The Brook Street Band burst onto the scene in 2003 with their Avie debut, the world premiere recording of Handel’s “Oxford” Water Music, which earned the period-instrument ensemble an Editor’s Choice from Gramophone. Now, the all-girl group presents their first recording of the music of J.S. Bach, adapting his Organ Sonatas to their own instrumentation of two violins, harpsichord, and cello.

“The smartest new baroque band around … if you need instant sunshine, play this disc.” — The Times

Classical Music

Cellist Phoebe Carrai performed with period-instrument ensemble Musica Antiqua Köln from 1983 to 1993, arguably the group's eclectic heyday. Carrai's spirit of adventure apparently hasn't waned in the meantime, given her curious and often unique interpretations of these familiar Bach suites. Her rendering of the opening Prelude of the First suite is inordinately broad and spacious, her subtle easing into the first note of each phrase giving the entire movement an inevitable flow and continuity. The fourth-movement Sarabande receives a similar slow, probing treatment akin to that of Jaap ter Linden (Harmonia Mundi). In contrast, Carrai's rendering of the Second suite's Courante is swift and expertly articulated, rivaling the speed and accuracy of Wispelwey (Channel) and Dieltiens (Accent) as well as modern-instrument virtuosos Navarra (Calliope) and Starker (Mercury).


At times Carrai's unconventional stylistic differences have a tendency to border on mannerism. For example, in the final Gigue of the Second suite, where Carrai's weighty, disproportionate emphasis on certain individual lines imbues the movement with an unusual lugubrious elegance, her forebearance also undermines the dance. Further, Carrai's occasional stresses on the introductory notes of the Fourth-suite Prelude simply sound bizarre. Likewise Carrai's uncharacteristically dreamy, evenly tempered renderings of the Sixth suite's two Gavottes (fast duple-meter folk dances) are among the slowest ever. Compared to my period-instrument reference performance by Anner Bylsma (Sony SEON), who sensibly completes this same movement in less than three minutes, Carrai's 4:37 is a bit of a stretch.


Avie's richly resonant sound complements Carrai's full-bodied performances. John Lutterman's informed notes are a joy to read. While not recommendable as a first choice among the many recordings of Bach's Suites, Carrai's highly personal and yes, distinguished performances nonetheless offer a genuine point of view--which is more than can be said for many less imaginative accounts that currently clutter the catalog.
--John Greene, ClassicsToday.com

Classical Music

This selection was recorded at Raveningham Church, Raveningham, Norfolk, England and St. Mary-at-Hill Church. London, England.

No question, recordings of lute music are primarily snapped up by specialists and serious fans of the instrument--it's probably a rare thing for an undecided record store shopper to just impulsively pick up and purchase such a disc as this perfectly fine program of music from "Jane Pickeringe's Lute Book". However, owing to the extraordinary talents of lutenist Jacob Heringman and the eight- and ten-course lutes featured on this recording, it's not inconceivable that a sympathetic listener would be drawn to this gentle, genteel, and agreeably tuneful music and to the ear-friendly sound. Although most of the represented works are by anonymous early-17th century composers, such luminaries as Byrd and Dowland appear in this mysterious collector's manuscript.


These 30 works (nearly 75 minutes' worth!) are characterized by nothing if not variety of mood and rhythmic structure, contained in all manner of familiar forms of the period--allemande, galliard, horn-pipe, pavane, fantasia. Heringman, whose credits include more than 50 recordings, many in collaboration with major artists, is a perfect guide to this repertoire. His playing is a marvel of clarity and evenness of articulation across registers, but he also is careful to bring the melody appropriate prominence against subordinate accompanying figures when required. His always tasteful ornaments and ability to obtain colors from a single instrument that make us wonder if we're actually hearing two add up to a rare and entertaining listening experience--nothing earth-shaking or ground-breaking, just solid music-making. The sound is quite resonant yet captures all the close-up detail we could ask for with no distracting squeaking or scraping. [6/29/2002]
--David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com

Following five critically acclaimed and immensely popular recordings for AVIE, the Brook Street Band embarks on their most ambitious project to date: a recording with the estimable student Choir of the Queen’s College, Oxford, that pairs — for the first time ever — the two settings of the Dixit Dominus written by Alessandro Scarlatti and George Frideric Handel. On this recording the massed forces are joined by five of Britain’s brightest young singers: soprano Elin Manahan Thomas, mezzo-sopranos Esther Brazil and Sally Bruce-Payne, tenor Guy Cutting, and bass-baritone Matthew Brook.

