Armand-Louis Couperin was the nephew of François Couperin, and part of a family which was the dominant musical dynasty in France for around two hundred and fifty years. The music of the younger Couperin is difficult to categorize, since he was writing at a time between the decorative aesthetic of the high baroque and the beginning of the true classical style. Sophie Yates relishes the music of this period, for to her, contained in the rococo period are the elements of the baroque, classical and even romantic styles in embryo, making, she says, 'a rich and unpredictable mixture of delights.'

This recording of various piano works by Rachmaninov, Scriabin, and Prokofiev, played by Konrad Skolarski, has received rave reviews all throughout Europe.

Recorded in: St Bartholemew's Church, Orford, Suffolk 11-13 December 1995 Producer(s) Gary Cole Sound Engineer(s) Gary Cole Richard Smoker (Assistant)

REVIEW

Yates shows lots of vivacity as well as the crisp neatness we have come to expect of her. The finale of the Italian Concerto, for example, simply bubbles with joyousness, as does the exuberant bravura A major Sonata by Scarlatti. She is admirably precise in the Rameau gavotte and variations, direct and simple in Le coucou, brings real brio to the Courante of the Handel suite (she treats its Allemande rather freely); her performance of the unusually shaped C major Sonata by Scarlatti – a quiet pastoral followed by rural bagpiping and then noisy revelry – is excellent. But to me one of the highlights of her recital is Duphly’s superb melancholy rondeau: I have heard it played with greater gravitas, but it is entirely convincing in her hands; and the much-employed low register of her Goujon-type harpsichord sounds very fine.

--Gramophone

To have the Romanian-German pianist Herbert Schuch’s complete Oehms discography collected into a single box set provides a valuable overview of this brilliantly talented performer who balances superb technique with the ability to find the essence of the composition. With a primary emphasis on the Romantic era, Schuch never falls into sentimental tropes in his interpretations. As noted in the Frankfurter Allegmeine Zeitung ,“The bright young Romanian-German pianist Herbert Schuch is building his career with marvellous consistency. This is demonstrated less by vain, flashy solo appearances than an ever deeper fathoming of individual works.”

Air & Ground

Classical Music

The soft, silvery tone of the harp and the rich, dark timbres of the viola make these instruments the ideal combination for playing a gentle night song or lullaby. Chanson dans la nuit is a meditation amid the quiet of the night... Yet Jitka Hosprová and Kateřina Englichová are also able to make the night dance with their instruments. The listener can savour almost an hour's worth of enchanting music for the viola and harp ranging from the Baroque masters to the French Impressionists. It is hard to believe that La fille aux cheveux de lin or Ravel’s Pavane were not originally created for these very instruments and that they can be played otherwise. The programme was compiled for the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra's enormously popular "For Mothers-To-Be" concert cycle. It makes a refreshing change to hear the bright sound of the violin replaced by the deeper colours of the viola, the brilliancy of the piano by the lambent tones of the harp, especially when the two instruments are in the hands of two such charming ladies and superlative musicians.

JEREB: Monography / SZEKELY: Rhapsody / FARKAS, F.: Bucinata

Classical Music

Classical Music

Roland Glassl presents this new album of Suites for Solo Viola. This album contains compositions by Max Reger, Adolf Busch, and Justus Weinreich. +The Suites by Justus Weinreich are receiving their premiere recording with this release. Roland Glassl enjoys a rich performing career as a soloist and chamber musician, and teaches at the Hochschule fur Musik und Darstellende Kunst Frankfurt am Main.

12.99

Claude-Bénigne Balbastre, the French composer, organist, and harpsichordist, was one of the most famous musicians of his time. His suite of pieces from 1759 is here performed by Sophie Yates on a harpsichord specially chosen for the repertoire, a double manual instrument built by Andrew Garlick in 1996. It is a copy of a French harpsichord by Jean- Claude Goujon, made in Paris in 1748, which today forms part of the collection of the Musée de la Musique at the Conservatoire de Paris. Sophie Yates has made a series of solo CDs for Chandos, many of which have won international awards. She has been described by Gramophone as 'hugely talented' and by BBC Music as playing 'with exceptional poise'. In the eighteenth century, aristocratic or, ideally, royal patronage was the undisputed key to an artist's success. In the case of Balbastre, the young composer was quickly and efficiently introduced to the Parisian musical circles and high society by no less a figure than Jean-Philippe Rameau, and made a brilliant career. He played at the Concert Spirituel until 1782, became organist of the Notre-Dame cathedral and of the Chapelle Royale, harpsichordist to the French royal court where he taught Queen Marie Antoinette, and organist to Louis-Stanislav Xavier, Count of Provence, later Louis XVIII, King of France. His fame grew so great that the archbishop of Paris had to forbid Balbastre to play at Saint Roch during certain services, because the church drew excessive crowds whenever he played. Because of his royal patronage, Balbastre developed a compositional style that displayed strong elements of nobility and grandeur, but there was also a great deal of exuberance, which meant that his works were commonly regarded as more popular than intellectual. The music on this recording takes the form of descriptive 'pièces de charactère'. Some of them - 'La Suzanne', for example - require a sparkling virtuosity, whilst others, such as 'La Berville', calls for the sensitivity to create a supple line. The title Giga at the top of 'La Lugeac' is a clue to its Italianate vigour, and its infectious spirit shows off Balbastre's gift for the common touch. 'La d'Hericourt' and 'La de Caze' are more noble and traditional. By contract, the pastoral style, so very popular in eighteenth-century France, is clearly heard in the socalled Air Champêtre, 'La Castlemore'. This collection of pieces was composed at the time when Balbastre was enjoying his greatest success in Paris, just before the old regime and all that went with it came to a dramatic end. It embodies the last flowering of the French harpsichord repertoire.

