Tristan Keuris was one of the Netherlands' most distinctive twentieth-century composers, creating music that bridges contemporary expression with lyrical warmth and remarkable accessibility. This recording brings together three of his finest chamber works - the String Quartet No. 1,  Clarinet Quintet and Canzone for solo clarinet - revealing a composer whose music is at once virtuosic, emotionally compelling, and deeply communicative. Rich in colour, dramatic contrasts, and expressive melodies, these works highlight Keuris' unique ability to combine modern musical language with unmistakable humanity.  Performed by the acclaimed Animato Quartet with clarinetist Jelmer de Moed, this album is both a tribute to one of the great voices of Dutch music and a passionate plea for his chamber music to reach a wider audience. From moments of quiet introspection to exhilarating rhythmic energy, these performances capture the emotional depth, brilliance, and timeless appeal of Keuris' musical imagination, inviting listeners to discover a remarkable yet still underappreciated composer.

On 6 November 2026, Divine Art is thrilled to announce Window to the Stars, it's second release devoted to the highly appealing chamber music of Scottish composer Helen Leach. Window to the Stars follows her hugely successful 2024 debut album Diary of the Bee, and features an acclaimed lineup of artists, including pianist Simon Leach, cellist Adrian Bradbury, clarinettist John Bradbury, and violinist Benedict Holland. A cornucopia of new, imaginative works, Window to the Stars overflows with finely crafted and deeply redolent, sensitive music, with titles set to become classic repertoire. Leach writes: 'Often inspired by the abundance and timeless beauty of the natural world here in Scotland' Window to the Stars combines lush 'romantic lyricism, bursts of harmonic colour with evocative textures. At times majestic and dramatic, elsewhere infused with deep peace and moments of lightheartedness, the music reflects my own inner world'. 'Out of the Depths', the tender and poignant opening work for solo cello, is followed by two pieces transporting us to the wild and beautiful Scottish landscape: 'As the Feet of a Deer', a rich, expressive, earthen combination of clarinet, cello, and piano, conveying the stag's nobility and physicality, and 'Wherever I Wander', which is inspired by Robert Burns' poetry, begins with a simple folk melody, rhapsodic in it's nostalgia for a treasured homeland, and ends softly with a sense of sublime peace. 'When the Seasons Danced' also reflects the natural world, taking the listener through the seasons and landscapes and ending with the dreamy movement that gives the album it's title, 'Winter: Window to the Stars', which leaves a sense of wonder with distant echoes of Christmas bells. 'The Dove of Peace', for clarinet, violin, cello, and piano, is a tribute to the beautiful, spiritual musical language of Messiaen's 'Quatuor pour la fin du temps', articulating our need for peace. 'Hommage a Edgar Degas' celebrates an artist beloved among musicians and dancers alike through melodic lines, musical gestures, and vivid colours reflecting the forms and movements of Degas' works. The uplifting and deeply spiritual 'Butterfly Garden draws on the inherent ethereal nature of the clarinet, while the expansive melody and undulating accompaniment of 'Prelude for a Royal Swan' for cello and piano seek to portray the beauty, dignity, and unwavering commitment of England's late Queen. Hallmarked with vivid storytelling and melodic strength, the distinctive compositional voice of Helen Leach is becoming increasingly regarded internationally, with the music of her Divine Art 2024 debut album Diary of the Bee being regularly broadcast on the airwaves around the world. Helen has a background as a clarinettist and church musician and was Principal Clarinet with the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland, going on to study at the Royal Northern College of Music. She was a Director of Worship in Manchester and there directed the music for live BBC Radio 4 broadcasts. In 2022, she became Composer-in-Residence at Marchmont House, Berwickshire, and the historic Lorimer Music Room. Helen works with the BBC Songs of Praise team, and since 2024 has conducted and arranged the ensemble music for the annual BBC Young Chorister of the Year event with Aled Jones.

On the concept album, "l'Experience Franco-Suedoise", the Sweden-based French harpist, Delphine Constantin-Reznik and Swedish soprano, Sabina Bisholt present music by Swedish composers who went to Paris to study around the last turn of the century, as well as music of their French teachers. Guest musicians are violinist Cecilia Zilliacus, clarinettist Dan Larsson, and bassoonist Roman Reznik. World premiere recordings, not least of women composers, mixed with some evergreens such as Camille Saint-Saens's "The Swan", arranged for harp in different settings.

