April classical releases

harmonia mundi UK

Classical new releases

available April 1st 2016, call-off

March 25th 2016

APRIL 1

BBC Music Magazine April DISC OF THE MONTH Orchestral Choice harmonia mundi HMC902216 Handel Water Music Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin

BBC Music Magazine April Choral & Song choice

Wigmore Hall Live WHLIVE0079 Schumann Lieder Alice Coote, Christian Blackshaw

BBC Music Magazine April Chamber Choice

Myrios Classics MYR017 Mozart Haydn Quartets Hagen Quartet

DISTRIBUTED LABELS: ACCENT RECORDS, ACTES SUD, ALIA VOX, APARTE, BEL AIR CLASSIQUES, BELVEDERE, THE CHOIR OF KINGS COLLEGE CAMBRIDGE, CHRISTOPHORUS, CSO RESOUND, EDITION CLASSICS, FRA MUSICA, GLOSSA, harmonia mundi, HERITAGE, LA DOLCE VOLTA, LES ARTS FLORISSANTS EDITIONS, LSO LIVE, MARIINSKY, MIRARE, MYRIOS, NAÏVE, ONYX, PAN CLASSICS, PRAGA DIGITALS, RCO LIVE, SIGNUM, UNITED ARCHIVES, WIGMORE HALL LIVE

RECORDING OF THE

MONTH

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

SCHUMANN: Cello Concerto, Piano Trio No. 1 Jean-Guihen Queyras / Isabelle Faust / Alexander Melnikov Freiburger Barockorchester / Pablo Heras-Casado This final instalment in our trilogy devoted to the complete concertos and trios of Schumann spotlights the cello of Jean-Guihen Queyras. The Cello Concerto, though energetically championed by Clara Schumann, suffered from delays in publication and was not premiered until after the composer’s death. Interpreted in the same poetic spirit as its two predecessors, this third volume concludes an adventure that has changed for ever the way we listen to Schumann.

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: HMC902197 Barcode: 3149020219720 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD + DVD Packaging: digipack Jean-Guihen Queyras [cello], Isabelle Faust [violin] Alexander Melnikov [piano] Freiburger Barockorchester Pablo Heras-Casado [conductor]

"The idea for this CD project arose during a tour on which we performed Robert Schumann’s Trio Op.80. As passionate admirers of the composer, we conceived the desire to place his works for piano, violin and cello in a broader context and to illuminate them mutually in order to allow listeners to gain a deeper understanding of his music. We soon agreed to play the pieces for this recording on a historical piano and stringed instruments with gut strings, using orchestral forces to match. Thanks to this, we expected our playing to be better balanced, better articulated, and more open-minded. Pablo Heras-Casado and the Freiburger Barockorchester sprang spontaneously to mind as the ideal partners for a project of this kind. And indeed they took up our idea enthusiastically and were keen and irreplaceable fellow-conspirators in the world of Schumann. Our shared journey into the magical world of this incomparable composer will remain with us as an exceptionally intense, happy and fulfilling experience." Isabelle Faust, Alexander Melnikov, Jean-Guihen Queyras ALSO AVAILABLE:

HMC902198 Schumann Piano Concerto Piano Trio No. 2

"repeated listening has persuaded me that this is a valid alternative to the glittering virtuosity displayed by pianists from Lipatti to Andsnes and beyond.” Gramophone Editor's Choice, September 2015

HMC902196 Schumann Violin Concerto, Piano Trio No. 3 BBC Music Magazine Choice, June 2015

“This is the first of three volumes designed to showcase Schumann’s music for violin, cello and piano, and with musicians of this intelligence and mutual sympathy, it ought to be worth following.” BBC R3, CD Review, 21/3/2015

ADVERTISED IN CLASSICAL MUSIC PRESS Isabelle Faust, Wigmore concert with KBez 12/4

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

Bien que l'amour...

Airs sérieux et a boire

Les Arts Florissants William Christie With this anthology of 'airs sérieux' and 'airs à boire' [for drinking] of the Grand Siècle, Les Arts Florissants launches a new series on harmonia mundi. We can listen to the tracks on this disc as contemporaries turned the pages of successful collections of songs, alternating between invocations to Bacchus and invitations to love. Around William Christie at the harpsichord and his musicians, five singers offer multiple combinations of close-knit voices. From the intimacy of the salons to the liveliness of court banquets, these airs, models of refined skill, make light of the paradoxes of our hearts – for as an air by Lambert tells us: ‘Though Love creates all my grief / I wish to love and to die loving.’

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Secular Vocal music Catalogue No: HAF8905276 Barcode: 3149020527603 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Les Arts Florissants William Christie [conductor]

4th April Wigmore Hall Airs sérieux et à boire

ALSO AVAILABLE: AF001 Handel Belshazzar AF002 Le Jardin de Monsieur Rameau AF003 Monteverdi Madrigali Volume 2: Mantova Gramophone DISC OF THE MONTH January 2015 "the sheer accomplishment of Les Arts Florissants is hard to resist.” The Guardian, 27th November 2014 **** AF004 Handel Music for Queen Caroline “sublime slow music is sonorously satisfying and builds with emotional conviction. Gently lilting strings and the full choir's blossoming sonorities underline the eloquence of Caroline's virtues...[Christie's] judgement of the melancholic coda for strings that concludes the anthem...is profoundly beautiful.” Gramophone Magazine, March 2015 AF005 Monteverdi Madrigali Volume 1: Cremona Gramophone Editor's Choice, July 2015 "Les Arts capture all the exuberant invention...The vocal blend isn’t smooth – the character of each singer shines through, and the result is all the more colourful for it.” The Guardian, 18th June 2015 ****

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

CHARPENTIER: Les Arts Florissants Les Arts Florissants William Christie 'Les Arts Florissants' is the piece from which the eponymous ensemble took its name. This work belongs to the category of musical allegories, mostly from antique mythology, as a tribute to a royal person. In this case that person was the French king Louis XIV, although Charpentier didn't compose it for the royal court, but for the ensemble of Marie de Lorraine, the Duchess of Guise, in whose service he spent a considerable part of his life.

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Secular Vocal music Catalogue No: HAF8901083 Barcode: 3149020108307 BUDGET Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Les Arts Florissants William Christie

'Les Arts Florissants' is an allegory on the power of the arts: Music (La Musique) and Poetry (La PoĂŠsie) praise Louis for bringing peace, whereas Painting (La Peinture) - a role which Charpentier himself sang at the first performance considers himself hardly good enough to paint the greatness of the king. Conflict (La Discorde) and his furies try to bring disasters to the world, but Peace (La Paix) chases them off. The piece ends with a chorus of Arts and Soldiers wishing peace to last forever.

The contrasts in this 'opera' are impressively realised by Charpentier: they not only regard those between the arts and La Discorde but also within the choruses of Soldiers which sing the praise of La Musique but which also refer to the terror of war: "How sweet is it to hear your heavenly sound, after the terrible noises of blazing war guns and his thundering echo".

Originally released on LP HM1083 back in 1982

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

MOULINIE: Cantique de Moÿse Les Arts Florissants William Christie William Christie directs the singers and period-instrument musicians of Les Arts Florissants in a recording of works by Etienne Moulinié (c1600-c1669). Recorded June 1980, Eglise du Bon Secours, Paris with notes in English, French, and German and texts with English translations.

Cantique de Moÿse Motet à la Sainte Vierge (à 5v & soli): Veni sponsa mea Cinquième Livre d'Airs de cour Trois Fantaisies à quatre pour les violes "Meslanges" Cantique (à 3v, b.c.): Espoir de toute âme affligée Motet (à 5v, mixed): O bone Jesu

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Choral Catalogue No: HAF8901055 Barcode: 3149020105504 BUDGET Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Les Arts Florissants William Christie [dir]

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

ROSSI: Un Peccator Pentito, O Cecità Les Arts Florissants William Christie "The chamber oratorios of Luigi Rossi fall naturally within the repertory of Les Arts Florissants. Rossi was himself in Paris during the 1640s at the behest of Cardinal Mazarin and his music was well known to French Italophiles. These are works of considerable beauty, masterfully realised by William Christie, and deserving of issue on CD... The ingenious continuo orchestration devised by Christie—combinations of cello, bass viol, harpsichord, theorbo and lirone—is rich beyond comparison. The violin playing is shapely and sympathetic."

Gramophone, February 1987

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Choral Catalogue No: HAF8901091 Barcode: 3149020109106 BUDGET Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Dominique Visse Les Arts Florissants William Christie

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

CAMPRA: French Cantatas Jill Feldman Dominique Visse Les Arts Florissants William Christie Arion, cantata No 5 with flute, viola da gamba & harpsichord La Dispute de l'Amour et de l'Hymen, cantata Les Femmes, cantata Énée et Didon, cantata

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Choral Catalogue No: HAF8901238 Barcode: 3149020123805 BUDGET Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Jill Feldman Dominique Visse Jean-Francois Gardeil Les Arts Florissants William Christie

William Christie triumphs; nobody does French Baroque with an Italian accent better and with his ensemble Les Arts Flos, he has made some of the finest recordings of French baroque music, including these French cantatas by André Campra (1660-1744). Campra is usually regarded as the most important French composer between Lully and Rameau and a transitional figure in French opera. Curiously, many of the musicans of Les Arts Florissants back in 1986 were American or British: violinist John Holloway, flautist Robert Claire, theorbist Stephen Stubbs, and the superlative American soprano Jill Feldman. However, to hear quintessential French vocal technique, listen to Dominique Visse singing the cantata 'La Dispute de l'Amour et de l'Hymen.' Jean-François Gardeil, the baritone on this CD, also contributes a pure French inflection to the performance. Recorded in 1986, in Arles.

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

MONTECLAIR: La mort de Didon, Cantatas William Christie Les Arts Florissants "The French cantata had a brief, but vibrant life during the first three decades of the 18th century. Beginning with Morin's first book in 1706, there followed dozens of books of cantatas by a number of French composers. Clerambault, Boismortier, Rameau and Monteclair all published cantatas during this period. Monteclair may by relatively unknown, but he was a composer of undoubted talent if judged by the works on this recording...If you like the French baroque, do yourself a favor and try to buy this recording. It is a high point in the art of the cantata, and in the musicianship of William Christie and his colleagues." Amazon.com

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Choral Catalogue No: HAF8901280 Barcode: 3149020128008 BUDGET Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Agnes Mellon, Monique Zanetti, Gerard Lesne, Jean-Paul FouchĂŠcourt William Christie Les Arts Florissants

La Mort de Didon, cantata for voice & ensemble Il Dispetto in amore, cantata for voice & ensemble Le Triomphe de l'amour, cantata for voice & ensemble Morte di Lucretia, cantata for voice & ensemble Pyrame et ThisbĂŠ, cantata for 3 voices & ensemble

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

RAMEAU: Pygmalion, Nélée et Myrthis Les Arts Florissants William Christie The famous story of Pygmalion, who fell in love with one of his own sculptures and brought it to life, inspired Jean-Philippe Rameau with a perfect subject for an acte de ballet: an autonomus sung and danced stage work which finds its justification in its own subject.

Recorded in 1992 Howard Crook is technically perfect as the haute-contre Pygmalion and we get to hear an early recording of the very young Sandrine Piau as L'Amour, who has now a hugely deserved reputation internationally.

The orchestra and conducting is exemplary, as you might expect from Christie and Les Arts Florissants. Highly recommended.

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Secular Vocal music Catalogue No: HAF8901381 Barcode: 3149020138106 BUDGET Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Françoise SEMELLAZ, Corinne Caroline PELON, Une Argienne Jérome CORRÉAS, Nélée Donatienne MICHEL-DANSAC, La Statue/Une Argienne Agnès MELLON, Céphise/Myrtis Howard CROOK, Pygmalion Sandrine PIAU, L'Amour

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

ROSSI: Oratorio per la Settimana Santa Oratorio for Holy Week, Un Peccator Pentito

Les Arts Florissants William Christie Both these works are anonymous in their manuscript sources, located in the Barberini collection of the Vatican Library. In 1954 the Italian scholar Alberto Ghislanzoni attributed these compositions, on circumstantial evidence, to Luigi Rossi (1598-1653), a composer working in Rome in the service of Cardinal Antonio Barberini—a lavish patron of music who helped support Rome'sprayer halls and a nephew of Pope Urban VIII. Recent research by the American scholar Margaret Murata has cast doubt on the attributions to Luigi Rossi, but it is generally agreed that these oratorios were composed by one of Rossi's Roman contemporaries in the service of the Barberini family —possibly Marc'Antonio Pasqualini — if not by Rossi himself.

Oratorio per la Settimana Santa: recorded WDR, february 1984 Un Peccator pentito: recorded july 1986

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Choral Catalogue No: HAF8901297 Barcode: 3149020129708 BUDGET Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Agnès Mellon, Jill Feldman, Marie-Claude Vallin [sopranos] Dominique Visse, Vincent Darras [hautes-contre] Ian Honeyman, Michel Laplénie [ténors] Philippe Cantor, François Fauché, Antoine Sicot [basses] Un Peccator Pentito: Jill Feldman, Monique Zanetti [sopranos], Gérard Lesne [haute-contre], Jean-Paul Fouchécourt [ténor], Michel Laplénie [baritone], François Fauché [bass]

PRIMA PARTE: Introduzione Tarib "Baraba a noi si dia !"

Pilato: "E di Gesù che fìa?"

