This is the fifth volume of Angela Hewitt’s cycle of Beethoven’s piano sonatas, and she is recording a full set of Mozart’s concertos too; and yet she is still probably best known for her Bach. So perhaps it’s no surprise that it’s when Beethoven slips into Bach-style fugues in the final movement of Op 110 that Hewitt sounds most masterful. Elsewhere she is incisive and thoughtful too, even if the two earliest works here, Op 2 no 2 and Op 10 no 1, demand a certain lightness of touch that they don’t quite get – the flurries and flourishes sound like collections of notes rather than single, self-propelling gestures. The second movement of Op 78 is a deft dialogue of question and answer, and Hewitt brings an inevitability to Op 110 that makes sense of its changes of direction even if she doesn’t obviously revel in the full extent and novelty of its inspiration.

Joe Hisaishi started to show his interest in minimal music when he was a student at Kunitachi College of Music, and started his career as a comtemporary music composer. Presentation of MKWAJU in 1981 and the release of his first album “Information”in the following year was the kickoff of his career as a solo artist.Starting with Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (1984), Hisaishi has produced music for 10 Hayao Miyazaki films. He also composed the music for HANA-BI directed by Takeshi Kitano, Departures directed by Yojiro Takita, Villain directed by Sang-il Lee, The Tale of Princess Kaguya directed by Isao Takahata, What A Wonderful Familly!series directed by Yoji Yamada.

One of the greatest pieces of sacred music in history, in one of its legendary versions, in a brand-new high-resolution remastering restoring it to its original glory: what more could you ask for? Carlo Maria Giulini’s 1978 rendition of Mozart’s Requiem is a milestone of the discography, all at once solemn and grandiose, thanks to a Philharmonia Chorus at the peak of its powers. It features one of the most iconic quartets of vocal soloists with Helen Donath, Christa Ludwig, Robert Tear and Robert Lloyd!

This programme portrays the ‘birth’ of the flute in France in the late 17th century and the following 40 years of its life as a new and fashionable instrument. A famous patron of the arts, King Louis XIV gathered elite composers and musicians to create the refinement, elegance and good taste that was demanded at his Paris Court. From the early petites pièces to more virtuoso suites and sonatas with their ornamented lyricism and grand dance rhythms, the mellow, robust and almost husky sounds of flutes from this period blend and weave around each other like the voices of two singers.

The four Salve Regina recordings presented on this uniquely compiled new album cross the boundary between opera house and church a boundary that in 18th-century Naples was never very forbidding to begin with. In fact, Leo, Pergolesi and Porpora are all fine examples of composers who moved with unselfconscious facility between sacred and secular genres, between old counterpoint and the Monteverdian stile concertato that caressed each word with sensuous melismas and velvet harmonies. Porpora was a noted singing teacher of his day, intimately familiar with everything that a voice can do, and possessing a melodic skill that spins long and ornate vocal phrases of almost instrumental effect.

This new release which is the third of a 5 volume series covering the complete Piano Works of Karol Szymanowski includes Four Studies for Piano Op. 4 & Piano Sonata No. 2 in A major Op. 21, and eight pieces from the Twenty Mazurkas for Piano Op. 50.

There are multiple points of interest to this recording of Bach's sonatas BWV 1027-1029. There is the presence of the growing renown of Masato Suzuki, for instance, who, like his father Masaaki, is a formidable keyboard player as well as a choral conductor. There is the fact that these sonatas, plus a transcription of a melody from a church cantata, are top-notch Bach not terribly often played. The real news, however, is that they are played by France's Antoine Tamestit on a viola, not on the original viola da gamba.

By the time he issued his first collection of harpsichord suites in 1720, Handel had already focused his attention entirely on opera. As soon as it was published, the set delighted music lovers and became a bestseller all over Europe. It was such a success that it was reprinted many times. Alternating between the French and Italian styles, Handel does not respect the customary sequence of dance suites of the period. But he does touch the heart. On this recording, harpsichordist Pierre Hantai brings out all the direct charm and imaginative power of these these remarkable works.

New light on Pergolesi! This CD sheds light on a lesser-known aspect of the great Italian composer, offering two masterpieces in their first modern edition and first recording: the Mass in D major and the mottettone Dignas Laudes. Both editions are the outcome of recent musicological research carried out by the Centro Studi Pergolesi in Milan, and show a facet of Pergolesi – his energetic and solemn character – that complements and amplifies the dramatic and introspective moods of his most renowned sacred works.

Historically informed performance practice is no longer just an issue for Baroque or Classical music, but now a relevant matter in twentieth century music, as well, as this 2005 release from Supraphon demonstrates. Harpsichordist Monika Knoblochová has applied her considerable scholarship and meticulous keyboard skills in rendering Bohuslav Martinu's entertaining works for harpsichord and small instrumental groups in their original state, as found in the manuscripts, without compromises or later editorial changes. Martinu's "Back to Bach" pieces, along with the quirky Concerto (1923-1926) by Manuel de Falla, seem to benefit from this exacting period treatment, and the vivacious Concerto for harpsichord and chamber orchestra (1935) may be appreciated as one of the most satisfying neo-Baroque works since Stravinsky's celebrated "Dumbarton Oaks" Concerto.

At last, the start of summer holidays! Dive headfirst in this collection of music inspired by the sea, celebrating its beauty, its strange power of fascination, the myths and legends that surround it, the pleasure of nautical activities, the rich culture of seafarers… Come aboard for a seven-hour long musical cruise, but beware the tempests and the wrecks! All the major composers are represented in this collection featuring such artists as Aldo Ciccolini, Natalie Dessay, Bertrand Chamayou, Simon Rattle or Elisabeth Leonskaja.