Continuing their Magnificat series, and the last album of Andrew Nethsingha's tenure as director, The Choir of St John's College Cambridge present Magnificat 4 with works from composers including Judith Weir, Jonathan Dove, Joanna Forbes L'Estrange and Charles Villiers Stanford. The album also features 'Magnificat & Nunc Dimittis' by Piers Connor Kennedy, commissioned for the choir.

This is a remarkable collection of 5 compositions for strings by Thomas Pitfield, performed with thoughtful skill by members of the Pleyel Ensemble. This album of Pitfield's string chamber music is accompanied by two further Divine Art releases - The Songs of Thomas Pitfield performed by tenor James Gilchrist and pianist Nathan Williamson and Thomas Pitfield (DDX 21119): His Friends & Contemporaries, including works from a fine collection of composers (DDX 21246) These albums serve to shed light on Thomas Pifield's considerable contribution to British music. Throughout his tenure as a composition teacher, Pitfield played a pivotal role in shaping the careers of notable composers like John McCabe, David Ellis, and John Golland, the latter of whom also shared a close personal friendship with Pitfield. Despite being somewhat overshadowed by the achievements of his contemporaries, Pitfield's legacy lives on through a revival of interest in his music. This album offers a glimpse into Pitfield's artistic vision and craftsmanship. Pitfield's compositions are filled with elegance, lyricism, and emotional depth. His music not only showcases his technical skill but also reflects his genuine love for the art form and his dedication to inspiring future generations of musicians. The Pleyel Ensemble was formed in Manchester in January 2011. They are friends and colleagues who draw on a wealth of experience gained through many years of music-making. Since forming, they have given over 200 concerts, and have an enormous and varied repertoire of chamber music. The Pleyel Ensemble was delighted to be chosen as Making Music Recommended Artists for the 2016/17 and 2019/20 seasons and has appeared at Music Societies and Festivals all over the UK. The ensemble takes it's name from the Classical composer Ignaz Pleyel (1757-1831), a brilliant musician and businessman, who, in addition to writing a large body of accessible chamber music, helped increase the popularity of this wonderful kind of music-making amongst amateurs and professionals as both music publisher and piano manufacturer in the early nineteenth century.

Ruth Gipps made her musical talents apparent from an early age, and they were encouraged by her very supportive mother. She entered the Royal College of Music in 1937, aged 16, studying oboe and piano, in addition to composition (with Ralph Vaughan Williams and Gordon Jacob). Whilst at college, she performed Brahms's Second Piano Concerto, and her tone poem Knight in Armour (CHAN 20078) was presented by Sir Henry Wood at the Last Night of the Proms in 1942. As the war continued, Gipps left London to become principal oboe with the City of Birmingham Orchestra, where she also performed as pianist and had several of her works programmed. Returning to London after the war, Gipps found fewer opportunities as a performer, and less interest in her orchestral scores. She concentrated on composing more chamber music, alongside a successful teaching career. This album of her chamber music for oboe (and cor anglais) features works composed from 1938 to 1990, representing Gipps's entire compositional life. In demand as a soloist all over Europe, Juliana Koch was appointed Professor of Oboe at the Royal College of Music, London, in 2018 and is Principal Oboe of the London Symphony Orchestra.

