Laments of lost and betrayed love from 17th-century Italy: musical portraits to be set beside contemporary paintings by Gentilesschi in their contained power and violence. While the featured composers in this recital were born and worked in contrasting provinces of Italy, most of them shared common goals and aesthetic principles. The text came first, and the music was always servant to it. The sweet torment of a broken heart drew from them long-breathed melodies, supported by spare but painfully chromatic harmony. The melody itself was always articulated according to the shape of the text, fitting one to the other like a hand in a silk glove. Eleni Lydia Stamellou and Konstantin Shenikov have made their own selection from a rich treasury of available repertoire in this vein. The album takes it's title from the final track, 'Oblivion soave', drawn from Monteverdi's final opera, 'L'incoronazione di Poppea'. The aria exemplifies Enlightenment values of humanism which inspire self-examination as well as 'sweet oblivion'.They include perhaps the most famous lost-love song of all, at least until the age of Lieder, Caccini's 'Amarilli, mia bella', and comparably familiar masterpieces in the genre such as Monteverdi's 'Si dolce 'l tormento' and Peri's 'Tora, deh torna'. There is also space for the no less subtle art of Andrea Falconieri, as well as several songs by Barbara Strozzi, one of the most successful women composers of the time; indeed, she was the most prolific composer - of either gender - of printed secular vocal music in Venice around the middle of the 17th century. Eleni Lydia Stamellou is a Greek soprano, specialising in this Renaissance-era repertoire as well as new music and Lieder. As a member of Music Aeterna, she has sung operatic roles conducted by Teodor Currentzis including Despina (Cosi fan tutte) and Pierrot in Schoenberg's cabaret-monodrama. The lutenist Konstantin Shenikov has been a regular member of early-opera productions led in Russia by Andrew Lawrence-King. - A beautifully conceived program of Renaissance and early Baroque songs and arias, sung by Greek soprano Eleni Lydia Stamellou, accompanied on the lute by Konstantin Shenikov. - The featured composers are Monteverdi (1567-1643), Frescobaldi (1583-1643), Caccini (1551-1618), Strozzi (baptized 1619-1677), Peri (1561-1633) and Falconieri (ca. 1585-1656). The secular texts deal with Love, in both it's sublime fulfillment and it's melancholy abandonment. - Greek soprano Eleni Lydia Stamellou won Second Prize at the Ferruccio Tagliavini Competition in Austria, with Dame Joan Sutherland as the president of the jury. She subsequently attended masterclasses given by Teresa Berganza, Edda Moser and Christa Ludwig. She sang in opera productions with MusicAeterna conducted by Teodor Currentzis. Her specialization is Renaissance/Baroque and Contemporary Music. She sang in productions of Berio and Hersant.

A unique take on Mozart's music from the organ loft. Mozart wrote sparingly for the solo organ - a relatively early collection of short Epistle Sonatas for liturgical use, and later on a few more individual pieces for a new mechanical organ. In neither case was he using the full extent of a large instrument as exploited by his Baroque predecessors. At the same time, Mozart himself was no stranger to the organ loft; he would have been regularly playing the instrument at St Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna had his plans come to fruition and he had lived long enough to attain the post of Director of Music there. Manuel Tomadin has imaginatively filled in this gap in the Mozart catalogue, as it were, with his own transcriptions of pieces particularly well suited to the soundworld of the organ. The A minor Sonata K310 shares a surging, Sturm und Drang sensibility with the two fantasias, in C minor and D minor. In turn this character lends itself to the Gothic grandeur of the 'king of instruments', when sensitively registered and nimbly executed. The coloristic possibilities of the organ, it's dynamic range and effects of perspective, are also put to dramatic use in bringing to life two of Mozart's opera overtures, from Cosi fan tutte and Die Zauberflote. Tomadin does not neglect the roots of Mozart's music in the Baroque, with a transcription of the rococo G major sonata K283 which he wrote at the age of 18, plus a much less familiar Preludio and Capriccio in C K394. In both of these pieces, Mozart was drawing on the legacy of CPE Bach, who had given him lessons as a child - a period to which Tomadin pays tribute with another rarity, one of the 'London Sketches' preserved in notebook form from the family's stay in the English capital. Tomadin has chosen an original and historically appropriate instrument for this fascinating exploration of Mozart on the organ, built in the late 1780s by the Montesanti firm for the parish church of Governolo in the province of Lombardy. The booklet includes a full specification of the organ, plus Tomadin's own introduction to the repertoire and his approach to it as a transcriber and performer. - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) had a profound connection with the church organ, an instrument that played a significant role in his musical development. As a child prodigy, Mozart was exposed to the organ in church settings, where he often performed. The organ's grandeur and complexity influenced his compositional style, particularly in his sacred music. - Although Mozart called it "The King of instruments" he wrote comparatively few works for the organ. Organist Manuel Tomadin professes his love for the composer and his considerable skill as an organist by transcribing several works for the organ: the overtures Cosi fan tutte and Die Zauberflote, two piano sonatas K 283 and 310, and several small keyboard works, perfectly suited for performance on the organ. - Played on a historical instrument: the 1788-1790 Andrea & Luigi Montesanti organ of the Parish Church of Governolo, Italy. - A feast of colours and timbres, celebrating the genius of Mozart's eternal music!

