i CHOPIN, F.: Scherzos Nos. 1-4 / Impromptus Nos. 1-3 / Fantasy-Impromptu / Allegro de concert (Mao Fujita) (8.574052) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Chopin turned the Scherzo into a new form of piano composition: an independent virtuoso work which he laced with drama, Polish folk song, tranquillity and nuance. With their rhythmic lilt and filigree ornamentation the Impromptus are infused with Romantic freedom, while the Allegro de concert, Op. 46 was originally conceived as a movement for a projected piano concerto but was instead revised for solo piano. Full Article
i CHINA / SYRIA Gao Hong / Issam Rafea: From Our World to Yours (EUCD2899) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i Cello, Soprano and Piano Recital: Ruh, Janina / Kusnezow, Boris - POULENC, F. / DEBUSSY, C. / FRANCK, C. (Dialogues) (SWR19030CD) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i CATHER, W.: My Ántonia (Unabridged) (NA0457) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 29 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Orphaned at the age of 10, Jim Burden moves to Nebraska to live with his grandparents. There he meets Ántonia Shimerda, the daughter of an immigrant family from Bohemia, who have come to carve out a life for themselves in the harsh and bountiful Nebraskan landscape. At the urging of her father, Jim teaches Ántonia English and together they share adventures that will bind them throughout their lives, despite the vicissitudes of time and fate, and years of separation. The final book in Willa Cather’s Great Plains trilogy, My Ántonia is a lyrical tribute to the bygone pioneer life and the struggles and successes of America’s early settlers. Full Article
i BRUCKNER, A.: Symphony No. 4, `Romantic` (1886 version, ed. L. Nowak) (Bavarian Radio Symphony, M. Jansons) (900187) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i BRAHMS, J.: Piano Concerto No. 2 / Handel Variations (Vogt, Royal Northern Sinfonia) (ODE1346-2) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i BOLIVIA Ruphay (Los): Music of the Andes - Jach'a Uru (The Great Day) (EUCD2893) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i BOITO, A.: Mefistofele [Opera] (F. Furlanetto, Filianoti, Theodossiou, Zaramella, Palermo Teatro Massimo Chorus and Orchestra, Ranzani) (CDS581) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i BERNSTEIN, L.: Songfest / GERSHWIN, G.: An American in Paris (Wolf Trap Opera, National Orchestral Institute Philharmonic, Judd) (8.559859) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT An American in Paris is one of Gershwin’s most vivacious works, an orchestral ballet saturated in homesickness and the blues. This recording, however, uses the new 2019 critical edition and offers Gershwin’s original orchestration, unheard for 75 years—leaner, more angular and transparent, it also employs the correct use of the iconic taxi horns, for a new sonic experience. The breezy vitality of Copland’s An Outdoor Overture is balanced by Bernstein’s Songfest—written to celebrate the Bicentennial Year in America, setting the verses of 13 of the country’s poets. Full Article
i BEETHOVEN, L. van: Symphonies Nos. 1-9 (Warsaw Philharmonic Choir and Orchestra, Kord) (CDAccordACD075) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i BEETHOVEN, L. van: Symphonies (Complete) (Stuttgart Radio Symphony, Norrington) (SWR19525CD) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i BEETHOVEN, L. van: String Quartets Nos. 13 and 15 / Grosse Fuge (Tetzlaff Quartet) (ODE1347-2D) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i BEETHOVEN, L. van: Mass in C Major / Vestas Feuer / Meeresstille und Glückliche Fahrt (Chorus Cathedralis Aboensis, Turku Philharmonic, Segerstam) (8.574017) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT The custom of marking the name-day of Princess Esterházy with a newly composed Mass began in the 1790s and for many years was carried out by Joseph Haydn. In 1807 Beethoven was commissioned and responded with his Mass in C major. Coolly received at court, it is a celebratory work of large-scale brilliance. The cantata Meeresstille und glückliche Fahrt is set to Goethe’s poems and contrasts calm with exuberance. In 1803 Beethoven set two numbers from Vestas Feuer, written by Emanuel Schikaneder, the librettist of Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte. Full Article