Rome to Vilnius is a new investigative insight into the cultural heritage of Lithuania: the music at he Vasa Court in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. It reflects the influence of the greatest masters of the Roman polyphonic school in the musical world of Poland and Lithuania and shows the Vasa Court as a place of advanced music-making in 16th- and 17th-century Europe. At the end of the 16th century, during the time of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Sigismund III Vasa was the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania. Each year he spent a few months in Vilnius, and it was reported that he always travelled with his musicians. Sigismund III, who was himself a musician and a lover of music, was not happy with the standard of the music in the Royal Chapel, and decided to invite Italian musicians to improve the musical life of his court. Italy was the main influence in music in Europe at that time, not only because of the different styles that originated there (polyphony, poly-choral music, monody, opera, etc), but also because of the achievements of the composers who wrote in these styles. We can distinguish clearly two main schools of music in Italy: the Venetian school, created by Adrian Willaert, with the new poly-choral style that was performed in the Basilica of San Marco; and the polyphonic Roman school of Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, one of the most influential musicians of the 16th century, and one of the great masters of the art of polyphony of all time. Sigismund III decided to hire the best musicians from Rome, and from 1595 to 1649 all the Kapellmeisters at the Vasa Court in Poland and Lithuania were Italians. Most of them were not only prominent members of the Roman school, but also former pupils of Palestrina. The composers represented on this recording were among them, with the exception of Giovanni Battista Cocciola, who was kapellmeister at the Vilnius court under Lew Sapieha. At the beginning of the 17th century, the Vilnius court was presided over by Lew Sapieha (Leonas Sapiega), Sigismund III Vasa's crown chancellor (the highest official in the country after the King himself). Sapieha was an expert in music and was entrusted with the position of administrator of the Royal Chapel. He had his own chapel attached to his residence in Vilnius. The 'Sapieha' album is a compilation of pieces with a sacral function. It does not mention the compiler or the composers but is a testimony to the vitality of the musical culture in Lithuania in the first half of the 17th century. Other information: - Recorded October 2023, Vilnius - Booklet in English contains liner notes by the director, as well as his biography and one of the ensemble. - Rome to Vilnius is a new investigative insight into the cultural heritage of Lithuania: the music at the Vasa Court in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. It reflects the influence of the greatest masters of the Roman polyphonic school in the musical world of Poland and Lithuania, and shows the Vasa Court as a place of advanced music-making in 16th and 17th-century Europe. At the end of the 16th century, during the time of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Sigismund III was the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania. Sigismund III, who was himself a musician and a lover of music, was not happy with the standard of the music in the Royal Chapel, and he decided to invite Italian musicians to improve the musical life of his court. He hired the best musicians from Rome, and from 1595 to 1649 all the Kapellmeisters at the Vasa Court in Poland and Lithuania were Italians. Most of them were not only prominent members of the Roman school, but also former pupils of Palestrina. - The composers presented on this new recording include Palestrina (presumably 1525-1594), Merula (1595-1665), Marenzio (1553 or 1554-1599), Cato (after 1560 until after 1618), Pacelli (ca. 1570- 1623), Anerio (1560-1614), Cocciola (2nd half 16th century until after 1625) and Pekiel after 1600 until ca. 1670). - Beautiful performances by Lithuanian soloists, including Renata Dubinskaite (mezzo-soprano), whose previous recording for Brilliant Classics with works by Barbara Strozzi (BC 96436) received 5 star reviews in the international press. The instrumental group includes cornetto, sackbut and organ.

SOMM Recordings is delighted to announce a stunning new solo piano recital from label veteran Peter Donohoe following his recent acclaimed coupling of Chopin's Second and Third Sonatas with Rachmaninoff's Chopin Variations, over which BBC Music Magazine's Rebecca Franks enthused "Donohoe's approach has a robust honesty and an appealing straightforward feel, with an instinct for the emotional rises and falls." Now the pianist revisits Chopin in the genre for which the composer is arguably best known and loved: the waltz. Donohoe has fashioned a substantial selection of 14 of Chopin's Waltzes into a set of his own design, juxtaposing the intimate numbers with the grand and virtuosic in fortuitous key relationships that the pianist says "form a more satisfying collection" compared with simply playing them through as numbered. It is hard to imagine any other composer that could have infused a dance-form with Chopin's lyrical pianism and singular dramatic storytelling. But the waltz naturally appealed to a great many other composers, among them Robert Schumann, Chopin's exact contemporary and fervent, if unrequited admirer. His Opus 1 "Abegg" Variations, in triple-time throughout and brimming with elegant fioritura, form one of a pair of waltz bookends to the Chopin set and begin this recital with an exhilarating take-off. On the other side of the Chopin set and leading the waltz suavely into the 20th-century is Maurice Ravel's cycle of eight Valses nobles et sentimentales, again organised to contrast vigorous (noble) numbers with evocative (sentimental) counterparts in an eclectic blend of Impressionism and Modernism, but this time according to the composer's own design. A lovely postlude comes in the form of La plus que lente, in which Ravel's fellow impressionist Claude Debussy crafts a harmonically sumptuous ode to the "slow waltz" (valse lente) steeped in languid nostalgia. Peter Donohoe's acclaimed discography of previous SOMM releases includes the complete cycle of Prokofiev Piano Sonatas and a complete survey of Mozart's Piano Sonatas - Volume 1 of the Mozart series was named a BBC Music Magazine "Recording of the Month", citing "a gloves-off spontaneity that imbues these magical scores with a compelling vitality and freshness". Other discs include Stravinsky's Music for Solo Piano and Piano and Orchestra and Scriabin's Complete Piano Sonatas.

