Roberto Alagna is the kind of 'opera singer' who can sing for all with pleasure Such infectious That All we can do is sit back and enjoy. And are we so happy to listen to _him_ That There's only one thing we feel we shoulds say to him... thank you. Composer Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi, Donizetti, Gounod, Massenet, Bizet, Berlioz, Jacques Offenbach, Leonard Bernstein

New recording from Elisabeth Leonskaja - an album which pays tribute to the second Viennese school featuring works by Berg, Schoenberg, Webern. One of the most celebrated pianists of our time, remaining true to herself and to her music, and in doing so, is following in the footsteps of the great Russian musicians of the Soviet era, such as Sviatoslav Richter and Emil Gilels... "When I play, I am not presenting myself on the stage, but the music I am playing. It is the music that matters." EL

Petrichor is the title of David Orlowsky's second album with Warner Classics. Recorded with guitarist Daniel Stelter, the percussionist Tommy Baldu, and keyboarder Lillo Scrimali, they present 11 tracks for 11 distinctive scents and smells that, in Orlowsky's words "produce a positive reaction in us". The title refers to the scents and smells produced when rain falls on dry earth, Orlowsky had always liked it, and was delighted to discover that it even has a name: Petrichor.

Violinist Augustin Hadelich embarks on an American Road Trip, travelling the musical highways and by ways of his adoptive homeland in the company of pianist Orion Weiss. The duo perform works by a melting pot of American composers, writing in the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries and drawing on a diversity of idioms, influences and inspirations... from European Romanticism to revivalist hymns; from blues and jazz to bluegrass; from the banjo and ukulele to Jimi Hendrix's guitar, and from a little Mexican star to exquisite Japanese carvings. Aaron Copland, Leonard Bernstein, Charles Ives and John Adams take their place beside Amy Beach, Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, Eddie South, Howdy Forrester, Manuel M. Ponce and - flying the flag for today's composers along with Adams - Daniel Bernard Roumain and Stephen Hartke. Augustin Hadelich, born in Italy to German parents, moved to the USA at the age of 19 to study at New York's Juilliard School and became an American citizen in 2014. In the words of The Strad magazine, "Hadelich's playing brings together the best qualities of both American and European playing: passion, Polish and coherence, but also thoughtfulness, expressivity and nuance."

Klemperer and Brahms had much in common, which may go some way to explaining the empathy with which Klemperer conducts the works of the great composer. As Richard Osborne says in the accompanying liner notes: 'no detail was insignificant, yet none was allowed to subvert the larger whole'. The recordings in this box have all been remastered in HD from original tapes for the Otto Klemperer Complete Edition in 2023.

Hollywood, the new album of German pianist Sebastian Knauer is centred around the music and family story of legendary American film music composer Alfred Newman. He recorded it with the son of Alfred Newman, conductor and composer David Newman and the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin. Alfred Newman, the founding father of the Hollywood sound, composer of the world's most famous fanfare, the 20th Century Fox logo, winner of nine Academy Awards, nominated for 45, friend of Gershwin, Copland, Bernard Herrmann, mentor of Alex North, Elmer Bernstein, Jerry Goldsmith and founder of the most successful film music dynasty: his younger brothers Emil and Lionel Newman ("Hello, Dolly!"), his older son David Newman ("Ice Age", "Anastasia"), the younger son Thomas Newman ("American Beauty", "James Bond: Skyfall"), his nephew Randy Newman... and his grandchildren are already starting their careers... George Gershwin or Aaron Copland, Alex North or Elmer Bernstein, Bernard Herrmann or Jerry Goldsmith - all the composers on Sebastian Knauer's new album have three things in common: they come from the USA, they have naturally intertwined classical composition and film music and they are closely associated with Alfred Newman.

