Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the internationally acclaimed German Brass ensemble, the album "Overtures" is set to release this September. This milestone collection features a captivating program of opera overtures, showcasing the ensemble's extraordinary talent and versatility. Listeners will be treated to stunning renditions of Verdi's "Nabucco," Mozart's "Le nozze di Figaro," Shostakovich's "Festive Overture," and many more timeless masterpieces. Each performance captures the grandeur and emotion of these beloved works, brought to life by the ensemble's impeccable artistry. In recognition of their outstanding contributions to classical music, German Brass was awarded the prestigious ECHO-KLASSIK in 2016. To mark their 50th anniversary, the ensemble will embark on a special anniversary tour in 2024, bringing their celebrated performances to audiences around the world.

Michal Balas passionately presents two cello concertos by Joseph Haydn. The young Polish cellist devotes himself to the C major and D major concertos, which are highly esteemed among cellists. 'All cellists were brought up to play these pieces with great respect - like Bach's cello suites or Beethoven's sonatas,' says Balas, who is on the threshold of a global career and is studying in Basel. With his debut album, he brings a fresh perspective to this repertoire. In collaboration with conductor Christian Erny and the Kurpfalzisches Kammerorchester Mannheim, Balas reinterprets the Haydn concertos with courage and confidence. His individual cadenzas show his personal perspective. The recording shows an outstanding performance and intensive exchange. Balas sets a new milestone in his musical journey.

With its breathtaking nature and history, Provence in Occitania continues to inspire countless artists. The album "To the Muse", which combines original French works for saxophone and orchestra with transcriptions of music by troubadours for saxophone, hurdy-gurdy, cello and vibraphone, is a result of this inspiration. The album is completed with a tribute to the music of the troubadours, namely Bo Wiget's new instrumentation for saxophone, hurdy-gurdy, cello and vibraphone. The exciting region of Occitania played a formative role in the art of the time of the troubadours. The region was a great centre of attraction for dreamers and idealists.

Pieces of a Dream" by composer Christian Jost is a unique chamber music suite of symphonic proportions for flugelhorn/trumpet, vibraphone, and piano played by Simon Hofele, Frank Dupree, and Christoph Sietzen. This innovative composition transcends the boundaries of traditional music genres, inviting listeners to explore over 50 minutes of intricate melodies, harmonies, and rhythms across it's four captivating movements: "Is It Safe," "Come to Me," "Driven by a Strange Desire," and "In My Dream, It's All Alive." Is It Safe" opens the suite with an elegiac duo of flugelhorn and piano, setting the stage for a sonic exploration of deceptive beauty and emotional depth. The flugelhorn weaves a breath-like melody, creating a vivid and nuanced dreamscape. At the same time, the piano enriches this melody with complex emotional progressions. "Come to Me" introduces the vibraphone in a mysterious and melancholic mood, escalating into a scherzo-like movement filled with virtuosic passages and an ostinato rhythm that propels the music forward. The third movement, "Driven by a Strange Desire," marks the climax of the suite with it's fanfare-like vibraphone solo and a trumpet that soars over hammered piano rhythms and polyrhythmic structures. This extensive movement travels through varied sections, leading to a dramatic and fast-paced finale. "In My Dream, It's All Alive," the final movement, captures the essence of the suite with it's fragile mood and enchantingly tender melodies, wrapping up the musical journey in a transfigured serenity." Pieces of a Dream" stands at the crossroads of genres - not confined to jazz, yet it swings and grooves; nor is it experimental new music, as it embraces atmospheric drifting. This work represents a path untrodden, crafted by a new generation of musicians unbound by categorical constraints. Our heartfelt thanks to Simon, Frank, and Christoph for their commitment to bringing this visionary piece to life. Dive into "Pieces of a Dream" and let it's innovative compositions and emotional depth guide you through a musical journey unlike any other. Discover a world where chamber music meets symphonic scale and experience the beauty of music that defies categorization