i BEETHOVEN, L. van: Chamber Music - Piano Quartet, Op. 16 / Minuets and Dances (Sofia Kim, Kroh, Segal, Sarid, IU Wind Ensemble, Dorsey) (8.574040-41) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT In his first decade in Vienna, Beethoven seems to have been preoccupied with music for wind instruments. The best-known example is his Quintet in E flat major, Op. 16, which he arranged at the same time for piano quartet. He also wrote music for dances and settings of folk songs, and reflected the public’s interest in automata by writing for musical clock. The Napoleonic wars were mirrored in Beethoven’s music of the period, especially in his military compositions such as a series of Marches and the Equali, scored for trombones, which were later played at his funeral. Full Article
i BEETHOVEN, L. van: Celebrate Beethoven - Music from His Late Compositional Period (c.1815–1827) (9.30207) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i BALZAC, H. de: Cousin Bette (Unabridged) (NA0458) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 29 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Lisbeth Fischer has lived in the shadow of her beautiful cousin Adeline for much of her life. Pampered while Lisbeth works in the fields, Adeline makes an enviable leap in status when Baron Hulot offers her his hand in marriage. Out of kindness, they bring Lisbeth to Paris, where she falls in love with the artist Wenceslas, her protégé. However, when she is jilted for Adeline’s daughter Hortense, her jealousy and rage exponentially intensify, and she resolves to bring the Hulot family to ruin, employing the cold seductress Valérie Marneffe as her vehicle for revenge. A classic tale of obsession, self-destruction and unabated desire, Cousin Bette is a blazing portrayal of libertine France, and the fatal excesses which drive the novel to its dark end. Full Article
i BALADA, L.: Clarinet Works - Caprichos Nos. 6 and 7 / Double Concerto (Ivanov, Rominski, Polaczyk, Eryılmaz, Larson) (8.579056) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Barcelona native Leonardo Balada’s creative style has been labelled ‘Dalí’s surrealism in music’—an aspect of his work explored in this programme through the technique of ‘sound transformation’ in which abstract musical materials become familiar melody. Fusing traditional and contemporary elements, Caprichos Nos. 6 and 7 engage intimately with Spanish culture and history, while the virtuoso Double Concerto, heard here in an arrangement for flute, clarinet and piano, blends well-known Mexican folk tunes with the composer’s distinctive avant-garde style. Full Article
i ADÈS, T.: Piano Solo Works (Han Chen) (8.574109) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Wed, 01 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT Composer, conductor and pianist Thomas Adès has been described by The New York Times as ‘among the most accomplished all-round musicians of his generation’. His Concert Paraphrase on Powder Her Face reflects the glamour of the opera’s subject in the grand manner of Liszt or Busoni, while Still Sorrowing and Darknesse Visible explore John Dowland’s haunting lute works. Heard here in its world premiere recording, competition piece Blanca Variations is lyrical and flowing in character, and Traced Overhead is a vivid description of ascent and flight. Adès captures and transforms Polish style in his Mazurkas, and the spirit of Satie and Ravel in a Souvenir from the film Colette. Full Article
