Verdi: Aida - Riccardo Muti - Composer: Giuseppe Verdi Other participants: Pl�cido Domingo * Montserrat Caball� * Fiorenza Cossotto * Piero Cappuccilli * Nicolai Ghiaurov * Chorus of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden * New Philharmonia Orchestra * Riccardo Muti

Two life-affirming works from Leoš Janáček's prodigious final years are performed by the Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg under Marko Letonja, it's Music Director from 2012 to 2021: the Glagolitic Mass, both monumental and exuberant, and the colourful, multi-faceted Sinfonietta. The vocal soloists are Malin Byström, Jennifer Johnston, Ladislav Elgr, and Adam Plachetka, who are joined by organist Johann Vexo and the Czech Philharmonic Choir of Brno - the city where Janáček made his home and which he evokes in the Sinfonietta. This recording uses a 2011 critical edition of the Glagolitic Mass which captures the true adventure and passion of Janáček's score.

Described as one of the world's most imaginative contemporary orchestral composers (5-star-BBC Music Magazine Review), Jacob M�hlrad comes back with a new album for a chamber ensemble. Burn All My Letters is the original soundtrack for awarded director Bj�rn Runge's new film.

Michel B�roff produced an impressive series of recordings over a period of more than 25 years for EMI. A quarter of a century full of musical highlights, ambitious projects, exciting artistic collaborations. This box is just as packed with music as it is with the life story of an exceptional talent. For connoisseurs, it represents the reopening of a treasure trove richly filled with reference recordings; for less experienced listeners, it offers a fantastic opportunity for discovery tours. And although much of it is already more than four decades old, this discography has remained as young and "timeless" as Michel B�roff himself. The box is enriched by two never-before-released recordings: a master tape from 1978 uniquely documents the outstanding and astonishingly mature Beethoven playing of the young Michel B�roff; together with Bach's Overture in the French style (from 1969), it adds another color to the dazzling mosaic, another zoom on a still radiant career that was marked by great artistic successes not only in the concert hall but also in the recording studio. Born in 1950, the French pianist Michel B�roff gave his first recital in Paris in 1967 and won the same year the First Prize of the first edition of the Concours international Olivier-Messiaen, whose jury was chaired by Olivier Messiaen himself. He had a dazzling international career since that alongside the greatest conductors: Seiji Ozawa, Claudio Abbado, Kurt Masur, Daniel Barenboim, Andr� Previn, Leonard Bernstein, Pierre Boulez, Charles Dutoit among others. B�roff's extensive discography includes the complete works for piano and orchestra by Liszt, Prokofiev and Stravinsky, as well as a big part of solo piano works by Debussy, Messiaen (of which he is a renowned interpreter), Bart�k, Schumann or Mussorgsky. His duets with the violinist Augustin Dumay and with the pianist Jean-Philippe Collard were acclaimed with incredible recordings made together and available in this box. The Messiaen, Debussy, Prokofiev and Mussorgsky are true highlights of this edition. The boxset includes worth of 3CDs of premiere on CD, and as a bonus (CD 42) two previously unpublished recordings (Bach & Beethoven).

Beatrice Rana combines Clara Wieck-Schumann and Robert Schumann's piano concertos with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe under conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin In an interview with the New York Times, Rana, who called the piano concerto by Clara Wieck "a genius work in many ways," said: "I think that it's very, very underestimated - the intellectual value of this concerto in the history of music. It's fascinating to see that she conceived of this music free from any limitations; that as a teenager she composed an uninterrupted concerto with no breaks between the movements. We think of Liszt's First Piano Concerto as revolutionary in that regard, but Clara wrote hers so much earlier, unbroken and with connecting themes linking the movements."

Elisabeth Leonskaja states, "When I play, I am not presenting myself on the stage, but the music I am playing. It is the music that matters." For her second Warner Classics album, she performs Beethoven's Piano Concertos 3 & 4 recorded with the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse under conductor Tugan Sokhiev. One of the most celebrated pianists of our time, she remains true to herself and to her music, and in doing so following in the footsteps of great Russian musicians such as Sviatoslav Richter and Emil Gilels. French magazine Diapason has written: "Elisabeth Leonskaja's journey leads from one peak to another. By constantly excelling herself, driven by her own personal demands, by her passion and her intelligence, she has earned a place among the greatest, not just of today, but of the past." Winner of Germany's prestigious Opus Klassik Award in 2020, she is admired as an interpreter who respects the truth of the music.