A forbidding and gothic new score by Christopher Young (Hellraiser, Species, Urban Legend, The Grudge, The Exorcism of Emily Rose) for the F.W. Murnau classic 1922 silent-movie 'Nosferatu, A Symphony of Horror', one of the most influential films of all time and one that continues to cast it's long shadow across the horror movie genre even still. The perfect match of composer and movie. The recording of this new score was made with Frank Strobel, conductor, Saya Hashino, organ and Tonhalle-Orchester Zurich.

A forbidding and gothic new score by Christopher Young (Hellraiser, Species, Urban Legend, The Grudge, The Exorcism of Emily Rose) for the F.W. Murnau classic 1922 silent-movie 'Nosferatu, A Symphony of Horror', one of the most influential films of all time and one that continues to cast it's long shadow across the horror movie genre even still. The perfect match of composer and movie. The recording of this new score was made with Frank Strobel, conductor, Saya Hashino, organ and Tonhalle-Orchester Zurich.

From Serenade Grotesque to Le Tombeau de Couperin, Maurice Ravel's piano works span nearly a quarter of a century of creative endeavour. To listen to this recording of all of them is to go on a journey, to immerse oneself in the heart of the magical world of the composer of Bolero. Each piece is a unique gem, a curious mixture of discipline and delight which seems to sketch out a portrait of the composer and alchemist embodied in Ravel.

I have long imagined a recital program dedicated to the opposing themes of heaven and hell, spiritual and corporal, saints and sinners, writes pianist Andrew von Oeyen of his album Angels and Demons. Combining works conceived for solo keyboard with transcriptions of music from the orchestral, operatic and choral repertoires, he takes the 'angelic' route with Bach (transcribed in one instance by Busoni), Debussy, Faure and Messiaen, and the 'demonic' route with Liszt, Saint-Saens and Edward MacDowell. As he leads the listener on a journey into the darkest corners of human emotion, but also towards rapture and catharsis," the American-born pianist proves an assured and inspiring guide. After all, in the words of the Chicago Tribune, "He leaves you convinced that he can do absolutely anything he likes with a keyboard." AvO

Aimi Kobayashi's new album is dedicated to Schubert, and features the Impromptus D935, Sonata in C minor D958, and Rondo in D major D.608, recorded with Kyohei Sorita (her husband). Gramophone: "Here is a fine, sensitive pianist with a strong technique and a solemn, intense stage presence".

Two LPs housed in a clamshell box with a full booklet. Rufus Wainwright's Dream Requiem is an extremely prestigious project, the result of a commission from major cultural institutions in the US, UK, and Europe. This world premiere recording features a new composition by the legendary, Grammy-nominated musician, who has collaborated with the who's who of the pop music world. With narration by Meryl Streep, the project will be followed by a worldwide tour starting in January 2025. Written during the pandemic, it's a requiem "for the people we have lost in this crisis, for the past from which we are cut off and for the future to which we do not yet know how to connect, a Requiem for human contact, solidarity and the human voice that have all become dangerous and contagious"; It's also a reflection on environmental collapse and the increase in the number of natural disasters. The text of Dream Requiem weaves together words from the Latin Mass for the Dead - as used by his hero Verdi - with Lord Byron's apocalyptic poem 'Darkness', written after the volcanic eruption of Mount Tambora in 1815 and which brought about "the year without summer".

The great cellist Jacqueline Du Pre would have been 80 years old on January 26, 2025, if illness had not taken her too early at the age of 42. This LP brings together Camille Saint-Saens' famous 1st Cello Concerto with Jackie's husband Daniel Barenboim at the baton, and Frederick Delius' rarer Cello Concerto, which perfectly fits with Du Pre's playing and sensitivity (this time accompanied by Sir Malcolm Sargent). Warner re-released on LP a few years ago the 1968 EMI studio recording of the Saint-Saens Concerto, also with Barenboim (but with the New Philharmonia Orchestra). The live recording on this new vinyl was made three years later, in 1971, with the Philadelphia Orchestra in it's city, and released on CD at the end of the 90s by Teldec. It is released here on vinyl for the first time.

