Beethoven's works for violoncello and piano are among the first of this genre. Where previously the piano dominated or merely accompanied, now two equal partners appear, complimenting each other in brilliance and virtuosity. The three cello sonatas, which come from different creative periods of Beethoven, allow insights into the development of the celebrated composer. Ludwig Hoelscher and Jorg Demus, two of the most famous and influential musicians of the last century, dedicated themselves to this multifaceted work in 1972. The resulting recordings express the two master instrumentalists' in-depth study of these works, while offering an intimate experience of chamber music performance. The recordings included in these CDs stood the test of time. The original records, released in 1974, are highly prized by connoisseurs and collectors. These recordings have been lovingly remastered and are now, for the first time, available in digital form. The remaster enables a crystal-clear listening experience of the masterful interpretations without losing their historic character.

Where people sing, make yourself at home, bad people have no songs!". This saying is surely true, one has only to look at the growing a-cappella and choir scene to see that, and it is borne out again in the successful concept developed by Helge Burggrabe. In Hagios he invites listeners to be at home with themselves and slip out of the stress of everyday life. There are songs that the audience can sing along to, and they transform the hall into a great auditorium - altogether in the Taize tradition. Sold-out concerts prove that this concept chimes with the zeitgeist. Together with the Elbcanto vocal ensemble, pianist Christof Fankhauser and a string ensemble, he now presents his second album: Hagios II - Songs of Devotion and Meditation. For song-loving, spiritual people in search of peace, and for all those who simply want to retreat from everyday life and unwind. "As far back as I can remember, I hear the voice of my mother. Her bedtime songs, which sent me to sleep at night, were a comfort to me, they were the sound of safety," Burggrabe recalls. In Hagios II he continues his search for the invigorating power of song. He discovers melodies that are hundreds of years old. He comes across works from monastic cultures of all faiths, songs of those in search of peace and stillness, with their roots in ancient Jewish music. Communal singing - also known as "psalmody" - is to be found in Gregorian chant, in the Orthodox liturgy, in Taize songs and sacred songs of the present day. Hymns and prayers in music were always seen as healing and calming. Helge Burggrabe records all this and opens a space that invites the weary and troubled to reflect, to dream, to rest. The album covers a wide musical range. From peaceful, meditative pieces to lively songs of joy, Helge Burggrabe conveys inner peace, security and positive energy. Choral singing, piano and string ensemble are enhanced by the timbres of flute, accordion and organ, expanding the warm and heartfelt tone.

Philatelically interested friends of music might be tempted to title this rarity the "Mauritius" of early music, for of the First Part of Sacred Concertos that Hamburg's municipal musician and Kapellmeister Johann Schop published in 1644, only a single complete copy survives in Germany, while the three others traceable worldwide are preserved only fragmentarily. For the value of an artwork, however, different criteria apply than mere rarity, and precisely these Schop's church music fulfills entirely: supplemented by some of the instrumental pieces that the composer and violin virtuoso once played for noble dance entertainments, the filigree, directly appealing song-settings rise in their wondrous weightlessness, full of hope, above the devastating times-here reigns the peace that in reality would wait another four years to arrive.

A sense of expectancy, along with images of stillness in nature, are recurrent in depictions of the story of Christmas. This collection of contemporary carols, alongside well-known favourites, seeks to draw the listener deeper into the remarkable story of the Christ Child.

With works by Franz Schubert and Robert Schumann, this CD is dedicated entirely to the magic of musical romanticism. Two composers, two worlds of sound - united by emotional depth, imagination and a love of the piano. Lei Meng interprets Schumann's filigree Arabesque op. 18 and his passionate C major Fantasy op. 17, a musical confession full of inner drama. Schubert will perform the intimate Allegretto in C minor D 915 and the powerful, visionary Wanderer Fantasy D 760 - an orchestral masterpiece for piano. Lei Meng, born in 1991 in Harbin (China), studied at the Mozarteum Salzburg and the CNSMD in Paris, among others. She has won prizes at international competitions and has performed in Europe, China, Brazil and the USA. She has been Professor of Piano and Piano Didactics at the Mozarteum Salzburg since 2024. Her artistic versatility is reflected in numerous solo and chamber music projects. Pure romanticism - full of longing, melancholy and expressiveness. An invitation to listen and dream.

