George de Decker wrote the aria WIT IN WIT (White in White) on commission for the piano recital of November 14, 2017 in the Witte Zaal in deSingel (Antwerp, Belgium). After the performance by pianist Geert Callaert the relationship with the aria of Johann Sebastian Bach's Goldberg Variations became clear. Bach's Goldberg Variations are canon, every pianist relates to this piece at one time or another. de Decker has listened to a myriad of versions and arrangements, his ear a knife, in every variation cutting in, looking for the core. What is the essence? The key and character of the original composition were preserved, and the redundant skinned until, in every variation, only the sound skeleton remained. The result is a new composition for piano solo and audiotape, but essentially WIT IN WIT is a landscape, a fragile relief of tone, sound and silence. A note that resounds so long that it stretches into a panorama.

Follow Z V E Z D O L I K I ensemble into the abdomen of Buenos Aires, and meet ill-omened Maria, born with a curse in her voice on a day when God was drunk. Seduced by tango, she is murdered, but her soul continues to roam the streets of Buenos Aires. Anti-clerical, blasphemous, potentially provocative and certainly scandalous, Maria de Buenos Aires is a forgotten "tangoperita" by Astor Piazzolla and Horacio Ferrer which translates the themes of seduction and fatality in traditional and Nuevo tango, culminating in a hymn to (supernatural) deviance, lust, and also religiosity. This is a live recording, performed in the studio and made in front of a live audience. Z V E Z D O L I K I, a chamber music ensemble initially based in the Norwegian church in Antwerp, was founded by flautist Oriana Dierinck in 2009. In it's programs, the ensemble combines well and lesser known, old and new composers and compositions. Combined with the concerts in the Norwegian church, Z V E Z D O L I K I also plays in cultural centres, on chamber music podia and classical music festivals.

In 16th century Italy was by far the largest exporter of music. But some Italians preferred to stay at home: big names like Alessandro Scarlatti and Albinoni, but also delightful incogniti such as Leonardo Leo, Nicolo Fiorenza, Giovanni Antonio Canuti or Francesco Mancini. They developed a hyper-personal style which was impervious to international fashion, and (especially in the South) characterized by extravagance and a distinct couleur locale. Their works are virtually unknown, but as local archives are shedding their treasures through digitization projects, more and more gems are finding their ways to recordings such as the present one. There is no better advocate for this sun-drenched repertoire than the Antwerp ensemble RedHerring.

This recording traces the heritage of Romanticism in postmodern times. It's vintage opener is the first Cello Sonata by Brahms, a pinnacle of unspeakable but mind-controlled beauty. Martinu's second Cello Sonata, written in American exile in 1941, revisits Brahms's old world, but with wider tonality, more expressive shifts, and the extra rhythmic pulse of Czech folk music. In Schnittke's Cello Sonata of 1978, which builds on Shostakovich's emaciated style, the ghosts of the desolate closing Largo usher in the death throes of Romanticism. This is a captivating album that draws it's fascination not from the uniformity of the pieces included, but from their distinct differences. Born in Poland, Kacper Nowak began playing the cello at the age of eight. A year later, he was the laureate of the Liezen Cello Competition in Austria and entered the Fryderyk Chopin School in Poznan, in the class of Danuta Taczanowska. Having won several national and international competitions, he became a member of the National Foundation for Gifted Children. Since September 2014 Kacper has been studying at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Belgium, under the direction of Gary Hoffman where he received a scholarship by Haas-Teichen.

This new project presents three composers, about a century apart, sharing their own way of searching for colors and how to express them. These four compositions for cello and piano explore just as many ways of performing: an original work on gut strings and with the piano of the composer, a short piece for piano in a transcription for cello and piano, a wide-ranging composition for cello and piano with preparations, and finally, a work for cello, piano, and electronics. This is a century in color, so it seems, as these works are an example of how music has evolved in the past 100 years utilizing the same two instruments. Benjamin Glorieux is a cellist, conductor and composer. As a pedagogue, he works regularly with MATRIX Leuven and was invited by Koninklijk Conservatorium Antwerpen as a cello-teacher for specialization in contemporary repertoire.

