Music in the tempest of the times: If we seek to deal with Gerhard Frommel’s personality and music (a master pupil of Hans Pfitzner) in greater depth, as in the case of many other German composers of his generation, we cannot avoid going into the historical and political events and the underlying active and reactive behavior of the individual. Concepts like opportunism or passive obedience come readily to mind, but they fall short of the truth, if we were not direct contemporary witnesses. His position during the years 1933-45 becomes all the more salient as regards the works recorded here, both of which were written at that time. Many things sound familiar; Wagner, Bruckner and other elements from the past stand out trenchantly, ‘For me, the 1st Symphony is at the centre of my oeuvre.’ Frommel says. The score reached Wilhelm Furtwängler, who then scheduled its premiere with the Vienna Philharmonic for the autumn of 1942.

Dora Deliyska writes of her new release: “Based on a thorough musical analysis, I have tried to make a selection of pieces that will not only respond musically to one another, but also represent part of an overarching concept, the structure of B-A-C-H. The core of my concept is based on the idea of how musical compositions, written in different centuries with different compositional styles, can find a connection between one another, giving rise to very new and unique reflections. This way, the three composers (Bach, Chopin, Shostakovich) ‘communicate’ with one another, mutually influencing their artistic ideas.” Dora Deliyska has gained an international attention of audience and critics with her concert appearances, audio and video recordings. Due to her many recordings of works by Franz Liszt, she is considered one of the mot important Liszt interpreters of the young generation. But not only this has aroused the interest of the public: she has also gained recognition for her recordings of Schubert and her regular appearances in the renowned Vienna Musikverein and in the Vienna Konzerthaus.

The Doppler brothers played a dominant role in the K&K Monarchy’s musical life as composers, conductors, musicians and as orchestral soloists. They were on good terms with acknowledged artists of the era, such as Ferenc Liszt, Ferenc Erkel, or Jozsef Bajza. This is the fifth release in a set of 10 albums comprising the Dopplers' complete music for flute(s), including various arrangements. Flautist Claudi Arimany spent decades researching this project, inspiring many famous musicians to become involved in its realisation. Flutists Walter Auer, Shigenori Kudo, and Massimo Mercelli are heard alongside Claudi Arimany on this volume. Internationally renowned flautist Claudi Arimany is considered the direct heir, both in style and concept, of Jean-Pierre Rampal, his mentor and colleague. He has been performing alongside leading international orchestras as a guest soloist as well as teaching and studying flute pieces.

Harald Genzmer was a composition pupil of Paul Hindemith in Berlin from 1928 to 1934. Whoever studies Genzmer’s enormous oeuvre in detail will recognize in the pupil’s music many Romantic gestures and a sensual imagination rarely occurring in the teacher’s works. What Genzmer adopted from his mentor was the masterly craftsmanship, an awareness of classicism and form and joy in performing in itself and in the colours of the most differing instruments. The broadly educated scion of an academic family never regarded himself as a genius transcending boundaries, but as the servant of performers and the public: ‘Music should be zestful, artful and comprehensible. As practicable, it may win over the interpreter, and then the listener as graspable’. Musicians have always enjoyed performing Genzmer’s inspired music, which is affectionally adapted to the most varied instrumentations, and are now continuing to do so in increasing measure.

Bohuslav Martinů has suffered the fate of not enjoying the same popularity and wide appeal like Bedrich Smetana, Antonín Dvorák und Leoš Janácek on the podium. This often goes so far that his singular skill is referred to, but that the wealth of his oeuvre in all the salient genres is hardly familiar. For decades, Martinu had shied away from composing a symphony. The first one was finally to be written in the USA in 1942, followed by another one every year until 1946 (the sixth was only added to the work catalogue in 1953). For this reason, there is sometimes talk of the ‘American’ symphonies. The symphonies do mirror the events of the time, but at the same time long passages must be regarded as absolute music. Cornelius Meister is regarded as one of the finest young conductors of our day and age, and here he fantastically interprets these six symphonies with transparency, emotion, and aplomb.

REVIEWS:

It is always good to discover new recordings of Martinů’s symphonies, a sequence all the more remarkable for the short period, in which the first five symphonies were composed. Cornelius Meister, with the ORF Orchestra, provides us with a distinctive vision of Martinů’s symphonies. These performances sit very much in the Austro-German traditions of interpretation. Some moments are almost Brahmsian, phrasing is weighty, structure is emphasized.

