CLASSICAL new release harmonia mundi UK 08, 2010 · harmonia mundi UK released 26th July 2010. HMU907519. Barcode: 0093046751920. NORMAL PRICE CD. Franz SCHUBERT. Die schöne Müllerin

ACTES SUD, AEON, ALIA VOX, ALPHA, AMBRONAY, APARTE, ARCANA, ARTE VERUM, AUDITE, BEL AIR CLASSIQUES, CALLIOPE, CSO RESOUND, DEJA-VU, DELPHIAN, FRAPROD, FUGA LIBERA,

GLOSSA, harmonia mundi, HAT[NOW]ART, HYPHEN PRESS MUSIC, K617, KML, LSO LIVE, MARIINSKY, MIRARE, MODE, NASCOR, OPAL, OPELLA NOVA, ORFEO, PAN CLASSICS,

PARADIZO, PEARL, PRAGA DIGITALS, RADIO FRANCE, RAM, RCOC, RCO LIVE, RICERCAR, SFZ MUSIC, SIGNUM CLASSICS, STRADIVARIUS, UNICORN KANCHANA, WALHALL ETERNITY,

WERGO, WIGMORE HALL LIVE, WINTER & WINTER, YSAYE

AU

GU

ST 2010

available 26th July 2010 last orders 16th July

CLASSICAL new release harmonia mundi UK

CONCERTS:25/06/2010 Mark Padmore, Kristian Bezuidenhout St George's Bristol Schumann Liederkreiss op 24, Dichterliebe [november]26/06/2010 Huelgas Ensemble / Paul van Nevel Blythburgh Church 3.00pm Aldeburgh Festival Ashewell Missa 'Ave Maria', Lassus Lamentations of Jeremiah, Gombert Je prens congie, Clemens Qui consolabatur26/06/2010 Mr McFall's Chamber Queen's Hall, Edinburgh Tango Music27/06/2010 Arcanto Quartet, Alexander Lonquich Snape Maltings 3 concerts in one day Aldeburgh Festival Janacek, Schubert, Webern, Mozart, Kurtag, Schumann27/06/2010 LSO/Sir Colin Davis Barbican, 7.00pm Haydn The Seasons being recorded for LSO Live29/06/2010 Boris Berezovsky, Philharmonia / Temirkanov Royal Festival Hall Prokofiev PC202/07/2010 Mark Padmore, Roger Vignoles Brinkburn Priory, Northumberland Programme include Schumann Dichterliebe04/07/2010 Mark Padmore, Nicholas Daniel, Roger Vignoles Brinkburn Priory, Northumberland, 2.00pm Britten Winter Words, Vaughan Williams 10 Blake Songs, Howells Oboe Sonata04/07/2010 Modigliani Quartet Wigmore Hall All-Haydn programme07/07/2010 Ophelie Gaillard, Edna Stern Wigmore Hall Schumann Fantasiestucke, Chopin Nocturnes, Cello Sonata07/07/2010 The English Concert, Maurice Steger Wigmore Hall Handel, Corelli 08/07/2010 Mark Padmore + Wigmore Hall Education song project08/07/2010 Les Talens Lyriques/C Rousset Barbican Centre, 18.30 Handel Semele09/07/2010 Stile Antico St Andrew's Park Walk, London SW10 Tune thy Musicke to thy Hart10/07/2010 Fretwork Cheltenham Festival, 11.00am Dowland, Gesualdo, Wolf, Warlock12/07/2010 James Rhodes Parabola Rush Hour 1 Cheltenham Festival, 6.00pm13/07/2010 Fretwork York Early Music Festival The Gallery, Harewood House, 8.00pm - 9.15pm14/07/2010 Bach Players Hatchlands Park, Guildford Italy vs France14/07/2010 Fretwork Lichfield Festival Bach Goldberg Variations15/07/2010 Bach Players Early Music Festival St Michael le Belfrey Church, High Petergate, York Italy vs France Corelli, Couperin16/07/2010 Bach Players The Octagon Chape, Norwich Italy vs France17/07/2010 Bach Players St John's, Downshire Hill, Hampstead Italy vs France18/07/2010 City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra / Andris Nelsons Lichfield Cathedral, Lichfield Festival Ravel La Valse, Tchaikovsky PC2, Mahler Adagietto, Debussy La Mer19/07/2010 Mark Padmore, Imogen Cooper BBC Proms Lunchtime recital, Cadogan Hall SOLD OUT Schumann Dichterliebe op 48, Schubert lieder, Three Piano Pieces21/07/2010 Paul Lewis, BBC SO/Belohlavek Royal Albert Hall BBC Proms 7.00pm BBC4, 23 July Beethoven PCs 1 & 4 22/07/2010 Stile Antico St Mary & All Saints Church, Fotheringhay Oundle International Festival Tune thy Musicke to thy Hart29/07/2010 Paul Lewis, CBSO/Andris Nelsons Royal Albert Hall BBC Proms 7.00pm TX BBC4 Beethoven PC231/07/2010 Paul Lewis, CBSO/Andris Nelsons Corn Exchange, King's Lynn Prelude to Lohengrin, Beethoven PC2, Tchaikovsky S605/08/2010 Paul Lewis, Halle/Sir Mark Elder Bridgewater Hall, Manchester Beethoven PC306/08/2010 Paul Lewis, Halle/Sir Mark Elder Royal Albert Hall BBC Proms 7.00pm TX BBC4 Beethoven PC36, 7 & 8 Aug 2010 Bolshoi Ballet Royal Opera House Don Quixote12/08/2010 Orlando Consort Cheltenham College Chapel, 11.00am 3 Choirs Festival The Call of the Phoenix13/08/2010 Theatre of Voices/Paul Hillier + many others Usher Hall, 8.00pm Edinburgh International Festival [EIF] Opening Concert John Adams El Nino14, 15 & 17 Aug 2010 Soloists, Ensemble Elyma/Gabriel Garrido King's Theatre, Edinburgh 7.15pm EIF Graun Montezuma16/08/2010 Ensemble Elyma/Gabriel Garrido Greyfriars Kirk, 5.45pm EIF Fiesta Criolla19/08/2010 Boris Berezovsky, BBC SSO/Brabbins Royal Albert Hall BBC Proms Liszt Piano Concerto No 123/08/2010 Stile Antico Cadogan Hall, 1.00pm BBC Proms ALMOST SOLD OUT Song of Songs PROMS DEBUT24/08/2010 Jordi Savall, Montserrat Figueras, Greyfriars Kirk, 5.45pm EIF A meeting of musics of Fire and Air from ancient Iberia to the New World25/08/2010 Isabelle Faust, Jean-Guihen Queyras, Alexander Melnikov Snape Maltings27/08/2010 Katia & Marielle Labeque Usher Hall, 7.30pm EIF Poulenc Concerto for 2 Pianos27, 28 & 29 Aug 2010 Pina Bausch's Tantheater Wuppertal Edinburgh Playhouse, 7.30pm EIF Agua30/08/2010 Royal Concertgebouw Orch /Jansons Usher Hall, 8.00pm EIF Stravinsky Symphonies of Wind Instruments, Firebird, Bartok Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste, Berio 4 Dedicaces31/08/2010 Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra / Mariss Jansons, Anna Larsson Usher Hall, EIF Mahler 306/09/2010 Paul Lewis, RSNO/Deneve BBC Proms Royal Albert Hall 7.00pm Beethoven PC509/09/2010 Paul Lewis North Norfolk Music Festival Mozart, Schumann, Liszt, Beethoven 'Waldstein' Sonata13/09/2010 Cedric Tiberghien, Alina Ibragimova Wigmore Hall BBC lunchtime Brahms Violin Sonata, Strauss Violin Sonata18/09/2010 Mark Padmore, Paul Lewis Holkham Hall, Norfolk Schubert Schwanengesang

International Record ReviewHMU907492 Gershwin by Grofe Lincoln Mayorga, Al Gallodoro,

Harmonie ensemble of New York/Steven Richman

GRAMOPHONE EDITOR'S CHOICE WHL0036 Beethoven Violin Sonatas Vol 1/Alina Ibragimova & Cedric Tiberghien+IRR OUTSTANDING

Wigmore Hall live is distributed byHarmonia mundi uK from 1st august 2010

GRAMOPHONE EDITOR'S CHOICE LSO0677 Rachmaninov Symphony No. 2/London Symphony Orchestra / Valery Gergiev

BBC MUSIC CHOICE, CHORALSIGCD197 Poulenc Figure Humaine Tenebrae

GRAMOPHONE EDITOR'S CHOICE SIGCD179 Elgar Symphonies 1 & 2Philharmonia/Sir Andrew Davis

harmonia mundi UK released 26th July 2010

HMU907519Barcode: 0093046751920NORMAL PRICE CD

Franz SCHUBERTDie schöne Müllerin Op. 25 D795to poems by Wilhelm Müller

Mark Padmore (tenor); Paul Lewis (Steinway piano)September 11, 13, 14, 2009 Air Studios, Lyndhurst Hall, London

After their much lauded recording of Winterreise, Mark Padmore and Paul Lewis turn to Schubert’s first song-cycle, Die schöne Müllerin / The Fair Maid of the Mill, which follows a lovelorn young man on a melancholy journey of false hope. Two great artists at the zenith of their careers.

