Black Rainbow is a deeply personal musical journey in which violinist and vocalist Julija Hartig explores questions of belonging, identity, and heritage. The album connects her multicultural roots-Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and Austrian-to her Yugoslavian upbringing, weaving a narrative about migration and ancestral memory. The title work, co-created with Akim Moiseenkov, fuses violin, voice, and live electronics to tell the story of three generations of female migration through sound, using folk elements, recorded voices of her ancestors, and electronic textures. This composition serves as both a meditation on the flow of culture and a sonic bridge between past and present. Through the music of Leos Janacek, Fazil Say, and George Enescu, Hartig continues this exploration of roots and renewal. Janacek's folkloric sonata evokes her sense of "home," while Say's modern improvisational language resonates with her Balkan background. Enescu's Romanian-inspired sonata becomes a revelation of shared ancestry and emotional kinship. Together with pianist Reineke Broekhans, her long-time musical partner and soulmate, Hartig turns Black Rainbow into more than an album-it is a reflection on the "Ancestral Code," showing that wherever we go, the sound of our heritage remains within us

La Blancheur des Cygnes is a poetic and reflective musical project that celebrates feminine energy, beauty, and strength through the timeless art of the French chanson. Historian Els Kloek's liner notes frame the album as a continuation of the conversation started by Simone de Beauvoir - exploring how women have evolved from "the other" to agents of their own expression. Through Haesen's evocative voice and the refined strings of the Caf� des Chansons quartet, the album traverses nearly a century of song - from Charles Trenet's joyful optimism to modern interpretations by artists like Zaho de Sagazan and Solann - weaving themes of love, self-acceptance, vulnerability, and empowerment. At the heart of this collection lies a reclamation of beauty as a feminine right: no longer dictated by the male gaze but redefined as a source of power and authenticity. The title, La Blancheur des Cygnes ("The Whiteness of Swans"), alludes both to Baudelaire's poem La Beaut� and to Andersen's tale of The Ugly Duckling, reflecting transformation, grace, and the freedom to be seen. Through these fourteen chansons, Charlotte Haesen and the ensemble offer a moving counterpoint to the enduring dominance of masculine energy - proposing empathy, love, and artistic sensitivity as the true instruments of balance in our modern world.

In The Hidden Legacy, Italian pianist Alessandro Deljavan explores the restless imagination and expressive daring of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788), a composer who bridged the worlds of Baroque complexity and Classical clarity. The program traverses the vast emotional and stylistic landscape of C. P. E. Bach's keyboard works-from the introspective Fantasias and fiery Rondos to the refined Sonatas-revealing the composer's pioneering embrace of Empfindsamkeit, the "sensitive style" that sought to mirror human emotion in all it's volatility. Deljavan's interpretations illuminate the dramatic contrasts and psychological depth of this music, turning each piece into a vivid, unpredictable narrative that feels as alive today as it was two centuries ago. Deljavan's artistry combines intellectual precision with fearless emotional spontaneity. His phrasing, pacing, and use of silence elevate Bach's mercurial spirit into something immediate and human. The recording presents not just a historical tribute but a living dialogue between composer and performer-a meditation on creativity, freedom, and feeling. In this album, Deljavan continues his lifelong mission to "touch the heart," capturing the tension, tenderness, and transcendence that make C. P. E. Bach's legacy both hidden and essential.

This recording takes the listener deep into the heart of late-seventeenth-century Naples, where brothers Rocco and Gaetano Greco were central figures in the city's thriving musical life. Their works, grounded in the practice of partimento - an improvisational method built around a given bass line - showcase the cello's emancipation from a purely accompanying role into a fully expressive solo voice. Through vivid dialogues between lower string instruments and harpsichord, I Mastricelli revives a forgotten musical language in which virtuosity, counterpoint, and improvisation converge. The result is a rare glimpse into the creative processes that shaped the Neapolitan cello school and it's lasting influence across Europe. The second part of the programme focuses on Gaetano Greco's pedagogical legacy, presenting short dances, toccatas, and improvisations drawn from early-eighteenth-century student notebooks, alongside music by Francesco Mancini. I Mastricelli highlights the diversity of Neapolitan musical culture - from the earthy energy of the tarantella to the refined contrapuntal art of the keyboard. The ensemble's instrumentation - including cellos, bass viols, bass violins, theorbo, lute, guitar, and harpsichord - evokes the rich timbral world of Baroque Naples. Combining scholarly research with living performance, this debut album offers both an artistic rediscovery and a celebration of the improvisatory freedom at the core of the partimento tradition.