Cornelius Meister is one of the most interesting of the younger conductors around. He has a superb rapport with his orchestra, whose playing is very fine throughout.

-- MusicWeb International

The appearance of this complete set of six symphonies on three CDs, recorded live in Vienna from 2011 to 2017, serves to reinforce the essential importance of Martinů as a 20th century orchestral composer. Although it doesn’t supplant the splendid Belohlávek Onyx set, it's nonetheless a very fine cycle. The sound is clear and lifelike, with most of the advantages of live recording, a sense of occasion and excitement and a more organic and natural arc to the performance, without too many of the disadvantages. The audience is mainly well-behaved and the applause is edited out.

-- Music for Several Instruments

Daniel Behle is one of the most versatile German tenors, with successes in concerts, recitals and the opera alike: “The basic idea for this programme was originally a homage to the golden 1950s and 1960s and my favourite singer of that time, Fritz Wunderlich. Earlier, not everything used to be bad, and for this reason I find it legitimate to ‘re-animate’ the greatest ‘pearls’ once more and present them to a younger audience.” Daniel Behle was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2014 in the recording of Leonardo Vinci’s Artaserse. His lieder recordings and solo CDs, including Die schöne Mullerin, Dichterliebe, Strauss songs and Bach arias, have been praised by critics. His debut album for Decca (Gluck arias with Armonia Atenea) was released in 2014.

Victor Bruns, born 1904 in Ollila in today’s Finland, wrote over 20 solo concertos, 50 chamber pieces and several ballet works. Bruns discovered the bassoon as his true vocation and moved to the Leningrad Conservatory in 1924, until he became bassoonist at Leningrad State Opera in 1927. Bruns completed his studies in composition with Vladimir Shtsherbatshov beside his work in the orchestra and he continued his compositional studies in 1946 with Boris Blacher. He worked as bassoonist of the Staatskapelle Berlin from 1946 until his retirement in 1969 and became a frequently performed composer, popular among musicians and audience alike far beyond the borders of the German Democratic Republic, whose works continue to deserve our attention. In 1960, Victor Bruns was awarded the Art Prize of the German Democratic Republic. In 1971, he was appointed an honorary member of the Berlin State Orchestra, and 20 years later the International Double Reed Society in the USA made him an honorary member.

20 years ago, at the beginning of his career, the young baritone Bo Skovhus made his first recording of Schubert’s “Schöne Mullerin”. Now, as a famous opera and Lied interpreter he presents a new production of all 3 Schubert Cycles: “I’m very thankful to do this again. As a young men you do not reflect so much what happen. Now, when I’m older, I understand much more about. Especially for this cycle it’s important to have another point of view.” (Bo Skovhus) Stefan Vladar, the famous Viennese pianist and his partner on the piano, shows us the virtuosity of the piano part in a new different light.

On May 28th May Mitsuko Shirai celebrated her 70th birthday. She looks back on life rich with musical performances: lieder, concerts, and also operas. The Lied duo Mitsuko Shirai / Hartmut Holl have created their own vast library of songs with numerous recordings and set new standards with concerts and releases. ''I prize all the recordings of Mstuko Shirai and Hartmut Holl, a historically great partnership in song, and I cherish the memory of the many times I heard them live.'' (Richard Dyer, Boston Globe)

Together with his friend Holst, at the beginning of the 20th century Ralph Vaughan Williams deliberately took the course of liberating himself from ''German influence'', as they called it, working for original British music. He found models and inspiration in original English folk music. Most of the works recorded here rank among the less known pieces by the composer, but all of them very clearly reflect the personal hue, the absolutely ''personal style'' of Ralph Vaughan Williams.

Capriccio Encore is a series of re-releases of the most famous recordings from Capriccio's back catalogue, fully re-mastered. The legendary recordings of artists such as Sandor Végh, Ton Koopman, Sir Neville Marriner and the Vienna Boys' Choir also contain repertoire highlights that have a particularly special appeal, from the baroque to the present day. This specific Encore album features the Vienna Boys' Choir alongside the Symphonieorchester der Wiener Volksoper, performing Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Requiem in D minor and Ave verum corpus. Also on the album is Anton Bruckner's Motetten.

