With an ever-increasing awareness of the excellence that defined her career, Florence Price is finally receiving the recognition that she deserves. Price won the Wanamaker Prize in 1932, and she was the first Black woman to have a symphony premiered by a major American orchestra. Price was a gifted student, pianist, and organist. She graduated from high school in Little Rock, AR, at age 14. At age 16, she graduated from the New England Conservatory (as the only double major in her class) with degrees in organ performance and piano pedagogy. Price wrote music for everyone– across a range of styles and abilities, and for a variety of forces. Beyond the Years hones in on Florence Price the composer of songs. ONEcomposer has cataloged nearly 150 of her songs (to date), only about half of which have been published.

Beyond the Years highlights Price’s affinity for themes of faith, nature, love, and loss. Amongst Price’s treasures in the archives at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, is her well worn copy of Vaccai: Practical Method of Italian Singing, a symbol of her fastidious commitment to writing idiomatically for the voice.

As performed by Karen Slack and Michelle Cann, these songs are receiving new life in the hands of two of the greatest artists of our generation.

Following the success of WindSync’s recording of Miguel del Aguila’s Wind Quintet No. 2, released on the quintet’s album All Worlds All Times, the pair returned to the studio—this time, the legendary Studio Two at Abbey Road Studios in London—to record the present monograph of del Aguila’s works for winds.

This milieu connects rather poetically to WindSync’s founding principles. Although Abbey Road is now associated with the likes of Pink Floyd, Eric Clapton and, of course, The Beatles, or with the famous soundtracks to the Star Wars and Harry Potter movies also captured there, the first musician to record in the studio was British classical composer Edward Elgar, with the London Symphony Orchestra. By playing del Aguila’s music into the studio’s arsenal of historic microphones—the same ones used by The Beatles—WindSync reaches into Abbey Road’s storied past to acknowledge its classical roots, while marrying that tradition with the dressed-down, boyband accessibility that inspired the quintet’s cheeky name.

The Telegraph Quartet makes their Azica Records debut, In this first installment we have two works that, as far as can be determined, have never been recorded together. They are equally unlikely to have appeared together on the same mainstream live concert program. Ravel’s only string quartet is often paired with Debussy’s only string quartet particularly to showcase their shared lineage of French Impressionism, and that Ravel’s design was strongly influenced by Debussy’s. Schoenberg’s first numbered quartet is most often programmed within the cycle of his own radically evolving quartets, or with the work of the larger “Second Viennese School”, perhaps even the quartets of his only teacher Anton Zemlinsky. Here, in a striking setting, two of the greatest 20th century composers share the program with two distinctively different masterworks that have a nearly identical chronology. Born one year apart (Schoenberg in 1874, Ravel in 1875), these contemporaries composed, premiered and published their quartets between 1902 and 1907 (Ravel first, then Schoenberg). 1904 saw the premiere of Ravel’s quartet just as Schoenberg began to compose his. This synchronicity in the first decade of the 20th century makes this pairing an extraordinary snapshot of the avant- garde: A time capsule.

The juxtaposition is a marvelous invitation for comparison and contrast. It presents two significantly divergent “schools” that nonetheless share some interesting traits. The history, temperament, life story and lasting influence of each composer portray them as wildly different, like two different musical species. But together, their quartets paint a vivid portrait of a shared moment within the long history of the string quartet genre

Earthdrawn Skies explores deep connections between humankind and the natural world through the distinct lenses of four composers forging personal relationships with the soil and the stars. These works by Hildegard von Bingen, Eleanor Alberga, Komitas Vardepet and Jean Sibelius are rooted in a sense of tradition and connection to the land, even as the composers seek something beyond their reach: an understanding of God, the physics of the cosmos, homeland, happiness. The music on this album draws from the earth as it reaches upward and outward. these composers share an impulse to understand the sky, the heavens, the larger things in life. This is music we have kept returning to as a quartet, as it speaks to us in deeply personal ways. We cherish playing this music together, and we hope it resonates as much with you as it does with us.

