Thaïs, a mature work by the composer Jules Massenet on the libretto by Louis Gallet, it is based on the novel of the same name by Anatole France. The new production of this rarely performed work is the result of more than a year of close collaboration between the forces of the Theatre and Stefano Poda, responsible, for the first time in Italy, for the direction, choreography, sets, lighting and costumes. On the podium, Gianandrea Noseda, who, seduced by the dramatic force and modernity of the orchestral writing, conducts Thaïs for the first time; a debut also for the protagonist Barbara Frittoli, who has chosen the Regio to make her debut in this difficult role. Georgian baritone Lado Ataneli gives an impressive study of the monk Athanaël.

The wonderful French pianist Cédric Tiberghien has made several admired recital and chamber recordings. Now he joins the impressive roster of pianists who have contributed to Hyperion’s Romantic Piano Concerto series with Volume 60: Théodore Dubois. Three works by this French composer are included here, and they present a captivating panorama of the evolution of Dubois’ style over some forty years: the Concerto-capriccioso of 1876 seems like a preliminary study in the style of such composers as Weber and Mendelssohn, whereas the highly Romantic Concerto in F minor (1897) is reminiscent of Saint-Saëns. The completely unknown Suite for piano and strings (1917), for its part, resembles a neoclassical pastiche.

71/17 Another Green Journey – Live at Elbphilharmonie Hamburg” is a musical journey of discovery full of surprises and difficult to assign to a genre. Both the terms “Krautrock” and “Psychedelic Rock” do insufficient justice to the music of Achim Reichel with his solo project “AR & Machines” – the truth probably lies somewhere in between.

Schubert composed his first five symphonies while still a teenager, but they represent just one facet of his prodigious fluency. At this time some of his musical ideas bear a family resemblance to certain themes from Mozart, Haydn and Beethoven, but already his own musical character is evident. He began his Second Symphony in December 1814 and had finished it by March 24th of the following year. He completed the Fourth Symphony in about three to four weeks during April 1816. We should not read too much into the Fourth Symphonys Tragic appendage, added by Schubert as an afterthought. It may be merely an example of the flippant comments which he wrote on some of his youthful scores, but nevertheless the symphony has more gravitas than its predecessors. Schubert also includes a second pair of horns to enrich the texture. Actually, this is the only piece of non-programmatic music to which he gave a descriptive title. After completing the symphonic cycles of Beethoven and Mendelssohn, Jan Willem de Vriend now undertakes Schuberts complete symphonic output. This is the first volume in that series.

Until this release on Garden of Delights, the one and only LP of the Fürth-based band Da Capo couldn’t be heard yet on CD. Only 500 copies had been made then and half of them were destroyed. Thus, today the disc belongs to the most expensive three or four German rock records ever. But it doesn’t sound that very German at all. Its sound is more like West Coast, brand Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service or Jefferson Airplane. The LP’s reviews reached from trivial to great. Legitimate re-releases on LP were the 1988 edition on Little Wing of Refugees (although in a completely different cover) and the 2004 edition on Amber Soundroom. The available release on Garden of Delights (hopefully) is everything you could possibly wish for concerning its representation.

From 1950 and onwards, Allan Pettersson was mainly occupied with working on the monolithic symphonies for which he is best known. But before that, while still a student at the Conservatory in Stockholm and later a viola player in the Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, he composed two sets of songs: Six Songs and Barfotasånger (Barefoot Songs). Of these two, the second would become especially important for the composer, who returned to it throughout his life, quoting various songs from it in his symphonies.

Michael Kamen is a master at capturing nostalgia, especially when the age in question is the bittersweet "tie a yellow ribbon" landscape of World War II. For the HBO mini-series Band of Brothers, Kamen re-visits much of the same territory he explored with fellow sepia-tone junkie Roger Waters on Pink Floyd's The Wall and The Final Cut. Alternately tragic and uplifting, Band of Brothers is a raw, patriotic, and wistfully elegiac tome of swelling choirs, salvation army brass band, and melodious strings that compliment the series' balanced depiction of the horrors of war and the unpredictable sweetness of humanity.

Live album featuring Dio first appearance at Castle Donington during Holy Diver tour. Originally publised as a double album including his '87 concert as well, now it's released as a single edition with remastered sound.

Other than a trio set with the legendary pianist Hasaan Ibn Ali, this set was Max Roach's only recording as a leader during 1963-67. Three of the six numbers ("Nommo," "St. Louis Blues" and "In the Red") find Roach heading a group that includes trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, altoist James Spaulding, pianist Ronnie Mathews, bassist Jymie Merritt and, on "St. Louis Blues," Roland Alexander on soprano. Their music is essentially advanced hard-bop with a generous amount of space taken up by Roach's drum solos. The other three selections ("The Drum Also Waltzes," "Drums Unlimited" and "For Big Sid") are unaccompanied features for Max Roach and because of the melodic and logically-planned nature of his improvisations, they continually hold on to one's attention.