Yoav Levanon's second album is dedicated to Franz Liszt. It features Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2, Totentanz and also an original piece composed by Yoav Levanon called "Silent Love alla Liszt". He recorded with the Luzerner SInfonieorchester, conducted by Michael Sanderling. Reviewers consider him as a major talent. Diapason: ".an authentic musician, who has everything to become one of the major pianists of this century". BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE: "Levanon is undaunted by Liszt's Sonata, giving a performance of heroic sweep. A powerful player, the 18-year-old is nimble and articulate in the virtuoso passages, dramatic with the rhetorical flourishes, tender and lyrical when required. "

Having worked extensively with period instrument ensembles throughout my career, I was intrigued and fascinated about the possibility on this album of a delicious colliding of the two worlds. Alison Balsom. On this new recording Alison Balsom and her long term friend and conductor Trevor Pinnock bring alive works from Telemann, Handel, Vivaldi, Albinoni and Marcello. A baroque album, confronting the period instruments of the Pinnock Players and Alison's use of a modern instrument: a rotary valve piccolo trumpet. Alison comments: "The piccolo trumpet is a modern invention - something that Bach and his contemporaries could not have known was to come - it's power, it's gleaming bright tone and it's 20th century engineering technology. And this instrument is a world away from the subtle multifaceted sounds of the natural trumpet of the Baroque era. That said, the opportunity to perform much more chromatic and virtuosic music such as that originally written for solo violin or oboe, has seduced me and my trumpet colleagues since the days of the great Maurice Andre. He showed the world how intensely sweet the piccolo trumpet could be in it's upper register".

In 2019, I began to think about making concept albums. Of all the ideas I developed, one of the most potent was that of collating works that we would like to listen to in the morning and evening. This was the sentiment behind the creation of the albums Morning and Evening. Consequently, for both albums I sought out music that I found to be reminiscent of either morning or evening, choosing pieces that embodied the unique joy and melancholy of these times of day. Working on the principle that simplicity was suited to morning music, I leaned heavily towards baroque and early classical pieces for the Morning album. The Evening album features classics from the Romantic and late Romantic period. Playing these pieces, I sensed the unique rhythm of morning and evening hidden in their natural flow. I hope you will enjoy listening to them. Fazil Say

Bruckner was working on the Ninth Symphony until the day he died. He left a stark and magnificent torso that marks the end of the 19th-century symphony - but he also left fragments and sketches for a magnificent finale that would cap his life's work. In the latest realisation of a completion that has taken over 20 years, Bruckner's finale crowns his musical last will and testament with an intense and visionary splendour. 'Everything that is strange about this finale is 100% Bruckner,' remarks Sir Simon Rattle. 'And one can see the terror and the fear and the passion which he was going through in his life at that time.'

Dmitri Shostakovich composed his first symphony in 1925 as a graduation piece at the Leningrad Conservatory and his 15th symphony in 1971, four years before his death. Perhaps more than the symphonic canon of any composer in history, these works reflect the dramatic historical events of his time, in this case the 20th century and specifically the Russian Revolution, Second World War and Stalinist repression. Besides the symphonies, the cello concertos and piano concertos are also included in this set.

In choosing Movements as the title for this album of piano works, George LI highlights both their structure and their dancing spirit: the 18 movements of Schumann's Davidsbündlertänze (supplemented by his Arabeske in C major) are followed by Ravel's eight Valses nobles et sentimentales and three movements from Stravinsky's score for the ballet Petruskha. "There are intriguing and intoxicating elements in this dance programme that captured me from the outset when crafting it," says the Boston-born pianist. "Broadly speaking, I love the effects of color and harmony in these works, as well as the general feeling of an evolution, or perhaps a continuous battle, between the introverted and extroverted impulses... The Davidsbündlertänze embodies the full spectrum of human emotion - despair, anxiety, sorrow, triumph, bliss, or pure love, to name a few... Another fascinating element in this program is the motivic and harmonic threads which connect the smaller pieces into a cohesive whole. Recently, I've developed a great obsession with learning how to weave musical moments into a single overarching architectural narrative. This program offers a different challenge - giving space for each musical moment to be it's own distinct individual voice, while also still maintaining the narrative arc..."

