JEREMY ESKENAZI, piano
From the gentle to the torrential, water in nature affects, blesses (and afflicts) us in many ways, and composers have been drawn to this theme time and again. Here one of the world's brightest young pianists, in his first CD for us, pulls together a stunning programme representing little raindrops and fountains to oceans and stormy tempests, and including five very fine and atmospheric new pieces by British-Australian composer Alicia Grant.
tracks:
Franz Liszt:
Jeux d'eau à la Villa d'Este
Alicia Grant:
Voice Adrift
Rainlight
Water Shadow
Cross Currents
Surreal Sailing
Claude Debussy:
Jardins sous la pluie
Reflets dans l'eau
L'isle joyeuse
Ludwig van Beethoven:
Piano Sonata in D minor, Op. 31/2 ("Tempest")
Fryderyk Chopin:
Prelude in D flat, Op. 28/15 ("Raindrop")
Barcarolle, Op. 60
MORE INFO HERE

MEXICAN BAROQUE ORCHESTRA conducted by Miguel Lawrence
Mexico after the Spanish arrived saw a great deal of European art and culture being imported, including music from the great centres such as Venice. Not having harpsichords to hand, it became usual to use local instruments, vihuela and guitarron, for continuo. This policy is used here, and the sharp clear sound of the strings with the rhythmic base gives these works a new impetus and vitality. The Vivaldi pieces are fairly well known but the fine concertos by Facco were only discovered relatively recently.
Soloists: Miguel Lawrence (sopranino recorder); Manuel Zogbi (violin); Daniel Armas (psaltery)
tracks:
Giacomo FACCO:
Concerto in E minor, "Pensieri Adriarmonici" for violin, strings and continuo, Op. 1 No. 1
Concerto in A major, "Pensieri Adriarmonici" for violin, strings and continuo, Op. 1 No. 5
Antonio VIVALDI:
Concerto in D major for strings, RV121
Concerto in A minor, "L'estro Armoncio" for violin, Op. 3 No. 6
Concerto in C major for sopranino recorder, RV443
Concerto in D minor for strings, RV127
Concerto in C major for psaltery, RV425
Concerto in A minor for sopranino recorder, RV445
MORE INFO HERE

Performed here by THE EDINBURGH QUARTET and pianist ROBERT MELLING, John Rose writes music which embraces a post-modern freedom - allowing him to build tonal and memorable music often with a strong neo-baroque sound, strongly inspired by Bach - although Shostakovich is another source of inspiration. This is not to limit his work which is varied and rich, but emphasises his distinctive linear style. The scores of these and other works by John Rose are published by Eden Music - we hope to have them for sale here soon.
CD contains:
String Quartet no. 1, Op. 14
String Quartet no. 2, Op. 17
The Edinburgh Quartet
Prelude and Fugue, Op. 20a
Prelude and Two Fugues, Op. 20b
Essay on DSCH, Op. 7
Robert Melling
MORE INFO HERE

As ever, Anthony Goldstone as both pianist and, in some cases, arranger, has produed a startlingly original and vibrant programme. Here, music originally written for concert or opeatic performance is presented in little known transcriptions, all but one in fact here receiving their first recording. An important and rare addition to the Tchaikovsky canon. Volume 2 will on the same basis contain transcriptions of music from Tchaikovsky's ballets.
Programme:
Marche slave, Op. 31
(transcribed by H. Hanke)
Potpourri on themes from the opera The Voyevoda
(transcribed by 'H. Cramer ' i.e. Tchaikovsky)
Theme and Variations from Orchestral Suite no. 3 in G, Op. 55
Serenade in C for String Orchestra, Op. 48
(transcribed by Max Lippold, Anthony Goldstone) MORE INFO HERE

MADRIGALI: FIRE AND ROSES
CON ANIMA CHAMBER CHOIR conducted by PAUL MEALOR
An intensely beautiful programme, delectably performed. Paul Mealor's choir gives a stunning performance of original 16th century madrigals and some modern counterparts, including the fabulous Madrigali of Morten Lauridsen. Of Mealor, we have the awesomely beautiful 'Now Sleeps the Crimson Petal' cycle, of which the first movement was personally chosen by Prince William and Kate Middleton (now the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge) as the musical centerpiece of the April royal wedding service (re-set to the words of 'Ubi Caritas') This is the original version, conducted by the composer, and thus 100% authentic.. Paul Mealor's work is also available as a download-only single (dds29002)
CD PROGRAMME:
Morten Lauridsen: Madrigali: Fire and Roses (6 pieces); Chanson éloignée
Paul Mealor: Now sleeps the crimson petal (4 pieces)
Claudio Monteverdi:Se per havervi, oimé
Carlo Gesualdo:Luci serene e chiare
Vincenzo Ruffo:Io piango
Girolamo Scotto:Amor, io sento l'alma
Yvo Barry:Quando son più lontan
Henricus Schaffen:Ov'e, lass', il bel viso
Anon (15th cent.):There is no rose
John Ward:Upon a bank with roses set about
John Wilbye:Lady, when I behold the roses set about
Gustav Holst:Now sleeps the crimson petal
James MacMillan:So deep
MORE INFO HERE