Benjamin Günst makes his GENUIN debut with 'Submergence'-a musical deep dive between light and darkness. The German Music Competition prize winner presents an ambitious and thoughtfully conceived program. From the rhapsodic sounds of Enescu and the Baroque mysticism of Biber to Bartók's 'Sonata for Solo Violin', rarely recorded in it's original version with microtonal intervals, the violin reveals all it's many facets. Works for violin and piano are set alongside solo works, while lyrical passages alternate with moments of breathtaking virtuosity. Together with his piano partner Martin Klett, Benjamin Günst spans centuries of violin music in a fascinating musical arc.

This album brings together a striking collection of works written for or premiered by Robert Plane, one of today's most distinguished clarinettists. Music by Judith Bingham, Sally Beamish, Piers Hellawell and David Matthews reveals the instrument's remarkable expressive range. Bingham's Elsewhere takes inspiration from the hidden details of Botticelli's paintings, transforming overlooked moments into vivid musical landscapes. Alongside it are Beamish's inventive Tom's Turn, Hellawell's evocative Woodsmoke and The Rising of Sirius, Matthews's moving tribute A Song for Barrie, and Bingham's compelling concerto Barnaby Rudge. With the Elias String Quartet, Gould Piano Trio, James Gilchrist, Tim Horton and Rhys Herbert, Plane celebrates the imagination and enduring creative partnerships behind these exceptional commissions.

The Hamburg-born Ferdinand Thieriot (1838-1919) not only shared a teacher - Eduard Marxsen - with Brahms; both composers, who remained friends in later years, use a very similar musical language. The musicologist Wilhelm Altmann wrote that 'Thieriot's chamber music is without exception noble and pure. He writes with perfect command of form and expression' - as the works on this fifth Toccata Classics volume prove, in their exquisite balance of depth and beauty, of Brahmsian richness and Schubertian spontaneity. Thieriot's Op. 62 Octet for winds and strings brings one gorgeous tune after another, but it's the Op. 78 Octet for strings - here in it's first recording - that will astonish: in it's blend of melodic profusion and effortless counterpoint it is hardly less impressive than Mendelssohn's exemplar.

Three gems of 19th-century Romantic music played by the Smetana Trio The Smetana Trio's new album presents three compositions that capture the diverse forms of 19th-century Romantic chamber music. Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy wrote his Piano Trio No. 2 in C minor, Op. 66, during his artistic maturity. It combines the dramatic energy of the outer movements with the tender lyricism and delicate poetic character of the central movements. Alongside the virtuosic piano part, the work stands out for it's finely balanced dialogue among the three instruments and it's refined motivic development. The second composition on the album is Zdenek Fibich's early Piano Trio in F minor, the work of a young composer inspired by the legacy of Robert Schumann. It combines the ardour of Romanticism and lyrical warmth with a carefully conceived formal design and a sensitive interplay between the piano and the strings. The album concludes with the Fantasy Pieces by Walter Rabl, a composer who today remains on the fringes of the concert repertoire. This cycle of brief character pieces delights listeners with it's melodic freshness, tender lyricism, and cultivated, Brahmsian sound. In all three works, the Smetana Trio reaffirms it's exceptional standing among Czech chamber ensembles. Jitka Cechova, Marketa Janouskova, and Jan Palenícek offer an interpretation combining technical mastery, stylistic refinement, and profound comprehension of the Romantic musical style.

Joseph Woelfl (1773-1812), a friend of the Mozart family from childhood, was one of the bestknown musicians of his day: he was regarded as a rival of Beethoven in Vienna and a worthy successor to Haydn in the musical life of London. When the invention of the pedal harp around 1800 allowed it to be used in combination with the piano, Woelfl was one of the many composers who took advantage of the new sonorities now made possible, in a series of works noteworthy for their elegance and charm, in a style which bridges the Classical and Romantic.

Caspar Diethelm (1926-97) was one of the leading Swiss composers of the twentieth century. His free-tonal style - angular yet accessible - drew on the inheritance of several of his predecessors, above all Hindemith, Honegger (both of whom were his teachers), Martin and Schoeck, with Bartók adding rhythmic spice. These influences he combined with an awareness of modernism to form an individual and expressive musical language of his own. These chamber works for clarinet, covering over thirty years of creativity, are variously informed by lyrical tenderness, ironic humour, a dark sense of drama, edgy energy and light-hearted playfulness. Largely unknown until now, they constitute a major addition to the clarinettist's repertoire.

