Ailsa Dixon's chamber music emerges from the shadows in this landmark recording by The Villiers Quartet, with Lucy Cox and Charlie Draper (ondes Martenot). From the long-lost Scherzo, discovered in an attic after more than half a century to her thoughtful song cycle The Spirit of Love, Dixon's music combines lyrical lines, adventurous harmonies, and a spiritual undercurrent, brought to life here with vibrant intensity and finesse. This album highlights the power of music to revive overlooked voices, offering listeners a chance to experience the beauty and musical depth of a composer finally stepping into the light.

Take time in the summer to think about the winter, country folk would say. That is just as true of CD albums compiled to celebrate the happiest days of the year. In this record-breaking sultry summer, Ludwig Guttler has been giving some thought to how to celebrate the 200th anniversary in 2018 of this global song appropriately. "It is one of the first carols I learned to play on the accordion, a present I was given for Christmas after my fifth birthday," recalls Ludwig Guttler, who remembers that when he was a child, everybody sang along. In fact it took him a long time to understand how anybody sitting in church could stay still to the sound of "Stille Nacht". In addition to the best recordings from his gigantic catalogue, there are also recordings that have not yet been publihed: Guttler has arranged "Silent Night, Holy Night!" for his brass ensemble, clad each of the six verses in an instrumental garb of it's own and recorded it in the summer in Zwettl in Austria.

A rarely heard, fascinating solo instrument and an internationally multi-award-winning performer: on the new GENUIN album "From Keys to Strings", we are presented with an exciting combination! For her prizewinner production from the 2023 ARD Music Competition, harpist Tjasha Gafner has put together an unusual program in which she arranged works for her instrument. These are pieces that Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart originally wrote for keyboard - or, in the case of Johann Sebastian Bach, for lute (or a lute-harpsichord?). The clarity and transparency of both transcription and interpretation by this outstanding young harpist provide surprising insights and new listening experiences!

Delos is thrilled to announce a new collaboration with GRAMMY� Award-winning vocal ensemble Chanticleer. Famed for it's "accuracy of intonation, purity of blend, of color and swagger of style" (Boston Globe), the group makes it's label debut with Joy to the World. This new Christmas collection blends tradition with innovation, combining Renaissance motets and fresh arrangements of classic carols with contemporary compositions, including two new commissions from Joanna Marsh. Showcasing the ensemble's extraordinary ability to move seamlessly and expertly between styles, Chanticleer's first Delos release conjures a wintertime world of magic, light, and wonder.

In the 'glory days' of the 1970s recording industry (and, incidentally, the time of CRD Records' foundation), there was a rush to record the classical canon. Naturally, as a pioneering label, CRD was at the forefront of this trend and had the privilege to work with Paul on the complete piano works of Faure and Ravel, amongst others. Today, hidden corners of classical continue to be unearthed and we are encouraged to rethink genre boundaries as we elevate long-disregarded voices. Meanwhile, there is another important venture at play: the careful curation of a composer's works. This is the bent of this release. Frederic Mompou's piano works have been well-covered, not least by the maestro himself in his own performances recorded in Barcelona in 1974. So why record this repertoire again 50 years later? From our perspective, it is a fitting choice as we celebrate 50 years as a label championing classical repertoire through the performances of world-class artists. But there has to be something more than that. Such is the accessibility of music today and the desire to reach virality that we seem to have forgotten how, for it's originator, it could be a definitively private and intimate exploit. Paul invites us to listen to Mompou's' rehearsal of own'. He encourages us, as Mompou did from the outset, to listen for the silences and peer deeply into the shadows. In a world in which our attention is constantly divided, perhaps now more than ever such albums are needed. Emma Pauncefort & Tom Pauncefort

