Wolfgang Kogert - Friedrich Cerha: Complete Works For Organ - Appearing in Cerha's jubilee year, this album pays tribute to an extraordinary late oeuvre by an extraordinary composer. / One of the central figures of European modernism, Friedrich Cerha is known for his monumental Spiegel cycle and his distinctive contribution to postwar music. This album presents his complete works for organ, composed between 2011 and 2020, marking a surprising late turn toward the instrument. Recorded by Wolfgang Kogert in close collaboration with the composer, these pieces reveal Cerha's characteristic clarity, concision, and expressive precision. Appearing in Cerha's jubilee year, this album pays tribute to an extraordinary late oeuvre by an extraordinary composer.
The work of Bernhard Lang is difficult to fit into any one musical category. His oeuvre references a wide variety of musical styles and genres. The three works on this release showcase an enormous amount of virtuosity. This makes for a highly concentrated and intimate experience for both the performers and their audiences.
Clemens Hund-goschel - Charlotte Seither: Lauschgut. Works For (Inside) Piano (1989-2022) / "In art, you can have a look at the world as the world wouldn't see itself. I find that incredibly exciting," says Charlotte Seither, presenting ten outstanding works for piano written between 1989 and 2022 - over a period of 33 years. All of these works on make use of playing techniques in which the grand piano is not structurally altered. The sounds are therefore only created in the act of playing and make the individual work a risky event. Some pieces were created in closer succession to each other, because one work already carried the idea for the next. Between others it took time to develop. Masterfully recorded by Clemens Hund-Goschel, Seither's piano works are presented together on one album for the first time.
Sara Glojnaric - Pure Bliss - When Sara Glojnaric combines instruments played live with electronic or taped elements, numerous references to pop or the best of Western art music shimmer through again and again. Her music is about sound idioms and always also about socio-political conditions and realities of life, both in society in general as well as within the practice of contemporary music. The release of this album is part of the Erste Bank Kompositionspreis, which Sara Glojnaric was awarded in 2022. On this album, she presents works by a wide range of ensembles, including Klangforum Wien, conducted by Tim Anderson, the ORF Radio Symphony Orchestra Vienna, conducted by Marin Alsop, and ensemble mosaik, conducted by Magnus Loddgard
Pasquale Corrado - Works For Ensemble / Pasquale Corrado has been able to develop both his activities as a composer and conductor, increasing one with the experiences of the other. Explaining his music, he says: "There is an internal neurosis in my works. All the music we are immersed in is full of particles that have to vibrate, this is the principle I try to put into my music: everything is always, constantly, on the move." In his portrait album, he presents five impressive works for ensemble, interpreted by the renowned Ensemble intercontemporain, conducted by Matthias Pintscher, and the Syntax Ensemble, conducted by the composer himself.
Elis Hallik: Born In Waves - "Born in Waves is Estonian composer Elis Hallik's first album, a gateway into the sounds and thoughts of an original artist. The album mainly features chamber compositions that represent important ideas from her oeuvre over the past decade. A versatile soundscape unravels before the listener through nine pieces, shaped by composition studies in Estonia and France, and in particular by her contact with the expressive means of spectral and electronic music. At the heart of her musical thought are sound and it's various characteristics, the comparison or fusion of pure and distorted sound through extended playing techniques, and timbre and harmony as a building material." (Kristina Korver)
This album represents a unique sonic collaboration between science and music. Oceanographer Joshua Jones and composer Lei Liang began exploring Arctic soundscapes in 2018, culminating in the piece Six Seasons in 2022. Violinist Marco Fusi joined the project in 2024, shaping the work into an ambitious solo performance. The project interweaves recordings of Arctic environments and marine life with musical improvisation, offering a glimpse into the remote and fragile underwater world. Through an innovative use of sound, the team has created a profound listening experience that bridges the gap between art and science, highlighting the intricate rhythms of nature.
Helena Rasker & Niek de Groot & Francisco Anguas - Sofia Gubaidulina: Galgenlieder A 3 / In Galgenlieder a 3, Christian Morgenstern's whimsical Galgenlieder merge brilliantly with the haunting musical language of Sofia Gubaidulina. In Galgenlieder a 3, Christian Morgenstern's whimsical Galgenlieder merge brilliantly with the haunting musical language of Sofia Gubaidulina. This unique song cycle, consisting of voice, percussion and double bass, brings Morgenstern's playful and surreal poetry to life. Gubaidulina's composition captures the essence of each poem through various expressive techniques, from normal singing to whispering and chanting. With imaginative interludes and an inventive use of motifs and intervals, this work offers a fresh and captivating interpretation of Morgenstern's celebrated verse.
Femenine stages Eastman's shaping and building of the black queer masculine form - caught not necessarily between two poles of gender, but with his work constantly driving his own self-making. He was an inventor and sculptor, reminiscent of Jean Tinguely and Harry Bertoia. Clanging, noisy, joyful, and playful in turn, the sound sculpture emerges from these primary elements, moulding and pressing, jiggering and jolleying, through a linear flow of sound and insistent chordal punctuations. The continuous hum of the prime motive as a bed of sound against the softness of the texture and the fierceness of the accented major triads takes flight into a dreamscape, making possible new ways of listening, knowing, and being. (Ellie M. Hisama & Isaac Jean-Francois)
Osmo Tapio Raihala: Zensolence - Various / Zensolence embodies the auditory canvas of Osmo Tapio Raihala, a synaesthetic composer who transforms the visual into the musical. For Raihala, art forms transcend their mediums and speak a universal language through diverse expressions. His experience of colours, shapes and textures in music is reflected in this eclectic album, where the traditional meets the innovative. Raihala draws inspiration from the abstract and translates it into a musical lexicon that is as diverse as it is distinctive. From chamber music with modern instrumentation to pieces that combine vocal narrative with electronic sounds, this album is a testament to artistic freedom and a refusal to be limited.
Arditti Quartet & Alberto Rosado - Jose Manuel Lopez Lopez: Infinita Domenica - For Jose Manuel Lopez Lopez it is essential to approach the works on this album with an open mind and to explore other forms of instrumental expressivity and sonic emotionality. He draws significant conclusions from these seemingly fragile figures, gestures and minimal elements, which evolve and multiply to achieve a great expressive and formal perspective. All this affirms a hallmark that reveals a great continuity and coherence among the works included on this album.
The album is inspired by the poetry of William Butler Yeats, in particular his work Sailing to Byzantium. The main composition, which features five recorder sizes from tenor to garklein, explores themes of time and transcendence, depicting a journey to an imaginary Byzantium where the poet is transformed into a golden bird. The four movements correspond to stanzas in Yeats' poem, with recurring elements such as a lyrical refrain and a gyre reflecting the poet's themes. The trajectory of the piece rises, mirroring the poetic theme, and integrates both old and new forms, incorporating extended techniques and exploring microtones. The Etudes de concert, written separately but complementary, serve as a sonic precursor to the Byzantium piece, showcasing conventional and extended recorder techniques within various musical forms. The two electronic pieces act as interludes between the main works, offering a diverse musical experience that blends ancient traditions with modern sensibilities. Created in collaboration with experimental musician Scott Taylor, the album reflects a fusion of musical styles and approaches.
