September 1 classical releases by [PIAS] Classics & Jazz UK

Classical releases

September 1

DISTRIBUTED LABELS: ACCENT RECORDS, ACTES SUD, ALIA VOX, APARTE, KINGS COLLEGE CAMBRIDGE, CHRISTOPHORUS, CSO RESOUND, EVIDENCE CLASSICS, FRA MUSICA, GLOSSA, harmonia mundi, LA DOLCE VOLTA, LES ARTS FLORISSANTS, LSO LIVE, MARIINSKY, MIRARE, MYRIOS, NAÏVE, ONYX, PAN CLASSICS, PRAGA DIGITALS, RUBICON CLASSICS, SIGNUM CLASSICS, WIGMORE HALL LIVE

available September 1st 2017

RELEASE DATE 1ST SEPTEMBER 2017

MENDELSSOHN: Symphony No. 2, 'Lobgesang' London Symphony Orchestra / Sir John Eliot Gardiner

Label: LSO Live File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: LSO0803 Barcode: 822231180326 FULL Price Format: 1 SACD+BD Packaging: cristal Lucy Crowe, Jurgita Adamonyté, Michael Spyres Monteverdi Choir SACD Hybrid + Pure Audio Blu-ray | 2 disc 2.0 stereo | multi-channel 5.1 5.1 DTS-HD MA & 2.0 LPCM 24 bit 192 kHz mixes Recorded live in DSD128fs, Barbican Hall, 16 & 20/10/2016

Bringing his acclaimed Mendelssohn cycle to a rousing conclusion, Sir John Eliot Gardiner presents the composer’s symphony-cantata, 'Lobgesang', in his first ever performance of the work. Three world-class soloists join the LSO and his own Monteverdi Choir for this recording for LSO Live. Mendelssohn wrote that the piece "lies very near my heart", and with its stately grandeur and religiosity, plus its sheer magnitude, twice the length of any of his other symphonies, it stands amongst his most impressive works. Posthumously categorised by editors as his second symphony, it is also known as ‘Hymn of Praise’. In an interview for The Arts Desk, John Eliot said: "It’s a piece I’ve been looking at for years, and I’ve never conducted it. I was a bit sceptical at first, thinking that it was the torso of a symphony with a cantata bolted on. But it isn’t. It’s a delight. It has a lot of the inventiveness and sheer melodic flow of the young Mendelssohn and it’s perfectly calibrated and constructed." Presented as a Pure Audio Blu-ray and SACD Hybrid package - which includes master quality audio and downloadable content - this is the perfect end to Gardiner's exploration of Mendelssohn. Summing up his feelings at the end of the project, he said: "My admiration for Mendelssohn has gone up enormously, as a result of really digging deep into these symphonies...it’s so rewarding with this group of players, they’re willing to go to the nth degree, in terms of detail of phrasing and articulation, and that’s a joy." Concert reviews: "Gardiner brought his LSO Mendelssohn series to a rousing conclusion...performed with enormous conviction and swagger, delivering old certainties of sacred and secular pride in a way to make your eyes prick." Classical Source "His [Michael Spyres] German diction was furthermore crystal clear. Soprano Lucy Crowe gleamed in the middle passage...while mezzo Jurgita Adamonyté’s voice effused a luminous quality." Bachtrack Posters available for this release Advertised in Classical Music Press

RELEASE DATE 1ST SEPTEMBER 2017

Handel at Vauxhall, Vol.2 London Early Opera Bridget Cunningham London Early Opera continue their series themed around a typical evening’s entertainment at the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, with a second collection of works by Handel and contemporary composers of the day (William Boyce, John Stanley, Thomas Gladwin, John Lampe and Johann Adolph Hasse). Featuring performances by soloists Claire Bessant, Mary Bevan, Benjamin Bevan, Eleanor Dennis, Charles Mac Dougal, Nicky Spence and Greg Tassell, the programme evokes the carnival of music and entertainments that amused visitors in these London gardens for nearly 200 years. The booklet notes feature images and expert commentaries on the Vauxhall Gardens by author David E. Coke and as well as conductor and musicologist, Bridget Cunningham.