Pilato : "Di si rigida sentenza" Pilato: "Troppo i lumi" Turba : "Se gelata paura il cor t'ingombra" Demonio : "Respirate, atre caverne" demonio : "Il fatto è di te degno" Coro di demoni : "O menzogne fortunate" SECONDA PARTE: Introduzione Demonio : "O del tartareo speco" Demonio : "Quando mai l'altra magione" Vergine : "Cieli, stelle, pietà !"

Vergine: "Tormenti non più" Vergine: "Asprissimi chiodi" Demonio : "O follia di cieca fè !"

Coro di demoni : "Cosi d'empio dolor" Madrigale ultimo : "Piangete occhi" Un Peccator Pentito

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

Alexander L'ESTRANGE: On Eagles Wings Tenebrae “ ... One gorgeous piece after another, in pristine, dew-fresh performances by the ever-wonderful choir Tenebrae.

Alexander L’Estrange is a many-sided composer of prodigious gifts, and this is an album I will return to again and again; I recommend it warmly to all lovers of choral music.” John Rutter

Nigel Short leads Tenebrae in a new album of sacred and jazz-inspired choral works by Alexander L’Estrange, one of Britain’s most popular living choral composers.

Label: Signum Classics File Under: Classical/Choral Catalogue No: SIGCD454 Barcode: 635212045428 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Tenebrae Nigel Short [conductor]

Track Listing 1New College Service: Magnificat 2New College Service: Nunc dimittis 3Prayers for Peace: Lighten our Darkness 4Let All the World in Every Corner Sing 5Prayers for Peace: The Lord’s Prayer 6Tune Me, O Lord 7On Eagles’ Wings 8Oculi Omnium 9My Song is Love Unknown 10Prayers for Peace: God Be in My Head 11Panis Angelicus 12Lute-book Lullaby 13Epiphany Carol 14Hodie!

15Let the People Praise You 16An Irish Blessing

Launch concert for the album on April 7th at St James's Spanish Place, London

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

The Panufnik Legacies II London Symphony Orchestra François-Xavier Roth

Label: LSO Live File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: LSO5070 Barcode: 822231507024 BUDGET Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal London Symphony Orchestra François-Xavier Roth ADVERTISED IN CLASSICAL MUSIC PRESS

LSO Live present a second album of new works by emerging composers, all of whom have been members of the Panufnik Composers Scheme: devised by the LSO in association with Lady Panufnik in memory of her late husband. The Scheme began in 2005 and each year offers six composers the opportunity to write a three minute piece for the LSO. This recording showcases the works of selected composers from across the first 10 years of the Scheme alongside 'Panufnik Variations', a project by composer Colin Matthews and Panufnik Scheme alumni. Taking a theme from Sir Andrzej Panufnik’s 'Universal Prayer', the work features a series of variations by Max de Wardener, Evis Sammoutis, Christopher Mayo, Toby Young, Elizabeth Winters, Larry Goves, Raymond Yiu, Anjula Semmens and Edmund Finnis, bookended by an opening and conclusion by Colin Matthews. Also featured on this release are works by Kim B Ashton, Leo Chadburn, Bushra El-Turk, Matthew Kaner, James Moriarty, Elizabeth Ogonek, Aaron Parker, Alastair Putt and Duncan Ward.

Colin Matthews says of the Panufnik project, "A real relationship develops, which continues beyond the scheme itself, so that we feel that a ‘Panufnik family’ has been established…. What is remarkable to me is the unity that has emerged from this project : a tribute both to the inspiration provided by Andrzej Panufnik, and to the faith that the LSO has shown in the Panufnik Scheme."

This release will be supported by a wide-range of EPKs, including interview footage with the composers and flimed footage from the recording sessions. The Panufnik Scheme is generously supported by The Boltini Trust & The Helen Hamlyn Trust.

Reviews for The Panufnik Legacies LSO5061:

"There are plenty of imaginative sounds in The Panufnik Legacies, a CD from the LSO showcasing works by young composers." BBC Music Magazine, Orchestral Choice "The Panufnik Legacies is the disc’s title: it could well be a vital introduction to some talents of the future."

BBC Radio 3 CD Review "The Panufnik Legacies is an extremely valuable release, demonstrating the London Symphony Orchestra’s commitment to contemporary music, François-Xavier Roth’s dynamic and committed conducting, and that music being written right now is in very good health." Classical Source Full track listing available on demand

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

Simon Trpceski – Brahms / Ravel / Poulenc Recorded live at Wigmore Hall, London, on 19 July 2014

Simon Trpceski Simon Trpceski has established himself as one of the most remarkable musicians to have emerged in recent years, performing with many of the world’s greatest orchestras and captivating audiences worldwide. He performs a stunning programme, recorded live at Wigmore Hall, opening with Brahms’s melancholic 3 'Intermezzi', "the cradle songs of my sufferings" as the composer once called them, a charming and varied selection showcases Trpceski’s sensitivity and delicate expression.

Ravel’s eclectic 'Valses et sentimentales', a dissonant and passionate chain of lilting dances, lie at the heart of this album. The performance concludes with the thrilling Toccata from Poulenc’s 'Trois pièces': a brilliant demonstration of Trpceski’s colourful and virtuosic playing.

Label: Wigmore Hall Live File Under: Classical/Instrumental Catalogue No: WHLIVE0081 Barcode: 5065000924829 MID Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Simon Trpceski [piano]

BRAHMS: 3 Intermezzi, Op. 117, Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel, Op. 24 Aria. Variations I-XXV. Fugue RAVEL: Valses nobles et sentimentales POULENC: 2 Novelettes FP47, Novelette sur un thème de Manuel de Falla FP173, Improvisations 1-10 FP63, Improvisations 13-14, FP 170, Improvisation 15, FP 176 'Hommage à Edith Piaf': Très vite, 3 Pièces FP48 III. Toccata

ALSO AVAILABLE:

WHLIVE0058 Simon Trpceski: JS Bach, Liszt, Chopin, Schubert

"You only have to listen to Schubert’s 16 German Dances D783 to appreciate the breadth of Trpceski’s interpretative terms of reference: there is a strong pulse but also an astonishing range of subtle shades of dynamics and supple shaping of phrases. Simplicity and sophistication go hand in hand in these dances. Trpceski has full measure of them; his touch is exquisite, his gauging of the expressive perspective finely tuned."

Geoffrey Norris, The Telegraph - 5 April 2013 “From the opening notes of Schubert’s little A major dance, you know you are in safe hands, able to sit back and relax expect… when he has you on the edge of your seat… A proper piano recital – a varied, thoughtfully chosen programme, a rewarding musical and pianistic experience one want to return to, superbly recorded, classily presented and featuring the playing of a master pianist.”

Jeremy Nicholas, Gramophone EDITOR'S CHOICE - June 2013

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

HAYDN: Violin Concertos Violin Concerto in C Hob VIIa:1, in A Hob VIIa:3, in G Hob VIIa:4

Isabelle Faust Isabelle Faust is one of the most impressive violinists of the generation that emerged in the 1990s. She is known for exceptional technique and strong interpretive instincts. She performs a wide-ranging repertoire, from J.S Bach all the way through to contemporary composers such as Ligeti, Lachenmann and Widmann.

Ever keen to explore new musical horizons, Faust is equally at home as a chamber musician and as a soloist with major orchestras or period ensembles. Over the course of her career, she has regularly performed with world-renowned conductors including Claudio Abbado, Frans Br端ggen, Mariss Jansons, Giovanni Antonini, Philippe Herreweghe, Daniel Harding and Bernard Haitink.

Before starting her long-time recording relationship with the harmonia mundi France label, she recorded Haydn Violin Concertos for Pan Classics, with the Munich Chamber Orchestra conducted by Christoph Poppen (her former teacher) in 1997. Isabelle plays the Stradivarius violin of 1704, known as the 'Sleeping Beauty'.

Label: Pan Classics File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: PC10353 Barcode: 7619990103535 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Isabelle Faust [violin] M端nchener Kammerorchester Christoph Poppen

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

Schoenberg | Berg | Webern: Complete works for string quartet Quatuor Diotima Quatuor Diotima celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2016. This boxset dedicated to the Second Viennese School is the first of two events planned to mark this special year - along with the release of a new series of contemporary composer portraits.

This Schoenberg | Berg | Webern set gathers the complete works for string quartet composed by those three iconic composers. This is a major achievement and the result of years of concerts and research by the quartet, which is now considered to be a leading performer in this repertoire.

Label: NAÏVE File Under: Classical/Chamber music Catalogue No: V5380 Barcode: 822186053805 5 FOR 2 Format: 5 CD Packaging: box set Quatuor Diotima Sandrine Piau [soprano]* Marie-Nicole Lemieux [contralto]**

As well as the two recording projects mentioned above, the upcoming years will be rich in engagements for the quartet, including the cycle of Beethoven-Schoenberg-Boulez works at Wien Modern, concerts in various countries premiering Enno Poppe’s new string quartet (Wittener Tage für neue Musik, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, November Music ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Transit Festival Leuven, Festival d´Automne à Paris), the complete Bartók string quartets in one evening at the Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord in Paris and four international tours, across South America, Japan, the United States of America, as well as the ensemble’s first tour to Russia.

SCHOENBERG: Presto in C major, Scherzo in F major, String quartet, in D major 1897' String quartet no.1 in D minor, op.7, String quartet no.2 in F sharp minor, with soprano, op.10*, String quartet no.3, op.30, String quartet no.4, op.37, BERG: String quartet, op.3, Lyric suite for string quartet, version with voice** WEBERN: Langsamer Satz, String quartet 1905, Rondo for string quartet, 5 movements for string quartet, op.5, 6 Bagatelles for string quartet, op.9, String quartet, op.28

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

Miroslav SRNKA: Chamber Music Quatuor Diotima Celebrating 20 years since the Diotima quartet was formed, this is the second of two recording events for April release and the first of a new series of contemporary composer portraits, dedicated to the works of Czech composer Miroslav Srnka. It will be followed a portrait of Gérard Pesson, in collaboration with WDR Symphony Orchestra.

Label: NAÏVE File Under: Classical/Chamber music Catalogue No: V5433 Barcode: 822186054338 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Wilhem Latchoumia [piano] Quatuor Diotima CONCERT: 17th March York, Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall 19th March Edinburgh, Greyfriars Kirk

Miroslav Srnka [b.1975] studied musicology and composition in Prague, Berlin and Paris, and worked as a music magazine editor and later editor-in-chief of a music publishing house, developing critical editions of Antonín Dvorák, Leoš Janácek and Bohuslav Martinu.

Inspired by manuscripts of Antonín Dvorák, Srnka wrote the ensemble piece 'Les Adieux' in 2004. It was premiered by Ensemble Modern and Matthias Pintscher in 2007. Ensemble Intercontemporain subsequently commissioned 'My Life Without Me' for soprano and ensemble on texts by Spanish film director Isabel Coixet.

In Paris, Srnka worked with the Quatuor Diotima on their recording of Janácek’s 2nd String Quartet. It was the beginning of a lasting collaboration between composer and ensemble: Quatuor Diotima have performed Srnka’s works in many countries and premiered 'Engrams' in 2011.

Participating on the Jerwood Opera Writing Programme and Fellowship from 2007, Srnka collaborated with director Matt Lutton and playwright Tom Holloway to write the chamber opera 'Make No Noise', first performed by soloists of Bavarian State Opera, Ensemble Modern and Christopher Ward in 2011. In the same year, Srnka’s children’s comic book 'Jakub Flügelbunt' for three singers and orchestra was premiered at the Semperoper Dresden with Tomáš Hanus.

Srnka and Holloway continued their collaboration with 'South Pole', a double opera in two parts commissioned by the Bavarian State Opera written for Rolando Vi-lazón as Scott, Thomas Hampson as Amundsen and Kirill Petrenko as conductor.

After receiving the Ernst von Siemens Composers’ Prize in 2009, Srnka decided to relinquish his editorial career to focus fully on composition.

Pouhou vlnou for piano quintet 2008 Engrams for string quartet 2011 Tree of Heaven for violin, viola and cello 2010 Simple Space for violoncello and piano 2010

RE-RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

A Celebration of Scotland George MacIlwham Scottish Chamber Orchestra The Choir of St. Mary’s Music School Peter Maxwell Davies An Orkney Wedding, and Sunrise, Kinloche, his Fantassie, Seven Songs Home, Yesanby Ground, Dances from the ‘Two Fiddlers’, Jimmack the Postie Farewell to Stromness, Lullabye for Lucy, Renaissance Scottish Dances

Label: Unicorn-Kanchana Records File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: DKPCD9070 Barcode: 053068907026 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal George MacIlwham (Highland bagpipes) Scottish Chamber Orchestra, The Choir of St. Mary’s Music School, Peter Maxwell Davies (conductor and pianist)

An 'Orkney Wedding, with Sunrise' is the classical orchestral composition, by the English composer Peter Maxwell Davies, that brought his music to a mainstream audience. It is notable for being one of the few pieces in classical repertoire to feature a bagpipe solo, and vividly depicts the riotous celebrations after a wedding on Orkney. The piece closes with the entry of the bagpipes, which Davies describes as symbolic of the rising sun over Caithness. In concert performance, the piper, dressed in traditional Scottish regalia, is required to enter the hall from the back, parading to the stage and taking the soloist's position only as the piece concludes. It was written to a commission by the Boston Symphony Orchestra, who premiered it under John Williams on May 10, 1985 • Peter Maxwell Davies’ own recordings of his most popular works. A perennial bestseller.