Coming into French and English from the Greek elegos ('lament'), an elegy (elegie) is a poetic or musical composition expressing sorrow or lamentation, typically mourning the loss of a loved one or reflecting on themes of grief and melancholy. Massenet's famous 'Clair de lune', presented here in an arrangement by the composer himself, envelops us in a dreamlike atmosphere, with the piano painting a delicate lunar landscape permeated by a subtle melancholy. The original is one of the most touching scenes in the opera Werther, when the protagonist feels his love for Charlotte rising within him. Contrary to popular belief, Ravel's Pavane pour une infante defunte is not dedicated to a departed soul. Rather, it is a nostalgic evocation of an imaginary childhood, rich in charm and mystery. Joseph Jemain's orchestration adds, if possible, further depth and suggestiveness to Ravel's music by introducing the piano into the ensemble, the protagonist of Ravel's original version. The violin and piano engage in a dialogue of deep contemplation in Saint-Saens's elegie in D, Op.143. The poignant melody and refined harmony express feelings of loss and consolation. This very intense and moving piece has secured an important place in the violin repertoire. The cello assumes the role of narrator in Faure's elegie, Op.24 recounting a story of pain and hope with great expressive intensity. A highly lyrical and touching piece, it is distinguished by it's expressive writing and singable melody. Debussy's Suite bergamasque transports us to a world of dreams and suggestions. Through four evocative dances with a Renaissance and Baroque flavour, the orchestra leads us on a musical journey rich in charm and delicacy. Wilhelm Renz's orchestration makes Debussy's picturesque music even more vivid. Renz is also the arranger of the Saint-Saens Carnival of the Animals featured here. His orchestral version adds brilliance and colour to the composer's music while maintaining it's original spirit of fun and irony, streamlining the orchestration in some places and adding elements for a richer, more layered sound in others. Other information: - Recorded August 2023 in Anzio (Italy) - Booklet in English contains liner notes by Valerio Vicari and profiles of the orchestra and conductor - A beautiful program featuring French music from the turn of the 19/20th century, evoking a late-romantic and mildly impressionistic atmosphere in elegiac mood. - The works presented are Elegies by Saint-Saens (1835-1921), Faure (1845-1924), Vieuxtemps (1820-1881) and Massenet (1842-1912), the Suite Bergamasque by Debussy (1862-1918), Pavane by Ravel (1875-1937) and, to conclude in a more spirited mood, the Carnaval des Animaux by Saint-Saens. Several of the works are transcribed for an instrumental ensemble featuring flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn, violin, viola, cello & double bass. - Sensuous and evocative performances by the Roma Tre Orchestra, conducted by Sieva Borzak.

Così fan tutte, a comic opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart with a libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte, is noted for it's sophisticated ensemble writing and Mozart's nuanced portrayal of the characters' emotional journeys. The opera's overture, and arias such as "Come scoglio" and "Un'aura amorosa", showcase the composer's melodic genius and ability to convey complex psychological states through music, making it one of Mozart's most performed and beloved operas, celebrated for it's wit, intricate musical textures and insightful commentary on the human condition. This great opera is here arranged for wind quintet by Ulf-Guido Schafer, a multiple Echo-Klassik award-winning clarinettist who has held principal posts with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie (1989-94) and the NDR Radiophilharmonie (1994-present) and boasts a distinguished career as a soloist and chamber musician (in ensemble acht, the Trio Roseau, the NDR's Arte-Ensemble, and the Ma'alot Quintett). Schafer has also made a name for himself as an arranger and composer. He was twice awarded the Echo-Klassik for CDs with the Ma'alot Quintett featuring his arrangements of Dvorak (2006) and Rossini (2010), respectively. Other information: - Recorded May 2024 in Trivolzio (Italy) - Booklet in English contains liner notes by Lorenzo Fazzini and a profile of the ensemble - Mozart's operas enjoyed such success and popularity in their time, that tunes from them were whistled in the street and arrangements of them were widely spread. - One of the most popular forms of arrangement was for Wind Ensemble, and already during Mozart's life these were often performed on all kind of occasions. - This new recording presents an arrangement for wind ensemble by Ulf-Guido Schafer, a highly successful clarinetist, composer and arranger, winner of several ECHO Klassik Awards. - Founded in 2019, the Spiritum Wind Quintet consists of Lorenzo Fazzini, Luca Etzi, Riccardo Nanni, Vincenzo Riccio, and Giacomo Alfano. All of them have won prizes in (inter)national competitions, and each enjoys a successful individual solo career.

This recording fills a gap in our understanding of Sebastian Raval (c.1550-1604), a composer who has proved elusive to posthumous fame. Of noble origin, he was born on an unknown date in the region of Murcia (possibly in Cartagena). He fought in the Siege of Maastricht (1579) with the Spanish Tercios in Flanders, and, severely wounded, retired to Italy where he became a friar and worked as a musician. Although musician-nobles were abundant in the 16th century, the presumption of a certain amateurism has marginalized them in the gene- ral historical narrative. Additionally, following a musical argument with Sicilian composer Achille Falcone, Raval was painted unfairly by partisan critics as arrogant and untalented, a view that persisted in Italian historiography, whereas in Spain he was largely ignored (most likely due to a career spent outside his home country). Yet the canzonette on this album dispel any doubts about Raval's talent. A light genre setting anonymous texts inspired by Petrarch in a madrigalian vein, canzonette - and particularly Raval's - abound with themes of love. Although this genre was not inclined towards musical experimentation, there is a certain evolution from the classic canzonette of Orazio Vecchi (in the 1580s) to later examples by Luca Marenzio; Raval's compositions, created in his pre-Roman period, fall at an intermediate point therein. The choice of four voices with high tessituras and a baritone follows Vecchi's style. Raval however uses a more imitative language, and in this aspect he is closer to Marenzio without reaching the latter's declamatory style. Not only is Raval's book of ricercari the only one composed by a Spanish musician; it's content reveals a rare contrapuntal ingenuity and a restless, innovative spirit that cannot go unnoti- ced. The volume reached us by sheer good fortune. Only one copy of each part-book was preserved in the archive of the cathedral of Valladolid. Thanks to this, today we can enjoy this rare music, not just for it's artistry but also for it's delicacy.

