In January we celebrate the centenary of the greatest flautist in history, Jean-Pierre Rampal. The 1960s and 1970s mark the high point of Rampal’s collaboration with Erato with an outstanding series of landmark recordings, each of which being more beautiful than the other. In particular, two memorable baroque monographies are published.
One contains a large part of Handel’s flute sonatas (from the Op. 1 to the spurious Halle Sonatas) recorded with long-time keyboard accompanist Robert Veyron-Lacroix and was awarded a Grand Prix du disque. The other contains all the Vivaldi concertos with flute, including uncomplete ones then recorded for the first time ever! It also marks the beginning of a long and fruitful partnership with conductor Claudio Scimone.

Soul sisters galore – a heady helping of work from the Chicago scene and beyond – all pulled from the vaults of Brunswick Records! Brunswick had a few key singers in the late 60s who easily rivaled the best at Motown and Atlantic – and they went onto record some great lesser-knowns in the 70s who really kept the groove high, and who come together here in one massive mighty celebration of female soul! Tracks include some great overlooked singles from the label – and titles include "Do The Whoopie" by Sugar Pie Desanto, "Son Of A Preacher Man" by Erma Franklin, "Got To Be An Answer" by Odyssey 5, "Keep An Eye" by Jean Shy, "Play It Fair" by Lavern Baker, "Love Is Easy To Lose" by Jackie Ross, "Stop I Don't Need No Sympathy" by Lyn Roman, "After You" by Barbara Acklin, "Living In The Footsteps Of Another Girl" by The Promises, and "Higher & Higher" by Dana Valery.

At the beginning of the 1960s, Gustav Leonhardt became the figurehead of the Telefunken’s label Das alte Werk, a legendary collection devoted to early music performed on period instruments. The first recordings were mostly dedicated to Bach’s music, the keyboard concertos in particular becoming landmark recordings, emblematic of the harpsichord renaissance. Here are the concertos for solo keyboard, conducted by the newly created Leonhardt-Consort, featuring the best Dutch performers of their generation such as Frans Brüggen.

Excerpts from Wagner operas have, on countless occasions, been transcribed for piano. A fairly long list of transcribers could be made, starting with Joseph Rubinstein, the first transcriber of an extract from Parsifal, going on through Bülow to Brassin, then from Carl Tausig to August Stradal, to speak only of those who were pupils of Liszt. It is an established fact that Liszt, the greatest master of transcription and paraphrase, made very little use of Wagner’s works. In this highly-regarded recording the transcription honours are shared between Liszt and Kocsis.

On Tejas, ZZ Top countrified the bluesy posture of their previous albums, resulting in a slight detour between the madcap spirit of Fandango and the psychedelic strut of Deguello. While the album lacks any singles as strong as "Tush" or "La Grange," "Arrested for Driving While Blind" is one of ZZ's classic anthems, capturing the group's wacky humor and jaunty good-time boogie…

The figure of Davide Ficco occupies a special place among the numerous guitarists/composers who enlarged the repertoire for their instrument. In fact, his figure is not exclusively limited to the universe of the six strings; rather, he gathers its idioms and intertwines them in a thick network of artistic, cultural, historical and ethnic references, making use also of the possibilities for research and expansion provided by new technologies. His output for the guitar’s six strings is in fact a successful example of cultural eclecticism. His vast knowledge does not only encompass the guitar repertoire, or the classical repertoire in general, but rather embraces various artistic forms, lingering also over the history of extra-European cultures and traditions. This all is poured into his music, in the form of countless extra-musical references, which may be more or less hidden, and which bestow refinement and elegance on his music without being burdened by an ostentatious intellectualism. Such richness does not belong to Ficco’s compositional activity only, but also derives from his work as a performer. Ficco has practised this activity for years, combining the musician’s technical know-how with the ability to draw diverse influences together and to let them emerge. However, this all happens in the service of the musical score, and not of an intellectual hedonism.

Genderless tribute to opera's divas by the countertenor Théophile ALEXANDRE & the female string quartet ZAÏDE, redistributing musical direction to women and Ladies' agonies to a man, to celebrate the divas' arias beyond their gender clichés. Starring heroines by Mozart, Verdi, Bellini, Bizet, Haendel, Saint-Saëns, Piazzolla, Haydn, Tchaïkovsky…

Flawless technique, impeccable balance, and a luminously clear-toned and supremely elegant, slender sound. These are the qualities we’ve come to anticipate from the recordings of former Salzburg Mozart Competition winners the Novus Quartet, who formed in 2007 at the Korean National University of the Arts. And there’s much to play to those strengths in the two Shostakovich String Quartets they’ve chosen for their first recording since 2019.

One of Germany’s best-loved classical performers joins forces with a legendary close- harmony group for a winter-themed album to bring warmth to the dark months of the year: Albrecht Mayer & The King’s Singers. The pairing of probably the world’s most famous and accomplished oboist, Albrecht Mayer with the UK’s celebrated vocal ensemble is a heavenly musical partnership, and the interplay of colours, melodies and harmonies between these performers enchant and delight with Baroque, classical and seasonal favourites. The album has a Yuletide theme with tracks such as ‘Let It Snow’, ‘Jingle Bells’ and ‘Baby It’s Cold Outside’.

This album is the Polish phonographic premiere of works by three outstanding contemporary composers: Gubaidulina, Liebermann and Proto. The album presented by the performers is the outcome of ten years of cooperation, quest for a common sound, discovering new areas in music, artistic trips and creative interpretations. In their activities, double bass player Marek Romanowski and pianist Hanna Holeksa are guided by their common will to popularize new repertoire for this seemingly unobvious instrumental combination, proving its enormous potential.

Established in 1967 at the height of their powers, The Beatles’ Apple operation saw the group embrace and encourage a wealth of contemporary musical talent, offering studio time and demo facilities alongside recording and publishing contracts. This unique opportunity attracted artists and songwriters from across the musical spectrum, and GOOD AS GOLD presents a snapshot of that talent, spanning the years 1967 to 1975. From the psychedelic tinged sounds of the mid-late 1960s onwards, the label matured and evolved alongside its audience and remains as compelling today as it did during those halcyon days.

The Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, with Gordan Nikolic, puts down a spicy performance of two of Mozart's bubbliest symphonies: the "Haffner" and the "Linz". "Both symphonies swoop and swerve at sprightly tempos where needed, which is different from being just fast. They virtually tremble with life. The engineers have succeeded admirably with a transparent soundstage." (Fanfare)

Peripheral Vision is one of the most exciting and innovative jazz quartets to have recently appeared on the international jazz scene. Based in Toronto, the creative leaders of the group are long time musical collaborators, guitarist Don Scott and bassist Michael Herring. They have assembled a synergistic musical unit designed to push the boundaries of jazz while engaging the listener with a grooving, toe-tapping immediacy. Their distinctive musical voice bridges tradition and innovation, with deeply felt influences ranging from jazz, rock, classical, and improv, with a focus on dynamic group interaction. Sheer Tyranny Of Will - nominated for 2016 JUNO Award for Jazz Album of the Year: Group. Fearlessly creative Canadian jazz quartet, Peripheral Vision is launching their third album, Sheer Tyranny Of Will on September 23rd, 2014.

This program from the BBC Symphony Orchestra features compelling performances of two very different symphonies. The complex, visionary pantheism of Vaughan Williams's 'Pastoral' is an ideal foil for the unbridled ferocity of his Symphony No.4. The album includes an special bonus - Martyn Brabbins's idiomatic realization of Saraband 'Helen' - heard here in it's first recording.