The album Bohemian Legacy by Trio 258 is a heartfelt tribute to three generations of Czech composers - Bedrich Smetana, Antonin Dvorak, and Josef Suk - whose music embodies the soul of Bohemian culture. The program begins with Smetana's Piano Trio in G minor, a deeply personal and tragic work written in the wake of his daughter's death, where raw grief intertwines with Bohemian folk melodies and a sense of resilience. Dvorak's Piano Trio No. 3 in F minor follows, showcasing his synthesis of Bohemian lyricism and Germanic symphonic structure, combining folk-inspired dance rhythms with Brahmsian complexity. The album concludes with Suk's Elegy in D-flat Major, dedicated to poet Julius Zeyer and inspired by his poem Vysehrad, a reflective and nostalgic ode to Prague's cultural and spiritual heritage. Together, these works form a tapestry of national identity, friendship, and artistic lineage - an exploration of emotion, beauty, and belonging through music. In their liner notes, Trio 258 (Lestari Scholtes, Eduardo Paredes Crespo, and Leonard Besseling) emphasize the importance of language, nature, and folk tradition in shaping Czech music. They describe their interpretive process as an "immensely valuable journey," seeking to find their own voice while honoring the composers' intentions. Through this album, the trio not only presents technically accomplished performances but also reflects on the Bohemian spirit - one that fuses melancholy and vitality, individuality and tradition. Their recording is both a musical homage and a personal exploration of how the language of music can bridge generations, resonating with the timeless ideals of freedom, emotion, and national identity

With this album, Trio Fibonacci takes us on a journey through the meditative and deeply human universe of Ludovico Einaudi, a master of contemporary minimalism. His works, built around repetitive motifs and subtle harmonic variations, open up a space for contemplation and pure emotion. Many of the pieces presented here have been specially adapted by Trio Fibonacci for duo or trio, bringing new vibrancy and emotional depth to the music while remaining true to the spirit of the composer. With a total runtime of 71 minutes, Timeless Horizons guides listeners through Einaudi's most iconic pieces, including: "I Giorni" - a poignant elegy inspired by Malian folklore "Experience" - a powerful meditation on time and memory "Nuvole Bianche" - a serene and soothing classic "Una Mattina" - made famous by The Intouchables "Petricor" - evoking the scent of the earth after rain But there is much more: 13 pieces in total. The album blends Einaudi's signature repetitive motifs and subtle harmonic shifts with the Trio's expressive and fluid playing style. These arrangements offer a rare intimacy, drawing the listener into a world of silence, longing, and awakening. Trio Fibonacci made it's debut in 1998, with the press reporting that "to hear them is to enter into the world of miracles" (Le Devoir, Montreal).

The third collaboration between mezzo-soprano Olivia Vermeulen and Jan Philip Schulze (piano/synthesizer), In Heaven follows their earlier themed albums Dirty Minds and Hello Darkness, albums which were highly rated and won, for instance, an Edison Award and a Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik. While the first two albums explored earthly themes of eroticism and mortality, this programme turns upward toward the heavens. The concept imagines a cosmic odyssey, blending art song, contemporary music, pop, and psychedelic classics into a voyage through utopian visions, distant planets, and the eternal human fascination with space. Interspersed with NASA sound recordings, the album situates the listener between heaven and earth, fantasy and reality, intoxication and transcendence. The repertoire is strikingly eclectic: David Bowie's Life on Mars opens with real Martian storm sounds, while George Crumb, Brahms, Schubert, and Wolf provide lyrical reflections on stars, dreams, and transcendence. The programme flows seamlessly into Augusta Holm�s's exuberant drinking song Le vin, Rebecca Clarke's opium-tinged Lethe, and Grace Slick's psychedelic anthem White Rabbit. French and German masters like Saint-Sa�ns, Mahler, and Messiaen appear alongside Stockhausen's Tierkreis, Monty Python's satirical Galaxy Song, and Pink Martini's Una notte a Napoli. The album closes with Robert Schumann's radiant Abendlied, underscoring the dialogue between the infinite cosmos and human longing. Together, Vermeulen and Schulze create a soundscape that is at once virtuosic, witty, and deeply imaginative. Supported by percussion and bass in selected tracks, their performances draw on colour, theatricality, and stylistic versatility to transform familiar works into cosmic meditations. In Heaven ultimately reflects on humanity's dreams of escape, intoxication, and utopia while acknowledging the grounding reality of earthbound existence. The result is a kaleidoscopic journey-playful yet profound, rooted in classical artistry yet open to pop culture-that challenges boundaries and offers listeners a musical mission into space.

After falling in love with the quartets of Britten and Bart�k, we developed a long-standing desire to record these masterpieces. For our debut CD Longing we chose their first quartets, as well as Webern's first string quartet work Langsamer Satz. All three remarkable works resonate with a profound and unmistakable sense of longing. We felt a sense of kinship with these composers as they, like us, were still discovering their distinct style and identity when creating these works. In Langsamer Satz, Webern beautifully showcases the height of longing for love in the romantic 19th century. Bart�k continues this romantic idiom and goes on to develop the new sounds of the early 20th century, a period from which we draw so much of our own passions. Finally, Britten continues to explore the sound and identity of the 20th century in his own distinctive colour palette. These works not only keep us on the edge of our seats, but also express a beautiful longing, one which we recognize in ourselves, and one we want to share with our listeners.

