Harking back to a golden era in recording, when the ensembles of the Eastman School of Music under the baton of the legendary Frederick Fennell made dozens of pioneering recordings for Mercury Living Presence, the Eastman Wind Ensemble celebrates its 60th anniversary with its first recording for AVIE Records featuring two seminal works by Stravinsky. The composer's music figured early on in the EWE's history - his Symphonies for Wind Instruments was performed in 1951 on a program conducted by Frederick Fennell that led to the establishment of the Eastman Wind Ensemble. And in 1966, at the age of 83, Stravinsky made his one and only visit to the Eastman School of Music, overseeing performances of several of his works. Under Mark Scatterday, who continues in the prestigious lineage as only the fourth conductor in the EWE's history, the superior student ensemble performs Stravinsky's Octet, while Eastman Virtuosi, made up of the Eastman School's renowned faculty members, turn in a devilishly fine rendition of A Soldier's Tale. Jan Opalach delivers an exceptionally nuanced narration as well as portraying the folk tale's two protagonists, Joseph the solider and the Devil. critical acclaim for Eastman Wind Ensemble and Eastman Virtuosi "sonorous recordings ... extraordinary depth" - Gramophone "insightful, interpretive, passionate readings" - The New York Times "America's premiere wind band" - Fanfare

Winter Words is the solo debut release by American tenor Nicholas Phan. The recording was made in the wake of a recital tour in 2010-11 which culminated in his Carnegie debut at Weill Hall. A graduate of the Manhattan School of Music and an alumnus of the Houston Grand Opera studio Nick has performed with the opera companies of Los Angeles and Seattle, symphony orchestras of Atlanta, St. Louis and San Francisco, and the Marlboro, Ravinia and Edinburgh Festivals, among others. He sang in Stravinsky's Pulcinella with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra under Pierre Boulez which was nominated for a Grammy Award. Nick presents a deeply personal perspective of Britten's music, encompassing his own performing experiences to audience reaction. He says: "I've been a fan of Britten since playing his Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra with my youth orchestra in Detroit as a teenage violinist. But my great devotion to his music increased to an obsession when an excellent pianist and good friend asked if I'd perform with her at a small university in Missouri. She suggested Winter Words, saying, "I think these would sound really great in your voice, and I've wanted to play them for ages, so indulge me." I researched and played through Britten's settings of Hardy's poems and before long, I was hooked." Approaching the performance in a small Midwestern town with some trepidation ("how would they react?"), Nick describes the audience's overwhelmingly positive response: "my favourite piece on the program ... the most lasting impression." Such is the enduring quality of Britten's sophisticated yet direct song writing, of which Nick is a leading torch-bearer. critical acclaim for Nicholas Phan "took hold of the music with unerring musicality, precise diction, and conversational command." - The Rest is Noise, Alex Ross "an excellent young singer ... more importantly he penetrates deeply into the inner drama" - Boston Globe "Vocally and dramatically at the level of the finest international artists." - Chicago Sun Times

Simon Trpceski's recording of Rachmaninov's Piano Concertos Nos. 2 and 3 was one of the most acclaimed and best-selling classical releases of 2010. His frequent collaborations with Vasily Petrenko and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra are justly celebrated. Together they complete the not final cover art Rachmaninov canon with this highly-anticipated follow up of Concertos Nos. 1 and 4, and the Paganini Rhapsody. Rachmaninov Concertos 2 and 3 made the Top 10 of Billboard's Classical Chart and won a Diapason d'or de l'année. Trpceski will support the sequel with extensive touring and CD signings at which he regularly attracts hundreds of fans. What the critics are saying: "If you want to fall in love afresh with Rachmaninov's most popular piano concertos, go and get this disc right now" - Classic FM Magazine Editor's Choice "The great thing about these performances ... is not merely that he can deliver these formidable virtuoso showpieces with vigor and technical polish ... It's that he makes you hear beyond the glitter to the dimly flickering musical inspiration beneath ... Trpceski turns these potentially garish creations into something serious and emotionally urgent." - San Francisco Chronicle "an impressive achievement ... committed performances and excellent sound." - BBC Music Magazine "the chemistry between conductor, orchestra and soloist is magical." - Minnesota Public Radio "Avie can certainly congratulate itself on having backed a winner ... Trpceski was born to perform this music, and Petrenko to conduct it." - The Daily Telegraph (UK), Classical CD of the Week Daily Telegraph Classical CD of the Week: 'utterly compelling.' ClassicalSource.com: 'particularly fine ... scintillating ... a notable release' Yorkshire Post: 'dazzingly brilliant ... stunning'

Tanya Tomkins, one of the foremost cellists of her generation, makes an indelible impression scaling the pinnacle of the cello repertoire, J S Bach's Six Suites for Unaccompanied Cello. Familiar to record collectors through her appearance on Avie's release of Kummer's Cello Duets, and as a member of the Benvenue Fortepiano Trio's Mendelssohn and Schumann recordings, Tanya is equally at home in an intimate house concert setting or anchoring the cello section of the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra with whom she has become a familiar face to home audiences in San Francisco. A student of Anner Bylsma at the Royal Conservatory of Music in the Netherlands, Tanya was the first cellist to win the Boston-based Erwin Brodsky Competition for early music soloists, in 2001. In addition to Philharmonia Baroque, she has been a featured soloist with the Portland Baroque Orchestra, American Bach Soloists, and the Oregon Bach Festival. As a recitalist, Tanya has performed at Lincoln Center and the 92nd Street Y in New York City, and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. critical acclaim "Tomkins explored Bach's Cello suite No. 1 with a probing, ruminating, often rhapsodic approach" - Los Angeles Times "superlative performance ... A performer who combines an intense dramatic fire with Apollonian poise ... There is an international career of great renown awaiting this young woman" - Cleveland Plain Dealer "Tomkins offered as compelling solo work on period instruments as you are likely to hear. The result was spontaneous and heartfelt music making.' - San Francisco Classical Voice