One of the great British composers and a former Master of the Queen’s Music [born 8 September 1934; died 14 March 2016] "Davies is a master story-teller in this vividly detailed tone painting….’"

GRAMOPHONE (An Orkney Wedding)

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

MAHLER: Symphony No. 3 London Symphony Orchestra Jascha Horenstein The benchmark 1970 recording of Mahler’s third symphony with the LSO and Jascha Horenstein.

"Horenstein is the most intensely committed……..the result has the sort of frisson-creating quality one knew from Horenstein’s live performances and the recoding quality is both full and brilliant." THE PENGUIN GUIDE

Label: Unicorn-Kanchana Records File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: UKCD2006/7 Barcode: 5016908200621 2 FOR 1.5 Format: 2 CD Packaging: cristal London Symphony Orchestra Jascha Horenstein

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

MAHLER: Symphony No. 1 London Symphony Orchestra Jascha Horenstein The celebrated 1969 recording of Mahler’s first symphony with the LSO and Jascha Horenstein.

"Horenstein’s version has a freshness and concentration which put it in a special category among the many rival accounts. Fine recording……" THE PENGUIN GUIDE

Label: Unicorn-Kanchana Records File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: UKCD2012 Barcode: 5016908201222 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal London Symphony Orchestra Jascha Horenstein

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

MESSIAEN: Catalogues D'Oiseaux, La Fauvette des Jardins, Petites Esquisses D'Oiseau Peter Hill Peter Hill’s benchmark 3 CD set of Messiaen’s 'Catalogues d’oiseaux'. Recordings prepared in Paris with the composer between 1986-92.

"Extraordinary music to splendid effect in utmost clarity" PENGUIN GUIDE (Catalogues d’oiseaux) "One’s jaw drops at Hill’s agile dexterity" GRAMOPHONE (Catalogues d’oiseaux) "This is one of Peter Hill’s great moments as a Messiaen interpreter, finely recorded as ever…… sets an impressive seal on a most distinguished project." GRAMOPHONE (La Fauvette des Jardins) •"beautiful technique, a true poet: I am a passionate admirer" OLIVIER MESSIAEN

Label: Unicorn-Kanchana Records File Under: Classical/Instrumental Catalogue No: UKCD300 Barcode: 5060332661626 3 FOR 2 Format: 3 CD Packaging: cristal Peter Hill

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

Cipriani POTTER: Symphonies 8 & 10 Milton Keynes Chamber Orchestra Hilary Davan Wetton An English contemporary of Beethoven, Potter composed a number of symphonies. His two best examples are presented here and are the only available recordings of these works in today’s market. "[Potter’s music] is very attractive and rewarding and the playing of the Milton Keynes Chamber Orchestra….. is admirable – they respond splendidly to the rhythmic vitality and the sharp ear for colour… shown by the conductor."

GRAMOPHONE

Label: Unicorn-Kanchana Records File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: DKPCD9091 Barcode: 0053068909129 NORMAL PRICE Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Milton Keynes Chamber Orchestra Hilary Davan Wetton

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

Samuel WESLEY: Symphonies 3, 4, 5, 6 Milton Keynes Chamber Orchestra Hilary Davan Wetton Wesley’s symphonies receive committed performances by Davan Wetton’s forces.

"The performances by the Milton Keynes Chamber Orchestra are first rate: polished, poised, vital of rhythm and fully alive to the unusual warmth of Wesley’s lines and textures………… The recording is exemplary in its clarity and spaciousness." GRAMOPHONE

Label: Unicorn-Kanchana Records File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: DKPCD9098 Barcode: 0053068909822 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Milton Keynes Chamber Orchestra Hilary Davan Wetton

RELEASE DATE 1ST APRIL 2016

William CROTCH: Symphonies in F & E flat, Organ Concerto No. 2, Overture in G, Milton Keynes Chamber Orchestra Hilary Davan Wetton Crotch’s orchestral works receive committed performances by Davan Wetton’s forces.

"The very capable orchestra from Milton Keynes, under Hilary Davan Wetton's eager and enthusiastic direction, gives a sympathetic account of the music, with some good, clean direct playing and well-chosen tempos." GRAMOPHONE

Label: Unicorn-Kanchana Records File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: DKPCD9126 Barcode: 0053068912624 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Milton Keynes Chamber Orchestra Hilary Davan Wetton

harmonia mundi UK

Classical new releases

New Vaughan Williams cycle from Andrew Manze and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic on Onyx Classics

available April 8th 2016, call-off

April 1st

APRIL 8

Ralph VAUGHAN WILLIAMS: Symphonies Vol. 1

RELEASE DATE 8TH APRIL 2016

Symphony No.2 in G ‘A London Symphony’, Symphony No.8 in D minor

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra Andrew Manze

Label: Onyx Classics File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: ONYX4155 Barcode: 880040415527 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra CLASSIC FM PARTNERS Andrew Manze [conductor]

Andrew Manze has established himself as one of the leading interpreters of Vaughan Williams Symphonies. His 2012 BBC Proms performances drew critical acclaim, and were highlights of that season's Proms. ONYX Classics will release one volume a year, completing the cycle in the spring of 2019 with Symphonies 7&9.

It was RWV’s friend and fellow composer George Butterworth who in 1912 suggested he write a purely orchestral symphony. RVW told him he had absolutely no plans to do so, but Butterworth was a very perceptive friend and colleague, and the premiere took place in 1914. Called ‘A London Symphony’ (RVW considered himself a Londoner), RVW thought a better title would be ‘A Symphony by a Londoner’. On New Year’s Eve that year RVW joined the army and went to the trenches in France. Butterworth would be killed by a sniper at the Somme in 1916.

The 8th Symphony of 1955 is a tightly written, brilliant and innovative work that shows RVW’s creativity at full stretch.

Although outwardly a sunny work, shadows of the 6th and 7th symphonies lurk in the background at points throughout this brilliant symphony.

Next in the RVW Symphony cycle from Andrew Manze and the RLPO will be Symphonies 3 & 4 [ONYX4161] to be released in March 2017.

"Manze’s Vaughan Williams [Symphony No.8] was beautifully imagined from the first gleaming pools of vibraphone and celesta to the carnivalesque scherzo for wind and the tender cavatina for strings." The Times, October 2015 RLPO RECORDINGS FROM ONYX: ONYX4145 Elgar Symphony No.1, Concert Overture ‘Cockaigne – In London Town’ Vasily Petrenko ONYX4135 Tchaikovsky Piano Concertos Nos.1&2, Simon Trpceski & Vasily Petrenko Advertised in Gramophone and BBC Music Magazines

RELEASE DATE 8TH APRIL 2016

Songs to the Moon Myrthen Ensemble Described by The Telegraph as "the crème de la crème of young British-based musical talent", and praised in BBC Music Magazine for their "irresistible combination of arresting programing and vocal flair assembled around pianist Joseph Middleton", the newly formed Myrthen Ensemble brings together rising stars in the world of art-song and Lieder. This disc features performances by founder members Mary Bevan, Clara Mouriz, Allan Clayton, Marcus Farnsworth and Joseph Middleton.

Label: Signum Classics File Under: Classical/Secular Vocal music Catalogue No: SIGCD443 Barcode: 635212044322 2 FOR 1 Price Format: 2 CD Packaging: cristal Myrthen Ensemble: Mary Bevan Allan Clayton Marcus Farnsworth Clara Mouriz Joseph Middleton [piano] CONCERTS: 20th March Wigmore Hall 2nd April Leeds Lieder, 8.15pm The Howard Assembly Room Opera North: Songs to the Moon

Joseph Middleton writes to introduce the recording: "The moon has, since antiquity, inspired artists, musicians and wordsmiths. The programme on this disc looks to its many characteristics for inspiration. The songs are at turns consoling, sometimes seductive in serenades and occasionally paint the moon as a threatening force through its extinguishing of the sun's rays. The moon’s silver beams cast their magic in music by Brahms and Schumann in the first of these CDs, and in the second, inspire the exquisite treatment of 'Clair de lune' by a selection of the finest French song composers. Short English nocturnal overtures begin each disc."

CD1: Peter WARLOCK: The Night, BRAHMS: Nächtens, Op. 112 No. 2, Vor der Tür, Op. 28 No. 2, Unbewegte laue Luft, Op. 57 No. 8, Der Gang zum Liebchen, Op. 31 No. 3, Walpurgisnacht, Op. 75 No. 4, Ständchen, Op. 106 No. 1, Der Abend, Op. 64 No. 2, Vergebliches Ständchen, Op. 84 No. 4 SCHUMANN: Unterm Fenster, Op. 34 No. 3, Mondnacht, Op. 39 No. 5, Zwei Venetianische Lieder, Op. 25, Die Lotosblume, Op. 25 No. 7, In der Nacht, Op. 74 No. 4 CD2: BARBER: Nocturne, Op. 13 No. 4, MACONCHY: Sun, Moon and Stars, SZULC: Clair de lune, Op. 83 No. 1, M0MPOU: Damunt de tu només les flors, SAINT-SAENS: Guitares et mandolines, DEBUSSY: Apparition, CHAUSSON: La nuit, Op. 11 No. 1, HAHN: Chansons grises, No. 5: L’heure exquise, DUPARC: La fuite, MASSENET: Rêvons, c’est l’heure, FAURE: Clair de lune, Op. 46 No. 2, Pleurs d’or, Op. 72, Tarentelle, Op. 10 No. 2

RELEASE DATE 8TH APRIL 2016

Gaetano VENEZIANO: Passio La Passione Secondo Giovanni, Napoli c.1685

Cappella Neapolitana Antonio Florio

Label: Glossa File Under: Classical/Choral Catalogue No: GCD922609 Barcode: 8424562226098 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Raffaele Pe [countertenor] Evangelista Luca Cervoni [tenor] Christus Marco Bussi [bass] Pilatus Ghislieri Choir Cappella Neapolitana Antonio Florio [conductor]

For Glossa’s new 'Passio' release Antonio Florio has discovered and prepared a performing edition of the 1685 St John Passion setting by the Neapolitan composer Gaetano Veneziano: a contemporary of Scarlatti, favoured pupil of Francesco Provenzale and maestro in the royal chapel. It features countertenor Raffaele Pe in the technically demanding role of the Evangelist. Until recently, Italian Passiontide settings from the Baroque era have amounted to only that by Alessandro Scarlatti, but this score by Veneziano has been found in the Archivio dell’Oratorio dei Girolamini in Naples. It displays a surprising blending of modernity and an older style in its instrumental accompaniment, here provided by Florio’s Cappella Neapolitana, formerly known as I Turchini. Moreover, it provides an extrovert and atmospheric response to the Gospel text for the roles of Christ, (Luca Cervoni) and Pilate (Marco Bussi) as well as for the interventions of the crowd (the Ghislieri Choir). Florio has already recorded Veneziano's oratorio, 'La Santissima Trinità', and other sacred music for Glossa.

Originally called Cappella della Pietà dei Turchini, the ensemble was founded by Antonio Florio in 1987 after a 10-year period of study and experimentation, It has since become internationally appreciated and a byword in the rediscovery of Neapolitan music written between the 15th-19th centuries, thanks to rare concert programmes, opera productions, and over 40 recordings. Today, almost 30 years after its creation – that group of 'bold pioneers' takes on the name of Cappella Neapolitana Antonio Florio, with the same musicians and collaborators that have contributed to develop this musical project from the beginning.

ALSO AVAILABLE: GCD922607 Veneziano - La Santissima Trinita: Florio “all five singers declaim their texts with crystalline clarity. As befits their years of experience in his [Veneziano’s] repertoire, Antonio Florio and I Turchini present valuable evidence of the musical merits of a neglected generation of Italian composers.”

David Vickers, Gramophone – June 2014

RELEASE DATE 8TH APRIL 2016

MONDONVILLE: Grand Motets Purcell Choir Orfeo Orchestra György Vashegyi

Label: Glossa File Under: Classical/Choral Catalogue No: GCD923508 Barcode: 8424562235083 2 FOR 1.5 Format: 2 CD Packaging: digipack Purcell Choir Orfeo Orchestra György Vashegyi [conductor]

Jean-Joseph Cassanéa de Mondonville continued and developed the French tradition of the grand motet set in place by Lully and Lalande. Four of these motets have now been recorded for Glossa by György Vashegyi with a quintet of masterly soloists, the Orfeo Orchestra and the Purcell Choir. Vashegyi, who is fast making his name in French repertoire, has chosen the music of this underrated composer to follow up his Glossa recording of Rameau’s 'Les Fêtes de Polymnie'.

Mondonville was at the height of his career in Paris the second third of the 18th century, especially at the Concert Spirituel and with the Chambre and Chapelle du Roi. As well as operas, oratorios and instrumental music, he composed grands motets – spectacular religious works which were often performed in the public sphere. The four presented here on this two-disc set, De profundis, Magnus Dominus, Cantate Domino and Nisi Dominus are fine examples of Mondonville’s art, constantly displaying his taste for virtuosic scoring and tuneful, flowing melodies. The vocal soloists, Chantal Santon-Jeffery, Daniela Skorka, Mathias Vidal, Jeffrey Thompson and Alain Buet are all well-versed in such demands, as are choir and orchestra.

Louis Castelain, who has prepared editions for two of the motets, provides an illuminating survey of Mondonville’s life for this enthralling new recording made in Budapest under the auspices of the CMBV (Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles).

