This new release is the fifth volume in Centaur's set of the complete Beethoven Symphonies, transcribed for Piano by Paul Kim. Paul Kim maintains a career that aims to bridge the pathways of performance, musicology, and education. As a recitalist, piano soloist and chamber musician, he has collaborated with many of the world's leading artists, orchestras, and conductors. Critics have noted his "brightest flashes of virtuosity and clear transparent quality" (The New York Times) as well as "his musical honesty and integrity, his very recognisable strength of character and personality" (Gramophone). He has been featured in interviews, articles, and television and film documentaries in such media outlets as Newsweek, The New Yorker, International Herald Tribune, PBS, NPR, CNN, and the BBC. Dr. Kim's research and teaching areas include Beethoven, Messiaen, Wagner, symphonic literature, and twentieth-century music.

This album beautifully explores the musical possibilities of the Bagatelle, a short and unpretentious instrumental composition, typically for piano. Internationally acclaimed pianist Silvan Negruţiu has performed concerts around the world, from the Kennedy Center in Washington DC to Ireland's National Concert Hall, the Romanian Athenaeum in Bucharest, the Xi’an Concert Hall in China, the Showa Recital Hall in Tokyo, and the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. He appeared as soloist with prestigious orchestras including the Romanian Radio Chamber Orchestra, Alicante Philharmonic, George Enescu Philharmonic and Dublin Symphony Orchestra. Some of his concerts have included live television and radio broadcasts. He is a laureate of numerous international competitions, including the “Roma 2000” and Salerno “Beethoven e i classici” in Italy; the “Seiler” in Sofia, Bulgaria; the “Feis Ceoil” in Dublin, Ireland; and the “Konzerteum” in Pireas, Greece.

Ori Barel’s music explores various fields including electronic music, chamber music, works for solo instruments and electronics and orchestral music. His chamber music has been performed by The Formalist Quartet, Kacey Link, Timur Bekbosunov, Kobayachi Trio and The Ear Unit in venues such as MOSA series, Redcat Lounge, Ballhaus, Santandlier Festival, and Beyond Baroque. He holds a B. A. in Music Composition from UCLA and a Master’s Degree from California Institute of the Arts where he studied with Ulrich Krieger, Marc Sabat, and Jon Fink. He is currently a Ph. D. Candidate in music composition at the University of California, Santa Barbara. This new release features his six-movement work for piano, Small Town. Performing for this recording is pianist, Kacey Link, who resides and performs regularly in Southern California. She is music director for Out of the Box Theatre Company, which specializes in edgy, contemporary musicals. She has worked as a pianist for Opera Santa Barbara, University of California-Santa Barbara Department of Theater and Dance, Kansas City Lyric Opera, and New Theatre of Kansas City. She holds degrees from the University of California Santa Barbara, University of Miami, and University of Kansas.

This is Volume 6 of the Beethoven Complete Symphonies, performed on piano by Paul Kim, in his own piano transcriptions. This album features Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92, and Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93. Paul Kim maintains a career that aims to bridge the pathways of performance, musicology, and education. As a recitalist, piano soloist and chamber musician, he has collaborated with many of the world's leading artists, orchestras, and conductors. Critics have noted his "brightest flashes of virtuosity and clear transparent quality" (The New York Times) as well as "his musical honesty and integrity, his very recognizable strength of character and personality" (Gramophone). He has been featured in interviews, articles, and television and film documentaries in such media outlets as Newsweek, The New Yorker, International Herald Tribune, PBS, NPR, CNN, and the BBC.

This is a program featuring some of Beethoven's greatest piano works, in celebration of the 250th anniversary of his Birth. A native of Ukraine, Sophia Agranovich is an internationally acclaimed soloist, chamber musician, recording artist, and educator. Sophia Agranovich is “a bold, daring pianist in the tradition of the Golden Age Romantics…A tigress of the keyboard” – Fanfare. Her performances are captivating audiences by the “orison of uncommon beauty” – Audiophile, “the extraordinary dramatic urgency”, “the ideal balance she achieves between the intellectual and the emotional” – Fanfare, “interpretation that dares to be different”, “magnificent shading and superior musicianship” – American Record Guide. Her previous releases for Centaur have been met with wide critical acclaim.

