Shostakovich was known for his fun-loving attitude during his early years as a composer. The colourful incidental music for The Shot - reconstructed by Mark Fitz-Gerald from the original piano scores - vividly evokes the raucous life of experimental youth theatre in Leningrad during the late 1920s. This carefree world had changed dramatically by 1934 when Shostakovich completed his music for The Human Comedy - a work that creates a charming atmosphere of Parisian escapism. Discarded movements from his first opera The Nose form an entire orchestral suite. The programme concludes with Mark Fitz-Gerald's reconstruction of the March of the Anarchists, transcribed by ear from the film The Vyborg Side.

These late works by Brahms are like a testament. But what is this secretive man revealing to us here? Or rather, what is he still trying to hide? Hiding it until the very end, arousing in us an irresistible desire to guess what it is? Perhaps that is where the beauty of these scores lies. - Piotr Anderzewski. A short album, a selection of jewels from Brahms' Late Piano works (Op. 116 to 119, with Op. 119 No.4 being the last piano piece Brahms ever wrote) presented in a carefully chosen order. Op. 116 to 118 represent the composer's late piano works, written during the final decade of his life. Here we find a more mature, intimate and subtle Brahms, far removed from the roaring Romanticism of his earlier works.

Daniel-Franc�ois-Esprit Auber represents the essence of Romantic opera-comique with vivacious and elegant works that enjoyed huge popularity for decades. He collaborated with a fellow luminary, Ferdinand Herold, for Vend�me en Espagne, a work rich in Spanish dances and colour. With a vivid display of Auber's gift for melody and orchestration, the overture to La Fiancee proved so successful and popular that Liszt arranged it as a fantasia three times. L'Enfant prodigue contains his longest overture, a powerful statement reflecting the tragic aspects of this Biblical parable.

Volume 66 in the Liszt Complete Piano Music series focuses on transcriptions from operas by Mozart and Donizetti. The Reminiscences on Mozart's Don Giovanni, with it's technical demands and innovations, stands at the pinnacle of Liszt's transcription procedure.

A new choral album of radiant melody and profound reflection Composer James Woodhall presents�Full of Grace, a deeply expressive new choral album that moves between the intimate and the exultant. Drawing inspiration from sacred texts, ancient prayers, and moments of divine revelation, this collection weaves together contemporary choral writing with timeless spiritual themes. The album opens with the title track,�Full of Grace, a lyrical meditation on the Angel Gabriel's greeting to Mary and the incarnation. With warm harmonies and a memorable, flowing melody, the piece captures both the stillness and the awe of that encounter, while it's vibrant central section echoes the heavenly proclamation to the shepherds. At the heart of the album lies�The Damascus Sequence�- an 11-movement cantata chronicling Saul's dramatic conversion from persecutor to preacher, drawn closely from Acts 9. This narrative arc, from darkness to vision, turmoil to peace, is vividly painted in choral textures, duets, and solos. Tracks such as�Murderous Threats,�I am Jesus, and�Saul Sees and is Saved�reflect Woodhall's gift for text-setting and storytelling through music, bringing ancient scripture to life with a keen sense of pacing and atmosphere. Later in the album, Woodhall returns to the Nativity in�The Shepherds' Carol, a haunting and intimate new text that juxtaposes pastoral imagery with celestial wonder. His setting of�Ave Verum Corpus�and�Ave Maria�offers fresh interpretations of these enduring texts, while the final track,�Light from Light, closes the album with a vision of hope and illumination - a reflection on divine presence in the world. Rooted in the choral tradition yet unmistakably contemporary,�Full of Grace�is a compelling addition to the sacred repertoire. It's accessible yet distinctive language will resonate with listeners who appreciate the choral music of James MacMillan, John Tavener, and Morten Lauridsen. For broadcasters, curators, and critics,�Full of Grace�offers music that is both spiritually resonant and musically rewarding - ideal for sacred seasons, reflective programming, and those seeking new choral music that speaks with clarity and depth.