Francesco Almasio (Milan, 21 April 1802 - Milan, 14 November 1871) was one of the protagonists of the musical life of Milan during the nineteenth century, and is considered the father of the reformation of sacred music in Italy. He was Kapellmeister and organist in several Milanese churches, and the very first teacher in the organ course at the Conservatory of Milan: the few surviving manuscripts of sacred music compositions of his, and the printed corpus of his organ pieces, reveal the everyday life of his liturgical and teaching activities. Francesco Almasio was born in Milan to Pietro Almasio (1780-1846), from Legnano, who also was a Kapellmeister and organist, and Maria Porri; his father made him study the piano, the organ and composition. Organist Fabio Nava uses the historic Bossi-Urbani organ from 1886 in the Prepositurale Church of Leffe (Bergamo) to best render this recording of Francesco Almasio's organ works. In addition to the original compositions, the organ transcriptions by the Milanese composer are particularly interesting. In addition to famous pieces such as Eja Mater from Rossini's Stabat Mater and the symphony from Giuseppe Verdi's La Forza del Destino, true musts of the era, he surprisingly adapts two movements from Beethoven's Septet for organ, enriching the sacred and liturgical repertoire of his time with chamber music genre.

In 2001, under the umbrella title la Serenissima, Richard Rijnvos started a series of compositions dedicated to the city of Venice. This multi-year 'work-in-progress' currently includes seven compositions, the most recent two of which are the subject of this recording. Jan Hage is particularly known as an advocate and sought-after performer of contemporary organ music. In 2006 he received the silver medal of the Parisian Societe Academique Arts Sciences Lettres for his services to French organ culture. Jane Chapman is one of Britain's most distinguished classical harpsichordists. Her repertoire stretches from early music to contemporary avant-garde. Described in The Independent on Sunday as "Britain's most progressive harpsichordist", and in the Guardian as "a fearless contemporary music performer" she is at the forefront of creating and inspiring new music for harpsichord.

The musical interests of Ludwig Guttler know no borders, but the festivity of Christmas in all it's magic is particularly close to Guttler's heart: "I want to bring a selection to the audience that does justice to the occasion and the wonderful music that was created for it," says Guttler about his motivation for the many Christmas editions he was part of in his career. The four best-selling Christmas albums of recent years are presented in this 4 CD Edition, with highlights of popular and heartwarming music for the most atmospheric time of the year

Mario Pilati was born in Naples on 16 October 1903. His life was very short, intense and troubled. Together with his siblings, he was introduced as a child into the study of music, as was the custom in Neapolitan upper-middle- class families. He immediately showed a great talent as a pianist and an overflowing creativeness: at the age of 13 he had already decided that music was to be his profession. His father attempted to thwart his artistic calling by making him enrol in a technical school, but, with the help of his mother, he managed to go on with his musical studies: at the early age of 20 he took a diploma with honours in composition at the Conservatorio S. Pietro a Majella of Naples, under the guidance of Antonio Savasta. He immediately looked for a job, in order to become independent of his family: his father not only disapproved of his musical career, but also never accepted his engagement with Antonietta Margiotta, whom he married in 1928 and with whom he had three daughters, Annamaria, Laura and Giovanna. The award-winning specialists Manuela Custer and Raffaele Cortesi (already protagonists of the recent recording Liriche su testi di Dante, tc 840003) are the interpreters of the rediscovery of the vocal chamber music of the brilliant Neapolitan composer.

Isabel Berglund

The piano played a central role in the life of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - from his first musical experiences to his most important compositions. Mozart's openness to new keyboard technologies, such as instruments with hammer action, justifies the modern interpretation of his works, as presented sensitively and historically informed by Amy Lin in her third recording of the intended complete recording. Born in Taiwan, pianist Amy Lin combines her deep understanding of the German musical tradition with an international concert career and an impressive discography ranging from Mozart to contemporary composers. Her education includes studies with Leon Fleisher and Gerhard Oppitz, where she was awarded the highest honor, the Meisterklassendiplom. The piano sonatas on this recording, such as the melancholy K. 280 or the famous 'Sonata facile' K. 545, combine accessible melodies with technical and aesthetic challenges. Mozart's sonatas will delight beginners and connoisseurs alike.