Austrian composer Hanns Eisler is best known for composing the national anthem of the German Democratic Republic, for his long partnership with Bertolt Brecht, and for his film scores. His promising career in Hollywood, however, was interrupted by the Cold War. Film studio bosses blacklisted his music, and he was subjected to two interrogations by the House Committee on Un-American Activities. Despite efforts by his American musical powerhouse friends Leonard Bernstein and Aaron Copland, he was deported in 1948. In addition to the Oscar-nominated score for Fritz Lang’s film “Hangmen Also Die,” this release contains other rarely heard works by Hanns Eisler, in which the special interpretation that this pupil of Schoenberg had developed of the twelve-tone technique plays an astonishingly important role for the field of film and orchestral music.

REVIEWS:

Eisler's music bears the stamp of a modern original. Thankfully, recordings of his works are far more plentiful than they once were. The Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin under Johannes Kalitzer do the honors for these works and their dedication gives us what sound to be very fitting performances, spirited and detailed.

-- Gapplegate Classical-Modern Music Review

The composer wrote the first book on composing for film and treated the craft as an art in its own right. His score to Hangmen Also Die was nominated for a 1942 Oscar. The Grapes of Wrath is an alternative score to John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, which was being filmed at the time by John Ford with music by Alfred Newman. Eisler’s work, with a searing twelve-tone lament, is infinitely preferable. And then there is a serialist score for Joris Ivens’s Maiost propaganda film, The 400 Million, again a work of uncompromising power. Beautifully played. We really need to hear more Eisler.

-- Musical Toronto

What a man, what a violin, what an artist! […] And his expression, his manner of phrasing, and finally his soul!’ Franz Liszt, 1831 (about Paganini). The transcriptions and arrangements of Paganini’s études represent a special case and, besides a bow before the great colleague, demonstrate demands on extreme technical skills. In his études, the pianist Liszt is quite evidently endeavouring to place alongside the Devil’s violinist Niccolò Paganini a Devil’s Pianist, which he completely succeeds in doing. In general, recourse is taken to the second version (1851) today, as it seems to be in keeping with Liszt’s definitive desire. However, all the more interesting on this new release is a direct comparison with the earlier version (1838), which exhibits an even more dense notation and difficulties transcending technical borders.

Capriccio's Encore series features re-releases of the most famous recordings from the Capriccio back catalogue. These legendary recordings are of artists like Sandor Vegh, Ton Koopman, Sir Neville Marriner and the Vienna Boys' Choir. The series spans highlights from the baroque era to the contemporary era. This album showcases the Moscow Virtuosi, led by Vladimir Spivakov in a famous recording of Schnittke's Hieronymus Bosch Fragments.

Capriccio Encore is a series of re-releases of the most famous recordings from Capriccio’s back catalogue, fully re-mastered and competitively priced. The legendary recordings of artists such as Sandor Végh, Ton Koopman, Sir Neville Marriner and the Vienna Boys’ Choir also contain repertoire highlights that have a particularly special appeal, from the baroque to the present day. This Encore release's highlight is Luigi Cherubini's Coronation Mass Krönungsmesse, performed by Kölner Rundfunkchor and Capella Coloniensis.

Capriccio Encore is a series of re-releases of the most famous recordings from Capriccio’s back catalogue, fully re-mastered and competitively priced. The legendary recordings of artists such as Sandor Végh, Ton Koopman, Sir Neville Marriner and the Vienna Boys’ Choir also contain repertoire highlights that have a particularly special appeal, from the baroque to the present day. This specific Encore release features Sergei Rachmaninov's Symphony No. 2 and Vocalise, Op. 34 No. 14, performed by the Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart, lead by Sir Neville Marriner.

Capriccio Encore is a series of re-releases of the most famous recordings from Capriccio’s back catalogue, fully re-mastered and competitively priced. The legendary recordings of artists such as Sandor Végh, Ton Koopman, Sir Neville Marriner and the Vienna Boys’ Choir also contain repertoire highlights that have a particularly special appeal, from the baroque to the present day. This Encore release features iconic works by Richard Strauss performed by the Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart, lead by Sir Neville Marriner.

Capriccio Encore is a series of re-releases of the most famous recordings from Capriccio’s back catalogue, fully re-mastered and competitively priced. The legendary recordings of artists such as Sandor Végh, Ton Koopman, Sir Neville Marriner and the Vienna Boys’ Choir also contain repertoire highlights that have a particularly special appeal, from the baroque to the present day. This Encore release features William Boyce's 8 Symphonies, performed by the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, lead by Sir Neville Marriner.