• SIGNUM saxophone quartet will release their first album on Berlin Classics
• Feat. Alexej Gerassimez (Percussion) and Eckart Runge (Cello)
• The quartet has made a name for themselves in various exciting projects (e.g. working with Alexej Gerassimez for his solo album on Berlin Classics)
• With Chameleon they show how colorful the sound of the saxophone is with a diverse selection of music from classical (Glazunov, Bloch, Haydn, and more) as well as pop and rock

With their new album "Chansons sans paroles", the young brass ensemble "Salaputia Brass" takes us through the history of French chanson and cuts the words off the chosen songs - in a very humble, homage-like manner, mind you. From the Renaissance madrigal to the present day, almost every era is represented. New arrangements specially tailored for the ensemble allow these works to be heard in a completely new tonal brilliance. The expressiveness of the wind instruments is impressive and demonstrates their closeness to the human voice. The members of the ensemble hold various solo positions in top German orchestras (Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Gurzenich-Orchester Koln, Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg)

The Boulanger Trio, celebrated for their exceptional sound and compelling concepts in albums such as "Teach Me!" and "Wanderlust," is set to release a groundbreaking new album titled "Who's Afraid of...?" This project is a homage to female composers, spotlighting their powerful and often overlooked biographies. The album promises a robust musical statement paired with an even stronger sound. The repertoire spans a diverse range of eras, featuring works by composers from Fanny Hensel and Nadia Boulanger to contemporary artists like Lera Auerbach, Kate Bush, and Alicia Keys.

Robert Schumann’s song cycle Dichterliebe, Op. 48 (1840), is widely considered the composer’s most celebrated cycle of Lieder and, along with Franz Schubert’s marginally earlier cycles Die Schöne Müllerin (1823) and Winterreise (1828), constitutes part of the central core of the genre in musical literature. Based on German poet Heinrich Heine’s Lyrisches Intermezzo, a 65-poems spanning collection first published in 1823, Dichterliebe in a way even represents the epitome of romantic poetry set to music. Both Heine and Schumann were progressive spirits who bent genres and rewrote the rules of their crafts. Therefore, it only seems appropriate that the Estonian pianist Kristjan Randalu, a forward-thinking mind in today’s contemporary music world, would do his part in bending genres by tackling this song cycle and updating its structure and vocabulary with the language of the 21st Century.

"Transformation" is the debut album of Austrian cellist Jeremias Fliedl, laureate of the Queen Elisabeth Competition who is at the beginning of an international career. On this album, he presents works such as Tchaikovsky's famous Rococo Variations and Villa-Lobos' Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5 in a version for 9 cellos, with all parts recorded and produced by him. Jeremias Fliedl plays the famous "ex-Gendron" Stradivarius from 1693.

The large-scale Bach Organ Landscapes project featuring J.S. Bach's entire organ oeuvre recorded on a range of instruments aims to provide an overview of organ-playing and organ-building traditions that were key to Bach's composing. With a keen eye to the unique cultural organ legacy of the places associated with Bach, Halubek has placed Bach's original sound at the heart of his project. The recordings are accompanied by digital material that offer an almost tactile access to the great composer's sound universe.

In her new album "Solitude," soprano Katharina Konradi embarks on a musical journey to explore solitude. On this journey, she is accompanied by poets and composers from different time periods. The Cosmos Quartet from Barcelona joins her on her journey. Art songs by composers such as Robert and Clara Schumann, Franz Schubert, and Hugo Wolf, as well as folk songs and French chansons, are waypoints on this journey on which they explore the various facets of solitude together. Miniatures for solo soprano by the Hungarian-French composer György Kurtág serve as transitional elements, providing subtle and sophisticated coherence. Among the special rarities of the recording are the two Catalan songs by the violinist, composer, and conductor Eduard Toldrà.