THRIVE was composed over the last couple of years, during a period of uncertainty and fear. I have always been convinced that it is in times of adversity that we remember what is essential to us. THRIVE is the inner strength that pushes us to fight in moments of doubt or sorrow. The impulse deep inside us that incites us to search for the best, to look up, to fight to overcome difficulties and reach a kind of fulfilment. This album is for those who feel, consciously or unconsciously, the need to build something else, to seek out new horizons. For those who wish to turn their backs on the things that oppress us and aggress us, on meaningless demands. This is a personal battle at a time when collective awareness is settling in: the planet is spiralling; a vortex. We must change; we can evolve. Many of us want this, and music can be a catalyst. The piano has always helped me find this momentum, and composing for strings has opened up new horizons for me. By taking inspiration from a theme, a melody, or a few notes by the greatest classical composers, I also wanted to show that there is always a personal path. I hope that this album will accompany you or inspire you to find your own way of life, there is always hope. Within us, we all have this ability; this power to transform a difficulty into an opportunity. The greater the challenge, the greater the reward. THRIVE!

2021 release. A collection of 11 titles unveiled one by one every month, each a jewel of pure emotion, will allow Riopy to enter into an uninterrupted conversation with the fans of his music. His inspiration has been guided by his will to pay tribute to the anonymous but true heroes of "normal life". Although he has rejected tricks of over-produced music, preferring the sheer power and shine of an amazing Fazioli piano, he manages to create incredibly cinematic music, built chapter by chapter, character by character, growing into a piano tale - a piano tale that, for the listener, will become an unforgettable experience of Bliss.

23-year-old French pianist Kim Bernard is the first laureate of the Fondation Gautier Capu�on. Kim Bernard studied piano from the age of 5, won first prize at the 2012 Montrond-les-Bains International Competition and at the National Pianistic Nights Competition. His first album is dedicated to Chopin, Ravel and Debussy.

The partnership of the young and dynamic Daniel Barenboim with Otto Klemperer, a veteran not known for his readiness to compromise, proved a revelation. As Barenboim says, Klemperer - considered the greatest Beethoven conductor of his time - "approached the essence of what he wanted directly and without hesitation". The fruit of their collaboration in 1967 was this vivid and inspiring set of the Beethoven Piano Concertos.

Unquestionably one of the greatest pianists of all time is how Gramophone magazine has described Martha Argerich. Her relationship with the label goes back to 1965 and her victory at the International Chopin Competition in Warsaw. Over several decades it has produced a rich catalogue of live and studio recordings, embracing a repertoire that spans three centuries, a diversity of genres, and collaborations with such figures as Charles Dutoit, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Gidon Kremer, Mischa Maisky and Itzhak Perlman. The complete recordings for EMI Classics, Teldec, Erato and Warner Classics are featured in this box. Martha Argerich is a pianist of transcendent gifts and her special joy in musical collaboration is the key to the second part of this collection: the complete live recordings made at Switzerland's Lugano Festival between 2002 and 2016 and released by EMI Classics and Warner Classics. Argerich is heard in solo works and concertos, but above all in intimate partnership with fellow instrumentalists, performers she sees as her musical "family". This new boxset puts together in 46CDs all the recordings made by Martha Argerich for EMI Classics, Teldec, Erato and Warner Classics, from 1965 to 2020.

Dong Hyek Lim has long wanted to devote an entire album to Schubert. Now he has recorded two of the three epic piano sonatas that Schubert produced in the final year of his short but prolific life: No 20 in A D959 and No 21 in B flat D960. "These sonatas are both deep, dark, late Schubert," says Lim, "but they make a good pairing because they are highly contrasted... In D959 Schubert is more determined and clear about what he wants to do. D960 is more Romantic and fragile. I wouldn't say that Schubert knew he was going to die that year, but I can still feel the depth of these sonatas. Schubert occupies a place between late Beethoven and Romanticism. I feel I must play his music in a Classical way, but I must also let it sing."

Shani Diluka's new solo-piano album brings a different perspective to 20th-century American classical music. With a few "jazz breaths" by those who worshipped classical music, the album references the great American themes of the first pioneers. It features short pieces by Philip Glass (from Etudes), Keith Jarrett ("Be My Love"), John Cage ("Dream"), Daft Punk ("Veridis Quo"), Terry Riley (The Philosopher's Hand), Bill Evans ("Danny Boy"), and many more.