Die Kunst der Fuge (The Art of Fugue) is the fifth album in the Bach series by Jorg Halubek and his ensemble il Gusto Barocco - the think tank for the music baroque master Johann Sebastian Bach. The new recording is led by Jorg Halubek, who plays the historic German Silbermann Organ from 1737. Together with the Early Music ensemble il Gusto Barocco, they present a unique interpretation of the world famous Bach composition "The Art of Fugue".

A new and complete survey of the attractive body of cello sonatas which, in his day, helped to make Antonio Caldara a Viennese rival to the fame of Antonio Vivaldi in Venice. Born in Venice as the son of a violinist, Caldara grew up as a chorister at the Basilica di San Marco, and won important posts in Mantua, Rome and Barcelona, as a maestro di capella to royal courts. But it was his move to Vienna during the 1710s which secured his name and his fortune. Becoming Vice-Kapellmeister to the Imperial Court in 1716, Caldara introduced the late Venetian style to Central Europe, and it's influence remained a determining factor in both church music and opera as well as instrumental music until long after his death in 1736. Through sacred works such as the oratorio Maddalena al piedi di Cristo, Caldara has won a following on record in the modern era. However, his surviving output of instrumental music has remained largely unexplored. Publishing his Op.1 Trio Sonatas in 1688, Caldara refers to himself as a 'musico di violoncello', and there can be no doubt from this collection that he knew his way around the instrument. They were composed between 22 April and 26 July 1735: Caldara's sheer facility has perhaps told against him, with a total output of over three thousand separate works. But he knew his craft, and melody seems to have come readily to him. A few Lezioni (Nos. 43, 23 & 1) from Caldara's published instruction method for learning the cello are included as preludes to Sonatas Nos. 8, 10 and 12. Most of the sonatas belong to the four-movement 'sonata da chiesa' form, but Caldara also used the three-movement archetype which became increasingly standard. There is no shortage of opportunities for virtuosic display, as well as for lyricism. These recordings are made by musicians immersed in the Italian late-Baroque world. In it's expanded form, L'Arte dell' Arco has made much praised recordings of Haydn and Vivaldi for Brilliant Classics, including a comprehensive box of Vivaldi's Concertos Opp. 1-12. These Italian musicians speak and sing Caldara's music with unforced fluency. - Antonio Caldara (1670-1736), an Italian Baroque composer, was born in Venice, where he was a chorister in the famous San Marco, with Legrenzi as his teacher. He soon spread his wings across Europe and held several important posts in Mantua, the Spanish court in Barcelona, Rome and eventually the post of Kapellmeister at the Imperial Court in Vienna. Caldara left a substantial oeuvre, consisting of instrumental music in the tradition of Corelli, sacred music and operas. - Caldara's sonatas for cello and basso continuo exemplify the transition from the late Baroque style toward the emerging galant aesthetic. These works are clearly written by a master of the instrument, as Caldara evidently was. The sonatas typically follow a four-movement structure, alternating slow and fast tempos, in the tradition of the sonata da chiesa. They blend lyrical, cantabile lines with virtuosic passages, showing the cello's agility and warm tone. - Played by one of Italy's foremost "Early Music" cellists, Francesco Galligioni, playing with fellow members of the ensemble L'Arte dell'Arco. He successfully recorded the complete cello concertos by Vivaldi, works by Dall'Abaco, sonatas by Lanzetti and others.

Few contemporary composers have enriched the choral repertoire quite like Gabriel Jackson, and this recording from The Choir of Canterbury Cathedral is a luminous testament to his singular voice. Rooted in the grand traditions of English sacred music yet infused with a distinctly modern harmonic palette, Jackson's writing revels in soaring treble lines, shimmering textures, and a deep affinity for space and resonance. Under the direction of David Newsholme, the Choir delivers these works with a compelling combination of precision and fervour, illuminating the rich polyphony of Ave maris stella, the jubilant energy of Praise ye the Lord, and the grandeur of the Coronation Canticles. The Cathedral's organ, resplendent in Canterbury Concertos, emerges as a protagonist in it's own right. This is music that both honours tradition and expands it's boundaries, performed with eloquence and authority.

