-
Violin and piano duo Tamsin Waley-Cohen and Huw Watkins explore a violin and piano programme spanning four generations of musical imagination. Prokofiev’s F minor Sonata captivates with its dramatic intensity and baroque-inspired clarity. Stravinsky’s Duo Concertant enchants through five lyrical musical poems, blending wit, elegance, and classical poise. Knussen’s ‘Reflection’ written for Waley-Cohen and Watkins immerses listeners in a jewel-like world of colour and introspection, where every note is deliberately placed. Watkins’s Violin Sonata fuses modern lyricism with bursts of earthy vitality, creating a dialogue of subtle contrasts. ★★★★ - The Times "artfully constructed and sympathetically recorded" - The Strad -
In a historical moment filled with tension and polarizing divide, this beautifully woven-together program of American music tells a story of human interconnectedness that resonates beyond any national borders. "Highly Recommended" - Gramophone “The Calidore String Quartet play like disembodied angels ... their performance of the Korngold quartet is especially uplifting, and barely American. Or belonging to a better America, past and possibly future.” - La Scena Musicale “If there’s anything the U.S. needs in 2026, it’s a recovery of Lincolnesque values—resolve, common sense, understanding, and charity." - Artfuse “a transversal and ambitious reading of the American string quartet repertoire” - Sonograma "The Calidore have said that part of their intention when assembling this album was, exactly as its title states, to demonstrate the rich tapestry of American music as a melting pot of genres, voices, and inspirations. This wonderful recording achieves precisely that." - Presto Music -
This album features three works by distinguished composer Alec Roth, each setting poetry on themes of nature and human reflection. A Road Less Travelled is a cantata for tenor and guitar using poems by Edward Thomas, written before his death in 1917. The Garden Path is a cycle for mezzo-soprano and string quartet setting poems by Amy Lowell, many inspired by her garden. Other Earths and Skies sets Vikram Seth’s translations of Li Bai’s poems for tenor and oboe. “delicate, sincere, and made with great expressive awareness.” - Sonograma -
This Signum Classics release presents four orchestral works by Xiaogang Ye, one of the most prominent figures in contemporary Chinese music, performed by the RLPO under conductor Dane Lam. Recorded in February 2024 at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, the album brings together music inspired by Chinese history and personal memory. The programme opens with The Backyard of the Village (2019), a vivid orchestral portrait of rural life on China’s Hangzhou–Jiaxing–Huzhou Plain, drawing on folk elements and evocative colour. The Memories of Mount Jing Gang (2019), for viola and orchestra, features Diyang Mei and reflects on the historical and symbolic significance of the Jinggang Mountains through a predominantly lyrical and contemplative sound world. My Faraway Nanjing (2005), performed by cellist Guy Johnston, is a single-movement concerto commemorating the victims of the 1937 Nanjing Massacre, unfolding in a dark, expressive narrative of remembrance. The album concludes with The Loquat in Five Colors (2024), an overture inspired by the landscapes and legends of Hebei province. These works highlight Ye’s distinctive synthesis of modern orchestral technique with Chinese cultural identity. “This is certainly a disc worth savouring” - Classical Music Daily -
LIM Cosmic Pop Rhapsody is a concept album created by the global collective LIM, led by Dr. Susan Lim and Christina Teenz Tan, and executive produced by Deepak Sharma. Recorded at Abbey Road Studios, it blends science fiction, music, and storytelling in a 17-track cosmic journey where humans and AI-enabled inanimates seek harmony across the universe. With compositions by Joi Barua, Manu Martin, Matthieu Eymard, and Ron J. Danziger, and performances by international artists including Killian Donnelly, Lucy St. Louis, and Cassie Simone, this vibrant, multi-genre soundtrack unites orchestral grandeur, pop energy, and narrative imagination in a celebration of creativity and companionship -
The Crown of Life continues the Choir of The Queen’s College, Oxford’s exploration of overlooked treasures in twentieth-century English choral music under Owen Rees. At its centre is the first recording of Kenneth Leighton’s Missa Christi (1988), the composer’s final large-scale sacred work, commissioned by Christ Church Cathedral, Indianapolis. Alongside it are world premiere recordings of Harold Darke’s Blessed is the man that endureth temptation and Imogen Holst’s Out of your sleep arise and wake. Works by Rebecca Clarke and Gustav Holst complete the programme, offering a richly varied portrait of composers linked by study with Stanford and united in sacred expression. “Glorious music making from start to finish” - Gramophone 8/10 - CrossRhythms “characterised by a remarkable sonic cohesion and a careful balance between sections” - Sonograma -
