On this disc internationally acclaimed bass Sir John Tomlinson and pianist David Owen Norris bring together settings of Michelangelo poems by Britten, Wolf and Shostakovich. This unique program is frequently played by the duo in theatrical Michelangelo-themed performances and can now be heard on CD for the first time.

Classical Music

Classical Music

As Rameau wrote in his treatise on harmony, “A good musician should surrender himself to all the characters he wishes to portray, and like a skillful actor, put himself in the speaker’s shoes.” Regardless of the means used to achieve this, the composer uses music and the interplay of harmony to convey feeling. This album on the Analekta label features bass-baritone Philippe Sly and soprano Hélène Guimette accompanied by musicians from Clavecin en concert under the direction of Luc Beauséjour.

“From the nobility of Europe, to the petit bourgeoisie reading Thonoit’s Arbeau’s Orchesographie, to the already pregnant bride in Brueghel’s The Peasant Wedding, everybody danced their way through the rituals of life…. Their music, like their dance, reflected a delicate balance between the restraints of culture and convention, and ingenious flourishes of improvisation….”

– Adam Gilbert

The third disc in The Sixteen's acclaimed series of Polish music, conducted by Associate Conductor Eamonn Dougan, explores the work of Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki (1665-1734). Regarded as the outstanding Polish composer of the high baroque, Gorczycki studied in Prague and Vienna in his early years, and returned to Krak�w where he was appointed Magister Capellae at Wawel Cathedral in 1698. Like his predecessor Bartlomiej Pekiel (featured on CRO 16110), Gorczycki wrote in both stile antico and stile moderno; the works featured on this recording display his skill in both genres. As the last great talent of the Polish Baroque era, Gorczycki is certainly deserving of a wider audience.

The service of 'Compline' is the last of the seven daily services observed in monastic communities, taking place immediately before bedtime. It has over many centuries inspired incredibly beautiful compositions, and this release gathers together eighteen of the many lovely 'a cappella' choral motets, mainly from the Renaissance period, which were written to adorn the evening worship of the church. In addition, the 'Office of Compline', sung in English with its traditional chants, has been included in its entirety on a bonus CD. 'Lighten our Darkenss' sees John Rutter and his Cambridge Singers return to the austere surrounds and sumptuous acoustic of the Lady Chapel at Ely Cathedral, where many of their classic recordings from the 1980s and 1990s were recorded. It was, in all probability, the place where the monks of Ely sang Compline before the Reformation; its magnificent acoustics and architectural splendour and grace continue to make it the perfect setting for Compline today.

John Tavener studied at the Royal Academy of Music with Sir Lennox Berkeley and David Lumsdaine. In 1968 his dramatic cantata The Whale took it's audience by storm and led to his music being recorded on The Beatles' Apple label. Since that time Tavener has continued to show an originality of concept and an intensely personal idiom, making his a voice quite separate from those of his contemporaries. Over the years, the contemplative side of his nature has led him in more spiritual directions and his commitment to the Russian Orthodox Church, which he joined in 1977, is now evident in all his work. In an interview published in his recent book The Music of Silence, Sir John Tavener wrote. "If you listen to the music of the East, somehow the divine is already there. It is - which is a parallel with the eternal 'I am."' What this means in practical terms is that Tavener, in aiming at writing music suitable to convey the theology and the spirituality of the Orthodox Church, to participate in some way in that "eternal 'I am"', creates music of what one might call "dynamic stasis". In other words, the long phrases of eastern chant (of various traditions), the harmonic transparency and the stillness of his work runs counter to what the composer sees as the more "active" spirit of western sacred music; nevertheless, Tavener's western background inevitably and naturally plays it's part, and the unique sound of the fusion of these two is characteristic of all of the works on this disc.

The music on this disc, which is unfailingly attractive, certainly communicates with the listener directly and strongly.

That communication with the listener is undoubtedly enhanced by the performances of Commotio. Their singing is technically excellent and they consistently demonstrate complete commitment to the music. I was very interested to see that the producer of this disc is Nigel Short, the conductor of Tenebrae and a former colleague of Bob Chilcott in The King’s Singers. If it was daunting for Matthew Berry and his choir to have two highly experienced singers and choral conductors… Short and his engineer Will Brown have ensured that the recorded sound is excellent: clear, atmospheric and beautifully balanced.