SERGEI DUKACHEV, piano
Our acclaimed series continues with one of the acknowledged masters of Romantic music, Sergei Rachmaninov. This album is taken from live performances in England between 1999 and 2005 by Russian pianist Sergei Dukachev and includes some favourite Preludes and Etudes, the Second Sonata and the relatively rarely-heard Variations. Dukachev is gaining an enthusiastic following in the UK as well as in his native Russia, and the brilliance of these concert performances demonstrates why.
tracks:
Variations on a Theme of Corelli, Op. 42
Preludes:
Op. 3 no. 2 in C sharp minor
Op. 23 no. 2 in B flat major
Op. 23 no. 3 in D minor
Op. 23 no. 4 in D major
Op. 23 no. 5 in G minor
Op. 32 no. 5 in G major
Op. 32 no. 12 in G sharp minor
Elegie in E flat minor, Op. 3 no. 1
Melodie in E major, Op. 3 no. 3
Etude-Tableau in C major, Op. 33 no. 2
Etude-Tableau in E flat minor, Op. 33 no. 6
Etude-Tableau in D major, Op. 39 no. 9
Piano Sonata no. 2 in B flat minor
MORE INFO HERE

SERGEI DUKACHEV, piano
This album is taken from live performances in England between 2000 and 2005 by Russian pianist Sergei Dukachev and includes the Second and Seventh Sonatas, Visions Fugitives, and extracts from the copmposer's piano transcription of 'Romeo and Juliet'. Dukachev is gaining an enthusiastic following in the UK as well as in his native Russia, and the brilliance of these concert performances demonstrates why.
tracks:
Piano Sonata no. 2, Op. 14
Piano Sonata no. 7 in B flat, Op. 83
Visions Fugitives, Op. 22
Four pieces from 'Romeo and Juliet':
no. 4 Juliet as a Young Girl
no. 6 Montagues and Capulets
no. 8 Mercutio
no. 10 Romeo and Juliet before parting
MORE INFO HERE

2 CDs for the price of 1)
DIANA BOYLE (piano) plays THE ART OF FUGUE, BWV1080.

Bach's Art of Fugue is a great musical enigma; left strangely unfinished, it is thought perhaps to have been intended not for perofrmance but as a definitive guide to the writing of fugues, or a personal musical message meant as the composer's greatest legacy ... in any event it is a supreme masterpiece and here is given a brilliant and individual interpretation, in which Diana Boyle (whose Metier CD of the Toccatas is also highly praised) brings out classical-style emphasis and phrasing, bring the music alive more than in traditional dry and academic accounts. The recording omits the optional 'canons' but includes the 'Inversus' sections of Contrapuncti 12 and 13.
MORE INFO HERE

The music of Austrian composer Hans Gál is being rediscovered and appreciated more and more for its infectious tunefulness and verve, and bears close comparison with the music of Dvorak and the other mid European late Romantics. Here is the first and only recording of his works for piano duo : the album was previously released on Olympia but only weeks before that label's demise, so it will be new to almost everyone.
Performed with usual flair and brilliance by Goldstone & Clemmow.
Contents of CD:
Three Marionettes, Op. 74
Serbische Weisen (Serbian Dances), Op. 3
Concertino, Op. 43
Three Impromptus
Pastoral Tune
MORE INFO HERE

THE DEBUSSY ENSEMBLE Susan Milan (flute), Matthew Jones (viola), Ieuan Jones (harp)

This disc contains beautifully atmospheric 20th century works for flute, viola and harp, from the well known Zodiac Trio of Mathias, to the lesser-known gem by Dubois. Three of Britain's foremost soloists join to provide a memorable program.
CD contents:
Arnold Bax: Elegiac Trio
Claude Debussy: Sonate en Trio
Maurice Ravel: Sonatine en Trio
William Mathias: Zodiac Trio, Op. 70
Théodore Dubois: Terzettino
MORE INFO HERE

ANTHONY GOLDSTONE (piano)
An individual and strongly gifted composer, Mussorgsky was a self-taught amateur who became one of Russia's foremost 19th century musical figures, tragically dying young. This CD contains 'alternative' versions of many pieces to those most commonly heard - including the manuscript version of 'Pictures' avoiding the many substantial errors (including even the popular title of the piece) contained in the published version - and three even earlier drafts, together with revised versions of some works. Once again Anthony Goldstone provides a phenomenal performance.