New York city composer and guitarist Juan Calderon is a native of Ecuador raised in Colombia. He immigrated to Miami at age 20 to escape the political climate of the late 90’s and resides in Manhattan since 2008. Juan’s music blends elements from his experience as a recording and touring rock guitarist in Colombia and Miami, and extensive studies on East Asian music inspired by interaction with musicians and artists in China, Japan, and Indonesia. This is truly original, evocative music. Colombian-American soprano Stephanie Lamprea is the superb soloist in "Six Songs for Soprano and Guitar on poetry by Octavio Gamboa."

Jillon Stoppels Dupree's love of the music of J.S. Bach began when she was a youngster in a children's chorus. This love has continued to this day, and it is evident in these beautiful performances. Described as “one of the most outstanding early musicians in North America” (IONARTS) and “a baroque star” (Seattle Times), harpsichordist Jillon Stoppels Dupree has captivated audiences in cities ranging from London to Amsterdam to New York. Her world premiere recording of Philip Glass’s Concerto for Harpsichord and Chamber Orchestra with the Northwest Chamber Orchestra (heralded as “superb” by the New York Times) was released to high acclaim in fall of 2006 on the Orange Mountain Music label. Her playing can also be heard on the Meridian, Wild Boar, Decca and Delos record labels; and she has appeared live on BBC England, Polish National Television, CBS Television and National Public Radio.

The J.S. Bach Goldberg Variations certainly need no introduction, as they have long been viewed as being among the greatest works of the entire keyboard literature. Baroque specialist James Richman delivers this masterpiece in sensitive, compelling performances. James Richman is Artistic Director/Conductor of Concert Royal and the Dallas Bach Society. He is a prominent harpsichordist and fortepianist, as well as one of today’s leading conductors of Baroque music and opera. The first musician since Leonard Bernstein to graduate Harvard, Juilliard, and the Curtis Institute of Music, James Richman studied conducting with Max Rudolf and Herbert Blomstedt, piano with Mieczyslaw Horszowski, Rosina Lhevinne and Rudolf Serkin, and harpsichord with Albert Fuller and Kenneth Gilbert. He holds a degree in the History of Science magna cum laude from Harvard College.

The Goldberg Variations of J.S. Bach are without doubt one of the greatest of all keyboard masterpieces. Charlotte Mattax Moersch gives us an informed and gripping performance of this unquestioned masterpiece. Harpsichordist Charlotte Mattax Moersch has performed worldwide as a soloist and chamber musician. Since capturing First and Third Prizes in basso continuo and solo playing in the International Harpsichord Competitions in Paris, France and Bruges, Belgium, she has appeared in solo recitals in New York, London, Edinburgh, Rome, Geneva, Paris, and Amsterdam, and at historic venues, among them Carnegie Hall, the Royal Albert Hall, the Mozarteum, and the Palazzo della Cancelleria. Called a “nonpareil harpsichordist” by Early Music America, she has received critical acclaim for her playing, at once “dashing yet intelligent” (Classical Times, London), and “fluent and expressive” (Fanfare Magazine). As a guest artist, she has performed at the Festival of the Associazione Musicale Romana, Festival Estival de Paris, Tage alter musik Regensburg, and the Bethlehem and Boulder Bach Festivals, and has toured Europe with San Francisco’s American Baroque and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra.

This album showcases works by Romantic composer Daniel-Francois Auber and classical-era luminary Andre Ernest Modeste Grétry. New Orleans was one of the first cities in the U.S. to embrace opera on a significant level, becoming well-known for its French Opera House in the 19th Century. This album features some key French arias that figured prominently in New Orleans in the early 19th Century, in the overlap between eras.