The success these pieces enjoyed at court over several years during the late King's private concerts, and above all the high regard in which they were held by that great sovereign, ultimately prompted me to present them to the public in printed form. The acclaim they have already received gives me hope that they will be well received.' With these words, Robert de Visee introduces his collection Pieces de Theorbe et de Luth mises en partition, Dessus et Basse, published in 1716. It represents a significant innovation, as works for lute, theorbo and guitar were published for the first time in full score with treble and bass parts. This meant that Louis XIV's favourite pieces could now be performed not only as solo works but also in a chamber music setting. The album by Marion Treupel-Franck and Axel Wolf combines de Visee's lute suites with Michel Pignolet de Monteclair's Brunetes anciennes et modernes appropriees a la flute traversiere avec une basse d'accompagnement. This collection of popular melodies was inspired by songs that opera-goers would sing on their way home.

Known for his highly versatile approach to bassoon playing and innovative programming, Bram van Sambeek teams up with pianist Hans Eijsackers to present their new album, Relics and Discoveries. The release features a programme of concert-tested works partially dedicated to the conservatory repertoire most beloved by bassoon students. Several pieces originated as Paris Conservatoire competition commissions from the institution's composition faculty. Tansman's engaging Sonatine, Koechlin's three slow movements, and Dutilleux's Sarabande et cortege each reflect their composers' fiercely independent personalities: each energetic, contemplative, and masterfully crafted. A major discovery is Fazil Say's substantial and colourful Suite. Originally for alto saxophone, it is arranged here for bassoon in it's original key of E flat minor to preserve the instrument's unusual tonal 'friction'. Kinan Azmeh's November 22nd, a meditative evocation of childhood sounds from a Damascus market, adds emotional depth. Closing the programme is Eugene Jancourt's arrangement of the Allegretto from Beethoven's Seventh Symphony, a movement van Sambeek connects to both personal memory and climate activism. Together, these works challenge the misconception that the bassoon repertoire is limited, offering pieces that range from conservatory staples to newly unearthed gems.

Esa-Pekka Salonen/San Francisco Symphony -"Saariaho: Adriana Mater" [2 CD] GRAMMY Award-winner for Best Opera Recording, the late Kaija Saariaho's much-admired second opera, Adriana Mater, was recorded at Davies Symphony Hall in June 2023, just days after it's composer's untimely passing. In it's review, the New York Times wrote, "Saariaho's delicately consoling music stares down the worst of the world and says: the only way forward is grace." Featuring Esa-Pekka Salonen, Fleur Barron, Axelle Fanyo, Nicholas Phan, Christopher Purves, San Francisco Symphony & Chorus. 2 CD set.

East meets West: Japanese-American violinist Anne Akiko Meyers pairs the world of French music with contemporary Japanese works on her AVIE Records debut. Sonatas by the fathers of French impression - Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel - foreshadow Olivier Messiaen's Theme et variations, whose chordal structure evokes Toru Takemitsu's Distance de Fee. Anne gives the world premiere recording of Birds in Warped Time II by Japan's most prominent living composer, Somei Satoh, whose work she is closely associated with, having also performed and recorded his Violin Concerto. Newly reissued: repackaged artwork and remastered audio in HD stereo and Immersive Audio, we're excited to be releasing this stunning programme on 180g Vinyl LP for the very first time.

The Chiaroscuro Quartet continues it's thrilling journey through Beethoven's string quartets with three works that chart the composer's development in the genre. The 'Razumovsky' Quartets (1806), commissioned by Count Razumovsky for his house quartet led by Schuppanzigh, expanded the genre's scale beyond Op. 18, baffling early listeners with their symphonic ambition. The first two were released last March (BIS-2688). The third and final quartet of the set, Op. 59 No. 3 in C major, which opens this recording, is the most accessible, with a Mozart-indebted introduction, a Slavonic-sounding Andante, and a flamboyant fugal finale. The F minor Quartet, Op. 95 ('Quartetto serioso', 1810), written amid personal turmoil, is starker and more radical - compressed, harmonically abrupt, and structurally fragmented, ending unexpectedly in a light F major coda. Finally, the Grosse Fuge (1826), originally the finale of Op. 130, represents Beethoven's most uncompromising achievement: a vast, dissonant fusion of fugue and variation that baffled contemporaries but was later hailed by Stravinsky as timeless and revolutionary. Together these works chart Beethoven's progression from conversational classicism to visionary modernism.