ALSO AVAILABLE: GCD923502 Rameau Les Fêtes de Polymnie “the playing and especially the singing is worth hearing here, especially soprano Veronique Gens in fine form, and Emoke Barath as Polymnie in Rameau’s prologue … another enjoyable addition to our Rameau rediscoveries” Andrew McGregor – BBC Radio 3 CD Review, 31st January 2015

RELEASE DATE 8TH APRIL 2016

CPE BACH: Volume II Sinfonias Wq178 & 182/3, Cello Sonata Wq137, Cello Concerto Wq171 / harpsichord Wq17

Ophélie Gaillard Pulcinella Orchestra After the success of their first volume Ophélie Gaillard and Pulcinella propose a second disc devoted to Johann Sebastian Bach's most talented and surprising son, Carl Philipp Emanuel (1714-1788).

The Sinfonia in C major expresses multiple emotions, ranging from irrepressible suffering in the Adagio to joyous release and insouciance in the concluding Allegretto, tinged with near-Mozartian grace. The Cello Concerto in B flat reveals the influence of the waning Baroque era and Vivaldi in particular. The Sinfonia in E minor, nicknamed 'Fandango' and dating from his Berlin years, is commonly regarded as one of his finest symphonies. The particularly virtuosic Sonata for cello piccolo and keyboard shows to advantage the two soloists of this recording: Ophélie Gaillard and Francesco Corti, whose fieriness is further revealed in the Harpsichord Concerto in D minor.

Label: Aparté File Under: Classical/Instrumental Catalogue No: AP118 Barcode: 3149028077124 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Francesco Corti harpsichord] Ophélie Gaillard Pulcinella Orchestra

ALSO AVAILABLE: AP080 CPE Bach Volume 1: Cello Concerto, Sinfonia, Trio Sonata “[The Pulcinella Orchestra] are a force to be reckoned with. Led by cellist Ophelie Gaillard, the group’s well-nigh impeccable ensemble and palpable enthusiasm make it an ideal vehicle for CPE Bach at his most stormy and passionate. In the concertos, the energy is lightly handled, Gaillard dancing off-the-string with impressive bow-control … I look forward to more from this excellent ensemble.”

George Pratt, BBC Music Magazine – June 2014 **** / **** “Of the various CPE Bach recordings to have been released in his 300th anniversary year, that by cellist Ophelie Gaillard and the Pulcinella Orchestra stands out. The Cello Concertos Nos 1 and 3 are a particular treat.”

BBC Music Magazine, December 2014

RELEASE DATE 8TH APRIL 2016

DVORAK: Symphony No. 9 'New World', MUSSORGSKY: Pictures at an Exhibition Bavarian Radio Orchestra Mariss Jansons "What I compose is and always remains Czech music," asserted Antonín Dvorák, and we – the audiences who've been enraptured with the Ninth since its world premiere at New York's Carnegie Hall on 15 December 1893 – are all the richer for it. After a fleeting nod to Negro Spirituals and vaguely Native American rhythms, Dvorák dug into his seemingly bottomless reserve of catchy melodies, foot-tapping rhythms, burnished brass intonations, mellow woodwind lines and other Bohemian traits that would be unthinkable without the pillars of Austro-Germanic music.

Label: Belvedere File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: BVD08015 Barcode: 4260415080158 NORMAL Price Format: 1 DVD Packaging: digipack Bavarian Radio Orchestra Mariss Jansons

"I simply wrote down themes of my own invention and gave them elements typical of the music of the Negroes and Indians. I then used these themes as subjects, developing them with all the resources of rhythm, harmony and counterpoint, and with all the colors of the modern orchestra," the composer once said. Interestingly, the galley proofs of the work were corrected by none other than Johannes Brahms.

Of course, the work would most probably never have been written if it hadn't been for a patron, or patroness, to be more precise, Jeanette Thurber, who founded the National Conservatory of Music of America and invited the composer to New York in the hope that he would give birth to a national American music; he had, after all, created a national Czech music.

RELEASE DATE 8TH APRIL 2016

DVORAK: Symphony No. 9 'New World', MUSSORGSKY: Pictures at an Exhibition Bavarian Radio Orchestra Mariss Jansons "What I compose is and always remains Czech music," asserted Antonín Dvorák, and we – the audiences who've been enraptured with the Ninth since its world premiere at New York's Carnegie Hall on 15 December 1893 – are all the richer for it. After a fleeting nod to Negro Spirituals and vaguely Native American rhythms, Dvorák dug into his seemingly bottomless reserve of catchy melodies, foot-tapping rhythms, burnished brass intonations, mellow woodwind lines and other Bohemian traits that would be unthinkable without the pillars of Austro-Germanic music.

Label: Belvedere File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: BVD08016 Barcode: 4260415080165 NORMAL Price Format: 1 Blu-ray Packaging: digipack Bavarian Radio Orchestra Mariss Jansons

"I simply wrote down themes of my own invention and gave them elements typical of the music of the Negroes and Indians. I then used these themes as subjects, developing them with all the resources of rhythm, harmony and counterpoint, and with all the colors of the modern orchestra," the composer once said. Interestingly, the galley proofs of the work were corrected by none other than Johannes Brahms.

Of course, the work would most probably never have been written if it hadn't been for a patron, or patroness, to be more precise, Jeanette Thurber, who founded the National Conservatory of Music of America and invited the composer to New York in the hope that he would give birth to a national American music; he had, after all, created a national Czech music.

RELEASE DATE 8TH APRIL 2016

PROKOFIEV: Symphonies 5 Op. 100 & 6 Op. 111 Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra Yevgeny Mravinsky A logical, albeit rare combination of works, presented by the Politburo to reflect victory and an irresistible force – understandably in the case of Op.100 (1950); but unjustifiably in the case of Op.111 (1945-7), the ‘two-headed symphony’ which had the misfortune to displease Stalin, who hade xpected an ode to his glory.

Mravinsky seldom performed these symphonies but has left for posterity a few ardent concert recordings.

Live recording St Petersburg, Large Hall of the Philharmonic Orchestra June 29, 1973 [Symphony 5] [No. 6] Live recording Prague, Dvorak Hall May 25 1967, previously available on PR250079

Label: Praga Digitals File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: DSD350121 Barcode: 3149028086027 NORMAL Price Format: 1 SACD Packaging: cristal Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra Yevgeny Mravinsky

RELEASE DATE 8TH APRIL 2016

Piano Music of Spain Maria Garzon Heritage artist, Maria Garzon, performs the piano music of her homeland – an eclectic mix of composers with which she has a close affinity. Originally on two separate discs, her performances now appear in slimline double format. When originally released in the 1990s, both received critical acclaim, the first being awarded ‘Record of the Year’ by the British Retailers Association. Joaquin Rodrigo was particularly flattering regarding her playing of his music: "She has the distinction of being one of the rare Spanish pianists to record my music for the piano and this is particularly satisfying to me."

CD1: SOLER: Keyboard Sonats Nos. 45, 84, 90, ALBENIZ: Suite Espanola Op. 47, GRANADOS: Goyescas, No. 1 – Los requiebros, Danza Espanola, No. 5 – Andaluza, DE FALLA: Fantasia Betica, MOMPOU: Cancion y Danza No. 6, Alejandro YAGUE (b. 1947): Halley

Label: Heritage File Under: Classical Catalogue No: HTGCD207/08 Barcode: 5060332661657 2 FOR 1 Format: 2 CD Packaging: cristal Maria Garzon [piano]

CD2: RODRIGO: Serenata Espanola (1931), Bagatella (1926), Pastoral (1926), Sonatas de Castilla (1951), El Album de Cecilia (1948), A L’Ombre de Torre Bermeja (1945), Air de Ballet sur le nom d'une Jeune Fille (1930), Tres Danzas de Espana (1941), Berceuse de Printemps (1923), Tres Evocaciones (1981)

RELEASE DATE 8TH APRIL 2016

British Celebration RTE Concert Orchestra Gavin Sutherland

Label: Heritage File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: HTGCD203 Barcode: 5060332661633 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal RTE Concert Orchestra Gavin Sutherland (conductor)

Philip Lane, "The doyen of British Light Music" (James Jolly, Gramophone), has collaborated with Heritage for this Spring release: orchestral music composed by leading figures in the Light Music movement.

Bryan Kelly was born in Oxford and studied at the Royal College of Music with Herbert Howells and Gordon Jacob, and later in Paris with Nadia Boulanger. His 'Four Realms Suite' won a BBC competition for light orchestral works in 1972.

David Lyon studied at the Royal Academy of Music and Bristol University. His Piano Concerto in one movement was written while still a student at the RAM and remained unperformed until 2015 when it was overhauled by the composer.

Nicholas Smith's 'Tears in My Bowl' makes use of two folksongs from Ningxia, a predominantly Muslim region of China, which date back hundreds of years and have been kept alive by being passed down orally from generation to generation.

Roy Moore has worked in most areas of music as composer, arranger, conductor and pianist, with artists as diverse as Madness and Andrea Bocelli. His 'Celebration Overture' was written to mark the birth of his first grandchild, and is suitably joyous.

Glyn Jones read music at Merton College, Oxford. His output is prodigious and includes the first Welsh - language opera to have been composed for over a century. The tone poem, 'Snowdonia', suggests the changing seasons, the grandeur of the area, even the little train that takes passengers up to the summit.

Anthony Hedges is most associated with the city of Hull, at whose university he taught for much of his professional life.

'Showpiece' was commissioned by the Friends of the East Riding Orchestras to celebrate the 40th anniversary of their Youth Orchestra.

Philip Spratley's 'Images of Palaestina' dates back to the mid-60s when the composer was in the Middle East. The title is the Roman word for the area and is used to stress the fact that the land is home to Arab and Jew. Bryan Kelly (b.1934): Four Realms Suite (1972) David Lyon (b.1938): Piano Concerto in one movement (1963 rev. 2015) {Soloist: Alisdair Hogarth} Nicholas Smith (b.1967): Tears in my Bowl (2014) Roy Moore (b.1948): Celebration Overture (2011) Gareth Glyn (b.1951): Snowdonia (1980) Anthony Hedges (b.1931): Showpiece (1995) Philip Spratley (b.1942): Images of Palaestina (1966)

harmonia mundi UK

Classical new releases

available April 15th 2016, call-off April 8th

APRIL 15

• Gramophone Recording of the Year 2008 • Gramophone Award 2010 • Paul Lewis’ numerous awards have included the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Instrumentalist of the Year, two Edison awards, three Gramophone awards and the South Bank Show Classical Music award • The only pianist to perform all 5 Beethoven Concertos in one BBC Proms season, televised by the BBC and streamed by the Guardian • Co-Artistic Director of the Leeds International Piano Competition • First Concerto recording since Beethoven

AVAILABLE 15th APRIL

RELEASE DATE 15TH APRIL 2016

BRAHMS: Piano Concerto No. 1, Ballades Op. 10 Paul Lewis Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra Daniel Harding British pianist Paul Lewis has risen to international stardom with a particularly enviable reputation in the Viennese heartlands of the piano repertoire. Here he plays Brahms' first piano concerto with Daniel Harding and the Swedish Radio Orchestra, coupled with Brahms' emotionally powerful early Ballades Op.10. Piano Concerto No. 2, which Paul has not yet played, will follow in 2018.

“every now and again a recording comes along that makes you want to dance in the street, handing out copies to complete strangers. This is one of those instances...Time and again, you marvel at the confidence and sureness of Lewis's playing, combined with the finesse and musicality that he has always displayed. It's the kind of playing, in fact, where comparisons cease to matter....� Gramophone

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: HMC902191 Barcode: 3149020219126 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Paul Lewis [piano] Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Daniel Harding [conductor] [photos with thanks to Swedish Radio/Stina Gullander]

PRESS: James Naughtie interview in May issue of BBC Music Magazine Gramophone: Musician and the score Pianist Magazine [tbc] Arts desk interview Facing the Music, The Guardian, early May before concert CONCERTS: 3rd April wt Mark Padmore Birmingham Town Hall, Schwanengesang 8th May Perth, Brahms Ballades, Schubert Liszt 11th May International Piano Series: Royal Festival Hall, Brahms Ballades, Schubert Liszt 17th & 19th May Chipping Camden Beethoven

ADVERTISED IN CLASSICAL MUSIC PRESS & INTERNATIONAL PIANO SERIES PROGRAMME

RELEASE DATE 15TH APRIL 2016

Phillip GLASS: In the Summer House, Mad Rush Nico MUHLY: Four Studies, Honest Music

Jennifer & Angela Chun Nico Muhly This recital of music, especially written or arranged for violinists Angela and Jennifer Chun, highlights the personal and professional connections between Philip Glass and Nico Muhly, a longtime colleague and admirer of Glass’s work.

Nico Muhly first listened to Philip Glass’ 'Music in Twelve Parts' in his freshman year of college, while riding the subway in New York. Within a year of that subway encounter, Muhly found himself working at Glass’ studio as a copyist, editor, and sequencer for film scores. Here Glass is presented not as the author of mammoth pieces like 'Music in Twelve Parts', but as a miniaturist; a role shared with Muhly, who rarely composes in epic mode.

The making of this recording has been an inspiring journey for the Chung Duo: a 2009 meeting with the Dalai Lama affected the sisters deeply and led them to the music of Philip Glass, whose 'Mad Rush' (here transcribed by Alexandra du Bois for two violins) had been composed for His Holiness’ first visit to North America in 1981.

