In 1965, when I was 12 years old, my mother bought me a recording of the Vivaldi 'Cello Concerto in E Minor and the Pieces en Concert by Couperin. I was especially excited by this LP because I was learning the Vivaldi concerto at the time. The artist on this recording was the great French 'cellist, Pierre Fournier, accompanied by Karl Munchinger and the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra. I still have this record, and I treasure it. One year later, I heard Fournier in person for the first time. He performed the Dvorak 'Cello Concerto with Zubin Mehta conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic. It was an evening I'll never forget, and one that changed my life forever. I remember the sheer beauty of Fournier's sound, his profound respect for the music, and the depth of his musical expression. In 1973, I had the privilege of playing for him in Phoenix, Arizona, and was thrilled that he made it possible for me to study with him. I went to Geneva, Switzerland for master classes the following summer, and thus began a long and cherished relationship with this great artist. I worked on virtually all the standard repertoire with him, including the Martinu, Vivaldi, Couperin on this album. I dedicated my 2006 concert tour to Fournier in honor of his centennial. I chose works either written for him or closely associated with him. In addition to the recitals, we also performed the Martinu Concerto No. 1 with Paul Freeman and the Czech National Symphony Orchestra. As I traveled around Europe and the United States doing these programs, I met so many musicians who remembered Fournier with the greatest of admiration. Over and over I heard colleagues say, "If I had to choose just one 'cellist to listen to, it would be Fournier." There is no greater tribute. - John Walz Notes by Roger Lebow: Bohuslav Martinu deserves his rightful place in our standard concert repertoire. On the strength of his six masterful symphonies alone (all works of his full maturity, and all readily available in multiple recordings on CD) we should embrace him as one of the leading composers of the Twentieth Century. His style is a distinctive, original amalgam of Czech nationalism, French Post-Impressionism, and the emancipated rhythmic vitality of Stravinsky. This music sounds fresh today, and we can immediately identify it as Martinu. The two pieces for 'cello on this album serve an excellent introduction to the composer's music. Martinu wrote prolifically for the instrument: three sonatas, two large concerti, two additional concerti with chamber forces, several other concertante works, and a gaggle of smaller pieces, many of them infrequently performed on these shores. In the first incarnation Martinu's first 'cello concerto, the composer scored the work as a concerto grosso with accompaniment of seven winds, piano and strings. He began this early version in Czechoslovakia and completed it in Paris in 1930. Gaspar Cassad�, to whom Martinu dedicated the work, played the premiere in 1931. In August of 1939 Martinu rewrote the piece for full orchestra, entrusting the first performance to Pierre Fournier.

Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra 40th Anniversary

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

This album celebrates Clara Schumann, her music, and the intricate artistic circle of musicians who surrounded her. Clara Schumann’s superb musicianship and pianistic genius are demonstrated in the exquisite works recorded in this album. Her legacy lives on through these works, and through the strong influence she had on her musical family. “As the year 2016 marks the 120th and 160th anniversaries of the deaths of Clara and Robert Schumann, I was also delighted to include Obsidian Liturgy, composed for me and Clara Schumann by my dear friend and colleague, Max Grafe. The piece unfolds through a sequence of emotionally dramatic musical events: an 'Invocation' is followed by a ritualistic 'Canticle' that builds into a fervent and obsessive 'Incantation,' culminating in a cataclysmic explosion. After some seconds of silence, a vertiginous 'Trance' of left-hand ostinatos sound from the distance, followed by a climactic 'Peal' of strong, harsh bells. The 'Benedictus' finally creates a sense of resolution, despite its haunting overtones, and finally, a desolate 'Ite, missa est,' concludes the liturgy.” -- Mika Sasaki Mika Sasaki performed much of this music in live concert for invited guests in Samueli Theater. She left our audience thrilled, eager for more." "Pianist Mika Sasaki played well with forceful rolling chords in the final Romance, and continued admirable pianism with two sets of variations on a Robert Schumann theme…. Ms. Sasaki’s tempos were never rushed and she played with a subtle touch… -- Terry McNeill

