Claude-Benigne Balbastre (1727-1799) published his first book of harpsichord pieces in 1759, nine years after a decisive move from his home city of Dijon to the metropolis of Paris. France had been inundated with Italian music and musicians for more than 50 years, and Balbastre's style is inflected by the latest Italian trends, while remaining unmistakably and deliciously French. The titles of the individual works refer to the surnames of distinguished and influential figures in the Parisian world of the mid- to late18th century. They are not necessarily portraits; the point here is rather the dedication, although this music indubitably represents a wonderful picture of the world surrounding Balbastre. One of the composer's biographers has remarked that 'More than portraits without words supposed to musically evoke a personality, the harpsichord pieces constitute a tribute or a sign of gratitude with regard to said personality. The portrait thus painted is only allusive and mysterious.' For example, one of Balbastre's most famous and spectacular works, the Italian-style gigue La Lugeac (F major), is probably a portrait of Louis XV's close companion, the Marquis Charles-Antoine de Guerin (1720-82), who had been born at the Chateau de Lugeac and was described by his contemporaries as 'Le beau Lugeac'. In his own booklet introduction to Balbastre's life and work, Marek Toporowski extols the First Book as 'a true masterpiece', combining French elegance of Classical style; imagery alluding to the operas of Rameau; virtuosity reminiscent of Scarlatti, Mozart and Rameau; mastery of form and textural richness. Compared to other surviving music by Balbastre, Toporowski finds these pieces 'less simple in the sense of Classical economy of texture, more sophisticated and Baroque.' The Polish harpsichordist, organist, chamber musician, and conductor Marek Toporowski was a pupil of both Bob van Asperen and Daniel Roth, He has made this new recording on a copy of a French harpsichord, completed in 1984 for harpsichordist, pianist and painter Julitta Slendzinska by Zygmunt Kaczmarski. 'It is a fascinating, exceptional instrument,' he says, 'in terms of timbral class, with a full, juicy sound and enchanting dynamic capabilities.' - Claude Balbastre was a prominent French composer, organist, and harpsichordist of the late Baroque and early Classical periods. He studied under Claude Rameau, the brother of Jean-Philippe Rameau, whose influence is evident in his music. - Among his most notable works are his Pieces de clavecin, published in 1759. These pieces exemplify the refined and expressive style of the French harpsichord tradition, combining lyrical melodies with intricate ornamentation and lively rhythms. Like those of Francois Couperin and Jean-Philippe Rameau, Balbastre's harpsichord works often feature evocative titles, such as La d'Hericourt, La de Caze, and La Lugeac, referring to prominent figures of the time. His Pieces de clavecin display a wide range of textures and moods, from playful and lighthearted dances to deeply expressive movements. He incorporated elements of the galant style, characterized by clarity and grace, alongside more dramatic and virtuosic passages, sometimes even adapting orchestral effects to the harpsichord. - Marek Toporowski is a harpsichordist, organist, pianist and conductor, one of Poland's foremost performers in the Historical Performance movement. He is a scholar and a well-known collector of historical instruments. Also available by Marek Toporowski are the Complete Piano Music by Pinto, keyboard sonatas by Hyacinthe Jadin, and violin sonatas by Ferdinand Ries.

Her fifth recital album on Signum Records, celebrated soprano Mary Bevan returns with a selection of French songs, featuring works by composers including Britten, Ravel, Debussy and Faure.

This live recording immortalizes Christophe Rousset's performance at the Fundacion Juan March in Madrid on January 8, 2025, a featured event in the Earning a Living concert series. Francois Couperin's keyboard compositions illuminate the role of royal patronage as the modus vivendi for musicians of the Early Modern period. Couperin's treatise, L'Art de Toucher le Clavecin, is here interwoven with a selection of his Pieces de clavecin, giving rise to a portrait gallery in music, each inspired by anonymous figures who inhabited the French court. This set of pieces de caractere, whose allusive and encoded meanings remain largely enigmatic today, is presented in groupings by tonality, each offering a window into the refined world of Baroque palace life and it's intricate web of connections.

In September 2025 Fretwork return with an album of works for Viol by John Jenkins. Jenkins was a highly active and productive composer who lived through a period of significant transformation in English music, with his lifetime spanning from the era of William Byrd to that of Henry Purcell. He is particularly known for his contributions to the viol consort fantasia, drawing inspiration in the 1630s from a previous generation of English composers such as Alfonso Ferrabosco the Younger, Thomas Lupo, and Orlando Gibbons. His work is distinguished by it's rich lyricism, exceptional craftsmanship, and a unique approach to tonality and counter- point. In 2025 Fretwork commemorate the sudden and untimely death of Orlando Gibbons (My Days, SIGCD897), and celebrate the 90th year of Arvo Part with concerts and recordings. In these last decades, they have explored the core repertory of great English consort music from Taverner to Purcell, made classic recordings against which others are judged, and commissioned an entirely new repertory of music for viols. They will celebrate their 40th anniversary in 2026.