In celebration of the 25th-anniversary of London Handel Players in 2025, SOMM Recordings released Telemann 'Paris' Quartets, Volume 1 [SOMMCD 0698]. Critics lauded the album for it's deep affection and impeccable musicianship, with Gramophone highlighting flautist Rachel Brown's 'easy agility' and the group's rich, inviting tone; and BBC Music Magazine praising their attention to subtle, expressive details. Now, SOMM is releasing Telemann 'Paris' Quartets, Volume 2 with LHP, featuring once again leading period-instrument specialists Rachel Brown flute; Adrian Butterfield violin; Gavin Kibble viola da gamba; Sarah McMahon cello; and Silas Wollston harpsichord. In 1737, Georg Philipp Telemann paid a long-awaited celebrity visit to Paris at the invitation of four prominent French musicians: flute virtuoso Michel Blavet; Franco-Italian violinist Jean-Pierre Guignon; viol player Jean-Baptiste Forqueray the younger, and an unidentified cellist-harpsichordist known in the historical records as Prince edouard. In preparation for this visit and in admiration of the musicians, Telemann had composed six Quadri, for flute, violin, viola da gamba or cello, and continuo. Telemann was one of the first great self-publishers, and his publication of the Quadri was such a success that the Parisian publisher Le Clerc brought out an edition without the composer's permission. This, finally, was the spur for Telemann to take an eight month leave of absence from his full schedule in Hamburg to visit Paris. While there, he composed a second set of quartets-the six Nouveaux Quatuors recorded here. It was in the second half of the twentieth century that the editors of the Telemann Musikalische Werke collectively named these two sets of quartets the 'Paris quartets.' Like the earlier set of Quadri, the six Nouveaux Quatuors are scored for flute, violin, viola da gamba, and continuo, with an optional adaptation of the gamba part for cello. The set comprises six suites, each with six or seven movements, and Telemann exploits countless ways of combining the instruments to create a huge variety of textures. All twelve quartets were played during Telemann's Parisian visit by the four musicians who had invited him, with the composer himself at the harpsichord. Paris was taken by storm, and news of the quartets spread throughout Europe, with subscribers to the publication including musicians like Charpentier, Mondonville, Fasch, Pisendel-and a certain Mr Bach of Leipzig. Telemann's sojourn in Paris left a lasting impression on him. Two years after returning to Hamburg, he reported on the effect of his quartets: 'The admirable performances of these quartets would be worth describing were it possible for words to be found to do them justice. In short, they procured for me in a very little time an almost universal renown and increased esteem.'

Composer Maria Lithell Flyg will release a new album on September 25, 2026. This album brings together two works on environmental, climate change and biodiversity themes, and a third piece about a loving percussion duo. Now that climate change is more and more noticeable, it is urgent to bring attention to what we are in the process of losing. Ecce arbor! (Behold the tree!) is written for the soprano Alexandra Buchel and the musicians Ivo Nilsson, Helene Sikdal, Johannes Thorell, and Tora Thorslund. Right now, in Sweden, woodlands are rapidly being deforested and replaced by timber farms. Alongside climate change, the forest industry poses the biggest threat to biodiversity in this country. In order to shine a light on this matter, Lithell Flyg has used music to illustrate what is going on.

A city as a soundscape: On their new GENUIN album, violinist Eva Wetzel and pianist Antonio Di Dedda invite listeners to embark on a musical journey of discovery through Hamburg. Spanning composers from Johannes Brahms to Sofia Gubaidulina and Alfred Schnittke, the program blends the familiar with the rarely heard, revealing a multifaceted panorama of Hamburg's musical life from the 19th century to the present day. Guided by a keen sense of connection and context, they craft a musical city tour whose colorful and nuanced interpretation brings the many facets of this rich musical landscape into vivid relief.

How can music by Mozart still feel undiscovered? For this ensemble, the answer lies in the piano trios: works that, despite their composer's fame, remain surprisingly absent from the concert hall. Bringing together K. 254, K. 496 and K. 548, this first volume follows Mozart's style across twelve formative years, representing three distinct periods in his writing for piano trio, from the lingering influence of the accompanied sonata to a richly conversational chamber style.

Giuseppe Cambini, born in Italy in 1746 and based for most of his life in Paris, left so much fine music - over 600 compositions - that it is surprising that the year and place of his death remain uncertain. Among that huge output are over 100 string quintets using a second cello rather than another viola, giving them an unusually rich sonority. Cambini's elegant melodic manner and his spontaneous counterpoint help explain why his chamber music was so popular during his lifetime - but not why it has been forgotten since then: it's refreshingly natural style has something of Mozart's tunefulness and Haydn's bright craftsmanship, and it's more thoughtful moments occasionally look ahead to Beethoven.

Also available on Blu-ray

Rossini wrote L’equivoco stravagante (‘The Curious Misunderstanding’), his first full-length opera, when he was only 19 years old. As its title suggests, the plot of this dramma giocoso offers a panoply of absurdist stagecraft with one character being led to believe that the work’s heroine is in fact a castrato trying to avoid military service. Full of his trademark buffo humour, melodious and musically buoyant, the opera ran foul of the censors and was swiftly banned, which accounts for its rarity in performances and recordings. The new edition of the score used in this production corrects numerous previous errors.