Mark Padmore was born in London, grew up in Canterbury and studied at King’s College, Cambridge, graduating with an honours degree in music. He has established an international career in opera, concert and recital, and his performances in Bach’s Passions have gained particular notice throughout the world. He has appeared at many of the world’s leading opera houses (including the English National Opera, Welsh National Opera, Glyndebourne, La Monnaie, and Théâtre du Châtelet) and in concert with the Berlin, Vienna and New York Philharmonic orchestras, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the London Symphony and London Philharmonic orchestra, and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. Mark Padmore is increasingly well-known as a recitalist and has been heard in many of the world’s best-loved halls, working regularly with pianists Julius Drake, Roger Vignoles, Andrew West, Imogen Cooper, Till Fellner, and Paul Lewis, his partner in the eagerly anticipated Schubert triptych, now being recorded by harmonia mundi. Mark Padmore’s work in the recording studio has also attracted considerable acclaim, earning him a BBC Music Magazine Vocal Award for his Handel arias disc: As steals the morn... and a Gramophone Magazine ‘Disc of the Month’ for his first Schubert recording with Paul Lewis: Die Winterreise in November 2009. Paul Lewis is recognised internationally as one of today’s most distinctive and poetic pianists. He has a particularly strong relationship with London’s Wigmore Hall, where he has appeared on more than 40 occasions and where he launched a much-lauded Schubert cycle with tenor Mark Padmore. Between 2005 and 2007, Paul Lewis performed all the Beethoven piano sonatas on tour in the USA and Europe, in tandem with his complete recording of the cycle for hm. This project earned him two Gramophone Awards in 2008: Recording of the Year and Best Instrumental Recording. He now moves on to the Beethoven piano concertos, all of which he is performing at the BBC Proms this summer: the first time the complete cycle will be performed there by the same soloist in a single season. His harmonia mundi recording of all five concertos is released on 12th July.

“Padmore characteristically plundered each poem for every last ounce of emotion from virile ecstasy to blank sorrow. In the final Des Baches Wiegenlied (The Brook’s Lullaby), singer and pianist perfectly expressed the music’s caressing invitation to sink into the watery sleep of oblivion. It was breathtaking. Schubert couldn’t be better served.” Evening Standard, 20/5/2008

CONCERTS – MARK PADMORE: 25/06 St George's Bristol Schumann Liederkreiss op 24,Dichterliebe wt Kristian Bezuidenhout02/07 Brinkburn Priory Schumann Dichterliebe wt Roger Vignoles04/07 Brinkburn Priory, 2.00pm Britten Winter Words, VW Blake Songs, Howells Oboe Sonata wt Nicholas Daniel, Roger Vignoles08/07 Wigmore Hall Education song project19/07 Cadogan Hall BBC Proms Lunchtime recital, wt Imogen Cooper SOLD OUT Schumann Dichterliebe, Schubert lieder, Three Piano Pieces

18/09 Mark Padmore + Paul Lewis Holkham Hall, Norfolk Schubert Schwanengesang


HMU907484 SCHUBERT Winterreise

Mark Padmore, Paul Lewis

IRR OutstandingGramophone Disc of the MonthIndependent on Sunday OutstandingC D Review Disc of the Week***** Sunday TelegraphMusicWeb International Recordings of the YearDaily Telegraph Best of 2009Independent on Sunday Best of 2009

“I cannot think of a journey that leads more faithfully to the cold comfort of its end. And when we get there in this performance, what an end it is!” John Steane, CD OF THE MONTH, Gramophone, November 2009

“Padmore’s purity of tone and his masterful way with the words produces some spine-chilling episodes and Lewis works magic with startling harmonies…a fabulous performance.”Jessica Duchen, Classic FM Magazine, December 2009

“Padmore is back at his magnificent best. It is a joint effort: Lewis is marvellous too. Their Winterreise is right up there with the absolute peaks of today’s recordings, and older versions too.” Piers Burton-Page, IRR Outstanding, International Record Review, November 2009

HMC902053/55Barcode: 0794881966226

3CDS

BEETHOVEN Complete Piano ConcertosPaul Lewis (piano); BBC Symphony Orchestra / Jiri Belohlávek

CONCERTS - PAUL LEWIS:21/07 BBC SO/Belohlavek RAH BBC Proms 7.00pm BBC4, 23 July Piano Concertos 1 & 4 29/07 CBSO/Andris Nelsons RAH BBC Proms 7.00pm BBC4 Piano Concerto 231/07 CBSO/Andris Nelsons Corn Exchange, King's Lynn Piano Concerto 205/08 Halle/Sir Mark Elder Bridgewater Hall, Manchester Piano Concerto 306/08 Halle/Sir Mark Elder RAH BBC Proms 7.00pm BBC4 Piano Concerto 306/09 RSNO/Deneve RAH BBC Proms 7.00pm Piano Concerto 509/09 Paul Lewis North Norfolk Music Festival Mozart, Schumann, Liszt, 'Waldstein' 18/09 Mark Padmore +Paul Lewis Holkham Hall, Norfolk Schubert Schwanengesang

Paul leWis at tHe Proms:21 July (BBCSO/Belohlavek)

29 July (CBSO/Nelsons)5 August (Halle/Elder)6 Sept (RSNO/Deneve


HMC902048 Barcode: 0794881 944026NORMAL PRICE CD

Robert SCHUMANNSonatasViolin Sonatas No.1 Op. 105 & No.2 Op. 121Gesänge der Frühe for piano Op.133; BACH/SCHUMANN Ciaconna (Transcription from Violin Partita No. 2 in D minor BWV1004)

Andreas Staier (piano Erard); Daniel Sepec (violin)After his earlier Hommage à Bach album, played on the same 1837 Érard piano he uses here, Andreas Staier is joined by Daniel Sepec in a programme of considerably later works by Schumann. However, these two violin sonatas and the Gesänge der Frühe of 1853 show no retreat from the composer's ideal: here too, ‘the poet speaks' . . .

ALSO AVAILABLE: HMC901919 Beethoven Violin Sonatas Daniel Sepec, Andreas Staier “Beethoven’s fiery dramatics sound more audacious than ever…Fantastic playing, and a fascinating release.” The Times

HMC901989 Schumann Hommage a Bach Andreas Staier"Staier interprets with real empathy for Schumann’s writing and the charming Erard is given lifelike reproduction.” Hi-fi news

HMA1951731 Schumann Concertos Andreas Staier, Christophe Coin / Philippe HerrewegheRecommended on Radio 3, Building a Library, 12th June


HMC902062 Barcode: 0 794881966325

NORMAL PRICE CD

METAMORPHOSISBARTÓK String Quartet No.4 Sz. 91;LIGETI String Quartet No.1 ‘Métamorphoses nocturnes’;KURTÁG 12 Mikroludien Op.13

Cuarteto CasalsIt is sometimes said that the essence of ‘classical' music lies in the principle of variation; but when the idea of incessant transformation of the musical material irrigates scores like these quartets by three eminent Hungarian composers of the 20th century, the resulting sonic impressions are very different. The governing principle here is metamorphosis, an idea as dear to Bartók as it was to the compatriots who succeeded him.

ALSO AVAILABLE: HMX2962022/23 Haydn: String Quartets, Op 33 - Cuarteto Casals “they richly repay performances as inventive and witty as these ones by the excellent Cuarteto Casals. The group’s rhythmic vitality and dynamic range are a constant pleasure… this set represents an exciting issue.” Sunday Times

“delightful… the Casals Quartet bespeaks an ensemble as new and special as the music itself.” Gramophone

• Interview with the quartet in the Strad, Spanish issue, August


HML5901330/32Barcode: 07948819666223 CDS MID PRICE

MONTEVERDIL’incoronazione di PoppeaDanielle Borst, Guillemette Laurens, Axel KöhlerJennifer Larmore, Michael Schopper, Lena Lootens; Concerto Vocale, René Jacobs"his Poppea was sensuous, well-paced and richly Characterised... I'd buy this edition" The Independent

Top of the Poppeas, Building a Library / The Times May 1999: "Here indeed is a Poppea worthy of a crown"

HML5901427/29Barcode: 07948819665233 CDS MID PRICE

MONTEVERDIIl ritorno d’Ulisse in patriaChristoph Prégardien, Bernarda Fink, Christina Högman, Lorraine Hunt, Dominique Visse, Mark Tucker, David Thomas; Concerto Vocale, René Jacobs"The result is a five-act opera which convinces far more readily than is raises doubts. Jacobs' cast is a strong one...there is no doubt that he has achieved a vital and stylisti-cally fluent account." BBC Music Magazine

HML5901553/54Barcode: 0794881966424 2 CDS MID PRICE

MONTEVERDIL’OrfeoLaurence Dale, Efrat Ben-Nun, Jennifer Larmore, Paul Gérimon, Harry Peeters, Bernarda Fink, Andreas Scholl, Nicolas Rivenq; Concerto Vocale, René Jacobs

"Imaginative, involving,and beautifully recorded." ***CD OF THE MONTH, OPERA NOW, JANUARY 1996

NEW RENE JACOBS' DISCOGRAPHIES AVAILABLE NOW

harmonia mundi CD BOOKSMONTEVERDI OPERA EDITIONConcerto Vocale, René Jacobs


AP005 Barcode: 0794881 970520

3 FOR 2

G.F. HANDEL Scipione

Derek Lee Ragin (Scipione); Sandrine Piau (Berenice); Olivier Lallouette (Ernando); Vanda Tabery (Amira); Guy Flechter (Lelio); Doris Lamprechts…Les Talens Lyrique / Christophe Rousset

With their founder and conductor Christophe Rousset, Les Talens Lyriques appear all over the world, presenting both new revivals and established masterpieces of Baroque and Classical eras.Among their most notable achievements and Christophe Rousset’s first recording of a Handel opera, was Scipione, recorded 17 years ago. That recording on the fnac label has been deleted, furthermore, no other version has been recorded since.