The Turkish pianist Emre Yavuz studied in Ankara and Vienna. After his final recital, he was the first piano student at the Vienna Conservatory to graduate with top marks. After a Rachmaninoff album, the multi-award-winning artist's latest recording for TYXart is dedicated to piano works by Maurice Ravel, whose 150th birthday the music world will be celebrating in 2025.

Deluxe edition in lavish packaging and an extensive booklet lovingly furnished with full-color pictures, including complete vocal texts. This recording from 1974/1975, which was highly praised by the specialist press, unites outstanding soloists (Arleen Auger, Annelies Burmeister, Peter Schreier, Theo Adam, Michael Wittig) with the Dresdner Kreuzchor and the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra (first trumpeter is once again Ludwig Guttler). Under the direction of Martin Flamig, the ensemble reaches top form here. Radiant chorales, yet with great attention to detail, and powerful arias characterize the recording, which also leaves little to be desired in terms of recording technology. A well-balanced overall sound, clear weighting of vocal solos and orchestral accompaniment. The members of the orchestra deserve to be mentioned individually, as each instrument is excellently cast.

There are several sets of pieces that Bach collated (also) with his lessons in mind, amongst them the 'Orgelbuchlein', the 'Little Organ Book', which he started whilst working in Weimar in 1708, and the so-called 'Inventions and Sinfonias', composed in the 1720s in Cothen for his son Wilhelm Friedemann and for "lovers of the clavier, and particularly those who desire to learn". He worked on the 'Orgelbuchlein' over many years, adding to it and making changes, presumably adapting to his student's needs. His inscription on the title page proclaims in a rhyming couplet that his compositions were "in praise for the Almighty's will, and for my neighbour's greater skill". In the context of this programme two choral preludes and two 'Sinfonias' are used as "warm-ups", or preludes for five imagined lessons, functioning as the binding of the student's portfolio.

The Piatti Quartet and Emmanuel Despax join forces to present an album of works by Farrenc, Schumann and Durosoir. Louise Farrenc arranged her own brilliantly dramatic Wind Sextet and Piano, for Piano Quintet and this arrangement is a World Premiere Recording on this release. They've chosen to include three of Lucien Durosoir's most touching and beautiful pieces, one for violin and piano, and two for cello and piano. "We are very proud to present this album which has been a dream of ours to record for some time" - The Piatti Quartet.

Leo Weiner's legacy as an educator influenced generations of Hungarian musicians for a half century. His early work as a composer was internationally acclaimed for it's new engaging sound, resulting from a unique synthesis of German and French Romanticism allied to a Hungarian musical language. These chamber works with piano are some of the best of his early opuses, from the 'classical nobility and deep poetic substance' of the Ballade, to the dramatic and stunningly beautiful Violin Sonata No. 2 - two pieces that were popular and widely performed in their day.

The great Russian conductor Yevgeny Svetlanov was born in Moscow in 1928 and studied with Alexander Gauk at the Moscow Conservatory. From 1955 he conducted at the Bolshoi Theatre, becoming principal conductor (1962-1964). From 1965 he was principal conductor of the USSR State Symphony Orchestra (now the Russian State Symphony Orchestra). In 1979 he was appointed principal guest conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, music director of the Residentie Orchestra (The Hague 1992 - 2000) and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra (1997- 1999). He frequently visited the UK, France, Italy, The Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, USA, and other countries. Svetlanov was a leading interpreter of Russian composers including Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich, Prokofiev, Rimsky-Korsakov, Rachmaninoff, Mussorgsky, Miaskovsky and Scriabin, but also a large number of non-Russian composers ranging from Debussy to Elgar. He died in Moscow aged 73 in 2002.

