This pairing of concertos by Tchaikovsky and Bartók is the Ukrainian violinist Valeriy Sokolov’s first CD release as an exclusive Virgin Classics artist. The 24-year-old Ukrainian already features in the catalogue as the subject of a documentary released on DVD in 2006, Bruno Monsaingeon’s Natural born fiddler, while his interpretation of George Enescu’s Violin Sonata No 3 can be heard on a CD of the Romanian composer’s chamber music which became available in 2009. Recorded in Autumn 2010 with the Tonhalle Orchester conducted by David Zinman, this new concerto programme combines great works from the 19th and 20th centuries, both containing elements of folk music.

Le prestigieux Collegium Musicum créé par Telemann fut l'orchestre attitré de Bach lorsqu'il prit ses fonctions à Leipzig. Il put ainsi tester avec cette formation de nouvelles associations de timbres que l'on retrouve dans le Concerto pour clavecin BWV 1052, le Concerto pour piano forte en si bémol majeur et le Triple Concerto BWV 1044. Il s'agit parfois de transcriptions et d'adaptations, d'œuvres originellement pour violon, mais le résultat est étonnant de brio et de force expressive. Il faut écouter ce fameux Triple Concerto pour flûte, violon, clavecin et cordes porté par les couleurs de l'Akademie für Alte Musik : on y retrouve l'impulsion rythmique, la richesse de tempérament du Concerto Brandebourgeois n° 5, un esprit de danse et de fête qui privilégient sans conteste le clavier.

C.P.E. Bach was a marvelous composer, and it's rather amazing to consider that until BIS began this estimable series, the vast majority of his more than 60 keyboard concertos remained unknown. In addition to the concertos, Bach wrote another very interesting series of works that he called "Sonatinas", which seem to be suites of movements for solo and orchestra in free form. The two included here, for example, consist of: first, an Andante ad arioso twice interrupted by keyboard solos, followed by an Allegro finale; and second, a Larghetto, Allegro, and a concluding Alla Polacca. Both are delightful miniatures.

It is now generally accepted that Vivaldi wrote ten cello sonatas – one of them now lost. Six (RV 47, 41, 43, 45, 40 and 46) of the surviving nine were published posthumously as a set, in Paris, by Charles-Nicolas Le Clerc around 1740. The other three survive in manuscript collections: RV 42 (along with RV 46) is preserved in the library at Wiesentheid Castle at Unterfranken in Germany; RV 39 and 44 (along with RV 47) are to be found in a manuscript in the Naples Conservatoire.
Geminiani’s opus 5 consists of six cello sonatas, and was first published in Paris in 1746. The twenty years either side of 1740 saw the cello rise to a very fashionable position in French musical society, largely at the expense of the bass-viol – a change of fashion which stirred such strong emotions that in 1740 Hubert Le Blanc published his fierce Defense de la basse de viole contre les entreprises du violon et les pretensions du violencel. Music such as that by Vivaldi and Geminiani which is played here by Roel Dieltiens and his colleagues must have made a powerful counter-case for the cello.

Edgar Winter delves into a newfound fascination with sci-fi, and the resulting two albums are the end product. A confusing mixed bag of lyrics, this sounds unlike anything Winter has produced before. Considering his immense body of excellent work, from White Trash to the Edgar Winter Group, Standing On Rock comes across as something of a disappointment. That is, until Mission Earth came along in 1986. While there are a few good moments on Standing On Rock, its successor doesn't fare nearly as well. Thankfully, Edgar got back on track later in his career, and the "sci-fi" years became nothing more than a bad memory.