“Scipione is composed with a libretto by Antonio Salvi (1704), and was adapted for Handel by Paolo Antonio Rolli. It deals with rivalry over love between the two castratos, set in the context of the conquest of the Iberian peninsula by Publius Cornelius Scipio around 210 B.C. From a musical point of view, the music is often gorgeous, with beautiful arias and several accompanied recitatives – one being a meditation of Scipione about power, desire and virtue (Act III scene I). The celebrated ‘Scoglio d’immota fronte’ is an aria sung by Berenice at the end of Act II. It is a tempest aria, but not one in which the character is subjected to the raging elements. Here, Berenice compares herself to a rock and faces the raging elements with assurance. Another of the numerous highlights is ‘Se mormora rivo o fronda’, Scipione’s magnificent pastoral lamentation (with flute, Act III scene 2). This beautiful work is here served by excellent interpreters. Sandrine Piau’s and Derek Lee Ragin’s performances are particularly notable. The American countertenor offers here one of the best performances of a countertenor heard in a Handel opera recording. Sandrine Piau is perfectly at her ease from the beautiful Sicilienne at the end of the first scene to the end of the work, and particularly in ‘Scoglio d’immota fronte’. Her frequent high notes are probably not totally idiomatic but the pleasure felt by the listener is totally ‘authentic’.Unfortunately this indispensable recording is not available any longer as the Fnac Music label disappeared some years ago. However, we do hope that another recording label will be able to re-issue it.” Gfhandel.org CONCERT: 8 July Barbican 6.30pm Semele cast includes Vivica Genaux & Richard Croft.... Les Talens Lyriques/ Christophe Rousset4 November Wigmore Hall Harmonia Sacra, Purcell with Sandrine Piau, Laurence Dreyfus, Les Talens Lyriques / Christophe Rousset (organ & harpsichord)


PC10196 Barcode: 761990 1019682 CDS

Franceso CAVALLI L’Ormindo Opera in a Prologue and Three Actsworld première recording of the original version from 1644

Sandrine Piau, Magali Léger, Stéphanie Révidat (sopranos);Karine Deshayes (mezzo-soprano);Martin Oro, Dominique Visse (countertenors); Howard Crook, Jean-François Lombard (tenors);Jacques Bona, Benoît Arnould (baritones);Ensemble Les Paladins / Jérôme Correas (harpsichord & direction)

Ormindo is the third melodrama to have been born of the collaboration between librettist Giovanni Faustini and composer Francesco Cavalli. The plot, following the established code of dramatic convention, tells the story of two pairs of lovers (Erisbe and Ormindo, Sicle and Amida) as they experience reversals of fortune, disguise and a ficticious death, all of which culminates in the agnizione of Ormindo as Hariadeno’s long-lost son in an incomparable coup de theatre.In Ormindo, as in the majority of Venetian operas from the same period, all is wagered upon theexpressive power of the voices. It is no wonder that the instrumental accompaniment is entrusted to a string ensemble backed by a continuo. The symphonies and ritornelli, sometimes merely sketched out in the score and left to be improvised by the singers during performance, have the role of giving body to the fine texture of the character’s monologues and dialogues, accompanying them throughout the vicissitudes with which they are confronted.

ALSO AVAILABLE ON PAN CLASSICS: PC10102 Barcode: 7619990 101029HAYDN Violin Concertos 1, 3, 4Isabelle Faust [violin]; Munich CO / Christoph Poppen

PC10172 Barcode: 7619990 101722 Alessandro ROLLADuettos & Duos Op.13, Op. 4/2, Op. 7/2, Op. 9Isabelle Faust [violin]; Thomas Riebl [viola]


C805103D Barcode: 4011790 805320

3 CDS FOR 2

Charles GOUNOD Faust

Piotr Beczala (Faust); Soile Isokoski (Marguerite); Kwangchul Youn (Mephistopheles);Adrian Eröd (Valentin); Michaela Selinger (Siebel); Hans Peter Kammerer (Wagner);Zoryana Kushpler (Marthe); Chorus & Orchestra of the Wiener Staatsoper / Bertrand de Billy (conductor)Vienna 2009

The Vienna State Opera – at least in these, the last days of the Holender era – is one of the last opera houses in the world in which the repertoire system is rigorously maintained. The absence of opening-night tension in repeat performances by no means brings any loss in quality: on the contrary, often the reallocation of roles and the more relaxed atmosphere in the audience can lead to an improved overall ensemble . This was the case in 2009, when after its opening night, Gounod’s Faust became a real tour de force of singing. Bertrand de Billy was in the pit of the Vienna State Opera, and with his unerring mastery of style and idiom he enjoyed a triumphant success with the audience. The two protagonists were new to Vienna: Piotr Beczala as Faust and Soile Isokoski as Marguerite. On CD, too, they prove that they were a real stroke of luck, able to combine vocal brilliance with nobility and subtle characterisation. The Polish tenor confirmed his reputation as a versatile master of bel canto and a ‘knight of the high C’, just as the Finnish soprano, a success at the Vienna State Opera in the title role of Halévy’s La Juive, proves with her finely drawn vocal lines and her well-nigh limitless palette of nuances that she is not just suited to Mozart and Strauss. Nor is it a secret that the mighty bass voice of Kwangchul Youn is not just a Wagnerian giant, for also in the role of Gounod’s devil he can reach the heights of form with remarkable consistency. With Michaela Selinger and Adrian Eröd as Siebel and Valentin we have documentary proof that for two decades under Iaon Holender, discovering local talent was a matter of course (though by no means something that comes of its own accord). We can hear in compelling fashion how these sing-ers are brought into small, but still important roles as part of the moulding process and when one hears the precision of the Vienna State Opera Chorus, one can only join in their final chorus of resurrection. No one could here claim that the final judgement has fallen on repertoire theatre; no, ‘it is saved!’.


C814101A Barcode: 4011790 814124NORMAL PRICE CD

SLAVIC OPERA ARIASBORODIN Prince Igor Medlenno den’ ugasal... Akh! Gde ty; NOWOWIEJSKI The Baltic Legend Czy ty mnie nie kochasz TCHAIKOVSKY Eugene Onegin Kak shchastliv… Ya lyublyu vas, Kuda, kuda; ŻELEŃSKI Janek Gdy ślub weźmiesz z twoim Stachem; MONIUSZKO Flis (The Raftsman) Płyną tratwy po Wiśle;RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Sadko Ne zh’yest’ almazov; TCHAIKOVSKY Iolanta Net! Chary lask krasy myatezhnoy;RACHMANINOV Aleko Vzglyani: pod otdalyonnim svodom; MONIUSZKO Straszny Dwór (The Haunted Manor) Cisza dokoła; SMETANA Prodaná nevěsta (The Bartered Bride) Až uzříš, komus koupil nevěstu ... Jak možná věřit;ARENSKY Raphael Strast’yu i negoyu serdtse trepeshchet; MONIUSZKO Halka Szumia Jodly na gor szczycie;TCHAIKOVSKY Pikovaya Dama (The Queen of Spades) Chto nasha zhizn’? Igra! DVOŘÁK Rusalka Ustante v lovu …

Vidino divná, přesladká; RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Mayskaya Noch’ (May Night) Kak tikho ... Spi moya krasavitsa; Bonus: Sadko Ne Zh'yest'

Piotr Beczala (tenor); Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra / Łukasz BorowiczPiotr Beczała has enjoyed success at all the great opera houses of the world. He also excels in the Slavic repertoire, which may be less than familiar to the box office but worthy of recognition, especially with such a voice possessed by this Polish tenor. Notable successes have been Beczała’s sell-out performances as the Prince in Dvořák’s Rusalka at the Salzburg Festival and as Lenski in Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin at the Met, Covent Garden and elsewhere. Beczała’s recital here includes highlights from the aforementioned works, but he also offers proof of the rich possibilities that this repertoire offers for a tenor to display both vocal grace and melancholy.It was in Warsaw that many of the operas were premièred, such as The Haunted Manor, The Raftsman and Halka by Stanisław Moniuszko. He was one of the driving forces behind the patriotic opera aesthetic of the newly founded national states in 19th century Europe, an aesthetic not just restricted to Poland. These three operas offer intense scenes of reminiscence and contemplation for their tenor protagonists, and they are joined here by the later, almost verismo operas Janek and The Baltic legend. Prince Igor is more familiar in the west, so it is fitting that Beczała here reminds us once more of the qualities of Vladimir’s romance from it. The musical spectrum is completed by examples of exoticism and local colour with excerpts from Sadko (in two different orchestrations), May Night, Aleko and Arensky’s Raphael.This is a solo programme from one of the great tenors of our time, as varied as it is rich in discoveries.

