Nikolai Demidenko's large-scale pianism suits Busoni's Bach transcriptions to a tee. Listen first to the E minor prelude; you sense that Demidenko truly revels in the music's declamatory syntax and booming bass lines. Part of this may have to do with the pianist's Fazioli concert grand, whose resonance cuts like a saber wrapped in a velvet cloak. Demidenko sculpts fluid paragraphs out of the D major fugue's superficially repetitious sequences, and takes the hybrid Fantasia, Adagio, and Fugue at a brisk, vehement clip. The pianist forges an effortless link between the unfinished fugue's last measures and Busoni's unmistakably crabbed conclusion.

Composing has always formed an integral part of the artistic life of pianist-conductor Olli Mustonen (b. 1967) and he first emerged as a symphonist in the early 2010s. This album by the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra with Olli Mustonen conducting contains two of his most latest symphonies, both dramatic works firmly rooted and continuing the tradition of the great classical composers. Seeking inspiration from multiple sources, the theme of Mustonen’s 2nd Symphony, ‘Johannes Angelos’ (2013), is the ancient city of Constantinople and its mysticism. Mustonen’s 3rd Symphony, ‘Taivaanvalot’ (Heavenly Lights) (2020) is based on a section in the Finnish national epic Kalevala and inspired by the cosmic and shamanistic elements in Finnish mythology. In this recording, the solo part is being sung by internationally acclaimed tenor Ian Bostridge.

This year marks the 90th birthday of Krzysztof Penderecki (1933–2020), one of the most prominent 21st Century Polish composers. Sacred themes and texts surround the creative work of Penderecki, including many of his large-scale works. This album by the award-winning Latvian Radio Choir under Sigvards Klava consists the majority of his impressive sacred a cappella choral works from five different decades and which are mainly written in Latin. These deeply religious choral works are modern classics in choral repertoire. Recent album by the choir, featuring choral works by John Cage, received nomination for the Gramophone Awards 2023.

In the second installment of her recordings of Robert Schumann's piano music, Jimin Oh-Havenith juxtaposes two key works from the famous "piano decade" of 1830-1840: the Kreisleriana op. 16 from 1838 and the Humoreske op. 20, composed a year later. In these pieces, Schumann pays homage to his two most important literary models, E.T.A. Hoffmann and Jean Paul. While in the Kreis-leriana, he merges suite and character piece into a fantastic collage of images, following the traces of Hoffmann's alter ego, the ingeniously eccentric Kapellmeister Kreisler, the Humoreske is designed like an essay in tones. Here, Schumann congenially implements Jean Paul's definition of humour as bridging the opposites of "Gemut" (emotion) and "Witz" (wit) that shape and tear the human apart. For every interpreter, it becomes an equally challenging and fulfilling task to shape Schumann's language, rich in contrast and held together by subtle links, into a poetic cosmos.

Ivan Repušić made his debut as principal conductor of the Munich Radio Orchestra in September 2017 with Giuseppe Verdi's "Luisa Miller". It was followed by "I due Foscari" in October 2018 and "Attila" in October 2019 (the complete recordings have already been released by BR-KLASSIK on CD 900323, 900328 and 900330). His successful cycle of early masterpieces by the Italian opera composer continues with the recent concert performance on April 23, 2023 of Verdi's stage work "I Lombardi" – also at the Prinzregententheater in Munich. Authentic fluidity and vocal splendour are provided here once again by outstanding performers and the Bavarian Radio Chorus. The Munich Radio Orchestra plays under the direction of Ivan Repuŝić. - This highlight of Munich's musical life from the early part of this year has now been released by BR-KLASSIK as a double CD.

The German radio broadcaster Deutschlandfunk Kultur, the German Music Council, and GENUIN once again jointly present the debut CD of a promising young musician: organist Aurel Dawidiuk is the winner of the 2022 German Music Competition in the organ category. His stellar career, however, goes far beyond that, as Dawidiuk is also celebrating his first international successes as a pianist and conductor. Exploring the theme of B-A-C-H in his organ debut, the major organ works assembled here span three centuries and include music by Johann Sebastian Bach himself, Johann Krebs, Franz Liszt, Zsigmond Szathmáry, and Max Reger – a rich diversity of music covering a wide range of styles!

