'Close Harmony' is the latest musical offering from Grammy Award winning and internationally acclaimed vocal group The King's Singers. A combination of newly recorded works and tracks from their The Library EP series, the album takes a deep-dive into one of the most beloved and unique corners of their music library: the close-harmony arrangements. New arrangements feature from composers Daryl Runswick (such as an imaginative, exciting version of Rossini's Barber of Seville Overture) and John Rutter (Jerome Kern's The Way You Look Tonight) showcasing the diversity of both their talent and the repertoire they present.

Following her acclaimed Brahms release on Signum Classics in May 2021, Leeds International Piano Competition Winner (2015), Anna Tsybuleva, releases a new album of Debussy's 24 Preludes pour solo piano. Tsybuleva has been described by as embodying "superb pianism and intelligent musicianship" (Gramophone Magazine) and "A pianist of rare gifts: not since Murray Perahia's triumph in 1972 has Leeds had a winner of this musical poise and calibre" (International Piano Magazine). Praise for Tsybuleva on Signum Classics "One is speechless. As far as their performance is concerned, the German Symphony Orchestra Berlin, the soloist and the conductor Ruth Reinhardt are an extremely eloquent team that realizes their musical ideas together. You can hear a direct and gripping Brahms, without any airs, without frills - music that speaks to you directly" - Piano News

Venus & Adonis is the premiere recording of the eponymous song cycle by Billboard-charting composer Rodrigo Ruiz. Released to celebrate William Shakespeare's 460th anniversary, this album is a tribute to the poet's unmatched inspiration. When the composition was finished in 2020, Venus & Adonis became the first song cycle known to be written by a Mexican composer, as well as the only known song cycle (in English or otherwise) set entirely to Shakespeare's texts. Despite the newness of the cycle, the music 1 lacks no lyricism and will gladden singers, pianists, artistic directors and all those longing to perform and programme such lyrical and well-crafted music. These seventeen songs, performed by British duo Grace Davidson and George Herbert, exemplify the enormous variety of expression that Ruiz is able to conjure in his writing, making of Venus & Adonis a truly exciting and refreshing addition to the art song tradition -one that will touch audiences and musicians alike.

Released as part of a double launch, 'Music for Wind' is an album of world premiere recordings by composer Brian Elias, winner of two British Composer Awards. He has had previous compositions performed and recorded extensively by leading orchestras and soloists including the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the Britten Sinfonia among many others. The album artwork is by world-renowned artist Anish Kapoor. "Every inflection tells, the balance of sound is exact, and the sound seductive in the best traditions of glamorous 20th century orchestral writing." - Paul Driver, The Sunday Times

Signum Classics is proud to release an album of string works by the award-winning composer, Brian Elias. Spanning almost half a century, this survey of Brian Elias's chamber music for strings arose from a retrospective staged in 2020 by the Music@Malling festival in Kent. His first album on Signum, it is released alongside 'Music for Wind' and will be launched at Music@Malling in September 2024. The album artwork is by celebrated artist Anish Kapoor. "Amply gifted as an orchestral composer... purified intensity, immediacy and unrestrained lyricism" - Paul Griffiths, The Sunday Times

An album of world premiere recordings of works written to accompany poems by celebrated Irish novelist and poet James Joyce, Desmond Earley and the University Choral Scholars of University College, Dublin release their fourth album on Signum Classics. Following their EP "Ireland is My Home" which was Scala Radio's Album of the Week, this new album aims to encapsulate the influence of singing and music in Joyce's work. A tenor himself, it was Joyce's wish that his words be set to music, and through commissioning new works, the choir are proud of their unique connection to Joyce's Dublin story. "It is a pleasure and honour for us to be the first choral ensemble to wrap James Joyce's 'suite of songs' in an Irish choral voice" - Desmond Earley (Artistic Director)

The second in their award winning series, the Calidore Quartet return with a three disc album of the Middle Quartets. Their Beethoven performances have been described as 'shockingly deep' by LA Times. The first album of Late Quartets won the Chamber Music Award at the BBC Music Magazine Awards 2024. Their interpretation is informed by their diverse set of mentors which include Alban Berg, Emerson, Guarneri and yet still uniquely representing the sentiments, aesthetics and research of their generation. Their interpretations of Beethoven are already critically acclaimed with performances at the Lincoln Centre planned as part of their residency.