A new recording of Paganini's eccentric 'diary of invention' for guitar by a young Italian musician with a fast-growing reputation in both rock and classical genres. Giacomo Carletti took up the guitar at the age of 13, initially playing electric. Impressed by his talent, the composer Edoardo Catemario encouraged Carletti to take up the classical guitar. He now makes his career as a busy recitalist with the classical instrument while keeping up his pop and rock connections by playing electric guitar in several bands. As Carletti remarks in his booklet essay for his debut album on Brilliant Classics, the 43 Ghiribizzi by Paganini stand as a testament to his musical ingenuity and sense of fun. They present a showcase for his technical prowess but also reveal a lighter side to the virtuoso often caricatured as a dark and forbidding figure. The term Ghiribizzo is defined in Italian as an 'Idea bizzarra, capriccio improvviso'. Many less than a minute long, the 43 sketches sometimes start and stop abruptly; some are hardly more than tunes, others are eccentric fantasies. Many of them are based on existing material - not only the Mozart aria 'La ci darem la mano' from Don Giovanni, which Paganini acknowledges in the score, but other tunes he picked up on the way, popular and folkloristic, often anonymous in origin. No.37 of the collection has an esspecially rich back-story: a fond musical memory of Paganini's meeting with Rossini in Naples, in 1820. The piece, divided into two parts, bears Rossini's name at the bottom of the first 16 bars, and Paganini's at the bottom of the next 16, perhaps as a recollection of a game where they improvised together. 'in recording the Ghiribizzi,' says Carletti, 'I wanted to bring out the eccentric and eclectic character of the composer. I try to imagine Paganini as a rock virtuoso of nowadays and treat his music accordingly.' - Niccolo Paganini (1782-1840) is perhaps best known for his 24 Caprices for Solo Violin which granted him the fame as the diabolical virtuoso of his age. However, his contributions to the guitar world are equally fascinating, particularly his 43 Ghiribizzi. - In the dictionary of the Italian language the word Ghiribizzo is described as follows: "Idea bizzarra, capriccio improvviso" (bizarre idea, capricious improvisation). The artist Giacomo Carletti about the recording: "Bearing this precise and unequivocal definition in mind, in recording the 43 Ghiribizzi for guitar I wanted to bring out the eccentric and eclectic character of the composer. I try to imagine Paganini as a present day rock virtuoso and treat his music accordingly. Every rhythmical variation, every single notation has been studied, evaluated and decided in the awareness of wanting to make this integral as realistic as possible to what could have been a performance by Paganini himself. On this album you can hear hilarious tunes alternating, even in the same piece, with thoughtful, profound parts. Although there is no evidence of concerts held by the Italian maestro with the guitar, it is well known that Paganini studied and knew how to play the guitar with great mastery." - Giacomo Carletti plays in a wide variety of genres and styles, alternating performances in rock and pop bands with classical guitar solo and chamber concerts.

- The trumpet concertos by Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) and Johann Nepomuk Hummel (1778-1837) are two of the most celebrated works in the trumpet repertoire, showcasing the instrument's evolving capabilities in the Classical period. Haydn's Trumpet Concerto in E-flat Major was composed in 1796 for Anton Weidinger, a Viennese trumpeter who developed a keyed trumpet capable of playing chromatic notes. This innovation allowed Haydn to explore a wider range of expressive possibilities, incorporating lyrical melodies and rapid passages previously unattainable on the natural trumpet. - Similarly, Hummel's Trumpet Concerto in E-flat Major, composed in 1803, was also written for Weidinger and the keyed trumpet. Hummel, a prominent composer and pianist of the time, crafted a work that emphasizes virtuoso technique and lyrical expression. The concerto opens with a grand, dramatic Allegro, followed by a lyrical Andante, and concludes with a lively Rondo, which tests the soloist's agility and technical prowess. Hummel's concerto reflects the transition from the Classical style of Haydn to the more elaborate, early Romantic idiom. - Played by the young, gifted Italian trumpet player Marianne LI Gregni, accompanied by the Orchestra da camera Domenico Mazzocchi del Civita Festival, conducted by Martin Sieghart.