I love Schubert," writes pianist Eric Lu. "It is difficult to describe how meaningful his music is to me. He was the ultimate artist, in the purest sense of the word. Late in his life, with death staring him down and all his hopes and dreams dashed... he continued to churn out one masterpiece after another. I have come to the conclusion that he is the composer who moves me most intensely." Lu's album of Schubert pairs two of his greatest sonatas - D 784 in A minor, written in 1823, and D 959 in A major, written in 1828, the last year of the composer's short life; complementing them is the Allegretto in C minor D 915, dating from 1827. When Eric Lu won the 2018 Leeds International Piano Competition, the Guardian welcomed him as "one of the most exciting prospects in a long time... a veritable poet of the keyboard." These words were borne out by the critics' response to his first Warner Classics album, a programme of Chopin, Schumann and Brahms. International Piano magazine found it "truly magical", while Fanfare welcomed "a gifted musician... who can probe the depths of the piano literature with poetic sensibilities and imagination.

Expanding their notable Rossini discography, Sir Antonio Pappano and the Chorus and Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia perform the composer's Messa di Gloria of 1820. They are joined by five virtuosic vocal soloists: three Italians - soprano Eleonora Buratto, mezzo-soprano Teresa Iervolino and bass Carlo Lepore - and two Americans, Lawrence Brownlee and Michael Spyres, who celebrated Rossini and the star tenors of his era with their thrilling recital album Amici e Rivali, released in 2020. "The Messa di Gloria is a mass of light," says Pappano. "Rossini always connected vividly to his audience in his inimitable way. The soloists need to sing with great spiritual fervour and also powerful confidence as they convey the fearlessness of the composer's relationship to God. The work is a celebration, praising God's glory.... Rossini is just open eyes, open face, and open arms to God."

Maria Callas is credited with changing the history of opera. Known as La Divina, she continues to fascinate as a supreme artist, but also as a woman and an icon of style. Her interpretations were as compelling for their dramatic truth as for their musical integrity. Her voice, with it's extraordinary range, was as distinctive as her infallible sense for a phrase. A magnetic presence, she brought operatic heroines to vivid life, magically shaping and colouring her tone, and making insightful use of the text of the libretto.

For her fourth Warner Classics album, trumpeter Lucienne Renaudin Vary has chosen four favorite concertos. Composed by Haydn, Hummel, Neruda and Arutunian, they span three centuries. Joining them on the programme are a so-called 'concerto' by big-band maestro Harry James - which lasts all of three jazzy minutes - and, inspired by Haydn's Concerto in E flat, a brief solo improvisation by Lucienne herself. "The concertos I've chosen are part of me," she says. "They've always been with me and today I perform them regularly in concert... Getting to record this album with the fantastic Lucerne Symphony Orchestra and Michael Sanderling is a dream come true."

Springsong introduces 10 original compositions: 7 piano solo, 3 with a string trio. Maxence's pieces are often short (2-4 minutes) and evoke images ("Ballerine", "Candle"), moments of calm ("Horizon", "Silence"), nature, and the elements, which also play an important role in the program ("Springsong", "Daffodils", "Orage", "Le Bleu du Ciel"). This new album is mastered by sound engineer Chab (Antoine Chabert), who won three Grammys for his work on Daft Punk's Random Access Memories album. Maxence's top track on Spotify, "Where Is My Mind", has more than 80M streams and it's used by Narciso Rodriguez TV spot; he has 991,898 monthly listeners and 79,968 followers. His releases on Warner Classics have reached a total of 96M streams worldwide, the top tracks being "Larmes glac�es" (2020) at 27M and "Rivages" (2022) at 22M (source: OPUS).The total streams of the first singles for this new project so far amounts to 1.9M streams (source: OPUS).

Known for their incredible musicianship and rich arrangements, this hugely talented group have taken some of the greatest love songs of all time and given them the Annie Moses Band treatment. Filmed live at the iconic Grand Ole Opry, and backed by a full symphony orchestra, they present classic love songs, famous the world over, in their inimitable style, including The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, Let's Stay Together, And I Love Her and Evergreen.

Rising is the title of Lawrence Brownlee's inspiring project for which he has commissioned six of today's leading African-American composers to set poetry from the Harlem Renaissance to song. Rising showcases new works from African-American composers Damien Sneed, Brandon Spencer, Jasmine Barnes, Joel Thompson, and Shawn E. Okpebholo.

Inspired by poetry of the great African-American writers of the Harlem Renaissance - such as Alice Dunbar Nelson, Claude McKay, Langston Hughes, and James Weldon Johnson - the compositions revolve around themes of joy, empowerment, faith, love, and strength in the face of challenge. Brownlee also collaborated closely with Dr. Louise Toppin, soprano and vocal professor at the University of Michigan, to revive select works by famed composers Margaret Bonds and Robert Owen, in addition to works by composer Jeremiah Evans. He is accompanied by the American pianist Kevin J. Miller.