I think this delightful disc will enhance the musical side of Christmas for a lot of people.

– John Quinn, MusicWeb International

A lieder recital featuring music by C.P.E. Bach and J.C.F. Bach, sung by bass-baritone Gottfried Schwarz with keyboard accompaniment from Sabine Bauer.

Classical Music

Classical Music

Altissimo is proud to honor all veterans with this special compilation performed by the U.S. Military bands and choruses. The pieces featured on the album were selected for the message behind the music. Included are: Eric Ewazen's "A Hymn for the Lost and Living," which he composed as his musical response following September 11th; "That Others May Live" written by SSgt Jeremy Martin and dedicated to all of the medical workers in all branches of the U.S. Military; Gene Sheer's "American Anthem" composed to serve as a reminder of the selfless sacrifices of the men and women who fight for our nation; Robert Jager’s “Epilogue: Lest We Forget,” commissioned by Colonel Jack Grogran for the 50th Anniversary of WWII; "Gardens of Stone" by James A. Beckel, Jr. written for all fallen heroes buried at Arlington Cemetery; and "The Last Full Measure of Devotion" by Larry Grossman and Buz Kohan composed for the 1991 CBS Special "CBS All-Star Salute to Our Troops," among many other great pieces.

Where late the sweet birds sang is a gorgeous contrapuntal choral collection of works by three of the leading Elizabethan composers featuring some of the repertoire's best singers. Directed by Philip Cave Magnificat specializes in the restoration and performance of neglected choral masterpieces of the 16th and 17th centuries.

This Recording, first published more than 2 decades ago and not distributed internationally, features Bartok's work for two violins performed by two violinists and singers with deep backgroun in Eastern European Folk Tradition.

Classical Music

This re-release by Naxos brings together music from two of Prokofiev’s best known film scores on one disk. The cantata came from the original film score for Eisenstein’s film, Alexander Nevsky, and the suite from the Alexander Feinzimmer film Lieutenant Kijé.

The first thing to note is that this CD was in fact recorded live, although it’s not clear until the applause at the end that this is the case. There is no audience noise and the recording is very sharp, clear and close to the orchestra.

Alexander Nevsky opens with “Russia under the Mongolian Yoke”, with harsh open octaves setting the scene perfectly. This is followed by a song about Alexander Nevsky recalling an earlier battle. The chorus in this recording are the Latvian State Choir and, although I am not a Russian speaker myself, the words seem to be very clear and the choral singing excellent. The song about Nevsky is beautifully interpreted with a clear contrast being drawn between the more reflective parts of the song at the start and finish and the recollection of battle in the central section. The third section suggesting the appearance of Teutonic knights in the city of Pskov, with brass and percussion blaring out a bleak warning, is performed in this recording with enough gusto to bring a chill to one’s spine!

I had a chance to hear the recording of this work by Fritz Reiner and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and it is interesting to note that Reiner adopts a much slower tempo than Casadesus for the second and third parts, which seems to me to work better, even if there is the slightly off-putting factor of Reiner’s recording including the text in English.

The fourth section (Arise, ye Russian People), allows a distinct contrast to be drawn between the different emotions; the call to arms which opens this song, along with the more reflective middle section. Again these contrasts are handled excellently in this recording.

It is the fifth section (The Battle on the Ice), which is the longest. In fact this section took up a large part of the film. The performance is clean and precise. Perhaps it is this precision that takes away a little from the tension that one would expect in a battle scene; for me there is still enough there to get the adrenaline going. Special mention should go to the percussion section, who are able to drive the music on without overpowering it, no mean feat with such music. On balance, I would have to say that the Reiner/Chicago SO recording narrowly wins in terms of building tension, but there’s not a lot in it.

The sixth section (The Field of Death) is where we hear the mezzo-soprano, Ewa Podles, lamenting the lives lost in battle. Her wonderful deep voice carries these sentiments perfectly, assisted by some sensitive playing.

The final section (Alexander’s Entry into Pskov) ends the work on a triumphant note, aided by another excellent piece of chorus singing; they are able to hold their own to the very end and are not overpowered by the orchestra.

Overall, this is an excellent performance of Prokofiev’s colourful and exciting score, which I would recommend highly.