William Byrd (c.1540-1623) was an English composer who wrote in every genre prevalent in his day and displayed proficiency in each musical category he attempted. Whether it was sacred or secular vocal music, his consort writing for viols, or his music for the keyboard, Byrd was a supreme musical architect. His writing reached the height of musical sophistication in England during his lifetime. In Byrd's day, virginals, harpsichords and all manner of plucked-string keyboard instruments were widely played throughout England. Organs, both large and small, were also in wide use throughout the country. Byrd held an important position as organist at Lincoln Cathedral, and it is certain he would have played many of his keyboard compositions on the organ. Like his contemporaries, he rarely specified the particular keyboard instrument to be used. The uncomplicated reality of the period was that players simply used what was available to them at the time. Byrd's keyboard compositions fall broadly into four categories: fantasias, settings of popular songs, variations, and dance pieces. The middle half of the 16th century saw this first genre evolve from a work for lute or viol consort into a keyboard piece. The developing Tudor fantasia featured continuous imitation, rapid figurations and hitherto unknown displays of virtuosity. Above all, it was keyboard writing which was decisively idiomatic. Byrd's compositions of this type are sectionalized works and are, more often than not, somewhat formulaic. Customarily beginning in the style of a cantus firmus choral motet with long note values, musical ideas are exposed and heard in various registers of the keyboard. This was typically followed by an answering phrase with shorter note values and a sharply contrasted character. New ideas continue to emerge and the writing becomes increasingly more complex and virtuosic. There is habitually a tripla section and a codetta notable for it's brilliant scalic writing. Thus, the Byrd fantasia is a clever and distinctive amalgam of the ancient motet style, with it's overlapping entries, and the emerging features of idiomatic keyboard writing formulas. His unique approach to rhythm, which puts his keyboard music in a class of it's own, features cross-rhythms, hemiolas, polyrhythms, frequent changes of meters, outrageous syncopation and even jaunty jig-like episodes. Other information: - Recorded April 2024 at the University of Birmingham - Booklet in English contains liner notes by the organist, a description of the organ with stop list, and a profile of the artist - William Byrd was an English composer of late Renaissance music. Considered among the greatest composers of the Renaissance, he had a profound influence on composers both from his native England and on the continent. On his death, he was reported in the records of the Chapel Royal as 'father of Music'. He wrote in many of the forms current in England at the time, including various types of sacred and secular polyphony, keyboard (the so-called Virginalist school), and consort music. - Unlike the more formal structures of his contemporaries, Byrd's Organ Fantasias exhibit freedom and fluidity, often moving between contrasting sections that vary in texture, tempo, and mood. This variety allows the pieces to shift from reflective, meditative passages to lively, rhythmic episodes, creating a dynamic and engaging listening experience. Byrd's use of dissonance, chromaticism, and unusual harmonies gives his fantasias a unique emotional depth, setting them apart from other keyboard works of the time. - It would be difficult to think of an instrument in the United Kingdom today better suited to William Byrd's music than the St Telio organ in the vicinity of Cardiff, Wales. Built by the English organ builders Martin Goetze and Dominic Gwynn in 2001, this chamber instrument is based on a remarkable discovery - a soundboard unearthed in 1977 in Suffolk. It's pipes are constructed on the only pipes surviving from the mediaeval West Country tradition from John Loosemore's 1665 organ for Nettlecombe Court. The extremely narrow scaling produces a sound which is surprisingly rich with a somewhat sibilant trait. It works with hand-operated bellows. This gives rise to very subtle surges and dips in sound pressure and volume as well as the occasional rattle and creak, adding an extra layer of authenticity. - Jangoo Chapkhana is an organist and harpsichordist of international standing, as well as an orchestral conductor. His career highlights include organ recitals in Westminster Abbey (London), St Mary The Virgin (New York City) and two recitals in Washington National Cathedral (USA).

This third instalment in Brilliant Classics' French Cello Sonatas series features the phenomenal composer Louise Farrenc (1804-1875), who is enjoying a much deserved revival amid contemporary focus on women composers, and the enigmatic and formidable Charles-Valentin Alkan (1813-1888), renowned for his complex compositional language and extreme piano virtuosity. Farrenc was a French composer, virtuoso pianist and a teacher of the Romantic period. Her compositions include three symphonies, a few choral works, numerous chamber pieces and a wide variety of piano music. Her Cello Sonata in B-flat, Op.46, in three movements, was one of her last compositions (1859). The treatment of the two instruments, especially the piano, with it's extensive use of tremolo, broken octaves and scale passages, indicates inspiration taken from Beethoven's cello sonatas as a model. The opening movement, Allegro moderato, glides along effortlessly. A lovely Andante sostenuto, full of ornamentation serves as the middle movement. The finale is a lively Allegro. The work of French composer and virtuoso pianist Charles-Valentin Alkan possesses a unique blend of complexity, innovation and emotional depth, positioning him as one of the most distinctive Romantic composers. Known for his formidable technique and reclusive nature, Alkan's compositions were marked by their technical demands and unorthodox structures, attracting both admiration and mystique. His Cello Sonata in E, Op.47 stands out as an example of his flair for blending instrumental colour and thematic development. Composed in 1856 (three years before Farrenc's), this piece is an intriguing exploration of the cello's expressive range, juxtaposed with the piano's virtuosic potential. It is structured in four movements, each showcasing the composer's penchant for unexpected turns and rich harmonies. The first movement introduces a lyrical yet intricate dialogue between cello and piano, establishing an interplay that continues throughout the sonata. The third movement, marked Adagio, highlights Alkan's capacity for profound, almost spiritual expressiveness, contrasting the vigorous and playful nature of the final Allegretto. This combination of heartfelt emotion and formidable technical demands makes the work a true test for performers. Though not as frequently performed as mainstream Romantic sonatas, Alkan's Cello Sonata has been rediscovered for it's inventive composition and serves as a testament to his ingenuity and the depth of his often-overlooked musical legacy. Other information: - Recorded 2024 in Moscow - Booklet in English contains liner notes and profiles of the artists - This third CD in a unique series of "French Cello Sonatas" presents two works from the Romantic period, the cello sonatas by Louise Farrenc and Charles-Valentin Alkan. - The sonata by Alkan is a bold, substantial work in rich romantic idiom. Alkan's superhuman pianism is reflected in the challenging piano part. The works of female composer Louise Farrenc receive more and more recognition nowadays. Her Cello Sonata is a full blooded romantic work, a gem in the genre. - Marina Tarasova is one of the most renowned cellists of today: 'Her playing is generous in tone, full-blooded in expression, passionate and confident, evidently fired by love for and commitment to the music.' Gramophone. She is winner of international competitions in Prague, Florence, Paris, and a laureate of the Tchaikovsky competition in Moscow. She began playing the cello at the age of six and studied at the Gnessin School with Alexander Fedorchenko and at the Moscow Conservatoire with Natalia Shakhovskaya. Her vast repertoire spans the 17th century to the present day. She has worked with many renowned musicians, such as Mikhail Pletnev, Mariss Jansons, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Kurt Masur, Eduard Grach and Yuri Bashmet. - Marina Tarasova's piano partner is the excellent Ivan Sokolov. - The first volume of French Cello Sonatas (BC96566) presented works by Gabriel Piernei (1863-1937), Eidouard Lalo (1823-1892) and Charles Koechlin (1867-1959); the second volume... Vincent D'Indy (1851-1931), Leon Boellmann (1862-1897) and Charles-Marie Widor (1844-1937) (BC 96821).