ALSO AVAILABLE: C715081A Piotr Beczala: Salut Gounod / Donizetti / Verdi / Massenet“Beczala displays throughout not only a tone of liquid gold but also a sensitive engagement with the shape of Gounod’s line as well as the meaning of the words he sings. He caps the performance with a flawlessly placed top C that is fully integrated into the rest of his voice. It’s a simply glorious sound.” Disc of the Month, Opera, August 2008

“a gleaming brilliance of timbre and musicianship that reminded me of Nicolai Gedda…Beczala is a versatile stylist, one of the most elegant and musical lyric singers before the public today.” Hugh Canning, Opera magazine, March 2010


FUG568 Barcode: 5 400439 005686

2 CDS

Hugo WOLFMörike – LiederCD1: Fussreise, Er ist's, Karwoche, Verborgenheit, Der Genesene an die Hoffnung, Auf einer Wanderung, Im Frühling, Frage und Antwort, Neue Liebe, Seufzer, In der Frühe, Jägerlied, Wo find' ich Trost, Auf ein altes Bild, Lied eines Verliebten, An die Geliebte, Begegnung, Auf eine Christblume I, Auf eine Christblume II, Erstes Liebeslied eines Mädchens, Lebe wohl, Heimweh, Gebet, Schlafendes Jesuskind, Zum neuen Jahr, Der Tambour, CD2: Der Jäger, Peregrina I, Peregrina II, Nimmersatte Liebe, Denk' es, o Seele, An eine Äolsharfe, Der Feuerreiter, Gesang Weylas, Elfenlied,Um Mitternacht, Die Geister am Mummelsee, An den Schlaf, Lied vom Winde, Storchenbotschaft, Auftrag, Bei einer Trauung, Selbstgeständnis, Zur Warnung, Abschied

Dietrich Henschel (baritone); Fritz Schwinghammer pianoRecorded live in Vienna

For his debut on Fuga Libera, Dietrich Henschel sets a very high benchmark. Accompanied by his faithful pianist, Fritz Schwinghammer, he provides a stunning introduction to the universe of Hugo Wolf in the first in a series of recitals recorded in the Ehrbar Saal in Vienna. The live recording in such an inspiring surrounding gives us something completely intimate and natural. The CD comes complete with a text by the eminent Leopold Spitzer, biographer and publisher of Hugo Wolf, together with a translation of the poems. This almost complete edition of the lieder on poems from Eduard Mörike is flavoured with the emotion that only the finest dishes can provide. In the pantheon of the greatest and most eminent musicians at the end of the 19th century, it is time for Hugo Wolf to step forward and take the place he so richly deserves.

“quite simply, the world's greatest living lieder singerOne of the greatest things I've ever heard in my life.” Tim Ashley, The Guardian, 15 August 2003

ALSO AVAILABLE: HMC901837 Wolf: Orchestral Songs, Banse, Henschel, DSO-Berlin/Nagano “It would be hard to imagine finer performances, vocally and orchestrally, than these….Dietrich Henschel, often sounding uncannily like Fischer- Dieskau, catches all the tormented yearning of the religious songs, and brings a nonchalant bravado to Der Rattenfänger, where Wolf's garish, glittering orchestration brilliantly enhances the original.” The Daily Telegraph, 18 March 2006


DCD34093 Barcode: 801918340932NORMAL PRICE CD

CONCERTO CALEDONIALATE NIGHT SESSIONS FROM EDINBURGH FESTIVAL The Book of Doves (Alasdair Roberts); Marshall-Burns; Sir Patrick Spens; The Duke of Athol’s March; Jamaican tunes (C. McNab); Paven (Duncan Burnett); Chiling O Guiry (Burk Thumoth); Alloway House; The Secret Kiss (James Oswald); The Scots Chaconne (John McLachlan?); Reading Ends in Melancholy (John Abell); Allegro from Quartetto Op 6 No 1 (J.G.C. Schetky) Black Jock including Black, White, Yellow and Green

Concerto Caledonia / David McGuinness(harpsichord, fortepiano , reed organ, melodica);

David Greenberg (violins); Chris Norman (flutes, whistle); Alison McGillivray (cello, viol); with Bill Taylor (clàrsach, bray harp); Elizabeth Kenny (lute, theorbo); Steve Player (guitar); Patsy Seddon (clàrsach); Sarah Bevan-Baker (violin); Nicolette Moonen (viola); and guests: Alasdair Roberts (v, guitar); Michael Marra (singer); Martin Carthy (v, guitar); Katharine Fuge (soprano)

Four concerts at 2009's Edinburgh International Festival offered us a great opportunity to draw on our repertoire of the last 17 years, and to invite a few special guests to add some new discoveries along the way. This CD presents a selection of favourite moments from those evenings at the Hub, showing just some of the fun that we had there; everything you hear on this recording happened on stage in the shows (except the gun going off in the Tattoo at the Castle next door) … It's guaranteed live, and all the better for it!Concerto Caledonia is Scotland’s early music group, bringing to life the classical and traditional music of the nation’s history.The group’s recordings include Robert Burns songs in their original versions, classical symphonies from Fife, early Scots fiddle music, and the unique sound of eighteenth-century Scottish-Italian crossover. Its contemporary recordings include music by Frank Zappa, Astor Piazzolla, Daniel Johnston and The Buzzcocks.Recent live collaborations have included Bach’s St John Passion with guest director Mark Padmore, dub reggae Burns songs with Karen Matheson and Future Pilot AKA, and the story of Orpheus with extreme cabaret trio The Tiger Lillies at the 2007 Edinburgh International Festival. ,ALSO AVAILABLE:DCD34014 The Red Red Rose "The funkiest album of Burns songs I’ve ever heard"CD Review, BBC Radio 3

“Be prepared to be surprised by the reams of insights, wicked and witty, humorous and heartbreaking, exhilarating and energetic on offer from Mcguinness and his left field outfit" The Herald


910170-2 Barcode: 0025091017027

NORMAL PRICE CD

J.S. BACHGoldberg Variations

Teodoro Anzellotti (accordion)

Ten years ago Winter & Winter and the Uri Caine Ensemble produced an unconventional adaptation of Bach's Goldberg Variations. Critics around the world highly recommended this unique production, which ran to more than 70 variations, based on how famous composers might have have arranged them and indeed, Uri’s unique take on Bach, aided and abetted by DJs and soul singers. The Goldberg Variations are one of the milestones in the art of composition. All recordings are noted by critics and music lovers alike. Teodoro Anzellotti was aware of that when he started to record this almost simple waltz and Bach’s complex 30 variations. Originally written for harpsichordist Johann Gottlieb Goldberg and commissioned by the notoriously sleepless Duke Hermann Carl von Keyserlingk, Teodoro Anzellotti has 'adapted' this composition for accordion. For Winter & Winter Anzellotti has already recorded music by Domenico Scarlatti, Erik Satie, John Cage and others. Each album by Anzellotti opens a new sound pallette, regardless if he plays a new piece by Salvatore Sciarrino or a Baroque composition by Johann Jakob Froberger, gaining international recognition at the highest possible level. Here he gives Bach’s Goldberg Variations a new frisson. Give it a go!