Lawrence Brownlee: "These past years have been a trial, both for humanity as a whole, and the African-American population here in the United States. But through all these many challenges we have faced, I have also seen moments of strength, inspiration, hope, and great beauty. It is those themes of uplift, elevation, and rebirth that we have tried to focus on with this new project Rising, taking poems from the giants of the Harlem Renaissance, and working with some of today's most talented African-American composers, to create something that speaks not just to our struggles, but to our triumphs."

This box set comprises all the operas and sacred works Otto Klemperer conducted for EMI Columbia and HMV. Oratorios by Bach, Beethoven, Brahms and Handel are accompanied by operas of Beethoven, Mozart and Wagner. There are also rehearsals and listening playback sessions for the recording of Mozart's Don Giovanni and a Bonus CD with recollections from artists who sang in Klemperer's opera performances. Otto Klemperer deeply loved both the theatricality of opera and the spirituality of oratorios, and these performances from his great Indian Summer represent the fruits of his lifetime of thought and experience in this repertoire.

.In a world where climate change is at the heart of our attention, these eight delightfully unhinged seasons are scattered across a wildly singular time. They cast an artistic blur on our perception of what has always seemed taken for granted, unshakeable: the seasons with their established climates, our perception of time and space, Vivaldi's Four Seasons..."

In recent years the Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg has made an impact with it's recordings for Warner Classics and Erato: of major works by Berlioz and Jan�cek, and of a wealth of shorter showpieces captured in Dolby Atmos immersive sound for digital playlists. Now the Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg performs two of Tchaikovsky's best-loved masterpieces, the Fate-driven Symphony No 5 and the surgingly passionate tone poem Romeo and Juliet. The conductor is Aziz Shokhakimov, Music Director of the Alsatian orchestra, noted for his dynamism and his ability to shed new light on even familiar scores. A native of Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and winner in 2016 of the prestigious Salzburg Festival Young Conductors Award, he assumed his role in Strasbourg 2021 - at the age of just 32. The extension of his contract to 2026 was announced in late 2022. "My constant concern is for this orchestra to have a distinctive, readily identifiable sound," says Shokhamimov, "and for this sound to be of the highest quality. Thanks to all it's splendid musicians, that is achievable. The work we do together is very productive, and I always sense a powerful chemistry with this orchestra, which I first encountered in 2014. I fell in love with it immediately."

Today one of the most highly respected string quartets, the Belcea were established in 1994 at the Royal College of Music in London and studied with the Chilingirian, the Amadeus, and later the Alban Berg quartets. Today one of the most highly respected string quartets, the Belcea were established in 1994 at the Royal College of Music in London and studied with the Chilingirian, the Amadeus, and later the Alban Berg quartets. They recorded for EMI Classics across nearly a decade, between 2000 and 2009, bringing about tremendous versions of quartets by Schubert, Britten, Bartók, and Mozart, to name a few.

"The Belcea Quartet throw every fibre of their beings into the most vivid projection of the masterpieces they undertake." - The Independent "These recordings form a crucial part of our life as a quartet and we hope that over the ensuing years they haven't lost their freshness and sense of adventure." - Krzysztof Chorzelski, violist of the Belcea Quartet

Flautist Emmanuel Pahud and pianist Eric Le Sage play arrangements of short pieces and songs by four German composers of the mid-19th century: Robert Schumann and his wife Clara (born Clara Wieck), and Felix Mendelssohn and his sister Fanny.

Major composers of the earlier Romantic period somewhat neglected the flute as a solo instrument, even though there were a number of virtuoso players and the flute was popular with amateurs. The fact is that the instrument presented technical difficulties in terms of consistency of timbre and intonation; these were not satisfactorily resolved until 1847, when Theobald Boehm, a German manufacturer of wind instruments, produced the revolutionary prototype of the modern flute. The album comprises: Robert Schumann's three Romances op 94 - originally written for oboe and transcribed for flute in the 1950s by Jean-Pierre Rampal - and his three Fantasiestücke op 73, originally conceived for clarinet; Clara Schumann's three Romances op 22, which she dedicated to the great violinist Joseph Joachim; arrangements of six lieder by Fanny Mendelssohn, and the sonata in F that Felix Mendelssohn composed as a violin work in 1838.