Acclaimed for their interpretation of Vivaldi and Barriere's sonatas, Bruno Cocset's Les Basses Reunies return to Italian 18th century music in this fantastic new recording. The programmed, comprising sonatas by Francesco Geminiani, calls upon a distinguished guest: theorist and lutist Luca Pianca. Also featured under Cocset is Bertrand Cuiller (harpsichord), Mathurin Martharel (cello), and Richard Myron (double bass).

The works of Michael Praetorius (1571-1621), an outstanding composer and great innovator, have mainly come to the contemporary publics attention thanks to his collection of dances under the name of 'Terpischore' and to his theoretical writings. Jean-Charles Ablitzer here gives us the first recording of ten organ pieces selected from his 'Musae Soniae' (phantasies on Lutherian melodies) and from his 'Hymnodia Sonia (Latin hymns). This interpretation, already acclaimed by a 'Choc' from the Monde de la Musique, reveals Praetorius as an inspired and gentle colourist, whose musical idiom will leave a deep imprint on the first generation of baroque composers. the musicological rigour and the great sensitivity of the interpreter is further expressed by the choice of the historic organ of the church of St. Stephan in Tangermünde. Not only is it contemporary of the composer, but an identical model by the same maker is extensively described in Praetorius' 'Syntagma Musicum'. For once, as a unique exception, Alpha forfeits its role as a producer in order to bring this record to the public. It has been auto-produced by the artist but never commercialized while its unique quality soon turned it into an absolute, although unavailable reference.

Carl Philip Emannuel Bach's works lie on the border between the baroque and classical eras. The viola da gamba, an aristocratic baroque instrument, speaks here the language of renewal: arpeggios and passages of double stopping contrast with elegiac melodies, and consoling meditations with frenzy.

This was L’Opéra Harmonique’s first production at Opéra de Rouen. It is a singularly thought-provoking take on Purcell’s famous piece. The extended duration is due to various inserts along the way in the manner of the period. The orchestra, using period instruments, is wonderfully polished throughout, making the pointed dances a particular delight.

Here, the sea is the ‘matrix of the action’, to quote the booklet notes. As a “reflection of the protagonists’ souls”, it shadows the fluidity of the action and the characters’ response to the travails of doomed love. Cécile Roussat and Julien Lubek have done a sterling, hyper-imaginative job of direction, choreography, sets and costumes. The stage deliberately seems to invoke the mythic, a magical time before ours, artificial in its immediate effect but, via this distancing, allowing the core emotions of the drama to shine forth. The production sets out to depict all characters involved in the action, even those merely mentioned in the libretto (like Diana). Also Cupid draws his bow in stylised movements onstage during the course of the dramatic and beautifully expressive Overture. The excellent choir is offstage throughout, a disembodied Greek chorus capable of the greatest delight as well as the deepest pathos (“Great minds against themselves conspire”). Replacing them onstage, perhaps, are the dancers and acrobats. Prepare for a raft of the interpolations mentioned above; gird yourself for example, also for trapeze artists, swing from the ceiling as the lovers’ hands seek to touch, a scene that moves effortlessly into “Let the triumphs of love and of beauty be shown”.

Vocally, the first thing to note is that this international cast delivers the English text astonishingly well. As much care has gone into diction as has been lavished on any other performance aspect and indeed on the production.

The Dido is Alaskan soprano Vivica Genaux, stunning in her expressivity and decidedly feisty in her final scene with Aeneas. Yet she is truly touching in her Lament, beginning with her arms fully extended as if to reflect the length and beauty of her phrasing. Finally, she is enveloped by the sea, the sea that has provided such a powerful metaphor throughout. At last, also, we the DVD viewers see the chorus, now in the orchestra pit. Feathers fall at the end — traditionally a sign of angelic presence – is this the reference?

Portuguese soprano Ana Quintans is a fresh-voiced, charming Belinda, wondrously nimble at “Haste, haste to town”. Perhaps the surprise is a male singer for the part of the Sorceress, a high baritone, Marc Mauillon, who also takes the role of the Sailor. The use of a male voice was suggested by a 1706 prompt book, and 'hir' (to use a conflation of “his” and “her”) scenes are augmented by dancers. S/he is a sort of camp octopus. Don’t buy the DVD on this information alone, but I admit that it sounds intriguing.

As Aeneas, Henk Neven is vocally superb although perhaps his stage presence does not quite suggest Aeneas’ magnetism. However, this is altogether a most fascinating DVD, superbly performed. The camera-work is good, if not excellent — sometimes sudden close-ups can seem rather random. Not by any means your run-of-the-mill Dido, but for those that already own the William Christie Glyndebourne on Opus Arte (or that same conductor’s version on Fra Musica with Hilary Summers), or Hogwood’s ROH DVD (Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment with a cast that includes Sarah Connolly), this DVD still acts as a necessary complement.

-- Colin Clarke, MusicWeb International

Includes motet(s) by Henri Du Mont. Ensemble: Pierre Robert Ensemble. Conductor: Frédéric Desenclos.