ALSO AVAILABLE: 910080-2 John Cage “Cage would surely have loved Anzellotti's highly personal realisations of his own intentionally impersonal blueprints.” The Independent on Sunday

910097-2 Matthias Pintscher Figura I-V, String Quartet No 4 “These recordings of his music for accordion and string quartet are marvels of finesse. The performers command a vast palette of colour, from the faintest nuance to the roughest attack. As for the recording, it’s so clear and close that you hear right down into the grain of the sound.” BBC Music Magazine

“This is a dark room you may not want to visit every day, but once you accustom yourself to the gloom, it’s quite possible to feel at home.” Peter Quantrill, The Strad

910054-2 Uri Caine Goldberg Variations

WINTER & WINTER


AP006 Barcode: 07948819706292 MID PRICE CDs

Louis COUPERINSuite in F: Prelude, Allemande grave, Courante, Sarabande, Branle de Basque, Gigue, Gaillarde, Chaconne, Tombeau de M. De Blancrocher; Suite in G min: Prelude, Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, Passacaille; Suite in C: Prelude, Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, Passacaille; Suite in C min: Prelude Allemande la precieuse, Courante, Sarabande, Gigue, Chaconne la Bergeronnette; Suite in D min: Prelude, Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, Canaries, Volte, La Pastourelle, Chaconne, Prelude à l'imitation de Mr Froberger, Allemande, l'amiable, Courante La Mignone, Sarabande, La Piemontoise, Pavanne

Christophe Rousset (harpsichord Louis Denis 1658 restored by Reinhard von Nagel 2004-5)

Christophe Rousset is one of the most brilliant harpsichordists of his generation, whose recordings have been hailed by the international press, including those of François Couperin for harmonia mundi.This is the first time he has recorded works by Louis Couperin. He preferred not to record the complete works, as he explains:“For this recording, we have selected the very finest pieces by Louis Couperin. We ruled out the idea of performing all the pieces - that has already been done by some of our eminent colleagues. We did not want to have three Courantes in succession or a Chaconne and a Passacaille following each other in the same key, nor for the suites to be unnecessarily long, and lacking the coherence and pertinence that the form requires. Although the material available would have enabled us to put together several suites, we decided to present just one suite in F or in A. And generally we have followed the order of Parville rather than of Bauyn. Thus, I believe, the listener will be able to apprehend Louis Couperin at his most expressive, in the richness of his harmonies and rhetoric, and in the subtle contrasts that make him one of the most amazing precursors not only of his nephew François Couperin, le grand, but also of Jean-Baptiste Lully.”

“Christophe Rousset’s Couperin is free, daring, and with an inspiration that burns brightly and continuously” Classic CD [on HMC901447/49 Pieces de Clavecin]

“But no one equals Christophe Rousset. The strength and exuberance of his playing are a powerful antidote to the view that Couperin’s keyboard output consists of effiminate trifles. Rousset is a player of extremes. But the best of his playing is outstanding and this version may be confidently recommended.” Radio 3 Building a Library/The Times


RIC296Barcode: 5400439 002968

3 CD DIGIBOX for the price of 2

A DEFENCE OF THE BASS VIOL AGAINST THE VENTURES OF THE VIOLIN & THE PRETENSIONS OF THE VIOLONCELLOCD1: Le Tombeau de Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe: Tombeau pour Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe; Troisième Suite Chaconne en Sol Majeur; Suite en Ré Mineur;Tombeau pour Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe le PèreDéfense de la Basse de viole: Cloches ou Carillons en Ré MineurSuite deuxième en Ré Mineur; La Pierrette – Rondeau;Chaconne en trio en Sol MajeurCD2: Défense de la Basse de viole: Deuxiéme Suite;Fugue: Légèrement; Troisième Suite; Sonata sesta; Les Entreprises du Violon: Sonata No. IV La Focroy ; Sonate No. II; Sonate QuatrièmeCD3: Les Entreprises du Violon: Sonata X Andante affetuoso; Les Prétentions du Violoncelle: Concerto Le Phénix Allegro; Sonata No. III Moderato; Les Sauvages; Sonata No. IV Allegro

Ricercar Consort / Philippe PierlotRecorded 1993

It was in Amsterdam in 1740 that a lawyer named Hubert Le Blanc published an astounding work that defended the use of the bass viol at a time when the violin and the cello were becoming more and more important in Parisian musical life. This recording provides a musical equivalent of his essay, depicting the initial success of the bass viol and of Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe (celebrated in the film Tous les matins du monde), its moments of glory and, above all else, the repertoire of the viol, violin and cello during the first half of the 18th century.


A402 Barcode: 80338916902122 FULL PRICE CDSBooklet Languages: Italian, English, French and German

Arcangelo CORELLI Sonate da Chiesa Opera Terza, 7 Sonate PostumeCD1: Sonata II in D major; Sonata V in D minor; Sonata VI in G major; Sonata VII in E minor; Sonata VIII in C major; Sonata X in A minor; Posthumous Sonatas; Sonata in A major WoO 5; Sonata in G minor WoO 9; Sonata in D major WoO 8CD2: Sonata XII in A major; Sonata IX in F minor; Sonata III in B flat major; Sonata XI in G minor; Sonata I in F major; Sonata IV in B minor;Posthumous Sonatas; Sonata in D major WoO7; Sonata in D major WoO6; Sonata in G minor WoO10; Sonata in D major WoO 4 *

Ensemble Aurora / Enrico Gatti: Maestro di concertoSeptember 16th - 20th 1996 (CD 1), September 15th - 20th 1997 (CD 2), Église de Grancey-le-Château, France

Corelli’s Op. 3 (12 sonatas for two violins and continuo) – and seven similar but seldom-heard, posthumous sonatas – are performed here by Enrico Gatti, considered by many to be an authoritative Corelli interpreter. This multi-award-winning disc returns with new artwork and a cover that celebrates the close artistic association and friendship of Corelli and the celebrated painter Francesco Trevisani with a masterpiece commissioned by the two artists’ patron, Cardinal Pietro Ottoboni. Born in 1955 in Perugia, Italy, Enrico Gatti has dedicated himself to the study of XVII and XVIII century repertoire. He has performed extensively with, amongst others, La Petite Bande, Ensemble 415, Concerto Palatino, Hesperion XX, La Real Cámara, as leader of Les Arts Florissants, Les Talens Lyriques, The King’s Consort, Ricercar Consort and Concerto Köln. He directs the Ensemble Aurora, which he founded in Italy in 1986 to further promote the study and performance of Italian musical heritage. The complete recording of Corelli’s Op.III won the diapason d’or de l’année in 1998.

A423 Barcode: 80338916902292 FULL PRICE CDS

Arcangelo CORELLI12 Violin Sonatas Op. 5 / Sonate a Violino e Violone o Cimbalo Opera Qvinta

Enrico Gatti (violin Laurentius Storioni, Cremonæ 1789); Gaetano Nasillo (cello Barak Norman, London ca. 1710); Guido Morini (harpsichord Antonio Martini, Ravenna 2001)May 25th - June 2nd 2003, Chiesa di Badia Cavana, Langhirano, Italy

Corelli’s Opus 5 is one of the milestones of the violin literature. Fruit of a long and patient maturation, Enrico Gatti gives us one of the reference recordings of this masterpiece, accompanied here by two artists well known to the Arcana catalogue: cellist Gaetano Nasillo, fresh from his Caldara recording, and harpsichordist Guido Morini. Morini is leader (with Marco Beasley) of the Accordone ensem-ble whose Frà Diavolo will be a key Arcana release in the Autumn.This multi-award-winning disc returns with new artwork and a cover featuring a still life by Christian Berentz, commissioned from his artist friend by Corelli himself.


ALPHA163 Barcode: 3 760014 191633

NORMAL PRICE CD

KONGE AF DANMARKL’Europe musicale à la cour de Christian IVHUME The Duke of Holstones Delight, The Duke of Holstones Almaine; SIMPSON Ricercar (On "Bonny Sweet Robin"), Volte; ROBINSON Spanish Pavan, A Toy, A Playne Song; BLEYER Courante; PEDERSØN Fader vor ud i Himmerig, O che soave baccio;LORENZ Vater unser im Himmelreich; SCHOP Sine titulo; VIERDANCK Canzona; SCHEIDT Alamanda (Brun Smedelyn), Paduan; MAERCKER Paduana; BORCHGREVINCK Galliard; MAYNARD A Pavin; GISTOU Paduana, Galliard II

Les WitchesChristian IV, 1577-1648, invested the Danish court with immense prestige. Added to diplomatic and military ambitions was a rich artistic life, especially in music. The Copenhagen court was rich with singers and instrumentalists, and therefore became an important place of passage for European composers. Les Witches invite us to listen to their latest recording, a celebration of Danish court musicians and the Esaias Compenius organ, installed in the chapel of the Frederiksborg Castle by Christian IV in 1617, but actually built in 1610 a mere 400 years ago, and played by both Dowland and Praetorius.

ALSO AVAILABLE: ALPHA063 Bara Faustus’ Dreame “one of the most arrestingly colourful and plush recordings of Elizabethan music I’ve heard.” International Record ReviewALPHA526 Manuscript Susanne van SoldtALPHA909 Nobody’s Jig and catalogue 2009 [was alpha502]

STR33724 Barcode: 8011570 337245

NORMAL PRICE CD

CACCINI Il Cantar d’AffettoANON Italian Saltarello; CACCINI Mentre che fra doglie e pene, Sfogava Con Le Stelle, Queste Lagrim'amare, Non ha'l ciel, Amor, io parto, Tutto'i di piango, Le nuove musiche, Alme luci beate, Se voi, lagrime, a pieno, Ohimè, begli occhi, for voice & lute, Belle rose purpurine, Se in questo scolorito, Torna deh torna, Nuove musiche e nuova maniera de scriverle; PICCININI Toccatas for lute Nos. 2, 4+6; RAIMONDO Cassandra, Volta, Balletto, Corrente francese for lute; KAPSBERGER Toccata for lute No. 1, Prelude for guitar & theorbo No. 1, Corrente for lute No. 10 (from Book 1 of D'Intavolatura di Lauto), Prelude for guitar & theorbo No. 5, Sarabanda (from Libro Quatro d'Intavolatura di Chitarone), Gagliarda for lute No. 10a

Claudine Ansermet (soprano); Paolo Cherici (lute)

The collection Le nuove musiche by Giulio Caccini, also known as Romano, was published in Florence by Marescotti in 1602. Caccini’s music embodies the new way of composing and of singing. The author writes in his extensive indications to readers “not to esteem that sort of music which does not allow the words to be understood, and spoils the concept and the verse sometimes by lengthening and sometimes by shortening the syllables to fit the counterpoint, a laceration of the poetry”. The world prevails on music and this spirit remains in this beautifully programmed CD by Claudine Ansermet and Paolo Cherici.