Dr. Alissa Mercurio Rowe is an active choral conductor, voice teacher, and soloist. She currently serves as Professor and Director of Choral Activities at Southeastern Louisiana University. During the summers of 2003 and 2004 she served as a member of the All-State voice faculty at Interlochen Arts Academy. She conducts the Southeastern Concert Choir, Southeastern Louisiana University's premiere choral ensemble, with which she conducted several world premieres. She is active as an adjudicator, has given choral and vocal workshops in the Midwest and Southeastern states, and has conducted numerous Honor Choirs.

The Bach Partitas need no introduction, and this is a superlative recording performed on piano by Shoshana Telner. Canadian pianist Shoshana Telner has performed across Canada and abroad. Described as an “authentic musician with a sparkling technique” (Le Droit) and “full of fire and warmth” (the New York Times), Shoshana has a passion for engaging audiences with exciting performances. She made her solo orchestral début with the National Arts Centre Orchestra at the age of 16 and has since performed as soloist with several orchestras including the Québec Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Classical Orchestra, and the National Academy Orchestra. Shoshana received a Bachelor’s degree on full scholarship from Boston University, a Master’s degree from the Juilliard School in New York, and a Doctorate in performance from McGill University. She has taught piano and coached ensembles at McGill University, the University of Ottawa, Wilfrid Laurier University, and currently teaches piano at McMaster University. She frequently gives masterclasses, adjudicates competitions, and examines for the Royal Conservatory of Music.

The piano music of the Bohemian lands from the Romantic era to post World War I has been largely neglected by pianists and is not frequently heard in public performances. However, given an opportunity, one gains insight into the unique sound of the Czech piano repertoire and its contributions to the Western tradition of piano music. Nationalist Czech composers were inspired by the Bohemian landscape, folklore and historical events, and brought their sentiments to life in their symphonies, operas and chamber works, but little is known about the history of Czech piano literature. The purpose of this project is to demonstrate the unique sentimentality, sensuality and expression in the piano literature of Czech composers whose style can be traced from the solo piano cycles of Bed?ich Smetana (1824-1884), Antonín Dvo?ák (1841-1904), Leoš Janá?ek (1854-1928), Josef Suk (1874-1935), Bohuslav Martin? (1890-1935) to Erwin Schulhoff (1894-1942). Florence brings these spirited works fully to life.

There are so many ways to take in this unique and magnificent work. The listener, with no preconceptions or prior knowledge, can simply let the music's ebb and flow direct the attention. This is special performance of this music. Performing on period instruments, Massachusetts-based Aston Magna is one of the finest Baroque music ensembles based in the U.S. The mission of the Aston Magna Foundation is to enrich the appreciation of music of the past and the understanding of the cultural, political, and social contexts in which it was composed and experienced. The goal is to reach a larger public through the use of historical instruments and practices in performances, recordings, and workshops, and through innovative interdisciplinary educational programs, publications, and electronic media.

This album features a beautiful program of works from the Renaissance for Soprano, accompanied here by lute, which was probably the most favored instrument for this during the Renaissance. Nadia Caristi graduated with degrees in classical piano and singing before going on to explore and ultimately dedicate herself to the historically informed performance practice of the Renaissance and Baroque vocal repertoires. She carries out an intense concert activity singing as a soloist and in ensemble, and has performed in several of the most prestigious Early Music festivals in Italy, Europe, and Asia. Massimo Marchese is known worldwide as one of the most refined performers of his generation. His long career allowed him to play and collaborate with many famous early music ensembles and to perform soloist concerts in several foreign countries. More than 18 record publications, among them 8 as soloist, let Massimo Marchese be proud of one of the smartest curriculums concerning his instrument.

This eclectic album includes works by Aaron Copland, George Gershwin, Kris Becker, Rogers and Hammerstein, and more. The works included on this release all focus on American compositional vision. The pieces are recorded by pianist Ian Gindes.