Belmonte and Magali Leger completed the young cast, all playing and singing with heartfelt enthusiasm, often sending waves of laughter through the public.' (Opera Japonica)
2000078

EUROARTS | 2000078 | DVD5 | 880242000781
LUCERNE FESTIVAL: THE FIRST 5 YEARS
MUSIC BY BEETHOVEN, BRUCKNER, DEBUSSY & MAHLER
Alfred Brendel, Morizio Pollini (piano), Rachel Harnisch, Eteri Gvazava (soprano), Lucerne Festival Orchestra, Claudio Abbado (conductor)

LUXURIOUS DVD SET Founded in 2003 by Abbado, the Lucerne Festival Orchestra has become established as a major ensemble. This 5-DVD set presents Beethoven's 4th Piano Concerto (Pollini, first time on DVD), Bruckner's 7th Symphony, Debussy's La Mer & Martyrdom of St Sebastien, Mahler's Symphonies Nos 5 & 6 recorded live at the Festival. BONUS DOCUMENTARY History of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra with rare footage of Ansermet, Furtwangler, Fricsay, Karajan, Menuhin, de Sabata, Toscanini and others. Extensive illustrated booklet.
2051178

EUROARTS | 2051178 | DVD | 880242511782
BEETHOVEN
SYMPHONIES NOS 4 & 7
Berlin Philharmonic, Claudio Abbado (conductor)

BEETHOVEN & ABBADO Recorded live at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Rome, in February 2001. This series, the fruit of Abbado's close relationship with his orchestra, has been very well received: 'The most wonderful symphonic cycle of the past decade!' (La Repubblica). Also available Symphonies Nos 1, 6 & 8 (2051168), Nos 2 & 5 (2051158), Nos 3 & 9 (2051138).
2056018

EUROARTS | 2056018 | DVD | 880242560186
MOZART: SYMPHONY NO 41 'JUPITER'
DISCOVERING MASTERPIECES VOL 2
CPE Bach Chamber Orchestra, Hartmut Haenchen (conductor)

AUDIO-VISUAL CONCERT GUIDE Includes a 27-minute Introductory feature PLUS Full Concert Performance, recorded live at the Konzerthaus, Berlin on 13 November 2005. The distinguished conductor Hartmut Haenchen explains how Mozart pulled out all the stops as a composer, revealing not just boldness but sheer genius, in his final symphony.
2056038

EUROARTS | 2056038 | DVD | 880242560384
MENDELSSOHN: VIOLIN CONCERTO
DISCOVERING MASTERPIECES VOL 3
Frank Michael Erben (violin), Gewandhaus Orchestra, Kurt Masur (conductor)

PERFORMED BY MENDELSSOHN'S OWN ORCHESTRA This audio-visual concert guide to Mendelssohn’s Concerto for Violin and Orchestra features Frank Michael Erben, first violinist of the famous Gewandhaus Quartet, with the Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzig in a recording made in May 1997. The film traces the composer's life and gives background to the work.
2056228

EUROARTS | 2056228 | DVD | 880242562289
VERDI
NABUCCO
Igor Morosow, Bruno Ribeiro, Simon Yang, Gabriella Morigi, Elisabeth Kulman, Arad State Philharmonic Chorus, Europasymphony Orchestra, Ernst Marzendorfer (conductor)

PYROTECHNICAL PRODUCTION This vast production at St Margarethen in Austria took place amidst the intoxicating scenery of a rustically romantic Roman quarry, which provided a unique backdrop for this live recording. The St Margarethen Opera Festival is one of Europe’s most important open-air festivals and nearly 220,000 opera lovers from all over the world visit it annually.
2056358

EUROARTS | 2056358 | DVD | 880242563583
HENZE
BOULEVARD SOLITUDE
Laura Aikin, Par Lindskog, Tom Fox, Marc Canturri, Hubert Delamboye, Pauls Putnins, Cor de Cambra del Palau de la Musica Catalana, Cor Vivaldi: Petits Cantors de Catalunya, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Zoltan Pesko (conductor)