-- Euan Bayliss, MusicWeb International

Bartlomiej Pekiel was one of the most eminent Polish composers of choral music of the 17th century. He served at the court in Warsaw from around 1633 and was assistant to Marco Scacchi at the Chapel Royal in Warsaw before becoming Kapellmeister himself from 1645-1655 - the first non-Italian to hold the post. He then moved to Wawel Cathedral in Krakow where he wrote for the Rorantist vocal ensemble.

Just 29 of his compositions survive today and on this new album by The Sixteen under the direction of Associate Conductor, Eamonn Dougan, we present 11 of his works for choir and orchestra including the Missa Concertata La Lombardesca resplendent with double choir, violins and trombones, and the extraordinary and dramatic Audite mortales.

In this recording dedicated solely to his works, Pekiel shows himself to be a skilled craftsman, mastering the techniques taught by the Italian maestri, but also imbuing his works with his own particular harmonic colour in all the varied styles he writes in.

R E V I E W S:

"Pekiel… emerges again – thanks to The Sixteen’s outstanding new disc – as a figure of polyphonic virtuosity." – The Sunday Telegraph, Seven Magazine

"The sound world, very loosely, brings to mind Monteverdi. The exciting dissonances and strange harmonic colours set Pekiel in a category of his own." – The Observer

"Punchy, potent, glorious. This is a disc of stunning baroque music from a beautifully-refined vocal collective." – McAlister Matheson Music

16th century England was a place of much religious change. It was a dangerous and confusing time and it is testament to their incredible skill and musical mastery that composers like Tallis and Byrd were able to produce such magnificent works in such troubled times. Their music left a lasting legacy, influencing some of our most celebrated 20th- and 21st-century composers and surviving over half a millennium to be performed as widely today as they have ever been. This disc features some of the best-loved classics of Tudor and Jacobean church music together with madrigals by Tallis, Byrd and Gibbons. They are performed alongside pieces by Britten, Tippett and MacMillan including the Five Spirituals from A Child of Our Time and the 'Choral Dances' from Gloriana. The Sixteen has performed this repertoire around the world over the last eight years and is one of the ensemble’s most popular concert programmes.

A brand new recording of Elizabethan and Restoration Devotional Songs to the lute and theorbo by Thomas Campian, John Dowland, Pelham Humfrey & Henry Purcell. Continuing its work with the rising stars of the early music world, CORO is delighted to be releasing a brand new recording by two of The Sixteen’s principal members - soprano, Elin Manahan Thomas and theorbo and lute player, David Miller. The 17th-century devotional songs on this disc were written against a backdrop of furious historical dramas and lurching tides of fortune. The songs chosen reflect these assorted times and contexts, and are accordingly diverse. Ravish’d with Sacred Extasies (a quote taken directly from Playford's ‘Harmonia Sacrae’) explores some of the most beautiful Elizabethan devotional songs ranging from the doctrinally eloquent to the theologically unsteady, from the spare and the restrained to the opulent and the overblown, from Dowland’s small cluster of late devotional songs to Purcell’s flowery and luscious settings.

The great Spanish composer and priest, Tomas Luis de Victoria, devoted his life to writing supremely uplifting and intense music throughout the church calendar. The Call of the Beloved includes some of the earliest triple-choir music ever to be published and is a reminder of Victoria's joyous and passionate music, complementing his more austere Requiem and music for Holy Week.

Classical Music

The King’s Singers perform the complete Italian madrigal collection Il Trionfo di Dori. Commissioned by Venetian nobleman Leonardo Sanudo in 1592, the collection features 29 works, each written by a different composer and poet, and set for nine voices. Among them are Vecchi, Gabrieli, Marenzio, de Monte, Striggio, Anerio, Gastoldi, Porta and Palestrina.

As the centenary of the Great War approaches, the choir of Jesus College Cambridge presents a new program of works titled War & Peace, a beautiful and moving collection of choral works that are united in various ways by the experiences and impact of war.

Mahler Contemporaries, a live concert recording from the Gustav Mahler Festival 2014, offers a range of well and lesser-known songs by friends, contemporaries and collaborators of Mahler, including Hugo Wolf, Pauline Viardot, Hans Rott, Richard Strauss, Arnold Schönberg and Bruno Walter, among others. The world premiére recording of Czech composer Josef Bohuslav Foerster’s Stabat Mater, Op. 56 opens proceedings; several of his songs also feature. Sung by winners of Karlsbad Int’l Singing Competition, the concert was recorded in the same Jihlava Church where Mahler started to listen to music.