Romain Descharmes is one of the foremost French pianists of his generation. This album of concertante works includes Poulenc's alluring and seductive Piano Concerto and Faure's Ballade in F sharp minor. Descharmes is also the soloist in the complete Saint-Saens Piano Concertos on 8.573476-78.

With one exception, this CD box contains my complete piano works from 2010 to 2020, which are being released on CD for the first time. Operas 76, 86 and 116 are dedicated to Ana-Marija Markovina, who also premiered them. (Stefan Heucke) This CD-Box is a great stroke of luck. Stefan Heucke's work is an impressive testimony to the musical interweaving of genres and themes, of new and historical forms and techniques of expression, of music and literature. The fact that Heucke's complete piano works from 2010 to 2020 are being released on CD for the first time with this CD box set makes one literally 'sit up and take notice'. The compositions are brilliantly performed by pianist Ana-Marija Markovina. Both Stefan Heucke and Ana-Marija Markovina have known one another for a long time; their collaboration is a stroke of luck for the music scene in this country and beyond.

The two towering masterpieces of the piano quintet genre on this disc were written seventy years and a thousand miles apart, but for all this, they are closely related – Marina Frolova Walker.

Signum artists Peter Donohoe and the Sacconi Quartet join forces to bring piano quintets by Sergey Taneyev and Robert Schumann in their latest album. Their performances of Taneyev’s spectacular Piano Quintet in early 2020 were received with universal acclaim. This resulting album recording felt inevitable, coupling the Taneyev with Schumann’s earlier quintet, itself of such significance to Sergey Taneyev.

For a period of the 20th Century, due to his talent and association with Benjamin Britten, Peter Pears was perhaps the world's most famous classical singer. Pears inspired Britten to create great works of art precisely because Pears was a compelling artist with an exceptional voice, an inquisitive mind, a knowledge of art, history, literature and poetry. They became a self-perpetuating duo, inspiring each other to even greater heights of artistry, technical ability, and emotional certainty. This album of works by Lennox Berkeley, Benjamin Britten, Arthur Oldham, Richard Rodney Bennett and Geoffrey Bush is performed by tenor Robin Tritschler, who is joined by cellist Philip Higham, guitarist Sean Shibe and pianist Malcolm Martineau. Praise for Robin Tritschler and Malcolm Martineau: 4 stars Performance, 4 stars Recording "Robin Tritschler's sweet-toned voice is a continual delight, as is Malcolm Martineau's sparkling, pearly, luminous piano sound" - BBC Music Magazine

Frank Peter Zimmermann is widely regarded as one of the foremost violinists of his generation. He has been performing with all major orchestras in the world, among which the Berliner Philharmoniker with whom he made his debut in 1985 with Daniel Barenboim; the Wiener Philharmoniker with whom he played a first time in 1983 with Lorin Maazel in Salzburg; the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, all London orchestras, as well as all big American orchestras. Frank Peter Zimmermann is a regular guest at all major music festivals of among others Salzburg, Edinburgh and Lucerne. Over the years Frank Peter Zimmermann has built up an impressive discography: He has recorded virtually all major concerto repertoire, ranging from Bach to Ligeti, Dean and Pintscher; the six solo sonatas of Ysa�e; the 24 Caprices of Paganini and the complete Violin Sonatas of J.S. Bach and Mozart. Born in 1965 in Duisburg, Germany, he started learning playing the violin with his mother when he was 5 years old. He studied with Valery Gradov, Saschko Gawriloff and Herman Krebbers. He plays on the 1711 Antonius Stradivari violin "Lady Inchiquin", which is kindly provided by the Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Dusseldorf, "Kunst i'm Landesbesitz".

Ilmari Hannikainen: Early Songs The Finnish pianist, composer, and piano teacher Ilmari Hannikainen (1892-1955) wrote over one hundred solo songs. As a child, he accompanied his mother, the singer Alfhild "Alli" Hannikainen (1867-1949), on the piano. His own songs bear dedications to her and to many other well-known Finnish singers of the time, some of whom he also performed with. As late as the 1950s, he recorded several songs for Finnish Radio, but unfortunately, only a few of the recordings have survived.