When we play music, we listen to the passages that inspire us, and we listen for emotion. These passages sometimes stay with us in the form of indelible memories, if we hear them at the right time and in the right place. Through experiences like these, music speaks to us and becomes part of our lives. For Waldo Geuns, one such unforgettable musical work is Goyescas by the Spanish composer Enrique Granados. He gives voice to love in all it's joyful and challenging moments in this, his greatest piano suite. Granados uses the titles and the scenographic notes in the score to illustrate how two lovers make overtures to each other as they dance, how their relationship blossoms even as it weathers darker days, until fate ultimately takes it's toll and one of the lovers passes away, leaving the other behind with beautiful memories. Granados, like Rachmaninov, was one of the last great pianist-composers. His mastery of the piano can be heard in his exceptional virtuosity and lyricism.

Classical Music

This album marks the second release on Antartica Records. Mese en Concert captures the live thrill of utterly refined music making in the salons of the French connoisseurs. Soetkin Elbers is proving herself as one of the most prominent rising sopranos. Elbers is a "jack of all trades" as her vast repertoire includes operas, oratorios, church cantatas, contemporary music, lieder and solo baroque chamber cantatas.

Four Aces Guitar Quartet combines classical masterpieces and arrangements of traditional folk and pop music. If previous album Odyssee was the story of a five-year journey as an ensemble, then For Aces not only continues that journey, but it chooses a new adventurous path with compositions especially written for this cd. The composers with whom the quartet collaborated are Clarice Assad, Adam Clarke, Nuccio D’Angelo, Nejc Kuhar, Patrick Roux, Harry Sacksioni, Alain Selhorst, and Johannes Moller. The Four Aces Guitar Quartet was formed in 2008 when four Belgian classical guitar players met at the international Guitar-Symposium in Iserlohn. Their first concert was part of a graduation project where they overwhelmed the audience as well as the jury with a boldly chosen program, great virtuosity and a richness of color and musicality. Over the years the quartet has played concerts in Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Germany and China, and in 2011 they were the first guitar ensemble ever to play the semifinals of the International Chamber Music Competition in Illzach, France.

The project centers around Eddy Vanoosthuyse's clarinet artistry, showcasing a personalized and immersive musical experience. There is a unique and reciprocal connection between Eddy Vanoosthuyse as a clarinetist and the contemporary Belgian clarinet repertoire, forming the heart of the 'Belgian Clarinet Heritage'. The artist's lifelong fascination with Belgian and Flemish music speaks to a deep-rooted passion and commitment to the local musical heritage.

If Eastern art music has a folk heart, its arteries are Roma and Klezmer sounds. From the orientalist imagination of Glazunov, the Jewish adoption of Prokofiev, the Uzbek inspiration of Khachaturian, to the Romani-Hungarian roots of Kokai and the Balkanism of Jan van der Roost: all composers on this disc build on the same toolbox of themes and techniques, and they all rely on the clarinet as the ultimate interpreter of this lore. Acknowledged and exquisitely performed by the Roeland Hendrikx Ensemble.

Imaginary journeys are a recurring theme in the works of composer George De Decker. For this full-length concert, De Decker drew inspiration from René Daumal's unfinished novel 'Le Mont Analogue' (1908-1944). Daumal once wrote,"Climbing the summit serves only one purpose: the adventure of the unknown," a sentiment that could well serve as a motto for all art. Harp, accordion, euphonium and double bass are combined with live electronics: an unusual, colourful, exciting cross-pollination. Five young, eminent musicians engage in dialogue with a sophisticated sound band at each concert. Their musical score, however, remains open to improvisation, allowing them to explore a wide range of tones, including vocal and instrumental sounds, natural acoustics, and computer-assisted sound manipulations.

On Plan BE, the Four Aces Guitar Quartet takes you on a journey through Belgian music history and presents its own arrangements of music by some iconic composers who have put Belgium on the international map. From Josquin Desprez’s subtle polyphony to the gypsy swing of Django Reinhardt, brought to you on four classical guitars by the internationally acclaimed ensemble Four Aces Guitar Quartet.

With the present album Continuado, we are building on the Piazzolla tradition in many ways. We play some of his staple works – think Oblivion – as well as hidden gems like Vayamos al Diablo and Concierto para Quinteto. Our very own Inti de Maet provided an arrangement of Piazzolla’s Libertango. We have also included work from local composers, who have added their own, personal, contributions to the tango nuevo genre.

In 1938, at the Reichsmusiktage in Düsseldorf, the Nazi regime opened an exhibition around music with the theme: 'Entartete Musik'. They collected examples of what they considered degenerate music. Gustav Mahler, Kurt Weill, Hanns Eisler, Mischa Spoliansky; these were just a few names on the long list of depraved composers. On this album, this music and more.