John Rutter writes: “Revisiting this 1993 Cambridge Singers recording, I realize I should never have withdrawn it from the Collegium catalogue – and all because of an obscure musicological question in my mind over a Gregorian chant, long since resolved. We assembled a stellar team of forty voices, offering a sumptuous programme of music for multiple choirs, with the dazzling Tallis 40-part motet as the centerpiece. Allegri’s Miserere, now a firmer audience favorite than ever, and the most magnificent of Bach’s six motets, Singet dem Herrn, are among the other choral masterpieces featured on an album that truly is a banquet of voices. For the first time, modern digital sound restoration has allowed the music to be heard in its full sonic splendor, and we are confident the album will once again take its place in the treasured family of Cambridge Singers recordings.”

The celebration of the Nativity has always been a source of inspiration for composers. The different elements of the evangelical narrative evoke numerous images: tender feelings before the Baby Jesus; the gentleness of his mother, the Virgin Mary; the procession of the three Wise Men; the angelic choirs in Heaven; and these shepherds gathered in the manger. All that appears in the musical repertoire linked to this holiday, as well as the presence of colourful instrumentations and themes connected to folk traditions. This set, released by Ricercar, brings together all these elements, drawn from the repertoires of the Renaissance and Baroque eras.

From the pipe organ at the Sono Luminus studio in Boyce, Virginia, we are pleased to present a fine selection of baroque organ music for the Christmas season. Felipe Dominguez (b. 1983) is a Chilean/American organist, harpsichordist, clavichordist, and musicologist. A graduate of Brigham Young University (B.M. 2010, M.M. 2012), he studied organ and harpsichord with Douglas Bush and Don Cook. He has pursued further postgraduate organ instruction in Europe with Edoardo Belotti, Hans Davidsson, Harald Vogel, and Leon Berben. Mr. Dominguez has performed as a soloist and in ensembles in Chile, Argentina, the United States and Europe.

Nun komm der Heiden Heiland (Oh, Come thou Savior of the Gentiles) is a German chorale normally sung during advent, and is a call for the Lord to come to Earth.

Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming is a well known and beloved traditional chorale on the original harmonization by Michael Praetorius.

The chorale Lobt Gott, ihr Christen, allzugleich, (Praise God, you Christians, All Together) is set in verse 1 with the melody in the soprano and counterpoint in the two lower voices, and in verse 2 with the melody in the pedal and two lines in imitation on top.

Noël cette Journée (Christmas day today) imitates the French musette with a sustained pedal note, a sweet melody and elegant ornaments, painting an image of the French countryside.

Zipoli’s Pastorale also centers on the image of countryside landscape, which was a popular Christmas theme at the time in the spirit of the biblical annunciation to the shepherds.

Michau qui causoit ce grand bruit is a traditional French Noël treated in a very common structure of variations with different character, the first with a royal feel and the second with a courtesan air.

A ricercar is an imitative form that uses a melody as its main source of material for development. In the case of the Ricercare on “Ave Maria Klare”, a hymn for the Virgin Mary is used as the main source material.

Buxtehude’s Fantasia on “Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern” (How brightly Shines the Morning Star) is one of his greatest masterpieces. He uses small phrases of the chorale melody to develop contrasting sections full of color, energy, and beauty, which also provide an opportunity to highlight the wonderful colors of the organ.

Louis-Claude Daquin wrote a large collection of Noëls and his own performances were legendary in 18th Century Paris. His Noël variations normally present the melody first, followed by variations, at times very virtuosic as it is in this case.

Selections from the Oratorio “The Messiah” by Handel have long been a staple of the Christmas repertoire. This version of the pifa transcribed for the organ is highly ornamented and with its triple meter and dance character intends to take the listener back to the annunciation to the shepherds.

Böhm’s setting of “From Heaven Above,” a popular Christmas chorale, sets the melody as a solo, largely unornamented so it is easy to recognize, against a contrapuntal backdrop.

Voluntary V, Op. 6, by John Stanley though not a Christmas piece has all the hallmarks of a royal entrance. It begins with a contrapuntal section similar to a string ensemble, followed by a virtuosic trumpet solo (Oboe 8’).

This second setting of “From Heaven Above,” by Pachelbel is much different than the previous one, the melody being in the pedal with a Principal 8’ against Koppel Flute 4‘ and Quint 1 1/3‘ in the Swell that dance in counterpoint above the melody.

This 18th Century setting of a pastorale by Bernardo Pasquini is much more elaborated, making more use of counterpoint and varied harmonies throughout the piece. However, it stays true to the countryside character of pastorals.