Award Winner - Choc de l'Année 2012! In a genre set by Boccherini and represented in the nineteenth century by the masterpieces of Schumann, Brahms and Franck, Gabriel Fauré composed two scores that were very different from his early romances and the evanescent 'lullaby of death' that is the Requiem. The Piano Quintet op. 89 remains little known, for reasons related to its composition as much as to its history. Regarded by Koechlin as one of Fauré's finest work, it serves as a transition to the composer's final stylistic period. Opus 115, surprisingly less melancholy than its predecessor, is one of the composer's last productions. In the evening of his life Faure demonstrated his supreme mastery and prodigious creative power, giving French chamber music, which he served so well, one of its finest monuments.

This recording of the Poème Harmonique revitalizes Charpentier's and Lully's Te Deum, two magnificent pieces of sacred music celebrating the Sun King's victory and recovery. Lully, who was of Italian origin, found the essence and style of French art, while Charpentier gave the emotion and composition methods he had learned from the Italians to the music of his country. This is the story of two musicians, two countries, two aesthetics, and two fundamental stakes. Lully became a lauded composer, outshining Charpentier and relegating him to an undeserved subpar position.

Alexis Kossenko returns to centre stage with a project focusing on works by the spectacularly prolific Georg Philipp Telemann. From them, Alexis Kossenko has chosen two concertos with orchestra: one for flute, the other for flute and violin, preceded by an overture. This program, perfectly composed to demonstrate the Baroque conductor’s maturing, rising talent, is also a showcase for his impressive qualities as flautist. It is also the occasion to again find Zefira Valova as Konzertmeister and soloist in one of the concertos.

"• World première recording! • With a first-rate cast, this new production from Alpha brings to light a major work of the French operatic heritage. • Pyrrhus by Pancrace Royer (also noted for his very fine – and virtuosic – harpsichord music) was first performed early in the reign of Louis XV. • Features the twenty-one tragédies lyriques on the subject of the Trojan War that were performed at the Académie Royale de Musique (the Paris Opéra) between 1687 and 1730. • 2 CD Set"

Vincent Dumestre and his Poème Harmonique invite us to the sources of the songs, laments and romances of the France of the past. Reproducing the pronunciation of the time and combining various early, and sometimes rustic, instruments with the voices, the programme will appeal to everyone, young and old alike.Here we hear songs passed down from generation to generation, some well-known, some forgotten, but always sensitive to the heart of a broad public today... Alpha proposes discovering all the recordings of these treasures, brought together here at a low price.

Paavo Järvi and the Tonhalle-Orchester have put the finishing touches to their complete recording of Tchaikovsky’s symphonies. Assembled here are the six famous works, coupled with the Capriccio Italien, Romeo and Juliet, the Waltz and Polonaise from Eugene Onegin, the Festival Coronation March and Francesca da Rimini. Following international press acclaim for the first two volumes (Diapason d’Or, Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik etc.), we have decided to release the complete set at once to mark the reopening of the orchestra’s concert hall, the prestigious Tonhalle. Situated on the shores of Lake Zurich and inaugurated by Brahms in 1895, this hall, renowned worldwide for its acoustics, is now reborn after several years of renovation. In this exceptional setting, there is no doubt that Paavo Järvi and the Tonhalle-Orchester will write a new chapter in international musical life!

REVIEW:

Järvi is to be congratulated for producing a Fourth that stands out for its individuality, and this recording certainly warrants repeated listening. His account of the Second is packed with character, the Fifth a dry-eyed, disciplined account, with both works featuring superb solo horn-playing. Francesca da Rimini is not the fieriest Francesca out there, though the loudly rolling last chord deafens as it should. Järvi’s Pathétique features an explosive Allegro vivo in the first movement and a finale infused with maximum ardor. Only its Allegro con grazia disappoints. The First is pure magic, with cleanly differentiated violin desks darting to and fro from opposite ends of the sound stage. His reading of the Third Symphony  lacks magic, especially in the two scherzos. Of the other works programmed, Romeo and Juliet is exceptionally dramatic, Capriccio italien is very well played, the Waltz from Eugene Onegin is seductively delicate and the closing selections – Onegin’s Polonaise and the rumbustious Festival Coronation March – serve as rowdy encores.

All in all this is an extremely fine set, beautifully engineered and much to be recommended.

-- Gramophone

Includes work(s) by various composers. Ensemble: Habanera Saxophone Quartet.

Classical Music

Quadriga Consort made a name for itself by playing new arrangements of traditional music from the British Isles on Renaissance and Baroque instruments, placing these ancient tunes in a new historic context - far from Celtic clichés and "pub sentimentality". Their idea is to create a musical world in which there is no need or desire for musical categories such as light or serious, folk, popular or erudite. For our programme Ships Ahoy !, we have sought out old British seamen's music. Living on islands surrounded by the sea, the English, Scottish and Irish have always been fishermen, sailors, adventurers, explorers and merchants, trading with faraway places. Countless wars were also fought at sea. Not only does Ships Ahoy ! offer old sailor's songs and shanties - intended to alleviate long and difficult journeys -, it also offers an insight into the fascinating and often somber myths and legends surrounding the vast oceans and their unfathomable depths.

Marco Beasley offers an original way to discover the Italian religious repertoire for two tenors of the nascent Baroque. Thanks to the technique of re-recording, Beasley was able to record both parts alone. The recording includes numerous unjustly forgotten composers such as Donati, Caprioli, Giamberti, Sances et al., whose writing qualities are comparable to those of the great Monteverdi. The program is judiciously rounded off by three magnificent sonate da chiesa by Castello, Marini and Fontana.