TRACK LISTING 1 BOYCE: Spring Gardens (Rural Beauty or Vaux-Hal Garden) 2-5 HANDEL: Concerto No. 4 Op. 6 in A minor, HWV 322 6 STANLEY: The Power of Music and Beauty 7 HANDEL: A Song on the Victory over the Rebels by his Royal Highness the Duke of Cumberland HWV 228.9 8 GLADWIN: Colin’s Description of Vauxhall or Green-Wood Hall 9 HANDEL: Hornpipe in D major HWV 356 10 LAMPE: The Farewel to Vaux Hall 11-16 HANDEL: Comus, HWV 44 17 GLADWIN: The Ladies in Vaux- hall- Gardens, to the British Officers at Dettingen 18 HASSE: Roger and Sue a Ballad to a Favourite Air by Sig.r Hasse 19 ANON: A Loyal Song for two Voices ‘God save great George Ye king ADVERTISED IN BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE (OCTOBER ISSUE)

RELEASE DATE 1ST SEPTEMBER 2017

RACHMANINOV: Symphony No. 1 Live in Concert

Philharmonia Orchestra Vladimir Ashkenazy

Label: Signum Classics File Under: Classical/Orchestral Catalogue No: SIGCD484 Barcode: 635212048429 FULL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: cristal Philharmonia Orchestra Vladimir Ashkenazy conductor

Marking their latest collaboration with conductor laureate Vladimir Ashkenazy, the Philharmonia return to disc with a stellar live-performance of Rachmaninov’s volcanic Symphony No.1 in D Minor. Composed when Rachmaninov was just 22, the 1st Symphony has a famously tumultuous performance history. The premiere in 1897 was a disaster, generating vitriolic abuse from critics and reviewers of the time. Rachmaninov destroyed the score and refused to publish during his lifetime; it was not heard again until its reconstruction by Soviet musicologists for a concert in 1945. Between November 2015 and 2016, Ashkenazy conducted the Philharmonia in a cycle of Rachmaninov’s three symphonies, plus the Symphonic Dances, across four concerts in the Orchestra’s London Season. From the youthful invention of Rachmaninov’s First Symphony to the Symphonic Dances, written 44 years later, Ashkenazy brings to life the music of a composer who, like him, felt his Russian identity deeply and yet spent so much of his life away from his homeland. Rachmaninov’s four masterworks will be released as part of a three-album series on Signum Classics throughout 2017 and 2018. This is the first release. Symphony No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 13 1 I. Grave – Allegro ma non troppo 2 II. Allegro animato 3 III. Larghetto 4 IV. Allegro con fuoco "This was a top-notch, utterly gripping account, and I loved every hectic bar." The Times, November 2016 "This was a phenomenal rendition which gripped from first note until last." Bachtrack, November 2016 "Throughout the night Ashkenazy was tireless, urging players with baton slashes, encouraging grins and pointed fingers...Afterwards, during the applause, came hearty handshakes and more grins. The night felt young.” The Times, November 2016

RELEASE DATE 1ST SEPTEMBER 2017

HANDEL: Silla Lucio Cornelio Silla, HWV10, London, 1713

Europa Galante / Fabio Biondi

Label: Glossa File Under: Classical/Opera Catalogue No: GCD923408 Barcode: 8424562234086 2 FOR 1.5 Format: 2 CD Packaging: digipack Sonia Prina: Silla Martina Belli: Claudio Sunhae Im: Metella Vivica Genaux: Lepido Roberta Invernizzi: Flavia Francesca Lombardi Mazzulli: Celia Luca Tittoto: Il Dio Recorded in Vienna (Konzerthaus), Austria, on 28-30 January 2017