This first recording of the Eule Organ of Magdalen College, Oxford (opened in January 2023) features a wide range of music performed by Alexander Pott. From Wagner to Delius, the repertoire showcases the instrument's German Romantic heritage as well as it's suitability for English 20th-Century transcription, thanks to it's distinctive voice, colour, breadth and sensitivity.

This compelling debut album from composer Lucy Walker showcases one of the UK's most exciting emerging voices in choral composition. Written during her residency with St Martin's Voices, the works trace a journey of artistic growth and spiritual depth, from the hopeful intimacy of Today to the shimmering expansiveness of I saw eternity. Walker's music is deeply rooted in the choral tradition, yet distinctly contemporary her harmonic language radiant and text-driven, her textures luminous and finely woven. Under the sensitive direction of Andrew Earis, St Martin's Voices bring remarkable nuance and warmth to these performances, revealing the emotional resonance and craftsmanship in each piece. Whether drawing on plainsong, part-song or contrapuntal dance, Walker's voice is unmistakably her own lyrical, thoughtful, and full of light. This album is both a celebration of collaboration and a moving portrait of a composer whose music speaks with clarity, heart and vision.

The viola da gamba is not dead, despite a claim to the contrary in the Dictionary of Musicians by German composer, organist and cellist Ernst Ludwig Gerber (1746-1819). From the 16th century to the end of the 18th, the viola da gamba experienced a true apotheosis, becoming the favoured instrument for bourgeois entertainment, particularly in Germany, France, Italy and England, even if the instrument's origins lie in the Spanish Renaissance. Because of these associations with the aristocracy, but also because of advances in musical style that demanded more from the role of the lower member of the string family, the gamba lost ground to the newer cello during the French Revolution. Limited interest in the instrument persisted through the 19th century, until a rebirth occurred thanks to German cellists Christian Dobereiner (1874-1961) and Paul Grummer (1879-1965), and later the Austrian Karl Maria Schwamberger (1905-1967) and Swiss cellist August Wenzinger (1905-1996), a pupil of Grummer's and a founder, in 1925, of one of Germany's first early music ensembles. Wenzinger was appointed cello and viola da gamba teacher at Basle's new Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, where Giacomo Nones (1929-2017) and Jordi Savall (b.1941) would become his pupils. Dobereiner was one of the most important pioneers at the dawn of modern research into historical performance practice, considered to have revived both the viola da gamba and the baryton from obscurity. From his Sarabande, in Handelian style, only the solo part has survived, and the basso continuo has been reconstructed by Matteo Malagoli. Alexander Tcherepnin (1899-1977) was an important Russian pianist and composer. He invented his own harmonic language, combining major and minor hexachords in a pentatonic scale that blended old Russian patterns and Georgian (Caucasian) harmonies. During a stay in France he became friends with Paul Grummer and in 1969 published a lovely Sonata da chiesa for viola da gamba and organ dedicated to Grummer and his daughter Sylvia. Giuseppe Selmi (1912-1987) was a gifted concert cellist, performing both with orchestra and piano. As a composer, he wrote several works for solo cello, with piano and with harp (he played in a duo with his wife Maria Dongellini). Following the gift of a viola da gamba (built by Paolo Leonori in 1952) from his wife in the 1970s, he became a passionate advocate for the instrument, writing works for it with harp or solo. Giacomo Nones (1929-2017) dedicated himself from a young age to classical music and the popular music from his native Trentino, studying violin, organ and viola da gamba, as well as musicology and organology. He has edited transcriptions and publications of Renaissance and Baroque music and has collaborated with various early music ensembles. Passionate about contemporary music, in particular 'computer music', he wrote his 10 small Algorithms for two viols with the use of a computer according to theories by the Russian mathematician Rudolf Zaripov. His only other viola da gamba works are the very different Partitas on the Lutheran chorale Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan for gamba and organ, and the Fantasia for solo viol on the Kyrie of the Gregorian 'Orbis factor' Mass. Riccardo Giavina (1937-2019) was a Piedmontese pianist and composer, later a teacher and headmaster at the 'Bonporti' Conservatory of Trento and Riva del Garda. A friend of Giacomo Nones, in April 1977 he dedicated his three short pieces for three viols (soprano, tenor and bass) to the other composer. Written in late Renaissance style, they are aimed at extending the original literature for viola da gamba into the 20th century. - Recorded April 2022 in Silvelle; July, August & December 2023 in Ponte nelle Alpi; and January 2024 in Trento (Italy) - Booklet in English contains liner notes and a profile of each of the composers - Matteo Malagoli plays a viola da gamba by Marco Salerno (Rome - Barcelona, 2004) - Cristina Centa plays a Salvi harp - Stefano Rattini plays a harpsichord by Fabrizio Acanfora (Naples, 1997) and at the Carlo Vegezzi-Bossi organ (1907; restored Mascioni, 2000) of the Trento Philharmonic Society