Contents:
Hopak (Gopak) - earlier version
On the Southern Shore of Crimea (Gurzuf)
Ein Kinderscherz (later version)
In the Village
From Memories of Childhood (completed by A Goldstone)
Pictures from an Exhibiton (manuscript version)
The Seamstress
Impromptu Passionné (later version)
Intermezzo in modo classico (later version)
Earlier variants from 'Pictuers from an Exhibition: Gnomus, Baba-Yagá, The Bogatyr Gates in Kiev
MORE INFO HERE

GOLDSTONE AND CLEMMOW, piano duo
Spain, with its location at the southern tip of western Europe, and its exotic history, has developed a unique music tradition, more aligned, through the influence of the Islamic Moorish period, with the middle east than with the more northern parts of Europe. This cultural uniqueness has attracted hosts of non-Spanish composers to write 'Spanish' pieces many of which have become staples of the repertoire. This programme includes some favourites - but in unfamiliar guise - and some wonderful and little known gems too. Full of zest, fire and 'soul'. Several premiere recordings.
tracks (all for two pianos except *=piano duet)
Emmanuel Chabrier:
España
Enrique Granados, arr. Bartlett/Robertson:
Quejas ó la maja y el ruiseñor
Ernesto Lecuona, arr. Nash:
Malagueña Joaquín Rodrigo:
Adagio from Concierto de Aranjuez
Cécile Chaminade:
La Sévillane, Op. 19 Manuel de Falla, arr. Bertram:
Noches en los jardines de España
Camille Saint-Saëns:
La jota aragonese, Op. 64
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov:
Capriccio Espagnol, Op. 34 *
Francisco Tárrega, arr. Goldstone:
Gran Vals *
MORE INFO HERE

Evocative Symphonic Poems for Piano Duet, performed by Goldstone and Clemmow
Locations can be magical in many ways - musically they can be exotic, inspired by a holiady taken by the composer, expressions of a culture or of nature; here, special places range from England (Britten's Aldeburgh) to Siberia to North Africa. These evocative symphonic poems for piano duet all express some fascination with locale which have excited a composer and brought about these exquisite and Romantic pieces.
CD programme:
Modest Mussorgsky: Night on Bald Mountain
Hugo Alfvén: Midsummer Vigil (Swedish Rhapsody No. 1)
Jacques Ibert: Escales
Anatoly Lyadov: The Enchanted Lake
Benjamin Britten: Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes
John Ireland: The Forgotten Rite
MORE INFO HERE

cutting-edge contemporary sounds.

[rout] has become one of the UK's leading contemporary-music ensembles. In this, their début recording, they present three very different pieces written by the group's core members:
Paul Newland : Standing Jump
Paul Whitty : Love
Sam Hayden : Anthem
MORE INFO HERE

ANTHONY GOLDSTONE
All three volumes of the Schubert Piano Masterworks;
new recordings, critically acclaimed, by one the foremost Schubert interpreters, and all with a 10% discount if you buy all three together (and only shipping or one item not three). Only $42.99 for SIX well-filled CDs.
MORE INFO HERE

Sarah Dunant is the author of the international best-sellers The Birth of Venus and In the Company of the Courtesan, as well as other acclaimed novels. The book is set in an Italian convent in 1570, and chronicles the arrival and effect of a new novice on the community. The musical setting for the book's location and characters is provided as a sort of 'virtual sound-track' on the award-winning Divine Art CD 'Sacred Hearts, Secret Music' (dda25077) Scroll to product d5077 to buy a discount book and CD package

Tsis package includes:
THe CD 'Sacred Hearts, Secret Music' (Divine ART DDA25077) normally $15.99 + $3.00 shipping, AND
The hardback USA edition of 'Sacred Hearts' by Sarah Dunant (published by Random House, cover price $25.00...
(see individual listings for more info) both only $34.75 plus $3.00 shipping mainland USA