SOMM Recordings is thrilled to announce African Pianism, Volume 2, a new installment in a collection of piano music by African composers. Following suit from her critically acclaimed first African Pianism album, Rebeca Omordia brings us a fascinating program with no less than 8 First Recordings. Among these is the 4th in a selection of three Studies in African Pianism by Akin Euba, a Nigerian composer who makes a return on this second volume and whose “African Pianism” style, inspired by the research of Ghanaian composer J.H. Kwabena Nketia. The music of Algerian composer Salim Dada attempts to be a means by which a natural message of peace and dialogue may exist between the Arab-Muslim world and European civilization. Moroccan composer Nabil Benabdeljalil, like Akin Euba, makes a second appearance in this series with a new set of four pieces including 3 first recordings. Fellow South African Grant McLachlan contributes his arrangement for solo piano of the anti-apartheid protest song “Senzeni Na?”, which begins “What have we done? Is our sin that we are black?”. Fela Sowande, a Nigerian composer of the previous century, figures on the program with hauntingly original “K’A Mura” from 2 Preludes on Yoruba Sacred Folk Melodies. Also representing the first half of the 20th century is celebrated African American composer Florence Price in her luxuriantly pianistic Fantasie nègre.

Hailed as an "African classical music pioneer" (BBC World Service) and "a classical music game changer" (Classical Music), award-winning pianist Rebeca Omordia is an exciting virtuoso with a wide-ranging career as soloist, chamber musician and recording artist.

Sergey Taneyev's supreme mastery of European classical technique placed him outside the more nationalist trends of the day. The Violin Sonata in A minor is neo-Classical in its reserved and often song-like moods and expressions, and contrasts dramatically with the grand scale of the Piano Quintet in G minor.

REVIEW:

In the Violin Sonata, the players add some piquant touches to the occasionally dissonant harmonies and bring a degree of charm to the composer’s rustic-sounding rhythms and melodies. The Piano Quintet receives a fantastic performance, really capturing the gripping tension and turmoil the music whips up.

— Fanfare

Crystal-clear tones and rich resonances from the langeleik zither, a tradition unbroken since the 15th century: melodies to listen to (lydarlatter) and numerous dances (springar, gangar, halling, etc.) form the core of an ancient and still lively repertoire. The langeleik belongs to the family of box zithers which is present throughout Northern and Central Europe (Hungry, Flanders and the Netherlands, Germany and Sweden). All of these instruments have a fretted fingerboard under one or several of the strings on which the melody is played, whilst the remaining strings, or drones, are used for accompaniment. Traditionally, the langeleik is played by the fingers of the left hand, and with a long horn plectrum held in the right hand, moving with regular, rhythmical backward and forward strokes. The preformers demonstrate their skills using ornamentation and rhythmical stresses. This unique way of playing actually gives langeleik music a nearly hypnotic flow.

Celebrating 200 Years of the Diabelli Project To commemorate the bicentennial of Beethoven's Diabelli Variations, the Divine Art label proudly presents " 200 Years: Diabelli Variations". Originally introduced by Anton Diabelli with words of admiration for it's innovation and artistic brilliance, the Diabelli Variations have since transcended time, becoming a cornerstone of the piano repertoire, rivalling even the esteemed works of J.S. Bach. The story behind the Diabelli Variations adds to their mystique. Legend has it that Beethoven initially dismissed Diabelli's theme as a mere "cobbler's patch." Yet, he later transformed this simple waltz into a complex, kaleidoscopic masterpiece, showcasing a wide range of characters, styles, and textures. From playful parodies to profound meditations, Beethoven's variations span over 60 minutes of inventive musical exploration. Renowned pianist Dina Parakhina, who first performed the Diabelli Variations during her final recital at the Moscow Conservatory, brings her deep understanding and lifelong study of this monumental work to her latest recording. Parakhina's interpretation captures the intricate structural unity and the emotional depth of Beethoven's composition, reflecting her illustrious career and devotion to classical music. About Dina Parakhina Dina Parakhina, a distinguished Russian pianist and educator, has been a Piano Professor at the Royal College of Music since 2009 and a College Fellow since 2019. She has taught at prestigious institutions such as the Central Music School in Moscow and Chetham's School of Music, and currently holds a position at the Royal Northern College of Music. Parakhina has performed globally as a soloist, made numerous recordings, and given master-classes around the world. Her expertise and passion for music have also seen her serve on juries for international piano competitions. Parakhina's illustrious career began in Sochi and led her to study under notable mentors in Moscow. She toured extensively with the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra and later organized significant projects like the Medtner Marathon, which celebrated the works of Nikolai Medtner. Her recording of Medtner's Piano Sonatas and Fairy Tales was critically acclaimed, highlighting her dedication to bringing classical masterpieces to contemporary audiences. Join us in celebrating 200 years of Beethoven's Diabelli Variations with Dina Parakhina's remarkable new recording, a tribute to the timeless genius of Beethoven and the enduring beauty of his music.