Music director Robert Istad is one of the most exciting choral conductors in the next generation of American music. He recently inherited the venerable post of Music Director of the Pacific Chorale, led by the eminent John Alexander since 1972. Rob Istad planned this recording and the repertoire for their tour carefully. This is church music from the sacred traditions in Europe, Russia and the Americas. The University Singers gave this concert in four beautiful houses of worship in Vasterås, Tallinn, Helsinki and St. Petersburg. Rob wanted to take the best American choral tradition on tour, and take home music by composers from these areas. Rob talked about how important it was to “connect each student to the culture of the places they would visit through the repertoire,” while he also acknowledged that “European audiences expect American choirs to bring music from their own folk tradition.” Herbert Howells’ Requiem and Brahms’ Op. 29 motet served as the foundation stones of the program. Even though it is a mass for the dead, it celebrates life through its promise of the peace that comes through faith, contemplation and acceptance. This performance, anything but morbid, emphasizes the Requiem’s transcendence, its reassurance, and its foretelling of eternal light. Howells’ inclusion of Psalms 23 and 121 in the Requiem encouraged Rob to balance them with Brahms’ setting of Psalm 51 in the Op. 29 motet.

Music director Robert Istad writes: "Tarik O'Regan's music captured my attention when I heard a live performance of "The Ecstasies Above" in 2007. His music grabbed me with it's rhythmic audacity, harmonic daring and unique wit. Tarik became our composer in residence at Pacific Chorale shortly after I was appointed Artistic Director, and this recording shares some fruits of our collaboration, including that auspicious "Ecstasies Above", one brand new commission ("Facing West") and three world premiere recordings including "All Things Common." Our concert took place in Samueli Theater at Segerstrom Center for the Arts on May 18th, 2019. We reset the hall and held our recording sessions on the evening of May 20th and the afternoon of May 21st. As before when my Cal State Fullerton University Singers recorded with Yarlung, our producer Bob Attiyeh asked that Pacific Chorale and I prepare each piece (or each movement of the longest work) carefully enough so we could record it successfully in one take. We succeeded! The performance you hear is real. This is not surgically stitched together from many takes. Some of the tracks on this album are the only take we recorded, and others we performed multiple times until we had the flavor and execution that Tarik and Bob and I wanted. We worked hard to capture the sound Tarik had in his mind when writing these works, and to reflect accurately what I hear when conducting Pacific Chorale singers. Yarlung used one stereo microphone (an AKG C24 which used to belong to Frank Sinatra. With such minimalist recording techniques, there is nowhere to hide. But the results, when we succeed, are worth the extra effort. I hope you agree."

Roy, famous for his recordings on Indian drums for Miles Davis and Ornette Coleman, returns in this audiophile recording made in Walt Disney Concert Hall in LA. He joins his cousin, Gupta who plays the Nathan Milstein Stradivarius violin from 1716. Not only is Gupta superbly talented and the youngest member of the LA Philharmonic, but he is also a Senior TED fellow, executive director of Street Symphony (which brings music to homeless mentally ill people) Roy premiers Calcutta Sunrise for tabla solo on the opening track. Even before the album's release, Calcutta Sunrise won the Audio Oasis Award at the 2012 THE SHOW in Newport.

Producer Bob Attiyeh writes: This album helps honor and celebrate the upcoming 50th Anniversary of the extraordinary Takács Quartet.

Bryce Dessner’s Circles for String Quartet and Bandoneón opens our album on track 1. Luminous, track 2 on our album, explodes with Clarice’s interpretation of the life-affirming power of Brazilian jazz.  The percussive piano introduction launches the listener into the joyous syncopated rhythms and arching melodic lines associated with the genre. Clarice, performing both voice and piano in this version, wrote Luminous as part of her Pendulum Suite. Julien’s Meditation No. 1, track 3 on our album, continues the trajectory initiated by Astor Piazzolla and Dino Saluzzi when they launched the bandoneón beyond its earlier role in Argentine folk music.

Cravo e Canela (Clove and Cinnamon) follows on track 4. This is a song by Milton Nascimento, one of Brazil’s most celebrated songwriters. Clarice’s arrangement and performance breathes fresh energy into the song through her improvisation and innovative vocal techniques. This was a treat to record, as I think you will understand when you listen. J and Helen Schlichting kindly enabled Yarlung to commission Constellation, a three movement work for violin and piano, performed together in this recording on track 5.  Clarice wrote for Harumi on violin and for herself on piano. The work celebrates Clarice’s nuclear family of four.