"Ascension" is a compilation of the band's extremely limited and impossible to get self-released EPs "Wisdom Calls For Sacrifice" & "Winter Solstice II" along with two exclusive bonus tracks (Pentagram's "Be Forewarned" and a rare live version of "Algiz").
The Flight of Sleipnir was formed in the winter of 2007 by David Csicsely and Clayton Cushman. The project stemmed from a desire to explore ethereal and progressive sounds with lyrics that explore the rich literature of ancient Scandinavia. Keeping elements of their other projects and building a foundation upon doom and vintage metal, they released the demo "Wisdom Calls For Sacrifice" in 2008…

This new double-album by pianist Lars Vogt, violinist Christian Tetzlaff and cellist Tanja Tetzlaff includes some of Franz Schubert’s (1797–1828) greatest works of chamber music, including his Piano Trios and the Arpeggione Sonata, in breath-taking interpretations. Franz Schubert wrote his two numbered Piano Trios, as well as the Notturno for piano trio, during the very last months in his life, in 1827 and 1828. Like Beethoven, Schubert’s final works in chamber music are masterpieces of great emotional depth. The famous Arpeggione Sonata (1824) and Rondo for violin and piano (1826) were written slightly earlier, but can also be counted among Schubert’s late works.

Giya Kancheli possesses one of music's unmistakable voices. It speaks softly of sorrow, loss, solitude and transcendence. Most of his works are in a mode of lamentation, and many are dedicated to departed friends, as is 'Lament (Music of mourning in memory of Luigi Nono).

The Orchestre symphonique de Montréal and its Music Director Rafael Payare make their Pentatone debut with Mahler’s 5th Symphony. The album is also the first recording under Payare’s tenure, and the beginning of a longer recording relationship with the label. For Payare, the Fifth is the last symphony that shows Mahler still looking forward to what the future might bring, unlike his subsequent, much darker and existential works. Despite that optimism, there is enough tragedy and struggle along the way, resonating with Mahler’s life at the time of creation. Payare’s proficiency in late-Romantic repertoire coupled with the matured, distinctive sound of the Montréal players make this a collaboration to look out for.

The unpublished CD features Andrea Manco, flute; Luisa Prandina, harp, in a tribute to the immortal art of Mozart, accompanied by the Orchestra Italian Opera Florence conducted by David Boldrini: Concerts for flute and orchestra n. 1 in G major K 313 and no. 2 in D major K 314 and Concerto for flute, harp and orchestra in C major K 299.

John Corigliano is a difficult composer to pin down stylistically. The generally tonal orientation of his music and the cinematic quality that made his score for The Red Violin such a success have brought him a beloved status rare among contemporary composers. Yet, it would be wrong to call him neo-Romantic; his music has deep rigor and sometimes, as in the Symphony No. 2 on offer here, a quite grim quality. This 2022 release from the Boston Modern Orchestra does not include his most famous works – The Red Violin in either its film score or violin concertos forms, The Ghosts of Versailles, or the Symphony No. 1 – but it offers an excellent window into the richness of Corigliano's music, in which a great variety of elements collide in unexpected ways. One of those elements is quotation, on display in the opening work, To Music; it is based on Schubert's song An die Musik, which is assembled with great subtlety over five and a half minutes.

Dig deep enough inside yourself – start treating your body as your sanctuary rather than your enemy – and eventually you'll find yourself blooming right back out into the sun. That's the transformation Guerilla Toss trace on their newest album Famously Alive, their effervescent Sub Pop debut. After a decade sprinkling glitter into grit, building a reputation as one of the most ferociously creative art-rock groups working, the upstate New York band have eased fully into their light. This is Guerilla Toss at their most luminescent – awake, alive, and extending an open invitation to anyone who wants to soak it all up beside them.

A collection of previously unreleased materials by the Kenny Drew Trio, originally recorded for Japanese labels Baystate and Alpha beween 1978 and 1992, now released to commemmorate the 20th anniversary of his passing. A rich trove of superb piano trio performances!
American pianist Kenny Drew (1928-1993) moved to Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1964. Although he may have somewhat faded from the radar of American jazz fans, he had a fantastic career in Denmark and was beloved by European and Japanese jazz fans. In the late 1970s and 1980s, Drew's popularity in Japan grew to incredible heights when he began recording for Japanese labels such as Baystate and Alpha under a partnership with Japanese producer Makoto Kimata…