i Vocal and Piano Recital: Fingerlos, Rafael / Mouissi, Sascha el - BRAHMS, J. / SCHUBERT, F. / WOLF, H. / STRAUSS, R. / SCHUMANN, R. (Fremde Heimat) (OC1711) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i VIVALDI, A.: Four Seasons (The) / VERDI, G.: I vespri siciliani: Le quattro stagioni (R.M. Minasi, La Scintilla Orchestra) (PHR0112) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i VITALI, G.B.: Sonate, Op. 5 (Italico Spendore) (TC623305) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i Violin Sonatas (American) - SCHOENFELD, P. / STUCKY, S. / HARBISON, J. (Three American Sonatas) (Cho-Liang Lin, J.K. Parker) (8.559888) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT The three sonatas on this recording were written at the behest of violinist Cho-Liang Lin, who worked closely with each composer at their premiere performance. Paul Schoenfeld’s Violin Sonata references literary influences and the composer’s past as well as his Jewish heritage in the work’s final Freilach or “joyous dance”. Steven Stucky acknowledged Debussy as the source of inspiration in his work, while the alchemy of John Harbison’s style creates music that is simultaneously abstract and narrative. Wryly introduced as “crazy modern music”, Bernstein’s brief Canon for Aaron was composed for Copland’s 70th birthday celebrations. Full Article
i Violin Recital: Arnoldi, Roberto - ANZAGHI, D. / ARNOLDI, N. / GARBARINO, G. / SPINOSA, R. / VACCHI, F. (New Music for Solo Violin) (TC940003) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i VERDI, G.: Due Foscari (I) [Opera] (Coro del Teatro Regio di Parma, Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini, Orchestra Giovanile della Via Emilia, Arrivabeni) (CDS7865.02) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i VERDI, G.: Attila [Opera] (I. D'Arcangelo, Monastyrska, S. La Colla, G. Petean, Bavarian Radio Chorus, Munich Radio Orchestra, Repušić) (900330) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i TCHAIKOVSKY, P.I.: Sacred Choral Works - Vesper Service / Hymn in honour of SS Cyril and Methodius (Latvian Radio Choir, Kļava) (ODE1352-2) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i SKORYK, M.: Violin Concertos (Complete), Vol. 2 - Nos. 5-9 (Bielow, Ukraine National Symphony, Sirenko) (8.574089) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Myroslav Skoryk is one of Ukraine’s leading composers and teachers, with a portfolio of works that include opera, a symphonic transcription of Paganini’s Caprices, and a cycle of nine violin concertos written over a 45-year span (Volume 1 is on 8.574088). Concerto No. 5 utilises jazz elements and a vivid fugato, while Concerto No. 6 explores the use of sensual moods and provocative dance rhythms. Syncopation and lyricism suffuse Concerto No. 7, while No. 9 is both touching and dramatic. Concerto No. 8 offers a representation of events in Chopin’s life through quotations, in combination with Skoryk’s own distinctive musical voice. Full Article
i SINIGAGLIA, L.: String Quartet Works (Complete), Vol. 1 - String Quartet, Op. 27 / Brahms Variations / Hora Mystica (Archos Quartet) (8.574183) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT The renowned Italian composer and mountaineer Leone Sinigaglia wrote a fascinating series of pieces for string quartet that reflect his powers of characterisation and elegance. Flowing melodies can be heard throughout, not least in the Concert-Étude, Op. 5, while the more substantial Variations on a Theme of Brahms, Op. 22 display his technical skill and expressive variety, whether reflective, sombre or exuberant. His String Quartet in D major, Op. 27 exemplifies his dual inheritance: a commanding central European facility, combined with a natural Italian lyricism. Full Article
i SIERRA, R.: Cantares / Loíza / Triple Concierto (Trío Arbós, Cornell University Chorus and Glee Club, Xalapa Symphony, Marcelletti) (8.559876) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Roberto Sierra’s refined compositional voice is subtly combined with contemporary musical techniques and his Puerto Rican heritage in the three works recorded here. Cantares, commissioned by the Cornell University Chorus and Glee Club to celebrate the university’s sesquicentennial anniversary, evokes ancient Peruvian, Aztec and Afro Caribbean voices lost in time. The virtuoso Triple Concierto transforms the popular Caribbean rhythms of salsa, bolero and merengue into complex contemporary expressions, while the polyrhythmic layers of Loíza conjure a Puerto Rican town known for its strong African traditions. Full Article