Principal Harpist of the Philadelphia Orchestra Elizabeth Hainen's first release for AVIE spanned three centuries of Harp Concertos (AV 2221). Her new Kickstarter-funded release, Les Amis, features a rare pairing of works by Claude Debussy and André Caplet, exploring the composers' friendship through their respective works Danse sacrée and Danse profane, and the evocative Masque of the Red Death, with Michael Stern and the IRIS Orchestra. Rounding out the recording, Elizabeth solos with a transcription of Debussy's Petite Suite, originally for solo piano, and Caplet's Divertissements, and is joined by her own amis, fellow Philadelphia Orchestra principal flautist Jeffrey Khaner and violist Roberto Diaz, President of the Curtis Institute, in Debussy's Trio Sonata for Flute, Viola and Harp. critical acclaim for Elizabeth Hainen's Harp Concertos (AV 2221) "The entire production has class and great aural resonance, a real delight to add to an otherwise neglected body of music." ¬- Audiophile Audition "Hainen plays with impressive virtuosity." - Fanfare "The tonal range of Hainen's playing, coupled with her technical finesse and sense of style, bring allure to the entire disc." - The Daily Telegraph

There may be a better vocal Christmas disc to come along this season, but it would have to be awfully impressive to best this beautifully sung, imaginatively programmed effort from the male-quartet New York Polyphony. As the liner notes point out, Christmas uniquely brings together a hugely diverse range of musical styles and traditions, and this program reflects that diversity while maintaining the integrity of a unified program, in both atmosphere (amazingly, recorded in a church in the middle of New York!) and in the prevailing medieval/Renaissance sensibility of even the modern pieces. Of course the four singers have much to do with creating and sustaining the mood and imbuing the works with particular interpretive flavor--these are ideally matched, sensitively balanced voices, warm yet vibrant in the tradition of groups such as the Hilliard Ensemble. And the singing is impeccable--the breathing, the phrasing, all of the ensemble work shows musicians at one with each other and with the music at hand.

The repertoire is unusual, but not just for the sake of offering something "different"; there is purpose here in revealing the threads of early chant, medieval harmony, and Renaissance polyphony strung through to the most recent works, including one commissioned for this recording. Even ancient texts appear in the more modern pieces, including Kenneth Leighton's Lully, lulla, thou little tiny child, the only selection on the program (other than the "Coventry Carol") that enjoys a relatively frequent presence on today's Christmas choral concerts and recordings. Here (and on a few other pieces) the men are joined by three women, one of whom is original Anonymous 4 member Ruth Cunningham, and unlike most other renditions, this one seems inspired a bit more by the work's jazz-like elements. As for the Coventry Carol, the four men somehow manage to juice the famous points of dissonance with even more delicious bite than usual.

Other highlights include the opening number, Andrew Smith's ravishing recent setting of Veni Redemptor gentium, which begins with the chant but, almost before you realize what's happening, transforms to a marvelous harmonic texture that ingeniously mixes ancient and new. Palestrina's Hodie Christus natus est, Byrd's O magnum mysterium, and Cornysh's starkly-harmonious, lively-rhythmic Ave Maria Mater Dei are all sung with utmost sensitivity, clarity, and virtuosity. Parsons' Ave Maria is a masterpiece and in its simple way, so is New York Polyphony's very lovely setting of Away in a manger--a performance you'll want to repeat many times. In fact, that applies to this entire expertly recorded disc, which offers many more pleasures too numerous to mention here, but that hopefully you'll soon discover for yourself.

--David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com

The Cypress String Quartet completes their cycle of the genre’s greatest oeuvre with a two-album set of Beethoven’s six ground-breaking quartets, Op. 18, alongside a reissue of their previously self-released recording of the late quartets. For the past several seasons, the Cypresses have immersed themselves in performing Beethoven on tours throughout the U.S. and Europe as well as recording all 16 works plus the “Grande Fugue” (Große Fuge). The completion of their Beethoven cycle is a fitting celebration of the Bay Area-based ensemble’s 20th anniversary, as well as their valedictory season.

