Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Delos International brings to the classical consumer and organ enthusiast alike its debut release from Cherry Rhodes, one of America's greatest organists. Cherry Rhodes in Concert was recorded live at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, Los Angeles, on the feast day of St. Cecilia "Patron Saint of Music" and offers a unique opportunity to hear and enjoy this special recital. Cherry Rhodes is the first American to win the Munich organ competition and has played recitals at Notre Dame, Bologna, Nurnberg and Vienna. She made her debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra at age seventeen and subsequently performed with them many times under the baton of Eugene Ormandy. Ms. Rhodes performed for the opening of the Kennedy Center and is currently Adjunct Professor of Organ at the University of Southern California's Thornton School of Music. The Royal College of Organists selected her International Performer of the Year. Most recently, during October 2005, Cherry Rhodes was one of the featured soloists at the Virgil Fox Legacy 25th Anniversary Memorial Events in New York City, a three-day festival commemorating his achievements, and later gave a stellar recital at the Festival International d'Orgue Bridel in Luxembourg. This varied and unusual repertoire highlights Ms. Rhodes' power as a performer and her breathtaking talent as an interpreter of both historic and contemporary compositions. This release is perfect for any season. It combines the sacred with the current, and debuts the Larry King composition dedicated to Ms. Rhodes.

Classical Music

Classical Music

The young Polish pianist Martin Labazevich has teamed up with his compatriot, the emerging conductor Ewa Strusińska to record their debut Delos disc: a highly appealing all-Polish program of beloved musical gems for piano and orchestra as well as engaging orchestral selections. Add the young virtuosos of the Beethoven Academy Orchestra to complete a supremely gifted and accomplished musical team. “… a pianist with great audience appeal and virtuosity…” (Horacio Gutierrez) “Ewa Strusinska left an indelible impression … with her dynamic and incisive direction.” (The Northern Echo)

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Master clarinetist David Shifrin partners with the Dover and Harlem String Quartets in an album that blazes with excitement. The three new quintets showcase the clarinet’s many moods and tones and explore the expressive capabilities of the string quartet as well. First on the album is Ducal Suite, featuring arrangements of compositions by Duke Ellington, one of the twentieth-century’s greatest and most influential composers. David Schiff’s arrangements make the most of Shifrin’s virtuosity and deep feeling for this music. Chris Rogerson’s Thirty Thousand Days explores three stages of life, divided into increments of ten thousand days (approximately twenty-seven years). The music constantly changes and evolves throughout the three movements of the piece.Valerie Coleman’s Shotgun Houses is a tribute to Muhammed Ali. The first movement is a portrait of the West Louisville, Kentucky neighborhood where both she and Ali grew up. The middle movement is a love ballad, and the final movement depicts the boxing match in which Ali won an Olympic gold medal in Rome in 1960.

A delightful array of lively and upbeat classics that are sure to wake you up and get you going.?Selections have been chosen exclusively from Delos' extensive and wide-ranging catalog with top-notch performances from the label's stellar array of distinguished artists and ensembles - all in Delos' hallmark audiophile sound.

The multicultural melting pot of Malta is home to the Malta International Music Festival, a major cultural event hosted annually by this Mediterranean island nation. One of the Festival’s most memorable concerts- the one recorded here- took place in 2017: a Trio Gala program for which the well-known Khachaturian Trio as well as five other brilliant musicians- formed into trios (and one duo)- performed a dazzling array of varied and highly appealing music. The program includes both well-known and novel music by Maltese composers Joseph Vella and Alexey Shore; also Uzbekistan native Ilya Dimov. Highlights include a brilliant rendition of Khachaturian’s world-famous Sabre ance in a version for piano trio, the sublime Andante from Arno Babadjanian’s Piano Trio, and a breathtaking performance of the much-loved Handel-Halvorsen Passacaglia for violin and cello. In addition to the Khachaturian Trio, the distinguished performers include a number of well-known artists, predominatnly from Armenia and Russia.

A winning assortment of time-tested and drug-free musical remedies for a wide variety of common ailments... ranging from mental and physical lethargy through a bad case of the blues to that up-tight, jittery feeling (among many other maladies). It's good for what ails you! This box set includes Laugh with Classical Music (DE1627), Classical Caffeine (DE1628) and Classical Chamomile (DE1629).

