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Lest We Forget

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In the centenary year of the Armistice of 1918, thoughts turn to the great human cost of the First World War and many subsequent armed conflicts. Released in support of the charity Combat Stress, this commemorative recording explores the themes associated with human conflict. The programme brings together texts and music pointing to the frailty that leads to the violence of war, but also to triumphs of the human spirit that so often arise from situations of the deepest desolation.

The Choir of Chichester Cathedral are led by Charles Harrison in this collection of works by composers affected by the Great War, including Stanford, Bainton, Ireland, Howells, Parry and Elgar.
Such understated yet beautifully moulded singing - Gramophone No other collection matches this - MusicWeb International Lest We Forget brings together eloquent pieces of music and text that reach remarkable depths of musical and artistic expression that still resonate in the modern day - Chichester Observer Both singing and playing are first class within the clear acoustic of Chichester Cathedral - Cross Rhythms Farrington's imaginative re-working of the orchestral score for organ should win it many devotees, especially in this fine performance - Planet Hugill

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Let the Bright Seraphim

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The Armonico Consort return to disc on Signum (following their highly-regarded Naked Byrd CD series) with a new disc celebrating the glorious combination of soprano and trumpet in baroque music – featuring the soaring talents of Elin Manahan Thomas and Crispian Steele-Perkins. Widely-praised for their imaginative and inventive programming, this disc features works by JS Bach (Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen), GP Telemann (Trumpet Concerto in D major), Alessandro Scarlatti (Su le sponde del Tebro) and a special compilation of works by Handel devised by Crispian Steele-Perkins. The tone is immediately set by Crispian Steele-Perkins' trilling trumpet on Bach's Jauchzet Gott in alien Landen, which also features quite thrilling counterpoints between him and soprano Elin Manahan Thomas - The Independent
The whole thing seems suffused with light reflected from Manahan Thomas’ voice, and Steele-Perkins’ effortlessly projected trumpet - BBC Radio 3 Record Review

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Letters to Lindbergh

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One of the most versatile musicians of his generation, Richard Rodney Bennett was at the forefront of British musical life for nearly half a century. This new recording from the National Youth Choir of Scotland's National Girls Choir compiles a programme of Bennett's choral works from across his compositional life, as well as a collection of charming folk-tunes and nursery rhymes for piano duet (Over the Hills and Far Away).

This is Signum's second release with NYCoS, who in 2011 became the first youth arts organization to receive a Royal Philharmonic Society Award.

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Lewis Wright: DUETS

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For Lewis Wright's debut recording he is joined by British piano virtuoso Kit Downes for a disc of his own works: “There is limited material for vibraphone and piano (especially for improvising musicians), which has the potential to be so rhythmically interesting and polyphonically grand. I set out to compose pieces that showcase the instruments and are built around the language of the musicians. The right pianist, who can speak in this particular dialect of improvisation and has similar taste in the moment, was an obvious choice. Kit and I have known each other and played together since childhood and we share many influences, musical and otherwise.” Lewis Wright, 2018 Lewis Wright is an award-winning British vibraphonist, composer and drummer based in London. As a vibraphonist, he was nominated for Rising Star in the 2016 Downbeat International Critics Poll, and was awarded Ensemble of the Year in the 2016 Parliamentary Jazz Awards with Empirical and the Worshipful Company of Musicians prize in 2011. He has performed at venues such as the Sydney Opera House and the Royal Albert Hall, and has been a featured soloist with Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Centre Orchestra. A set of exquisitely conceived pieces that highlight both the natural range and colouration of the two instruments, but also the improvisational instincts of the two performers - Jazz Journal The sense of unity and clarity of piano and vibes resonates throughout this highly impressive and musical debut - Jazzwise

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Libera Nos: The Cry of the Oppressed

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Coupling powerful interpretations with path-breaking scholarship, the choir Contrapunctus presents music by the best-known composers as well as unfamiliar masterpieces. Directed by Owen Rees, a specialist in music of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the group presents imaginative programmes revealing previously undiscovered musical treasures and throwing new light on familiar works. This recording explores the musical ‘cries of the oppressed’ from opposite ends of Europe, which include some of the most powerful works composed in England and Portugal during this period by Byrd, Tallis, Monte and Cardoso. The highlight perhaps is the first recording of a newly reconstructed vocal work by Thomas Tallis, Libera nos. This has long been thought to be an instrumental work, and has been recorded as such, but there’s persuasive historical evidence for us to be confident that this is in fact a choral setting of the antiphon Libera nos, and it is performed here with the relevant text restored to the five vocal parts. A rich seam of material by such as Tallis, Byrd and Cardoso - The Independent Exemplary... Pristine performances by Owen Rees’s Contrapunctus choir - The Times Experience and vocal excellence merge in the singing of Contrapunctus to produce performances extraordinary even by the British vocal group’s own high standards - Sinfini

