After a heyday in the 18th century, the double concerto was hardly cultivated in the 19th century: In the virtuoso cult of this epoch, there could only ever be one, which changed again, a little bit, in the 20th century. The violinists Natasha Korsakova and Manrico Padovani each present two exemplary double concertos from the Baroque and Classical Modern periods on ARS PRODUKTION. "A forceful lyricist"... "An enchanting talent..." These are some of the attributes used by music critics to describe Manrico Padovani's impeccable technique and highly expressive, virtuosic display. Following his debut recitals at the Lucerne Festival and at the Stadtcasino Basel, Padovani has gone on to perform all over the globe. Natasha Korsakova, a violin virtuoso of Greek-Russian descent, is one of the most sought-after soloists of her generation. Germany's Suddeutsche Zeitung described her playing as a "stunningly beautiful listening experience." Korsakova is in high demand with national and international orchestras and music festivals. The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung praised her for her "polished technique, her stylistic confidence, musical sensitivity" and notable charisma. Her repertoire includes some 60 violin concertos in addition to chamber music.

Florian Glemser demonstrates a particular and profound understanding of the Schumann works performed on this album. The exhilaration, the depression, the obsession, the madness, the tenderness, the belligerence, the resignation, but above all the love and the beauty are all there, delicately and thoughtfully interwoven into the fabric of the performance. This is a powerful interpretation full of color and hidden depths which carries the lsitener on a journey of fascinating exploration into the psyche of the tortured composer. This is a recording of rare insight.

Inspired by Mahler and Strauss, the Italian composer Alfredo Casella created his multi-layered second symphony in Paris in 1908/09 - the highlight of his early work. With this work, he regained international recognition for the Italian symphony. At the age of 45, he also devoted himself to the music theater and composed the opera La Donna Serpente after a fairy tale by Carlo Gozzi.

Cellist Friedrich Kleinhapl has performed as soloist and chamber musician in the major cultural centers of Europe, Asia, Canada and the Americas. + His repertoire includes not only the standards of classical music for cello, but lesser-known and contemporary works as well. + Freelance concert pianist Andreas Woyke has likewise concertized globally in various roles. + He is noted for his spontaneity and improvisational acumen. + Pasión Tango features their arrangements, with assistance from fellow musician friends and collaborators, of Piazzolla, Gardel and Bragato.

Composers throughout the history of music have been inspired by Passiontide- a time of calm and expectation. The new album by the Zurich Chamber Singers is dedicated to this beautiful repertoire, combining Passiontide and funeral music of the English and German Renaissance and Baroque with the newly commissioned piece 'De profundis' by the American composer Kevin Hartnett. Henry Purcell composed 'Funeral Sentences' in 1694 as three burial anthems from earlier drafts. These were performed as part of the royal funeral of Queen Mary II in the same year. All three are settings of texts from the funeral rites of the Book of Common Prayer. Not enough information survives about Bach's 'Jesu, meine Freude' to know whether it was indeed a particular funeral for which this motet was written; yet it has many features of German funeral music of that time. It's eleven sections are organized by choral settings of the hymn "Jesu, meine Freude" over a sacred poem by Johann Cruger. Kevin Hartnett's piece 'De profundis' was written as a commission from the Zurich Chamber Singers and was first performed in 2016 in the chapel adjoining the Grossmunster church in Zurich. The text is taken from the seven penitential psalms, which are featured prominently in the liturgy of Holy Week.

Pianist Fabian Muller presents this new release, Out Of Doors. Muller was inspired to create this programme following a period of study of Bartok’s piano cycle, “Out of Doors.” For this, Muller’s first album, he has chosen works which are connected to nature in some way, or are inspired by scenes taking place outdoors.

Mark Swed of the LA Times described The Lyris Quartet as “radiant, exquisite and powerfully engaged. The ensemble was founded in 2008 by members who have all won numerous awards at various festivals across the globe, such as the International Tchaikovsky Competition at the Aspen Music Festival. The Leos Janacek masterful Second String Quartet, subtitled ‘Intimate Letters,’ has held a special place in the ensemble’s heart for years. This is the first work that the group ever performed in public. The String Quartet No. 2 was composed in 1928 at request from the Bohemian Quartet. The work was inspired by his long friendship with Kamila Stosslova. The piece is said to reflect the hundreds of letters that they sent back and forth to one another.

