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.

“Something new every moment.” If we are to believe Shunske Sato, leader of Concerto Koln and soloist on this sparkling new release of Antonio Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons,” what is at the heart of this recording is the idea of freedom. Freedom, too, in more ways than one. True to the principles of historical performance practice, the ensemble delivers the vitality of spontaneous playing in Vivaldi’s music. Founded in Cologne in 1985 and at home on the great international concert platforms of the world ever since, Concerto Koln has developed a quite unique sound of its own, which is known and admired around the world. A major music magazine once wrote that the ensemble played antique rock and roll- “rousing, raw, and jovial.” The “Four Seasons,” are joined here by two other Vivaldi works, showing other aspects of the composer and rounding out our picture of him: the sad and sorrowful Good Friday music “Al Santo sepolcro” and the Concerto RV 156, which may be the most beautiful concerto Vivaldi ever wrote. This audiophile recording was made in the Paterskirche in Kempen, celebrated for its acoustics. There were no cuts, no stopping and starting, just one take, no compressors or artificial resonance. This recording simply documents an end-to-end performance by musicians at the highest level of concentration. This music sounds so natural and immediate, it’s as if one were hearing it live at a concert.

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.

Beethoven: Violin Concertos - Romances

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.

Classical Music

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)

STRAVINSKY & BRITTEN

Her life reads like the classic Baroque success story: brought up motherless in a Venetian orphanage, maturing into an "unparalleled violin virtuosa", treated as an equal by Antonio Vivaldi: Anna Maria dal Violin. Midori Seiler and Concerto K�ln depict the life of this exceptional woman in La Venezia di Anna Maria. All her life long, Anna Maria (born 1696, died 1782) lived and worked in the Ospedal della Piet�. The Venetian orphanage for girls did more than just offer a home and a refuge to girls abandoned by their mothers. It was a school, a musical conservatory and a tourist attraction at the same time. As maestro di concerto of the Ospedale, Antonio Vivaldi took Anna Maria under his wing. Starting out as her mentor and teacher, he eventually wrote over two dozen Concerti per Anna Maria. She brilliantly mastered the violin and a host of other instruments, and was praised as the "veritable embodiment of all that is good and beautiful", as a creature "ascending into Paradise". Before long everyone was demanding to hear her and it is largely thanks to her that Vivaldi's instrumental concertos blossomed as they did. Baroque specialist Midori Seiler and her congenial partner Concerto K�ln offer a virtuoso portrayal of this artistic teamwork between Anna Maria and Vivaldi.

Mendelssohn: Leise Zieht Durch Mein Gemüt

Carnival: the fifth and most colourful season of the year - has a long tradition. Even in ancient times carnival festivals were celebrated, where people dressed up and order was turned upside down. World famous are the Brazilian and Venetian carnival and of course the carnival of the Rhineland. The saxophonist Asya Fateyeva explores with her new album "Carneval" the world of carnival, it's dramas, characters and always surprising human entanglements. "The title 'Carneval' describes the spirit of the saxophone. It likes to dress up, try out, explore different styles and slip into the roles of other instruments," says Fateyeva. On the album she dedicates herself to works by Sergei Prokofiev, Jules Massenet and L�o Delibes. From now on there is the second foretaste of her upcoming album: "Va! Laisse couler mes larmes" written by Jules Massenet for the opera "Massenet".

SINF.NR.45,EINE KL.NACHTMUSIK

2010 3X CD Berlin Classics Basics series collection. At the heart of Chopin's music is the piano, and it's amazing what range of tones and moods he was able to elicit this instrument. So here are his two piano concertos heard in addition to a comprehensive selection of the most popular solo works, in the Fantaisie-Impromptu as little lacking as the Minute Waltz.

Bizet: Carmen

Jauchze, jubilier und singe