Blending iconic choral works with music by today’s most compelling composers, Finding Light is a program centered on the theme of prayer. From the Renaissance exquisite writing of Sheppard’s Libera nos to the luminous sonorities of Lauridsen’s Ubi Caritas and Dubra’s Oculus non vidit, each work offers a distinct meditation on mercy, hope, and transcendence. Highlights include Randall Thompson’s timeless Alleluia and Stephen Paulus’ Hymn to the Eternal Flame, alongside deeply moving contemporary offerings such as Hanna Havrylets’ Prayer and Þóra Marteinsdóttir’s Nú legg ég þér í lófa. Together, these works invite listeners into a space of reflection and renewal, where timeless devotions converse with contemporary longings—and where voices join in a collective search for light. -
This first volume of The Complete Alkan Organ Works presents Joseph Nolan’s recording of Charles-Valentin Alkan’s major works for organ and pedal-piano, performed on the restored Stahlhuth–Jann organ of St Martin’s Church, Dudelange. The release includes the 11 Grands Préludes and Handel transcription Op. 66, the Petits Préludes sur les huit gammes du plainchant, and the Impromptu on Luther’s “Ein feste Burg”, Op. 69. The booklet outlines Alkan’s background, his distinctive position in 19th-century French music, and the technical demands of these rarely recorded pieces. It also documents the instrument’s history and Nolan’s long-term commitment to the project. ★★★★★ - The Guardian 100% - "Nolan is an organist with a mind of his own and this record is in a class of its own ... Nothing else like it on record." - Norman Lebrecht / Slipped Disc -
Divine Impresario is countertenor Randall Scotting’s portrait of the celebrated castrato Nicolò Grimaldi (“Nicolini”), performed with the Academy of Ancient Music and Laurence Cummings. Drawing on arias and duets written for Nicolini by Handel, Porpora, Gasparini, Mancini, Giaj, Broschi, and Ariosti, the album revives music closely tied to his stage career across Italy and London. Many pieces are recorded in new performing editions based on early sources. With contributions from soprano Mary Bevan, the programme highlights Nicolini’s influence as singer, actor, and collaborator, presenting repertoire that shaped early 18th-century opera. ★★★★ - BBC Music Magazine “Scotting stands out for his refined vocal control and clear stylistic awareness” - Sonograma “a delightful portal into a world of baroque wonderment and a musical project that delivers on every level.” - Gramophone “A fascinating and enjoyable disc… Scotting carries us away with his vivid performance.” - PlanetHugill “Outstanding” - Cultural Attache -
Praise for Beethoven: Violin Concerto, Romances: Four stars “And while this is a very classical, traditional recording, it can please because of the virtuoso and technically flawless playing of the soloist” – Pizzicato His third album with Signum Records, internationally acclaimed violinist Charlie Siem is joined again by celebrated pianist Itamar Golan for their second recital album performing works by Grieg and Vaughan Williams, including a transcription of ‘Solveig’s Song’ by Siem himself. Charlie Siem is one of today’s foremost young violinists, with such a wide-ranging diversity of cross-cul- tural appeal. Siem has appeared with many of the world’s finest orchestras and chamber ensembles, includ- ing: the Bergen Philharmonic, the Camerata Salzburg, the Czech National Symphony among many others. For more than two decades, Itamar Golan has been partnering the most outstanding instrumentalists of our time. His work has brought him great critical acclaim, and he is one of the most sought-after pianists of his generation, collaborating with Vadim Repin, Maxim Vengerov, Julian Rachlin, Mischa Maisky among many others. ★★★★★ "This fascinating coupling works exceptionally well, more so in such excellent performances…beautifully recorded by Andrew Keener…those who are both attracted and intrigued by this thoughtful coupling can purchase this disc with full confidence" - Musical Opinion ★★★★ Performance ★★★★★ Recording "[Grieg's Violin Sonata No. 2] The central Allegretto tranquillo deftly balances a gentle nostalgia with spurts of zesty temperament, while the finale sparkles with the influence of Norwegian folk dance. Siem's moody transcription of 'Solveig's Song'…rounds off a stimulating recital" - BBC Music Magazine "Plenty of grit in this unusual sonata programme…His playing is wild and assertive in the Scherzo…the double stops lend a gritty, Prokofievian strength and determination…Itamar Golan matches him in assertiveness and power…Siem brings a melancholy tinge to the expressive melodies and exults in the joyful dances…there is gentle, expressive beauty to his Alegretto tranquillo" - The Strad