WER6934-2 Barcode: 4010 228 693423 3CDS for 2

EARLE BROWN - A LIFE IN MUSIC - VOL. 3 CD1: The Voice of Cathy Berberian Luciano BERIO Circles (e.e. cummings); Sylvano BUSSOTTI Frammento; CAGE Aria with Fontana Mix CD2: Toshiro MAYUZUMI Nirvana Symphony Buddhist Cantata for 12-part male chorus and orchestra CD3: New Music for Piano(s) Iannis XENAKIS Herma; Roger REYNOLDS Fantasy for Pianist; Earle BROWN Corroboree

Cathy Berberian (voice); Francis Pierre (harp); Jean-Pierre Drouet, Boris de Vinogradov (percussion); Luciano Berio (piano); NHK Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Choraliers, Nippon University Chorus / Wilhelm Schüchter (conductor); Yuji Takahashi (piano)

This third CD set within the series contains works by Luciano Berio, Sylvano Bussotti, John Cage, Toshiro Mayuzumi, Iannis Xenakis, Roger Reynolds, Yuji Takahashi and Earle Brown, performed by the great singer Cathy Berberian, accompanied by Francis Pierre, Jean-Pierre Drouet, Boris de Vinogradov and Luciano Berio; furthermore the NHK Symphony Orchestra and the NHK Chorus together with Tokyo Choraliers and the Nippon University Chorus under the direction of Wilhelm Schüchter and the pianist Yuji Takahashi. Earle Brown’s legendary Contemporary Sound Series was recorded between 1960 and 1973: the original 18 LPs have been highly sought-after in the secondary market since 1978 when they were discontinued. These rare and historically important recordings of international avant-garde music have been carefully digitised and remastered by the Earle Brown Music Foundation. The series presents the extraordinary world of contemporary and avant-garde music that flourished in Europe, the United States, Latin America and Japan in the 1960s and early 1970s. Each set contains three CDs in jewel boxes including the original liner notes and cover. In addition there is small catalogue/booklet with an essay "Earle Brown's Contemporary Sound Series" in English, German and French, as well as information about the remaining releases.

“The 18 LPs of the Contemporary Sound Series are deeply embedded inside the DNA of contemporary music and the realisation that they have been marooned in vinyl-only obscurity for 40 years comes as a shock. But now the Mainz based Wergo label has plucked Brown’s pioneering efforts from out of this unmerited limbo” Philip Clark, The Wire, December 2009

ALSO AVAILABLE: WER6928-2 A Life in Music Vol. 1 WER6931-2 A Life in Music Vol. 2“First issued in 1970, it ¬delivers a fascinating snapshot of British new music: there are works by Maxwell Davies (the pungent little "overture" Antechrist) and Harrison Birtwistle (the only available recording of his spare Christopher Logue setting Ring a Dumb Carillon)…All have considerable documentary as well as musical value.” Andrew Clements, The Guardian


WER6854-2 Barcode: 4010 228 685428

NORMAL PRICE CD World Première Recordings

MUSIKFABRIK 4: SHADOW GAMES / SCHATTENSPIELEJARRELL prisme/incidences II; GERVASONI Far niente; DURAND Ombre/Miroir; FERNEYHOUGH Shadowtime VI (Seven Tableaux Vivants Representing the Angel of History as Melancholia)

musikFabrik: Hae-Sun Kang (violin); Michael Tiepold (double bass); Helen Bledsoe (flute); Omar Ebrahim (speaker); conductors: Diego Masson, Etienne Siebens, James Wood

Black is the colour of the bile said to induce a state of gloom. In the form of ‘melancholia’, it has become an allegory of the artistic imagination. The hour of melancholy strikes at night, when the sleep of reason brings forth its monsters. This CD takes us on a foray into the land of shadows: its compositions make remarkable use of light and shadow effects while simultaneously recalibrating the relationship between ensemble and soloist in unique ways. Michael Jarrell’s arrangement of a violin concerto for chamber orchestra refracts the solo instrument’s line through the prism of the ensemble. The tale told by Stefano Gervasoni’s ‘lowered’ concerto for double bass is only superficially about dolce far niente; his music is a nocturnal creature that gathers odd sound forms – until the alarm goes off. Taking an (early-morning) look in the mirror, the solo flute in Durand’s Ombre/Miroir finds itself still faced with shadowy creatures as well. And finally, in Brian Ferneyhough’s seven tableaux vivants, the angel of history appears: in verses of poet Charles Bernstein he shows his gloomy face.

WER6732-2 Barcode: 4010 228 673227

NORMAL PRICE CD

Rodion SHCHEDRIN The Sealed AngelInese Romancane (soprano); Zane Zilberte (mezzo-soprano); Jurgis Liepnieks (tenor); Dita Krenberga (flute);State Choir Latvija / Maris Sirmais (conductor)

With his Russian liturgy, The Sealed Angel, Rodion Shchedrin has written a work of inner contemplation of timeless relevance, which will deeply move every listener who approaches the piece with an open heart. "The Latvian State Choir is one of the finest choirs I have ever heard … the acoustics of the ancient, legendary Eberbach Monastery are transformed into a faithful ally and magician’s assistant. I am sure that after hearing this CD you will share my joy and enthusiasm as well." Rodion Shchedrin ALSO AVAILABLE:

WER6700-2 Shchedrin - Boyarina MorozovaWER6691-2 Shchedrin - Piano Sonata, Notebook

“The Muscovite composer and pianist Shchedrin prospered in the Soviet Union, producing works of virtuosity and wit. He wrote his 24 preludes and fugues after hearing Shostakovich’s and they buzz with compulsive invention and never-flagging energy. These recordings date from the 1960s and 1970s when his skill was consummate, his speeds electrifying and his touch passionate. The 25 preludes of the Polyphonic Notebook Op 50 were recorded through the night. No 12 quotes Bach’s Violin Partita No 3 (the BBC’s Counterpoint theme), slithering with it down drunken, midnight byways before returning to sanity and approval. Red hot.” The Times

ALSO AVAILABLE: WER6853-2 From Heaven to HellWER6852-2 Visible Traces

WER6851-2 Sprechgesange“Interaction between speech and music, and the possibilities of their interchangeability, are at the heart of this fascinating collection…An utterly absorbing disc.” The Irish Times


DIETRICH FISCHER DIESKAU AT 85C810102ABarcode: 4011790 8101262 CDS for 1

Johannes BRAHMSSymphony No. 4 Op. 98, Piano Concerto No. 2 Op. 83

Konstantin Lifschitz (piano); Konzerthausorchester Berlin / Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (conductor) live Konzerthaus Berlin, 14/12/2002

With an artist such as Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, who has engaged successfully with the work of so many composers, it makes little sense to assign Johannes Brahms a special place in his repertoire (alongside Schubert, Wolf and innumerable others). And yet his 85th birthday is perhaps an appropriate occasion to point out that in the case of Brahms, the conductor Fischer-Dieskau cannot be separated from the singer (no less than either can be separated from Fischer-Dieskau the painter or writer). It is perhaps with no other composer that Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau’s universality comes to such fullness of expression. There is here an awareness of tradition, form and historical contrasts, both in competition and in equilibrium with each other (and all the greater for it), a never-ceasing delight in discovery and above all an honest desire to communicate in the languages of music and poetry (but of course – who else could have made Die schöne Magelone as popular in the dual role of singer and speaker?). He was able to realise this brilliantly on the conductor’s rostrum, as is proven by this live CD recording with the Konzerthausorchester Berlin in its home on the Gendarmenmarkt in December 2002. Konstantin Lifschitz is the piano soloist in the Second Piano Concerto, as thunderingly virtuosic as he is subtly aware of form. The Fourth Symphony by Brahms offers a marvellous example of how breathing and phrasing is the basis of all common music-making, not least in the symphonic repertoire (and just as much in the concerto here that was in Brahms’ day scolded as being a “symphony with obbligato piano”). Dense agogic and dynamic elaboration and a sense of withdrawn contemplation do not just alternate in this piano concerto, but rather emerge one out of the other. The same is true of the symphony’s formal coherence, from the directness of its opening to its abrupt, almost brusque close. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Konstantin Lifschitz and the Konzerthausorchester Berlin reveal in every moment that musical beauty in Brahms, whether calm or passionate, is always grounded in a consistent musical rhetoric, and that this beauty must be striven for – a process that is as exciting as it is, in the end, mellow and enriching.

