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.

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.

German harpsichordist and organist Christine Schornsheim has studied at the Spezialschule fur Musik Berlin, the Hoschshule fur Musik Berlin, and individually under Gustav Leonhardt, Ton Koopman, Johann Sonnleitner, and Andreas Staier. Christine has been an active freelance harpsichordist since 1985. She has appeared at illustrious festivals all over the world, and performs on stages with conductors such as Sir Georg Solti, Claudio Abbado, Peter Schreier, and more. The cornerstone of this work is the Bach Goldberg Variations. Christine writes: “…the Goldberg Variations rank among the most significant works of clavier literature. I listened to my first recording, produced 25 years ago, only to notice that over the course of the years I have remained true to myself in many respects. On the other hand a process of maturation has taken place, the outcome of which I now indeed wanted to document.”

This double CD features pianist Urs Liska and follows the great success of Liska’s previous complete recordings of the songs by Arnold Schoenberg. The majority of these works, which are piano arrangements with up to four players, are world premiere recordings. These arrangements effectively show Schoenberg’s orchestral works, like Orchestral Pieces op. 16 or Gurre-Lieder in a new and fascinating light. German pianist Urs Liska focuses on the performance of contemporary music alongside ensembles and orchestras. He also composes and improvises electronic music.

This re-release is one of CAPRICCIO’s most famous recordings which has been remastered for optimal quality and offered at a special price. Henry Purcell is considered to be one of the finest English composers to have ever lived. He wrote a number of operas, and is heralded as composing the first English opera. Featured on this release are suites from four of his most popular operas, The Fairy Queen, Dioclesian, King Arthur, and The Indian Queen. Neville Marriner, who is featured as conductor on this recording, founded the Academy of St. Martin In the Fields along with John Churchill. The ensemble was a monumental part in the revival of Baroque performance in England.

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.

Born in Baden near Vienna, soprano Cornelia Hubsch attended the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz with Mrs. Elisabeth Batrice. Hubsch is a regular soloist at many stages, and has performed as several different characters in operettas. She has already won numerous prizes, including at the 2008 International Nico Dostal Competition for Operetta, and the Appreciation Award 2013 in the category of culture for her hometown, Baden. She is accompanied here by pianist Charles Spencer.

One of the most promising tenors of our day, Emanuele D’Aguanno presents his premiere album recording. D’Aguanno has already performed in roles such as Nemorino in “L’elisir d’amore, Cassio in Otello, and Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni. Here, D’Aguanno performs works by Rossini, Donizetti, and Bellini, and is accompanied by pianist Charles Spencer.

American mezzo-soprano Stephanie Houtzeel has appeared on opera stages all over the world, including the Vienna State Opera, the Opera National de Paris, the Israeli Opera, and the Graz Opera. Her performances have been proclaimed as “vocally, dramatically and physically sublime.” (Opera News) Aiming to create a feeling of nostalgia, Houtzeel has chosen works by Ginastera, Ives, Mahler, Buchardo, and Piazzolla for this recording. Houtzeel is accompanied by pianist Charles Spencer.

Czech American composer Jaromir Weinberger (1896-1967) was best-known for his opera Schwanda the Bagpiper, but he also excelled in other genres. The pieces featured here include his Overture to a Chivalrous Play (1931), 6 Bohemian Songs and Dances (1929), and Passacaglia for organ and large orchestra (1932). Organist Jorg Strodthoff is featured on the Passacaglia. The album also features the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, conducted by Gerd Albrecht.

This new release from Anne Schwanewilms is titled ‘Schone Welt’ or Beautiful World, and the pieces chosen here strive to invoke that image of the beauty of the world surrounding us. Featuring works from Franz Schubert, Franz Schreker, and Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Anne Schwanewilms is accompanied by pianist Charles Spencer to create an idyllic atmosphere. Anne Schwanewilms (b. 1967) is most known for her roles in the operas of Richard Wagner, Franz Schreker, Alban Berg, and Richard Strauss.

For this outstanding two-disc set, the RSO Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Cornelius Meister, brings us two works by Anton Bruckner (1824-1896): his Symphony No. 9 in D minor WAB 109, and his Mass No. 3 in F minor WAB 28. One of the more popular choral works of late Romanticism, the Mass in F minor is said to have been a work of gratitude for the composer’s recovery from a persistent nervous illness. Soloists featured here are soprano Ruth Ziesak, alto Janina Baechle, tenor Benjamin Bruns, and bass Gunther Groissbock.

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.

Walter Braunfels is a composer whose music died twice: Once when the Nazis declared his music "degenerate art". Then again when post-war Germany had little use for the various schools of tonal music; when the arbiters of taste considered any form of romantic music - almost the whole pre-war aesthetic - to be tainted. Post-war Europe had experienced (or rather: been prescribed) an aesthetic paradigm shift. Walter Braunfels had a hand at drama and his operas demonstrate his careful consideration of texts. This also shines through in his songs, with which he learned his craft and all but two of which he composed prior to The Birds. Marlis Petersen, whose fascination with Braunfels' "unique tonal language of a totally transparent structure and large late-romantic nature" began with two songs she got to sing earlier in her career, considers the Federspiele to be "real jewels of the art of Lied: simple, deeply touching airs."

Arnold Schönberg in 1922 said of Max Reger, “In my view, Reger must be played often; 1. Because he wrote a lot; 2. Because he is dead and we still do not have any clarity about him. (I consider him a genius).; Arnold Schönberg founded the Society for Musical Private Performances in November of 1918 in Mödling. The purpose of the organization was ‘to give Arnold Schönberg the opportunity personally to carry out his intention of providing artists and art lovers with a veritable and precise knowledge of Modern Music’ (Alban Berg 1919). The group put special emphasis on performing works by Max Reger.; This arrangement of Reger’s Violin Concerto Op. 101 was written by Rudolf Kolisch (1896-1978), a violinist who studied under Schrecker and Schönberg.; Featured soloist on this recording is Winfried Rademacher, professor of violin at the Musikhochschule in Trossingen. He is respected both in the concert hall and in the recording studio.