His ninth solo album on Signum Records, Alessio Bax combines exceptional lyricism and insight with consummate technique and is without a doubt "among the most remarkable young pianists now before the public" (Gramophone). Here he presents an album of works for dancing, including tangos and waltzes spanning three centuries. Featuring composers such as J S Bach, Manuel de Falla and Franz Liszt a variety of cultures are showcased in this album for solo piano, and features contributions to an arrangement by Bax himself.

Acclaimed Signum artist Alexandra Dariescu brings a new combination of concertos: Clara Schumann's Concerto in A minor Op. 7 coupled with Grieg's A minor concerto Op. 16. Alexandra Dariescu is a trailblazing pianist who demonstrates fearless curiosity and ground-breaking innovation. As part of her artistic journey, Dariescu has achieved gender equality in her concerto programming for three consecutive seasons, reviving and premiering important works by both male and female composers, championing inclusion and diversity. "I got to know Clara Schumann's Concerto and fell in love with this youthful piece, full of dreams, fiendish virtuosity and a testament to what an innovative performer and composer Clara was, even as a teenager. [Recording these works] It made me realise once again what a responsibility we all have to show both sides of history, to mirror our society in concert programmes and to shine a light on the often-overlooked brilliance of women composers" - Alexandra Dariescu.

Following their first successful album on Signum Records, the Bevan Family Consort present a collection of Christmas Carols and compositions for Advent. The collection includes familiar works such as Darke's setting of 'In the Bleak Midwinter', which is presented here in a new arrangement by Francis Bevan and was as works newly transcribed for this album such as Palestrina's 'Missa sine nominee a5' and Weelkes 'Gloria in excelsis Deo'. 'Lute-book lullaby' also features, composed by original Bevan Family Choir founder David Bevan. ? THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2023 "[A] lovingly curated selection of works for voices. All received performances of exquisite subtlety and clarity" - The Times

Hailed by Classic FM as "one of today's most exciting young composers" Rebecca Dale is a London based composer, working most often with large orchestral and choral forces in the worlds of cinema and theatre. Night Seasons is an album about hope, looking for the light in difficult times, written during a time of personal dif- ficulty while her father was terminally ill. With works written for choir and cello it strives to be a hopeful album, reaching for the wonder around us. Rebecca Dale says "It's been one of the great privileges of my life to be able to write for cellist heroes of mine to whom I grew up listening. I also got to have fun setting some famous poems... I am indebted to everyone who has created this album with me".

Continuing their Magnificat series, and the last album of Andrew Nethsingha's tenure as director, The Choir of St John's College Cambridge present Magnificat 4 with works from composers including Judith Weir, Jonathan Dove, Joanna Forbes L'Estrange and Charles Villiers Stanford. The album also features 'Magnificat & Nunc Dimittis' by Piers Connor Kennedy, commissioned for the choir.

LOOSENING is a double album of five works by award winning composer GRAHAM FITKIN. Each one has the string quartet at it's core but every work includes it's own additional soloist. The string quartet is a really homogenous group, steeped in history and tradition, in which timbrally similar instruments create a well-honed sound through trusted communication and shared purpose. Each work has clearly defined roles for the two protagonists - quartet and solist. Each piece allows for two perspectives, two distinct approaches to the material and yet each protagonist is affected by the other. Approaches often evolve through the works, perhaps the quartet splits their honed homogeneity to focus more on individual constituents or conversely maybe they subsume the incomer into their group creating a larger group. An album of world premiere recordings: Four of the five works have never been recorded before, and the fifth is a new arrangement (also never recorded). DISTIL won the prestigious Royal Philharmonic Society Prize for Chamber Works in 2015.

His first recital album on Signum Records, internationally acclaimed pianist Melvyn Tan brings a new perspective to Beethoven's Piano Sonatas 30, 31 and 32. Exploration, insight and imagination are vital ingredients in Melvyn Tan's blend of artistic attributes. He established his international reputation with pioneering performances on fortepiano and continues to cast fresh light on music conceived for the piano's early and modern forms.