ALSO AVAILABLE: C676071A Bach Musical Offering, Prelude & Fugue in E flat BWV552 / Konstantin Lifschitz “The recording itself is first-class and the extensive programme notes are a model of their kind. For Lifschitz this has clearly been a labour of love, even something of a pilgrimage: these are staggering performances which deserve the highest acclaim.” International Record Review, February 2008


AUDITE23420Barcode: 4022143234209

2 CDS FOR 1

L.V. BEETHOVEN Piano Sonatas• No. 15 in D major, Op. 28 (Pastoral)• No. 18 in E-fl at major, Op. 31, 3• No. 21 in C major, Op. 53 ‘Waldstein’• No. 30 in E major, Op. 109

Wilhelm Backhaus (piano)live in Berlin, 1969

Even as a young man Wilhelm Backhaus was the epitome of a pianist who focused on performing a work as objectively as possible. With this aim, he proved a strong influence on the succeeding generation of pianists and constituted the opposite pole to Wilhelm Kempff’s playing. Backhaus’ domain was the classic-romantic repertoire from Bach to Brahms with Beethoven at the centre. During his long career on the concert platform, which lasted for over 70 years, Backhaus intensively explored the piano sonatas of Beethoven with remarkable technical reliability and a profound mastery of musical substance. This live recording of a concert – featuring four major sonatas, including the Waldstein Sonata, Op. 53, and the Sonata in E major, Op. 109 – given in Berlin during the last year of Backhaus’ life (1969) - once more demonstrates the merits of Backhaus’ clear and, in the most positive sense of the word, classicist interpretational approach: like almost no other pianist, he knew how to illustrate the content and architecture of this music without sacrificing the detail – but also without losing himself within it.

ALSO AVAILABLE: AUDITE95610 Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 4, Symphony No. 4 DSO Berlin / Karl Böhm " The Backhaus touch proves quite magical--he plays his own dynamic cadenza in the last movement--sparkling in its counterpoint and thunderous in its cascading runs. The famed Backhaus consistency of tone provides the watermark for this beautifully contoured performance of the work; and even in the more explosive episodes a serenity of spirit reigns that vaunts its celestial authority." Audiophile Audition


CAL3351.2Barcode: 07948819716262 CDS FOR 1½

Frédéric CHOPINBerceuse Op. 57, The 21 NocturnesPascal Amoyel (piano)

CAL9353 Scriabin Intégrale des Poèmes “Amoyel makes the 3 minutes of this first Poème blissful to listen to - a sweet polyphony of floating lines, a pure rubato. In the title of Poème languide, the manner is explicit, but there are also heavily insistent, iteratively chordal items, such as Poème satanique. Vers la flamme memorably combines the approaches. Poème fantasque self-destructs in 29 seconds.” The Sunday Times

CAL9371/2 Liszt Harmonies poétiques et religieuses“With this richly comprehensive two-CD album Pascal Amoyel finds his truest metier, playing with an extraordinary richness and intensity of expression…an invaluable album.”Bryce Morrison, Gramophone recommends, Gramophone, March 2008

STR33846Barcode: 8011570 338464NORMAL PRICE CD

Robert SCHUMANNIntermezzi Op. 4, Phantasiestücke Op. 111, Sonata Op. 11Andrea Padova (piano)Andrea Padova performs the relatively rare Intermezzi Op. 4 by Robert Schumann, plus the Phantasiestucke Op. 111 and Sonata Op. 11 - a celebration of Schumann’s music in the 200th anniversary year.

“…Andrea Padova with his incomparable sound, his bright and communicative pianism, his delicate phrasing , and the intensity of expression and singing, made us once more conscious of the enchantment and modernity of this Schumann’s masterpiece“ Il Quotidiano, Antonio Montinaro

NS05 Barcode: 3760142 231058NORMAL PRICE CD

BRAHMS Piano Trio Op. 101SCHUBERT Piano Trio Op. 100 Fortuna Piano Trio: Markus Placci (violin); Kung-Mi Lee (cello); Michelangelo Carbonara (piano)

Schubert’s eminently Viennese Trio Op. 100 offers an ideal contrast with Brahms’ very German Op. 101. The pairing of these two demanding works reflects the eclecticism of the youthful Fortuna Piano Trio

SCHUMANN & CHOPIN ANNIVERSARIES


DSD250228 Barcode: 0794881 787968

NORMAL PRICE SACD

Belá BARTOK String Quartets No. 3 Sz85 & No. 4 Sz91, WEINER String Quartet No. 3 Op.26Párkányi Quartet

The Párkányi Quartet, which worked with Sándor Végh in Budapest, has waited 30 years before giving us its vision of this summit of 20th-century quartet literature, the central diptych of the six String Quartets. It is coupled with the last Quartet, also inspired by the land, of an overly-neglected Hungarian and childhood friend of Bartók: the ethnologist and dramatist Leo Weiner.

ALSO AVAILABLE: DSD250235 String Quartet No. 1, Sz 40 (1907); String Quartet No.2, Sz 67 (1917)

DSD250225 String Quartet No. 5, Sz 102 (1934); String Quartet No. 6, Sz 114 (1939)“really gorgeous playing, sumptuously recorded” Tully Potter, The Strad

DSD250271Barcode: 0 794881 96292 1

NORMAL PRICE SACD

Ernest BLOCHFrom Jewish Life - Cello WorksNigun, Méditation Hébraïque, Voice In The Wilderness, Visions And Prophecies, Suite No.3 for solo cello Michal Kaňka (cello); Miguel Borges Coelho (piano)

Violinist, pianist, conductor, composer, Ernest Bloch, had to live between two worlds: his native Europe, torn by wars and anti-Semitism, and the American mirage offering successes as glorious as they were short-lived. Voice in the Wilderness, written 20 years after the famous Schelomo, remains little known. This masterpiece exists in two versions: a dialogue between piano and cello, and a rhapsody in which the piano gives way to a large orchestra. In the first recording since 1952, Voice in the Wilderness is again heard in its original version along with its vibrant summary, Visions and Prophecies.

AECD1089Barcode: 3 760058 360897

NORMAL PRICE CD

Klaus HUBERComplete Cello WorksEin Hauch von Unzeit VIII, Transpositio ad infinitum, Lazarus, Rauhe Pinselspitze, ...ruhe sanft... (in memoriam John Cage), PartitaAlexis Descharmes (cello); Sébastien Vichard (piano, harpsichord); Jean-Baptiste Leclère (buk)

Klaus Huber's oeuvre reveals a musician, full of compassion for his fellow man, magnificently attested to by the interpretations that Alexis Descharmes gives us here. Descharmes met the composer 12 years ago, when the decision was made to record his complete works for cello. Booklet note by Brian Ferneyhough.“Alexis Descharmes is not only a brilliant cellist; he is also someone who probes all the musical dimensions of a score in depth. I would go so far as to say that his interpretations reveal the full transcendence of my music.” Klaus Huber


SFZ MUSIC, the independent label for His Majesty's Sagbutts & Cornetts, is pleased to announce their latest venture, an exploration of the world of contemporary organ music in Britain.

Volume 1 contains the complete organ music of Gabriel Jackson and Laurence Crane. The latter is a leading exponent of British minimalism, wonderfully moving and placid: all Crane’s pieces are recorded here for the first time, and The Swim includes possibly the first fade-to-digital-silence ever included on an organ album. Gabriel Jackson is a star of the contemporary music scene, well-known for his beautiful choral music and recently appointed associate composer of the BBC Singers. Many of these organ pieces are recorded here for the first time: Comeragh Litanies and Southwark Symphonies are prime examples of Jackson’s scenic style; St Asaph Toccata is a thrilling shower of notes; Aquarius for Quartz and Copper is a joyful outburst, featuring the trumpet playing of Mark O’Keefe.

Volume 2 features the music of Avril Anderson and her husband David Sutton-Anderson. They are both composers and teachers at the Royal College of Music, and tireless promoters of contemporary music through their ensemble Sounds Positive. Their music makes full exploration of the range of colours available on the organ, searching constantly for new combinations and sonorities: dark, rhythmic, deep, even creepy at times, at others, pastoral and beautiful.Both volumes are recorded at St. John the Evangelist, Upper Norwood: the organ there, by TC Lewis (who also built the organ of Southwark Cathedral) is one of the finest in London and has a wide range of beautifully voiced and balanced sounds.

The organist, Michael Bonaventure, is renowned for his interpretations of contemporary music: his recent recordings of Messiaen for Delphian Records have received widespread critical acclaim, and he is much sought after as a recitalist in Britain and abroad. He has commissioned over 60 new works for the organ, from all the composers featured on these recordings and from others such as James MacMillan, Jean- Pierre Leguay, and Judith Weir.

Volume 3 of the series will be recorded this summer in Coventry Cathedral and will feature music by Bonaventure himself, Glyn Perrin, Elisabeth Lutyens, David Bedford, Graham Fitkin and many others. Future volumes are planned, featuring the music of Paul Patterson, Geoffrey King and John McCabe.