Harumi has always loved the music of Kaija Saariaho and suggested recording her Nocturne for solo violin as a part of this project. Saariaho wrote Nocturne in 1994 in preparation for her violin concerto Graal théâtre. She dedicated Nocturne to Witold Lutoslawski. I knew that Saariaho was struggling with terminal brain cancer and she died on June 2nd, 2023. I loved her and miss her and dedicate this album to Kaija Saariaho, her husband Jean-Baptiste Barrière, and their wonderful family.

Clarice’s Clash, our final track on the album, is the hardest to describe. Clarice has been increasingly interested in tensions within the social fabric of our society, especially as exacerbated by incendiary politicians, climate change, mass migration and refugee issues. Clash is not program music and does not tell a specific story or illuminate a specific argument. But it does embody some of these same social struggles as expressed by the string quartet and bandoneón...its beauty emerges as the stronger and unifying force, giving us hope for the future.  As with all the music in this album, this too was recorded in one take.

Paul Livingstone and Peter Jacobson offer soulful musical meditations on beauty and tranquility; helping the listener or yoga practitioner balance his or her inner world. Pete and Paul take inspiration from the Hindustani musical tradition and from Paul’s teacher and mentor Ravi Shankar who collaborated so eloquently with Yehudi Menuhin on violin and helped to popularize Hindustani music in the West. Pete and Paul also draw inspiration from American jazz improvisation. You may have heard Paul before on his several classical Hindustani or “ragajazz” crossover recordings, and Yarlung’s Sangam release in 2022.

Pete is a cello rock star, whom you may know from his tours and recordings with Rhye, Dr. Dre, Kamasi Washington and the West Coast Get Down, The Talking Strings, Quartetto Fantastico and Aux Cerna. You may also know him from film and television, including in The Walking Dead, Motherland and The Twighlight Zone. Paul and Pete have performed on GRAMMY-winning records by Ricky Kej, Ozomatli and Quetzal. Taos evokes magic, mystery, art, multiculturalism and majesty.

Home to the Tiwa-speaking Red Willow people of Taos Pueblo for more than a thousand years, Taos is also home to Spanish settlers from 1600, who founded the Spanish village of Taos in 1795. Taos offers breathtaking scenery, refreshing air and light and the magnificent smells of adobe earth, pinion and sagebrush. The area inspired some of the 20th Century’s most creative artists, including Georgia O’Keeffe, Ansel Adams and D.H. Lawrence. The native Red Willow people, the Tiwa Indians in Taos, practice a hybrid religion today, incorporating the conflicting tenants of their native religion with Roman Catholicism superimposed by the Spanish padres over hundreds of years. If one asks a devout Tiwa friend about the conflicts, he or she may shrug and may comment that one can follow both truths.

This ability for people in Taos to incorporate disparate theologies and world views will help us understand the multiple spiritual inspirations for the music on this recording. –Bob Attiyeh, producer

Joining TIPA musicians on this album are monks of Nechung Monastery, singing special pujas (prayers) unique to this specific monastery. The album opens with a blessing of the environment recorded in the Nechung monastery, and a Losar prayer for the New Year. Tibetan wind instruments, human skull rattes and Tibetan long horns accompany them in vigor. (Yarlung)

Nathan Ben-Yehuda pursues a fulltime solo concert career as a classical pianist but also plays with Astral Mixtape, an innovative crossover quartet writing new works and reimagining classics from Monteverdi to Rimsky-Korsakov, and playing with ideas and thematic material from Sigur Ros to Radiohead and Four Tet. We end this album with two tracks by Astral Mixtape. Track 6 offers Goddess Gardens, including intoxicating “mixtape” snippets from Scheherazade and Vaughan Williams’ Lark Ascending, as well as more recent fare. Seven Hellos closes the album on track 7, an original composition by the four members of the quartet. Astral Mixtape is clearly close to Nathan’s heart: “I am part of this wonderful band of fellow classical musicians who are seeking to reimagine the conventional roles of our instruments, and applying non-classical approaches to arrangement and composition in our works. Astral Mixtape is the collaborative project most personal to me.” Before we get to Astral Mixtape, however, Nathan’s solo piano repertoire makes a powerful statement. Not only can Nathan handle the thorny Knussen Variations, but he plays Haydn beautifully, and he recorded my favorite performances to date of both Ravel’s Gaspard de la nuit and Villa-Lobos’ Rudepoêma. Nathan kindly agreed to play Gaspard for this project, but also Peter Sculthorpe’s Nocturnal. –Bob Attiyeh, producer

