Jack Brymer's work is well represented on record as an outstanding orchestral player and concerto soloist. He also made appearances directing The London Wind Soloists on the Decca label in the 1960s, notably in the five LP set of Mozart Complete Wind Music (1963). But of his recital work with piano there is very little apart from a Discourses LP release, and the Nimbus album recorded in October 1973 and released in 1979. This recital contained two cornerstones of Brymer's repertoire, one or both of them invariably included in virtually every concert he gave, Weber's 'Grand Duo Concertant' and Brahms' F minor Sonata. The LP remained in the catalogue until Nimbus closed it's LP manufacturing in the early 1980s. The present issue is the first reissue in any format. The session notes show an entirely trouble-free couple of days. They include ideas for further projects, listing music by Schubert, Brahms, Poulenc and Hindemith, but no return visits occurred at this time.

A force to be reckoned with (The New York Times), violinist Miclen Laipang makes his solo recording debut on Delos with a very personal recital. Featuring music that has accompanied him over time, "Deep River" traces a path through styles and places that have been meaningful throughout his life. Like a flowing river, this program moves from it's source through different landscapes, crosses borders, and opens onto new encounters as it continues forward. It mirrors a life shaped by movement between countries, cultures, and musical worlds. Works such as Deep River and Nobody knows de trouble I've seen bring echoes of home, representing Miclen's childhood and the United States, while Widmung, Liebesleid and Der Rosenkavalier Waltzes are associated with his time in Germany and Austria, and Ravel's Violin Sonata No. 2 with his current home in France. Partnered by pianist Nigel Yandell, Miclen performs on the Antonio Stradivari "Charles Castleman, ex-Marquis de Champeaux," generously loaned by the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel.

... So what, then, did Winterreise mean to us? At the risk of stating the obvious: it was a journey - albeit a journey with no real destination. The depth of this Everest-like score offered new insights and fresh layers with every reading. Consequently, there was never - and still isn't, despite years of preparation and live performances - a real sense of completion, no point at which we could say we were "finished" studying each lied. And perhaps the Wanderer's journey is also without destination. A physical trek through a cold and indifferent, if not openly hostile, nature, it is also a psychological path through the difficult phases of processing loss - a process that, in truth, never completes. The traveler clings to the pain inflicted by a society that rejected him and continues to reject him, like the barking dogs announcing his passing, finding refuge only in the suffering of memory and in each weary step through the snow

The Chiaroscuro Quartet is now offering us the fourth instalment of their ongoing complete recording of Beethoven's string quartets. This latest release spotlights the first two of the three Opus 59 quartets, known as the 'Razumovsky,' named for their patron, the Russian ambassador in Vienna, Count Andreas Razumovsky, who maintained a house quartet in his palace. Beethoven was particularly proud of these new quartets, despite the initial bewilderment they provoked among audiences, critics, and even performers. Famously, when a violinist complained of their difficulty, Beethoven retorted: "Oh, they are not for you, but for a later age." The first, in F major, was almost certainly the longest string quartet composed up to that point, and it's unprecedented weight and density of argument earn it the moniker the Eroica among Beethoven's quartets. The second, in E minor, is often described as a "close cousin" of the Appassionata Sonata, in that both works-composed at around the same time-are permeated by a profound darkness from start to finish. The Chiaroscuro Quartet's previous instalments in this cycle have already garnered superlative praise from the musical press, hailed as "breathtaking," "bristling with excitement and youthful vitality," and "a very special experience." There is no doubt this latest release is poised to achieve similar critical acclaim

Nine works - nine musical microcosms: this CD brings together contemporary monologues for trombone, composed by an international group of renowned composers. Between expressive sound theater, inner dialogues, and ecstatic outbursts, an impressive soundscape unfolds, showcasing the trombone in all it's facets - poetic, radical, virtuosic.

South African/Dutch clarinettist Maria du Toit and the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Arjan Tien release 'Clarinet Colours' on Channel Classics. Exploring the contemporary clarinet repertoire of South African composers reveals a sound world of striking colour and contrast. Often described as the "Rainbow Nation," South Africa embodies a complex tapestry of cultures, languages, and histories, bound together by resilience and renewal. This album mirrors that spirit, showcasing the clarinet's remarkable versatility while tracing a wide spectrum of expressive colour and energy. The concertos by leading South African composers David Earl, Roelof Temmingh and Conrad Asman were written for, or dedicated to Maria du Toit.