A MANON FOR MODERN TIMES Hans Werner Henze (born 1926) is one of the world's greatest living composers, particularly well known for his stage works. Boulevard Solitude, the musical theatre version of Puccini’s opera Manon Lescaut with a libretto by the German author Grete Weil, was Henze's first stage success in 1952 when he was just 26 years old.
2056558

EUROARTS | 2056558 | DVD5 | 880242565587
SCHUBERT
PIANO WORKS
Alfred Brendel

PREMIERE RELEASE FOR HOME VIEWING Renowned performer Alfred Brendel introduces and plays piano music by Franz Schubert. Wanderer Fantasy, Piano Sonatas in A minor D784, C major D840, A minor D845, D major D850, G major D894, C minor D958, A major D959 & B flat major D960; Impromptus D899 & D935; Moments Musicaux D780; Three Piano Pieces D946.
DVD93901

HAENSSLER CLASSIC | DVD93901 | DVD | 4010276439011
THE ROMANTICS
WAGNER, TCHAIKOVSKY & BERLIOZ
SWR Radio Symphony Orchestra, Roger Norrington (conductor)

INTERVIEWS, REHEARSALS, DOCUMENTARIES, CONCERTS 'Ways to Wagner' Norrington discuss and performs the Preludes to Tristan und Isolde and Die Meistersinger, 'In the Face of Death' - Tchaikovsky 6th Symphony a portrait of the work with complete performance, 'Berlioz Le Corsaire Overture' in rehearsal and concert. 195 min.
OA0974D

OPUS ARTE | OA0974D | DVD2 | 809478009740
VERDI
IL TROVATORE
Carl Tanner, Iano Tamar, Zeljiko Lucic, Marianne Cornetti, Giovanni Battista Parodi, Deanne Meek, Jose Luis Ordonez, Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Moscow Chamber Choir, Bregenz Festival Chorus, Thomas Rosner (conductor)

FIRE-BELCHING HIGH DEFINITION DVD Set on a gargantuan oil refinery which creates a dreadful labyrinth of steel floating on Lake Constance, this spectacular production was recorded live in August 2006. BONUS Documentary including interviews with the stage director (Robert Carson) and set designer (Paul Steinberg), illustrated synopsis & cast gallery.
 
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non-classical cd & sacd
jazz | world

jazz
explore music | haenssler classic | hat hut | le chant du monde | o+music | radio france | zig zag
EXP0018

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0018 | CD | 878914000184
LIVE IN ITALY

Jay Rodriguez (saxophone & flute), Chucho Valdes (piano), Ratzo B Harris (bass), Victor Jones (drums)

SERIOUS JAZZ FUN Rising star saxist Jay Rodriguez is joined by three-time Grammy Award winning pianist Chucho Valdes for this eclectic and thoroughly satisfying quartet recording from 2001. Rodriguez brings a playful notion of experimentation to the proceedings with the Cuban jazz master as the group blazes through a set of jazz classics and choice originals.
EXP0019

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0019 | CD | 878914000191
BOP BOY

Bob Mintzer (tenor saxophone & bass clarinet), Steve Kuhn (piano), Eddie Gomez (bass), Steve Gadd (drums)

BLAZING NEW PATHS Bop Boy documents saxophonist Bob Mintzer’s return to 'straight-ahead' jazz. Well known for his work with the Yellowjackets, this recording finds Mintzer blazing new paths through the standards and inspired new compositions – with beautiful results. It features stunning ensemble playing by an all-star cast. A must-have for fans of Bob Mintzer!
EXP0020

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0020 | CD | 878914000207
PAPA LIPS

Bob Mintzer & The Horn Man Band

JAZZ HEAVYWEIGHT Before his world-renowned work fronting the Yellowjackets, Bob Mintzer led one of the heaviest big bands in jazz. The New York saxophonist and arranger enlisted some of the world’s top players for his first Horn Man Big Band album, Papa Lips. Featuring big sounds and fierce blowing from Mintzer and fellow horn men, the album also features swinging, funk-influenced rhythm work and tasty piano chops.
EXP0021

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0021 | CD | 878914000214
RENDEZVOUS

Jorge Dalto & Superfriends

HOT RENDEZVOUS Best known for his work as George Benson’s pianist/musical director (their version of This Masquerade won a Grammy Award in 1976), Dalto had an unmistakable style that blended pop, Latin and jazz. This highly collectable disc, which has been out of print for many years, features the Superfriends, including George Benson, Steve Gadd, Bob Mintzer and David Sanborn.
EXP0022