Crossover and Global music fans may know Aditya from his jazz-infused Karnatik blend on his Aditya Prakash Ensemble releases such as Diaspora Kid or from his concerts on National Public Radio, tours in Europe, the Near East and Asia as the vocalist with choreographer Akram Khan and musicians Ravi Shankar, Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and Tigran Hamasyan. But as adventurous and “crossover” as Aditya’s successes may be, they have always been firmly anchored in the classical Karnatik musical tradition of South India. We initially planned to record in Chennai, India, the ancient and modern hub of Karnatik music. To our chagrin, we learned that most of the concert halls in India are designed for amplification, such that the natural acoustics Yarlung prizes would be difficult to achieve. Aditya had only worked in a “modern multi-mic” recording environment before, and for this album Aditya wanted the real Yarlung sound. Thankfully, were able to make this recording using the beautiful natural acoustics in Samueli Theater at Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa. These ragas express Aditya’s roots as learned at the feet of his many illustrious gurus. These are not the roots of the Karnatik tradition in general.

To Global Music lovers familiar with today’s greatest artists, our recording may sound ancient and archaic, traditionalist to a fault. But to an arch traditionalist, Aditya’s recording may sound modern and experimental, with Karnatik “flavor.” And as Aditya’s teacher Mr. Krishna elaborates, the static lineage of Karnatik music over thousands of years turns out to be a myth. Aditya explains “The Karnatik concert as practiced today is a very structured entity, in which lyrically dense compositions are the main focus, while improvisation occurs in the spaces between the compositions and in subtle ways during the composition itself. Although this practice is today considered a ‘traditional’ Karnatik concert, it is relatively new in the larger history of Karnatik music. So let us explore this tradition together and pay attention to the ways in which our hearts respond more than worrying about this too much in our heads.” Aditya and musicians perform seven ragas for you on this album. A raga is a melody (a collection of pitches), sometimes ancient, which often comes with a traditionally associated mood or temperament, and sometimes with a time of day for optimum performance. We used an AKG C24 microphone previously owned by Frank Sinatra, and Yarlung vacuum tube microphone amplification.(Bob Attiyeh, producer)

Symmetria Pario: Creation explores the “beginnings of things,” the origin of the universe as expressed in music, and various creation stories from different cultures around the world. BUT when listening to this album one does not need to know anything about science or even the inspiration behind these works to enjoy the music. Clarice’s work proves this instantly upon hearing.

Clarice Assad investigates quantum theory and what we surmise happened in the first billionths of a second after the universe came into being, Yuko Mabuchi explores a Yoruba creation story from West Africa and incorporates Native American creation traditions. Mehmet Sanlikol’s piece takes inspiration from the mystical Islamic Sufi tradition describing the creation of the universe in seven days. Hannah Kendall channels the Book of Psalms. Ricky Kej explores pre-Hindu Vedic narratives from Ancient India, and Adam Gilbert pokes fun at Renaissance ideas about the order of the universe.

Composers Cecilia Damstrom, Harrison Birtwistle and Missy Mazzoli join this album celebrating music for violin and piano. Just as we pondered our origins 50 or 100,000 years ago, we want to know how it all began, whether through a magnanimous creative act of divine power or by spontaneous eruption from a single point into an ever-expanding universe bursting outward at many times the speed of light.

Pekka Kuusisto performs not only as a violin soloist with the major orchestras on the planet, but conducts regularly with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Philharmonia Orchestra and Helsinki Philharmonic, where he is Principal Guest Conductor, as well as Mahler Chamber Orchestra and many elite ensembles around the world. Pekka plays the 1709 “Scotta” Stradivarius. Joonas Ahonen specializes in contemporary music from his home-base in Vienna, but also records Beethoven and Mendelssohn on fortepiano.