The Detmold Horn Players, led by Michael H�ltzel, their legendary founder and director as well as influential teacher, present Hubertusmesse (St. Hubert's Mass), one of the very first recordings by the Detmold-based audiophile label MDG. The outstanding sound, technical craftsmanship, and, above all, musical quality of these sensational works for parforce horns, including several historical hunting fanfares from Bohemian, French, and Austrian traditions, are something quite extraordinary and vouch for the consistency with which MDG has been inspiring music lovers and sound enthusiasts around the world ever since.

With Missa Iste Confessor Domini, the Musurgia Ensemble presents a fascinating journey into the music of the 16th century, taken directly from the historical manuscripts of the Santa Cruz monastery in Coimbra, Portugal. The focus is on the mass of the same name, which comes from the choir book P-Cug MM 2 - one of Portugal's most important musical sources from this period. This manuscript, probably produced shortly after 1530 in 's-Hertogenbosch, contains eleven masses by renowned Franco-Flemish composers. The program is complemented by colorful instrumental works from other Coimbra manuscripts. Jo�o Francisco Tavora, renowned recorder player and artistic director of the Musurgia Ensemble, draws on his many years of experience with Portuguese Renaissance and Baroque music. After studying in Porto and Leipzig, he has toured international stages as a soloist and ensemble musician and has made numerous recordings.

This album brings together works written primarily in the final decade of the 19th century, showcasing the rich tradition of vocal and instrumental lyricism. The Belle �poque was an era defined by the pursuit of beauty of sound, expressive phrasing, dynamic contrast, and effortless virtuosity-all qualities that shine throughout this recording. The Sopot chamber musicians once again demonstrate their exceptional tonal refinement, including in songs performed alongside Karolina Sikora, whose velvety, noble mezzo-soprano adds depth and elegance to the program. Released on both CD and vinyl, the album is a true treat for listeners who appreciate a deep, warm, and immersive sound experience.

The production by the Anonima Frottolisti ensemble, which needs no introduction thanks to it's specialisation in the interpretation of medieval and Renaissance music, focuses in this work on the theme of the female figure that has been handed down to us since the fifteenth century. Cecilia represents a life story that is entirely feminine: "The lament and pity, the despair, the condition of women and their redemption," jealousy, the renunciation of nobles and knights for the defense of one's love and dignity, the "Comedy," that is, the theatrical representation of reality. The song has ancient roots in Western music, from the first monodic forms of the 15th century in France, where the protagonist is Pernette, also present in Italy in the Aosta Valley tradition at the end of the 19th century, or in the case of Jeannette, still used in children's stories in French-speaking areas, or in the fifteenth-century example La belle se sied by Guillaume Dufay and the three-voice version by Josquin Desprez, or in the narrative song of the oral tradition of the "three sisters/ladies who come from Lyon," as well as in the sacred sphere, influencing the composition of the Missa la Belle se sied in Ms. 1377 from Trento, or the Missa La Belle se sied composed by Mambriano de Orto and printed by Petrucci in 1505. The disruptive force of this tradition, that is, the traces that branched out from it starting from the European Middle Ages, are still evident and inherent in every musical and literary sphere.

Metaludios vol. III marks a major new chapter in the acclaimed Metaludios cycle by Spanish pianist and composer Gustavo D�az-Jerez, one of the most original voices in contemporary piano music. Bringing together Books VI and VII, this album continues D�az-Jerez's exploration of the intersection between music, science, technology, and imagination, confirming the series as a reference point in 21st-century repertoire. Each work is rooted in a precise conceptual process: artificial intelligence models trained exclusively on the composer's own music, sonifications of natural and cosmic phenomena, image-to-sound transformations, mathematical sequences, and algorithmic structures. These materials are shaped through a highly personal musical language that balances structural rigor with expressive depth and poetic resonance. Highlights include Long Short-Term Memory, created using Google's Magenta AI framework; Fuzzball, derived from a mathematical sequence of 10,000 data points; and Perseus' Lament, based on NASA's sonification of pressure waves emitted by a supermassive black hole. Other works draw inspiration from visual art, historical memory, spoken language, and physical phenomena such as Schumann resonances. Recorded at the Auditorio Manuel de Falla and released by IBS Classical, Metaludios III offers distributors a distinctive catalogue title that appeals to contemporary music audiences, technologically curious listeners, and piano specialists alike, while reinforcing Gustavo D�az-Jerez's international profile as both composer and performer, one of Spain's leading pianists and composers, internationally acclaimed for his performances of contemporary and core repertoire. He has appeared worldwide and premiered major works with orchestras such as the London Philharmonic and Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