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0022 | CD | 878914000221
NEW YORK NIGHTLINE

Jorge Dalto & Superfriends

JAW-DROPPING JAZZ ALBUM Recorded in 1984, this the second and final recording by Jorge Dalto and Superfriends. Jorge Dalto had an unmistakable style that blended pop, Latin and jazz. This extremely rare session features the brilliant title cut, some tasty Dalto originals, and a great take on the Pozo/Gillespie classic Manteca.
EXP0023

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0023 | CD | 878914000238
THE ISLAND

Roy Haynes (drums), George Adams (tenor sax), Craig Handy (soprano & tenor sax), Graham Haynes (cornet), Marcus Miller, Cecil McBee (bass), David Kikoski, Harry Whitaker (keyboard & piano), Barry Finnerty, Spaceman Patterson (guitar), Jerry Gonzales, Stev

PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED ALBUM by Roy Haynes, one of jazz music’s best-loved and most-recorded drummers. Recorded in 1990, The Island features Roy combining traditional and contemporary elements on concert favourites Brown Skin Girl, Anniversary Waltz and Equipoise, among other great tunes. The Island also features some of Roy’s first recordings with his son Graham.
EXP0024

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0024 | CD | 878914000245
COME AND SEE

Joe Lee Wilson (vocals), Jimmy Ponder (guitar)

SOUL-SHAKING VOCAL JAZZ Joe Lee Wilson was 'one of the 70s’ most striking vocalists' (All Music Guide). Music collectors will rejoice as the lack of his titles available on CD is corrected with the release of Come and See. The unparalleled power and depth of Joe Lee’s baritone was never more evident than on these duets with soul-jazz guitarist Jimmy Ponder.
EXP0025

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0025 | CD | 878914000252
THE SHADOW

Joe Lee Wilson (vocals), Bruno Carr (drums), Jimmy Ponder (guitar), Leroy Vinnegar (bass), Harry Whitaker (piano), Chuggy Carter (percussion)

SOUGHT-AFTER REISSUE One of the most original vocalists in jazz, Joe Lee Wilson has been criminally hard to find on CD. This bluesy set features Wilson’s baritone in all of its raw glory on an exquisite selection of standards and originals. Backed by a killer combo, Joe Lee Wilson simply shines on this rare side from the Cheetah Records catalogue.
EXP0026

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0026 | CD | 878914000269
LIVE AT THE OTHER END

Jimmy Ponder (guitar)

SOUL-JAZZ GUITAR MASTER Jimmy Ponder grooves and glides on this beautiful, previously unreleased live recording from the legendary Greenwich Village nightclub. Ponder’s astounding technique and laid-back, funky sound come to the fore on this rare solo recording. With his super-tasty licks and unique arrangements of well-known tunes, this is sure to delight the most discriminating guitar aficionado.
EXP0027

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0027 | CD | 878914000276
LIVE IN NEW YORK

Bruno Carr (drums), Jimmy Ponder (guitar), Lonnie Smith (organ), Harold Ousley (saxophone)

THE HARLEM ART ENSEMBLE A hot, swinging soul-jazz date featuring some of the unsung heroes of the genre! Lead by veteran drummer Bruno Carr, the Harlem Art Ensemble features top soul-jazz players who groove and shine on this previously unreleased recording, that features great versions of Miles Davis’ Four, and Stevie Wonder’s All in Love is Fair.
EXP0028

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0028 | CD2 | 878914000283
THE TRANSFORMER

Thelonious Monk (piano)

CREATIVE SPARK Originally available only on the internet, The Transformer offers a rare look into the creative process of a musical genius. Through a series of practice tapes and live recordings, the listener hears piano great Monk reinventing the standard I’m Getting Sentimental Over You. A must-hear for jazz students, and a must-have for Monk fans, this truly is a jazz recording like no other.
EXP0030

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0030 | CD | 878914000306
LIVE IN NEW YORK VOL 1

Thelonious Monk (piano), Charlie Rouse (tenor saxophone), Ahmed Abdul-Malik (bass), Roy Haynes (drums)