Gabriela Lena Frank's Conquest Requiem brings to life the complexities of colonisation, identity and survival through the story of Malinche, a Nahua woman from the Gulf Coast of Mexico who was given to the Spaniards as a young slave. Using a fusion of Western liturgical traditions, indigenous Nahua poetry and Latin influences, this powerful work deals with the fundamental question of how to reconcile a legacy of historical violence that continues to shape modern issues. Antonio Estevez's wildly popular Cantata Criolla - considered one of the greatest choral pieces of the 20th century in Latin America - is the composer's most celebrated work.

The largest amount of organ music that has survived from earlier members of Johann Sebastian Bach's family was penned by Johann Michael Bach (1648-1694), a cousin of J.S. Bach's father and also the father of Maria Barbara, J.S. Bach's first wife. It is a collection of chorale preludes spread out over the liturgical year, although it is not possible to state that the collection is as ambitious and complete as that of Johann Sebastian's own (incomplete) Orgelb�chlein. The majority of these chorales can be found in the Neumeister Collection; this also contains a number of Johann Sebastian's early works that bear clear links to compositions by his first father-in-law.

David Fray stands out as one of today's most distinctive French pianists, widely acclaimed for his profound interpretations of Bach. Each of his recordings is considered a major event, making this new release all the more anticipated, as it marks his return after several years of silence. This new album features masterpieces from Rameau to Scarlatti, including lesser-known composers like Royer, with a strong focus on Bach. The repertoire includes original keyboard works as well as piano transcriptions by legendary pianists such as Siloti, Kempff, Busoni, and Stradal. Additionally, the album also includes the world premiere recording of Monsaingeon's arrangement for piano of Bach's Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Minor, BWV 1003: Andante.

Dido's famous lament, 'When I am laid in earth' has long featured in Joyce DiDonato's repertoire - and she has triumphed as the tragic Queen of Carthage in Berlioz's Les Troyens - but it was in early 2024 that she first performed Purcell's opera Dido and Aeneas in it's entirety. With Il Pomo d'Oro, conductor Maxim Emelyanychev, and a cast including Fatma Said as Dido's companion Belinda, DiDonato toured extensively in Europe. This recording was made in Essen's Philharmonie, where Michael Spyres took the role of Aeneas. The two stars have been through this all before, as Spyres sang �n�e to DiDonato's Didon in the prizewinning Erato recording of Les Troyens, conducted in 2017 by the late John Nelson.

Nkeiru Okoye's When the Caged Bird Sings is a 'musical celebration' whose compositional voice, though rooted in the African American church, also embraces minimalism and improvisational elements. Delivering a message of adversity turned to triumph, it celebrates the transformative ability of African American women, partly evoking the experiences of the author and activist Maya Angelou. The work functions as a communal ritual that, like oratorio, opera, and theatre, brings together vocal soloists, chorus, and orchestra in an experience that both commemorates and celebrates hope and possibility.