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Instrumental Catalogue No: HMU907599 Barcode: 093046759926 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Jennifer Chun Angela Chun Nico Muhly [piano and keyboard]

Nico MUHLY (b.1981) Four Studies (2014) dedicated to Angela & Jennifer Chun: I. Suspensions, II. Fast Canons, III. Slow Canons, IV. Open Notes, Honest Music (2003) Philip GLASS (b. 1937): Mad Rush (1979) (transcribed for 2 violins by Alexandra du Bois, 2014) In the Summer House (1993) (transcribed for 2 violins by Alexandra du Bois, 2014) I. In the Summer House, II. My One and Only Hope, III. Gertrudeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Pradise, IV. Mr. Solaresâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Picnic Lunch, V. [-], VI. Molly Is a Dreamer, VII. Enter Vivian, VIII. The Beach / Lionel & Molly [NB: IX and X not included in this arrangement], XI. Vivianâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Death [conclusion], XII. Gertrude Leaves Summer House, XIII. Left Alone, XIV. The Lobster Bowl, XV. Back to Sad Things, XVI. I Knew You Would Come Back [excerpt], XI. Vivianâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Death [beginning], XVII. When I was a Little Girl ALSO AVAILABLE: +08 %DUWRN 9LROLQ 'XRV â&#x20AC;&#x153;a very fine discâ&#x20AC;Śthese exceptionally gifted players treat the music entirely throughout as music. The recording quality is just perfect.â&#x20AC;? International Record Review, February 2010 +08 )DQWDV\ 0DUWLQX 0LOKDXG <un â&#x20AC;&#x153;Recommended.â&#x20AC;? Classic FM Magazine, March 2008

RELEASE DATE 15TH APRIL 2016

LUTOSLAWSKI: Concerto for orchestra BRAHMS/SCHOENBERG: Piano Quartet in G minor Op.25

Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra Miguel Harth-Bedoya With its use of folk melodies to generate tremendous momentum and dramatic impact, the Concerto for Orchestra (1954) established Witold Lutoslawski (1913-1994) as Polandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading composer and an international force in concert music.

Here it is coupled with another showpiece: Brahmsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Piano Quartet in G minor arranged for full orchestra by Arnold Schoenberg (1937).

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: HMU807668 Barcode: 093046766863 NORMAL Price Format: 1 SACD Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra Miguel Harth-Bedoya [conductor]

GrammyÂŽ-nominated and Emmy Award-winning conductor Miguel Harth-Bedoya is currently Chief Conductor of the Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Oslo, and is in his 16th season as Music Director of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.

He has appeared as guest conductor for the upper echelon of American orchestras including Chicago, Boston, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Minnesota, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Baltimore, and New York. Born and raised in Peru, Harth-Bedoyaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s discography includes two recordings for harmonia mundi with the Norwegian Radio Orchestra. Upcoming recordings for the label include Volume 2 of the complete Prokofiev Piano Concertos featuring Van Cliburn Gold Medalist Vadym Kholodenko.

Harth-Bedoya has also recorded for Deutsche Grammophon with Katia and Marielle Labèque, as well as with Juan Diego Flórez for Decca, and with Yo-Yo Ma and the Chicago Symphony for CSO Resound. He is also the Founder and Artistic Director of Caminos del Inka, Inc., a non-profit organisation dedicated to performing and promoting the music of the Americas.

LIMITED OFFER FREE DOWNLOAD (24-bit HD audio files - enter the unique code registered inside each CD) ALSO AVAILABLE: +08 3URNRILHY 3LDQR &RQFHUWRV .KRORGHQNR >6$&'@ â&#x20AC;&#x153;a very fine pianist; there is doubt about his virtuosity and his affinity with Prokofiev â&#x20AC;Ś thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a lot of potential in this young pianist â&#x20AC;Ś Kholodenko is great in showing the drive of this music, the power of it, and also the different colours â&#x20AC;Ś he has fingers of steel.â&#x20AC;? CD Review, 20th February 2016 +08 *ULHJ 6DLQW 6DHQV 3LDQR &RQFHUWRV .KRORGHQNR â&#x20AC;&#x153;For a truly outstanding recording of the Grieg, turn to Vadym Kholodenko, Miguel Harth-Bedoya and the Norwegian Radio Orchestraâ&#x20AC;Śbut the companion piece, Saint-Saens's Second Concerto, is even better, perhaps the most consistently accurately observed reading on disc.â&#x20AC;? Gramophone Editor's Choice September 2015

RELEASE DATE 15TH APRIL 2016

David BRUCE: Gumboots BRAHMS: Clarinet Quintet

Julian Bliss Carducci Quartet Julian Bliss and the Carducci Quartet pair two highly contrasting works â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Johannes Brahms's Clarinet Quintet and David Bruce's 'Gumboots'.

Label: Signum Classics File Under: Classical/Instrumental Catalogue No: SIGCD448 Barcode: 635212044827 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Julian Bliss[ clarinet] Carducci Quartet

Written for bass clarinet and string quartet, David Bruce describes the origins of his work 'Gumboot's: "... it was born out of the brutal labour conditions in South Africa under apartheid, in which black miners where chained together and wore gumboots (wellington boots) while they worked in the flooded gold mines, because it was cheaper for the owners to supply the boots than to drain the floodwater from the mine. Apparently slapping the boots and chains was used by the workers as a form of communication which was otherwise banned in the mine, and this later developed into a form of dance. If the examples of Gumboot Dancing available online are anything to go by, it is characterised by a huge vitality and zest for life. So this for me is a striking example of how something beautiful and life-enhancing can come out of something far more negative."

Gumboots 1 Part One 2 Dance I 3 Dance II 4 Dance III 5 Dance IV 6Dance V Clarinet Quintet in B Minor, Op. 115 7I. Allegro 8 II. Adagio 9 III. Andantino 10 IV. Con moto http://www.julianbliss.com/julian-talks-about-david-bruces-gumboots/

RELEASE DATE 15TH APRIL 2016

Greensleeves - Folk Music of the British Isles Armonico Consort Christopher Monks 'Greensleeves' is a celebration of music spanning the length and breadth of the British Isles, featuring mesmerising new arrangements by Geoffrey Webber and Toby Young of some of the most beautiful folk music ever written. The recording includes 'Loch Lomond', 'Lisa Lân' and of course, perhaps the most famous British melody ever written: 'Greensleeves'.

Label: Signum Classics File Under: Classical/Secular Vocal music Catalogue No: SIGCD447 Barcode: 635212044728 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Armonico Consort Christopher Monks [conductor]

1Lisa Lân Traditional, arr. Geoffrey Webber 2The Blue Bird Charles Villiers Stanford 3The Banks of my own Lovely Lee Traditional, arr. Geoffrey Webber 4She Moved Through the Fair Traditional, arr. Toby Young 5Lay a GarlandRobert Pearsall 6Sweet Kitty Traditional, arr. Geoffrey Webber 7Suo Gân Traditional, arr. Toby Young 8I Love my Love Traditional, arr. Gustav Holst 9Dadl Dau Traditional, arr. Geoffrey Webber 10Now is the Month of Maying Thomas Morley 11An Rosen Wyn Traditional, arr. Christopher Monks 12Greensleeves Traditional, arr. Geoffrey Webber 13Loch Lomond Traditional, arr. R. Vaughan Williams 14O Love, ‘tis a Calm Starry Night Traditional, arr. Patrick Hadley 15Wraggle Taggle Gipsies, O! Traditional, arr. Geoffrey Webber

RELEASE DATE 15TH APRIL 2016

Rèves d'Espagne / Dreams of Spain Songs by Dorumsgaard, Ibert, Ravel & Shostakovich; Piano works by Albeniz & Granados

Henk Neven Hans Eijsackers IBERT: 4 Chanson de Don Quichote DORUMSGAARD: Spanish traditional Songs SHOSTAKOVICH: 6 Spanish Songs op100 ALBENIZ: El Puerto (Iberia) GRANADOS: Danza Espagnol No.2 RAVEL: 3 Chanson de Don Quichote

Label: Onyx Classics File Under: Classical/Secular Vocal music Catalogue No: ONYX4132 Barcode: 880040413226 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Henk Neven [baritone] Hans Eijsackers [piano]

Here's a name to watch: the young Dutch baritone Henk Neven was a BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artist two years ago and richly deserves his chance to shine. Neven's highly individual timbre is unlike any other lieder interpreter's: he sings with astonishing technical finesse, verbal acuity and a sense of wonder.

Henk Neven’s two earlier discs for ONYX marked him out as one of the leading young baritone voices of our time. His third album for ONYX is a superbly crafted recital that takes us to Spain. Don Quixote songs from Ibert and Ravel, songs 15th & 16th century Spanish composers skilfully arranged by Arne Dorumsgaard and the rare Op.100 cycle of 6 Spanish Songs by Shostakovich complete this stunning recital. Pianist Hans Eijsackers has two moments in the Spanish sun as well with two pieces by Albeniz and Granados.

Advertised in Gramophone and BBC Music Magazine ALSO AVAILABLE: ONYX4052 ‘Auf einer Burg’ Loewe Lieder & Schumann ‘Liederkreis ONYX4052 Loewe & Schumann 4 Stars The Sunday Times ONYX4102 ‘The Sea’ Songs by Debussy, Faure & Schubert "Rarely do you hear, even in the rarefied world of French melodie and German Lieder, a baritone who sings with such subtlety in shading of dynamic and tone as the Dutch baritone Henk Neven. Last year I welcomed his Onyx disc of Lieder

by Loewe and Schumann and this latest disc extends my admiration even further in totally exquisite singing."

Gramophone

RELEASE DATE 15TH APRIL 2016

Bernard HUGHES: I am the Song BBC Singers Following in Signum's series of composer-led releases with the BBC Singers, this new disc represents the culmination of a collaboration between British composer Bernard Hughes and the BBC Singers that began in 2002. Combining modern poetry by e. e. cummings and Siegfried Sassoon alongside Norse poetry, this Hughes combines ancient and modern elements into his compositions, ably performed by the BBC Singers under Paul Brough.

Bernard Hughesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s music has been performed at major venues in Britain and abroad and received a number of broadcasts on BBC Radio 3. He was runner-up at the 2009 British Composer Awards for the choral work 'The Death of Balder' (featured on this recording).

Label: Signum Classics File Under: Classical/Choral Catalogue No: SIGCD451 Barcode: 635212045121 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal BBC Singers, Paul Brough [conductor]

Two Choral Fanfares: Everyone sang, I am the Song Three Swans: The Bereaved Swan, The Silver Swan, Riddle The winter it is past The Death of Balder: Prologue, Act One, Interlude, Act Two anyone lived in a pretty how town Revelation Window A Medieval Bestiary: Prologue, The Beasts of the Land, The Panther, First Sermon, The Beasts of the Water, The Whale, Second Sermon, The Beasts of the Air, The Phoenix, Third Sermon

RELEASE DATE 15TH APRIL 2016

Mozart’s Costa Violin Esther Hoppe Florian Birsak MOZART: Andante & Fugue Sonata A major K402 Sonata B flat major K454, Sonata A major K526 SCHUBERT: Sonata D major D384, Sonata A minor D385

Label: Belvedere File Under: Classical/Instrumental Catalogue No: BCD10145 Barcode: 4280000101457 MID Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Esther Hoppe [Mozart’s Costa Violin, 1764] Florian Birsak [Graf-Flügel, pianoforte, 1839] Live recording

“This violin originates from Mozart’s estate and Mozart always played it. I bought it from Mozart’s widow”, noted publisher and composer Johann Anton André around 1840. And in a diary entry by William Hill written on 11 Nov. 1909 he noted: “Dr. Henkel, who wants to sell his Violin by Petrus della Costa, has sent me the history of the fiddle, it is as follows. His father bought the violin from Hofrath Anton André of Offenbach about 1840 since which time it has been in the family.

Henkel’s father (Kgl. Musikdirector in Frankfurt), was a pupil of André who was one of the first publishers of Mozart’s compositions. On this latter’s death he purchased from the widow the greater part of his MSS & effects, amongst which was this identical violin. André always spoke of it as ‘Mozart’s violin’ and I see no reason to doubt this statement.”

The instrument was kept under lock and key by the company Hill & Sons until its dissolution.

During the time Mozart lived and worked in Vienna, he possessed and played the Costa violin. It is quite likely that, now, Mozart’s Costa violin resounds again in this public concert after a very long period of silence.

In cooperation with the label Belvedere Edition the Mozarteum Foundation is publishing highlights of the Mozart Week from its beginnings until the present day .

Contemporary history and the history of interpretation become audible in carefully restored sound documents of excellent sound quality. Moreover, the edition will also comprise current recordings from the Mozart Week and concerts throughout the season.

RELEASE DATE 15TH APRIL 2016

SHOSTAKOVICH: String Quartets 1 String Quartets 1, 2 & 5

Borodin Quartet A tribute to violinist Rostislav Dubinsky (1923-97), keystone of the Borodin Quartet until 1974 when he emigrated to the West. The Moscow Philmarmonic Quartet was composed of orchestra members such as Rudolf and Nina Barsha誰 and Mstsislav Rostropovitch who often played only for one season. Dubinsky managed to keep the same Borodin Quartet together for 20 years. They acted as ambassadors of Russian music to the outside world. Although Shostakovich entrusted the premieres of 13 of his 15 quartets to the Beethoven Quartet, the Borodin Quartet earned them world acclaim, and their post-Beethoven rendering was quickly taken up by non-Slavic musicians.