Enno Poppe has 'tailor-made' concise ensemble works for two of the most important ensembles of contemporary music: "Gold" - a purely vocal work for the SWR Vokalensemble - and "Korper" - for the Ensemble Modern. In the three-part a cappella work "Gold" (one of only two choral compositions to date), Poppe indulges for the first time in his love of the lustfully excessive texts by Arno Holz (1863-1929), one of the most important representatives of German Naturalism and literary Modernism. The poems are parodistically related to less humorous high literature. The SWR Vokalensemble's supple miracle sound appears confidently in various combinations, sometimes fanned out in 24 voices as in old vocal polyphony. "Korper" takes us to another end of the scale of possible sounds. Here, the 21 soloists of the Ensemble Modern form a formidable big band, augmented by appropriate woodwind and brass instruments (including saxophones, of course). Here, however, Poppe is more concerned with exploring and expanding what the big band provides as a 'sound body', i.e. The colors, dynamic and rhythmic possibilities, with the means of New Music, an art that the Ensemble Modern has truly perfected. As so often with Poppe, the piece "Korper" goes through multiple processes of intensification and collapse. In the climaxes, the physicality of the music is almost overwhelming. Nevertheless, the nuclei of the piece are the intimate, thinly scored moments when the electric strings ever so gradually rise up with the percussion, or when a saxophone, a keyboard, or a trombone steps out of the thicket of sound and is allowed a few moments of self-discovery.

Alessandro Scarlatti's Il trionfo dell'onore (The Triumph of Honour) - his only comic opera - was first performed in Naples in 1718. With it's distinctive recitatives and expressive arias, and a cast including four pairs of lovers, it can be considered one of the forerunners of opera buffa. The central character is the unrepentant seducer Riccardo Albenori, a Don Giovanni-like figure though without the villainous aura. In this opera, Scarlatti ensures not only perceptive psychology but a rich variety of arias, duets and quartets that generate the work's pathos as well as it's humour and eroticism.

Commissioned by the Japan Society in New York and the Tokyo Bunka Kaikan center in Japan, David Lang's note to a friend is inspired by the famous letter written by short story author Ryunosuke Akutagawa to a fellow writer, announcing his intention to take his own life. Conceived as a chamber opera for solo vocalist and string quartet, the work is also the perfect vehicle for singer Theo Blackmann, who brings a profound emotional weight to his performance, in collaboration with the inimitable Attacca string quartet. Content warning: This recording contains references to suicide and depression, which some listeners may find distressing. If you need suicide- or mental health-related crisis support, or are worried about someone else, please call or text 988 or visit the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline's chat to connect with a trained crisis counselor.

Composed at the age of 19, Rachmaninov's earliest published cycle of piano pieces, the Morceaux de Fantaisie, contains the Pr�lude in C-sharp minor, destined to become his signature work, and the M�lodie in E major, much loved by Tchaikovsky. The expressive Morceaux de Salon show Tchaikovsky's influence and some of the grief felt by Rachmaninov after his mentor's death. With the inclusion of the melodically rich Nocturnes and the Four Pieces, the earliest to survive in his hand, this collection shows both the young composer finding his voice and the timeless Rachmaninov we recognise today.

The world-renowned violinist Ida Haendel CBE (1928-2020) was born in Poland, a child prodigy whose career spanned seven decades. She studied with the greatest teachers of the time, Carl Flesch and George Enescu. Haendel made her London debut playing the Brahms Concerto at the Royal Albert Hall Promenade concerts in 1937, to great acclaim. The association with the Proms was lifelong and resulted in 68 appearances there. At the outset of war she moved to the UK, before finally settling in the US. Her close affinity with the Sibelius Violin Concerto drew praise from the composer, while her performances of the Brahms, Elgar and Britten concertos were of the very highest quality. She toured widely under such great conductors as Sir Thomas Beecham, Sir Adrian Boult, Sergiu Celibidache, Bernard Haitink, Otto Klemperer, Raphael Kubelik, Charles Munch, Sir Georg Solti, Lorin Maazel and Zubin Mehta. She died at her home in Miami aged 92.

The First Symphony was largely inspired by the composer's tempestuous love affair with the widowed Baroness Imma von Doernberg, whom Walton met in 1929 and with whom he was living on the Continent in the early 1930s. Although the work was long in gestation, with a particular delay in the composition of the finale, the result was universally acclaimed as an outstanding success, with John Ireland commenting "unlike any other English symphony, this is in the real line of symphonic tradition. It is simply colossal, grand, original, and moving to the emotions to the most extreme degree... It has established you as the most vital and original genius in Europe". Walton's star was in the descendent through the 1950's, with a poor reception to his opera Troilus & Cressida, and equally negative comments for his Cello Concerto, which was widely considered to be embarrassingly old-fashioned in it's essentially neo-romantic idiom. Commissioned by Gregor Piatigorsky (at the suggestion of Heifetz), the work was first performed in Boston under Charles Munch in January 1957, with the UK premiere under Sir Malcolm Sargent following a month later. Walton was unable to attend that concert as he was hospitalised following a car accident on the journey to London from his home in Italy. Now widely perceived as one of Walton's most important late scores, the work is performed here by Sinfonia of London's principal cellist Jonathan Aasgaard.

Anyone who has survived the cursed seventh year may hope for a rosy future. The Orelon Trio, founded in Cologne in 2018, has just crossed this significant threshold-though it's members Judith Stapf, Arnau Rovira i Bascompte, and Marco Sanna never had to find their footing together: within a short time, these "meteoric risers" made a name for themselves, quickly guest-performing at renowned venues; high-caliber competition successes followed naturally (ARD, Melbourne, Graz), their first recordings and enthusiastic response from professional circles were not long in coming. How could it be otherwise, when the three musicians' "oreloj" (Esperanto for: ears) are so excellently attuned that they can perceive unheard-of things even in familiar repertoire. This first cpo release by the Orelon Trio leaves no doubt about that.

German Pianist Kai Schumacher is a true wanderer between the musical worlds: Classically trained to perfection, he has always been digging into other genres and styles, reaching from post-rock to techno and ambient music in a way that has not been heard before. When you think a song is already perfect and nobody should even dare to touch it, Schumacher comes in and magnifies it's beauty with his beautiful arrangements; his version of Moderat's "New Error" has been an enormous success all over the internet and is requested at every concert he plays. And now he is taking his talent one step further: over the last months, he has been writing his very personal compositions - minimal, rhythmical, addictive pieces that will leave you wanting more.

One of the most important vocal projects of recent years: the complete songs on 5 CDs by Nikolai Medtner, performed by Ekaterina Levental and Frank Peters. Nikolai Medtner was born in Moscow in 1880. After piano lessons with his mother he entered the Moscow Conservatory where he had lessons from Pavel Pabst and Sergey Taneyev. He won the prestigious Anton Rubinstein Prize at age 20. A younger contemporary of Scriabin and Rachmaninoff he was destined for a brilliant pianistic career but he chose to concentrate on composition. In 1936 he settled in London where he spent the rest of his life teaching and composing till 1951. Medtner's style is rooted in the 19th century, full-blooded romantic, with a highly personal harmonic and melodic language, often complex and dense, but hauntingly beautiful. His vocal works fuse intricate piano accompaniments with expressive melodies and poetic texts, often by Goethe, Pushkin, or Tyutchev. Ekaterina Levental was born in Uzbekistan. She settled in The Netherlands where she studied at the Conservatory of The Hague. She embarked on a successful career as singer, dramatist and theatre producer. Pianist Frank Peters is a highly respected Dutch pianist, both as soloist and chamber music partner. He is an indefatigable champion of the piano works of Medtner. 'Levental's soft high notes are truly exquisite, and she can do things with the voice that most modern singers cannot, such as to drain the voice of vibrato for expressive effect. All things considered, she is a virtuoso vocalist of the old school, and such artists are extremely rare nowadays... "We are very lucky to have a pianist like Peters, who fully understands this dichotomy, as the pianist on this album. " (Artmusiclounge. Com). "Levental has a dark, rich voice, but her pure tone is never burdened by excess vibrato... She couldn't ask for a more responsive partner than Peters, who reveals an astonishingly deft touch and an uncanny ear for detail. " Fanfare (Volume 1, 96056). "The phrasing is so perfect, the sense of line so keen, the rubato so natural sounding, that this seems the only way to sing them... this lucidity is due to the purity of Levental's voice, which she employs with sure intonation and minimum vibrato, as well with an exquisite (but always controlled) play of colour... This is a major release. " Fanfare (Volume 2, 96061).

Marches and other patriotic music frequently occupied the final place in Liszt's recitals, often emphasising the Hungarian cause, which Liszt supported. They also could have contributed to the previously mentioned mood of Lisztomania. It is therefore unsurprising that marches are to be found in Liszt's compositions and arrangements throughout his lifetime. They are represented here with works from around 1830 to 1879, all arrangements of other composers' music, which, in Liszt's hands, achieve artistic heights only found infrequently elsewhere. Given the common practice of the era for performer-composers to play their own music, Liszt could, through the inclusion of an arrangement of a well-known march, acknowledge others' music, and also pay respect to the culture of wherever the concert was taking place. In an era when recordings were not possible, piano arrangements of orchestral and vocal works were commonplace. Liszt cultivated this medium particularly successfully, creating arrangements of, for example, Beethoven symphonies and paraphrases of stage works by Russian composers such as Glinka. Arrangements heard here of marches by Beethoven, Giuseppe Donizetti, Glinka, Massenet, Meyerbeer, Rossini, Schubert and Szechenyi, indicate the breadth of Liszt's programming for his time.