The music on this recording was written between 1772 and 1782, largely during Mozart's difficult time in Salzburg employed as Konzertmeister under the regime of Prince-Archbishop Colloredo. Transcribed for keyboard from orchestral originals by Mozart himself, these dances were composed as part of his court duties and they reflect both the tastes of the day, and Mozart's facility in refining popular genres into stylish pieces with his typical grace and panache. As an exception, the March No. 1 in C major was mentioned by Mozart's widow Constanze as a piece 'my husband of blessed memory composed for me'.

There are moments in music when time seems to pause, and with Arcangelo Corelli's music, I have experienced that enchanted stillness-where each note is not just heard but felt deeply. His music, elegant and radiant, is the gentle whisper of a bygone era, yet it breathes timeless warmth and light. Corelli's art is a delicate conversation between violin and continuo, a living breath of harmony and counterpoint that dances with noble grace. Each phrase unfolds like a tender story, where voices seek, answer, and embrace one another-like cherished friends sharing secrets across the ages. It was through my mentor, Ryo Terakado, and his luminous recording of the Violin Sonatas, Op. 5 that I first stepped into this radiant world. Since then, Corelli's melodies have been a constant companion-like a soft glow in the twilight, a source of inspiration and solace. Corelli's influence extends far beyond my own story. His style shaped the musical language of generations-admired openly by Francois Couperin, absorbed deeply into the work of Jean-Marie Leclair, and echoed, even centuries later, by virtuosi such as Pablo Sarasate and Niccolo Paganini. His music is both spiritual and earthly-a beacon of simplicity and profound beauty. I am deeply grateful to Ryo Terakado for guiding me to this wellspring of grace, to Kaori Uemura and Francois Guerrier for their artistry, and to our magical producer Guido Tichelman and the Byucksan Corporation for nurturing this project. -�Eun-Shik Kim

Nothing short of phenomenal' (Fanfare), British-American clarinetist Jean Johnson makes her Linn debut with her partner and husband, pianist Steven Osborne. A keen chamber musician who has performed in some of the world's finest venues, Jean has assembled a programme of luscious Romantic works. Albeit not included in this recital-Brahms serves as the link to all four works. Gustav Jenner was his only long-term pupil; the teacher's stylistic shadow can be sensed in Jenner's Clarinet Sonata, an ambitious work showcasing the instrument's innate mellifluousness. Robert and Clara Schumann were Brahms's friends and mentors, and Jean has recorded arrangements of their beautiful Romances. Weber aptly closes the recital-Brahms delayed his retirement after hearing his clarinet concerto-with the Grand Duo Concertant.

This album by pianist Reinis Zarins and the Trio Palladio is a special personal tribute to composer Arvo Part (b. 1935), one of the most influential composers of our time. This album includes Part's timeless piano works together with a selection of his chamber works, including the famous Fur Alina, Fratres and Spiegel i'm Spiegel alongside his early works. The programme also includes two special dedications by two Latvian composers, Georgs Pelecis and Andrejs Selickis, who both as composers have been greatly influenced by Arvo Part's example and ideas. These two works, written in 2025 for Arvo Part's 90th birthday, receive their first recordings.

Born in Budapest in 1975 and based in Germany, composer M�rton Ill�s studied with Detlev M�ller-Siemens and Wolfgang Rihm. In 2020, he composed the violin concerto Vont-t�r for Patricia Kopatchinskaja, a long-time partner who performs his music with total commitment. "She gives the impression that music can be tactile, truly three-dimensional, to the point that you could almost touch it, that each gesture has it's own colour, temperature, smell, taste," says Ill�s. S�rt-t�r, "space filled with tears," is a cello concerto: "I make it moan, scream or even roar hysterically in order to draw out the vocal qualities capable of communicating human pain." In Nicolas Altstaedt, "I found the ideal performer, who grasps the dark drama of this subject with existential intuition and makes it resonate with primitive force." Rajzok I consists of tuning the strings of 24 instruments to different quarter-tone intervals. A very unusual and fascinating total scordatura. In Three Sketches, electronic music blends with the sound of the violin, multiplying the sensations and sound textures. Fascinated by the human psyche and the processes that take place in the human body, Ill�s develops music that lives, speaks, and breathes.

