This disc was shaped by the encounter between one of the great composers of our time, Mauricio Kagel, a unique and engaging pianist, Alexandre Tharaud, and some of his close chamber music partners. It reaches out to its audience with a great sense of humour and tenderness.

In this disc wild jigs and melancholic songs lead us both into the atmosphere of court and that of taverns. This shows-to those who still deem it necessarythe extent to which baroque esthetics are made up, in one movement, of both erudite art and popular art. This recording shows the Witches at their British best!

Domenico Scarlatti wrote no less than 555 keyboard sonatas, all of them true gems thanks to their melodic and rhythmic inventiveness. They use many of the harpsichord's subtleties and appeal to the whole of the agility and imagination of those who endeavour to play it. Racha Arodaky simultaneously displays her great virtuosity, her artful eloquence and her intimate knowledge of baroque music throughout this disc.

The brilliant Argentine musician Astor Piazzolla, who revolutionised the traditional tango through his use of jazz elements, counterpoint, extended harmonies and dissonance, has constantly appealed to wide audiences, as well as fascinating classical musicians. Here Astoria (string quintet, piano, accordion), led by Christophe Delporte, gives a delightfully lively rendering, capturing the rhythm and all the lyricism and charm of Piazzolla'stango nuevo.

This recording presents, from the hands of one of the most appealing performers of her generation, harpsichord works by Jean-Philippe Rameau, leader of the French 18th century clavecin school. Céline Frisch's Bach interpretations and recordings have earned her great international music press acclaim. Her affinities also draw her to play French music of the Louis XIV era, the English Virginalists and German 17th century music. She also delights in exploring 20th-century and contemporary music.

A man of contrasts and dramatic intensity, Beethoven is one of the most striking figures in all music history. He wrote the works presented on this recording during the period in which he was gradually becoming aware of his growing deafness. Upon its release, this debut album of the Beethoven’s clarinet trios by the Ensemble Kheops - clarinetist Ronald Van Spaendonck, cellist Marie Hallynck and pianist Muhiddin Dürrüoglu - earned high critical praise.

Frédéric Chopin’s Nocturnes possess those grand melodic qualities that form the basis of the charm and seduction of his inspiration. These 1993 recordings find the pianist playing a Broadwood piano (c. 1845), a make Chopin himself played upon in England in 1848. The Flemish pianist Luc Devos (b. 1960) is regularly invited to perform in concert as a soloist with Belgian and foreign orchestras and has collaborated with such renowned artists as Arthur Grumiaux, Sigiswald Kuijken and Augustin Dumay.

Bach composed these and other famous works, including the Brandenburg Concerti and the Cello Suites, during his Capellmeister years in Anhalt-Cöthen, Saxony, 1717-23. Violinist Hélène Schmitt, a fixture on European stages, mostly plays the solo violin repertoire of the 17th - early 19th century. She shows a special interest in and affinity for Italian and German music and culture. The international critics always receive her concerts and recordings enthusiastically.

Mozart's 40th symphony, perhaps his most beautiful and well known, has an intensity that allows us to sense the depth of tragic sentiment then occupying Mozart’s mind. His 41st, and last, symphony – the “Jupiter” – a titanic work in many regards – is an expertly assembled mix of tradition and innovation. Founded in 1987 by Jos van Immerseel, the multi-award winning Anima Eterna Brugge, now a full-bred, period instrument ensemble, boasts an impressive repertoire ranging from Bach to Gershwin.

Sergei Prokofiev, the great 20th century composer of such works as Peter and the Wolf, the ballet music Romeo and Juliet and music for the Sergei Eisenstein’s film Alexander Nevski was also a great pianist: five of his orchestral concertos are dedicated to this instrument. These live performances from 2004 feature noted Franco-Lebanese pianist Abdel Rahman El Bacha (b. 1958). Mr. El Bacha’s first recording, dedicated to Prokofiev’s early work, won the Grand Prize of the Académie Charles Cros.

Quite possibly the most melodically gifted composer to have ever lived, Franz Schubert’s uniqueness extends as well to his individual works notoriety, some of which is universal, as in the Trout Quintet, much of which remains in the shadows, even unfinished, as is the beautiful Notturno or the F major quartet, D487. Consistent throughout however is the composer’s grace, elegance and Biedermeyer charm, firmly in evidence on this recording.

Clara Schumann, Robert’s wife and muse, for whom, and at whose side, he composed these works written during the years in which his love for her – still no more than a young girl – began to bloom, are all filled with passionate romanticism. Eric Le Sage is one of today’s leading pianists of the French piano school. In 2010, he very successfully came to the end of a project that he had cherished and prepared for a long time: recording Robert Schumann’s complete works for piano.

Works of Lorenzo Allegri (1573-1648) and Giovanni Battista Buonamente (d. 1642)] intersperse the music of Monteverdi coeval Domenico Belli d. 1627), a mysterious figure with a capricious personality who left behind some rather startling music. Formed in 1998, Le Poème Harmonique, led by their artistic director Vincent Dumestre, center its artistic activity around 17th- early 18th century vocal and instrumental music, being often enriched by interaction with other artistic disciplines in performance.

Sergei Prokofiev, the great 20th century composer of such works as Peter and the Wolf, the ballet music Romeo and Juliet and music for the Sergei Eisenstein’s film Alexander Nevski was also a great pianist: five of his orchestral concertos are dedicated to this instrument. These live performances from 2004 feature noted Franco-Lebanese pianist Abdel Rahman El Bacha (b. 1958). Mr. El Bacha’s first recording, dedicated to Prokofiev’s early work, won the Grand Prize of the Académie Charles Cros.

This recording features two trio and two solo performances of works by Igor Stravinsky and Béla Bartók. Florent Héau, one of the major figures of the French clarinet school, is clarinet professor at the Paris CRR. Pianist Anne-Lise Gastaldi, a former student of noted pianist Anne Queffelec, is pianist for the George Sand trio. David Lefèvre is a gifted representative of the younger generation of violinists and artistic director of the Val d'Isère MusicaVal Chamber Music Festival.