i SCRIABIN, A. / PASTERNAK, B.: Piano Works (Samson-Primachenko) (UP0213) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i SCHARWENKA, P.: Piano Trio, Op. 121 / Duo for Violin and Viola / Viola Sonata / 4 Concert Pieces (Breuninger, Berthaud, Triendl) (C5391) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i SAURET, É.: 24 Études Caprices, Vol. 4 - Nos. 20-24 (Rashidova) (8.574159) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT The final volume of the 24 Études-Caprices by the internationally renowned virtuoso Émile Sauret, crowns one of the most impressive but seldom performed bodies of solo violin writing in the entire canon. In the last five Études, once again played by Nazrin Rashidova on Sauret’s own Stradivarius violin, the full range of his art can be heard, from double- and triple-stopping, to registral leaps, chordal and staccato techniques and exercises for absolute control of the bow. Of Volume 3 (8.573975) The Strad wrote: ‘Rashidova plays superbly’. Full Article
i PROKOFIEV, S.: Symphonies Nos. 3 and 6 (German Radio Saarbrücken-Kaiserslautern Philharmonic, Inkinen) (SWR19086CD) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i PROKOFIEV, S.: Songs and Romances (Gritskova, Prinz) (8.574030) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Sergey Prokofiev is acknowledged as one of the 20th century’s greatest composers, and his enduring popularity today rests on a rich legacy of orchestral and chamber works. Less well-known are his songs, which display a lyrical component that suited his liking for clear and simple forms. This can be heard particularly in Five Poems of Anna Akhmatova, but all of these pieces show Prokofiev to be a worthy successor of the great 19th-century tradition of art songs. Margarita Gritskova’s voice was described by Opera News as ‘a spectacular instrument’ in her recording of Russian Songs on Naxos 8.573908. Full Article
i PRADO, J.A.R. de A: Piano Concerto No. 1 / Aurora / Concerto Fribourgeois (Rubinsky, Minas Gerais Philharmonic, Mechetti) (8.574225) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT At the time of his death in 2010, Almeida Prado was one of Brazil’s most internationally admired composers, one who created music of unique sonority and colour, rooted in his native country. In Aurora (‘Dawn’) he employs his newly developed ‘transtonality’ to radiant effect, while the Concerto Fribourgeois features a collage technique. In his Piano Concerto No. 1 Almeida Prado explores a cogent structure in which the soloist opens up, rips apart or transforms the theme and variations, in a work that is both grandiose and luminous. Full Article
i Piano Recital: Choni, Dmytro - DEBUSSY, C. / GINASTERA, A. / LIGETI, G. / PROKOFIEV, S. (8.574136) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT The Ukrainian pianist Dmytro Choni, winner of the 2018 Paloma O’Shea Santander International Piano Competition, has selected a programme that spans the 20th century. The first book of Debussy’s Images offers poetic evocation and virtuoso caprice, whereas Prokofiev’s Piano Sonata No. 6, completed in 1940, is the first of his ‘War Sonatas’, characteristically contrasting rhythmic vitality with rich lyricism. Ginastera, too, supplies vivid intensity in his Piano Sonata No. 1 suggesting the sound of the guitar, while Ligeti’s Étude is a Debussyian evocation of a rainbow. Full Article
i Piano Music (French) - BOULEZ, P. / DEBUSSY, C. / MESSIAEN, O. / RAVEL, M. (Rare French Piano Music) (van Raat) (8.573894) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT This album of French piano rarities features seldom-heard and recently discovered works by composers who had an influence on Pierre Boulez, as well as the premiere recording of Boulez’s Prélude, Toccata et Scherzo. This large-scale early work looks back on virtuosic Romantic music, while at the same time exploring the new compositional styles that Boulez would subsequently embrace. Among the rarities is a posthumously discovered piano study by Debussy, a reconstructed birdsong work by Messiaen, and a tiny masterpiece by Ravel found in a notebook. Full Article