Andre Rieu's latest album "The Sound of Heaven" (CD + DVD) presents a selection of the most beautiful and romantic pieces of music of all time. Once again, the world-renowned violinist and orchestra conductor takes his listeners on a musical journey full of emotion and passion with truly "heavenly sounds". "The Sound of Heaven" combines a wonderful selection of classical masterpieces, romantic melodies and timeless evergreens, masterfully interpreted by Rieu and his famous Johann Strauss Orchestra. From G.F. Handel to Andrew Lloyd Webber, from Giacomo Puccini to ABBA, from Charles Gounod to John Williams - Andre Rieu proves once again that music knows no boundaries. The new album delights with melodies from musicals such as The Phantom of the Opera, The Sound of Music or West Side Story, film music from Star Wars and Titanic, as well as popular and contemplative classical titles such as the Benedictus by Gounod and Jenkins and the famous Canon in D by Pachelbel. Of course, the dreamlike Hijo de la luna and Handel's joyful Hallelujah from the Messiah are not to be missed. As a special gift to his fans, the album also includes a brand new DVD. You can look forward to touching interpretations of classics such as "You Raise me Up" and "Amen" as well as joyful and moving performances of pieces such as "A little night music" and "The Lonely Shepherd". Rieu's unique interpretations and his charismatic presence on stage make this DVD the ideal complement to "The Sound of Heaven".

The most famous tenor celebrates not only his 60th birthday, but also 40 years of an exceptionally rich and varied, and remarkably generous career. A career spent off the beaten track, constantly regenerated, and showing an insatiable curiosity, a temperament, and an extraordinary vocal timbre. Roberto Alagna captivates audiences everywhere. Here he presents a program that is very much in his own image: showing a contagious passion, an insatiable appetite for the exploration of different repertoires and styles, ranging from opera - French, Italian and Neapolitan, German, Polish and Russian - to Italian and French songs, and crossover music with some surprises up his sleeve.

Cage and Dowland: the two Johns, four hundred years apart, share a common taste for sober expression, concise forms and intimate realization - and for the pleasure that comes from words as such. Each cultivates this desire in his own way. Cage, like a tightrope walker, approaches the essence of musical thought with humor, lightness, and depth, and Dowland aims for the expression of feelings in their purest form. Cultivating as always a fertile anachronism, the Theleme ensemble brings together the complete works for two voices and lute by Dowland, several compositions by Cage, and world-renowned artist Sting offers a reworking of his hit song, "Shape of My Heart", which in this new arrangement becomes a kind of 21st-century lute song, coming full circle on an album where Renaissance and present meet, mingle, and merge to transcend the boundaries of aesthetics and genres.

FALCON

AN AUDIO-ONLY DVD. David Chesky's newest compositions of modern orchestra examines spritual crisis. Recorded with the Deutsches Filmorchester Bablesberg and conducted by Stephen Somary, "Three Psalms" is an emotina listening experience that will move lovers of modern romantic music.

Experience the iconic music from movies and series such as Babylon Berlin, The Great Gatsby and Burlesque with the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, Danish Radio Big Band and guests. The Babylon Hotel is the concert where the upper class meets the underworld in a melting pot of euphoria and extravagance, nostalgia and pleasure with a carefree sinfulness only seen in the exuberant nightlife of the 1920s around the world. This concert evening takes you through the fictional Babylon Hotel, where the doors are opened to a world of music from movies like The Great Gatsby, Babylon, Burlesque, the TV series House of Dreams and Babylon Berlin and the operas Porgy and Bess and Mahagonny - and much more.