Academy of Ancient Music (AAM) releases the final volume of an acclaimed project to record Mozart's complete works for keyboard and orchestra. Fittingly, this final instalment includes three works that in various ways are valedictory: K595 is Mozart's last completed keyboard concert, while K503 is the last concerto of his Viennese years. Louise Alder joins AAM and Robert Levin in an aria for solo soprano, solo keyboard and orchestra; Ch'io mi scordi di te? is a farewell to one of Mozart's favourite singers, Nancy Storace. The hardback CD package is accompanied by comprehensive notes commissioned specially for the album.

Harmonies of Devotion is both an exploration of the Italian motet repertory of the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries and a celebration of the devotion to this sacred repertory displayed by English antiquarian collectors of the eighteenth century. Among the works recorded here for the first time are Giovanni Legrenzi's six-voice masterpiece Intret in conspectu tuo, which survives thanks to a copy made in London by Handel, a five-voice Crucifixus by Legrenzi's pupil Antonio Lotti, sent to London's newly formed Academy of Ancient Music, a grand Marian motet written for the Academy by Agostino Steffani, and music by Steffani's teacher Ercole Bernabei, again collected by members of London's antiquarian music clubs. The recording reveals lines of influence between teachers and pupils, and traces the lineage of the dramatic seconda prattica motet back to it's principal source and pioneer: Monteverdi.

For a period of the 20th Century, due to his talent and association with Benjamin Britten, Peter Pears was perhaps the world's most famous classical singer. Pears inspired Britten to create great works of art precisely because Pears was a compelling artist with an exceptional voice, an inquisitive mind, a knowledge of art, history, literature and poetry. They became a self-perpetuating duo, inspiring each other to even greater heights of artistry, technical ability, and emotional certainty. This album of works by Lennox Berkeley, Benjamin Britten, Arthur Oldham, Richard Rodney Bennett and Geoffrey Bush is performed by tenor Robin Tritschler, who is joined by cellist Philip Higham, guitarist Sean Shibe and pianist Malcolm Martineau. Praise for Robin Tritschler and Malcolm Martineau: 4 stars Performance, 4 stars Recording "Robin Tritschler's sweet-toned voice is a continual delight, as is Malcolm Martineau's sparkling, pearly, luminous piano sound" - BBC Music Magazine

Emmanuel Despax's eighth release for Signum Classics delves into the dramatic and visionary world of Franz Liszt, from the great Sonata in B minor to the celestail Benediction de Deur dans la solitude. Despax offers a unique perspective on Liszt's work through a very personal connection to the composer. His musical upbringing is rooted in a lineage of mentors which traces back to Liszt, creating a deep connection to the composer's legacy. Despax comments "This lineage has deeply influenced my musical upbringing, instilling a unique perspective on interpretation, fostering an insatiable curiosity... emphasising engaging with the score with utmost integrity, without shortcuts or compromise. Above all, this tradition signifies a performance ethos... to serve as a conduit between the music and the audience".

In a new arrangement for solo harp, celebrated harpist Gwyneth Wentink presents Dutch composer Simeon Ten Holt's Canto Ostinato and Aforisme No. 2 (a transcription by Jeroen van Veen on behalf of Simeon Ten Holt). "I first heard Canto Ostinato on piano in 2011 and I felt as if I was on fire. THIS is something I wanted to play on the harp: I clearly recall the zeal and enthusiasm I felt at the time. I was buzzing with curiosity, excitement and vitality. Exploring various musical genres, arranging music for the harp and working in interdisciplinary settings is something that has always been important to me. Playing the harp, one is being confronted with a rather restricted repertoire, and one almost evidently scans the horizon for what else one can arrange, commission and/or discover" - Gwyneth Wentink.

This is the first recording not only of Ave Maris stella and Laudate pueri but also the original D-major version of Bononcini's Te Deum. The work has been newly edited here from it's English eighteenth-century sources. These works were written during Bononcini's time in London, and a few months after his arrival the country was ravaged by a smallpox epidemic, which also saw the first introduction of inoculation against disease in England. It's fitting therefore that this recording was made in the early summer of 2021, six months after the COVID-19 vaccination programme began in the UK. Despite the challenges that this caused, director Owen Rees says "it was heart-lifting to be able to bring this project to fruition after many months during which singing was silenced".