This album presents orchestral works by three French composers who saw Spain as a paradise of warmth, fragrance and colour, whether real or imagined. From the vivid evocations of Debussy's Images and Ibert's Escales, to the dances and landscapes that inspired Ravel's Rapsodie espagnole, these masterpieces of Impressionism show the considerable impact Spanish culture had on French composers in the early 20th century.

Four years ago, G�nther Groissb�ck, celebrated bassist at the world's most prestigious opera stages, surprised music lovers with a recording of popular Viennese songs. There was hope and expectation that a follow-up would come. Now he returns with a journey through time in the genre, from the Biedermeier period to the present day. While his 2021 album Gemischter Satz featured the Philharmonia Schrammeln, this time it's the Neue Wiener Concert Schrammeln who define the Viennese sound of the CD. It includes songs from the pen of Viennese song poet Andr� Heller, such as "Es is allas unhamlich leicht" (Everything is incredibly easy) or the title track "Annageln kannst es net, die Zeit" (You can't nail down time), as well as classics like Hermann Leopoldi's "In einem kleinen Caf� in Hernals" (In a small caf� in Hernals), Karl Hodina's "Herrgott aus Sta'" (Stony God), or traditional Viennese songs like "Wann i amal stirb" (When I once die) and "I hab die sch�nen Maderln net erfunden" (I can't take credit for the pretty girls). Instrumental contributions from the Neue Wiener Concert Schrammeln, including original compositions by two of it's members - "Hopp Hopp Galopp" (Helmut Thomas Stippich) and "Leopoldina & Pedro or: How Haydn's student Sigismund von Neukomm may have seen Brazil" (Peter Havlicek) - round off this new album.

Rarely recorded on disc, Johann Sebastian Bach's concertos for three and four harpsichords illustrate the art of writing for keyboard and strings of which the composer was a pioneer. These emblematic works, characterised by a balance between strong themes and abundant internal energy, are performed by virtuoso harpsichordists from the new generation of Baroque musicians: Violaine Cochard, Olivier Fortin, Pierre Gallon, Jean-Luc Ho and, for the first time, the young Croatian harpsichordist Davor Krkljus, accompanied by the strings of Le Caravanserail under the direction of Bertrand Cuiller on harpsichord. The album also includes a previously unreleased transcription for four harpsichords of the famous Brandenburg Concerto No. 3, by Bertrand Cuiller.

This recording takes the listener deep into the heart of late-seventeenth-century Naples, where brothers Rocco and Gaetano Greco were central figures in the city's thriving musical life. Their works, grounded in the practice of partimento - an improvisational method built around a given bass line - showcase the cello's emancipation from a purely accompanying role into a fully expressive solo voice. Through vivid dialogues between lower string instruments and harpsichord, I Mastricelli revives a forgotten musical language in which virtuosity, counterpoint, and improvisation converge. The result is a rare glimpse into the creative processes that shaped the Neapolitan cello school and it's lasting influence across Europe. The second part of the programme focuses on Gaetano Greco's pedagogical legacy, presenting short dances, toccatas, and improvisations drawn from early-eighteenth-century student notebooks, alongside music by Francesco Mancini. I Mastricelli highlights the diversity of Neapolitan musical culture - from the earthy energy of the tarantella to the refined contrapuntal art of the keyboard. The ensemble's instrumentation - including cellos, bass viols, bass violins, theorbo, lute, guitar, and harpsichord - evokes the rich timbral world of Baroque Naples. Combining scholarly research with living performance, this debut album offers both an artistic rediscovery and a celebration of the improvisatory freedom at the core of the partimento tradition.