Classical Music

“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.

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

One of the most exceptional female artists of the 19th century celebrates her 200th birthday in 2019. The acknowledged Clara Schumann expert Ragna Schirmer has devoted a special act of homage to her artistic predecessor, taking two original concert programmes selected from Clara's decades of concert performance and recording them to provide insight into the life and work of this very special woman. In 1847, Clara and her husband Robert Schumann gave a matinee concert in the Berlin salon of Fanny Hensel. The programme featured two songs and the premiere performances of the piano quartet by Robert and the piano trio by Clara Schumann. 25 years later, on a tour of England, she played a solo piano recital (an unusual practice at that time) featuring all the works that meant most to her: her husband's "Scenes from Childhood" and works by Beethoven, Scarlatti, Chopin, Brahms and Mendelssohn, a programme that delighted her audience. She was announced as "Madame Schumann". From over 1300 printed programmes, collected and preserved by the celebrated pianist over the course of her performing career, Ragna Schirmer opted for just these two. "The number of great works she studied and performed in the course of her life is quite amazing," says Ragna Schirmer. "Another thing that fascinated me was the form, sequence and planning of her concerts. She played alongside the most important musicians of her time and most of her concerts reveal themselves to be varied compilations of different music genres." Ragna Schirmer has long been recognized for her intimate engagement with the life of Clara Schumann. In April 2019, she will receive the Robert Schumann Prize of the City of Zwickau. "I have all her diaries at home, I have all her letters at home, I have all the biographies ever written, her children's reminiscences... I find it incredibly exciting to be involved with this life and I regard her as an essential role model."

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With "Kiss of Fire," Spark present their newest project and once again make a powerful statement of musical boundary-breaking. The ensemble is known for it's distinctive and varied programs that move beyond traditional genre limits and continuously redefine classical music. For Kiss of Fire, Spark has collaborated with the W�rttembergisches Kammerorchester Heilbronn. This encounter gives the characteristic sound a new tonal dimension and expands the ensemble's spectrum with an additional orchestral color. A special highlight of the album is the world premiere recording of the commissioned work by Dutch composer Chiel Meijering.

Black Mountain features original compositions by Alexej Gerassimez and Gordon Hamilton, who also conducts this recording with the NDR Radiophilharmonie. The program explores the dynamic interplay between orchestral sound and percussion, with a highlight being the work Leviathan by John Psathas-a powerful composition for percussion and orchestra, written specifically for Alexej Gerassimez.

Face2Face compares the Beethoven string quartets with string quartets by avant-garde composers, demonstrating how far ahead of his time Beethoven was. The second album of this series contains Ludwig van Beethoven's String Quartet op. 18/6, Rudolf Kelterborn's String Quartet no. 6 (2001), and Ludwig van Beethoven's "Harfenquartett" op. 74. The Amaryllis Quartett won 1st prize at the 6th International Chamber Music Competition in Melbourne (2011).

After coming to prominence as resident organist of the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, Iveta Apkalna has most recently been to the Far East, where in 2018 she inaugurated Asia's largest concert organ in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. She has now recorded her new album on the organ at the National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts (Weiwuying). It is an impressive instrument: Almost 10,000 pipes in over 120 registers, located in a twin organ. On the right-hand half of the stage is the great symphonic organ, which recreates the aesthetic timbre of the French Romantic style. And on the left there is the smaller "echo organ", oriented on the German Baroque repertoire. On this new album, Iveta Apkalna has compiled a programme that unites the two organs by placing the focus on the French Romantic style and making a brief foray to the father of organ music, J.S. Bach.

At the age of 15, Johann Sebastian Bach attended the Latin school at St. Michael's Monastery in Luneburg for two years. There is also evidence of at least one trip to Hamburg during this time. The young Bach must have been impressed and inspired by the North German music scene with it's large organs and independent pedals, the diverse reed stops, the clear and "sharp" mixtures and, last but not least, his musical experiences in Hamburg's Gansemarkt Opera House. Bach's chorale partitas bear clear traces of the North German environment, for example in the operatic-ariose elaborations with French ornaments or in the very individual virtuoso arrangements of the variations, which suggest the text interpretations of individual song verses. In contrast to this is the Orgelbuchlein, composed in the somewhat later Weimar years, which forms the foundation for Bach's monothematic composition: Here, the sound of a chorale is formed using just one characteristic motif. The roots of this compositional aesthetic can be traced back to Bach's early encounter with Georg Bohm in Luneburg. The history of the large organ in St. Michael's, which can be traced back to the 15th century, is eventful: in 1708 the Schnitger pupil Matthias Dropa built a new organ and extended the existing instrument by Niehoff (1553) - the young Bach may have been able to follow the plans. After numerous alterations, the current specification corresponds to that of 1708, and a precise historical restoration is currently being planned. The tremendous richness of color and the tonal spirit of the Baroque period can be clearly heard despite the equal temperament. The Klapmeyer organ in Altenbruch (1730), on which Dropa also worked from 1697-1700, gives an authentic impression of the sound of this organ landscape in Luneburg thanks to the restoration by Jurgen Ahrend (2004). The specifics of the historical sounds become tangible when comparing the two instruments.

Internationally acclaimed cellist Benedict Kloeckner and pianist Yo Kosuge join forces for a compelling collaboration. Both artists bring extensive experience from major festivals and leading orchestras, along with many years of chamber-music and recital performances. For this album, they selected popular works and arrangements as follows: Schubert - Arpeggione Sonata; Lullaby; Nacht und Tr�ume (Night and Dreams, arr. Kloeckner) / Mendelssohn - Sonata in D major; On Wings of Song (arr. Popper); Song Without Words (Op. 109).

