Classical Music

With the cycle "The Year", composed by Mendelssohn's sister Fanny upon completing a journey to Italy, one feels transported into another time period. Els Bieseman's Fortepiano debut CD set exactly those strings in vibration that have been lost on the new, well-equipped modern concert grand. The dark, dreamlike sound of the Pleyel grand (that Liszt & company enthused over…) beautifully fits the transparent, structured and always supple playing of the young Belgian musician. Wonderfully romantic music in which a splendid musician allows us to take part! - Genuin

Review Quotes:

"She plays with passion, musical sensitivity, virtuosity and emotional intensity that would surely have impressed Fanny..." - Andrew Benson-Wilson, Early Music Review, 10/12

"Genuin has brought us Els Bieseman to reveal the best Romantic traditions. His sense of nuance and his vision are of a perfect score. Music that soothes, within the conventions of the past yet also up to date.." - Jean-Luc Caron, ResMusica, (translated from French) 28.01.2013

"The playing is much to be praised. She tends to be more mercurial in the faster pieces and moves more quickly in the slower ones. Her technique and expressive abilities are never too challenged, and she easily moves through all of the surface charms of the music. The engineers have also done their job very well." Alan Becker, American Record Guide, January 2013

Forget everything you ever knew about all-male choirs – unless you already know the two other GENUIN CDs previously released by the highly successful Camerata Musica Limburg... Not familiar with the discs yet? Then be sure to get the new recording of Romantic vocal repertoire featuring works by Schubert, Vaughan Williams and Sjöberg. The warm timbre of the male chorus and the four fantastic French horns glow like stars in the night, and the excellent soloists Alison Browner and Christoph Prégardien are beautifully supported and can allow their artistry to effortlessly unfold. The snow melts away and love is awakened in your heart... An absolute highlight!

The young, talented Finnish-Russian pianist Julia Dahlkvist has provided the finale in the four-part Bluthner-Debussy cycle on GENUIN. And she shows that etudes certainly do not have to be dull, nor do children's pieces have to be only for young people. From the slightly elegiac, finely satirical tones of Doctor gradus ad parnassum (Children's Corner) to the ecstatic chord sequences of the last Etudes, she works out the infinitely detailed richness of Debussy's piano works with superior technique and audible joy in the tone colors.

Schumann and Schubert's music is never simply cheerful: their dark sides attack us suddenly, unexpectedly, either like a storm or by stealthily creeping up on us. Natalia Ehwald has selected two such works for the follow-up release to the highly acclaimed GENUIN production Fantasias for Piano: Schubert's late Sonata in A major and Schumann's early, "sad" Humoresque, op. 20. Ehwald does not try to smooth out anything; she never overlooks the roughness of the music but instead becomes involved, creating associations and thereby achieving a pianism of great suggestive power. This album is a lovely new discovery of two major works!

Classical Music

The songs of Korean composer Young Jo Lee, chosen by singer Yoora Lee-Hoff for her Genuin debut, seem like enchanting ink drawings from the Far East. The fabulous coloratura soprano, accompanied by Michael Schütze on the piano, performs the little treasures with great naturalness, a beautiful sound and as clear as a bell. The spectrum of songs from all creative periods of the contemporary composer ranges from the simple, folk-like strophic song to a touch of magical post-impressionist color. Yoora Lee-Hoff sings us about silky haze and scarecrows, moonlit nights and starlight - from another world! Yoora Lee Hoff was born in Seoul, South Korea and lives in Dresden, Germany. As a child she learned to play piano and won several national prizes in South Korea. She later studied violin in South Korea and Germany. During her violin studies she was invited to study vocal arts at the University of Music and Theatre in Leipzig, and went on to debut at the Leipzig Opera House.

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

We challenge anyone to listen to five minutes of Christoph Sietzen's new Genuin release without twitching their toes, tapping along with their fingers, and being seized with the irresistible urge to get up and start dancing. The prizewinner of the 2014 ARD Music Competition takes us on a trip through the percussion worlds of the late 20th an dearly 21st centuries that 70s groupies would have taken large quantities of drugs in order to emulate. Sietzen dazzles us with his sheer precision, seemingly endless range of tonal colors, and musical drive. From Arvo Part to Iannis Xenakis, from Emmanuel Sejourne to Bruce Hamilton - expanded consciousness guaranteed!

