Sensation yields to scandal: Gould’s feisty and headstrong treatment of the final triptych in Beethoven’s pianistic “New Testament” outraged the critics no less than his sleeve notes, in which he claimed of op. 111 that “the piece is weak in spots; it needs greater speed. Especially the first movement is such a bad piece that I wanted to get on to the finale.”

The “scandal” surrounding Beethoven’s final triptych of sonatas (see No. 2) failed to rematerialize, but Gould remained true to his unorthodox interpretative approach and brazenly violated the composer’s instructions, changing the tempo of the F-major sonata at the opening of the firstmovement recapitulation and substituting a fortissimo for a pianissimo in movement 3 of the D-major Sonata.

This was the last of five new recordings released in September 1973, appearing one day after the four others. It marked the end of a long and often convoluted process: the first bars of the op. 31 triptych were recorded in July 1960, the final session took place almost thirteen years later on 15 May 1973! Amazingly, none of this is evident in the sonatas themselves.

Yet another scandal: Gould played the F-minor Piano Sonata, op. 57, at such a tortuously slow tempo that it seemed to fall into unrelated bits. “There is about the Appassionata – an egoistic pomposity, a defiant ‘let’s just see if I can’t get away with using that once more’ attitude—that on my own private Beethoven poll places this sonata somewhere between the King Stephen Overture and the Wellington’s Victory Symphony.”

Joke, satire, irony, deeper significance: the back cover of Gould’s gripping recording contained four imaginary reviews by an English critic (Sir Humphrey Price-Davies), a Munich musicologist (Dr. Karlheinz Heinkel), an American psychiatrist (Prof. S. F. Lemming), and the American corres pondent to the Journal of the All-Union Musical Workers of Budapest. All were written by Gould himself …

Amazingly, Gould’s third LP of Beethoven sonatas met with hardly any grumblings from the critics and was, all in all, warmly received. True, one reviewer spoke of “iconoclastic interpretations,” but acknowledged that it enabled listeners to discover a completely new Beethoven. Admittedly Gould’s Appassionata languished in the ice-box

Zero Cult, venerable craftsman of futuristic chill, has graced Cosmicleaf Records with his latest album, “Closer Than Ever”. Razor-sharp sound engineering with soul and musicality. The tracklist covers a large spectrum of chilled-out vibes, exploring them with an exquisite sens of balance. Deep grooves, hopeful melodies and motivating beats full of detail keep you grounded and awake. Sharp synthlines and instrumental elements spice up the mix like only Zero Cult can. Chillers' paradise is indeed…closer than ever. Oh and lookout for the last track for some dancefloor magic.

Another Beethoven album. With this, Gould had turned out of a total of twenty-one of the thirty-two Beethoven sonatas—or perhaps twentytwo, for the “artist contract cards” of 1979-80 refer to a recording of the B-flat major Sonata, op. 22, that has never resurfaced. Several of the missing sonatas (the Largo from op. 7, the G-minor Sonata op. 49, no. 1, the A-major Sonata op. 101, the Hammerklavier op. 106) at least exist in the form of live CBC recordings.

It's impossible to imagine more compelling performance of this music- Howard Shelley is truly a rescuer of lost musical souls. –Gramophone, Jan'17

2015 release, the 10th studio album by French singer, songwriter and pop culture icon Mylène Farmer. Interstellaires was produced by The Avener and Martin Kierszenbaum. Includes the single 'Stolen Car', a duet with British rock veteran Sting. This version of the much-loved Sting track has been completely reimagined by producer, The Avener. In the span of her 30-year career, French superstar, Mylène Farmer has sold over 11 million albums worldwide, released nine studio albums and six live albums, all of which reached diamond status in France. Mylène is the first female artist in history to sell out the 80,000 capacity "Stade de France" two nights in a row. On her last arena tour, Mylène's tickets were sold out a full year in advance. She has cultivated her fervently loyal fan base through consummate songwriting, classic melodies and ground-breaking videos.

Head Carrier is the sophomore 'post reunion' album from the alt-rock four piece and their first new music since 2014's Indie Cindy. This 12 track record showcases the band's unique mixture of surrealism, psychedelia, dissonance + surf rock. The album was produced by Tom Dalgety (Royal Blood, Killing Joke) and recorded at London's RAK Studios. Paz Lenchantin, the band's touring bassist since early 2014 (and previously a member of A Perfect Circle and Zwan amongst others) is now a permanent member of the band and her cool vocals can be heard on the album, most notably on 'All I Think About Now' on which she takes the lead.

The intention of I Musici’s latest production is to celebrate the 300th anniversary of Giovanni Battista Pergolesi. The musical journey starts with a tribute to Francesco Geminiani, outstanding exponent together with Locatelli and Somis from Corelli’s school. The Concerto Grosso No. 12 “La Follia” from the sonata op. 5 no. 12 by Arcangelo Corelli for strings and harpsichord (a theme and variations), reminds us of the brightness of an exciting virtuosity that he took abroad, especially to London. There the Italian master became famous as he fed the tradition of great violinists gifted with capabilities and techniques of the time. We can’t however, leave out Corelli, foremost protagonist of the sonata, concerto and the baroque violin.

Wolfgang Muthspiel - whom The New Yorker has called "a shining light" among today's jazz guitarists - made his ECM leader debut in 2014 with the trio disc Driftwood, featuring him alongside two longtime colleagues, bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Brian Blade. For his follow-up - 'Rising Grace', which is released on CD and 180g vinyl - the Austrian guitarist has convened a very special quintet, adding jazz luminary Brad Mehldau on piano and the outstanding young trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire to the subtly virtuosic Grenadier/Blade rhythm section.

When Nikolaus Harnoncourt retired from the stage in December last year, it was his expressed wish to release the broadcast recording of his last project, Beethoven s monumental Missa solemnis as his personal legacy. The Missa solemnis concerts at the Styriarte Festival Graz and the Salzburg Festival in summer 2015 were his last public performances. This recording of Beethoven s late masterpiece was made from material captured at the Graz concerts and rehearsals.