Ignaz Joseph Pleyel (1757-1831) was not only an outstanding composer, but also a masterful piano builder. Pleyel composed a great deal of music before shifting his focus to his piano building business, including 41 symphonies, 70 string quartets, and several operas. This release is the third volume in the Ignaz Joseph Pleyel’s Hidden Gems series, and includes three of Pleyel’s sonatas. Performing these works is the IPG Pleyel Klaviertrio, named after the composer.

Shortly after Thomas Leleu moved to Berlin in 2017, he discovered Kurt Weill's music. In Leleu's eyes, Weill symbolizes both exile (to France and the USA) and the mixture of genres, cultures, the influence of jazz, cabaret and classical music. Kurt Weill is the cornerstone of this program, which revolves primarily around vocal works. This album shows Leleu's preference for different genres and how he feels comfortable in each of them. The international press described Leleu as "the world star of the tuba" (Europe 1), "the tuba prodigy" (La Crois), and "the tuba has found it's Paganini" (France Musique). The "absolute genius of the tuba" (La Nouvelle Republue) has forged an impressive career as a crossover artist, performing both classical as well as world and pop music. He deploys his astonishing musicality and versatility to dust off the traditional image of the tuba, while his wide-ranging interests and relaxed approach to concert life make him an ideal ambassador of his instrument.

Donka Angatschewa presents this album of Beethoven’s solo piano works. This recording features Beethoven’s Appassionata, Op. 57, 11 Bagatellen, Op. 119, Sonata, Op. 90, and Rondo a capriccio, Op. 129. Donka Angatcheva debuted with the Plovdiv Philharmonic Orchestra when she was only ten years old. She has won numerous awards at international piano competitions, and frequently performs internationally.

Johann Sebastian Bach played the violin “cleanly and with a penetrating tone…” At the time his son CPE Bach wrote this phrase to a musicologist and Bach’s early biographer Johann Nikolaus Forkel in 1774, the Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin were known to a relatively small but steadily growing circle of enthusiasts. Although the demand problem was eventually solved by the appearance of the first printed editions around the turn of the century, it took another five decades before Bach’s sonatas and partitas came to the attention of a broader public. Arrangements of the violin solos for other instruments offer new expressive opportunities. For this album, Florian Klaus Rumpf has transcribed and recorded the first three of the six violin solos for the mandolin. Florian Klaus Rumpf decided to begin studying mandolin at the age of seven. In 2006 Florian entered the University of Music and Dance in Wuppertal, where he studied the modern mandolin and a wide range of historical instruments, including the six-course Baroque mandolin and the 8-course mandolone. He is in high demand as a soloist, tutor, and conductor of mandolin orchestras.

"• An album of three chamber works composed or arranged for violin, viola and two cellos – a rare and intriguing string collective. • A pupil of Rimsky-Korasakov and later teacher of both Rachmaninov and Scriabin, Anton Arensky's chamber works are considered amongst his finest compositions. • Ernest Sauter (1928-2013) gained his greatest degree of recognition as a composer for the ballet. The work heard herein, titled ""À la mémoire d'Arenski"", is a fitting companion to the Arensky work."

This release exhuberates the excitement and magic of the circus, fascinating listeners and the musicians alike. Luisa Imorde has known for some time that her first release was going to be pieces by Schumann however she also wanted to add some modernity and immediately thought of Jörg Widmann. Widmann, being a long-time fan of Schumann himself considers his music to be unimaginable without those Schumann influences.

Classical Music

When Modest Mussorgsky visited an exhibition of the painter Ludwig Hartwig, he was so impressed with the artist's artistic language, that he put the works into music. A great fortune for the painter's opus, for some paintings are now lost, but their musical counterpart can be vividly remembered. In the case of Ars Produktion, Ravel's version for orchestra now appears as a live version of a children's concert.