On the English musical landscape of the second half of the 18th century, the name Elizabeth Turner stands out as a rare example of a female musician flourishing on British soil. She was successful singer on London's stages between about 1740 and 1756, as well as a composer and harpsichordist. Few of her biographical details have come down to us: her date of birth is unknown, and her year of death (1756) is inferred from reports in English newspapers of the time. The number and dates of printed references to her singing (the earliest is from March 1744) suggests a premature passing that interrupted an acclaimed vocal career. Rivalled only by her fellow singer-composer and contemporary Elisabetta de Gambarini (1731-1765, a Londoner of Italian descent), Elizabeth Turner alternated her activity on the stage with composition, publishing two volumes. The first, Twelve Songs, With Symphonies and a Thorough Bass for the Harpsichord (London, 1750), is a collection of English folk songs; the second, A Collection of Songs With Symphonies and a Thorough Bass. With Six Lessons for the Harpsichord (London, 1756), places 19 songs on texts by British poets alongside 6 lessons for harpsichord. The 'Lessons' genre was one very much in vogue in mid-18th-century England, as evidenced by Purcell's A Choice Collection of Lessons for the Harpsichord or Spinnet (1696), the aforementioned Gambarini's Six Sets of Lessons for the Harpsichord (1748), and Thomas Arne's VIII Sonatas or Lessons for the Harpsichord (1756). Turner's Six Harpsichord Lessons here receive their first complete recording. Each is divided into several movements, in the manner of a sonata. The style is often similar to that of the companion songs in her volume, whose melodies refer distinctly to the models of the tradition (from Purcell down to Boyce, via Thomas Arne and Maurice Greene). This is music intended for refined and cultured amateur performers, whose performances were moments of social conviviality where playing constituted pure pleasure. Yet in a society, such as England's, that relegated the role of women in music to the horizon of amusement, entertainment and domestic pastime, the figure of Elizabeth Turner emerges with disruptive and revolutionary force. Her sort of revolution is not one that demands a paradigm shift, it does not aspire to break the mould, it does not have a vocation for destruction: it is a gentle revolution, made up of elegance and grace, and precisely in it's gentleness it calls out to be heard, an invitation we cannot decline. Other information: - Recorded March 2024 in Silvelle (Italy) - Booklet in English contains liner notes by Maddalena Bonechi, as well as a note from the performer and her biography - Costanza Leuzzi plays a French double-manual harpsichord (anon. , after Pascal Taskin; renovated 2020, Andrea Di Maio) tuned to the Young II temperament at a=415 - Italian liner notes available at brilliantclassics. Com - Elizabeth Turner's (?-1756) Six Lessons for Harpsichord, published in 1756, the year of her death, is a significant contribution to 18th-century keyboard music, reflecting the stylistic characteristics of the time. Little is known about Turner herself, but her work stands as one of the few harpsichord collections by a female composer during that era, making it a valuable historical artifact. The Six Lessons are structured as suites, each consisting of multiple short movements, such as minuets, and gigues, which were popular dance forms in Baroque music. - Turner's compositions exhibit a blend of French and Italian influences, which were prevalent in English harpsichord music of the period. The pieces are characterized by their elegant melodic lines and ornamentation, typical of the French style, alongside rhythmic vitality that hints at Italian practices. The works are accessible for amateur performers, suggesting they were intended for domestic music-making rather than professional concert settings. - The Six Lessons offer insight into the musical tastes and domestic entertainment practices of 18th-century England, particularly for women, who were often encouraged to learn keyboard instruments. Turner's work is a rare example of a published female composer in a male-dominated field. - Costanza Leuzzi, a pupil of Roberto Loreggian, wrote a dissertation on the life and work of Elizabeth Turner. With the purpose of giving new life to Turner's music, Costanza also founded an ensemble of young musicians and gives concerts where she combines the musical performance and the storytelling of the English composer's life. - The interest in unknown authors and forgotten musical literature is the main focus of Costanza's musical career, which aims to share lost masterpieces that deserve to be rediscovered in our time.