STEP BACK IN TIME Here's a rare live document of one of most infamous gigs in the history of jazz. When the Five Spot Cafe reopened in New York City’s Cooper Square, with a seven month long residency of Thelonious Monk, it was his first time performing in New York since losing his cabaret card in 1951. Contains amazing performances that transport the listener to the jazz heyday of the late 1950s!
EXP0031

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0031 | CD | 878914000313
LIVE IN PARIS VOL 1

Thelonious Monk (piano), Charlie Rouse (tenor saxophone), Butch Warren (bass), Ben Riley (drums)

CITY OF JAZZ PART 1This is a rare, exquisite live document of one of most influential musicians in the history of jazz. Recorded in 1964, Monk is at the height of his powers, performing here with some of his favourite collaborators. Well recorded, and digitally remastered by the great Rudy Van Gelder, this is a fine set of favourites - a welcome addition to any Monk collection.
EXP0032

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0032 | CD | 878914000320
LIVE IN PARIS VOL 2

Thelonious Monk (piano), Charlie Rouse (tenor saxophone), Butch Warren (bass), Ben Riley (drums)

CITY OF JAZZ PART 2 Originally available only on the internet (through Thelonious Records, a label owned by the Monk Estate), this album was recorded in 1964, and completes the adventure begun with Volume 1 (EXP0031). Features Blue Monk, Sweet and Lovely, Hackensack, Rhythm-a-ning, Bright Mississippi & Epistrophy.
EXP0033

EXPLORE MUSIC | EXP0033 | CD | 878914000337
SOURCE

Bob Mintzer & band

SWEET EASY SWING A highly collectible side by Yellowjackets frontman and Grammy winning bandleader Bob Mintzer. An eclectic mix of traditional jazz and commercial jazz (vintage 1982), this is one grooving period piece! Source, Mintzer’s second album (released only in Japan), features an illustrious group of players, including bass god Jaco Pastorius, trumpeters Randy Brecker and Lew Soloff, Peter Erskin on drums and the late Don Grolnick on keys.
CD93189

HAENSSLER CLASSIC | CD93189 | CD | 4010276019541
VOYAGE

Don Menza and the SWR Big Band

BIG BAND FROM GERMANY Rebel Rousers, Another Who?, Emily, Voyage, If I Only Had A Brain, Royal, Shuffle Brothers, Where Are You? And Sambiana are the nine great tracks on this big band disc. The SWR Big Band has been making musical history in Europe for the last four decades - hear why with this swinging new release.
HATOLOGY635

HAT HUT | HATOLOGY635 | CD | 752156063520
ON DUKE'S BIRTHDAY

Mike Westbrook Orchestra

SLOW BUILD What’s most remarkable about this music’s integrity and intricacy is that it all flows so seamlessly, sounds so spontaneous and organic, without artifice or contrivance. Mike Westbrook seems to share similarities with Gil Evans in this regard – long, slowly evolving pieces eased along by shifting instrumental colours or intense, integrated solo statements.
CM2741511

LE CHANT DY MONDE | CM2741511 | CD | 794881863525
MA LANGUE AU CHAT

Marine Bercot (vocal, piano), Charly Mercier (electric guitar, bass), Pierre Durand (acoustic & electric guitar), Denis Benarrosh (percussion), Jean Michel Charbonnel (bass)

CONTEMPORARY FRENCH CHANSON Somewhere along the line between Tom Waits and Rickie Lee Jones, with touches of Monk, Dr John, Coltrane, Van Morisson and Randy Newman, stands chanteuse Marine Bercot. Rock meets folk in her musical world. Here are thirteen new songs showcasing her talents as a performer who draws the listener into her personal world of French chanson.
OP135

O+MUSIC | OP135 | CD | 3760106071355
CHAPEAU

Herman van Veen (vocal, violin, guitar, percussion), Edith Leerkes (vocal, guitar) & OTHER MUSICIANS

MANY HATS 'A man finds a hat and asks himself who has that hat belonged to? Was its owner dangerous, pitiful, crazy, a criminal, horrifying, hypocritical, charming, handsome, a coward? I am not every character that I can image when I wear the hat, but most of them,' says van Veen. 18 songs PLUS BONUS DVD
SIG11040