Hailed as an “irresistibly fluid” by The New York Times and “illuminating” by the Cleveland Plain Dealer, pianist Eric Zuber releases his debut album, The Young Chopin, with the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra and conductor Wilbur Lin. The release celebrates the early piano repertoire of Frédéric Chopin (1810 – 1849), including his Variations on ‘Là ci darem la mano’ from Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Op. 2; Andante spianato & Grande polonaise brillante, Op. 22; and his Piano Concerto No. 1 in E Minor, Op. 11.

Zuber writes, “The ingenuity of [Chopin’s early] piano writing shows a complete technical understanding of the craft of the instrument, and the seductive beauty of his melodic and harmonic writing is second to none. And to think he was only 17 when he wrote the variations as a school assignment! These early compositions are tremendously difficult from a technical perspective, and Chopin was clearly seeking to showcase his abilities as a pianist. Yet, there is little of the empty displays of virtuosity that appear in the works of some of his contemporaries. Everything serves a purpose to create a clear emotional effect.”

Apollo Chamber Players’ sixth commercial album, MoonStrike, is a universal celebration of storytelling, space and folk song, realized through new works by Jennifer Higdon, Jerod Tate, and Pierre Jalbert. Higdon’s In the Shadow of the Mountain (2020) is inspired by her upbringing in the Great Smoky Mountains and incorporates the sounds and colors of the area. Next is the title work, Emmy-winning Chickasaw composer Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate’s multidisciplinary MoonStrike (2019), which honors the Apollo space program through American Indian moon legends as narrated by astronaut John Herrington, the first Native American to fly in space. French-Canadian composer Pierre Jalbert’s L’esprit du Nord (“Spirit of the North”) (2019) is a three-movement work that fuses three of his culture’s folk songs with his unique, contemporary musical language.

Yolanda Kondonassis writes: FIVE MINUTES for Earth is a project that both celebrates our planet and illuminates our challenge to preserve it. In 2020, I asked each of the composers featured in this collection if they would consider contributing a work for solo harp of approximately five minutes in length that expresses a powerful experience inspired by Earth in one of its many conditions or atmospheres. I was overwhelmed by the generosity of immediate responses and set about assembling this labor-of-love project. The endeavor quickly expanded to include a live, multi-media concert, fifteen unique videos for each track, a separate published collection of Earth-inspired solos for younger harpists, and most importantly, the opportunity for harpists all over the world to perform these innovative, Earth-inspired works for solo harp by some of today’s most lauded composers; in doing so, every verified performance of any of the works from the FIVE MINUTES for Earth collection, anywhere in the world, will result in a monetary contribution to a recognized earth conservation organization, sponsored by my non-profit organization, Earth at Heart. FIVE MINUTES for Earth is also a metaphor for the urgent and compressed timeframe that remains for our global community to embrace and implement solutions to our fast-growing environmental crisis.” 

REVIEW:

In 2020 harpist Yolanda Kondonassis asked each of the composers featured in this collection to consider writing a short solo harp piece that expresses “a powerful experience inspired by Earth in one of its many conditions or atmospheres.” Needless to say, the musical results prove as diverse as the planet’s ecosystems.

Takuma Itoh’s new-agey Kohola Sings shows how one can imitate a humpback whale song on a harp. For Hear the Dust Blow, Michael Daugherty checks his customary dazzle at the door and channels Roy Harris in slow motion. On Hearing Nightbirds at Dusk showcases Aaron Jay Kernis’ textural sensitivity and harmonic refinement at their best.

Chen Yi’s Dark Mountains offers wild contrasts in texture and touch. Reena Esmail’s Inconvenient Wounds utilizes a wide array of evocative scraping effects, while the subtle microtonal writing throughout Keith Fitch’s “as Earth dreams” mesmerizes. Sparsely deployed melodies and murmuring repeated notes hold attention throughout Zhou Long’s Green.

Perhaps Stephen Hartke’s Fault Line is the collection’s most probing, dramatic, discreetly resourceful, and least formulaic work: a substantial conclusion to a beautifully engineered contemporary harp collection that offers something for every musical taste. Well worth hearing.