SOMM Recordings is delighted to announce the new solo piano album War Poems by phenomenal Ukrainian pianist Maria Narodytska. With this, her debut album on SOMM Recordings, she makes a bold and impassioned, yet inclusive artistic statement, using solo piano works of various historical periods, written in the midst of conflict (our own included), to ask listeners to reflect on the ravages of war and safeguard the flickering flame of hope in peace. As the vastly talented composer of a work on this recital, Narodytska writes as a Ukrainian, but performs her programme as a member of the artistic community and a world citizen. Her recital unites her own composition and that of another contemporary Ukrainian composer, Artem Liakhovych, with the war-time work of past masters: Poland's Szymanowski, who was born in the centre of modern-day Ukraine and sheltered there as he wrote his Masques near the end of World War I; his compatriot Chopin, who wrote his Opus 40 Polonaises from a new home in Paris after the Revolutions of 1830; and Shostakovich, whose Second Piano Sonata he began during a family evacuation amid the Siege of his native Leningrad (St Petersburg) in World War II. Maria Narodytska plays six of Artem Liakhovych's 24 Postludes for solo piano, his "War Notebook", composed in the wake of the February 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. In Liakhovych's words: "This cycle is my reaction to the war in Ukraine, written during the evacuation in Uman. It covers all tonalities, but in a contrary motion [to the circle-of-fifths key sequence in Chopin's 24 Preludes, for example]. This is due to the importance of the postlude as an epilogue, an afterword, encoding a certain ending of time, even a reversal of it." Of Narodytska's own composition, After, she says: "I wrote this piece shortly before the recording, and for me it is a direct reflection of the war in Ukraine. While writing it, I was imagining what happens after one gets a call that no one would want to get or reads the news that no one would like to read. It's the kind of 'after' as in: 'life got divided into before and after'." A prize winner of the Takamatsu, Santa Cecilia and WorldVision International Music Competitions, Maria Narodytska has also achieved wins in many more major competitions while continuing to give concerts worldwide and serving as a much sought-after teacher and jury member.

A selection of his commercially released recordings. This very full 2 CD compilation of Coates most popular works is drawn from a 7 CD set 'The Definitive Eric Coates' (REAM.2145) containing all of Eric Coates commercially released recordings. In addition to a full discography the booklet has a 1000 word article on Coates relationship with the Gramophone by Michael Payne.

This debut album, from Germany-based ensemble Conceptus, features music for tenor and ensemble by Butterworth, Warlock, Holst, and Bridge, in addition to Timothy Collins’ Sea Song. Collins has composed and arranged extensively for the ensemble.

Sea Song – Timothy Collins
Originally composed in 2018 and set to the poignant poetry of Katherine Mansfield, this evocative piece delves into themes of aging, sorrow, and loss. Conceptus has brought Collins' musical narrative to life with an accompanying 10-minute music film available on Apple Music and YouTube.

Six Songs from a Shropshire Lad – George Butterworth
Delving into themes of nostalgia and the tragedy of lost youth, this collection, originally composed in 1911, captures the essence of Alfred Edward Housman's timeless poetry. Collins' arrangements embellish the poignant resonance of Butterworth's work, forever etched in the annals of English song.

The Curlew – Peter Warlock
Peter Warlock's masterwork, "The Curlew," meticulously arranged for Conceptus by Timothy Collins. Woven from the poetry of William Butler Yeats, this haunting composition, originally scored for string quartet, cor anglais, and flute, delves into macabre imagery and desolate landscapes.

Hymns from the Rig Veda Opus 24 – Gustav Holst
"Hymns from the Rig Veda" is transfigured by Conceptus with these arrangements from Timothy Collins. Drawing inspiration from ancient Sanskrit texts dating back to 1500 BCE, Holst's choral triumph offers a reverent exploration of Hindu philosophical thought. Experience the profound resonance of Holst's sacred compositions as Conceptus breathes new life into these timeless hymns.