As is the case with so many 18th-century composers, Giuseppe Sarti (1727-1802) enjoyed fame in his lifetime to rival W. A. Mozart's but is scarcely known today. Some might remember him as the author of the aria "Come un agnello", borrowed by Mozart in Don Giovanni. After all, Sarti's arias were in his lifetime regarded as true models of Italian style. Even after his death, they were regularly performed in the salons of the nobility. But by about 1840 the memory of the man and his works had largely faded. In recent decades, however, there has been a renewed focus on Sarti; not only for his compositions, but also for his merits as a pedagogue and theorist. The 6 Sonate a Flauto Traversiero solo e Basso Continuo were published in Paris by Christophe Le Menu. The date of publication, 1772, can be deduced from an advertisement that appeared in a periodical late that year. It is a collection of sonatas definitely conceived for an audience at a more professional than amateur level, with writing decidedly suited to the instrumental peculiarities of the transverse flute, which, according to the taste of the time, took as it's model the singing qualities of the human voice. This allowed Sarti to take advantage of his skill at composing operas in order to write particularly touching, even dramatic melodies, with typically theatrical affects such as in the Largo and Cantabile of the First Sonata or the Andante of the Fourth Sonata, both in the key of G minor, which on the transverse flute is, with it's veiled timbre, delicately affectionate. In the context of what is one of the main characteristics of flute (and violin) writing by Italian composers, Sarti employs an articulation dominated by legato, clearly diversifying himself, as did the French composers, from the predominantly articulated style that prevailed with German composers. The remarkably flautistic writing, for a composer who did not play the instrument nor wrote much instrumental music in general, suggests he may have been in contact with a flute virtuoso who either advised or inspired him. A credible hypothesis is that a collaboration with the orchestra of the Grand Duchy of Florence led him to work closely with it's principal flautist, the virtuoso Niccolo Dôthel. Other information: - Recorded December 2023 in Florence - Booklet in English contains liner notes by the harpsichordist, Giacomo Benedetti, along with profiles of all three players - Liner notes and biographical information in Italian available at brilliantclassics. Com - Giuseppe Sarti (1729-1802), an Italian composer primarily known for his operatic works, also contributed significantly to instrumental music. His flute sonatas exemplify the elegance and refinement of late Baroque and early Classical styles. - Sarti's flute sonatas are characterized by their lyrical melodies, which reflect the influence of vocal music, a hallmark of his operatic background. The sonatas typically follow the three-movement structure -fast-slow-fast- that was common in the 18th century. The first movements are often lively, with energetic, flowing lines for the flute, while the middle movements tend to be more expressive, allowing the instrument to display it's capacity for emotional nuance. The final movements bring a spirited conclusion, often featuring dance-like rhythms. - These sonatas were likely written for amateur musicians, given the rising popularity of the flute in domestic music-making circles of the time. As a result, they strike a balance between technical accessibility and artistic depth. - Played by Giovanni Miszczyszyn (Traversiere flute, made by Luca Ripanti in Turin/ Italy 2023, after Carlo Alberto Felice Palanca around 1760), Valeria Brunelli and Giacomo Benedetti. Giovanni Miszczyszyn studied with Peter Lucas Graf, and followed Master Classes with Aurele Nicolet and Jean-Pierre Rampal. At the same time he specialized in Baroque flute in seminars and classes with Barthold Kuijken and Pierre Sechet.

While the life of Giuseppe Tartini (1692-1770) is well documented, the same cannot be said for Leonhard Frischmuth (c. 1725-1764), a name unknown to many. Frischmuth is today best known for having created and published keyboard transcriptions of six of Tartini's violin concertos. Frischmuth hailed from the Thuringian village of Grafenroda, near Gotha, where he studied organ under Johann Christoph Keller, himself a student at Leipzig's Tomasschule during the tenure of J. S. Bach. Frischmuth travelled to Amsterdam probably around 1750, where he became a pupil of Conrad Friedrich Hurlebusch, organist of the Oude Kerk. On 26 July 1763, Frischmuth was appointed organist of the Nieuwezijdskapel, the only position he is known to have held, and he died having served in the role for just 15 months. His Tartini transcriptions were published as his Opus 4 by the Dutch printer Arnoldus Olofsen in a collection of concertos 'accommodati per il cembalo' (adapted to the harpsichord) and, as was the custom, playable on other keyboard instruments such as the organ. Holland in the early 18th century was 'ground zero' for burgeoning interest in organ transcriptions of Italian instrumental concertos, beginning with the blind organist Jan Jacob de Graaf (1672-1738), who performed his own transcriptions of concertos by various composers at concerts he gave on the organ of the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam. The decision to record these concertos on a historic Italian instrument, built around 1745-50 by the Dalmatian-born organ builder Pietro Nachini (1694-1769), whom Tartini probably knew personally, can only enhance these pieces, as it's sonic characteristics would undoubtedly have been familiar to Tartini: at the Basilica del Santo in Padua, Tartini had four organs at his disposal, some of them reconstructed by Nachini in the period 1743-49. Other information: - Recorded May 2024 in Castelferretti, Ancona, Italy - Booklet in English contains liner notes by the organist, a description of the organ with stoplist, and a profile of the artist - Italian liner notes available at brilliantclassics. Com - Giuseppe Tartini (1692-1770) was a virtuoso violinist, composer, theoretician and teacher, a spider in the international cultural web in a time when Italy was the centre of the musical world, his violin school, the "School of Nations", attracted musicians from all over Europe. - Tartini wrote 125 concertos for his own instrument, the violin, attractive and melodious works full of bold harmonies and featuring brilliant solo parts that freely converse with individual voices within the orchestra. These violin concertos were so famous and popular at the time that the organist and composer Leonard Frischmuth (1721-1764) made organ transcriptions of six of them. Frischmuth, of German origin, was a student at the Thomasschule in Leipzig from 1726 to 1734, during the tenure of Johann Sebastian Bach (later he was an organist in Amsterdam). - Recorded at the historic 1750 Pietro Nachini organ at the Church of Sant'Andrea Apostolo in Castelferretti, Ancona, Italy. - Organist Luca Scandali is one of Italy's foremost scholars and keyboard players. For Brilliant Classics he recorded the complete organ works by C. P. E. Bach (nominated for the Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik, BC 94812), Galuppi, Pasquini (BC 9434) and Pellegrini & Padovano (BC 95259).