Classical Music

Iannis Xenakis invented his own instruments for Les Pléiades, a suggestive, interstellar work for percussion ensemble. And once again the Ensemble DeciBells commissioned their very own grandiose musical instruments for their outstanding recording of this work. The musicians led by Basel solo timpanist Domenico Melchiorre play the shimmering music, which fuses the boundaries between individual instrument, ensemble, and listener on a dizzying scale: subtle and yet with nerve! Percussion ensemble DeciBells is closely associated with new music, and regularly works on projects with contemporary composers. The ensemble’s roots are in Basel, however, concert tours have taken them to Asia and throughout Europe. DeciBells is Adrian Romaniuc, David Gurtner, Robin Fourmeau, Sakiko Yasui, Szilard Buti, Till Lingenberg, and Domenico Melchiorre.

Japanese flutist Atsuko Koga's debut GENUIN CD includes works by the great composers Widor, Massenet, Gounod and Schubert, but also discoveries by Gaubert and Borne, presenting the abilities of this internationally successful soloist in the very best light. Her playing is notable for it's soulful tone and breathtaking virtuosity, blending together perfectly with Mayuko Miyata on piano.

More than 24 countries are represented in the European Brass Ensemble, which meets at the Melk Abbey in Austria. This new release is the ensemble’s first album with GENUIN, and features world premiere recordings. Renowned trumpeter James Morrison joins the ensemble. Morrison is highly sought-after for both his classical and jazz trumpeting skills.

On this unique record, Paul Badura Skoda performs three different versions of Schubert’s final Sontata in B-flat major. Each of these versions is performed with a distinct sound on three different pianos: an 1826 Graf fortepiano, a 1923 Bosendorfer and a 2004 Steinway grand.

One of the most outstanding artists of the 20th century, Dinorah Varsi's musicianship is showcased in this "Legacy" box. Varsi plays over 250 yeras of music from Rameau and Bach to Bartók and Ustvolskaya.

On it's 60th birthday, the Folkwang Kammerorchester Essen is giving itself and it's audience a youthful present: virtuoso orchestral music by the ever-young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The elite chamber orchestra's second GENUIN release, following the highly acclaimed recording of Mozart's Horn Concertos with Christoph Ess as soloist, features symphonies from all phases of Mozart's life: from early works to the great symphony in G minor. The award-winning conductor Johannes Klumpp let's his ensemble play this filigree yet passionate music extremely fast and at the same time with deep feelings. A real pleasure! Energetic concerts, bold and inquisitive programming and musical excellence are the trademarks of the Folkwang Kammerorchester Essen. In it's concerts, the young international ensemble under the direction of Principal Conductor Johannes Klumpp explores musical boundaries and introduces experimental formats, genres, and styles with considerable success.

We wonder whom we should admire the most: the composer Ludwig van Beethoven, who at the age of fifteen wrote such consummate, sparkling, and profound music, or the Hanover Piano Trio, which with violist Konstantin Sellheim has so immaculately recorded the young master's quartets on this GENUIN release. The four internationally sought-after artists demonstrate a great understanding of historically-informed performance practice, dedicating themselves with panache and at a high level to an oeuvre that deserves more attention - perfect timing for the Beethoven anniversary year!

On her GENUIN debut release, splendid Polish pianist Aleksandra Mikulska presents Franz Liszt’s reminiscences of the great loves of his life: they include both people and places as well as his own works that had grown dear to him. With broad musical lines and a wonderfully sensuous tone, the Special Prize-winner at the 15th International Frédéric Chopin Competition breathes new life into some of the most beautiful works of the repertoire: the "Liebestraum" and "Hungarian Rhapsody" and the celebrated "Frühlingslied", an arrangement of the song by Robert Schumann – a true delight for piano lovers, and much more than just black and white!

When Simone Rubino plays Johann Sebastian Bach on the marimba, his music seems to be released of temporality, more so than in its original form. It sounds like the music of the spheres: ancient and brand new ... and more than ever when the prizewinner of numerous competitions (including the International ARD Competition) combines Bach with works of the 20th and 21st centuries. Virtuosic, iridescent pieces for marimba, vibraphone and much more. The finest structures and shades are transparent, for example, in "Esegesi" by Roberto Bocca, which is presented here as a world premiere recording. Percussion pleasure at its finest, and not just for fans of drums and Bach. “What should one praise more: the incredible dexterity with which he executes thunderous rolls on the drums, tom-toms and bongos, makes the claves clang or dances along the xylophone? Or the sensitivity with which the gongs, chimes and cymbals blend with the high strings and delecate woodwinds?” (Isabel Herzfelt, Der Tagesspiegel)