It is surely proof of great dedication that an American-born Swedish conductor would, in the mid-1970s, go behind the Iron Curtain in order to take up a post as principal conductor of an orchestra. Both the conductor and orchestra have fond memories of Herbert Blomstedt's Dresden years, from 1975 to 1985. The recordings of all of Beethoven's symphonies conducted by Blomstedt are proof of an intensive and artistically outstanding collaboration.

In this album Bach's famous Goldberg Variations are newly arranged for Saxophone, Cello and Accordion. With Asya Fateyeva and Eckart Runge two renowned Berlin Classics artists get together, joined by accordionist Andreas Borregaard. Asya Fateyeva has brought the saxophone into the spotlight through her excellent recordings, new arrangements and concerts for her instrument as well as impressive media attention (including her own TV documentary on ARTE). Eckart Runge was founding member of the Artemis Quartet; he is also an acclaimed soloist and has already released several solo albums on Berlin Classics.

The new album of saxophonist Asya Fateyeva, with the Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz, presents a brand-new version of the hit Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky, arranged by composer Wolf Kerschek. The recording is complemented by Christmas music arranged for saxophone and the vocal ensemble Niniwe Vocal Art.

Baroque mastermind J�rg Halubek finishes his journey around the great historic organs of Germany. The final installment of his series Organ Landscapes on vinyl. Halubek plays the Silbermann organ (1710-1714) in the Dom St. Marien Church in Freiberg, the Hildebrandt organ (1746) in St. Wenzel Church in Naumburg, and in the St. Johannis Church in L�neburg.

The Queen of Instruments meets one of the international leading organists, Iveta Apkalna. The repertoire of the new album includes Vasks' "Viatore" and "Te Deum" as well as Part's famous "Spiegel i'm Spiegel", "Pari intervallo", "Trivium" and "Annum per annum". Two of the most important contemporary composers are united on one album, celebrating Part's 90th birthday in 2025 and Vasks' 80th birthday in 2026. Also a milestone in music history is captured on this release: it is the first ever solo organ recording made on the organ of the Ventspils Concert Hall "Latvija" - one of the most remarkable concert instruments in Norther Europe.

With her new album Mozartiana, award-winning violinist Clarissa Bevilacqua presents a fascinating musical tribute and, at the same time, opens up new perspectives on a timeless genius. Clarissa Bevilacqua, who studied at the renowned Mozarteum Salzburg and won both first prize and the audience prize at the Mozart International Competition 2020, combines past and present in a captivating musical dialogue on Mozartiana. In addition to masterpieces such as F. X. Mozart's Sonata for Violin and Piano, Beethoven's 12 Variations on "Le nozze di Figaro", and Schnittke's Moz-Art for ensemble, the album features contemporary compositions written especially for this album by Felix Willeitner, Sophia Jani, Jorge Bosso, and Giovanni Sollima-all of which are world premiere recordings. As founder and artistic director of DYNAMIKfest Salzburg, Bevilacqua once again demonstrates her passionate commitment to combining classical and modern music. Mozartiana is not only a tribute to Mozart-it is a living commitment to artistic curiosity, diversity, and musical dialogue across the centuries.

Zofia Neugebauer, born in Poland in 1994, played at the Karajan Academy of the Berlin Philharmonic. She was principal flutist in renowned orchestras such as the Lucerne and Basel Symphony Orchestras and performed with renowned conductors such as Sir Simon Rattle and Zubin Mehta. In 2018, the Mozart Society Dortmund accepted Neugebauer into it's scholarship program, where she discovered her love for Mozart. Together with the Folkwang Chamber Orchestra Essen, directed by Johannes Klumpp, she now presents Mozart's Flute Concertos and two newly written cadenzas on her album Il Vento non Scritto.

The Ensemble Concerto K�ln embark on a journey into the Baroque era and present Violin Concertos by Corelli, Somis, Valentini, Mascitti, and Vivaldi. For the recording, they are accompanied by the excellent Russian violinist Evgeni Sviridov. Arcangelo Corelli, who lived and died in Rome, is considered a typical representative of classical Italian violin music and, as such, had a strong influence on all his younger contemporaries, whose works can be heard on this album.

With Organ Landscapes X (Leipzig), renowned organist and Baroque specialist J�rg Halubek concludes his acclaimed album series Organ Landscapes. The tenth and final chapter of a fascinating journey of discovery to Germany's great historic organs. The crowning finale takes us to what is probably the most important place in organ history: St. Thomas Church in Leipzig, where Johann Sebastian Bach worked and made music history. Here, the magnificent Sauer organ (1889/1908) resounds-an instrument of unique tonal depth, which Halubek brings to life with masterful sensitivity and Baroque expressiveness. This album is not only a musical highlight, but also a worthy conclusion to an ambitious project that celebrates the diversity and beauty of the German organ landscape.

The new album of saxophonist Asya Fateyeva, with the Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz, presents a brand-new version of the hit 'Nutcracker' by Tchaikovsky, arranged by composer Wolf Kerschek. The recording is complemented by Christmas music arranged for saxophone and the vocal ensemble Niniwe Vocal Art.

The young talent Michal Balas has recorded Prokofiev's Sinfonia Concertante together with the Pilsen Philharmonic Orchestra. This album will follow his well received debut release on Berlin Classic, which featured hte Haydn Cello Concertos. Balas was recognized as "Classic FM 30 under 30 rising stars" and won the first prizes at "Classic String Competition" in Dubai as well as many other competitions.

This is the last release of a six-release album series presenting all violin concertos by Mozart. Together with the the Spanish violinist and conductor Robert Gonzales-Monjas, who is the chief conductor of the Mozarteumorchester Salzburg, the orchestra proves once again it's unrivaled position as interpreters of the Mozart stylistic. The album will be released during the Salzburg Mozartwoche in January 2026