Saucy songs of sex, love and life in the Spanish Golden Age, revived and performed with relish by a native early-music ensemble. Of the 10 composers featured on this entertaining new album, only two have any claim to fame: Juan del Encina (1468-1529) and Gaspar Sanz (1640-1710). The others will be discoveries for even the most assiduous collectors of early music: the likes of Luis de Briceno, Diego Pisador, Juan Bon and Juan Aranes. This rarity value, appealing in itself, is perhaps less germane to the character of the album than the bawdy and boisterous character of the whole. Many of the melodies may have originated as settings of sacred texts, but they became attached to decidedly profane verses: one song to the tune of another, as it were. The booklet essay exposes the many double-entendres latent within both texts and settings. Several are couched in explicitly anti-clerical vein, mocking the clergy for their hypocrisy and priapism. Other texts rejoice in the pleasures of hedonism, for both men and women, inviting the listener to enjoy by proxy the prospect of threesomes and happy endings. In the nature of such songs, the music swaps sophistication for good, simple fun, based on strong Spanish rhythms, rooted in chaconne and folia ground basses. Several of them were originally sung as verses and chorus, with everyone present joining in. There are also seguidillas of a more erotic and sensual nature, but the texts still appeal to the listener with a dirty mind. These reconstructions accordingly seek to recapture the rough and tumble of a late-night session at a grimy bar in 17th-century Burgos. Not, perhaps, an album for those who like their music on the straight and narrow. Led by Jose Duce Chenoll, Amystis has a track record of success in unearthing both sacred and profane musical treasures from Golden-Age Spain. 'Chenoll has an endearing way of letting his singers express the music with a natural flow free of effects.' (Fanfare on works by Joan Bautista Comes, 95231). - This highly interesting and original concept album presents vocal works from 16th century Spain dealing with eroticism in all it's forms. - In this music we find the vivid expression of the amorous, sexual, private and at the same time playful life of a society which gave expression to it's impulses and passions, thus describing a vivid sound tapestry of Spain's Golden Age of Juan del Encina, Garcilaso, Cervantes, Lope de Vega and Gongora. - Presented are works by many, nowadays forgotten, composers. The excellent, comprehensive and scientific liner notes explain the text of each song, illustrating the often double meaning of certain words and phrases. - The title of the CD takes up the title of a poem by an anonymous Spanish poet ("Through the mountains of Conares - Sung by the Amystis solo vocalists and played by a rich instrumental group including viola da gamba, recorders, vihuela and percussion, everything under the direction of Jose Duce Chenoll.

Albert Harris (1916-2005) was an English musician who worked in Hollywood for most of his life as an orchestrator, arranger and composer for several of the big film Studios and for such pop icons as Barbra Streisand, Roberta Flack and Cher. He was born in London and studied piano from age 6, becoming also a self-taught guitarist. His knowledge of the guitar enabled him in later years to compose pieces specifically for it (his Variations & Fugue on a Theme by Handel was recorded by Andres Segovia). In the mid-1930s he began to make a name for himself as a session musician in London where he featured on many recordings, most notably as session guitarist with the Lew Stone band, his delicate but swinging improvisations enhancing many of Stone's records during 1934/35. Harris came to New York in 1938 and started playing piano in big bands across the US then began studying at the NYU College of Music, where he earned a doctorate in 1944. He finished the PhD remotely, having moved to Los Angeles in 1942, where he studied composition with Mary Carr Moore and Eugen Zador and conducting with Richard Lert. He served as professor of orchestration at UCLA and was Assistant Musical Director for broadcaster NBC from 1946 to 1949. Written in three movements, the Sonatina is one of the most emblematic pieces in Harris's catalogue. Popular elements from his adopted land, linked to graceful writing attentive to melodic construction, make this guitar composition one of his best. The Suite was composed in 1972 and features seven dance movements with modern and elaborate harmonies similar to those of jazz, especially in the Waltz. Homage to Unamuno was written in 1972 in tribute to it's dedicatee, a symbol of Spanish liberal thought and a high representative of Spanish literature. The short Intermezzo was included in a collection of compositions that appeared in the Classic Guitar Society's periodical magazine, Guitar News, in 1952, and despite it's brevity the elegance of Harris's language remains. Perhaps the composer's best-known guitar composition, together with the Sonatina, the Variations & Fugue on a Theme of Handel are dedicated to the great guitarist Andres Segovia, who was the first to record it. The work is highly influenced by the Spanish guitarist's style. In it Handel's theme is treated with highly original variations that rapidly transform the material and it's meaning. The three short Fantastic Dances, commissioned by the Guitar Foundation of America, were written in 1988, and although written in the same tuning they each present clearly different material and characters. The element that binds them is their brilliance and dynamism. They were composed as a compulsory piece for an international competition held that year. Other information: - Recording completed in December 2023 in Rome, Italy - Booklet in English contains liner notes by the guitarist on the composer and the works, and a profile of the artist - Michele di Filippo plays a guitar by Antonino Scandurra - Albert Harris (1916-2005) was an English musician who worked most of his life in Hollywood as an orchestrator, arranger and composer for several of the big Film Studios and for such pop icons as Barbra Streisand, Roberta Flack and Cher. - Harris was born in London and studied piano from age 6 and was also a self-taught guitarist; his knowledge of this instrument enabled him in later years to compose pieces specifically for guitar, his Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel were recorded by Andres Segovia. In America he won the National Composer's Award for his "Concerto de California" scored for guitar and String Quartet. Among those nominating Harris was Aaron Copland with whom Harris shares a harmonic language that, in the words of Ned Rorem, "sounds like the great outdoors". - This new recording presents the complete works for guitar solo, consisting of a Suite, a Sonatina, Variations & Fugue on a theme of Handel and 3 Fantastic Dances. - Played with commitment and feeling for the idiom by Michele Di Filippo.