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Lieder by Wolf & Brahms

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Alastair Miles is internationally recognised as one of the world’s leading basses, appearing regularly with acclaimed opera companies such as WNO, Glyndebourne, ENO and the Royal Opera, as well as with conductors such as Giulini, Harnoncourt, Muti, Rattle, Gergiev, Gardiner, Norrington, Davis and Dohnanyi.

On this new recording he explores some gems of the Lieder repertoire from Hugo Wolf and Johannes Brahms, ably accompanied by pianist Marie-Nöelle Kendall.

Alastair Miles's gravely sonorous bass is finely attuned to Brahms' and Wolf's vocal swan songs..... Miles's oaken depth of tone and amplitude of line are impressive and ultimately moving. He sings with feeling and understanding [and] Miles is a vivid narrator. It's a nobly sung recital confirming that the leading English operatic basso cantante is also a lieder singer of intelligence and insight - Gramophone

After the 174 bars of hectic introduction to Wolf's Prometheus, Miles's voice bursts into the first line of the song with a vengeance. And so it continues through the programme - a rich and resonant tone, even throughout its easy range, excellent diction and a strong identification with the text. Marie-Noëlle Kendall's accompaniment matches her singer all the way and she seizes her opportunities to show her formidable technique without unbalancing the relationship - OperaNow

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Oliver Davis: Life

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The latest instalment from composer Oliver Davis, an album inspired by his work Life Cycle for violin and strings, with all the works that followed playing on the theme of life. Featuring works for violin, piano, strings, harp and orchestra, Davis is joined by celebrated musicians Huw Watkins (Piano), Kerenza Peacock (Violin), Benjamin Baker (Violin), as well as the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Julian Kershaw.

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Light and Shadow

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Following their acclaimed mix-tape series on Signum Classics, LIGHT and SHADOW is the sixth album from Orchestra of the Swan and David Le Page. Featuring new arrangements of works by Peter Gabriel, Thomas Newman and Radiohead, this latest instalment promises to take you on a compelling, imaginative journey – bridging musical genres such as jazz and electronics in their signature ‘Swan’ style.

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LIGHT DIVINE: Baroque music for treble and ensemble

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The prodigious Norwegian treble Aksel Rykkvin returns to disc on Signum with a new disc of Baroque works, accompanying the MIN Ensemble under trumpeter Mark Bennett and the ensemble director Lazar Miletic. Featuring both instrumental pieces and excerpts from operas and oratorios by Handel, Rameau, Albinoni and Rittler, this disc further documents Aksel’s unique talent as a performer and interpreter of Baroque music. Rykvin's polished technique and confident musical personality yield a lovely account of Télaire's lament - Gramophone Vocal maturity, superb tuning and breath control are quite outstanding - Cathedral Music Magazine A thoroughly enjoyable collection and those that appreciate Baroque music will be thrilled by what is on offer - Cross Rhythms Light Divine further documents Aksel’s unique talent as a performer and interpreter of Baroque music. A must - Northern Echo

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LIM Cosmic Pop Rhapsody

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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

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Lindberg & Aho Clarinet Concertos

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"In my opinion, the Lindberg and Aho clarinet concertos are two of the greatest of the 21st century. These works demand everything from the performer—one moment navigating passages of extreme virtuosity and precision, the next exploring the most beautiful and breath-taking writing. They require total commitment; there’s no holding back, making them both thrilling to perform." - Julian Bliss WINNER - CONCERTO CATEGORY BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE 2026 ★★★★★ - BBC Music Magazine ★★★★ - “[Julian] matches that virtuosity with a velvety smooth tone in the lyrical passages in both works.” - The Guardian The works are brilliantly performed and recorded, reminding Finnish listeners that even the art of a small country does not have to be carved from a single tree. - Rondo Magazine “Captivating” - Kulturabdruck “A resonant and captivating confection, full of long lyrical lines and a beguiling phantasmagoria of chiming percussion. I love it.” - Gramophone "The star is obviously Bliss himself, whose playing in the cadenza – his own, not the composer’s original – is truly dazzling, and fully in keeping with the spirit of the piece." - The Artsdesk