The soprano, born in Kyrgyzstan, captivates audiences and critics alike with her vocal brilliance and cultivated emotional depth. The Cosmos Quartet matches her with its honest elegance and compelling expressiveness. Although the Cosmos Quartet and Katharina Konradi only met at the beginning of rehearsals for "Solitude," a very special magic immediately revealed itself, inherent in the combination of Katharina Konradi's voice and the Cosmos String Quartet. "String quartet and voice blend incredibly well together – even though the four instruments already form a perfect sonic structure on their own. I always enjoy being surrounded by so many different colors while singing," describes Katharina Konradi about the collaboration.

The result of this collaboration and shared journey is an album characterized by emotionality, a variety of moods, and the highest musicality. It invites one to linger, to listen closely, to find tranquility in the beauty of music, and to draw strength from it.

Extase is the new concept album by pianist Mario Haring. It is an unusual piano program with special guests that captures the energetic format of a party weekend in Berlin. It draws parallels and reconciles romantic indulgence with the mechanics of the modern age. Virtuosity meets sensitivity and makes for a fantastic and diverse musical journey. This album inspires. It offers the opportunity to open up to complex compositions and to unleash new levels of consciousness, far removed from the mundane, through devotion to music.

Moritz Winkelmann, pianist and former student of the legendary Leon Fleisher, has set out to record all of Beethoven's piano sonatas and release them on Berlin Classics. This first album includes some of the most famous and popular sonatas such as the "Moonlight", "Waldstein" and "Pathetique" sonatas. Through his studies with Leon Fleisher, a pedagogical tradition links him directly to Beethoven. His playing is characterized by a fascinating and tremendous expressiveness, delighting critics and listeners alike. One can't get any closer to Beethoven than on these recordings.

How fascinating must it have sounded when Johann Sebastian Bach competed with an entire orchestra at the organ? Under the direction of Jörg Halubek, the baroque ensemble il Gusto Barocco becomes a musical think tank. Together, they attempt to reconstruct three of Bach's organ concertos, which today are primarily treated as harpsichord concertos. The recordings of the soloist ensemble presented here convey a tangible and unique impression thereof.

Hornist Felix Klieser presents two concertos for Horn and Orchestra by Kurt Atterberg and Rolf Martinsson. After the big success of his Mozart Horn Concertos album with the Camerata Salzburg, he is now accompanied by the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrucken and English conductor Jamie Phillips, who is leading the recording. The Horn concerto "Soundscape" by Rolf Martinsson was comissioned for Felix Klieser and is the composers third solo concerto for brass instruments and premiered in 2022 in Saarbrucken.

By popular demand, this Berlin Classics recording is reissued on Vinyl. Featured on it are Beethoven’s Concerto in D Major, originally written for the violin, and Concertante Variations by lesser-known composer Franz Schmidt played by virtuoso pianist Ragna Schirmer and the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra. Beethovens Concerto in D Major is a testament to his mastery of crafting music and his profound understanding of melody, harmony, and orchestration. Schmidt’s Concertante Variations are a masterpiece of late Romantic variation writing that not only allows the pianist ample scope for virtuosic display but is also remarkable for its sophisticated formal conception.

By popular demand, this Berlin Classics recording will be reissued on Vinyl. Handel's famous Suite"Watermusic" is one of the most well know and loved pieces of classical music from the baroque period. This historically informed interpretation stands out through ist clear articulation and historically accurate interpretation. This recording is a must-have for every classical music record collection.

To mark the 250th anniversary of the death of Georg Philipp Telemann, mandolinist Alon Sariel presents a diverse compilation of remarkable works by the great German composer. The compilation is enriched with works by three of Telemann’s contemporaries: Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, Carl Friedrich Abel and Johann Friedrich Fasch, all three of whom engaged in the creative spirit of the Hamburg composer and his works. Together with his ensemble Concerto Foscari he recorded repertoire that has never been heard before in this musical form. This recording is now available on Vinyl.