CONTEMPORARY BRITISH ORGAN MUSIC

SFZM0410Barcode: 5 065001 476068NORMAL PRICE CD British Contemporary Organ 1

Gabriel JACKSON & Laurence CRANE

SFZM0610Barcode: 5 065001 476075NORMAL PRICE CD British Contemporary Organ 2

Avril ANDERSON & David SUTTON-ANDERSON

Michael Bonaventure (the organ of St John the Evangelist Upper Norwood)


STR33836 Barcode: 8011570 338365

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1685 BACH HANDEL SCARLATTI J.S. BACH Fantasia & Fugue BWV904, Canzona in D BWV588, Aria Variata BWV989 ‘In the Italian Style’; HANDEL Suite for Harpsichord HWV427, Prelude & Allegro (Sonata) for keyboard HWV574, Concertos (6) for Organ Op. 4; SCARLATTI Sonata for Harpsichord in D major, K 287/L S9, Sonata for Harpsichord in D major, K 282/L 484, Sonata for Harpsichord in G major, K 304/L 88, Medley

Maurizio Croci (organ)A celebration of Baroque music. The programme here recorded shows the marvellous versatilityof the Baroque organ, bringing a multiplicity of genres and forms. Thus from Maurizio Croci’s fingers flow the prelude and the fugue; 17th -century legacies like the canzona and the aria con variazioni; and the two principal genres of instrumental Baroque music: the sonata and the concerto, plus compositions not always born for the organ, but easily adapted for it. Maurizio Croci has performed throughout Europe and Japan and performed J.S. Bach’s complete organ works in Bern to mark the 250th anniversary of the composer’s death. Mr Croci is currently Organ Professor at the Haute Ecole de Musique de Lausanne-Fribourg; Harpsichord Professor and director of the early Music Department at the Accademia Internazionale della Musica in Milan; organist at the Basilica of the Holy Trinity in Berne and of the Collège St-Michel in Fribourg; and artistic director of the Académie d’Orgue de Fribourg.

CAL9753Barcode: 0794881 934829

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Camille SAINT-SAENS Works for OrganPrélude et fugue Op.99 No. 3, O Salutaris, de la Messe Op.4 (transc. Saint-Saëns), Marche d'Hyménée, Rêverie du soir, Fantaisie in E min, Prélude du ‘Déluge’, Op.45, Prélude & Fugue Op.99 No. 2, Berceuse Op.105, Hymne à Victor Hugo, Le Cygne, Marche héroïque Op.34

Mathieu Freyburger (organ Rinckenbach de Cernay)

Many of these pieces come from the complete works of Saint-Saëns as transcribed for organ by Alexandre Guilmant. Mathieu Freyburger has completed two volumes of Guilmant's works for Calliope, nla but well received by the critics.

“an excellent introduction to the music of Guilmant. It is also a demonstration of a wonderful instrument by a first-class performer. Highly recommended.” Organists’ Review, August-October 2003

“superb playing” Choir & Organ, May/June 2005

“a gem of a recording” The Organ, May-July 2006


WLCD0313 Barcode: 4 035122 6531373CDS

R. STRAUSS - Der Rosenkavalier Lisa Della Casa (Die Feldmarschallin); Otto Edlmann (Ochs); Rise Stevens (Octavian); Ralph Herbert (Faninal); Hilde Güden (Sophie); Thomas Hayward (Italian tenor); Orchestra & Chorus of the Metropolitan Opera, New York / Rudolf Kempe (conductor) 18/1/1956 Excellent sound, if slightly boxy. The Trio builds slowly but wonderfully: Güden and Della Casa superb. WLCD0318 Barcode: 4 035122 6531822CDS

DEBUSSY – Pelléas & MélisandeVictoria de los Angeles (Mélisande); Theodor Uppman (Pelléas); George London (Golaud); Giorgio Tozzi (Arkel); Regina Resnik (Geneviève); Mildred Allen (Yniold); Clifford Harvuot (le médécin); Orchestra & Chorus of the Metropolitan Opera, New York /Jean Morel (conductor) 16/1/1960Good sound, noisy audience, but valuable for the great George London and of course, de los Angeles.WLCD0314 Barcode: 4 035122 6531443 CDS

MOZART - Le Nozze di FigaroCesare Siepi (Figaro); Nadine Connor (Susanna); Frank Guarrera (Count Almaviva); Victoria de los Angeles (Countess); Mildred Miller (Cherubino); Fernando Corena (Bartolo); Sandra Warfield (Marcellina); Alessio de Paolis (Basilio); Orchestra & Chorus of the Metropolitan Opera, New York / Max Rudolf (conductor) 7/4/1956

WLCD0312 Barcode: 4 035122 6531202CDS

PUCCINI - Madama ButterflyLicia Albanese (Butterfly); Rosalind Elias (Suzuki); Madelaine Chambers (Kate Pinkerton); Daniele Barioni (Pinkerton); John Brownlee (US Consul); Alessio de Paolis (Goro); George Cehanovsky (Yamadori); Osie Hawkins (Bonzo); Orchestra & Chorus of the Metropolitan Opera, New York / Dimitri Mitropoulos 15/12/1956 Good sound. Albanese in superb voice.

WLCD0315 Barcode: 4 035122 6531512CDS

VERDI – La Forza del DestinoLouis Sgarro (Calatrava); Zinka Milanov (Leonora); Leonard Warren (Carlo); Richard Tucker (Don Alvaro); Rosalind Elias (Preziosilla); Cesare Siepi (Padre Guardiano); Fernando Corena (Fra Melitone); Thelma Votipka (Curra); Alessio de Paolis (Mastro Trabuco); Orchestra & Chorus of the Metropolitan Opera, New York / Fritz Stiedry 17/3/1956

WHLive0038 Barcode: 5065000924393

MID PRICE CD

IESTYN DAVIES & ENSEMBLE GUADAGNI HANDEL Nine German Arias; BUXTEHUDE Jubilate Domino; PURCELL Gentle Shepherds, you that know The charms of tuneful breath (A Pastoral Elegy on the Death of Mr. John Playford), What a sad, sad Fate is mine?BLOW As on his deathbed gasping Strephon lay (A Pastoral Elegy on the Earl of Rochester, who died the 26th July, 1680);Introduction to encore: PURCELL An Evening Hymn

Iestyn Davies (counter-tenor); Ensemble Guadagni: Matthew Truscott (violin); Jonathan Manson (viola da gamba); David Miller ( theorbo); Robert Howarth ( harpsichord, organ)

"One of the most glorious countertenor voices in the world today" The Independent Winner of the Royal Philharmonic Society Award for Best Young Artist 2009, countertenor Iestyn Davies demonstrated that he is the outstanding artist of his generation. His expressiveness of tone, intensity of sound and musicianship were brought to bear in concert, and, of course, in opera, where his natural sense of drama stole many a show and, significantly, brought the spotlight back to the countertenor voice.Iestyn Davies emerged as one of the country’s leading countertenors following his prize in the London Handel Singing Competition in 2004, only shortly after completing his studies at St John’s College, Cambridge as a choral scholar. He was immediately identified as an exciting operatic prospect, and his rôles soon included Ottone in Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea (Zurich Opera with Harnoncourt), Corrado in Vivaldi’s Griselda (Ensemble Matheus with Spinosi), and Hamor in Handel’s Jephtha (Welsh National Opera). Engagements quickly extended to rôles in Monteverdi’s Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria, also at WNO and the parts of Apollo in Britten’s Death in Venice and Arsace, Partenope for English National Opera. He is equally active on the concert platform, appearing with many of the leading British ensembles, including the Academy of Ancient Music, Polyphony and the Monteverdi Choir. He made his solo recording début in Vivaldi’s Griselda with Ensemble Matheus for Naïve. This recital was part of the Wigmore's Hall's ongoing 'Art of the Countenor' series, which also featured Andreas Scholl and Bejun Mehta. A podcast of Iestyn in conversation is on http://www.wigmore-hall.org.uk/interact/rss/iestyn-davies-in-conversation

CONCERT REVIEW“Iestyn Davies is about as near as real musicians can come to being an overnight sensation, since his rise to fame has been so swift, yet it has also been carefully managed as this debut solo recital showed. Purcell and Blow dominated the first half, both composers in elegiac, mournful mood. In its intensity and unrelenting seriousness, the choice of repertoire itself showed tremendous confidence.This was also Iestyn Davies’s first concert-collaboration with the four virtuosos who make up Ensemble Guadagni . It is safe to assume that audiences will be able to enjoy many more concerts of the same musical excellence with these collaborative artists” Classical Source CONCERTS: 10 July Cheltenham Festival Pittville Pump Room Gesualdo, Dowland, Purcell, Warlock, Britten wt Fretwork 23, 25, 27, 29 Sept, 1, 3 Oct Royal Opera House, Covent Garden Steffani: Niobe, Regina di Tebe (Creonte)

NB: AVAILABLE AUGUST 2

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CLASSICAL new release harmonia mundi UK 08, 2010 · harmonia mundi UK released 26th July 2010. HMU907519. Barcode: 0093046751920. NORMAL PRICE CD. Franz SCHUBERT. Die schöne Müllerin