i PETTIFORD, Oscar: Baden-Baden Karlsruhe (1958-1959) (JAH-419) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i Opéra-Comique Overtures - BOIELDIEU, F.-A. / DELIBES, L. / GOUNOD, C.-F. / HALÉVY, F. / HÉROLD, F. / LECOCQ, C. (Vienna Radio Symphony, M. Halász) (8.574122) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Opéra-comique emerged in the 19th century as an intermediary between grand opera and burlesque operetta. This album charts its progression as a distinct genre, tracing the origins from Boieldieu and Méhul early in the century via the classic vitality of masters such as Hérold and Maillart into the operetta style of Offenbach and Lecocq. With innovative features, colourful orchestration, drama, wit and atmospheric writing, the operas proved very popular and these overtures encapsulate their immense vivacity and charm. Full Article
i MAYR, J.S.: Due duchesse (Le) [Opera] (M. Schäfer, T.M. Herbert, Bavarian State Opera Chorus, Simon Mayr Choir, Concerto de Bassus, Hauk) (8.660422-23) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT As one of the leading operatic composers of his generation, Johann Simon Mayr nurtured a fascination with the chivalric stories of medieval England. Le due duchesse, an opera semiseria with buffa elements, is set during the reign of the 10th-century King Edgar. Huntsmen’s and Knights’ choruses and troubadour-like songs give great vivacity to a score that is both lyrical and dramatic. Mayr’s compound of Viennese Classicism and Italianate melodic beauty, allied to his ambitious writing and a skilful libretto, produced an important and influential opera couched in his own unmistakable idiom. Full Article
i LISZT, F.: Wanderer Fantasy / SCHUBERT, F.: Piano Sonata No. 13 / BRAHMS, J.: Handel Variations (C. Park, Eschenbach) (C5412) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i LINDBERG, M.: Accused / Two Episodes (A. Komsi, Finnish Radio Symphony, Lintu) (ODE1345-2) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i KENYA Fadhilee Itulya: Kwetu (NXW76125-2) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Kenyan musician Fadhilee Itulya began his professional music career in 2008. He draws inspiration from a style of guitar music called Omutibo from the Luhya people of Western Kenya, which is driving, syncopated, and gets people to dance like nothing else. His music has elements of acoustic folk, pop/dance and world music—making for a melange of good time music that is grounded in culture, community and care for the environment. His debut album Kwetu (meaning ’home’ in Swahili) features ten vibrant songs and also includes four traditional chants with Isukuti percussion, showcasing the roots percussion style of Western Kenya. Full Article
i INDIA Sabri Family (The) (EUCD2904) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i HAYDN, J.: Cello Concertos Nos. 1 and 2 (N. Clein, Recreation - Graz Grosses Orchester, Hofstetter) (OC1895) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i HAYDN, J.: 6 Original Canzonettas, Books 1 and 2 / Lieder (Britain's Glory) (Horak, R. Fuller) (Gramola99212) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i HAUG, H.: Guitar Concertino / Wind Quintet / Guitar Quintet (Minder, Basel Philharmonic Quintet, Il Piccola Orchestra, Zemtsov) (8.551426) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i HARSÁNYI, T.: Piano Works (Complete), Vol. 2 (Koukl) (GP807) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT The Hungarian-born composer Tibor Harsányi is now recognised as an important personality in ‘L’École de Paris’. He had a lifelong interest in modern dance, represented here by the Petite suite and Trois Pièces de danse, and he also embraced jazz, which was part of the Parisian atmosphere of the inter-war period, and other influences, while keeping the Central European rhythms and tonalities of his Hungarian origins. The Trois Pièces lyriques is a rare example of Harsányi expressing torment during the turbulent years of the Second World War. Full Article
i HANDEL, G.F. / GLUCK, C.W.: Opera Arias for Soprano (Care Pupille) (Mariño, Halle Handel Festival Orchestra, Hofstetter) (C998201) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
i GYPSY Zingaros: Tango (EUCD2905) By www.naxos.com Published On :: Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT Full Article