In Sweet Rejoicing! (In Dulci Jubilo) Is a popular upbeat Christmas hymn. The first 16th Century version from the Fridolin Sichers Tablature is highly imitative, with phrases overlapping over each other very actively. The second version by J.S. Bach, written in his youth, is a highly ornamented version of the hymn that works in scales and arpeggios with a majestic end only as Bach can deliver.

REVIEW:

What distinguishes this release (other than the fine playing and sound) is the inviting combination of a few absolute Christmas classics with a treasure trove of lesser-known but vibrantly lively period works. In the end we get a good listen to the newly installed Sono Luminus organ, which sounds just right. And then the program scores big to my ears with a wide-ranging, musically ravishing collection of Baroque gems for the season. Highly recommended.

-- Gapplegate Classical Modern Music Review

The Danish piano auteur Carsten Dahl and the dynamic American trumpeter Tim Hagans meet the acclaimed Swedish bassist Johnny Åman and the Finnish master drummer Jukkis Uotilaon on the new album A Beautiful Blue Moment, now available on Storyville Records. This rare quartet had never played together before they gathered at the scene of the historic jazz club Montmartre in Copenhagen and played the music recorded here over three sold-out evenings in August 2021. Quite the beautiful moment indeed!

The quartet mainly played free music with an original searching idea of being composing musicians and playing composers, who constantly found new horizontal and vertical directions in music. The original idea for the quartet arose, when Dahl and Hagans taught together at a jazz college in 2019, and realized that they shared musical understanding, humor, fervor and curiosity, when it comes to exploring the essence of music creation. They have been close friends ever since. Dahl, Uotila and Åman had their very first musical encounter at Montmartre, but it turned out to be a truly magical and flying journey. The combination of the four musicians is simply an explosive, poetic and ground-breaking meeting, where their common breathing in music is free, effortless and at the same time linked to their great habitus in tradition and in the many expressions of jazz music. After three great evenings, where musical sparks flew in abundance, the four musicians went directly in the studio for a 6 hours spontaneous recording session. The result is a once in a lifetime jazz voyage, so fasten your seatbelt and get ready for a ride!

Choral music has always played a significant and central role at Belfast Cathedral, since its consecration in 1904. This strong choral tradition continues to this day with the recently formed all-adult, fully professional vocal ensemble. This ‘new’ cathedral choir brings together some of the finest singers in Northern Ireland who lead the liturgy and worship of Belfast Cathedral and are featured here in their debut album for Resonus Classics. Featuring a varied program of seasonal carols from composers including Elizabeth Poston, John Rutter and Philip Ledger, this album celebrates Christmas from Northern Ireland’s national cathedral.

What unites two opera composers, Mayr and Donizetti, with an organist, Father Davide (born Felice Moretti, perhaps the most representative Italian organ composer of the first half of the 19th century)? It’s all about the piano, whether played with two or four hands, with this proposal of largely unpublished pieces by composers who surprise us as chamber music creators, yet never fail to betray a love for romantic melodrama.

Star pianist and acclaimed composer Joel Lyssarides releases new album. "Joel's compositions are small masterpieces that he performs with a virtuosity and timing I haven't heard in Sweden for a long time, if ever" wrote Johan Norberg about pianist Joel Lyssarides' debut album, "Dreamer", which now has over 2.5 million streams on Spotify. The sequel, "A Better Place", is a conversation with Esbjörn Svensson, Bill Evans and Keith Jarrett with inspiration from Bach and Rachmaninov. "The creative process of this album was very different from my previous one, where I could pick and choose from songs that I had had years to complete. This time the music was created during mere hours over the course of a few evenings. There is a magic in the moment when improvising that I’ve found difficult to recreate afterwards. ”A Better Place” consists mostly of written down improvisations and then recorded with the trio without further processing. I think one tends to make better musical decisions on the spot, instead of at the desk where time is unlimited.”

“What a whimsical and diverse play between the poles of "nature" and "art" unfolds here! Rich in color and immensely playful, the Ensemble Sonorità knows how to plumb the space between these poles with the artfully assembled tones and sounds. But is it still "nature" when baroque composers appropriate birdsong for their works? Is it borrowed or not already actually domesticated or even enhanced nature when we read about "to hit the nature"? English as well as French and Italian works integrate on this album the proximity to nature or are inspired by it. It is not only for the pleasure of a "Bird Fancyer" at that time, it is also for the pleasure of a listener of today.” (Conrad Steinmann)