The first time Margarita Hohenrieder heard the Finnish pianist Antti Siirala, she was a member of the jury for the International Beethoven Competition in Vienna in May 1997. Many years later, Antti Siirala was appointed Professor for Piano at the University of Music and Theatre Munich - a happy coincidence that gave both the opportunity to make music together. The very first time they played together, we sensed a special musical relationship: a similar ideal of sound and a very deliberate way of listening to one another. Embarking with a fellow-musician on an artistic journey - such as making Mozart sound convincing on modern instruments, searching for the right tempo, rhythm, vivid phrasing, thrilling dynamics - is a highly creative process and certainly an inexhaustible source of inspiration. As an exciting contrast to their Mozart interpretations, they offer the South American sounds and rhythms of the bandoneon and the typically wistful melodies of the tango Cristian en el Cafe Tortoni Buenos Aires by Francoise Choveaux - a quite different but equally stimulating challenge. Hohenrieder also was introduced to the great bandoneon player on our recording, Sebastien Innocenti, by Francoise Choveaux. Margarita Hohenrieder is always treading unusual paths. Together with her friend, the painter Bernd Zimmer, she holds creative performances: "2 left hands," in which Bernd Zimmer creates a picture with his left hand while Margarita Hohenrieder plays works exclusively for the left hand. The well-known jazz musician Ingfried Hoffmann, Hjalmar Hegi Ragnarsson from Iceland and Francoise Choveaux wrote compositions especially for this performance. The cover of this CD and the booklet feature the painting "Ast", 2022 by Bernd Zimmer. The tango "Cristian en el Tortoni Buenos Aires" is dedicated to Margarita Hohenrieder.

The Hamburg-born Ferdinand Thieriot (1838-1919) not only shared a teacher - Eduard Marxsen - with Brahms; both composers, who remained friends in later years, use a very similar musical language, one which is richly melodic and effortlessly contrapuntal. The musicologist Wilhelm Altmann wrote that 'Thieriot's chamber music is without exception noble and pure. He writes with perfect command of form and expression' - as the works on this fourth Toccata Classics volume prove, in their exquisite balance of depth and beauty, of Brahmsian richness and Schubertian spontaneity.

Tenor saxophonist Rich Perry returns with Dream, his 28th release on SteepleChase, reaffirming his place as one of the most introspective and lyrical voices in modern jazz. Joined by his long-standing quartet-Gary Versace (piano), Jay Anderson (bass), and John Riley (drums)-Perry crafts a set that is both timeless and deeply personal reflecting his evolving artistry and minimalist elegance. Critics have long praised Perry's "impeccable taste" and "subtle articulation" (JazzTimes), his "adventurous yet highly listenable" approach (All About Jazz), and his ability to "imbue each tune with intense feeling." Perry summarizes Dream as "a document of where I'm at right now... this is the kind of album I like to listen to.

This substantial set dedicated to the vocal music of Claudio Monteverdi (1567–1643) features the great cycle undertaken (to date) by Krijn Koetsveld and the singers of Le Nuove Musiche: all nine books of madrigals, the music in Monteverdi collections such as the Selva Morale e Spirituale (1641) and the posthumous Messa a quattro voci ed salmi (1650), and the individual works by Monteverdi that were compiled in the collections of others, the so-called Fragments. To this is joined the cycle of operas directed by Sergio Vartolo and sung by casts of Italian early music specialists, including the first recording of the five-act version of Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria. These thoroughly researched, historically informed interpretations demonstrate Monteverdi’s pioneering and transformative role in the emergence and development of staged, dramatic vocal music. Also featured are the grand Vespers – sacred music in the Gregorian plainchant tradition but on an operatic scale – in a fantastic recording with fine Italian soloists and authentic period instruments including the early brass of La Pifarescha. Federico Bardazzi and Ensemble Felice make scrupulous interpretative decisions about the order of movements, interpolating the choral motets within the prescribed sequence of psalms to great effect. Finally, there are Monteverdi’s youthful three-part canzonettas, written when the composer was 17. They are rather simpler than the madrigals, both to sing and to appreciate, but their musical worth is amply demonstrated by the largely female voices of Armoniosoincanto joined by a mixed period-instrument ensemble of flutes, violas, theorbo and harpsichord. They impart just the right light-hearted mood and dramatic impact to the playful, folkloric secular strophic poetry. Genius innovator - inspiring past and present! Claudio Monteverdi lived in Italy during a very turbulent time and was one of the great designers of the new style in music. As a young man, he learned the ancient laws of composing, especially from Marcantonio Ingegneri. Under his inspiration, he wrote his first book of madrigals. We can follow his life closely through the final 9 books of madrigals. Each book is a new moment in his development as a composer. Ultimately, he gets his dream job in Venice as maestro di cappella, but he writes operas and other musical spectacles for other courts, including Mantua, Milan, Turin, and Parma. He enjoyed the recognition that finally came for that little boy from insignificant Cremona. The book consists of 9 chapters, one per madrigal book, and has 128 pages in total. Looking from Monteverdi’s perspective, and also from the perspective of the performer, the contemporary enthusiast. Mesmerized by the beautiful courtly poetry, but also intrigued by the innovator Monteverdi, who is always looking for other ways to express emotion in music in a special way. Each chapter focuses on one characteristic madrigal. The book comes with a CD so you can listen to all the wonderful works.