There are moments in music when time seems to pause, and with Arcangelo Corelli's music, I have experienced that enchanted stillness-where each note is not just heard but felt deeply. His music, elegant and radiant, is the gentle whisper of a bygone era, yet it breathes timeless warmth and light. Corelli's art is a delicate conversation between violin and continuo, a living breath of harmony and counterpoint that dances with noble grace. Each phrase unfolds like a tender story, where voices seek, answer, and embrace one another-like cherished friends sharing secrets across the ages. It was through my mentor, Ryo Terakado, and his luminous recording of the Violin Sonatas, Op. 5 that I first stepped into this radiant world. Since then, Corelli's melodies have been a constant companion-like a soft glow in the twilight, a source of inspiration and solace. Corelli's influence extends far beyond my own story. His style shaped the musical language of generations-admired openly by Francois Couperin, absorbed deeply into the work of Jean-Marie Leclair, and echoed, even centuries later, by virtuosi such as Pablo Sarasate and Niccolo Paganini. His music is both spiritual and earthly-a beacon of simplicity and profound beauty. I am deeply grateful to Ryo Terakado for guiding me to this wellspring of grace, to Kaori Uemura and Francois Guerrier for their artistry, and to our magical producer Guido Tichelman and the Byucksan Corporation for nurturing this project. -�Eun-Shik Kim

Mozart Piano Concertos, Vol. 3. The concept behind our present undertaking, the Mozart Piano Concertos CD trilogy, is to present a range of concertos from Mozart's various compositional and performing periods, styles, techniques and instrumentations. Our endeavour is also linked with an encore-like single work on each CD, namely a Rondo. The additional connecting link between these six piano concertos is the Cadenzas & Lead-ins which Lazic�has composed himself. Here he was inspired by the common practice of the composer's day.

Nino Gvetadze:�Some music stays with you for a lifetime not just in your memory, but in your hands, your ears, your way of feeling the world. For me, that music began in Tbilisi, Georgia, where I was born and raised, and where these sounds first took root.�Recording this album felt less like performing and more like remembering. The music flowed naturally, as if something long held inside was finally f inding it's voice. It felt like writing a diary in sound one filled with affection, gratitude and quiet moments of awe.�Melodies are warm, wit, poetic and melancholic.

This album presents two exceptional chamber works by French composer George Onslow (1784-1853): the String Quintets Op. 72 in G minor and Op. 61 in F minor. Though celebrated in his time and often called the "French Beethoven," Onslow's music fell into obscurity until recent decades. These quintets, from the height of his career, reveal his gift for melodic invention, structural clarity, and expressive depth. The Op. 61 Quintet appears here in it's world premiere recording, following Ensemble Tamuz's discovery of the original manuscript in a private collection linked to the 19th-century cellist Adrien-Francois Servais. Ensemble Tamuz performs on period instruments and brings a historically informed yet vividly expressive approach to Onslow's music. With insight drawn from 19th-century performance practices, they illuminate the subtle freedoms ornamentation, rubato, melodic nuance that bring Romantic chamber music to life. This recording offers a fresh and compelling encounter with two masterful yet underappreciated works of the Romantic repertoire.

When was the last time you were really furious? With baroque orchestra La Sfera Armoniosa led by Mike Fentross, soprano Channa Malkin explores the raw power of anger through the intense and heart-wrenching music of Antonio Vivaldi. From hidden operatic gems to the fierce�In furore iustissimae irae, this album channels rage into beauty. Inspired by Channa's journey as a woman and mother, it reveals how moving through intense emotion can open the door to compassion, clarity, and catharsis.

For a long time, the fact that three of J.S. Bach's harpsichord concertos are arrangements of earlier violin concertos led scholars to suspect that the remaining concertos were also adaptations of lost works for strings or winds, prompting several musicologists to attempt reconstructions. However, recent research has shown that they are more likely arrangements of earlier keyboard works. But what would Bach have done if he had to perform one of these pieces again and wished to showcase a different solo instrument? Ensemble Odyssee explores this question with three brand-new arrangements, presented alongside Bach's own arrangement of his Fourth Brandenburg Concerto, each piece showcasing the virtuosity of the ensemble's four core members.

The unearthing of Telemann's Fantaisies pour la Basse de Viole in 2015 has been the most important discovery for the repertoire of viola da gamba in recent times. The compositions are a compendium of how Italian and French influences permeated the purely German language to create a specific style. Using the genre Fantasia, Telemann shows us a portrait full of audacity, freshness and compositional freedom hitherto unknown. Sara Ruiz plays on an anonymous viola da gamba dated around 1700. She�chooses�to emphasize the rotundness and the beauty of the tone, while her technical skills allow her to create a real drama. She does not hesitate to make use of a nice legato where a pleasant melody is encountered: she makes her instrument sing almost like a cello, i.e. a voice. With her, each Fantasia tells a story, every time a particular and thrilling one.