She was Igor Stravinsky's piano teacher and studied herself with Anton Rubinstein. But to this day, her compositions have remained in the shadow of the great male masters-a fate that many women of this era share with her. Although her oeuvre is nowhere near as comprehensive as that of her composing colleagues, these few works still demonstrate incredible talent, mature skill, and a deeply romantic Russian sound language that is so typical of this time.

Perfectly Free brings together two contemporary cello concertos-Osvaldo Golijov's Azul and Anna Clyne's DANCE-in a live recording that cellist Maja Bogdanovic describes as a deeply personal journey of discovery. Both works received their Dutch premieres during the Stift International Music Festival with the Phion Symphony Orchestra, under the batons of David Cohen (Azul) and Xandi van Dijk (DANCE). Golijov's Azul is portrayed as a poetic, otherworldly tapestry of colors and styles, ranging from Baroque influences to Piazzolla-inflected rhythms, enriched by an unusual orchestration featuring a prominent accordion and a wide spectrum of exotic percussion. The concerto unfolds like a cosmic vision-at times improvisatory, at times prayerful-culminating in sound worlds that evoke radio signals, stardust, and distant galaxies. Clyne's DANCE, inspired by Rumi's poetry, contrasts this with a five-movement exploration of raw emotion and virtuosity, stretching the expressive and technical boundaries of the cello. Moving from fragility to rhythmic intensity, from Baroque purity to diabolical energies, the work blends folk elements, lyrical lines, and personal nostalgia-including a final, haunting dedication to the composer's father. Bogdanovic emphasizes the profound artistic partnerships behind the recording, noting the rare creative "telepathy" experienced with Golijov and the intuitive collaboration with van Dijk. Golijov says: "Perhaps the greatest joy I know in music is telepathy between composer and performer. I am beginning to get used to it when I experience it with life-long collaborators who instantly understand the music I only understand myself after months of working on it. But I am startled when telepathy happens with a musician I have just met. This is what happened with Maja: No need for words to explain anything. Maja understands Azul better than I understand it myself. This gives me a great sense of relief. I know I don't need to be present for my music to live in the world. I am grateful to Maja for that. David Cohen and the Phion Symphony Orchestra prove to be ideal shipmates in this Azul recording that I love dearly. To have it paired with Anna Clyne's gorgeous music makes the recording even more special and closer to my heart." The project reflects the "Perfectly Free" spirit of the Stift Festival-fearless, generous, and adventurous-capturing not only two landmark contemporary concertos but also the shared inspiration of the musicians who brought them to life.

AMETSAK places the listener at the heart of an intense and highly evocative listening experience. Devoted to the music of Gabriel Erkoreka, one of the most respected voices in contemporary Spanish composition, the album offers a journey through the realms of the mind, memory, and the perception of time, articulated through a musical language that is both sophisticated and immediately engaging. Performed by Zahir Ensemble under the direction of Juan Garc�a Rodr�guez, AMETSAK brings together seven works composed between 2001 and 2023. At it's core lies the Ametsak cycle, inspired by the dream state, in which sound becomes a flexible substance and time is experienced as a subjective dimension. This approach results in an immersive and emotionally resonant listening experience that appeals not only to contemporary-music specialists but also to curious listeners seeking new sonic perspectives. The programme combines landmark works such as Trance with pieces of strong symbolic and narrative character (Izaro, Orreaga, Tomba del tuffatore), creating a coherent and varied album with clear artistic identity. Recorded in Seville in 2024, AMETSAK stands out for it's artistic depth, sonic clarity, and communicative power, making it a strong and attractive release for audiences interested in meaningful, exploratory contemporary music.

