The year 1736 was very important in the life of Bach: he was conferred the title of Royal-Polish and Electoral-Saxon Court Composer. In that same year he composed the only two autographed sonatas for flute and obbligato harpsichord. Both sonatas came to us as a step of an elaborative process which could also have consisted of a diverse instrumentation. Such a practice was of inspiration in choosing two sonatas, originally conceived for other instruments, to be inserted in a project dedicated to the equal dialogue between flute and harpsichord.

The album Hymne à la beauté brings together seldom heard gems of chamber music in the delightful formation of voice, violin and piano — passionately performed by the aspiring and outstanding Swiss artists Sonja Leutwyler, Astrid Leutwyler and Benjamin Engeli, who are among the most versatile musicians of their generation and have long-established reputations within Switzerland and abroad. This programme of discoveries features captivating works by Louis Spohr, Johannes Brahms, Charles Ives, Camille Saint-Saëns, Felix Petyrek, Czeslaw Marek and Ottorino Respighi.

Passenger is Mike Rosenberg, the Brighton-born singer/songwriter known for busking his way to the global hit “Let Her Go” which topped the charts in 19 countries. Produced by Rosenberg, along with longtime collaborator Chris Vallejo, the new album is largely inspired by the North American landscape and geography, both musically and lyrically, and taps into Rosenberg’s family roots in New Jersey. This brings a fresh new approach and sound, and speaks to the road going traveller in all of us.

Bereits historisch ist die Beschäftigung von Herbert von Karajan mit Mozarts Symphonien. Einen wichtigen Teil davon findet Sie hier vereint. „Mozart: Late Symphonies“ fasst die Einspielungen der Symphonien Nr. 32 bis Nr.41 „Jupiter“ zusammen und dokumentiert die Berliner Philharmoniker einmal mehr als Weltklasse-Orchester mit charismatischem Maestro an der Spitze.

When in 1973 the 22-year-old Daniel Adni first recorded the Songs without Words (as part of a three-LP Mendelssohn recital) he had the field to himself. Nowadays things are rather different, with notable competition coming from the searching Livia Rev, and in sharper contrast, the volatile Daniel Barenboim, whose characterization does yet more to emphasize the variety of the set as a whole.

Master of the baton and one of Britain’s leading conductors, Sir Adrian Boult was renowned for his interpretations of English works, in particular music by Ralph Vaughan Williams, who was said to be ‘totally in favour of Sir Adrian’s approach to his music’ (John Culshaw). Job: A Masque for Dancing was dedicated to Sir Adrian, a fitting conductor for this magnificent Centenary celebration.

Der Freischütz is one of the great milestones in the history of opera. The resounding success of its premiere in 1821 practically made it a manifesto for German Romantic opera, one that would become a significant formative influence on Wagner. Although it has its roots in the Singspiel tradition exemplified by Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, Der Freischütz cut new ground with its potent mixture of supernatural elements, dreams, folk melodies, evocations of nature, and symphonic tone painting. Here, von Weber exploited his brilliant orchestral imagination–using, for example, carefully divided string tremolos and a gleaming choir of four horns–to maximum effect.