Finally, a Shostakovich CD by the Asasello-Quartett! The internationally successful and award-winning ensemble has long been intensively engaged with the 15 works of the great Russian composer and is now embarking on a complete recording. The new GENUIN release of Dmitri Shostakovich’s Quartets Nos. 7 - 13 now kicks off the series. According to the booklet for the production, “Love, death and dearest people – these are the themes of the works heard on this double CD.” And the Asasello-Quartett spans the breadth of interpretation just as broadly as the variety of themes outlined here: with poignancy, elegance, and virtuosity – a whole world of its own!

Retro Active is a collection of outtakes and leftovers spanning Def Leppard's entire career. Kicking off the disc, "Desert Song" and "Fractured Love" are two of its most distinctive tracks, harkening back to the band's early (pre-success) days with their rough power chords. After paying homage to some of their heroes with a set of covers (Sweet's "Action" and Mick Ronson's "Only After Dark"), the band tackles a couple of solid, but hardly groundbreaking ballads – "Two Steps Behind" and "Miss You in a Heartbeat" – before stretching out (with mixed results) on the folky "From the Inside." Taken from the Hysteria sessions, the classy "I Wanna Be Your Hero" is another pleasant surprise, and the band reaches all the way back to the beginning by re-recording their first demo "Ride into the Sun." Overall, this is an interesting release which marks the end of a long chapter in the band's history, following the death of guitarist and guiding force Steve Clark. While casual fans might find it confusing, Leppard fanatics will revel in its diversity and informative liner notes.

The Italian 19th Century is characterized by an unparalleled opera bulimia, the theaters tirelessly program stagings to be submitted to the perennial abstinents of “belcanto” and the music publishing industry that revolves around the phenomenon flourishes and gears up to not disappoint the fleets of music lovers.

Criminally overlooked in the psychedelic scene of the early '70s, East was a Japanese band that made music seemingly right at home in the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco. Despite the usage of traditional Japanese instruments such as the koto, biwa, taisho-goto, and the shakuchi, they sounded more like authentic West Coasters than a quintet born on the Land of the Rising Sun. Performing lyrics in perfect English, and with enough of an Americana influence to sound at times like the Flying Burrito Brothers – at other times, more like Love or Jefferson Airplane – the five bell-bottom- and paisley-clad lads put out only one self-titled album in 1972 before disbanding. In 2007, Fallout Records, the accomplished crate-diggers that they are, reissued East on CD.

Asceta is a modern music ensemble, created in Santiago, Chile, in 2020 by the musician and composer Rodrigo Maccioni. The musical aesthetic can be classified as chamber-rock or RIO, acoustic chamber sound stands out. The result is music with a dramatic character, very eclectic and diverse, with dark and hypnotic atmospheres, even landscapes of simplicity and beauty.

Ongoing musical project featuring Michael Sweet (Stryper, Iconic) on lead vocals/guitars and George Lynch on guitars (Lynch Mob, The End Machine, ex-Dokken). This is their third album overall and the first since 2017. "How would it have been in the '80s if I sang for Dokken and if Don Dokken sang for Stryper? Well, it's 2023 and I'm in a band called Sweet & Lynch that's basically Stryper meets Dokken. If you're a fan of both bands, you're gonna love this!" says Sweet.

You can feel that heat off the Sunset Strip and see that hair in the wind as Dokken bring their timeless convertible Ferrari rock 'n' roll power to the table with 'Heaven Comes Down', an unapologetic celebration of everything Dokken do best. You want to rock? Sink your teeth into 'Fugitive', which rides some shimmering guitar work courtesy of Jon Levin, Don Dokken imploring that 'I'm a fugitive from life', and if you want ballads, head on over to 'I'll Never Give Up', hanging on that Coliseum chorus, Levin laying down a landmark solo. The pattern of 'Heaven Comes Down' never falters in delivering the goods on both sides of the fence. 'Just Like a Rose' brings the Pacific Coast Highway into vision with its smooth, effortlessly-driven gears, and 'Saving Grace' carries a mystical malevolence.