Prodigiously gifted Danish composer and pianist Niels Viggo Bentzon (1919-2000) wrote nearly 1,000 musical works in every known classical genre and style. He retained a constantly questing and exploratory nature throughout his life, as we can hear in his five known wind quintets, recorded here by The Carl Nielsen Quintet. The results are captivating in their own way, stoked by Bentzon’s distinctive, virtuosic language and great ingenuity. The Carl Nielsen Quintet is a young Danish ensemble formed in 2006. The members have positions in Danish and Swedish symphony orchestras alongside their career in the quintet.

On 9 January 2026, conductor Shea Lolin presents Frisson, an exciting new album of music for woodwind orchestra and his third recording with the principal woodwind players of the Czech Philharmonic (Gramophone's Orchestra of the Year 2024). Frisson follows the release of the ground-breaking Twisted Skyscape, the first album devoted entirely to new music for woodwind orchestra, and Chromosphere, which focused on contemporary repertoire. Frisson marks Shea Lolin's 20-year involvement with the woodwind orchestra and celebrates it's evolution from the early eighteenth-century genre of Harmoniemusik - formal ensemble music for pairs of winds - to it's modern form. The album features a superb programme of arrangements for woodwind orchestra by Shea Lolin, all originally commissioned by the Bloomsbury Woodwind Ensemble. He expands Franz Krommer's exquisite Octet - Partita in F Major, Op. 57, and Richard Strauss's youthful Serenade, Op. 7, creating a broader sonic landscape while maintaining their essence. Also included is Cécile Chaminade's beloved Concertino, Op. 107, arranged for woodwind orchestra and featuring young Glaswegian flautist Fiona Sweeney, who makes her debut with the Czech Philharmonic on this release. Completing the album is More Gordian Knots by Guy Woolfenden OBE, a spirited reimagining of Purcell's music for The Gordian Knot Unty'd, written during Woolfenden's remarkable 40-year association with the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Around Baermann sees historic clarinet specialist Maryse Legault spotlight the early 19th century clarinet virtuoso Heinrich Baermann, who was one of the most important yet overlooked clarinetists in the history of the instrument.

Born in Potsdam in 1784, Heinrich Baermann honed his skills under the tutelage of virtuoso clarinetist Josef Beer, who was a key figure in the development of the clarinet and its repertoire. B Baermann went on to tour extensively and significantly impacted the clarinet's role in classical music, particularly in France. Around Baermann is Legault’s tribute to Baermann; a giant in his field and one of the more important developers ofthe clarinet’s style, technique, and repertoire.

Onda Sonora is a production that aims to show how a group of passionate and committed young people can perform a mature and eclectic repertoire. They range from monumental classical pieces to more contemporary and popular music. When you listen, you can hardly tell the difference between the performances of these young musicians and those of professional orchestras. The orchestra started in October 2012 with a concert in the Parco della Musica in Rome. Angela Colucci, Michele D'Auria and Nicola de Giacomo supervising rehearsals to improve performances. They participated in the Giffoni Film Festival, releasing CDs titled "Tachisax" and "Sonora Junior sax in the district." They were the first Italian orchestra selected for and won first place in their category at the SummaCumLaude competition in Vienna in 2016. In 2023, they won second place and gained recognition from the audience and judges. They performed at renowned venues like Musikverein, Muth, and Konzerthaus. Sonora Junior Sax aims to educate young people about music, teaching them respect for their roles and the importance of working together. They also focus on developing emotional intelligence through music study and practice from childhood. Their group environment encourages healthy competition, respect, and meritocracy. They welcome diversity, using music to integrate and educate.

This album offers a compelling snapshot of more than a century of Polish composers' contributions to the solo trombone repertoire. The program brings together works in which neoclassical clarity and sophisticated harmonic language intertwine with a neo-romantic spirit-rich in lyrical themes, virtuosic brilliance, and subtle references to folk traditions. Performed by outstanding musicians closely associated with the Poznan concert scene, these interpretations highlight the distinctive warmth, elegance, and expressive power of brass instruments in a refined classical setting.

The dazzling and spectacular sonority of the "trumpet and organ" duo was etched into contemporary history by the splendid recordings made starting in the 1960s for the label "Erato" by Maurice André and Marie-Claire Alain. Since then, a plethora of performers on both instruments have explored - with varied outcomes - works composed for their ensemble, transcribed and adapted music written for other instruments, and encouraged composers to expand the repertoire. The duo Santi-Arlotti, already established by their concert fame, stands out for their meticulous research and the originality of their musical proposals, which have been appreciated since their first CD, released in 2017 for Tactus (TC850003). This album was entirely dedicated to variations on famous opera themes (Verdi, Rossini, Bellini, Donizetti, Dall'Argine) composed by Arban, Forestier, Zanichelli, Cacciamani, Rossari, and Spiga. Their repertoire is the fruit of passionate research, as evidenced by the beautiful Concerto by Bortolotti, drawn from a precious Bolognese manuscript and skillfully adapted for the organ by Marco Arlotti, presented in this recording.