Concerto Copenhagen's musicians present six new "Brandenburg Concertos" - based on Bach's organ trio sonatas?. J.S. Bach's six organ trio sonatas represent some of his most imaginative and attractive music - by transforming the format through an orchestration inspired by the original Brandenburg Concertos, Concerto Copenhagen is offering a unique new orchestral repertoire. Oboist Antoine Torunczyk has created these six new Brandenburg Concertos with special focus on varying instrumental mixes and sizes - including flute, recorder, oboe d'amore, oboe da caccia, viola d'amore, natural horn, violoncello da spalla, bassoon.

A project some six years in the making, Latin Connections was originally conceived as a collaborative project with the multi-instrumentalist, singer, and composer Clarice Assad. Global Covid restrictions forced us to postpone the recording, by which time Clarice was unavailable. Disappointed though we were, we were delighted to refresh a friendship with the award-winning jazz singer, cellist, pianist, and composer Sara Dowling who brings all these skills and instruments to our new recording. Latin music encompasses a colossal range of styles, many of which have become popular the world over: salsa, samba, tango, cumbia, bossa nova, choro, merengue, rumba, candombe, and baiao, to name but a few. Born out of the cultural trinity of the Spanish and Portuguese presence in South America, African music (courtesy of the slave trade), and the indigenous music and traditions of Latin America, Latin music is as rich and varied as any other musical tradition globally. It's incorporation into rock, pop, and jazz, notably in the USA, has further popularised and developed the many styles which are such a rich part of the cultural identity of South America. - Aquarelle Guitar Quartet.

Santtu conducts Strauss: Ein Heldenleben is the sixth album from Philharmonia Records. Con- ducted by Santtu-Matias Rouvali, this performance was recorded at Southbank Centre's Royal Festival Hall. PRAISE FOR Santtu conducts Shostakovich: Symphony 10 "Themes from the previous movements are intriguingly revived and intertwined and the sheer energy of Rouvali's onslaught upon the music almost convinces us of the heroism of resistance and endurance, ultimately rewarded by explosive, joyous liberation." - MusicWeb International "The first movement is both atmospheric and flowing, sensitively delineating each stage in the unfolding psychological drama." - Gramophone

Galina Ustvolskaya was a profoundly original composer, unrivalled in the extremism of her style, who was largely ignored during her lifetime. Fiercely independent, Ustvolskaya created highly expressive, even violent music that sounds like the work of no other composer and reveals no distinct influences, while often being imbued with religiosity or spirituality. Her music has been described as having the 'narrowness of a laser beam capable of piercing metal'. Only after her death was Ustvolskaya's original and uncompromising talent finally recognised. Christian Karlsen and the London Philharmonic Orchestra present here Ustvolskaya's five symphonies. While the first appears superficially traditional (it is the only one for full symphony orchestra), it features two boys singing - through microphones, in a chanting manner - texts that speak of poverty, racism and injustice. Symphonies Nos 2 to 5 break decisively with the traditional mould; each consists of a single, rather short movement, in the manner of theatrical rituals. Written for instrumental combinations as varied as they are unusual, these symphonies became increasingly intransigent as their instrumentation contracted further and further, down to just a handful of instruments in the Fourth and Fifth Symphonies. A solo voice appears sporadically, not necessarily for singing, but rather to verbalise a prayer - a prayer asking for forgiveness but not for a better life.

This CD is the result of the 12th International Competition "Franz Schubert and Modern Music" (FS & MM), which took place in February 2025 and was organised by the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz. The Trio Bronte won 1st prize in the piano trio category with the repertoire on the recording. The Trio was founded in Berlin in 2022 and consists of German-Italian violinist Chiara Sannicandro, Bulgarian pianist Lili Bogdanova, and American cellist Annie Jacobs-Perkins. After playing together for only a few months, the Trio Bronte won 1st prize at the 2023 Ilmari Hannikainen International Piano Chamber Music Competition in Finland. The trio grew up surrounded by the passionate and turbulent novels of the Bronte sisters and named themselves after them, inspired by their passion for storytelling, their intelligence and their sociability.

RVB Quartet They bring a mix between rock and jazz which results in a refreshing sound. Interaction, improvisation and groove are the main ingredients that ensure vibrant compositions and crisp live performances. Hamabiwa The quartet feels like kings when they can play like children and let loose on their instruments. Hazel, Bibi, Marius (the little one) and Walt are the inspiration for this album.