-- ClassicsToday.com

The award winning Aeolus Quartet offers the second installment in their Many-Sided Music Project, Ariel and Other Poems. This ongoing project collects distinctive voices of American composers, combining the classic with the modern. Ariel and Other Poems takes its name from the original title of Sylvia Plath's last manuscript. The poems contained therein include the work that inspired Christopher Theofanidis' Ariel Ascending, and joined by the rich expansive tones of the Copland, the buzzing electricity of the Mazzoli, and the deep catharsis of the Barber, the album Ariel and Other Poems seeks to offer a small sampling of the multi-faceted collection of American chamber music.

Grammy winning guitarist David Russell joins Azica Records as releases his latest album of contemporary works written just for him. Classical guitarist David Russell is world renowned for his superb musicianship and inspired artistry, having earned the highest praise from audiences and critics alike. In recognition of his great talent and his international career, he was named a Fellow of The Royal Academy of Music in London in 1997. In May 2003 he was bestowed the great honor of being made "adopted son" of Es Migjorn, the town in Minorca where he grew up. Later the town named a street after him, "Avinguda David Russell". David Russell spends his time touring the world, appearing regularly at prestigious halls in main cities, such as New York, London, Tokyo, Los Angeles, Madrid, Toronto or Rome. Concert-goers everywhere are in awe of his musical genius and inspired by his captivating stage presence. His love of his craft resonates through his flawless and seemingly effortless performance. The attention to detail and provocative lyrical phrasing suggest an innate understanding of what each individual composer was working to achieve, bringing to each piece a sense of adventure.

Lowak Shoppala' (Fire and Light) is a work that expresses Chickasaw identity through the medium of modern classical music and theatre. The work is in eight scenes and features orchestra, narration, children's chorus, traditional Chickasaw and modern dancers, traditional Chickasaw and classical vocal soloists and American Indian storytellers. Each scene depicts a part of Chickasaw culture and history. Lowak Shoppala' was conceived, designed and composed by Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate and premiered Saturday, November 21, 2009 at the Te Ata Theatre, East Central University, Ada, Oklahoma with Mr. Tate conducting the Oklahoma Youth Orchestra.

Performed by the trio for whom it was written, Paul Schoenfield's new composition "Last Silence" picks up where "Cafe Music" left off. A show stopping tour de force of excitement and emotion. Schoenfield's "Four Souvenirs" is finally released here by violinist Lev Polyakin and pianist Frances Renzi, who commissioned the work. Beautiful trios by Rota and Cui round out the album. Paul Schoenfeld‘s music is widely performed and continues to draw an ever-expanding group of fans. According to Juilliard’s Joel Sachs, “he is among those all-too-rare composers whose work combines exuberance and seriousness, familiarity and originality, lightness and depth. His work is inspired by the whole range of musical experience, popular styles both American and foreign, vernacular and folk traditions, and the ‘normal’ historical traditions of cultivated music making, often treated with sly twists. Above all, he has achieved the rare fusion of an extremely complex and rigorous compositional mind with an instinct for accessibility and a reveling in sound that sometimes borders on the manic.”

The traditional songs of the Christmas holiday are offered here by the Salzedo Harp Duo, their third release on Azica Records. The Salzedo Harp Duo, named after groundbreaking composer Carlos Salzedo, is Jody Guinn and Nancy Lendrim. Jody Guinn has been the principal harpist of the Akron Symphony Orchestra and the Cleveland Opera since 1984. She has been substituting or playing extra harp with the Cleveland Orchestra since 1986. Guinn shares her love of the instrument with several private students and is on the harp faculty of colleges across the region. Jody Guinn has been the principal harpist of the Akron Symphony Orchestra and the Cleveland Opera since 1984. She played for the Cleveland Ballet and the Ohio Chamber Orchestra for 16 years while both organizations were in existence in Cleveland. She has been substituting or playing extra harp with the Cleveland Orchestra since 1986 including multiple tours to Europe, New York City’s Carnegie Hall and Washington D.C.’s Kennedy Center.

Grammy Award winner Jason Vieaux joins forces with the esteemed Escher Quartet to produce a recording with some new and old works with dance themes in common. These three works may share elements of dance-inspired music, and contain actual allusions to specific dances in the titles (or expressive markings) of certain movements, but that is where the similarities end. These guitar quintets, all from very different periods, couldn’t be any more different from each other in style, timbre, texture and dynamics. They show the musical range and flexibility of the guitar within a more traditional chamber music group setting.