RADIO FRANCE | SIG11040 | CD | 794881857128
HUMS 2 TERRE

Vigroux Franck (guitar, keyboard, turntables, minidiscs), Elliott Sharp (guitar, reeds, piano, electronics, computer processing)

ELECTRONIC MUSIC 'In the studio and on the stage, we easily shift foreground and background, texture and groove. Solos are rarely technical displays of prowess but emerge from the musical flux and return to it, feeding it…The spectrum ranges from the delicate to the harsh, from open to high-density.' Elliott Sharp
ZZT070801

ZIG ZAG | ZZT070801 | CD | 3760009291522
FOCUS DANCE

Kerecki Stephane Trio

NEW JAZZ FROM FRANCE They know how to groove, to build those little bodily mechanisms with are the essence of groove. Matthieu Donarier (saxophone & vocal), Thomas Grimmonprez (drums) and Stephane Kerecki (composer & bass) are genuine free thinkers, supple musicians and high-class jazzmen.

world
le chant du monde | network | world village

CM2741518

LE CHANT DY MONDE | CM2741518 | CD | 794881857425
5

Tomas Gubitsch (guitars), Osvaldo Calo (piano), Eric Chalan (double bass), Sebastien Couranjou (violin), Juanjo Mosalini (bandoneon)

FROM ARGENTINA Tomas Gubitsch is the global village personified, a polyglot international fusion on two legs. His career since achieving fame as a youthful rock star in Buenos Aires reads like an adventure serial, full of unexpected journeys, encounters of various kinds, close calls and radical changes. He was influenced by Piazzolla's work before actually playing with him.
WN495119

NETWORK MEDIEN GMBH | WN495119 | CD | 785965951191
A FLOWER IN BLOOM

Sevda Alekperzadeh

JEWEL OF THE CASPIAN SEA Sevda has a sensual voice, brilliant in the high registers, warm, even smoky in the lower. A star in Azerbaijan, she delivers modern renditions of serene Mugam pieces and jazzed-up ballads with Afro-cuban rhythms, as well as Caucasian salsa sounds. This is her first internationally released title.
WV498017

WORLD VILAGE | WV498017 | CD | 8427592001048
AZULEJO

Juan Carlos Romero (guitar), Enrique Morente, Carmen Linares, Diego Carrasco, Enrique 'El Extremeno' (vocals)

GRACEFUL GUITARIST Recorded a decade ago, when Juan Carlos Romero was a nino in the Flamenco world, this album is fresh, jazzy and easy to listen to. Enthusiastic praise from fans and critics alike met his first solo recording. Since then, Romero has become a prominent guitarist, regarded by many as the best in his field.
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non-classical dvd
jazz icons | opus arte | mondomix media

jazz icons
Filmed in Europe between 1958 and 1966, this set of Jazz Icons™ DVDs features concerts by seven of the most influential jazz artists of the 20th Century captured in their prime and accompanied by some of the legendary sidemen of the day. Previously forgotten or lost in the vaults of TV studios throughout Europe (in some cases for nearly 50 years!), they are now being made available for the first time. Every performance has been transferred and re-mastered from the best-quality original masters yielding excellent sound and video.

2108001

JAZZ ICONS | 2108001 | DVD8 | 747313800148
JAZZ ICONS BOXSET

Duke Ellington, Dexter Gordon, Wes Montgomerey, Sarah Vaughan, Dave Brubeck, Charles Mingus, John Coltrane (PLUS BONUS DVD with John Coltrane, Dave Brubeck, Dexter Gordon, Sarah Vaughan, Dizzy Gillespie)

