The Singapore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Darrell Ang and Joshua Tan, presents a compelling programme that explores the rich and often unexpected dialogue between film and concert music, featuring works by John Williams, Bernard Herrmann, and Hugo Friedhofer. Once considered distinct spheres, these worlds are brought together through compositions that reveal the breadth and depth of three composers whose artistry extends far beyond the screen. At the centre of the programme is Williams' Concerto for Solo Flute, Strings and Percussion (starring Singapore Symphony Principal Flutist Jin Ta), a work of striking imagination and expressive range, complemented by his Essay for Strings (1965), an early yet already assured statement of his concert voice. Alongside these works, Herrmann's Souvenirs de Voyage for clarinet quintet, here heard in the late Hans Sørensen's adaptation for clarinet and string orchestra, receives it's world premiere recording with clarinettist Ma Yue, offering a vivid example of the composer's distinctive harmonic language in a concert setting. Friedhofer's Suite for 5 Woodwinds, also presented in a world premiere recording, further enriches the programme with it's inventive textures and stylistic range. Together, these works highlight a shared spirit of exploration, brought to life with clarity and refinement by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra in a release that continues it's distinguished collaboration with PENTATONE.

Commissioned by Richard Gregson-Williamson in 1989 for the Exeter Festival, Plague and the Moonflower by Richard Harvey takes the listener into an uneasy world, teetering on the precipice of the millennium, and tortured by fear. Alongside the scoring by Harvey is an exceptional libretto by Ralph Steadman. Performing on this recording are the Choir of New College, Oxford, under the direction of Edward Higginbottom, the New London Children’s Choir, under the direction of Ronald Corp, and the English Chamber Choir.

The Greek word 'kosmos' is our ethos in a nutshell. It means the world, the universe, people, order from chaos, honour and is also the name of a flower. Kosmos transcends boundaries, and connects people from all around the world. With our shared passion for music from across the globe -from Argentina to Japan-we create bridges between classical and non-classical music, and our music dances across them. All the music on this album is arranged and composed together by us for our signature combination of violin, viola and classical accordion. This recording is a one-off performance, just as each and every one of our concert performances is always novel and singular. Kosmos is a trio of award-winning, international musicians who have performed worldwide, with live broadcasts on national radio including BBC Radio and Classic FM. They regularly tour international festivals (including Poland, Italy, Spain, Greece, Scotland, Channel Islands). In 2018 acclaimed composer Errollyn Wallen wrote a Triple Concerto for Kosmos, which was premiered at the Jersey Royal Opera House and Chichester Cathedral. Their previous album released by Nimbus, Pomegranate, was highly acclaimed as 'a delight from start to finish' by Guy Rickards of Gramophone Magazine.

John Christopher Williams, OBE (born 24 April 1941) is an Australian virtuosic classical guitarist renowned for his ensemble playing as well as his interpretation and promotion of the modern classical guitar repertoire. In 1973, he shared a Grammy Award in the Best Chamber Music Performance category with fellow guitarist Julian Bream for Julian and John (Works by Lawes, Carulli, Albéniz, Granados). Guitar historian Graham Wade has said: "John is perhaps the most technically accomplished guitarist the world has seen." This third instalment in the IDIS John Williams Beginning of a Legend series includes works recorded in the studio in 1961, when John was only 20 years old. Works include compositions by Ponce and Torroba as well as traditional songs for voice and guitar.

This fine collection of arguably the Greatest Film Music ever written brings together on one album music from some of the most memorable films ever made. Opening with the unforgettable music from the ground-breaking 1977 movie ‘Star Wars’ by the greatest living composer of film music, John Williams, this selection includes a unique 14-minute concert suite of music from the film. Other Williams scores for Stephen Spielberg blockbusters include those for the unforgettable fantasy ‘E.T. – The Extra-Terrestrial’ and the haunting science fiction ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’. This album also looks back to the heyday of Hollywood, with scores by Max Steiner – from ‘Gone With the Wind’ – and the undisputed Master of the genre, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, with music from ‘The Adventures of Robin Hood’ and the weepie ‘Escape Me Never’. The hit theme from ‘The Big Country’ by Jerome Moross is also here, and British music from legendary U.K. movies widens the scope of this unique collection, with two great film scores by Sir William Walton – ‘Henry V’, starring Laurence Olivier, and ‘The First of the Few’ – the famous ‘Spitfire Prelude and Fugue’ – as well as the great Ron Goodwin’s memorable ‘633 Squadron’ alongside music from two Soviet composers: Prokofiev’s score for ‘Alexander Nevsky’ and Aram Khachaturian’s famous ‘Adagio from Spartacus’, featured in the romantic historical drama ‘Mayerling’. All in all, this SOMM release should form part of any collection, conducted by the great Scottish-born Maestro Iain Sutherland, directing the Philharmonic Promenade Orchestra of Hilversum.

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REVIEW:

Expertly recorded by conductor Iain Sutherland and the Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, Great Classic Film Music captures the magic of cinema through the music we know and love.

– Classic FM

In 2002, anticipating the 205th anniversary year of "The President's Own" Marine Band, the then-Directors of this beloved ensemble invited John Williams to conduct a gala concert at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The legendary American composer graciously accepted, noting that his own father, a percussionist, had taught his son to love and respect the Marine Band from a young age. Williams first appeared with the band on July 12, 2003, one day after the band's official 205th birthday, thus inaugurating a long collaboration sustained by mutual respect and admiration. Williams would return to the Kennedy Center for another concert, this time in celebration of the band's 210th anniversary, in 2008. Several of his most enduring works were prepared especially for the Marine Band for these concerts, from film soundtrack highlights to original concert works. These full-length gala concerts from 2003 and 2008 are, taken together, a tour de force of some of Williams' most popular and creative scores, and serve as the primary source for this unique new recording collection. "Performing with 'The President's Own, '" writes Williams, "has been one of the highest honors of my working life in music. My great hope is that listeners of this special recording will experience some of the exhilaration and fun that I enjoyed conducting these two memorable performances... this ensemble truly is a national treasure of which all Americans should be justly proud."

Following the huge success of the album Spotlight on John Williams, the City Light Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Kevin Griffiths, returns with an equally spectacular follow-up project: Sound of Adventure. The double CD brings together legendary film themes that embody a spirit of adventure, imagination, and emotional depth in equal measure-a tribute to the great soundscapes of Hollywood. An album that not only delights film music fans, but also impressively translates the orchestral artistry of the great screen composers into concert format.