Also available on Blu-ray

Any production stands or falls by the performance of the lead role of Orphée. Here it is the mezzo Marianne Crebassa, a rising star. She is superb. She immediately impresses by her dignified bearing and natural air of authority. She can also convey grief by being very still. Her voice has a lovely tone, with just enough vibrato to give it warmth but not a trace of a wobble, and she has all the technique you could wish for. Her performance of Amour, viens rendre à mon âme is as dazzling as you could want, but, more importantly, her renderings of Quel nouveau ciel and J’ai perdu mon Eurydice are expressive and moving.

Of the other two soloists, Hélène Guilmette as Eurydice carries off the only real soprano role in the work well, though one cannot help feeling that Gluck was not really interested in her. However, her importunings during the attempted return are finely done. Lea Desandre, the Amour, is a former ballet dancer and combines a striking appearance with an attractive voice. She is allowed to appear in the last scene but not to sing, which is a shame.

Raphaël Pichon conducts his own chorus and orchestra, Ensemble Pygmalion. The chorus is very good. The orchestra of period instruments is vigorous. I heard some sour notes from the wind in the first Act but not subsequently, and emphatically not in the Dance of the Blessed Spirits, where the solo flautist played splendidly and indeed had the spotlight on her for part of the piece. (There was no actual dance.) She deserves a credit. The trombones sounded a bit raucous, but that may be part of the period authenticity.

The staging opens with a most attractive pastoral backdrop taken from Corot. Eurydice, dressed in a white robe, is already onstage, motionless. It is then rather a shock when Orphée and the chorus come on in modern dress. I do wish directors would get over the idea that modern dress is bold and provocative, or timeless and exciting, or whatever they think it is. It has become one of the dreariest clichés in both operas and plays, particularly those with a mythical or legendary setting. However, much of the rest is admirable, with an imaginative use of reflections. In Amour’s first appearance, she is within a large wheel, which is rocked from side to side, then once rotated completely. The underworld is represented as a bare dark stage with a central pool of light in which the chorus lie on the floor. The Furies are a proper team of three dancers, with strange and sinister movements. The attempted return is presented very simply, and is all the more powerful for it.

No complaints about the recording or picture quality. I have noted that applause is included. The booklet has some good articles, a synopsis and an interview with the director and the producer. The DVD offers subtitles in five languages. The English one is adequate but minimal, with the occasional mistake (écumant is foaming at the mouth or slavering, not slathering, which is spreading thickly).

I can confidently say that anyone who chooses this version will find much to enjoy.

– MusicWeb International

This Blu-ray Disc is only playable on Blu-ray Disc players and not compatible with standard DVD players.

Also available on standard DVD

Gluck’s influential Orphée et Eurydice tells the story of Orphée’s descent into the Underworld to retrieve his wife Eurydice. His singing has the power to overcome the guardian Furies, but the path of true love is shadowed by sorrow and tragedy. As a true ‘drama of the soul’ with intense psychological and emotive power, Orphée et Eurydice shook enlightenment Europe to its core. Berlioz, in his 1859 version prepared for the Théâtre Lyrique, exploited the score’s full potential through a synthesis of the versions Gluck prepared for Parma, Paris and Vienna. Aurélien Bory’s Paris production was described as ‘just breathtaking’ by OperaJournal.

"The musicians immerse the listener sometimes in a profound mental repose, sometimes in a very joyous and dynamic ambience. This strongly melodious and frequently virtuosic music is pure velvet for the ears." - "MB", Pizzicato, January 2002

"The recorded sound is good and warm, and generous to the (already heavy) instrumental playing." - Alison Bullock International Record Review October 2001

"The playing of the Ensemble Accentus is excellent. The sound of the viol consort is gorgeous--rich and well balanced." - Peter Loewen, American Record Guide, Nov/Dec, 2001

"Thomas Wimmer, the only member of the Ensemble Accentus to be named by Naxos, writes the excellent programme notes to this most enjoyable recording... The Charles V palace is an extraordinary piece of architecture, a circular court in a square building superbly appropriate for music and drama. Cabezon must have known this building intimately. His surviving music however is entirely for keyboard, and on many other recordings where he has so often been anthologised, it is the occasional harpsichord work, which makes an appearance. Normally it is the same pieces like the 'Pavana Italiana', or the 'Diferencias sobre el canto del Caullero'. Yet this palace contained musicians of all types, and that included instrumentalists... There is no doubt that Naxos Early Music department is striking out into some fascinating areas, and they have found fine musicians to take us into some exciting repertoire. Highly recommended." - Musicweb.vavo.com (Gary Higginson), 28th June