In 1863 Martine de Béhague’s grandmother bought the site where the Romanian Embassy now stands. She commissioned Gabriel Hippolyte Alexandre Destailleur (1822-1893), the architect who restored the châteaux of Courances and Vaux-le-Vicomte, to build a Louis XV-style town house that would be an appropriate setting for her collection of 18th-century artefacts she planned to house there. The architect was internationally renowned, had connections with the Imperial family and had worked for the Rothschilds in Vienna among others.

"Phil Woods with Strings?" you may ask with a bit of apprehension. An album with strings, which is inevitably heavily arranged, is always a risky proposition for a jazz musician whose art depends above all on spontaneous improvisation. But Phil Woods, arguably the best alto sax player alive today, has done it many times in his 55-year career. What distinguishes this album is the core group: Wood's regular quartet featuring the young and brilliant pianist Bill Charlap. Also, they decided to go with a string quintet (two violins, two violas and one cello) instead of a larger string section. This probably worked to make the ensemble agile and more spontaneous. The first violinist even takes a few solos!

Christophe Rousset, Les Talens Lyriques and Stéphane Degout - F. Couperin: Ariane consolée par Bacchus, Apothéoses de Lully & de Corelli: The genius of François Couperin (1668-1733) whispers precious secrets in Christophe Rousset's ear, which he reveals to us in this new recording. Here, the cantata Ariane consolée par Bacchusis unveiled in preview, served by a dream cast.

The mélodies of Benjamin Godard (1849-1895) are little-known, and yet, Godard was one of the most prolific composers in the genre. Focusing on opera after the success of his dramatic symphony Le Tasse in 1878, Godard composed several lyric works that overshadowed his 162 published songs. Today, they remain one of the most interesting parts of his catalogue. The pieces selected here by Tassis Christoyannis and Jeff Cohen, most of them recorded for the first time, illustrate the composer's literary sensibilities.

Max Bruch’s compositions shine the last lights of German romanticism. Following in the footsteps of Felix Mendelssohn, Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms, Bruch persisted in defending a melodic line inspired by popular culture, “one can only hope in these times that are hostile to melody”.

Twelve years younger than Bach and Handel, Giovanni Benedetto Platti left us a collection of nine Concerti per il cembalo obligato which rank not only among the very early examples of composition for keyboard instrument and strings, but also and above all, the first specimens especially conceived for the fortepiano, the new instrument invented by Bartolomeo Cristofori.

Known for her delightful delivery and delicate vibrato-less soprano, the Sao Paulo-born composer & vocalist/guitarist is equally at ease on melodic ballads as she is on tongue-twisting sambas. A Cash Box reviewer once wrote that "hearing Ana Caram was like a sweet, sunny, wake up call".

As Robin Ticciati enters his final season with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Linn celebrates his memorable tenure as Principal Conductor with a recording of four of the most sublime orchestral masterpieces ever written.