With Capriccio Encore we re-release the most famous recordings from the back catalogue in a remastered version, new design and for a special price. Legendary recordings of artists like Sandor Vegh, Ton koopman, Sir Nevill Marriner or the Vienna boys’ Choir are also included as special repertoire highlights from the baroque to the contemporary era. This release features Concerto Koln performing music by the songs of the most famous Baroque composer, Johann Sebastian Bach. These songs come from his children Johann Christian, Carl Philipp Emanuel, Wilhelm Friedemann, and Johann Christoph Friedrich. While the master father’s influence can be clearly heard in all of these works, one can also hear the subtle shift to the Classical era in these pieces. Celebrated harpsichordist Gerald Hambitzer is the featured soloist for CPE Bach’s Harpsichord Concerto in G minor.

In order to take a respite and, in his own worlds, “to recuperate,” from his own compositions, Max Reger frequently engaged in “piece work,” in which he would arrange works by other composers. This release includes Reger’s original work 5 Orchestral Songs, as well as Reger’s arrangements of songs for voice and orchestra from Edvard Grieg, Johannes Brahms, Hugo Wolf, and Franz Schubert. Conductor Gregor Buhl has made his mark as an opera conductor. He also frequently performs on the concert stage with the Radio Symphony Orchestras of Berlin, Hamburg, and Leizip, and the Helsinki Philharmonic.

Johann Michael Haydn never quite reached the fame of his older brother Joseph, but still introduced an impressive oeuvre into the classical repertoire. J. M. Haydn’s Serenade in D was composed in Salzburg in 1767. The ten movement work displays Haydn’s affinity for chamber compositions. Founded in 1986, the Virtuosi Saxoniae is made up of principal members of the Dresden Staatskapelle. The ensemble concerns itself with 18th century European music, devoting themselves to the great figures of the Hasse era.

This re-release is one of CAPRICCIO’s most famous recordings which has been remastered for optimal quality and offered at a special price. The first work chosen for this release is Johannes Brahms’ String Quintet in G Major. The piece, scored for two violins, two violas, and cello, was intended to be the composer’s last piece of music. The one movement string sextet Verklarte Nacht (Transfigured Night) is considered Schoenberg’s earliest important work. The piece is inspired by Dehmel’s poem of the same name, and was written in just three weeks.

The title of this album comes from the Thelonius Monk piece, Round Midnight. At the time of the song’s publication, Monk was labeled an outsider. His intense harmonies and the complexities in his music put others off. The virtuosic performances on this recording, however, present an acceptable medium for such elaborate polyphonies.; Alongside this composition from a jazz great, this album also includes a wide range of moods, from the gloomy Saint-Saens Dance Macabre, to Purcell’s Fairy Queen. This album of “nighttime” themed music is performed with ease, agility, and fervor.; Performers are Falk Maertens and Raphael Mentzen, trumpet, Paolo Mendes, Horn, Andreas Klein, Trombone, and Johannes Lipp, Tuba. All are members of the Deutschen Symphonie-Orchesters Berlin.

The great niece of the largely unsung early-mid 20th century Austrian writer Heimito von Doderer whose book "Die Wasserfalle von Slunj" brought him rare recognition and was conceived as a novelistic counterpart to Beethoven's 7th Symphony, this premiere of Johanna Doderer's 2nd Symphony 'Bohinj' is an artistic memorial to Lake Bohinj in Slovenia, around 300 km away from the Croatian waterfalls her great uncle wrote about to great effect. Doderer has said she "was fascinated above all by the superb scenery. In the course of time, I found out what happened there during the First World War. In short, the idyll utters a silent scream. My three-movement work also touches on this sound." With the Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz conducted by Ariane Matiakh, the release also features teh soprano Anne Schwanewilms as well as the violinist, Yury Revich and is an excellent introduction to U.S. audiences of this prolific and much commissioned contemporary composer.

The cellist Harriet Krijgh and pianist Magda Amara present a program of Rachmaninov pieces that sensitively reflect and capture his genius with this release. Along with well known Rachmaninov repertoire, the CD also includes Sonata for cello and piano op.19 which evolved after a lengthy period of depression and compositional despair catalyzed by the critical failure of his Symphony Nr. 1 and requiring therapeutic treatments to end. Some have said that after emerging from this creative black hole, Rachmaninov’s humility and compassion produced works that were richer than was the case previously. This release makes a convincing argument that this was indeed the case.