Classical Music

Classical Music

The Poulenc Trio is an impressive chamber ensemble made up of respected oboe, bassoon, and piano virtuosi. This release is the ensemble’s debut album for Delos. For the programme, the ensemble presents a fascinating mixture of old and new from Beethoven, Octavio Vasquez, and the centerpiece of the album, Alfred Schnittke. “From the first notes, we knew that this was a group of first-rate chamber musicians, who took as much delight in the joys of intimate playing as they gave.” (Ken Keaton, Palm Beach Daily News)

Classical Music

In the lead-up to the World Athletics Championships held in Eugene, Oregon in 2022, the Eugene Symphony commissioned David Schiff to compose a unique musical tribute to legendary local runner Steve Prefontaine, one of the most important figures in American running. Inspired by his legacy, the symphony Prefontaine celebrates his life, athleticism, and activism, incorporating the landscapes and memories of his hometown. From the drive to Coos Bay to his legendary high school years and iconic races, the work blends orchestral storytelling with themes of ambition and resilience. Closing the program, Andrea Reinkemeyer's Water Sings Fire, a dynamic orchestral piece inspired by Leigh Bardugo's feminist origin myth, explores themes of power, betrayal, and transformation, honoring the voices of the wronged and marginalized. Both works reflect the profound cultural impact of their subjects, blending music with the rich history and challenges they represent.

‘… a score truly inspired by a tragic event (9/11) and one that is likely to transcend it.’ – Peter G. Davis, New York Magazine Thus did a leading critic sum up the remarkable Concerto for Clarinet (chamber orchestra version) by Ellen Taafe Zwilich, one of America’s cutting-edge contemporary composers. And this is but one of this release’s four vibrant modern chamber works for clarinet and various chamber ensembles by major composers: music that greatly enriches the modern chamber repertoire. Filling out the fascinating program are Aaron Copland’s brisk and brainy Sextet for Clarinet, Piano and String Quartet, Stephen Hartke’s delightfully wacky The Horse with the Lavender Eye, and Aaron Jay Kernis’ richly evocative Trio in Red. The performers – all among the finest soloists and chamber artists anywhere – are drawn from the ranks of Chamber Music Northwest and its legendary director, renowned clarinet virtuoso David Shifrin.

Classical Music

A force to be reckoned with (The New York Times), violinist Miclen Laipang makes his solo recording debut on Delos with a very personal recital. Featuring music that has accompanied him over time, "Deep River" traces a path through styles and places that have been meaningful throughout his life. Like a flowing river, this program moves from it's source through different landscapes, crosses borders, and opens onto new encounters as it continues forward. It mirrors a life shaped by movement between countries, cultures, and musical worlds. Works such as Deep River and Nobody knows de trouble I've seen bring echoes of home, representing Miclen's childhood and the United States, while Widmung, Liebesleid and Der Rosenkavalier Waltzes are associated with his time in Germany and Austria, and Ravel's Violin Sonata No. 2 with his current home in France. Partnered by pianist Nigel Yandell, Miclen performs on the Antonio Stradivari "Charles Castleman, ex-Marquis de Champeaux," generously loaned by the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel.

Classical Music

Diamond, D.: Concert Piece / Tournier, M.: 2 Preludes Romant

Recording information: Mosfilm Studio, Moscow, Russia.

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Delos partners with Opera Lafayette and OperaCréole to present this world premiere recording of the earliest complete opera by a Black American. This recording is not a revival - it is a revelation. More than a century after it's completion, Edmond Dédé's Morgiane is finally being heard, thanks to the tireless work of Givonna Joseph, founder of OperaCréole, conductor Patrick Dupre Quigley, and many others. Born in New Orleans, Dédé fled an apartheid-like existence for free people of color in the southern United States to build his career in France, a move that turned to exert a great influence on his composing style. In that respect, Morgiane is not only beautiful, but it also bridges worlds: American and French, Black and white, powerful and marginalized. It is the work of a composer who labored with conviction and brilliance, even as he feared no one might ever hear his music.

Virtuosi Ilya Gringolts, violin, and Dmitry Kouzov, cello, perform three great duos- two from the 20th century and one from the 21st. The graceful, expressive and witty Duo for Violin and Cello by Hanns Eisler, written when the composer was 26 years old, is a multifaceted work showcasing the composer’s brilliant intellect. Best-known for his long artistic association with playwright Bertolt Brecht, Eisler always took care to make a deep connection with his audience. In Jorg Widmannn’s 24 Duos for Violin and Cello, from 2008, the two instruments approach the sound of a string quartet at times. “They attract each other, reject each other, love and hate each other,” the composer writes. These performances are the world premiere recording of the entire set of both volumes of Widmann’s 24 Duos. The album concludes with Maurice Ravel’s great Sonata for Violin and Cello. Dedicated to the memory of Claude Debussy, the sonata is always a favorite with audiences. Gringolts and Kouzov form a superb duo. Both are highly sought-after soloists and consummate chamber musicians. They perform with precision and excitement, undaunted by challenging music.

-----

REVIEWS:

These gripping and beautifully played duos demand committed listening.

– The Strad

Gringolts and Kouzov are impressive, leaving their mark on all three works; warm, resonant, perfectly balanced, natural set-it-and-forget-it sound leaves one free to concentrate on the music.

– American Record Guide