SEVEN VINTAGE DVDs of previously unseen concerts from the timeless legends of Jazz. 'The release of Jazz Icons is like the unearthing of a musical time capsule - an audio-visual treasure trove of the music that changed the world.' Quincy Jones BONUS DVD is not available separately: JOHN COLTRANE Sweden 11/19/62 TRACKS: I Want To Talk About You / John Coltrane (Tenor Sax), McCoy Tyner (Piano), Jimmy Garrison (Bass), Elvin Jones (Drums); DEXTER GORDON Norway 7/30/64 TRACKS: I Want More / Dexter Gordon (Tenor Sax), Tete Montoliu (Piano), Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen (Bass), Alex Riel (Drums); DAVE BRUBECK Finland 10/6/64 TRACKS: Unisphere / Dave Brubeck (Piano), Paul Desmond (Alto Sax), Eugene Wright (Bass), Joe Morello (Drums); SARAH VAUGHAN Sweden 10/30/67 TRACKS: The Shadow Of Your Smile, What Now My Love, I Had A Ball / Sarah Vaughan (Vocal), Bob James (Piano), Herb Mickman (Bass), Omar Clay (Drums)
2119001

JAZZ ICONS | 2119001 | DVD | 747313900152
JAZZ ICONS DUKE ELLINGTON

Duke Ellington

DUKE ELLINGTON LIVE IN ’58 (80 Minutes) Filmed in Holland, with Johnny Hodges (Alto Sax), Russell Procope (Alto Sax, Clarinet), Paul Gonsalves (Tenor Sax), Jimmy Hamilton (Tenor Sax, Clarinet), Harry Carney (Baritone Sax, Clarinet, Bass Clarinet), Cat Anderson (Trumpet), Harold ‘Shorty’ Baker (Trumpet), Ray Nance (Trumpet, Violin, Vocal), Clark Terry (Trumpet), Quentin Jackson (Trombone), John Sanders (Valve Trombone), Britt Woodman (Trombone), Ellington (Piano), Jimmy Woode (Bass), Sam Woodyard (Drums), Ozzie Bailey (Vocal) TRACKS: Black And Tan Fantasy, Creole Love Call, The Mooch, Harlem Air Shaft, Sophisticated Lady, My Funny Valentine, Kinda Dukish, Rockin' In Rhythm, Mr Gentle And Mr Cool, Jack The Bear, You Better Know It, All Of Me, Things Ain't What They Used To Be, Hi-Fi-Fo-Fum, Sophisticated Lady, Don't Get Around Much Anymore, Do Nothing Til You Hear From Me, Don't You Know I Care, In A Sentimental Mood, Mood Indigo, I'm Beginning To See The Light, Caravan, I Got It Bad And That Ain't Good, It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing), (In A) Solitude, I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart , Don't Get Around Much Anymore, Diminuendo In Blue And Crescendo In Blue
2119002

JAZZ ICONS | 2119002 | DVD | 747313900251
JAZZ ICONS DEXTER GORDON

DEXTER GORDON

DEXTER GORDON LIVE IN ’63 & ’64 (69 Minutes) Filmed in Holland 7/29/64 TRACKS A Night In Tunisia, What’s New, Blues Walk / Dexter Gordon (Tenor Sax), George Gruntz (Piano), Guy Pedersen (Bass), Daniel Humair (Drums); Switzerland 11/17/63 TRACKS: Second Balcony Jump, You’ve Changed / Dexter Gordon (Tenor Sax), Kenny Drew (Piano), Gilbert ‘Bibi’ Rovere (Bass), Art Taylor (Drums); Belgium 1/8/64 TRACKS: Lady Bird, Body And Soul / Dexter Gordon (Tenor Sax), George Gruntz (Piano), Guy Pedersen (Bass), Daniel Humair (Drums)
2119003

JAZZ ICONS | 2119003 | DVD | 747313900350
JAZZ ICONS WES MONTGOMERY

WES MONTGOMERY

WES MONTGOMERY LIVE IN ’65 (78 Minutes) Filmed in Holland 4/2/65 TRACKS: I Love Blues, Nica’s Dream, The End Of A Love Affair / Wes Montgomery (Guitar), Pim Jacobs (Piano), Ruud Jacobs (Bass), Han Bennink (Drums); Belgium 4/4/65 TRACKS: Impressions, Twisted Blues, Here's That Rainy Day, Jingles, Boy Next Door / Wes Montgomery (Guitar), Arthur Harper (Bass), Harold Mabern (Piano), Jimmy Lovelace (Drums); England 5/7/65 TRACKS: Four On Six, Full House, Here's That Rainy Day, Twisted Blues, West Coast Blues / Wes Montgomery (Guitar), Rick Laird (Bass), Stan Tracey (Piano), Jackie Dougan (Drums)
2119004