A new recording, unique in the catalogue, of the First (and only surviving) book of keyboard works by Charles de Mars (1702-1774). Compared to many other composers of his era, we know a good deal about the life of de Mars (alternatively known as Demars), making it all the more surprising that the present collection represents all the music of his to have come down to us. He was born to a wax merchant in Sezanne, a small town on the border between the French regions of Brie and Champagne. Several of his relatives were musicians, organists in particular, such as his two brothers. Indeed, we can trace more than 12 members of the de Mars/Tourneur dynasty as organists all over France. Again, the curiosity is that none of their compositions have survived, though they would have written music for their posts just as Charles de Mars did. There is a Handelian flavour to the harmony of the four suites in de Mars's volume, which was published in 1735 and therefore could conceivably have been written with awareness of the older composer's Eight Great Suites for harpsichord. Many features of the volume make it a singular body of work in the French harpsichord tradition. de Mars eschews descriptive titles for individual movements, and occasionally prescribes the performer to play with 'notes egales', and therefore specifically not in the inegale style which we associate with French keyboard composers of the day. As a specialist in this field of unfamiliar keyboard repertoire from the 17th and 18th centuries, with an impressive catalogue of Brilliant Classics albums already to his credit, Simone Pierini has explored the life and work of de Mars for himself, and produced an authoritative booklet essay to accompany his new recording of the Pieces de Clavecin. The Fanfare reviewer of his 3CD album of keyboard sonatas by Helene de Montgeroult considered it 'a major addition to the catalogue', noting that Pierini 'plays with tremendous energy and conviction.' - The Pieces de clavecin by Charles de Mars (1707-1774) are written in the rich tradition of French Baroque harpsichord music. A composer largely overshadowed by luminaries like Francois Couperin and Jean-Philippe Rameau, de Mars nonetheless contributed to the genre with his distinctive style, characterized by elegant ornamentation and a refined sense of harmony. - de Mars's harpsichord works are steeped in the galant aesthetic, bridging the ornate Baroque style with the more expressive and accessible traits of the early Classical period. His music often features dance forms like the allemande, courante, and sarabande, which were central to the French clavecinistes. - One of the hallmarks of his Pieces de clavecin is his innovative use of ornaments, or agrements, which add a shimmering quality to the melodies. These works also reflect de Mars's ability to evoke character and mood, making them miniature portraits of the 18th-century French musical ethos. - Played by Simone Pierini on a harpsichord by Giulio Fratini after M. Mietke, 2014. Born in Rome in 1996, Pierini began studying music at the age of eight. Aged eighteen, he graduated in piano at S. Cecilia Conservatory of Music, Rome, with highest honors. He afterwards grew interest in historically informed piano practice, attending masterclasses led by Alexei Lubimov, Andreas Staier, Tobias Koch, Stefano Fiuzzi. Subsequently, his interest about historical keyboards in general grew further, and he began studying harpsichord and basso continuo with such teachers as Andrea Coen and Giovanni Togni. His recordings with music by Cherubini and the complete piano sonatas by Helene de Montgeroult were very positively received by the press. Classic FM nominated him as one of the 30 best musicians under 30 in 2024.

- This disc presents the first recording of the Canzonettas & Cantatas Op.3 by Giovanni Battista Mazzaferrata (c.1640-1681), an Italian composer and organist from Pavia, the pupil of Tarquinio Merula. He held positions as Maestro di cappella at Vercelli Cathedral and at the Accademia della Morte in Ferrara. - These vocal works are on secular poetry, mostly dealing with Love, expressing both blissful happiness or tormented frustration. - The emotions in the text are expressed by Mazzaferrate through modulations, cadences and an original use of chromatism. - Beautifully sung by the three vocal soloists Carlotta Colombo, Marta Fumagalli and Mauro Borgioni. The Instrumental Ensemble includes trombone, guitar and organ/harpsichord.

The only complete available recording of a landmark in Elizabethan keyboard music. With a huge catalogue of Brilliant Classics recordings to his credit, Pieter-Jan Belder has won particular praise for his ambitious project to record the complete Fitzwilliam Virginal Book), a treasury of English keyboard music from the late Elizabethan and early Jacobean era. Now he focuses his attention on the greatest English composer of that age, with a volume dedicated to William Byrd, and to his largest single collection of music for the keyboard.

My Ladye Nevells Booke embraces the most popular genres of its day. Its contents are typical fare for English Renaissance composers: dances, variation sets, marches, contrapuntal fantasies and programmatic pieces, and the repertory comes from a period beginning in the mid 1560s. Byrd makes each of these genres his own with consummate ingenuity; the variety and the beauty of the collection as a whole rewards players and listeners alike. The CD booklet contains an extensive essay on My Ladye Nevells Booke by Jon Baxendale, who is co-editor of the latest edition of the score.

Showpiece variations, folksongs, little-known trios and an early masterpiece: an unrivalled survey of Beethoven’s flute writing in new recordings by experienced Italian chamber musicians.

In writing his sets of folksong variations, the result always falls easily upon the ear while putting amateur musicians through their paces, technically speaking, and demanding far more of their expressive imagination. The other pieces here date from Beethoven’s earliest years as a composer in Bonn. The Trio for flute, bassoon and piano shows a strong Mozartian influence; the B flat Sonata for flute and piano is a striking example of the apprentice musician learning his craft and refining his voice, which emerges in the unexpected context of a modest Duo for two flutes. However, it is the seven-movement Serenade Op. 25, scored for flute, violin and viola, where we find Beethoven most elegantly adapted to the role of ‘occasional’ composer.

These new recordings are led by the flautist Ginevra Petrucci, who is now based in New York as a performer, editor and author of several volumes on the flute, and a specialist in new music. ‘A a very talented and well-educated musician,’ according to the Fanfare magazine review of her Brilliant Classics album of flute concertos by Briccialdi (95767).