Label: Praga Digitals File Under: Classical/Chamber music Catalogue No: PRD250323 Barcode: 3149028074826 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Borodin Quartet

harmonia mundi UK

Classical new releases

available April 22nd 2016, call-off April 15th

APRIL 22

RELEASE DATE 22ND APRIL 2016

PROKOFIEV: Symphony No. 5 Recorded Live at Concertgebouw Amsterdam on 17-19 and 21 September 2014

Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Mariss Jansons In this recording of Sergei Prokofiev's masterful Fifth Symphony, Mariss Jansons and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra find themselves on familiar ground. Already in 1948 (four years after the world premiere) Eduard van Beinum introduced it to the orchestra. A long line of famous conductors followed, including André Previn, George Szell, Vladimir Ashkenazy and Valery Gergiev. The fact that this music is part of Mariss Jansons' musical DNA, may explain the feeling of authenticity in this recording.

Press quotes: "Jansons conducted as if his life depended on it. The performance was threatening, rough, energetic - even manic. This was about truth rather than splendor." Thiemo Wind, De Telegraaf

Label: RCO Live File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: RCO16002 Barcode: 814337019235 NORMAL Price Format: 1 SACD Packaging: cristal Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Mariss Jansons

"Jansons conducted a refreshingly optimistic performance of Prokofiev that made me change my opinion of the Symphony no. 5 in B minor. The encouraging, uplifting spirits in the Andante came alive with beautiful nuance. The brass offered their most brilliant colours; even the tuba had its moment of glory. In playful mood, the Allegro marcato connected to the Shostakovich’s Allegro con brio in the piano concerto. In rapid tempo, each instrument helped develop the playful melody: it was like a game of tag. In the third movement Adagio, Jansons finally exhibited how threatening and broodingly Russian the RCO can sound. After that preceding gravitas, the quiet opening of the final movement’s Allegro giocoso offered another moment of touching pianissimo. Slowly all the sections followed Prokofiev’s light-hearted melody and continued the optimistic towards the triumphant finale." bachtrack.com

RELEASE DATE 22ND APRIL 2016

BARTOK: Violin Concerto No.2, Concerto for Orchestra Augustin Dumay Montreal Symphony Orchestra Kent Nagano

Label: Onyx Classics File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: ONYX4138 Barcode: 880040413820 2 FOR 1 Price Format: 2 CD Packaging: cristal Augustin Dumay Montreal Symphony Orchestra Kent Nagano

When the eminent Hungarian violinist Zoltán Székely, a personal friend of the composer’s, as well as a frequent recital partner, commissioned Bartók to write a concerto in the summer of 1936, it was, according to the violinist’s recollection, a large-scale, one-movement, variation form, that Bartók was keen to explore. Székely, however, was more interested in having a conventional three-movement piece to add to his repertoire, and Bartók duly acquiesced, composing a work that takes the virtuosity and melodic richness of the Romantic concerto tradition and recasts it in the terms of his own, highly personal idiom, with all its contradictions – spiky yet warm, bold and yet contained. Bartók had made a late decision to leave Hungary, well after the outbreak of World War II, had been given a research post at Columbia University in New York, and embarked on concert and lecture tours across the US. But the Columbia post was soon curtailed, and Bartók’s rapidly deteriorating health snuffed out his concert career. The American performing rights society ASCAP took on financial responsibility for the composer’s healthcare, and two of Bartók’s fellow émigrés, Szigeti and the conductor Fritz Reiner, persuaded the conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Serge Koussevitzky, to commission an orchestral piece. Convalescing at Saranac Lake, New York, in the summer and early autumn of 1943, Bartók wrote his 'Concerto for Orchestra', the perfect synthesis of all the elements of his mature style, and by virtue of its accessibility, the piece that brought him a far wider audience than he had previously known.

ALSO AVAILABLE: ONYX4096 Franck & Strauss Violin Sonatas with Louis Lortie ONYX4101 Brahms Serenade No.1, Beethoven Two Romances ONYX4091 Saint-Saens Symphony No.1, The Muse & The Poet, Cello Concerto No.1, with Pavel Gormziakov ONYX4154 Beethoven Violin Concerto, Symphony No.8, Brahms String Sextet No.1 Advertised in Gramophone and BBC Music Magazine

RELEASE DATE 22ND APRIL 2016

MACHAUT: Messe de Nostre Dame Graindelavoix Bjorn Schmelzer

Label: Glossa File Under: Classical/Choral Catalogue No: GCDP32110 Barcode: 8424562321106 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Graindelavoix Bjorn Schmelzer

At last! A new recording of Machaut's 'Messe de Nostre Dame' from Björn Schmelzer and Graindelavoix, one of Glossa’s long-standing artistic family members.

Following a trio of discs devoted to music in the spirit of the medieval master draughtsman Villard de Honnecourt, the Antwerp-based ensemble has now turned to the first known composer of an integral mass cycle: Guillaume de Machaut, who was a canon at Reims Cathedral in the 14th century. The work, described as a medieval monstre sacré, is performed by an all-male ensemble from Graindelavoix featuring both sharp high tenors and very low basses.

Graindelavoix’s continuing and vibrantly imaginative aesthetic is described, with customary imagery, by Björn Schmelzer in the accompanying booklet essay, where he declares his passion for “conjuring up the voices of the past” to describe the performance approach taken by Graindelavoix: one that emphasises the individuality of the singers rather than a homogeneous ensemble sound.

Schmelzer’s choice of accompanying Propers for a Lady Mass underscores Machaut’s own devotion to the Virgin Mary, as do two of the composer’s spectacular motets, which are also associated with the city of Reims.

“There are so many ways this disc is original. Start with the sound. I’ve never heard chant like this. It has a solidity that most plainsong lacks … Behind it is a panoply of ideas … I’m happy to listen to it with an innocent ear and enjoy a magnificent and original sound” Early Music Review, December 2012 “This highly accomplished and committed ensemble continues to brand itself by celebrating the very individual qualities of its voices. Their improvisation of discant and some sensitive, highly convincing, recycling of existing organa carve a fabulous tracery of sound and are in equal measure entertaining and provocative, opening up some interesting issues in respect of performance practice.” Early Music Today ****

RELEASE DATE 22ND APRIL 2016

Benjamin GODARD: MĂŠlodies World premiere recording

Tassis Christoyannis Jeff Cohen The mĂŠlodies of Benjamin Godard (1849-1895) are little known even by specialists of the genre. Yet Godard was prolific and most of his output came at a key moment in his evolution, around 1870. After the success of his dramatic symphony 'Le Tasse' in 1878, Godard was monopolised by the opera and composed several lyric works that overshadowed the 162 published songs, one of the most interesting parts of his catalogue.

The pieces selected here by Tassis Christoyannis and Jeff Cohen, most of them recorded for the first time, illustrate the composer's literary sensibility (Jean de La Fontaine, ThĂŠophile Gautier, Victor Hugo, Charles Baudelaire...) which he reveals in all their beauty.

Recorded under the auspices of the festival Godard, with the collaboration of the Palazzetto Bru Zane [Benjamin Godard in the Parisian salons 9th April-15th May 2016 PALAZZETTO BRU ZANE: Venice, www.bru-zane.com]

Label: ApartĂŠ File Under: Classical/Secular Vocal music Catalogue No: AP123 Barcode: 3149028077629 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Tassis Christoyannis [baritone] Jeff Cohen [piano]

Te souviens-tu, Le Banc de pierre, Je ne veux pas d'autres choses, Dieu, qui sourit et qui donne, Jacotte.

Six fables de La Fontaine, L'invitation au voyage, Les Adieux du berger (extrait des Pastorales, Op. 29), Elle, Chanson du berger, Nouvelles Chansons du vieux temps, Printemps, Guitare, Chanson, Le MĂŠnĂŠtrier, Message

ALSO AVAILABLE: $3 )pOLFLHQ 'DYLG 0pORGLHV â&#x20AC;&#x153;Both voice and instrument face a wide range, served well by both artists â&#x20AC;Ś admirably sung.â&#x20AC;? International Record Review, January 2015 $3 /DOR &RPSOHWH 6RQJV â&#x20AC;&#x153;The arrival of a fine melodie singer is always a cause of celebration. Tassis Christoyannis has a baritone voice that moves smoothly from the most elegant, caressing pianissimo, at times reminiscent of Gerard Souzay, to a commanding fortissimo. In addition, his words are the clearest I've heard in this repertory for a very long time, and he uses them with great intelligenceâ&#x20AC;Śâ&#x20AC;? BBC Music Magazine, January 2016 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Christoyannis is an outstanding communicator here, admirably aware of textual and musical subtleties, without over-dramatising. The Hugo settings gleam with wit...Cohen is a fine accompanist, weighty yet detailed, formidably coming into his own in the BĂŠranger Romances...I would have preferred more detailed booklet-notes than those provided, but this is a superb issue nevertheless. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s essential listening if you care for French song.â&#x20AC;?

Gramophone Magazine, February 2016

RELEASE DATE 22ND APRIL 2016

Benjamin GODARD: Complete Sonatas for violin and piano No. 1 Op. 1, No. 2 Op. 2, No. 3 Op. 9, No. 4 Op. 12

Label: Aparté File Under: Classical/Instrumental Catalogue No: AP124 Barcode: 3149028077728 MID Price Format: 2 CD Packaging: digipack Nicolas Dautricourt [violin] Dana Ciocarlie [piano]

Benjamin Godard’s reputation as a chamber composer and instrumentalist won him the Prix Chartier in 1879, and led to his appointment as professor of the ensemble [chamber] music class at the Paris Conservatoire in 1887.

A child prodigy on the violin and a pupil of Richard Hammer and Henri Vieuxtemps, Benjamin Godard entered the Paris Conservatoire, where he studied composition with Henri Reber. Despite twice failing the Prix de Rome competition, he was a prominent figure in French musical life in the early years of the Third Republic.

Exactly half of Godard's chamber music output uses large-scale form: sonatas, trios and quartets. There are more pieces for piano and violin (eight) but sonatas take pride of place in his early catalogue. Published by Flaxland, the first three sonatas received very little coverage in the press, even though they sold well. The masterpiece, in the opinion of Godard’s contemporaries, was the fourth sonata, composed in 1872 at Taverny, moreover, his first work to be published abroad (Berlin). It inevitably brings to mind its contemporary, the Op. 13 Sonata by Gabriel Fauré, which was given its first performance the same year and which could only find publication in Germany, without any financial remuneration for the composer. Godard managed somewhat better: after selling his first two sonatas for 50 francs apiece and the third for 100, he sold the fourth for 400 francs.

At the time of his untimely death in 1895, he had remained loyal to what his contemporaries described as 'sentimental music', a predilection which caused him to be consigned to oblivion by performers and history books alike. The performance of these neglected works allows us to appreciate once again the richness of musical life in the second half of the 19th century, and the position to which Godard can aspire.

Nicolas Dautricourt currently plays the magnificent Stradivarius, the 'Château Fombrauge' (Cremona 1713). His recent recording of Sibelius [for La Dolce Volta LDV23] has received many awards, including a CHOC by Classica and this from Gramophone: “[Dautricourt] brings rare stylistic nous to the Five Pieces, Op. 81 - a true salon feeling in the Mazurka, and he adapts his tone with skill in the Waltz's tiny development section” Gramophone Magazine, December 2015 Recorded under the auspices of the festival Godard, with the collaboration of the Palazzetto Bru Zane [Benjamin Godard in the Parisian salons 9th April-15th May 2016 PALAZZETTO BRU ZANE: Venice, www.bru-zane.com]

RELEASE DATE 22ND APRIL 2016

BACH: Brandenburg Concertos Neumeyer Consort, Felix Koch (direction)

Label: Christophorus File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: CHR77400 Barcode: 4010072774002 MID Price Format: 2 CD Packaging: digipack Neumeyer Consort, Felix Koch (direction)

In 1721 Margrave Christian Ludwig of Brandenburg-Schwedt’s long love affair with Italy was crowned by a cycle which brought him greater posthumous fame than any of his military or political achievements: six concertos in the Italian style sent to him from the Anhalt-Köthener court music director, Johann Sebastian Bach, whom he had met on the composer’s visit to Berlin in 1719. The master harpsichordist Bach performed for the Margrave at the Berlin court and the latter was so deeply fascinated by Bach’s music that he expressed the desire to possess several of the great master’s compositions. Bach made a personal compilation in an exquisite fair copy in his own hand of his finest, most magnificent and elaborate concertos in a single volume. The dedication was expressed in the courteous language of French as was the title: 'Concerts avec plusieurs instruments' (Concertos with several instruments). It was the Bach biographer Philipp Spitta who gave the collection its now common title “Brandenburg Concertos” in the 19th century.

The Neumeyer Consort, founded in 2007, have gained an excellent reputation, not only through several CD recordings (Oehms classics, Christophorus) and productions for radio and television, but also through performances at numerous German festivals (i.e. Handel Festival Göttingen, Schwetzinger Festspiele, Rheingau Musikfestival). The ensemble finds regular cooperation with renowned early music specialists such as Andreas Scholl, Wolfgang Katschner, Michael Hofstetter, Konrad Junghänel and Ton Koopman.

