To mark the 120th anniversary of Estonia's national composer Eduard Tubin, this exuberant chamber music programme, including two world premiere recordings, traces Tubin's life, which is clearly marked by the dramatic upheavals of the 20th century. Early works side by side with late compositions show deep insights into the artist's soul - we hear his inner struggles, his development and his joys in top-class interpretations by pianist Kart Ruubel and her twin sister Triin, violin, as well as Xandi van Dijk, viola and Theodor Sink, cello.

This is the most comprehensive collection ever recorded: The Leipzig Quartet have achieved legendary status with all Franz Schubert's string quartets and fragments, string trios and the famous Trout Quintet with Christian Zacharias. Great works like the Trout, Rosamunde, and Death and the Maiden juxtaposed with fragments and early works provide deep insights into Schubert's compositional development, making this 10-CD collector's edition so appealing.

France was on the brink of revolution and Haydn was at the height of his international fame. These flamboyant quartets were written especially for the lucrative Parisian market, where quatuor brillant was becoming increasingly popular. The style is dazzlingly virtuosic and Stefan Arzberger shines with Haydn's most brilliant, high-flying, concerto-like passages, leading this remarkable ensemble's captivating interpretation with admirable aplomb.

Michael Schoch is equally at home on both the piano and organ - the best prerequisite for this recording of Reger's piano transcriptions of Bach's organ works! Lucid transparency characterises the performance of the celebrated ARD prizewinner, fed by a deep familiarity with both worlds, which Reger would also have appreciated.

Shimmering timbres, vibrant rhythms and colourful harmonies complement ragas from the Indian subcontinent. Walter Kaufmann fled Nazi Germany in 1934 to research Indian classical music and combined these influences with Western traditions in his compositions. The Regensburg Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Stefan Veselka present four works from Kaufmann's most productive creative phase during his time in exile, taking the listener on a voyage through the region's fascinating musical landscape.

The accomplished and versatile piano sextet Sestetto Classico are renowned for their superb performances of both well-known and rare works of chamber literature. These masterpieces by Bertini and Hummel are like miniature piano concertos in terms of their form, scope and virtuosity. "The Sestetto Classico players are absolutely first-rate, bringing off both pieces with fire and affection. Strongly recommended." (Fanfare)

Inspired by the spirit of Bach, Karl-Andreas Kolly explores traces of Bach in Mendelssohn's piano works and discovers Mendelssohn's deep connection with Bach in his Organ Sonatas, which through Kolly's transcriptions of astonishingly pianistic effect show the great composer in a completely new light.

MDG's multi-award-winning Les Six anthology series showcases the entire spectrum of an epoch. This installment is dedicated to Louis Durey, the eccentric outsider of Le groupe des Six. Holger Falk's incredibly agile baritone and tremendous tonal range accompanied by Steffen Schleiermacher's sensitivity, verve and virtuosity on the piano yet again take the benchmark up a notch in art song excellence.

Anna Pikulska takes us on an exciting journey into Cabanilles' sound world on the lovingly restored Bartholome Sanchez organ. With it's rich sounds from 50 stops on two divided manuals, this 18th century Aragonese Baroque instrument in Carinena (Aragon) testifies to the high standard of organ building at that time with some 800 Gothic pipes dating back to the year 1482.

Virtuoso extraordinaire Tatjana Vorobjova transports the listener to the sound world of the early 17th century with the celebrated 'Colmar-Ruckers' historic harpsichord built over 400 years ago. The programme traces the development of this instrument over the centuries with works by Froberger, d'Anglebert, Couperin, Buxtehude and Bach, providing a rich and vibrant portrait of this magnificent harpsichord.

Brilliantly stimulating, rich in allusions and a joy to listen to: Ulf-Guido Schafer's music was composed especially for his nearest and dearest chamber music partners, including top-notch woodwind ensembles Trio Rouseau and Ma'alot Quintett. The friends and highly experienced performers are sparked by their desire to share the diversity of colour, the immense virtuosity and sheer beauty of their instruments.

This further edition to Steffen Schleiermacher's Eisler anthology once again provides insights into an exciting composer's life that still receives far too little attention today. With his differentiated palette of expression and affinity for nuance, Schleiermacher is a master interpreter of Eisler's original, often surprising aesthetics encompassing an extremely wide variety of musical styles.

Bach revised his St. John Passion time and again - indeed making it one of his most enigmatic and fascinating compositions. On the 300th anniversary of it's world premiere, MDG is reissuing the highly acclaimed recording for the first time in full three-dimensional sound on Super Audio CD for the PREZIOSA series.

Christian Euler, together with his piano partner Paul Rivinius, present two Brahmsian masterpieces which foreshadow the fin de siecle and contrast these with Schumann's "Marchenbilder", whose fairytale-like character is reflected in the music's imaginative narrative gesture, transporting the listener into an enchanting world full of magic, poetry and longing.

Baglama virtuoso, composer and singer Erdal Akkaya together with the baroque orchestra caterva musica take listeners on an exciting musical voyage through centuries of shared history between Orient and Occident. "It is like embracing the past, the future and eternity on the banks of the river of culture, which has been flowing uninterruptedly for centuries" describes Akkaya. His original compositions alongside European and Turkish music from the 14th to the 18th centuries tell stories of love and quarrels, truths and falsehoods, peace and conflict, giving insights into the multifaceted relationship between the Ottoman Empire and the West.