The Summer Night Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic is the world's biggest annual classical open-air concert that takes place in the magical setting of the Sch�nbrunn Palace Baroque park in Vienna. This year marks the first time that Maestro Tugan Sokhiev will conduct the Summer Night Concert. The vocal soloist is world-renowned tenor Piotr Beczala, who will perform three iconic arias from: Georges Bizet's Carmen, Giacomo Puccini's Turandot and Emmerich K�lm�n's Gr�fin Mariza. With this open-air concert in Sch�nbrunn, the Vienna Philharmonic wishes to provide all Viennese, as well as visitors to the city, with a special musical experience in the impressive setting of Sch�nbrunn Palace and it's beautiful baroque gardens, a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site. Since 2004 the Vienna Philharmonic has provided an outstanding experience for the audience. The focus of this year's program is on well-known melodies from opera and operetta that lead us on a musical journey through various European landscapes und milieus.

Emanuel Ax, Leonidas Kavakos, and Yo-Yo Ma announce the fourth album in their Beethoven for Three series, featuring Symphony No. 1 (Op. 21) and the "Gassenhauer" (Op. 11) and "Ghost" (Op. 70, No. 1) piano trios, three works that span more than a decade of the composer's output. From Beethoven's cheerful "Gassenhauer" trio and the symphony that gave the world it's first glimpse of his revolutionary voice, carefully reinterpreted for piano, violin, and cello by Shai Wosner, to the singular "Ghost" trio, this recording marks another milestone in three friends' journey through the marvels of one extraordinary composer. Beethoven for Three: Symphony No. 1 and Piano Trios Nos. 4 & 5 is slated for release August 22, 2025, on Sony Classical

Global cello sensation Hauser returns with Cinema - a sweeping new album of iconic melodies from the silver screen. Bringing his signature romantic flair and expressive cello playing to the world of film music, Hauser curates a stunning collection of timeless movie themes that span generations. From the nostalgic beauty of the "Tara's Theme" from Gone with the Wind to the haunting tenderness of Billie Eilish's Oscar�-winning "What Was I Made For" from Barbie, Cinema captures the emotional essence of some of film's most iconic moments. With richly orchestrated arrangements, Hauser breathes new life into works by the greatest composers in film history John Williams, Ennio Morricone, Henry Mancini, and John Barry as well as beloved ballads like Sam Smith's "Writing's on the Wall" (Spectre) and "The Music of the Night" from The Phantom of the Opera. The album also features the ultra-romantic theme from An Affair to Remember, a melody rediscovered by a new generation in Sleepless in Seattle. Cinema is more than a tribute it's a reimagining of these classic themes through the voice of the cello, transporting listeners into the heart of each story. With passion, elegance, and cinematic grandeur, Hauser once again redefines the possibilities of his instrument and deepens his connection with audiences around the world.

CD + DVD. Jonas Kaufmann's latest album brings together two of Schumann's most profound song cycles-Dichterliebe and Kerner-Lieder-performed with exceptional sensitivity and vocal finesse. Accompanied by pianist and long-term collaborator Helmut Deutsch, Kaufmann explores the emotional and poetic nuances of these Romantic masterpieces. These works are complemented by "Doppelg�nger", a strikingly original stage adaptation of Schubert's Schwanengesang (Swan Songs), directed by Claus Guth. This production reimagines the cycle through a contemporary theatrical lens, adding a powerful visual and narrative dimension to Schubert's final songs. As a special bonus, the release includes six previously unreleased recordings from Kaufmann's private archive: selections from Dichterliebe recorded in 1994 during his student years. The DVD features the acclaimed theatrical production of Doppelg�nger, directed by Claus Guth and staged at the Park Avenue Armory in New York. Taking it's name from the final song, "Der Doppelg�nger"-in which a soldier confronts the haunting realization that he did not survive the war-this Armory commission poignantly explores the longing for life's beauty and the idea that death is not an abrupt end, but a final, reflective journey.

Masterworks Wiener Philharmoniker & Yannick N�zet-S�guin Neujahrskonzert 2026 / New Year'S Concert 2026 / Concert Du Nouvel An 2026.

The annual New Year's Concert in Vienna has been a major event for more than eight decades, since 1939, broadcast on television and radio. The concert has so far been conducted by world-famous maestros such as Herbert von Karajan, Lorin Maazel, Claudio Abbado, Carlos Kleiber, Zubin Mehta, Riccardo Muti, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Seiji Ozawa, Mariss Jansons, Franz Welser-M�st, Gustavo Dudamel, and others. As Austria's musical ambassadors, the Vienna Philharmonic sends people around the world a New Year's greeting in the spirit of hope, friendship, and peace - with lively and carefree yet nostalgic and profound music from the great repertoire of the Strauss family and their contemporaries.