BACH Fantasia and Fugue in g, BWV 542. Sheep May Safely Graze. Toccata, Adagio, and Fugue in C, BWV 564. St. Matthew Passion: Finale. Prelude and Fugue in a, BWV 543. Air on a G String. Prelude and Fugue in D, BWV 532. I Call to Thee, Lord Jesus Christ • Virgil Fox (org) • REFERENCE 107 (66:19) Live: San Francisco 9/1976


From Professor Keith Johnson, the man committed to producing state-of-the-art vinyl recordings, who once claimed his company would never succumb to the siren call of CDs, comes this 24-bit HDCD transfer of a live recital given by Virgil Fox on the Ruffatti pipe organ and the Rodgers “Royal V” touring organ in San Francisco’s St. Mary’s Cathedral.


Virgil Fox remains a controversial figure in serious organ circles. Often looked upon as the Liberace of organists, Fox was noted for his flamboyant style and an approach to his craft that often put theatrics above respect for the composers whose music he played. The story, quite possibly apocryphal, is told of a visit Fox paid to the Wurlitzer electric organ factory. VIP that he was, he was conducted on a tour of the facility by the president of the company himself. At tour’s end, Fox was escorted into a sealed, temperature-controlled room that contained a pipe from an actual pipe organ. The president proudly announced that the pipe was used as a standard against which Wurlitzer’s organs were measured. To which Fox replied, “Fancy that, a real organ pipe in an electric organ factory! That’s like finding bird poop in a cuckoo clock!”


Not that Fox ever showed much discernment for the instruments he played on. His was a phenomenal technique often wedded in equal proportion to excess and lack of taste. His last years in particular, devoted to his “Heavy Organ” concerts and psychedelic light shows, were especially sad; though in his defense it could be said that he exposed many young people of that generation (the late 1960s and early 1970s)—even if it was through a haze of pot smoke—to the world of classical music.


This will not be a CD for those who take a serious view of the organ in general or of Bach’s masterpieces for the instrument in particular. But no one can take away from Fox his virtuosity or his showmanship. Nor can anyone take away from this recording its astonishing presence and stunning sound. For an organ spectacular to impress friends and alienate neighbors, recommended.


FANFARE: Jerry Dubins

14.99

A recital of guitar transcriptions, from young guitarist Piotr Przedbora. Playing the guitar is Mr. Przedbora's life's passion: he successfully performs repertoire from Classical to contemporary. He is laureate of over 20 international and national competitions, receiving 19 First Awards, and 3 Grand Prix.

Classical Music

French Music for Piano Duo

Ilja Hurník’s highly acclaimed recordings of Debussy and Ravel are released here for the first time on CD in a carefully remastered version. When listening to these recordings one will indeed be hard pressed to believe that they were made a full half-century ago. Hurník’s ninetieth birthday is an appropriate opportunity to recall them.

Felix Mendelssohn's Lieder ohne Worte (Songs Without Words), comprising 8 volumes and 48 individual works, are delightful solo piano miniatures that, although not so intended by the composer in most instances, have come to embody certain descriptive characteristics of people, places or things with the help of publisher's attaching names to some after-the-fact. Michael Endres award-winning (Diapason d'or; Choc du Musique) discography is an extensive one, amounting to 30 albums; for OehmsClassics he has recorded works of Schumann, Schubert, Weber, Ravel and Gershwin, among others.

Gerhard Oppitz is recognized as being one of the top pianists performing internationally today. His series of Schubert’s piano works, based on his long experience with the works, showcases his superior technical control, deep intellectual pervasion, and sweeping musical realization. This ninth installment includes dances, marches, and sonata fragments.

Classical Music

Chopin: Piano Recital

Classical Music

Classical Music