RELEASE DATE 22ND APRIL 2016

Igor Stravinsky in the USSR $SROORQ 0XVDJqWH complete ballet, Moscow 26/9/1965 ,O\D 6KSLOEHUJ >YLROLQ@ /HQLQJUDG 3KLOKDUPRQLF 0UDYLQVN\ 2USKHXV ballet in three tableax, 2GH chant funèbre à la mÊmoire de Nathalie Koussevitzky Moscow 28/9/1962 8665 6\PSKRQ\ 2UFKHVWUD 6WUDYLQVN\ )HX GœDUWLILFH )LUHZRUNV Moscow 2/10/1962 0RVFRZ 3KLOKDUPRQLF 6WUDYLQVN\ 6RQJ RI WKH 9ROJD ERDWPHQ transcribed for wind, 28/9/1962 3KLOKDUPRQLF :LQGV RI 0RVFRZ ,JRU 6WUDYLQVN\

Label: Praga Digitals File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: PRD250330 Barcode: 3149028075526 Price: ÂŁ9.48 Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Leningrad Philharmonic/Yevgeny Mravinsky USSR Symphony Orchestra/Igor Stravinsky Philharmonic Winds of Moscow/Igor Stravinsky

Born a Russian, Stravinsky adopted French, then American citizenship and only returned to the USSR at Khrushchevâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bidding for three triumphant days of concerts (1st - 3rd October 1962). The Soviet intelligentsia were summoned to attend this neo-orthodox programme, of which only the last part was appreciated by the Politburo, namely a wind instrument arrangement of the 'Song of the Volga Boatmen'. This disc celebrates that historic visit.

Before that, only Yevgeny Mravinsky in Leningrad, feigning ignorance of the unwritten ban on the music of this â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;cosmopolitan puppetâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, introduced not only 'Petrushka' to the Russian public, but also other works like 'Agon' and 'Apollon Musagète'.

RELEASE DATE 22ND APRIL 2016

SIBELIUS: Symphonies 3 & 7, Swan of Tuonela DEBUSSY: Nocturnes

Yevgeny Mravinsky Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra SIBELIUS: Symphony No. 3 Op. 52 Live recording Leningrad Oct 27, 1963 The Swan of Tuonela, Legend Op. 22 No. 3 Live recording Moscow, February 23, 1965 DEBUSSY: Nocturnes, Nos. 1 & 2, Nuages, Fêtes Live recording Leningrad February 26, 1960

Label: Praga Digitals File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: PRD350106 Barcode: 3149028037821 Price: £9.48 Format: 1 SACD Packaging: cristal Yevgeny Mravinsky Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra

SIBELIUS: Symphony No. 7 Op. 105 Live recording Leningrad Oct 29, 1965 Two iconic compositions by Debussy alongside an exceptional programme of Sibelius. It includes a reassembly of the only known performance by Mravinsky of Symphony No. 3 from the composer of Valse Triste, a unique testimony even if hardly a model of stereophonic sound.

RELEASE DATE 22ND APRIL 2016

BRAHMS: Complete solo piano works Geoffroy Couteau CD 1 - SCHERZO OP. 4 / SONATES OP.1 & OP.2 CD 2 - SONATE OP.5 / VARIATIONS OP.9 & OP.21 N°2 CD 3 - 4 BALLADES / VARIATIONS OP.21 N°2, OP.18B CD 4 - 25 VARIATIONS OP.24 / VARIATIONS OP.35 / 16 VALSES OP.39 CD 5 - DANSES HONGROISES / 8 PIÈCES POUR PIANO OP.76 / RHAPSODIES OP.79 CD 6 - 7 FANTAISIES OP.116 / 3 INTERMEZZI OP.117 / 6 PIÈCES POUR PIANO OP.118/ 4 PIÈCES POUR PIANO OP.119

Label: La Dolce Volta File Under: Classical/Instrumental Catalogue No: LDV170.5 Barcode: 3770001902234 BUDGET Price Format: 6 CD Packaging: box set Geoffroy Couteau [Steinway piano]

Fully conscious of the scale of recording all Brahms' solo piano music, Geoffroy Couteau devoted himself to it exclusively, taking the risk of an ‘artistic retreat’ for nearly two years in order to offer the very best of himself. Amazingly the recording project was completed in little more than three months and was unquestionably a real artistic adventure. A total immersion in Brahms, in chronological order of composition, with the exceptional recording team from La Dolce Volta.

Geoffroy Couteau studied in Paris with Michel Béroff, Denis Pascal and Eric Le Sage. He first encountered Op. 118 aged 13 and was awarded first prize in the International Johannes Brahms competition in 2005. Praising his debut recording also dedicated to Brahms, “ffff” from Telerama, 4 stars from Le Monde de la Musique, Geoffroy Couteau was described as a “fearless” pianist by Le Monde de la Musique, which compared the young artist’s interpretation to piano giants such as Gilels, Katchen, Lupu, Kempff and Serkin. Regularly exalted in the press among his emerging generation of pianists, his last CD devoted to Chopin and Scriabin also garnered enthusiastic critical acclaim.

RELEASE DATE 22ND APRIL 2016

Bachasse - Opposites attract Stefan Temmingh Benno Schachtner The Gentleman‘s Band

Label: Accent Records File Under: Classical/Instrumental Catalogue No: ACC24315 Barcode: 4015023243156 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Stefan Temmingh [recorder] Benno Schachtner [countertenor] The Gentleman‘s Band

Johann Sebastian Bach and Johann Adolph Hasse – the works and stylistics of the two composers could not be more different: religion and counterpoint encounter sensuous, erotic melodies. Hasse composed in the Italian style, Bach, on the other hand, never had the opportunity to travel to Italy, even though to do so was more or less obligatory for musicians in the 18th century. Bach however, knew Italian music very well, and arranged countless concertos by Vivaldi and Marcello. In Dresden he attended operas by Hasse with his oldest son, Wilhelm Friedemann. At the time, as his son Carl Philipp Emanuel reported, the two composers actually became friends. Apparently opposites really did attract!

Stefan Temmingh, born in Cape Town, comes from a Dutch-South-African family of musicians. He is part of the young generation of world-class recorder players, and is often compared to the legendary Frans Brüggen. As an Early Music specialist he plays with his baroque ensemble, The Gentleman’s Band, at renowned festivals and concert series.

Benno Schachtner has succeeded in establishing himself as one of the most promising German countertenors. He is working regularly with René Jacobs, Hans-Christoph Rademann and Christoph Spering. Schachtner is the first countertenor in the history of prestigious Bach International Competition Leipzig to receive the title 'Bachpreisträger'.

HASSE: Cantata per flauto BACH: 4 Präludium in F sharp minor BWV 883 from Das Wohltemperierte Klavier, part II, Kein Arzt ist außer dir zu finden from Cantata Ihr werdet weinen und heulen BWV103 HASSE: Recitativo Bella, mi parto, oh Dio, Aria Nel pensar ch’io sarò privo, Recitativo Ma di cara beltà, Aria S’hai pietà del mio timore BACH: Allemanda from PartitaNo. 2 BWV1004, Die Obrigkeit ist Gottes Gabe from Cantata Preise, Jerusalem, den Herrn BWV119, Sarabande from Suite No. 5 in C minor BWV1011, transposed to G minor, Leget euch dem Heiland unter from Cantata Himmelskönig sei willkommen BWV182 HASSE: Andante moderato Scrivo in te, Recitativo Oh pianta avventurosa, Allegro Per te di lieto Aprile

harmonia mundi UK

Classical new releases

available April 29th 2016, call-off April 22th

APRIL 29

RELEASE DATE 29TH APRIL 2016

Du Mont: Motets & Élévations for the Chapel of Louis XIV Ensemble Correspondances Sébastien Daucé For 20 years (from 1663 to 1683) Henry Du Mont directed the music of the Sun King’s chapel. For the daily Mass there he built up a new repertory consisting of motets for full chorus and more intimate pieces for solo voices. The former aimed to transpose to the context of ‘ordinary’ the format of the large-scale works conceived for extraordinary ceremonies. Sébastien Daucé presents an innovative approach to these grands motets, that at once links specific musical features with historical data, for each of which he adopts a specific instrumental scoring.

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Secular Vocal music Catalogue No: HMC902241 Barcode: 3149020224120 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Ensemble Correspondances Sébastien Daucé [organ, direction] SOURCES: Motets pour la Chapelle du Roy, Paris, Christophe Ballard, 1686 (1, 4, 6, 9,12) Motets in 3, 3, 4 parts, Christophe Ballard, 1681 (2, 3, 5, 8, 11) Motets for 2 voices, Paris, Robert Ballard, 1668 (10) Cantica sacra, Paris, Robert Ballard, 1652 (7)

1 | Memorare 7’36 2 | Jesu dulcedo cordium* 3’41 3 | Desidero te millies* 3’07 4 | O æterne misericors Deus 8’50 5 | Sub umbra noctis profundæ* 4’21 6 | O Mysterium 7’19 7 | Allemanda Gravis 3’10 8 | Ave Regina cælorum* 3’29 9 | O dulcissima 10’55 10 | Quam pulchra es* 4’57 11 | O præcelsum* 3’27 12 | Super flumina Babylonis 10’18 ALSO AVAILABLE: HMC952223/24 Le concert Royal de la Nuit “It’s obviously been a labour of love for [Dauce], reconstructing what he can of the various ballets from disparate sources, texts and composers, re-writing and re-composing the music where necessary...the lavish texts and illustrations in the book that surrounds these two CDs helps create context and bring the dawn of the Sun King to life.”

BBC Radio 3, CD Review, September 2015 Gramophone Editor's Choice, November 2015 Feature in May Gramophone focussing on Sebastien Dauce’s research into music of the period at Versailles, including the Louis XIV project but mainly focusing on this new Du Mont recording

RELEASE DATE 29TH APRIL 2016

WOLF: Kennst du das Land lieder by Goethe, Eichendorff, Mörike

Sophie Karthäuser Eugene Asti

Label: harmonia mundi File Under: Classical/Secular Vocal music Catalogue No: HMC902245 Barcode: 3149020224526 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Sophie Karthäuser [soprano] Eugene Asti [piano]

The brief period between 1888 and 1897, between the great cycles devoted to single poets and the songs on sonnets of Michelangelo, saw Wolf at the zenith of his creativity. That period saw the genesis of the songs later published in anthologies after Mörike, Eichendorff and Goethe. Although even the early songs before 1888 reveal no arbitrariness in the choice of texts, it is this concentration on individual literary figures that characterises the highpoint of Wolf’s output.

Their names resound in the ears of all who love German Romantic literature and are familiar with its transposition into the world of the lied. While Schubert often mined an unexpected vein of poetry in lesser authors, his distant successor Hugo Wolf drank at the source of these giants. Wolf was undoubtedly a virtuoso in the art of making audible the huge dimension of what remains unsaid, though implied. Perhaps he had only one true peer: his former Viennese fellow student Gustav Mahler.

Belgian soprano Sophie Karthäuser studied with Noelle Barker at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.

She is now in great demand, especially as a Mozart singer. She sang her first Pamina (Die Zauberflöte) under René Jacobs and her first Susanna (Le nozze di Figaro) under William Christie. Since winning the Audience Prize at the Wigmore Hall Song Contest she has developed an acclaimed career as a recitalist, enjoying a particularly close artistic partnership with the distinguished American pianist Eugene Asti.

Mignon I. Heiß mich nicht reden (Goethe), Mignon II. Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt, weiß , was ich leide!

Mignon III. So lasst mich scheinen, bis ich werde, Mausefallensprüchlein, Das verlassene Mägdelein, Nixe Binsefuß (Mörike), Blumengruß, Frühling über’s Jahr, Anakreons Grab, Mignon: Kennst du das Land, wo die Zitronen blühn? (Goethe), Im Frühling, Bei einer Trauung, Agnes, Elfenlied (Mörike), Die Spröde, Die Bekehrte (Goethe), Verschwiegene Liebe (Eichendorff), Der Knabe und das Immlein, Ein Stündlein wohl vor Tag, Er ist’s, An eine Äolsharfe, Erstes Liebeslied eines Mädchens (Mörike), Wiegenlied im Sommer (Reinick) ALSO AVAILABLE: HMC902179 Poulenc Les anges musiciens, Mélodies

RELEASE DATE 29TH APRIL 2016

SCRIABIN: Symphonies 1 & 2

Label: LSO Live File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: LSO0770 Barcode: 822231177029 BUDGET Price Format: 2 SACD Packaging: cristal Ekaterina Sergeeva [mezzo soprano] Alexander Timchenko [tenor] London Symphony Chorus, London Symphony Orchestra Valery Gergiev

Valery Gergiev and the London Symphony Orchestra bring to a close their revelatory Scriabin cycle with the release of Symphonies 1 & 2.

Epic in scope, Scriabin’s highly original First Symphony was composed at the turn of the 20th century. An ambitious work, it consists of six movements; the last of which features a chorus and two vocal soloists, sung here by mezzo Ekaterina Sergeeva, tenor Alexander Timchenko and the London Symphony Chorus. In the monumental choral finale, which brings the symphony to a rousing conclusion, Scriabin uses a text of his own composition to praise the supreme power of art: ‘Come, all peoples of the world, Let us sing the praises of Art! Glory to Art, Glory forever!’

Premiered two years after Symphony No 1, the Second Symphony contains echoes of Strauss, Tchaikovsky and Wagner, alongside Scriabin’s own deeply personal sound. While relatively more restrained in style than Scriabin’s other symphonic output, over the course of its five movements there are sweeping climaxes, swirling colours and passages of majestic intensity.

