Hidden Heartache is 100 minutes of piano music from the last 100 years in the context of social inequality and unequal power relations. The Swiss pianist Simone Keller is both courageous and fearless with an eye for the essentials and for the big issues of the day. The album is a self portrait and an homage, with Keller asking herself which piano music of the last 100 years deserves greater attention. « It soon becomes obvious that there are thousands of hours of unheard, unplayed works by underrepresented composers. The selection I ultimately made is very personal, and closely connected to my own pianistic activities. But it was also very important to me that Hidden Heartache should not merely gather together historical figures, but also present compositions of today that reveal varied perspectives on societal and power inequalities while at the same time paying homage to the music of Julius Eastman and Julia Amanda Perry. These new works by the Swiss composers Jessie Cox and Cristina Janett, and the Americans Julie Herndon and Jessie Marino, were created in direct collaboration with me », writes Simone Keller.

Pictures while listening to symphony no. 9: A joyful, almost boisterous opening movement. A dreamy, contemplative second followed by a sparkling presto. And then this short fourth movement, the helpless lament of a lonely bassoon, still showing signs of vitality against the stark, unbending, unison brass. A small, tormented individual under brutal state power. Nevertheless, still it laments. The dictator repeats his demand. But the bassoon does not totally lose heart. It starts the last movement with a shy, slightly mischievous dance that becomes gradually more light-hearted. Somewhere along the line, the timpani and horns give the signal to rise up, initially very softly. This is the announcement to the dictator: watch out, Stalin, this is it, now I'll make you think with pen and ink! The furious ascent peaks with a grotesque triumphal march that sounds like liberated laughter. The powerless one makes fun of the all-powerful – and then whistles in his face! Looking back, the question arises: who is the one lying as heavy as cold sheet metal in an eternal bottomless pit and who is the one who remains laughing in history? Judging by the music, by the 9th symphony Shostakovich had put the worst of times behind him. Quite different from in the 5th, but that's another story. Another story, by the way, that you can also find in this cinema.

Capriccio Encore is a series of re-releases of the most famous recordings from Capriccio's back catalogue, fully re-mastered. The legendary recordings of artists such as Sandor Végh, Ton Koopman, Sir Neville Marriner and the Vienna Boys' Choir also contain repertoire highlights that have a particularly special appeal, from the baroque to the present day. This Encore album features violinist Andrea Keller, flutist Martin Sandhoff alongside the Concerto Koln playing works by Francois-Joseph Gossec.

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REVIEW:

The two central works, each in three movements, are exceptionally compact while remaining gently amiable. This lively music heard in lively music-making. It draws on an amiable personality who mines both serene dignity and regal grace.

– MusicWeb International

In this portrait, the composer Marina Khorkova forms multilayered soundscapes full of contrasts from a wide range of multiphonics and noises. The composer lays the focus on the development of her own musical language, against the backdrop of various traditions of multitonality and the "musique concrète instrumentale". She meticulously explores the tonal properties and possibilities of the chamber music instruments by frequently using unusual playing techniques. As a pianist, Khorkova is particularly interested in the specific interaction of the natural multiphonics of the piano with multiphonics achieved by preparing this instrument. The tonal physiognomy of the compositions are "generally characterized rather by metallic harshness, inhospitable frequencies, raw and menacing sound-values than by tender harmonic whispering" - Dirk Wieschollek. The work VORderGRENZE focusses on existential sounds between life and death and on the struggle for breath. The trio klangNarbe, on the other hand, reveals a ragged soundscape. Metallic timbres and noise spectra of the percussion are fused with the multiphonics of the saxophone and the multiphonic (sometimes 17-tone) clusters of a prepared piano. The performers, including the ensemble Ascolta, the trio Accanto as well as the Kairos Quartet, are given substantial leeway through the sometimes graphic notation, which contributes essentially to the energetic effect of the pieces. The metrical freedom of the work 'a_priori', for example, is elementary for 'continuously flowing tonal movements fluctuating in colour which go in search of a kind of original tonal state'. The vast majority of the works was recorded by Deutschlandfunk in Cologne especially for this portrait.

On the occasion of it's 40th anniversary Carus has initiated a new series Carus Classics, featuring ten outstanding CD productions from the past library of recordings. This exclusive collection, designed by Friedrich Forssman and Cornelia Feyll, is presented in high-quality DigiPacs and each CD includes an extensive booklet. '... exemplary recording.' (New Classics, September 2005)

Debut recording by the Kevin Keller Ensemble (English horn, strings, piano, harp, percussion) of Keller's new contemporary ballet "In Absentia". This deeply emotional work deals with absence, loss, and ultimately, acceptance. It is Keller's most visceral and immediate work to date, exploring a style he calls "pure expressionism". This new release from Kevin will appeal to fans of Philip Glass, John Tavener, and Arvo Part.