Cleveland-based baroque orchestra Apollo’s Fire has made an indelible impression since launching on Avie last year, making their Billboard Classical Chart debut in the Top 10. Vivaldi & Friends presents concertos by the Red Priest with a twist: two authentic concertos—one for four violins, the other for two cellos—interspersed with J. S. Bach’s transcription of Vivaldi’s A minor concerto for four harpsichords and Jeannette Sorrell’s own transcription of “Summer” from the ever-popular Four Seasons. In this unique version, she performs the original violin parts on the harpsichord. The album ends with an enigmatic Tango Concerto by contemporary composer René Duchiffre, written in the idiom of Bach and Vivaldi for the unusual combination of two violas da gamba. Vivaldi & Friends is released to coincide with the group’s extensive tour with star countertenor Philippe Jaroussky.

Honored among the 30 "Unmissable Albums of the Past 30 Years" by BBC Music!

The Cleveland-based baroque orchestra Apollo's Fire, together with founder / conductor Jeannette Sorrell, launched on Avie in July 2010 with a double release featuring discs of Mozart and J.S. Bach. They follow with their tribute to the 400th anniversary year of Monteverdi's seminal Vespers of the Blessed Virgin, released in anticipation of the group's first European tour which takes them to Spain and Holland, and culminates with their Wigmore Hall debut on 30 November. Vespers has been a signature piece for Apollo's Fire for over ten years, and it's fitting for Sorrell and her vibrant band to bring this magnificent masterwork to wider audiences through this recording. critical acclaim for Apollo's Fire "Resplendent . . . with vibrant attention to dramatic detail. Unlike many accounts of the "Vespers," Sorrell's interpretation conveyed the intense drama that pervades this many-splendored puzzle. She must be one of the best conductors around in this repertoire. In her hands, the glory of Monteverdi's accomplishment couldn't have been more radiant or moving. An Apollo's Fire triumph . . . a thriller from first note to last." - The Cleveland Plain Dealer "A stunning achievement" - Fanfare "Sorrell and her fine young choir lavish attention on every phrase and inflexion. The exhilaration and sense of discovery is utterly infectious" - International Record Review

REVIEW

This recording is stunningly different from the norm. [Jeannette Sorrell] constructs a simulacrum of [17th-century Italians'] religious fervour in the explosive presentation of Dixit Dominus, and their sincere reverence in Ave Maris Stella. The real understanding of style is everywhere. No cautious "note counting" in the complex Duo Seraphim, instead the fluttering lines become the beating wings of angels, and in the startling echo duet of the Gloria Patri (from the Magnificat) we feel the ricochet from the very stones of Monteverdi's church.

--BBC Music Magazine (Anthony Pryer)

Think you know Italian baroque chamber music? Think again. The range, diversity - and even wackiness - is remarkable, as illustrated by Flights of Fantasy, an album of acute inventiveness by Avie stalwart Monica Huggett and the chamber soloists of her Irish Baroque Orchestra. Take Carlo Farina's Capriccio Stravagante, which translates as "outlandish whim", and imitates barking dogs, meowing cats and gunfire. More serious, but no less virtuosic, experimental forms occur in works by Marini, Castello, Legrenzi, and Cavalli - the Venetian best known for his operas - all heard on this album. Created in 1996, the period-instrument Irish Baroque Orchestra occupies a fundamental place in Ireland's musical landscape. Ten years in, the mantle of artistic director was assumed by Monica Huggett, who has created a decades-long career of critically acclaimed and award-winning recordings, including the Billboard chart-topping, Grammy-nominated Bach Orchestral Suites on Avie (AV 2171). critical acclaim for the Irish Baroque Orchestra and Monica Huggett "Nothing lacks from Sonnerie's playing, which is generously, beautifully judged for pace and attractively recorded ... classy" - Gramophone "fresh, lively, and full of spirit" - Classic FM CD of the Week, on Monica Huggett directing Bach Orchestral Suites (AV 2171) Irish Baroque Orchestra: Critics' Choice for the IBO's Masterworks Series, January 2010 - The Irish Times

The 2-CD Bach set takes the ever-popular Brandenburg Concertos, and uniquely couples them with two Harpsichord Concertos, one of which is also presented in a reconstruction for violin. Taking its name from the classical god of music and the sun, Apollo's Fire is dedicated to the performance of 17th- and 18th-century music on period instruments. Founder and Music Director Jeannette Sorrell and her ensemble of dynamic and creative early-music artists from North America and Europe have been praised internationally for stylistic freshness and buoyancy, animated spontaneity, technical excellence, and creative programming. An award-winning harpsichordist and conductor, Sorrell studied with Gustav Leonhardt in Amsterdam and Leonard Bernstein at Tanglewood. Praised for its "temperament and personality" by The New York Times, the ensemble has toured throughout North America and, in November 2010 embarks on its first tour of Europe. critical acclaim "Led by a brilliant harpsichordist, Jeannette Sorrell, the ensemble exudes stylish energy . . . a blend of scholarship and visceral intensity." - Gramophone "Apollo's Fire has developed into one of America's leading Baroque orchestras, and one capable of competing with some of Europe's much-recorded bands." - The Boston Globe "The exhilaration and sense of discovery is utterly infectious." - International Record Review "These are performances of enormous drama, delicacy and zest played with keen attention to expressive and textural nuances." - The Cleveland Plain Dealer