Tenor Haitham Haidar's debut solo album Zaytoun (meaning 'Olive' in Arabic) is a captivating collection of beautiful Baroque and Arabic songs, interlaced with poetry and musical improvisations, an exploration of the intersection between Baroque and Arabic music. Whether it be through instrumentation, ornamentation, or vocal production, Zaytoun highlights the natural connections between what we generally view as separate worlds. Haidar pairs Baroque arias and songs by Monteverdi, Purcell and Bach, with the traditional Arabic songs which were his first introduction to music. He has added arabic instrumentation to some of these Baroque standards, and even translated a Bach aria into Arabic, incorporating Arabic style into the Baroque structure. Alongside the music, are three poetry tracks (from Gibran Khalil Gibran's The Prophet) read over beautifully performed oud improvisation by Abdul-Wahab Kayyali. These tracks (prelude, intermezzo, and postlude) help present the music to follow and shape Haidar's narrative of his own immigrant story in the unique intertwining of Arabic and Baroque music. "As an Arab immigrant, life continues to be a journey of exploration of home, of belonging and this musical project encompasses all parts of my identity, allowing them to live and shine within one sphere rather than compartmentalized sections of myself." Haitham Haidar is a Lebanese-Palestinian Canadian tenor highly sought out for his musicality, "standout presence", and sensitive storytelling. He is a proud graduate of Yale's Institute of Sacred Music, McGill's Schulich School of Music, and the University of British Columbia and currently resides in Montreal, Quebec. Haitham is praised for his 'musical and linguistic versatility' and his 'bright' and 'innately lyrical voice' and enjoys performing oratorio, opera, and chamber music across North America, Europe, and Asia. His recordings as a soloist with the Conspirare and Skylark ensembles have received multiple GRAMMY� nominations.

William Smethergell's oeuvre presents an intriguing challenge. Since little more is known of his life than his birth date and the fact that he worked as an organist at two London churches and as a violist at the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, we must form our impression of him solely through his music. That impression is certainly favorable-at least if we go by the two sets of six overtures published as Op. 2 (1778) and Op. 5 (1780): "Brilliantly scored, richly orchestrated works-ingenious, lively, and full of variety, bearing witness to Smethergell's great melodic inventiveness," was the verdict of klassik-heute on Op. 5 (CD 555 540-2), which Douglas Bostock and the Southwest German Chamber Orchestra Pforzheim introduced to us in 2023. The same ensemble now completes the dozen with the equally attractive Op. 2, a collection widely admired in late 18th-century London and beyond, and is now winning new friends.

In 1919, the cellist Marix Loevensohn commissioned a duo sonata from Henriette Bosmans for one of his recitals. Bosmans delivered-and in doing so, opened the "cello-focused" chapter of her early oeuvre, soon followed by two concertos, a Po�me with orchestra (555 694-2), and several works with piano accompaniment. Inspired partly by Loevensohn and partly by her friend Frieda Belifante, what emerged was a collection that testifies to a talent as self-assured as it is sensitive: The sonata's imposing outer movements frame tender lyricism in the spirit of Brahms and Debussy-like splashes of color; the three Impressions flirt with various eras and landscapes; the Nocturne for cello and harp luxuriates in dreamy excess-and the sensitive spirit melts away in blissful surrender

When Johann Heinrich Rolle was born, Bach was 31 years old; when he died, Mozart, then in Vienna, was nearing his 30th birthday. In retrospect, it is tempting to count him among the countless "transitional" musicians who distanced themselves from the Baroque, embraced the fashionable galanteries of the time, and thus helped pave the way for the Classical era-as if they had foreseen what was to come. Rolle's career was indeed typical of his era: organist in Magdeburg, student of law, later active in Berlin-first as a legal advisor, then as a violinist and violist in the service of Frederick the Great-before returning to Magdeburg as organist, cantor, and municipal music director. In addition to a wealth of oratorios and cantatas, he produced a substantial body of instrumental music which, as this symphonic-concertante selection shows, places him firmly within the stylistic currents of his time: light-footed, elegant, spirited, and transparent-in short, so galant that the listener is delightfully engaged from start to finish.