This new collection of my choral music features recent commissions from choirs near and far. The overall theme of the album is one of hope but also concern for our relationship with living things and the planet we inhabit. Thus, in Earthificat I have based a new secular, environmental text on the words and structure of The Magnificat and in Renew Me In The Sunlight the words ask for strength to move forward in balance with nature. There is a movement, Reverence from my secular mass M=pV, a work about our stewardship of nature and our place within the universe and a setting of some beautiful words by the great 'nature poet' William Wordsworth. Alongside this are Christmas settings and other choral songs. The timbres weave between my more classical 'a cappella and strings' texture, towards a more jazz inflected sound world in tracks such as On This Night and Let All The People Praise You. I have worked many times with the inspirational Newcastle-based choir Voices of Hope who won BBC Choir of The Year in 2016 and who have continued to grow in vocal magic and audience since that time. It's been a joy to work with them and their choir director Mark Edwards alongside my own ensemble and string players from The Alina Orchestra.

The youngest musician ever to win the International Tchaikovsky Competition Cello Division, exciting American cellist Zlatomir Fung has collated an album of opera fantasies including Fantasy on Jenufa which he arranged himself and a Fantasy written especially for him - Fantasia Carmen - by composer Marshall Estrin. After extensive research Fung found these fantasies for cello used recognizable tunes from famous operas to create a free medley and that there are few rules beyond the pure expression of the composer's personality, interests, and strengths as a cellist. But it's more unconventional elements reimagine the notion of the fantasy itself, proving that the genre's possibilities are far from exhausted-and, indeed, may only be in their infancy. After his Tchaikovsky competition win, Fung has garnered accolades, critical acclaim and standing ovations at performances around the world, more and more widely recognized as one of the preeminent cellists of our time. Astounding audiences with his boundless virtuosity and exquisite sensitivity, the 25-year-old has already proven himself a star among the next generation of world-class musicians.

Supersize Polyphony is a celebration of large-scale choral works from the 16th century, performed here by the Armonico Consort and the Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, under their musical directors Christopher Monks and Geoffrey Webber. The unique programme features epic motets, such as Thomas Tallis' Spem in Alium and Alessandro Striggio's Ecce Beatam Lucem, alongside his rarely performed 60 part Missa sopra Ecco Si Beato Giorno. Interspersed with the serene beauty of ethereal chants by Hildegard of Bingen, this new recording presents works of magnitude and polyphonic drama in stellar performances by two of the UK's leading choral ensembles. Now Available as a CD / SACD Surround Sound album.

Malcolm Martineau follows up his acclaimed complete song collections of Duparc, Poulenc and Faure with a double album celebrating the complete songs of Maurice Ravel, performed by a bumper roster of singers: Lorna Anderson, Julie Boulianne, John Chest, Sarah Dufresne Dafydd Jones, Simon Keenlyside, Paula Murrihy, Nicky Spence and William Thomas. French composer Maurice Ravel known for his musical craftsmanship and clear style drew on elements of baroque, neoclassicism, modernism and later on, jazz in his compositions. His vocal works span 4 decades, from 1893 to 1933. Scottish pianist Malcolm Martineau is recognised at the highest international level as one of the UK's leading accompanists, performing worldwide alongside the world's greatest singers and with a discography of over 100 albums, including a number of award-winning recordings.

Percussionist extraordinaire Joby Burgess returns with his fifth album on Signum Records, "A Percussionist's Songbook" - a collection of specially commissioned 'songs without words' from John Metcalfe, Tunde Jegede, Dario Marianelli, Yazz Ahmed, Graham Fitkin, Dobrinka Tabakova and Gabriel Prokofiev. Scored for an arsenal of pitched percussion and electronics the songbook is inspired by texts ranging from the poetry of Robert Graves and Birago Diop to novels by Michael Ondaatje and Isaac Asimov; American philosopher Michael Sandel, songwriter Peter Gabriel, United Nation population growth statistics and Saudi Arabian folk tales.

The Bevan Family Consort return with a selection of choral works celebrating the season of lent and passiontide, including a world premiere recording of of the six-voice Lamentations by Alfonso Ferrabosco the Elder. The programme follows the liturgy from the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday to the darkness of Holy Saturday. For each day of Tenebrae, they've included a setting of a Lamentation. "Recording an album with the family is always moving, but this one was especially so because of the theme of the music... Like previous albums, this one contains well-worn family favourites beside newly-discovered or un-recorded rarities, thanks to our in-house editor and arch-polyphony enthusiast, Francis... We hope you enjoy our selection and that it can be a prayerful accompaniment to the Lenten season." - Michael Bevan

The last album with the current line-up, The King's Singers present a new album of choral music from the early 20th century, with a feature from sopranos Grace Davidson and Victoria Meteryard. "Such stuff as dreams are made on is an exploration of European choral music from the early 20th century (and a bit either side), much of it shaped and scarred by the spectre of conflicts that dominated the continent in that period. For us, the album has been a chance to develop and exercise new and different colours in our singing, to dive deeply into text-centric interpretations and historical context, to savour and cherish the four languages in which we sing here, and - in one instance - even to expand our forces a little. " - The King's Singers PRAISE FOR SIGCD912 CLOSE HARMONY 5 stars "The current line-up of King's Singers demonstrates their continued pre-eminence with these outstanding recordings of often very difficult arrangements. The Singers deliver with their usual mix of charm and skill" - Choir & Organ

Santtu conducts Shostakovich: Symphony No. 10 is the fifth album from Philharmonia Records. Largely interpreted as depicting Stalin's regime in Russia, the orchestra delivers tragedy, violence and gloom before the brief but triumphant finale. Conducted by Santtu-Matias Rouvali, this performance was recorded at Southbank Centre's Royal Festival Hall in April 2024.