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REVIEW:

The Cypress Quartet’s Beethoven readings have numerous virtues. The interpretations are well thought through, and the group’s beauty of tone and unanimity of ensemble are unfailing.

– MusicWeb International

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.” — Cleveland Plain Dealer

This all-Mozart recording leads with the composer’s darkest Symphony, No. 40 in G minor. American soprano Amanda Forsythe joins the group in a dramatic recitative and virtuoso aria from Lucio Silla, and the disc includes the Ballet Music from Idomeneo, a festive and rarely-heard suite from the last great work in the opera seria tradition. Rounding out the set are four lively and entertaining Contradances.

South African-born, London resident Daniel-Ben Pienaar is a completest. Recent surveys, both on the concert platform and in the recording studio, include Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier, Chopin's Complete Waltzes, Schubert's Complete Sonatas, and the complete keyboard works by Orlando Gibbons. He arrives on the Avie label with another major project in tow: the complete Piano Sonatas by Mozart.

An active recitalist, chamber musician and professor at the Royal Academy of Music, Pienaar has a number of critically acclaimed independent releases under his belt, but this recording represents and uncommon synergy between artist, repertoire and production values. In Gramophone Award-winning producer Jonathan Freeman-Atwood, Pienaar found a special simpatico which he found "profoundly enabling", resulting in a creative recording process specific in relation to the music in hand. Pienaar presents the works chronologically over five CDs, illustrating Mozart's compositional trajectory which represents all of the major stylistic and emotional shifts in his mature career, with the earliest dating from his twentieth year, through his Viennese period, and the final works which were written towards the end of his all too brief life.

Critical acclaim:
"... no doubt that this South African-born pianist is a thinking virtuoso ... In the company of such contrasting practitioners as Edwin Fischer, Samuel Feinberg, Sviatoslav Richter and Glenn Gould, he seems determined to leave his own mark" - BBC Music Magazine

"Daniel-Ben Pienaar's performances are quite simply stunning. The instrument he plays matters much less than his musicianship, which is evident at every turn." - Gramophone

"A kaleidoscope of colours and textures in performances that combined the dramatic with the ethereal, the monumental with the intimate" - International Piano summary South African-born, London resident Daniel-Ben Pienaar makes his Avie debut with this beautifully recorded and ambitious project: the complete Piano Sonatas of Mozart.

Philadelphia Orchestra Solo Harpist Elizabeth Hainen paints a varied and innovative portrait of private moments in this ode to the pleasures of home. The program features favorite pieces from those enjoyable hours spent playing her instrument alone or in partnership with her percussionist husband- a collection of cherished gems alongside new creations including a world premiere arrangement of Sting’s ‘St. Agnes and the Burning Train.’ Other works featured include pieces by Bach and Debussy. “Sheer sensuality… utterly gorgeous… time-stillingly luscious” (The Irish Times) “Purling tone, faultless technique, and judicious interpretive taste.” (Fanfare)

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REVIEW:

The mix of classical gems with contemporary arrangements reveals a growing repertoire that harpists and harp fans should celebrate. She clearly knows how much she is contributing to her instrument’s literature, which makes this collection a revelation.

– All Music Guide (Blair Sanderson)

Classical Music

The joy of hearing two master musicians getting Beethoven absolutely right

Admirers of the Beaux Arts Trio may be distraught at the news that Menahem Pressler is to disband the group he founded. Yet he here serves notice, one hopes, of a slew of fascinating projects to follow. There is much of the art that conceals art in these simply lovely, gentle yet probing performances. It's an album to live with, and one looks forward to Pressler's next venture.

-- Gramophone [7/2008]