The popular album"Horn Concertos" by Felix Klieser is being released as a 180g Vinyl Reissue. The talented and unique horn player masters the technically demanding Horn Concertos by Joseph Haydn and his lesser known brother Michael Haydn. He is accomapnied by the Württembergisches Kammerorchester Heilbronn under the baton of Ruben Gazarian. Together, they display these innovative compositions and their masterful orchestration with brilliance and unrivaled brilliance. The reconstructed 'Horn Concerto No. 0' by W. A. Mozart offers glimpses into the maestro's early Viennese years.

Maurice Steger, the virtuoso and world-renowned recorder player and conductor Conductor, has arranged works by Johann Sebastian Bach for recorder and orchestra for his new album with the La Cetra Basel has arranged works by Johann Sebastian Bach for recorder and orchestra.

Matthias Hofs (trumpet) and Matthias Janz (organ) present a program of works by English masters from the Renaissance to the late Baroque. The instrumental combination of trumpet and organ let this repertoire resound in festive splendor. The musical performance is historically informed and played on modern instruments. Among the works on this album are songs from “The Musical Entertainer 1737”, English Dances and Trumpet Voluntaries by George Frideric Handel, John Stanley and many more.

"After Hours" is the new concept album by the Faure Quartett. The world famous piano quartet consists of the same for members since íts founding in 1995. They present an album full of encores from composers such as Debussy, Strauss and Dvorak. These pieces are lined by original compositions dedicated to the ensemble by composer friends such as Jarkko Riihimaki. Two other friends, clarinettist Matthias Schorn and soprano Annette Dasch, make appearences as soloists. Encores defy the convention and have the potential to be surprising and engage the listeners in a special way and exactly that is what this album does.

KultBlech is the brass ensemble of the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra. KultBlech presents an album with subtly arranged and masterfully played Christmas music for brass! Under the baton of Steven Verhaert the one of a kind arrangements written especially for KultBlech Dresden by Markus Höller & Hans Reiner Schmidt make the christmas time humorous, lively and emotional! KultBlech Dresden takes you on an extraordinary Christmas musical journey around the world - and this every year! An album for the whole family!

CONTENTS:

• Joy to the world
• Engel auf den Feldern
• Hirten auf Reisen [Teil 1]
• Little drummer boy
• Weihnachten in Deutschland
• Amazing grace
• Euch ist ein Kindlein heut geborn
• Hirten auf Reisen [Teil 2]
• Weihnachten in Europa
• Stille Nacht
• Frohes Fest und gute Nacht
• You raise me up

This album already carries the intention in its title: "A Tribute to Bach" is meant to be a deep bow by the world-renowned recorder player Maurice Steger to the great master of the music world; Johann Sebastian Bach. For his Bach project; Maurice Steger has chosen six compositions that follow six different musical genres and placed the recorder at the forefront of solo instrumentation. In doing so; he places himself in the tradition of Bach himself; who has been proven to have repeatedly undertaken new instrumentations for his works in the course of his life. The result in terms of sound is fascinating: Bach becomes a convincing recorder player through Maurice Steger's interpretation.

Founded in 1841 under the participation of Constanze Mozart, the Mozarteumorchester Salzburg today enjoys the highest reputation worldwide for it's lively and style-conscious Mozart interpretations. In numerous ways it connects the Viennese Classical period to the music of the 19th/20th and 21st centuries. The orchestras constant preoccupation with his core repertoire also shapes it's approach to the music of later periods. Thus chamber-musical transparency, articulatory clarity and nuanced sonority are a trademark that makes the Mozarteum Orchestra special and recognizable, also when playing the music of other composers. The Mozarteumorchester Salzburg proves once again it's unrivaled position as interpreters of the Mozart stylistic and uses the organ sonatas as a departure into other stylistic periods. It Includes two world premiere recordings of Henze's "Konzertmusik" and "Three Mozart Organ Sonatas".