Three Songs by Frank Bridge
From the reflective tones of "Come To Me In My Dreams" to the mythological allure of "Love Went A-Riding," Conceptus navigates the emotional depths of Bridge's compositions with grace and finesse.

Conceptus is an international, multi-faceted, and multi-disciplinary ensemble with membership drawn from Germany, Russia, Spain, the United Kingdom, Poland, and Australia. Formed in 2021, the ensemble is dedicated to bringing new life to great works of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and beyond, with a particular emphasis on Late Romantic British vocal music and song cycles.

Conceptus has also commissioned works by award-winning German composer, organist, and conductor Christoph Ritter, whose Requiem is set for a world premiere and recording in 2024. Conceptus Artistic Director, Scott Robert Shaw, released his acclaimed debut “The English Tenor” on Divine Art in 2023.

SOMM Recordings proudly announces this fifth and penultimate release in the complete cycle of the Beethoven Symphonies arranged for piano four-hands by the great Polish-German composer and pianist Xaver Scharwenka. This is a series that has consistently had listeners "waiting impatiently for the next volume" (MusicWeb International). Of the many piano-duo versions of the Symphonies, Scharwenka's benefit from an unbroken link back to Beethoven himself, for the arranger was a piano student of Franz Kullak, who in turn studied under the master symphonist's pupil Carl Czerny. The present Volume�5 adds Symphonies 4�&�8 to the collection, coupled with Ferruccio Busoni's two-piano transcription of Mozart's Magic Flute Overture BV�B�93, leaving only Beethoven's "Choral" Ninth still to be released on the series' concluding instalment. The performers undertaking this monumental recording project, the "phenomenal" piano duo of Tessa Uys & Ben Schoeman ("In Tune", BBC Radio�3), have performed all nine symphony arrangements in public for almost a decade, breeding a familiarity that informs the impeccable ensemble and authoritative vision they bring to the recordings. Gramophone's Peter J. Rabinowitz lauded this in Volume�4: "Uys and Schoeman cut through the clutter with impressive unanimity; and their finely gauged handling of dynamics and their rhythmic drive... assure that the symphonies emerge with their shape intact, even shorn of orchestral colour. It all sounds idiomatic, both as Beethoven and as piano music... knowledgeable and illuminating." The Sunday Times' Dan Cairns, who named Volume 3 a "Classical Album of the Week", also relished those "dual delights: you can just as easily feel you are listening to entirely new works as experience moments when your response will be along the lines of: 'Ah yes, that bit'. Both are richly rewarding... a�fascinating listening experience." The two-piano Magic Flute Overture included here echoes Volume�4 in the series, which featured the Mozart-Busoni Duettino concertante based on the Finale of Piano Concerto No.19, a performance hailed in BBC Music Magazine as "brilliantly conceived and light as a feather". Ates Orga, reviewing for International Piano, noted the change in aural texture from the four-hands Beethoven to two pianos, "the�audible separation of instruments enhancing their spatial impact". Ferruccio Busoni was a younger contemporary of Scharwenka, and they died the same year, making this the centenary of the deaths of both pianist-composers. Perhaps most associated with arrangements of Bach, Busoni also championed the music of his fellow Freemason Mozart, and he celebrates that link in his transcription of the Masonic opera's overture.

SOMM Recordings announces Canticle of the Sun, an album dedicated to choral works by Stephen Dodgson. This recording adds to SOMM’s growing discography of music by this unjustly neglected and richly deserving British composer (the label last year launched an ongoing three-volume series embracing Dodgson’s rich and varied output of songs) on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of his birth.

The performances are given by the chamber choir Sonoro, one of the UK’s foremost vocal ensembles. Described as “outstandingly refreshing” (BBC Music Magazine) and “abundant in vibrant colour” (The Guardian), they are tonally immaculate and technically astounding in Dodgson’s tuneful, yet challenging choral writing. They are joined in one work by Michael Higgins at the organ and in another by Katherine Bicknell on flute, while the remaining pieces feature the choir in stunning a cappella with soloists drawn from the choir throughout, and the entire programme is led by conductor and Co-Artistic Director of Sonoro Neil Ferris.