No Handel opera is as enigmatic as 'Silla'. His fourth London opera, it was composed in 1713 to a libretto by Giacomo Rossi, also the librettist of the composer’s first great London triumph, 'Rinaldo' (1711). And that is just about the extent of any certainty on the subject. It might have been premiered in 1713 in London in a private concert at the Queen’s Theatre, but even this remains unconfirmed. This is one of Handel’s few historical operas, being concerned with Plutarch’s account of the latter part of the life of Lucius Cornelius Silla, who after taking Rome became a tyrannical despot who murders his opponents, before suddenly retiring to his country estate to enjoy his leisure. The libretto may be perceived as weak, however Handel utilised a significant part of it in his next opera, 'Amadigi di Gaula'. Fabio Biondi and Europa Galante join an overwhelming vocal cast headed by the fantastic Sonia Prina in the title role, with Martina Belli, Sunhae Im, Vivica Genaux, Roberta Invernizzi, Francesca Lombardi Mazzulli and Luca Tittoto, who all excel in their respective parts. Biondi’s ensemble perform with their trademark elegance and precision in a recording made in the Konzerthaus in Vienna over three days in January 2017. CD 1 [59:54] Overture, Atto Primo, Atto Secondo CD 2 [53:06] Atto Secondo (cont), Atto Terzo Sonia Prina appears on 10th September as part of her residency at Wigmore Hall, London

RELEASE DATE 1ST SEPTEMBER 2017

RAMEAU: Pygmalion, acte de ballet Les Fêtes de Polymnie, orchestral suite

Les Talens Lyriques / Christophe Rousset Rameau's 'acte de ballet' 'Pygmalion', was the composer's first work to bear that designation. The term denotes a one-act opera with the usual solo numbers, duets and choruses, interspersed with dance episodes and is generally more pageant-like than plot-driven! The opera was performed 30 times in 1748 and was revived to rapturous acclaim three years later. The story of Pygmalion dates back to Greek and Roman mythology: the sculptor of the title forswears marriage, but then falls in love with his own perfect representation of a woman, beseeching Aphrodite (or Venus) to bring her to life. In Rameau's hands, the story became a sunny romantic comedy and one of his best-loved works. Like Ovid's Love, Christophe Rousset gives life to this score and leads a new and essential reading.

Label: Aparté File Under: Classical/Opera Catalogue No: AP155 Barcode: 3149028114324 FULL Price Format: 1 CD Packaging: digipack Pygmalion: Cyrille Dubois Céphise: Marie-Claude Chappuis La Statue: Céline Scheen L’Amour: Eugénie Warnier Arnold Schoenberg Chor

Pygmalion. Acte de ballet (1748) 1. Ouverture | 2. Scène 1 – Pygmalion : « Fatal Amour, cruel vainqueur » 3. Scène 2 – Pygmalion, Céphise : « Pygmalion, est-il possible que tu sois insensible » 4. Scène 3 – Pygmalion, la Statue : « Que d’appas ! Que d’attraits ! » 5. « D’où naissent ces accords » | 6. « Quel prodige ? Quel dieu ? » | 7. « De mes maux à jamais » 8. Scène 4 – L’Amour, Pygmalion, la Statue : « Du pouvoir de l’Amour » 9. « Jeux et ris qui suivez mes traces » ariette vive et gracieuse 10. Les différents caractères de la danse | 11. Sarabande pour la Statue 12. « Le peuple dans ces lieux s’avance » 13. Scène 5 – Pygmalion, la Statue, choeurs : air gay pour l’entrée du peuple qui vient admirer la Statue 14. Gavottes | 15. « L’Amour triomphe » | 16. Pantomime niaise et un peu lente 17. Pantomime très vive | 18. « Règne, Amour » | 19. Air gracieux | 20. Contredanse 21-30 Les Fêtes de Polymnie. Suite d’orchestre (1745) CONCERTS: 14th January, Les Talens Lyriques and Christophe Rousset explore the music of François Couperin, celebrating the 350th anniversary of his birth, at the Barbican. 26th February Wigmore Hall