Acclaimed soloist and First Prize winner at the 2017 Tarrega International Guitar Competition, Alejandro Cordova has chosen a programme that presents five acknowledged masterpieces of the guitar repertoire, while also paying tribute to the great Andres Segovia- an inspiration to composers such as Manuel Ponce, whose Sonatina meridional evokes the lyrical warmth of Iberia. Covering a wide range of techniques and expressive forms that reveal the guitar's sheer versatility, the distinctive Spanish moods and rhythms of Torroba, Jose and Tarrega are further contrasted by Johann Kaspar Mertz's deeply eloquent Elegie. Alejandro Cordova was born in Cordoba, Mexico. His unique style is based on his exceptional musicality and technical prowess. He began his studies with Jesus Pena before attending the Faculty of Music of the University of Veracruz where he was under the tutelage of Consuelo Bolio, Massimo Gatta and Alfredo Sanchez. He also studied at the Accademia di chitarra in Pordenone and the Conservatory of Music Jacopo Tomadini, Udine.

A native of Inner Mongolia, Wenchen Qin grew up with the folk music of his homeland and is now one of China’s most influential composers. His violin concerto The Border of the Mountains exploits the extraordinary colors and flexibility of both orchestra and soloist, echoing nature and the songs and spirituality of the mountains. Each movement of the cello concerto Dawn is based on a fragment of text by the poet Hai Zi, while Calling for Phoenix, inspired by the series of paintings Phoenix in Fire by Xiao-he Tang and Li Cheng, is an intensely virtuosic concerto for suona, a traditional double-reed instrument. The ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra regularly performs in subscription series in the Vienna Musikverein and Konzerthaus. In addition, the orchestra appears annually at major Austrian and international festivals, having close ties with the Salzburg Festival, the Wiener Festwochen, Wien Modern, and musikprotokoll im steierischen herbst, which provides a platform for the performance of new and experimental music. Tours to Japan and China are also a regular part of the RSO schedule.

Classical Music

This eighth and final volume of Villa-Lobos' complete solo piano music features Albums 10 and 11 from his Guia PrAtico, the composer' own piano arrangements of works from the related Guia PrAtico Volume 1: 137 Traditional Children' Songs as Sung by.

No artist has penetrated the human soul more deeply than Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669). Renowned as a young man for his portrayal of individual character and expression, as he withdrew more from the world he made his art a revelation of the inner life of his subjects. On this CD, the world of Rembrandt is given a musical perspective with a carefully chosen selection of pieces by the finest composers of his time. Inside, Hugh Griffith provides explanatory notes on his life and musical environment. 1 CD with full color, illustrated, explanatory booklet.

Robert Schumann considered Peter Joseph von Lindpaintner the most promising operatic composer in the country, yet despite his 21 operas he has been almost forgotten. Like most leading German composers of his time he took Meyerbeer's historical grand operas, conceived in Paris, as his model. Set in Sicily at the dawn of the 1848 revolution, 'Il vespro siciliano' ('Die sizilianische Vesper'/ 'The Sicilian Vespers') is a dramatic four-act opera that reveals why he was held in such esteem by Schumann, Spohr and Mendelssohn: expressive harmonies, folksong-like strophic songs, rich orchestration, the use of the latest stylistic devices, and tuneful bel canto melodies that point to the work's Franco-Italian lineage. This world premiere recording is directed by Federico Longo.

Classical Music

Marco Antonio Cavazzoni- private harpsichordist to the Duchess of Urbino and Pope Leo X, friend of Titian and Bembo- composed some of the most important milestones in the history of instrumental music. They were published in Venice by Vercellese (1523), the second edition of Italian keyboard music after that of Andrea Antico. Usually assigned to the organ, they are restored here to the harpsichord where they originally belonged, as explained in an online essay by Glen Wilson. Contemporary examples further illustrate the fascinating development of Cavazzoni’s major form, the ricercar. The project celebrates the 500th anniversary of the harpsichord on the cover ( the world’s oldest), which was owned by Leo X and undoubtedly played on by Cavazzoni.

Selected from the 1578 Obras de Musica published by blind keyboard master Antonio de Cabezon's son Hernando, these glosas enrich the vast resource of Renaissance vocal music through variation and elaboration. Extra layers of polyphony and ornament crystallize the tradition of improvisation on pre-existing works, both in the splendour of the sacred, and in chansons and madrigals with more secular emotions. Antonio de Cabezon's Tientos y Glosados can be heard on Naxos 8.554836, and Glen Wilson's acclaimed recording of his complete Tientos and Variationsis on 8.572475-76.

Guitar works by New Zealand composers continue to display a richness of imagination and sense of color that makes them intensely attractive to listeners. In 1990 Jack Body wrote African Strings, which transcribed music of the Madagascan valiha tube zither and West African kora harp to captivating effect. John Psathas' 'Muisca' refers to the Chibcha-speaking people of what is now Colombia in music of conversational vitality and driving rhythm. Anthony Ritchie evokes lovers' dances in Pas de Deux and there is a beautiful arrangement of the famous traditional Maori love song 'Pokarekare Ana.'

Classical Music

In addition to his prodigious youthful genius as a composer, Mendelssohn was an exceptionally able pianist. Demonstrating an astonishing level of maturity beyond the composer's teenage years, this group of rare works is notable for a sequence of piano fugues with an impressive command of counterpoint and chorale harmonization, two sonatas which reveal the dual influences of the Baroque and more contemporary models such as Weber and Hummel, as well as a dashing 'Prestissimo in F minor' and a brilliant 'Vivace in C minor.' These early piano works are exceptionally rarely recorded. This release will come at the 200th anniversary of the pieces.

Few painters are as enigmatic as Johannes Vermeer. His works command admiration for their meticulous observation and the sensitive rendering of light and colour.

Classical Music

After the resounding success of their first volume of Catalan Wind Music, the Barcelona Symphonic Band and Salvador Brotons return with world premiere recordings of works commissioned from award-winning Catalan composers. Xavier Montsalvatges's colorfully festive 'Music for a Sunday' is followed by Joan Albert Amargos' play on the timbres and dynamic force of wind instruments in Thematic Games. Elisenda Fabregas' dramatic and emotional First Symphony contrasts majestic grandeur with the expressiveness of Catalan song, and Moises Bertran exploits the virtuoso skill of the soloist in his incisive and lyrical 'A Double Bass Fantasy.'