The selection of works, all of them first recordings, reveals in Dodgson a genuine composer for voices – one of abundant gifts, and special among them a sensitive approach to word-setting. The album’s titular piece, Canticle of the Sun (2008), one of Dodgson’s last vocal compositions, sets a text by the prolific English poet John Heath-Stubbs (1918–2006). The cantata Four Poems of Mary Coleridge (1987) sets the texts for the unusual and striking combination of mixed voices and solo flute, played by Katherine Bicknell, a flautist of “sumptuous tone” (The Straits Times, Singapore) and “striking musical ability” (MusicWeb). Incredibly effective throughout, the contrast between voices and flute is particularly evocative in the wonderfully dark “Nocturne I: (The Fire, the Lamp and I)”, with its interplay between almost recitative-like flute and solo bass interspersed with choir playing the characters of the fire and lamp.

’Tis Almost One (1984), is a short cantata for mixed voices and organ to words by Robert Herrick (1591–1674). The organ accompaniment is provided by pianist, organist, composer and arranger, and Co-Artistic Director of Sonoro Michael Higgins.

Following three undated but likely quite early shorter works for a cappella upper voices on anonymous texts (Winter, Lullaby and All Bells in Paradise), the programme concludes with Lines from Hal Summers, a setting for unaccompanied mixed choir. Dodgson chose three poems from Smoke After Flame (1944) by the English poet Henry (known as Hal) Summers (1911–2005), excerpting from them and setting to music carefully selected lines, as referenced by the title. It is difficult not to feel the growing sense of expected war-time victory in these texts – the music reflecting an unstated hopefulness for peace and rebirth.

This recording is supported by the Stephen Dodgson Charitable Trust.

SOMM Recordings is proud to announce a recital disc from cellist Adrian Bradbury and pianist Andrew West titled The Pre-Raphaelite Cello – at once ground-breaking and celebratory, and rich with first recordings. The curiosity piqued by the album’s unusual name will be amply rewarded with the fascinating story of the artistic threads this programme weaves together and their relevance to important commemorations being observed this year.

The idea was conceived and devised by pianist Oliver Davies (1938–2020)*, and the recording is dedicated to his memory. It is a tribute to the renowned British cellist Beatrice Harrison and her association with the composers of The Frankfurt Gang whose music she championed. And the occasion of this tribute is the 100th anniversary of the Nightingale Broadcast, one of the earliest ever made by the BBC from a remote location: on 19 May 1924 Beatrice sat and played her cello in the garden of “Foyle Riding” (the family home at Oxted), duetting with the local nightingales before a microphone that carried them over the airwaves to more than a million listeners and enchanted a nation.

The composers in Beatrice’s circle included a multi-year cohort of anglophone composition students under Iwan Knorr at Frankfurt before the turn of the 20th century. Englishmen Roger Quilter and Cyril Scott and the Australian Percy Grainger belonged to this Frankfurt Gang, who remained close friends after their student days in Germany and who adopted the Pre-Raphaelite banner from the like-minded brotherhood of English painters and poets, distinguishing themselves musically from other British composers through a focus on emotion rather than musical architecture. They were among the composers inspired by Beatrice’s musicianship, and their works on this album were arranged for her or played and loved by her. These are prefaced on the programme by cello-piano pieces from Iwan Knorr (the composition professor who unites the Gang) and Hugo Becker (Beatrice’s cello teacher from the age of 15).

Reference Recordings is proud to present True Concord's newest album, A Dream So Bright, featuring two world premiere recordings of works by Jake Runestad. His EMMY-winning choral/orchestral work, Earth Symphony, with poetry of Todd Boss, was commissioned and premiered by True Concord in 2022. Dreams of the Fallen, Runestad's prize-winning work for solo piano, chorus & orchestra, features pianist Jeffrey Biegel and includes texts of the poet Brian Turner, a veteran of the Iraq and Afghanistan war. Turner states: "When the music lifts to it's peak, when the choir sings into the high cathedral of the human experience-the hairs on the back of my neck take notice, my own heart takes notice, and I am moved once again by the fusion of sound and story. "Dreams of the Fallen" is a compassionate, emotionally-layered, elegant, and poignant work of art that I am proud to be a part of. " A Dream So Bright was recorded in outstanding fidelity by engineer John Polito, and produced by GRAMMY�-award winner Peter Rutenberg of Los Angeles. Recorded May 24-26, 2023 at Camelback Bible Church, Paradise Valley, Arizona