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LISZT

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Internationally renowned soloist Lucille Chung performs a programme of virtuosic and beguiling works by Franz Liszt. One of the first female students of the iconic Russian pianist Lazar Berman at the Academia Pianistica in Imola, Italy, Chung has won numerous awards for her performance’s of Liszt’s music, including the B minor Sonata that features on this programme. Lucille describes in her introduction to the programme how Berman “... for a time doubted that a diminutive lady with hands spanning a 9th (although I can now stretch a 10th on a good day) would ever succeed in playing Liszt well ... Mr Berman came around.” Renowned for her “blazing gutsy performance[s]” (The Washington Post), Lucille Chung has been acclaimed for her “stylish and refined performances” by Gramophone magazine, “combining vigour and suppleness with natural eloquence and elegance” (Le Soir).

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Liszt: Excerpts from Annees de pelerinage, deuxieme annee: Italie S161

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A second solo disc on Signum from an insightful Welsh pianist - this time focussing on virtuosic selections from Franz Liszt. Llyr Williams is an acclaimed soloist, accompanist and chamber musician; highly sought after as a performer in the United Kingdom, in 2012 he was awarded a South Bank Sky Arts Award for his Beethoven Sonata Cycle at Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh the previous year – where he performed all 32 sonatas in just two weeks! Williams's expansiveness with the great Benediction de Dieu dans la Solitude is balanced by the effortless manner in which he keeps it on the move. A superior album which is highly recommended - The Scotsman
In Bénédiction de Dieu he takes us into a different and majestic world. Those long melodic lines seem to lift and swell within vast surrounding spaces - BBC Music Magazine

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Little Wanderer

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'Little Wanderer’, from William Blake’s dream world, seemed the perfect title for an album in which we are surrounded by myriad landscapes in songs by Benjamin Britten, Imogen Holst and Daniel Kidane. Since meeting on our first day at the Royal College of Music, we have long enjoyed programming Britten’s masterful folk song reimaginings, and we adore the texts and music in his powerful Hardy cycle, Winter Words. It has been a joy to discover songs by Imogen Holst, Britten’s close friend and assistant, and we are proud to be able to make the first recording of Dan’s Songs of Illumination, commissioned for us by Leeds Lieder in 2018. For over a decade, song in English has played a major part in our musical lives and performing relationship, and we are delighted to present this programme together. ★★★★★ - BBC Music Magazine “This enormously impressive performance bears comparison with other recorded greats.” - Musicweb International

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Llyr Williams: Pictures

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Described as “one of the truly great musicians of our time” by The Times, Llyr Williams brings an extraordinary musical intelligence to his interpretations and performances. These works are all evocative musical 'pictures' of different times and places: from Debussy's decidedly Spanish Estampes to Mussorgsky's vivid Pictures at an Exhibition.
“…And few could have expected his performance of Mussorgsky?s Pictures at an Exhibition to be so overwhelming. There wasn't a finger out of place all evening, and the dramatic plotting was spot on…” The Guardian, 2 March 2009, Andrew Clements (Wigmore Hall Recital)

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Locus Iste

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Locus Iste celebrates two milestones for the Choir of St John's College, Cambridge: as well as 2019 marking the 150th anniversary of the consecration of the college chapel, this release is coincidentally the choir's 100th recording – 60 years on from George Guest’s iconic first recording of ‘Hear my prayer’ for Argo, released in 1959. Directed by Andrew Nethsingha, the programme makes great use of the chapel's renowned acoustic, and celebrates the choirs past, present and future – including an anthem by a former director of music, a motet by one of their recent student composers and the cello-playing of a current undergraduate. The Choir of St John’s College, Cambridge is one of the finest collegiate choirs in the world – known and loved by millions from its broadcasts, concert tours and recordings. Founded in the 1670s, the Choir is known for its rich, warm and distinctive sound, its expressive interpretations and its ability to sing in a variety of styles. It would be hard to imagine a finer celebration of the 150^th anniversary of St John’s College Chapel - MusicWeb International Leaves us wanting more - Cross Rhythms

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