JAZZ ICONS | 2119004 | DVD | 747313900459
JAZZ ICONS SARAH VAUGHAN

SARAH VAUGHAN

SARAH VAUGHAN LIVE IN ’58 & ’64 (64 Minutes) Filmed in Sweden 7/9/58 TRACKS: Sometimes I'm Happy, Lover Man, September In The Rain, Mean To Me, Tenderly, If This Isn't Love / Sarah Vaughan (Vocal), Richard Davis (Bass), Ronnell Bright (Piano), Art Morgan (Drums); Holland 7/6/58 TRACKS: Over The Rainbow, They All Laughed, Lover Man, Cherokee, Sometimes I’m Happy / Sarah Vaughan (Vocal), Richard Davis (Bass), Ronnell Bright (Piano), Art Morgan (Drums); Sweden 10/1/64 TRACKS: I Feel Pretty, The More I See You, Baubles Bangles And Beads, I've Got Rhythm, Misty, Honeysuckle Rose, Maria, Bill Bailey Won't You Come Please Home / Sarah Vaughan (Vocal), Buster Williams (Bass), Kirk Stuart (Piano), George Hughes (Drums)
2119005

JAZZ ICONS | 2119005 | DVD | 747313900558
JAZZ ICONS DAVE BRUBECK

DAVE BRUBECK

DAVE BRUBECK LIVE IN ’64 & ’66 (67 Minutes) Filmed in Belgium 10/10/64 TRACKS: St. Louis Blues, Koto Song, Three To Get Ready, In Your Own Sweet Way, Take Five / Dave Brubeck (Piano), Paul Desmond (Alto Sax), Eugene Wright (Bass), Joe Morello (Drums); Germany 11/6/66 TRACKS: Take The ‘A’ Train, Forty Days, I'm In A Dancing Mood, Koto Song, Take Five / Dave Brubeck (Piano), Paul Desmond (Alto Sax), Eugene Wright (Bass), Joe Morello (Drums)
2119006

JAZZ ICONS | 2119006 | DVD | 747313900657
JAZZ ICONS CHARLES MINGUS

CHARLES MINGUS

CHARLES MINGUS LIVE IN ’64 (120 Minutes) Filmed in Belgium 4/19/64 TRACKS: So Long Eric, Peggy's Blue Skylight, Meditations On Integration / Charles Mingus (Bass), Eric Dolphy ( Alto Sax, Flute, Bass Clarinet), Clifford Jordan (Tenor Sax), Jaki Byard (Piano), Danny Richmond (Drums); Norway 4/12/64 TRACKS: So Long Eric, Orange Was The Color Of Her Dress, Then Blue Silk, Parkeriana, Take The “A” Train / Charles Mingus (Bass), Eric Dolphy ( Alto Sax, Flute, Bass Clarinet), Clifford Jordan (Tenor Sax), Johnny Coles (Trumpet), Jaki Byard (Piano), Danny Richmond (Drums); Sweden 4/13/64 TRACKS: So Long Eric, Meditations On Integration / Charles Mingus (Bass), Eric Dolphy (Alto Sax, Flute, Bass Clarinet), Clifford Jordan (Tenor Sax), Johnny Coles (Trumpet), Jaki Byard (Piano), Danny Richmond (Drums)
2119007

JAZZ ICONS | 2119007 | DVD | 747313900756
JAZZ ICONS JOHN COLTRANE

JOHN COLTRANE

JOHN COLTRANE LIVE IN ’60, ’61 & ’65 (95 Minutes) Filmed in Germany 3/28/60 TRACKS: Autumn Leaves, What’s New, Moonlight In Vermont, Hackensack, On Green Dolphin Street, Walkin’, The Theme / John Coltrane (Tenor Sax), Wynton Kelly (Piano), Paul Chambers (Bass), Jimmy Cobb (Drums), with Oscar Peterson (Piano), Stan Getz (Tenor Sax); Germany 12/4/61 TRACKS: My Favorite Things, Ev'rytime We Say Goodbye, Impressions / John Coltrane (Tenor and Soprano Sax), Eric Dolphy (Alto Sax and Flute), McCoy Tyner (Piano), Reggie Workman (Bass), Elvin Jones (Drums) Belgium 8/1/65 Vigil, Naima, My Favorite Things / John Coltrane (Tenor Sax, Soprano Sax), McCoy Tyner (Piano), Jimmy Garrison (Bass), Elvin Jones (Drums)
 