The Signature label having developed into Radio France's preferred means of expression for multiple form of music, it is now broadening it's space for creation with Radiophonie, an entire collection devoted to illustration in sound. Welcoming today's composers with a curiosity for this purely radiophonic object, one filled with relatively brief forms that are explicit as regards the themes developed or resolved, and sensitive to the sounds of the contemporary world, whether electronic, electro-acoustic or acoustic, this new collection Radiophonie has the vocation of being the place where experimentation meets functionality. It's a meeting place that makes note of the fact that, if the distinction between the different destinations of works of music has faded on it's own, the radiophonic form remains rich in perspectives, images, colors and emotions.

For the tenth volume in his series of Schubert's Complete Sonatas and Major Works for Piano, Mathieu Gaudet turns to a work of unabashed Romanticism: Sonata No. 4 in A minor (D. 537), composed in 1817. Whilst the outer movements are highly dramatic in character, the central slow movement features a long and enchanting melody of an almost fragile delicacy. He returned to this melody eleven years later in 1828, using it as the theme of the last movement of the Sonata No. 19 in A major D. 959, his penultimate sonata. This Allegretto is perhaps the most "Schubertian" of all: it is generous, graceful, full of hope despite a weighty melancholy, and always in motion. Schubert's return to the melody that he had composed when he was twenty years old attests his particular love for it; it was his personal hymn, his secret melody.

Frederick Paul Naftel's new album showcases his eclectic compositional style through a diverse collection of works. 3 Premiere Recordings: Aphoristic Impressions, composed in 2023 for American pianist Haley Myles, captures the essence of various landscapes through five short piano pieces. These pieces evoke images of the underwater church at Dunwich, Suffolk, the eruption of an Icelandic geyser, the indigenous wildlife of the Australian outback and Uluru/Ayers Rock, a peaceful night-time portrait of a Japanese garden, and Whirlpool Rapids Gorge on the Niagara River. Naftel's String Quartet No.2, composed during the initial Coronavirus pandemic, reflects the era's tumultuous nature. Unlike his first quartet, this single-movement piece is divided into five sections with an epilogue. The music oscillates between tranquil static passages and furious, violent sections, marked by intervals of a major 7th and minor 2nd. The Lento opening flows serenely but mysteriously, evolving through a relentless Allegro feroce, transitioning to an Adagio Sostenuto reminiscent of plainsong, and culminating in a powerful and enigmatic epilogue featuring recorded cello pizzicato. The Folksong Suite for String Orchestra and Timpani draws on six English and Scottish folksongs, including John Peel, Early One Morning, Ca' the Yowes, Loch Lomond, Dashing Away With The Smoothing Iron, and Lincolnshire Poacher. Legacy Recordings: Pascal's Victim for Tuba Quartet, composed for the North West-based Tubalate, features three movements based on the Gregorian Chant Victamae Paschali. Each movement uniquely fragments the theme, particularly in the slow second movement, where a short melodic motive is varied by gently shifting harmonies. Song of Songs: Rhapsody for String Orchestra and Harp is an ethnic-flavoured rhapsody based on Hebraic chants and original material, featuring melodies like "Yigdal" and "Hatikvah." This piece evokes imagery suited for films set in Biblical times or perhaps documentaries about the Middle East. Villancico for Guitar and Small Orchestra bridges the music of the Spanish Renaissance and Joaquin Rodrigo in a charming and lyrical Rondo form, while Aubade Pastorale for String Orchestra is a short tone poem depicting a hazy day in the English countryside, using original themes inspired by the English Pastoral School, particularly Ralph Vaughan Williams. Frederick Paul Naftel, born in Manchester in 1956, is an eclectic composer drawing inspiration from diverse sources such as landscapes, nature, and historical events. His compositions span various styles and formats, creating distinct moods and atmospheres. His repertoire includes Concerti for Orchestra, Symphonies, chamber music, and vocal works. Notable works include the Double Concerto for Bass Tuba and Contrabass Tuba, the Bass Clarinet Concerto, Aubade Pastorale, and the Sanctus for female voices, strings, and piano. He received an award from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation in 2020 and was runner-up in the King Lear Arts Competition. Naftel is currently working on his Third Symphony, dedicated to Sir James MacMillan, and future orchestral works. Naftel's music has been praised for it's eccentricity, individuality and distinctive voice in contemporary music.