In his finely curated program Serenade, Swiss pianist Benjamin Engeli dedicates himself to the chamber music treasures of the extraordinary composers Agathe Backer-Grøndahl, Amy Beach, and Rebecca Clarke, bringing their lyrical miniatures, poetic soundscapes, and expressive character pieces to life. Engeli, one of the most distinguished pianists of his generation in Switzerland, impressively demonstrates the musical depth and emotional diversity of the work of these often underrated artists.

For her album Planet Earth, pianist Lisa Maria Schachtschneider has selected mainly romantic to late impressionist piano works and transcriptions from the four elements of fire, earth, water and air. Last but not least, as an artist she wants to promote a more conscious and sustainable approach to our environment and our resources.

The inspiring new album Shapes of Water by renowned pianist Carmen Stefanescu takes listeners on a captivating musical journey. Following her successful debut album with Prospero Classical, The Voice of Piano, the pianist has recorded pieces based on the theme of water for her new release. Water has always fascinated artists as a theme and symbol - it stands for purity and renewal, but also for mystery, movement and the transience of time. In her new album Shapes of Water, pianist Carmen Stefanescu transports her audience into a world of sound in which water itself becomes music: it trickles, glitters, flows - and always comes to rest.

Violinist Augustin Hadelich embarks on an American Road Trip, travelling the musical highways and by ways of his adoptive homeland in the company of pianist Orion Weiss. The duo perform works by a melting pot of American composers, writing in the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries and drawing on a diversity of idioms, influences and inspirations... from European Romanticism to revivalist hymns; from blues and jazz to bluegrass; from the banjo and ukulele to Jimi Hendrix's guitar, and from a little Mexican star to exquisite Japanese carvings. Aaron Copland, Leonard Bernstein, Charles Ives and John Adams take their place beside Amy Beach, Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, Eddie South, Howdy Forrester, Manuel M. Ponce and - flying the flag for today's composers along with Adams - Daniel Bernard Roumain and Stephen Hartke. Augustin Hadelich, born in Italy to German parents, moved to the USA at the age of 19 to study at New York's Juilliard School and became an American citizen in 2014. In the words of The Strad magazine, "Hadelich's playing brings together the best qualities of both American and European playing: passion, Polish and coherence, but also thoughtfulness, expressivity and nuance."

The new program by French baroque violinist Hélène Schmitt moves along a French-American axis and features six violin sonatas by female composers from both sides of the Atlantic. These are small-scale works, full of warmth and sensitivity, ranging from pure Romanticism to the cautious breaking away from tonality. The instruments are played with gut strings, and the Steinway grand piano is a historic model made in New York; pianist Antoine de Grolée accompanies eloquently and sensitively.

If you're having only one Amy Beach CD (and you should have at least one), let this be your choice. It's a mystery why the Piano Concerto still awaits the attention it surely deserves, for it's a terrific piece, full of good tunes, flashy keyboard writing, and colorful orchestration. It's also very well constructed, with the long (17-plus minutes) first movement effectively balanced by the three ensuing ones. The "perpetuum mobile" scherzo is delightful; the Largo, with its quasi-Wagnerian opening, is surprisingly expressive for all its brevity; and the finale has irresistible verve. The only previous recording of note was an unsatisfactory version on Vox, which this newcomer blows away. Alan Feinberg certainly has the chops for the piece, and tosses off the trickier moments with uninhibited abandon. However, for some inexplicable reason he's given a very wiry, brittle sounding instrument (excellently balanced, though) with a real "twang" in its middle register (happily the top of the keyboard sounds much better). That strange caveat aside, this is now the version of choice.


The "Gaelic" Symphony comes off equally well. As always with this orchestra, the strings are especially rich-toned and a joy to hear. In the final analysis, there's not much difference between this performance and Järvi's on Chandos, save for the fact that conductor Kenneth Schermerhorn takes a little more time over the slow movement and finale, which is all to the good. Again, we can only admire Beach's command of the orchestra, her free and easy use of the brass, and the way she keeps the music moving along smartly. This may not be a "great" work in the manner of Dvorák's "New World" Symphony, which inspired it, but it's certainly a very enjoyable one, and like the Piano Concerto it deserves to be heard more often. All in all, a very highly recommendable disc, finely recorded.
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Violinist Esther Abrami’s eponymous Sony Classical debut album is a creative melting pot of different styles of classical music – full of new and inspiring compositions. Collaborating with a great variety of contemporary composers and musicians as well as the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, Esther Abrami has set a creative and inspiring musical landmark representing a new generation of classical musicians.

British composer and pianist Alexis Ffrench, Dutch neo-classical pianist Annelie, French pianist and composer Alban Claudin, Oscar-winning British composer Rachel Portman, British Cellist and composer Julian Llyod Webber and American film-composer Jacob Shea all contributed new compositions to Esther Abrami. Next to this, the album features original compositions by Clara Schumann and Amy Beach as well as several unique new arrangements of some of the most famous classical melodies by Pjotr Tchaikovsky, Eric Satie or Frédéric Chopin. Composer and pianist Florian Christl has written a new arrangement based on Bach’s famous violin concerto and producer and composer Wide Eyed created an atmospheric new variation over Mozart’s legendary “Eine kleine Nachtmusik”. A special highlight on the album is “Sainte Victoire en sol mineur” – a great orchestral composition Esther wrote together with French producer Worakls.

“I've decided to perform different styles to connect with all my audience. People who get to know me via TikTok aren’t the same as those who found me on YouTube or on the radio. I wanted to link all of them together. I don’t think we should just be put in a box with only one music style. In classical music, musicians have a tendency to fade behind the music, but with this album people can discover who I really am as I’ve satisfied all my musical tastes and been able to be myself” says Esther.

She adds: “I’ve worked directly with Rachel Portman, who was one of my idols when I was younger. It was very important for me, as it’s going in the same direction as with Tomorrow by Annelie or Romance by Clara Schumann. I want to inspire young women to become a classical composer or musician, as we are still too few. It’s time to change things!’’

REVIEW:

Abrami’s self-titled debut album is a pleasing patchwork of pieces, from familiar items in new arrangements to works by high-profile newcomers. Radio airplay is surely guaranteed for this playlist, the gloss of which is almost blinding. Some lovely moments.

-- BBC Music Magazine

Tracklisting

1. Pjotr Iljitsch Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake Variation
2. Sergei Rachmaninoff: Paganini Variation
3. Julian Lloyd Webber: Jackie's Song (Romanza)*
4. Annelie: Tomorrow
5. Johann Sebastian Bach: Bach Variation feat. Florian Christl*
6. Alexis Ffrench: Hope, Ascending
7. Jacob Shea: Mozart Variation
8. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Mozart Variation feat. Wide Eyed
9. Maurice Ravel: Ravel Variation
10. Frédéric Chopin: Chopin Raindrop Variation
11. Clara Schumann: Three Romances for Violin and Piano, Op. 22: I. Andante molto
12. Worakls, Esther Abrami: Sainte Victoire en sol mineur*
13. Rachel Portman: Themes from "Chocolat"*
14. Alban Claudin: Sunken Dreams
15. Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. Sherman: Scales and Arpeggios (from "Aristocats")*
16. Eric Satie: Satie Variation (after Gymnopédie No. 3)
17. Amy Beach: Romance for Violin and Piano

*feat. Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra