The latest musica viva CD presents three contemporary works for double-bass, performed by the renowned double-bassist Frank Reinecke (born 1960), who was a member of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra from 1984 to 2024 and is in great demand at international festivals as a soloist and chamber musician. Working closely with renowned composers, Reinecke has premiered numerous works, including Flucht ('Flight/Escape') by Nikolaus Brass (2009) and iv 18 by Mark Andre (2021), both of which can be heard here in recent recordings. Born in Paris in 1964, the composer Mark Andre creates existential spaces of experience in his music that are characterised by subtle processes of change. At the heart of his thinking lies the question of disappearance, which relates to all musical parameters. Above all in his chamber music, which is as delicate as it is focused, the devout Protestant proves himself to be a sensitive explorer of sound. His solo work for double-bass iv 18 ('For they were afraid'), commissioned between 2018 and 2021 by musica viva of Bayerischer Rundfunk and the Berliner Festspiele / Musikfest Berlin, was premiered by Frank Reinecke at the Musikfest Berlin in 2021. This recording of the work was made between November 7 and 9, 2023 in the Herkulessaal of the Munich Residenz. Nikolaus Brass regards the three movements he composed for solo double-bass in 2009 under the title Flucht ('Flight/Escape') as studies or etudes for the instrument. The first movement highlights various 'gestures of the line', which in the third movement are narrowed down to a single gesture, that of the glissando. In the central movement, the core of the instrument is brought to the fore. The title Flucht can be interpreted musically in several dimensions. Frank Reinecke gave the work it's world premiere in Hamburg in June 2013. This recording was made on June 20 and 21, 2012 at the Himmelfahrtskirche in Munich-Sendling. Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928-2007) composed the first version of In Freundschaft ('In Friendship') in 1977 as a birthday present for the clarinettist Suzanne Stephens, and also wrote a version of it for the flute at the same time. In 1978, he revised the work and, on that occasion, wrote versions for the oboe, trumpet, violin and viola. Further versions followed for the basset horn and almost all other orchestral instruments. A first version for cello, prepared in 1981, can also be played on the double-bass. This live recording of Frank Reinecke's performance was made during a musica viva concert on November 6, 2020 in the Herkulessaal of the Munich Residenz. ? Impressive performances of three original contemporary compositions for solo double-bass by renowned double-bass player Frank Reinecke: Mark Andre (born 1964): iv 18 ('For they were afraid') (2022/23) Nikolaus Brass (born 1949): Flucht (2009) Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928-2007): In Freundschaft (version for double-bass; 1977/2008) ? Andre and Brass wrote their respective compositions for Frank Reinecke (born 1960), who performed the world premieres, and dedicated them to him. In 1998, Stockhausen also dedicated a double-bass version of his work to Reinecke ? Three exciting contemporary pieces for the 'wonderful instrument' (Nikolaus Brass, 2025), performed by a world premiere performer

Finnish-Dutch cellist Jonathan Roozeman presents a programme featuring contemporary works for cello by Finnish composers. For some of the pieces, he is accompanied by pianist and composer Johannes Piirto. Centered around a sonata by music veteran Kalevi Aho, the program's six works reflect the diversity of contemporary Finnish music, all having been composed within the last fifteen years. Sauli Zinovjev's 'Sustained' appears as a ghostly, discordant, fragmented reflection of music from the Romantic period. Cecilia Damstrom's 'Aveo' was composed for people who suffer from long COVID and who have had to bid farewell to their normal lives. 'Recitativo' by Sebastian Fagerlund, a commission from a cello competition, challenges not only the cellists' mastery of their instrument but also their interpretative abilities. 'Sanasi, kiveen uponneet' by Outi Tarkiainen, a composer who brings to her music the perspective of someone born in the north, in Finnish Lapland, features powerful soundscapes inspired by natural phenomena as well as human themes touching on the deepest emotions of mankind. The programme concludes with 'We Lie Down Only to Get Up Again' by Lauri Porra, a composer who exemplifies the multifaceted nature of contemporary Finnish music. This work evokes the atmosphere of a summer morning with warmth, perhaps even with a touch of longing.

Active as a composer since the mid-1960s, Daniel Bortz is widely regarded today as one of the most important composers in Swedish musical history. His music has always been characterised by it's simplicity and precision, which highlight the power of his emotionally charged messages. The three works presented here share a common thread of a personal kind: the collaboration with violinist and violist Malin Broman. She has been a direct source of inspiration for all three works; First as a member of the Kungsbacka Piano Trio, later as artistic director of the string orchestra Musica Vitae, and finally as soloist in Double Concerto for One. In her various roles, she has functioned both as an interpreter and a catalyst. About Double Concerto for One, Broman said: 'An incredibly beautiful and dramatic work. Daniel's music is close to song; it feels as though you are singing when you play.' The concerto is followed by Sinfonia 14, written for string orchestra alone. This large-scale, emotionally intense work features volcanic outbursts alongside moments of stillness. The Piano Trio concludes the program with a powerful, driving opening, a deeply emotional slow middle movement, and a finale of irresistible energy.

Kraig Grady, an American based in Australia, is a microtonal composer. He explains it thus: 'Alternative tunings are a major inspiration for my compositional explorations. The pivotal point for me was meeting with tuning theorist Ervin Wilson and witnessing Harry Partch's U.S. Highball in 1975. I was convinced that working with different instruments and tunings was going to be a major artistic movement. I began studying tuning with Wilson which continued for as long as we knew each other. I'm interested in using acoustic instruments as sound sources to explore new acoustic phenomena that cannot be mistaken for electronic manipulation.' The starting point for the works on this CD was to record each performer playing individual notes in the given microtonal tuning with extreme pitch accuracy. The recordings are edited to capture the personal expressivity of the players and the individuality of their gestures in the recordings become inseparable from the composition process. These recordings of individual notes are then weaved together to form melodic lines and combined to build harmonies and shifting textures. Liner notes by Grady with illustrated samples.

Sebastian Fagerlund is among Finland's most celebrated contemporary composers, crafting works of vivid narrative and emotional depth across orchestral, operatic, and chamber genres. This recording features four works for various instrumental combinations that demonstrate Fagerlund's skill in linking his compositions through strong spiritual and stylistic connections. Beneath for string orchestra occupies a space between concerto and ensemble piece. The solo violin-a "first among equals"-emerges from and merges with the orchestra, tracing a journey from rising chord sequences through energetic passages to quiet resolution. Remain, a piano trio completed the day Russia invaded Ukraine, weaves quotations from Ravel, Bach, and Brahms into three emotionally charged movements, dedicated to the people of Ukraine. Materie, a solo violin work written for the Kuopio Violin Competition, balances technical brilliance with expressive nuance, unfolding in two powerful waves between contemplation and intensity. Finale Stilla for violin and piano moves from introspective exploration through energetic climaxes to a hauntingly quiet, mysterious conclusion. Intertwined with all four works is violinist and conductor Malin Broman, who appears both as a soloist and part of the Kungsbacka Piano Trio, while also conducting the Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra.

Violist Jonathan Bagg unearths three overlooked gems of the mid-20th century chamber repertoire by Marion Bauer, Ulysees Kay, and Margaret Bonds. Joined by pianists Emely Phelps and Mimi Solomon, Bagg sheds light on well deserving repertoire by three composers whose contributions to the larger musical field went far beyond their fine music.

Following his acclaimed recording of Kurt Weill's symphonies 1 and 2 and excerpts from The Silver Lake (BIS-2579), HK Gruber and his congenial partner, the Swedish Chamber Orchestra, present three more works by the famous musical theatre composer, this time featuring sopranos Wallis Giunta and Jennifer France and violinists Katerina Andresson and Benjamin Herzl. This release opens with the ballet-chante satire The Seven Deadly Sins, a scathing critique of capitalist society that highlights the perpetual struggle between money and morality. Anna, a young girl, is sent away from her family with the mission of bringing back enough money to build a house on the Mississippi. The cantata The New Orpheus, which blends the very different styles of aria and song, tells the sad story of the singer who sets out to conquer the dreary walls of modern cities to save Eurydice, and with her, all of humanity. Finally, the Concerto for Violin and Wind Orchestra, a central work from Weill's early creative period, displays a theatricality that heralds the stage works to come. An exciting programme showcasing Weill's inimitable language of mixing the sophisticated and the popular, the melodic and the dissonant, the complex and the streetwise.

Hakan Hardenberger and Roland Pontinen have enjoyed a fruitful artistic relationship for over forty years. They have played, toured and recorded together and have devoted much time and energy to repertoire ideas. 'For us to create a new programme is an exciting, stimulating and fun process', says Pontinen. 'A process that often mirrors our mutual interest in jazz, film and other art forms. The idea of juxtaposing works of contrasting characters, or composed centuries apart, can often shed new light on the music itself.' We are treated here to recently composed works, arrangements, favourites of both musicians and standards from the Great American Songbook. The centrepiece of the programme is Three Autumns by Staffan Storm, atmospherically connected to Anna Akhmatova's poetry, a reflection on elegiac autumn moods. Among contemporary composers, Mark-Anthony Turnage and HK Gruber, who have provided Hardenberger with more works than any other composers, are also represented. Roland Pontinen contributes two pieces, one of them a meditative work inspired by the simplicity and mood of Thomas Newman's masterful film scores. Legende by George Enescu reflects the impressionistic style of the composer's teachers. The recital is also interspersed with shorter pieces, arrangements and reinterpretations of classic American songs, and includes legendary jazzman Ornette Coleman's Chanting, a favourite encore in Hardenberger/Pontinen programmes - always improvised, every time different.

Throughout history, the open landscapes and mythical cultures of the Nordic countries have triggered the imagination of artists. Finnish horn player Markus Maskuniitty and pianist Martin Sturfalt perform works which, although separated in time by more than a century, all draw their inspiration from from these areas of interest. The compositions gathered here approach these Nordic themes from different angles, blending traditional folk influences with contemporary classical techniques whilst exploring the horn's lyrical and dramatic capabilities and it's rich sound palette. Recent compositions by Piers Hellawell, Tryggvi M. Baldvinsson, Albert Schnelzer and Benjamin Staern are mixed with older works by Carl Nielsen, Hugo Alfven and Julius Rontgen, including the latter's Aus Jotunheim, a suite characterized by an irresistible Norwegian flavour throughout it's five movements, quoting everything from cattle calls to lullabies with plenty of rustic folk dancing in between. This imaginative program designed by Maskuniity and Sturfalt puts a spotlight on the unique character of the Nordic musical identity.

Carlo Gesualdo da Venosa (c.1561-1613) was a Renaissance composer known for both his groundbreaking music and the infamous murder of his wife and her lover. While historical records about his personality are limited and contradictory, his music-especially his 104 madrigals-is notable for it's bold harmonic experimentation, centuries ahead of it's time. Composer Peter Navarro-Alonso, long fascinated by Gesualdo, created the hour-long piece In flagrante delicto in collaboration with violinist Christina Åstrand and conductor Paul Hillier. The composition explores the darkness of Gesualdo's psyche through musical quotations and has been performed and recorded by Ensemble Stralo and Theatre of Voices. Peter Navarro-Alonso is a composer focused on drama, sound, and the human mind, known for exploring timbre and the concept of hope. He has written vocal, chamber, orchestral, and electroacoustic works, and received Denmark's top music honor in 2023. Paul Hillier is a renowned singer, conductor, composer, and writer, known for founding the Hilliard Ensemble and Theatre of Voices. With nearly 200 acclaimed recordings, multiple awards, and honors from both the British and Danish monarchs, he has led major chamber choirs across Europe and is especially noted for his collaborations with composers Arvo Pärt and Steve Reich. Ensemble Stralo, founded in 2016 by four Danish soloists and chamber musicians, combines strings, winds, and keyboard to create a unique and flexible sound. They perform music from the Renaissance to contemporary works, offering distinctive and engaging concert experiences. Recorded November 16-18, 2024, in Garnisonskirken, Copenhagen, by producer Preben Iwan in HD audio format (96 kHz / 32-bit). Available in Dolby Atmos format.

Mystics & Cynics is a mesmerizing journey through the sacred and the subversive, the ecstatic and the irreverent. Featuring the world premiere of Taumelnd von Glut (Reeling in the Light)-a stunning new song cycle by composer Boris Bergmann, setting the passionate poetry of Otto Braun to music for the first time. Braun's youthful idealism and later disillusionment echo through Bergmann's evocative score, creating a deeply moving meditation on love, war, and loss. This striking new work is woven into a tapestry of mystical and iconoclastic masterpieces: the luminous chant of Hildegard von Bingen, the playful defiance of Erik Satie, and the radical vision of John Cage. Mystics & Cynics invites listeners on a journey through war-torn poetry, cabaret whimsy, and transcendental meditation-where every note is both a question and an answer. An essential release for adventurous ears.

Sarah Saviet and Joseph Houston formed their duo in 2019 through a mutual devotion to an intimate, powerful, and transcendental sound language created by the violin and piano. In this album, the Saviet/Houston Duo trace a path through a shifting landscape of melodic contour, with duos by Michael Finnissy, Enno Poppe/Rebecca Saunders, Lawrence Dunn, Iannis Xenakis, and their own collaborative composition. Each work reflects in different ways the intricate contradictions and the powerful complexity of contemporary life.

Helmut Lachenmann, who celebrates his 90th birthday in the music year of 2025, has composed several milestones in contemporary classical music. Sir Simon Rattle and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra are dedicating themselves to some of these exceptional works. In his tuba concerto Harmonica, Helmut Lachenmann explores the limits of sound - with music that oscillates between eruption and silence, by means of "strictly constructed denial" (Lachenmann) and by deliberately disrupting the familiar, and eludes socially preformed listening expectations. This appeal to the audience's self-awareness remains as relevant as ever. The soloist is Stefan Tischler, principal tuba player of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, and the live recording with the BRSO conducted by Sir Simon Rattle was made on March 22, 2025. Klangschatten - mein Saitenspiel by Helmut Lachenmann deals with the "verso" of sound, it's suppressed and "unwelcome" components. The spectrum here ranges from toneless or muffled sounds to differently coloured noise and clear tones. Lachenmann himself described the piece as " an offer of expressive intensity that reflects the bourgeois longing for beauty and seeks to fulfil it, that is, to overcome it." The work was performed by the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Matthias Herrmann on May 23, 2025 in the Herkulessaal of the Munich Residenz. Helmut Lachenmann, born in Stuttgart in 1935, is one of the most renowned German composers of contemporary music. He studied piano, music theory and counterpoint in Stuttgart and composition with Luigi Nono in Venice. The first public performances of his works took place in 1962 at the Venice Biennale and at the Darmstadt Summer Courses for New Music. He taught composition in Hanover (1976-1981) and in Stuttgart (1981-1999), and has given numerous master classes in Germany and abroad. His works are performed by internationally renowned players and orchestras all over the world. Helmut Lachenmann has received numerous awards, including the German Music Authors' Prize of GEMA (2015) for his lifetime achievements and, most recently, for his compositional work, the 'President of the French Republic Prize' from the Academie Charles Cros (2025).

From the outset, Sir Simon Rattle's conducting career has been marked by a spirit of innovation and renewal - and contemporary music in all it's facets continues to play a significant role in his work. So it was only natural that, upon taking up his post as chief conductor of the Bavarian Radio Chorus and Symphony Orchestra, he should dedicate a concert to musica viva. The programme featured the world premiere of Vito Žuraj's "Automatones" as well as Luciano Berio's "Coro". Sir Simon Rattle has conducted the latter piece several times before, but this performance marks the first recording under his baton. This is due to the unique demands that the composition places on recording technology: choir singers and orchestra musicians are positioned in pairs on the podium to overcome the visual and acoustic separation of choir and orchestra voices. This presented a particular challenge to the Bavarian Radio recording team, but they rose to it successfully, as can be heard on the new CD from BR-KLASSIK. Composed between 1975 and 1976, Luciano Berio's "Coro", for forty voices and orchestra, takes anonymous folk poems by the Sioux, the Navajo and the Zuni, as well as song texts from Polynesia, Peru, Croatia, Venice, Piedmont, Chile, and the Song of Solomon - all of them reflecting the deeply human urge for freedom - and combines them with the moving poetry of Pablo Neruda, whose death coincided with the bloody suppression of the Allende democracy in Chile by Augusto Pinochet in September 1973.

The works of violinist and composer Nicolaus Richter de Vroe (*1955) have been and are regularly performed by the most renowned organisers and festivals of new music. The musician began his training at the Special School for Music in Dresden, now known as the Sachsisches Landesgymnasium fur Musik Carl Maria von Weber. After studying the violin at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, he performed with various chamber music, improvisation, and experimental ensembles. In 1980, he joined the Staatskapelle Berlin and completed his composition studies with Friedrich Goldmann and Georg Katzer at the Academy of Arts of the German Democratic Republic. In 1982, he founded the Ensemble for New Music Berlin (East), which quickly became an important platform for contemporary music in the GDR. From the mid-1980s onwards, Richter de Vroe performed his own works and appeared as a performer at all ARD radio stations, as well as at international festivals. In 1988 he joined the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, and, one year later, founded the XSEMBLE Munich - an ensemble characterised by experimental programming and stylistic openness. In 1996, he co-founded the Munich Society for New Music, dedicated to promoting contemporary music. Alongside his work as a composer and performer, Richter de Vroe has been a regular guest at Goethe Institutes worldwide since 1994, delivering lectures and giving portrait concerts and presentations of his work. In 2008 he was admitted to the Saxon Academy of Arts. Richter de Vroe's composition TETRA?b IV for four soloists and orchestra was commissioned by musica viva of Bayerischer Rundfunk in 2002. The world premiere, which is recorded on this CD, features Isao Nakamura (percussion), Irvine Arditti, Mike Svoboda (trombone), Isabeella Beumer (voice) and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Peter Rundel, and took place on November 15, 2002 in the Herkulessaal of the Munich Residenz. - Although the large orchestra is joined by four soloists, the work is not a concerto or concerto grosso. The solo parts are so distinct that it would be challenging to have them compete in a concert setting. They also appear successively, each characterising a longer section of the work with their own style, and they can only be heard performing together towards the end. The vocalist's solo is based on a poem by the experimental Russian poet Daniil Kharms. Richter de Vroe's artistic affinity with Kharms' thinking is expressed in the title TETRA?b IV - the Russian word "Tetra", in which only the last letter is written in Cyrillic, means "notebook" - as well as in the composer's experimental approach to the text. Shibuya Movements for orchestra was also commissioned by musica viva of Bayerischer Rundfunk in 1991/92. This CD features a recording of the world premiere on May 15, 1992 by the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra under Cristobal Halffter, performed in the Herkulessaal of the Munich Residenz. Euforia for orchestra was composed in 2009, and it's world premiere on October 31, 2009 by the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra under Mariss Jansons also took place in the Herkulessaal of the Munich Residenz.

The works of violinist and composer Nicolaus Richter de Vroe (*1955) have been and are regularly performed by the most renowned organisers and festivals of new music. The musician began his training at the Special School for Music in Dresden, now known as the Sachsisches Landesgymnasium fur Musik Carl Maria von Weber. After studying the violin at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, he performed with various chamber music, improvisation and experimental ensembles. In 1980, he joined the Staatskapelle Berlin and completed his composition studies with Friedrich Goldmann and Georg Katzer at the Academy of Arts of the German Democratic Republic. In 1982, he founded the Ensemble for New Music Berlin (East), which quickly became an important platform for contemporary music in the GDR. From the mid-1980s onwards, Richter de Vroe performed his own works and appeared as a performer at all ARD radio stations, as well as at international festivals. In 1988 he joined the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, and, one year later, founded the XSEMBLE Munich - an ensemble characterised by experimental programming and stylistic openness. In 1996, he co-founded the Munich Society for New Music, dedicated to promoting contemporary music. Alongside his work as a composer and performer, Richter de Vroe has been a regular guest at Goethe Institutes worldwide since 1994, delivering lectures and giving portrait concerts and presentations of his work. In 2008 he was admitted to the Saxon Academy of Arts. Richter de Vroe's Violin Concerto was composed between 2018 and 2020 as a commission from musica viva of Bayerischer Rundfunk, kindly supported by the Friends of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. The world premiere, recorded on this CD, was performed by Ilya Gringolts and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Johannes Kalitzke on October 28, 2022 in the Herkulessaal of the Munich Residenz. - The initial inspiration for Richter de Vroe's Violin Concerto came from Ilya Gringolts' interpretation of Gyorgy Ligeti's Violin Concerto. The concerto begins with an introduction, followed by a first cadenza accompanied by individual instruments in a drone-like manner. This is followed by the first nocturne, which features sounds reminiscent of natural lutes. In the so-called 'Main Movement', "things get pretty crazy! There's a real frenzy with lots of momentum and variety, not to mention a lot of - how shall I put it - 'nasty surprises'!" (Richter de Vroe) Avenir for organ, choir and orchestra was also commissioned by musica viva of Bayerischer Rundfunk in 2013/14. This CD features the recording of the world premiere on June 6, 2014, performed by Wolfgang Mitterer on the organ and accompanied by the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus under the direction of Johannes Kalitzke.

Composer, flautist, and producer Allison Loggins-Hull's genre-defying style is vibrantly brought to life on Patchwork, an album of six new chamber works celebrating the culmination of her three seasons as a Composing Fellow with the Cleveland Orchestra.

Michael Finnissy's output for the guitar spans almost 60 years of his career and represents an enormous contribution to the repertoire of the instrument from one of Britain's most significant composers. Published a few days before Finnissy's 80th birthday, this bold and ambitious album celebrates this milestone by bringing together all of his works for solo guitar and guitar ensemble for the first time, in performances by Finnissy's collaborators and led by new music virtuoso and tireless guitar explorer Sam Cave.