Joining forces again for their second album on Signum Classics, duo JULIAN BLISS And JAMES BAILLIEU perform works by composer giants Clara & Robert Schumann. Many of the tracks on this recording are new arrangements by Bliss himself, and world premiere record- ings.

The Sacconi Quartet join forces again with celebrated composer Jonathan Dove for the latest instalment of their many fruitful collaborations and journeys. The String Quartet no 2 On the Streets and in the sky was written during the recent pandemic and was commissioned for the Sacconi Quartet to celebrate their 20th anniversary. Between Friends, is a world premiere recording, and a memorial to Graeme Mitchison (1944-2018), a multi-disciplined scientist, intrepid adventurer, cyclist, paraglider, mountaineer and a possessor of two pianos on which he and Dove would play together for over forty years. Who Wrote the Book of Love? Is an extended song cycle written for baritone Philippe Sly who performs the work here. Vanishing Gold is a compact five-minute piece written for the 40th anniversary of the Endellion Quartet, who then retired. Dove's previous release with the Sacconi Quartet on Signum "In Damascus" was awarded Gramophone Recording of the Month and Presto's Editor's Choice in 2017. ? The beauty of the piece, for tenor and string quartet, is it's restraint. It doesn't sensationalise, get maudlin, moralise or politicise. The words are direct and the music respects that. The performance does, too: focused playing from the Sacconi Quartet and lucid, unswerving narrative from tenor Mark Padmore - The Guardian

Baroque giants La Serenissima return with their new recording of Vivaldi's Four Seasons, among other concerti for ensemble by Antonio Vivaldi. Recognized for 'whipping up a storm with Vivaldi,' La Serenissima is 'one of Britain's best-loved chamber orchestras' (The Telegraph) known for championing a host of neglected Italian baroque composers and its outstanding performances. Uniquely, the group's entire repertoire is edited from source material by founder and violinist Adrian Chandler. Praise for Vivaldi recordings by La Serenissima on Signum Classics: "After being obsessed by the composer and his music world for more than 30 years, Chandler by now is Vivaldi incarnate" - The Times

Leading performers of 17th-century music the Magdalena Consort, Fretwork and His Majestys Sagbutts and Cornetts combine forces under the artistic direction of William Hunt for their third release exploring the English Anthems with instrumental consort for ceremony, reflection and prayer to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Orlando Gibbons. Praise for Chains of Gold Vol 1 5 stars "Subtle, seductively supple and sinuous singing and playing... Volume 2 from this dream-team will be eagerly awaited" - Choir and Organ 5 stars "This is the finest recording of this quintessentially English music that we are likely to have... a real treat, and an impressive master-class in how these texts should be declaimed" - Early Music Review

An album of world premiere recordings of works written to accompany poems by celebrated Irish novelist and poet James Joyce, Desmond Earley and the University Choral Scholars of University College, Dublin release their fourth album on Signum Classics. Following their EP "Ireland is My Home" which was Scala Radio's Album of the Week, this new album aims to encapsulate the influence of singing and music in Joyce's work. A tenor himself, it was Joyce's wish that his words be set to music, and through commissioning new works, the choir are proud of their unique connection to Joyce's Dublin story. "It is a pleasure and honour for us to be the first choral ensemble to wrap James Joyce's 'suite of songs' in an Irish choral voice" - Desmond Earley (Artistic Director)

Their second album for Signum Classics, Christopher Gabbitas and the Phoenix Chorale present 'Sun Moon Stars Rain' - a new album of vocal works all linking how these pivotal elements shape our cultures, beliefs, and understanding of the world. "This enduring fascination speaks to something fundamental in the human experience - a mix of awe at the natural world, a quest for understanding our place within it, and a recognition of our dependence on forces far greater than ourselves. This is nothing new: Shakespeare, Lord Byron, and Octavio Paz are amongst the literary greats who have brought this awe to bear in their poetry and prose and inspired composers Sir John Rutter, Toby Hession and Eric Whitacre in their contributions to this programme"' - Christopher Gabbitas Praise for Phoenix Chorale on Signum Classics ? "The Catalonian folk songs reveal the Chorale's enviable smoothness and sumptuosity of tone. Best of all is Cecilia McDowall's Trinity Triptych, a Phoenix commission performed with a winning mixture of enthusiasm and finesse." - BBC Music Magazine

The third and final instalment in their award-winning series, the Calidore Quartet return with a three-disc release of Beethoven Early Quartets. Their previous Beethoven recordings have been described as 'highly collectible' by BBC Music Magazine. The first album of Late Quartets won the Chamber Music Award at the BBC Music Magazine Awards 2024, and the second awarded Recording of the Month by Gramophone Magazine. The contents of this recording project serve as a snapshot of their fourteen years of working, growing, listening and collaborating together. "Our interpretation speaks to the influences of our teachers and the great traditions associated with this repertoire, but also to that of our own generation, contemporary research, style and experience. Though this music speaks in a language that is hundreds of years old, it's message remains immediate, relevant and comforting to listeners of today and of generations to come even, and especially, in the most challenging of times". Their interpretations of Beethoven are already critically acclaimed with performances at the Lincoln Centre planned as part of their residency.