Violinist Augustin Hadelich is one of the fastest-rising stars of his generation. With three critically acclaimed and Billboard-charting releases on AVIE to his credit, he now delivers what promises to be one of the most important concerto recordings of the year, pairing the Violin Concertos by Jean Sibelius and Thomas Adès, the latter only the second recording of the composer's work. He is superbly supported by Hannu Lintu conducting the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. Describing his decision to couple Sibelius with Adès, Augustin says, "Programmes I like most are ones where the pieces are connected, but in a subtle way. As we listen to an apparently contrasting programme, we notice similarities--we hear phrase shapes, harmonies, rhythms, and colours in one piece that remind us of something that we heard in the other. The deep, rumbling timpani and low winds in the Sibelius concerto bridge the gap to the Adès, a work which also explores the lowest depths of the sound spectrum, creating chasms over which the violinist performs a tight-rope act. The intensely emotional first and second movements of the Sibelius, and the even more extreme and heart-wrenching second movement of the Adès, create another such connection. Both composers love playing with complex rhythms: Sibelius sticks to polyrhythms, while Adès really pushes the envelope having the solo violin and orchestra play in different meters--or even at different tempi! The dances in the last movement of the Sibelius have a counterpart in the almost tribal-sounding last movement of the Adès. There are many other such comparisons, and, in my view, combining these concertos on one recording makes each one shine in a way that they wouldn't without the other." Augustin rounds out the recording with Three Humoresques by Sibelius. The release will be supported by a major publicity and marketing campaign, and a performance of the Adès with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. critical acclaim for Augustin Hadelich "Here is a young artist with no evident limitations." - The New Yorker

The Brook Street Band has produced attractive recordings of Handel’s chamber music for Avie, and this newcomer is no exception. There are nine Handel violin sonatas, theoretically, and all of them are included here. Of course, with Handel you never really know. Five sonatas exist in verifiable manuscripts, four were printed without any demonstrable input from the composer, and all of them may well use music by others, as was Handel’s wont. But none of it matters because, as Tovey perspicaciously observed, every note added by Handel annihilates the rest.

The first sonata (in G, HWV158) dates from Handel’s days in Italy, and it’s the only work in three movements. I was a bit worried here because in the central slow movement violinist Rachel Harris adopts a “period instrument tone” that has soft, sustained notes on the verge of disappearing entirely. Of course, a decent vibrato would have helped, but as the saying goes, if the basic timbre is unattractive that’s like trying to put lipstick on a pig. Happily, once past the Sonata in G, Harris shows that her sound in sustained music, while slender, is mellow, touching, and sensitively varied.

The remaining sonatas are all in “church” style, that is four movements, slow-fast-slow-fast(ish). Three are in minor keys, smartly dispersed within the broadly chronological ordering of the set, and they provide welcome contrast to the general predominance of charm and cheer. Of course, all of the music is charming, with an abundance of melody that suggests, as the booklet notes state, that Handel’s authorship even in the four doubtful works is more likely than not. If eighty minutes of less than familiar Handel, elegantly presented and naturally recorded sounds appealing, then by all means give this disc serious consideration.

– ClassicsToday (David Hurwitz)

about the release In a short space of time Augustin Hadelich has become one of the most respected and admired violinists of his generation. Two critically acclaimed and Billboard Classical Chart-topping releases for AVIE, a string of major debuts with the likes of the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco, St. Louis and National Symphony Orchestras, multiple awards including an Avery Fisher Career Grant and Lincoln Center's Martin E. Segal Award, have resulted in major media coverage in The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, and Philadelphia Inquirer, among many others, and an ever-widening and adoring fan base. On Histoire du Tango, Augustin conjures a dark and sultry night of fiery, hot-blooded dancing. Partnered by award-winning Spanish guitarist Pablo Sáinz Villegas, Augustin traces the history of Argentina's national dance in Piazzola's title track, stirs up folk, gypsy and flamenco dances which inspired De Falla's Six Popular Spanish Songs, and tosses off a fusillade of pyrotechnics in works by the pinnacles of 19th-century violin performance, Paganini and Sarasate. critical acclaim for Augustin Hadelich "If a layer of surface noise were added to Augustin Hadelich's recent solo-violin recording on the Avie label, you might think you were hearing a virtuoso out of the Golden Age." - The New Yorker "behind Hadelich's talent was a molten intensity, a determination to explore the music's passionate, earthy sides with gritty articulation and tender lyricism." - Cleveland Plain Dealer "impressive -- intonation dead-on, with a luscious tone and an Old World grace that you don't hear very much from young violinists anymore." - Los Angeles Times "he easily confirmed his place on the shortlist of today's top violin virtuosos" - The Denver Post, on Augustin's New York Philharmonic debut at the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival

John Wilson is probably best known for his light-entertainment orchestral work, especially his restorations of classic film scores – a background which, it turns out, equips him well for this anthology of British musical landscapes. Most celebrate an idealised pastoral view of rustic Avalon...George Butterworth's Two English Idylls", based on Sussex folk songs, and the title of Arnold Bax's "The Happy Forest" aptly conveying its excessively cheerful tone, which seems to derive from some pre-Wordsworthian Edenic paradise. But Vaughan Williams is the king of this domain: "The Lark Ascending" was recently voted Britain's favourite classical piece, and is airily rendered here by James Clark." - Andy Gill, The Independent

“Why these are the city waits, who play every winter’s night through the streets to rouse each lazy drone to family duty. These are the topping tooters of the town, and have gowns, silver chains, and salaries, for playing Lilliburlero to my Lord Mayor’s horse through the city.” This 1709 reference to a professional band of musicians conjures the thriving city of London in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The band’s sound is replicated on this release by the modern-day namesake The City Musick directed by foremost expert in the field William Lyons (who is also director of the Grammy-nominated Dufay Collective). The drones of dulcians and cornets, sackbuts and shawms, evoke the era’s civic events, theatrical productions and liturgical services, paying homage to the unsung talents of the Waits from the period when their reputation was at its zenith. The City Musick was formed to explore the diverse repertoire of civic and court wind players in 16th and 17th century Europe and is now firmly established as the premier renaissance wind band in the UK.

In 2005, Joyce Yang became the youngest ever medallist of the Van Cliburn International Competition, and in 2010 she was awarded the Avery Fisher Career Grant. She now makes her recording debut for Avie with a collage of a program that ideally represents her artistry. Joyce chose pieces that illuminate each other in arresting ways: Sebastian Currier's Scarlatti Cadences reflect the repetitious melodic motifs of Scarlatti's Sonatas, Lowell Liebermann's Gargoyles echo the esoteric timelessness of Debussy's Estampes, and Liszt's transcription of Chopin's song My Joys opens a window onto Schumann's Carnaval. These works are an aural autobiography of Joyce's first 20-some years of music making, and also portray her unique brand of synesthesia, the visualization of music in shapes and colours. Appropriately, the repertoire Joyce chose for this recording is inspired by vivid imagery, and the striking artwork is the result of collaboration with artist Joan Snyder, whose colorful paintings are featured throughout. Joyce performs with such orchestras as the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics; Chicago, San Francisco, Baltimore and Houston Symphonies; Philadelphia Orchestra and BBC Philharmonic, with such conductors as Edo de Waart, Lorin Maazel, James Conlon, Leonard Slatkin, and David Robertson. In recital Joyce has appeared at Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall, the Metropolitan Museum, the Kennedy Center, Chicago's Symphony Hall, and Zurich's Tonhalle. An avid chamber musician, she is a recurring guest at the summer festivals in Aspen, La Jolla and Santa Fe. Born in Seoul, Korea in 1986, Ms. Yang moved to the United States in 1997 to study at the Juilliard School where she graduated with honours. A Steinway Artist since 2008, Joyce resides in New York City. critical acclaim for Joyce Yang "romantic flair with musicianly elegance" - The New York Times "Poetic and sensitive pianism ... capable of hurling thunderbolts. - The Washington Post "polished, pearly evenness that was remarkable for its ease up and down the keyboard." - Los Angeles Times

Includes work(s) for piano by Luciano Berio. Soloist: Andrea Lucchesini.

The Cypress String Quartet completes their cycle of the genre’s greatest oeuvre with a two-album set of Beethoven’s six ground-breaking quartets, Op. 18, alongside a reissue of their previously self-released recording of the late quartets. For the past several seasons, the Cypresses have immersed themselves in performing Beethoven on tours throughout the United States and Europe as well as recording all 16 works plus the “Grande Fugue” (Große Fuge). The completion of their Beethoven cycle is a fitting celebration of the Bay Area-based ensemble’s 20th anniversary as well as their valedictory season.

Includes work(s) by various composers. Soloist: Jacob Heringman.

An award-winning program created by Apollo’s Fire’s director Jeannette Sorrell, Sugarloaf Mountain follows the joys and sorrows of Celtic immigrants who settled in Appalachia. Sparkling fiddle tunes and haunting ballads of the British Isles crossed the Atlantic during the 17th, 18th and early 19th centuries and took root in the hills of Virginia. They mingled with American shape-note hymns and African spirituals, creating the soulful music known as Appalachian. Passing through love and loss, dancing and prayer, the music overflows in celebration as the people of the mountains raise their communal voices.