OA6001D

OPUS ARTE | OA6001D | DVD | 809478060017
QUARTIER LATIN
A JAZZ CONCERT
Packet d'Rivera (saxophones, clarinet), Chano Dominguez (piano), Anga Diaz (percussion), Marc Miralta (drums), Mario Rossy (double bass), Israel Suarez 'Pirana' (Flamenco percussion)

MULTI-DIMENSIONAL LATIN JAZZ With the magnificent set of Paris's Latin Quarter from Giancarlo del Monaco's production of La Boheme as a backdrop, the Teatro Real, Madrid, presents an invigorating Latin jazz cross-pollination featuring some of the world's greatest jazz fusionists. Recorded live in high definition video and true sound. 'Warm, powerful, magic' (El Mundo)
MO102

MONDOMIX MUSIC | MO102 | DVD | 794881851393
AS FAR A TIMBUKTU
MUSIC FROM MALI
Habib Koite, Afel Bocum, Tartit Band, Michel Jaffrennou (director)

THE LEGENDARY DESERT CITY This musical film by Michel Jaffrennou, Desert Blues (Jusqu'a Tombouctou), is a journey into the heart of Mali with some of its greatest musicians: Habib Koite, Afel Bocoum, and the women of the Tuareg group Tartit. French & local languages. Subtitled in English.
MO103

MONDOMIX MUSIC | MO103 | DVD | 794881856794
WIJDAN
MUSIC FROM MOROCCO & MALI
Brahim El Belkani, Sibiri Samake

THE MYSTERY OF GWANA TRANCE MUSIC The Gwana people have been shrouded in mystery since they were taken from the Malian Empire and brought as slaves to Morocco. The power of their trance music has come into the spotlight through Western musicians, from Led Zeppelin to Archie Shepp, who helped circulate the secret among those fascinated by the origin of the blues and the music's mystic connections.
 
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audiobooks

46712

NAXOS AUDIOBOOKS | 46712 | CD14 | 9789626344675
MANSFIELD PARK
JANE AUSTEN
Read by Juliet Stevenson

A GIRL GROWS INTO A WOMAN Mansfield Park is the longest of Austen's six major novels and is here presented unabridged. Juliet Stevenson has established a reputation for her intelligent, sensitive readings, and brings to life the intimate world of the great novelist. This volume completes the series of unabridged Jane Austen novels available on Naxos AudioBooks.
246112

NAXOS AUDIOBOOKS | 246112 | CD2 | 9789626344613
STORY OF THE AMULET
EDITH NESBIT
Read by Anna Bentinck

ADVENTURES IN BABYLON, ANCIENT EGYPT & ATLANTIS Abridged to 2 CDs, this is the only recording of The Story of the Amulet, which concludes Nesbit's trilogy about the magical being, The Psammead, and the family who undergoes many adventures that begin in an old shop next to the British Museum. Well-chosen classical music enhances the reading.
346912

NAXOS AUDIOBOOKS | 346912 | CD3 | 9789626344699
POLLYANNA
ELEANOR H PORTER
Ready by Laurel Lefkow

CHILDREN'S CLASSIC Since its first appearance in 1913, Pollyanna has become an enduring children's favourite. The tale of the orphan who always looks on the bright side of life despite adversity comes to life with Laurel Lefkow's warm reading. Classical music enhances this generous abridgement.
445812

NAXOS AUDIOBOOKS | 445812 | CD4 | 9789626344583
THE ILIAD
HOMER
Read by Anton Lesser

IMMORTAL STORY OF WAR Perhaps the greatest poem of the Western world, The Iliad tells the story of fifty critical days towards the end of the Trojan war. Achilles has quarrelled with Agamemnon and sulks in his tent, while Hector brings his Trojans to the brink of victory; but fate will have the last word. Abridged to highlight the key episodes.
 
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