In a series that has been called "very important" (Classics Today.com), "of an exceptional level" (Diapason), "always surprising, and certainly ideal" (Répertoire) and "deeply sympathetic" (International Record Review), Miklòs Spànyi has reached the 13th volume, featuring one concerto and two sonatinas for keyboard and orchestra - a genre which, according to the informative liner notes by C.P.E. Bach scholars Jane R. Stevens and Darrell M. Berg, arose as "a direct effort to provide music for a growing concert-going musical public". As might be expected, these are works of immediate appeal, with those trademarks of their composer: the unceasing spirit of innovation and the highly individual use of rhythm and keys. (The opener on this disc is the Sonatina in F major - which actually starts in d minor: a strategy that increases the major mode's feeling of brightness when it belatedly appears.) For those of you who haven't yet discovered the wonderful world of C. P. E. Bach's keyboard works, this is a good place to start; for those who have, prepare yourself for a generous hour of sheer enjoyment!

Dividing his time between the United States and the United Kingdom, the composer Geoffrey Gordon writes music that has been described as ‘darkly seductive’ (New York Times), ‘richly satisfying’ (BBC Music Magazine) and ‘iridescent and fierce’ (The Chicago Tribune). The present album brings together three of his recent works, all composed between 2013 and 2018 for the soloist recording them here, the Danish cellist Toke Møldrup. In several of his works, Gordon takes his inspiration from other art forms – sculptures by Giacometti, a self portrait by Warhol, a children’s picture book by Maurice Sendak. The works gathered here are inspired by or reactions to three literary masterworks. The ‘creative blueprint’ for the opening work, the Cello Concerto, is the novel Doktor Faustus by Thomas Mann. Organized into a Prologue and Seven Episodes, the work traces the progress of Mann’s protagonist Adrian Leverkühn from innocence to madness, with the cello both embodying and (occasionally) commenting on the proceedings. For this recording, Møldrup receives the support of the Copenhagen Phil and conductor Lan Shui. In the score of Fathoms, Gordon’s sonata for cello and piano, each of the five movements is headed with a quotation from Shakespeare’s The Tempest which sets the scene for the musical impression that follows. Here Møldrup is joined by the American pianist Steven Beck. The amply-filled album closes with Ode to a Nightingale, with the words of John Keat’s immortal poem heard from the Mogens Dahl Chamber Choir, and given emphasis by Toke Møldrup’s obbligato cello.

With this disc London Baroque and BIS are continuing a very successful collaboration which has so far resulted in six releases. On this present disc London Baroque turn their eyes and ears to François Couperin, also known as 'le Grand'. But this CD also invokes two other Baroque giants, namely Corelli and Lully. The main works are the two Apothéoses, in which Couperin portrays the ascent to Parnassus of his two great predecessors. Apart from them being intended as compliments to the composers, one might see in the works - and especially in L'Apothéoses de Lulli - an attempt to advocate and create a fusion of the French style with the Italian, which during the early 17th century was all the rage in Paris. This is music with a history indeed - performed in the ever fresh manner of London Baroque.