Ekaterina Sergeeva has been a soloist with the Mariinsky Academy of Young Singers since 2005. She appeared as Elektra’s Trainbearer, on the LSO Live recording of 'Elektra' with Valery Gergiev and the London Symphony Orchestra.

Tenor Alexander Timchenko performed the role of Shepherd in Stravinsky's 'Oedipus Rex' with Valery Gergiev and the LSO in 2012, and, also Stravinsky, 'Les Noces', with the Mariinsky Orchestra & Chorus.

CONCERT REVIEWS: "These were fine, controlled performances, correctly free in style but never rambling or diffuse, and wonderfully well-played by a full-strength LSO. In both quality and quantity, the sound – orchestral and choral – was terrific." The Arts Desk ( No 1) "Gergiev was in his element, firing up the musicians in the boisterous outer movements and stressing elegance in the slow centrepiece." Financial Times (Symphony No 2) ALSO AVAILABLE:

LSO0771 Scriabin Symphonies Nos 3 & 4

"The thrill of a live performance comes over with more immediacy with Gergiev and the LSO… some deliciously seductive playing from the LSO." BBC Radio 3, CD Review

RELEASE DATE 29TH APRIL 2016

SCARLATTI 4 Sonatas K.45, 133, 144, 201, 204a, 208, 212, 247, 279, 302, 381, 402-03, 405, 456-57 & 533

Pierre Hantaï A fourth volume of Domenico Scarlatti's Sonatas from the doyen of French harpsichordists, Pierre Hantaï, of whom Gramophone said: "an astonishing display of dexterity in which the harpsichord he uses (a 1999 copy of an anonymous Thuringian instrument of 1720) and the acoustic help in preserving total clarity. Even at maximum velocity (did Scarlatti and his pupil reach such speeds?) he manages to shape his phrases with micro-second dwellings.

It isn't only the speedy sonatas that are impressive; Kk208 exemplifies his skilful shifts to either side of the pulse in giving the lines a natural 'vocal' quality. It also illuminates Kk185, 310, 199 and 162, in the last of which it's more evident in the playful quicker 'interludes'. The irresistible disc is splendidly annotated by Hantaï and beautifully packaged.”

Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

Label: Mirare File Under: Classical/Instrumental Catalogue No: MIR285 Barcode: 3760127222859 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Pierre Hantaï [harpsichord]

Scarlatti Sonatas 1 (MIR9188) Gramophone Editor's Choice, May 2003 BBC R3 Building A Library Choice January 2005 Scarlatti Sonatas 2 (MIR9920)

“[Hantaï] gives us the essence of Scarlatti, concentrated, not hard driven, but single-minded and intense.”

BBC R3 Building a Library Choice, 14 May 2005

Scarlatti Sonatas 3 (MIR007) BBC Music Magazine Instrumental Choice March 2006 Scarlatti 50 Sonatas for Harpsichord (MIR273 Vols 1-3)

“Hantai’s agility is something to marvel at, especially as his playing is so clear and rhythmical, even at daringly fast speeds … this is an exceptional Scarlatti collection: three varied programmes performed quite brilliantly on instruments that are ideally suited to the music.” International Record Review, February 2015

RELEASE DATE 29TH APRIL 2016

SCHUBERT: Benjamin Appl, Graham Johnson Recorded live at Wigmore Hall, London, on 27 March 2015

Benjamin Appl Graham Johnson

Label: Wigmore Hall Live File Under: Classical/Secular Vocal music Catalogue No: WHLIVE0082 Barcode: 5065000924836 MID Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Benjamin Appl (baritone) Graham Johnson (piano)

Outstanding German baritone Benjamin Appl joins forces with Graham Johnson, one of the world’s leading Schubertians, for an exciting recital. Through the course of this programme we explore the full expressive gamut of some of Schubert’s finest Lieder, recorded live in concert at Wigmore Hall. From the tenderness of ‘Am Bach im Frühling’ to the dramatic story-telling in ‘Der Zwerg’ and the tranquility of ‘Im Abendrot’, Schubert’s unparalleled depiction of human emotion is captured in unique clarity.

Benjamin Appl graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and now continues his studies with Rudolf Piernay. He had the great fortune to be mentored by Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. Appl joined the BBC New Generation Artists scheme from 2014 until 2016, and was an ECHO Rising Stars artist for the 2015/16 season. Recital appearances include Graham Johnson’s ‘Young Songmakers Almanac’ in London and his debut at Carnegie Hall 2014. Benjamin’s many appearances with the Schubertiade Festival include a ‘Liederabend’, accompanied by Helmut Deutsch, and performances of 'Die schöne Müllerin' with Martin Stadtfeld and Graham Johnson. He made his first appearances at the BBC Proms in 2015 with the Brahms Triumphlied and Carmina Burana "Being a BBC New Generation Artist guarantees high level coverage. Careers are launched, though in some cases one wonders if marketability isn't part of success. Benjamin Appl, though, is probably the real thing." classical-iconoclast.blogspot.co.uk "A very classy young Schubertian: beautiful lyric baritone, excellent delivery of text, assured stage presence."

Hugh Canning [Twitter] Am Bach im Frühling D361, Der Wanderer an den Mond D870, Im Freien D880, Geheimes D719, Das Lied im Grünen D917, Fischerweise D881, Verklärung D59, An den Tod D518, Der Zwerg D771, An die Leier D737, Gruppe aus dem Tartarus D583, Memnon D541, Alinde D904, Der Kampf D594, Die Gebüsche D646, Im Abendrot D799, Wiedersehen D855, Die Taubenpost D965a

RELEASE DATE 29TH APRIL 2016

Pierre Boulez: Young Composer and Conductor Debussy, Bartok, Stravinsky, Boulez Darius Milhaud, French composer of an earlier and more conservative generation, paid Boulez what must be the ultimate compliment - “He despises my music, but conducts it better than anyone”.

Boulez (1925-2016) started conducting in order to perform his own music and that of major 20th century composers such as Debussy, Bartók and Stravinsky, and went on to great heights with the grand repertoire including Wagner and Mahler (but avoiding Brahms). These recordings offer a foretaste of his conducting genius and allow us to remember a great artist the world recently lost.

Label: Praga Digitals File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: PRD250332 Barcode: 3149028083125 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal 2-3 Yehudi Menuhin [violin] 1-4 Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra/Boulez 5-6 Orchestre du Domaine musicale/Boulez 7-8 Josephine Nendick [soprano], Barry McDaniel [baritone], Louis Devos [tenor] BBC Symphony Chorus & Orchestra Pierre Boulez [conductor]

1 STRAVINSKY: Le Chant du Rossignol 2-3 BARTOK: Violin Concerto 4 DEBUSSY: Jeux 5 STRAVINSKY: Symphonies of Wind Instruments 6 STRAVINSKY: Concertino for 12 instruments 7-8 BOULEZ: Le Soleil des Eaux [1958 version] 1-4 Live Concertgebouw, 5-6 Paris, 7-8 London - 1962

RELEASE DATE 29TH APRIL 2016

MOZART: Piano Concertos No. 21 & 23 BARTOK: Piano Concerto No.3 Sz119 Annie Fischer Bavarian Radio Orchestra / Ferenc Fricsay Philharmonia Orchestra / Adrian Boult, Wolfgang Sawallisch Ferenc Fricsay, the great Hungarian conductor who died prematurely (1914-1963), contended that musicians had to work on Bartók’s major works in order to master Mozart’s unique combination of profundity and giocoso.

His compatriot, the great pianist Annie Fischer, provides eloquent proof of this here, in the andante movement of the 21st Concerto (famously featured in Bo Widerberg’s film 'Elvira Madigan'), reflecting her intimacy with Bartók’s last concerto, composed for his wife Ditta from his deathbed.

Label: Praga Digitals File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: PRD250326 Barcode: 3149028075120 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Annie Fischer [piano] Philharmonia Orchestra / Wolfgang Sawallisch [Mozart 21, London February 1958] Philharmonia Orchestra / Adrian Boult [Mozart 23, London April 1959] Bavarian Radio Orchestra / Ferenc Fricsay [Bartok, live, Munich 24/11/1960]

RELEASE DATE 29TH APRIL 2016

Giovanni Battista COSTANZI: Sonate per violoncello / Cello Sonatas Giovanni Sollima Monika Leskovar Arianna Art Ensemble

Label: Glossa File Under: Classical/Instrumental Catalogue No: GCD923801 Barcode: 8424562238015 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Giovanni Sollima [cello] Monika Leskovar [cello] Arianna Art Ensemble: Andrea Rigano [cello] Paolo Rigano [archlute], Cinzia Guarino [harpsichord]

The inspired decision by cellist and composer Giovanni Sollima to investigate the instrumental music of his 18th-century counterpart, Giovanni Battista Costanzi, is yielding its first recording with a new Glossa release of cello sonatas.

Costanzi’s place in the history of the cello has all but slipped from view and yet his solo cello sonatas display a remarkable freshness in handling the late Baroque sonata genre as instigated by Arcangelo Corelli. They also impose substantial technical demands upon the soloist – including playing in the instrument’s highest register – making powerful use of the cello’s expressive capabilities. Five sonatas scored for cello and continuo have been selected by Giovanni Sollima for this recording, the first to assess this aspect of the Roman composer’s output.

Not content with attending to Costanzi’s works Giovanni Sollima composes one of his own – Il mandataro – which reflects the labours of an apparently marginal member of the Roman court in the time of Costanzi’s patron, Cardinal Ottoboni: a courier or messenger charged with keeping the musicians informed of their duties. Sollima, who has previously recorded Neapolitan cello concertos for Glossa (backed by Antonio Florio and I Turchini), is joined for this new recording by fellow cellist Monika Leskovar (a pair of the sonatas are for two cellos) and the Arianna Art Ensemble.

Scholar Imma Battista supplies pertinent biographical information for this overlooked Baroque composer.

01-04 Sonata in G major 05-08 Sonata in C minor 09-11 Sonata in F major for two cellos 12-14 Sonata in B flat major 15-17 Sonata in F major 18-20 Sonata in G minor 21-23 Sonata in C major for two cellos 24 Giovanni Sollima: Il mandataro

RELEASE DATE 29TH APRIL 2016

The Art of Heinrich Scheidemann Le Concert Brisé William Dongois Heinrich Scheidemann (1596-1663), student and follower of Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, was organist at St. Catherine’s Church in Hamburg from 1629 until his death. Mere traces of his music have survived in manuscript form that were transcribed from performances. A reason for Scheidemann’s oeuvre being nearly forgotten may be the high technical standard required for the execution of his music. Due to his talent for improvisation, Scheidemann wrote very virtuosic compositions emerging from various musical works in which seriousness and exuberance play side by side.

The improviser’s demeanour can be felt in every note of these compositions.

For contemporary musicians dealing with early music, a composition merely represented a framework upon which the musicians could improvise. In order to appreciate Scheidemann’s masterpieces of diminution and improvisation, William Dongois and Le Concert Brisé presents a programme with adaptations of his works on the present CD. The arrangement became a rewriting but one in which the basic form and intention of the original was never discarded.

Label: Accent Records File Under: Classical/Instrumental Catalogue No: ACC24302 Barcode: 4015023243026 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Le Concert Brisé William Dongois [cornets] Alice Julien-Laferrière [violin] Odile Bernard [recorder] Jean-Christophe Leclere [organ]

Praeambulum in D; Surrexit pastor bonus (after Hassler), Dic nobis Maria (after Bassano) Benedicam domino (after Praetorius), In dich hab ich gehoffet, Herr, Fuga in D, Alleluia, Laudem dicite nostro (after Hassler), Choral "Jesus Christus unser Heiland", Verbum caro factum est (after Lassus), Dixit Maria ad Angelum (after Hassler), Betrübet ist zu dieser Frist (Anonymus), Englische Mascarata in g (Anonymus), Pavan lachrymae (after Dowland), Galliarda & Variatio (Anonymus)

RELEASE DATE 29TH APRIL 2016

Die Nibelungen Suite from the original motion picture score

Frankfurt Radio Symphony Frank Strobel

Label: Pan Classics File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: PC10346 Barcode: 7619990103467 NORMAL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Frankfurt Radio Symphony Frank Strobel [direction]

The film director Fritz Lang cast Gottfried Huppertz (1887-1937) in several of his films before asking him to write the original score for 'Die Nibelungen' (1924), which he composed using the shooting script as a silent libretto. It was Huppertz’s first major project and his mastery of orchestration is nothing short of remarkable.

Huppertz wrote in a lush, late-Romantic idiom. With 'Die Nibelungen', he evokes Wagner's take on Teutonic mythology through a highly lyrical and orchestrally expansive score that resists being imitative. The music echoes Wagner without attempting to mimic it. At the same time, Huppertz’s musical language resembles Alexander von Zemlinsky, Franz Schreker, Walter Braunfels and Eugene D’Albert.

This CD presents a suite with highlights from Huppertz’s original score whose total length is more than four hours. The pieces for the suite were selected by Frank Strobel, Germany’s leading film music conductor and musical director of this recording with the hr-Sinfonieorchester (Frankfurt Radio Symphony).

Also available: PC10345 Gottfried Huppertz – Die Nibelungen (4 CDs) – Complete Score Frankfurt Radio Symphony, Frank Strobel