The concerto solo parts are performed by two of the orchestra’s principal players – flautist Samuel Coles and clarinettist Mark van de Wiel.
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Under their guest conductor Paavo Järvi, the Philharmonia Orchestra perform three characteristically fiery works by the Danish composer Carl Nielsen; the Flute and Clarinet Concertos, and the Aladdin Suite. -
For her debut concerto recording, ECHO 'Rising Star' Juliette Bausor performs works for flute and orchestra by Mozart and Nielsen, with Royal Northern Sinfonia and conductor, Jaime Martin. -
Night Lights is the first choral EP from composer John Barber and Fourth Window ensemble. Using 8 solo voices its four tracks journey from the twinkling lights of a city at dusk to the dawn of a new day. Setting texts by contemporary writers Inua Ellams and Hazel Gould and traditional words from The Song of Songs, this is an intimate and, at times, epic exploration of night time - a place of solitude, wonder and unexpected connections. Conducted by Sarah Latto, John's music is direct and confessional - with echoes of Steve Reich, James Macmillan and Bjork - a fresh new voice in contemporary choral music. -
Renowned British composer Richard Blackford sets the Greek fable of Niobe to music in the premiere recording of his new violin concerto, performed by Tamsin Waley-Cohen with the Czech Philharmonic under conductor Ben Gernon.
In the myth, Niobe, who has seven daughters and seven sons, mocks Leto, goddess of motherhood yet mother of only two children - Apollo and Artemis. In revenge, Apollo murders Niobe’s sons, while Artemis kills her daughters, and her husband Amphion, king of Thebes, commits suicide. Niobe in grief turns to Zeus for help, who takes pity and turns Niobe to stone; she continues to weep, however, for eternity, her tears flowing as a stream from the rock.
Waley-Cohen comments: “The Greeks saw Niobe as a warning against hubris, but what happened to her can also be interpreted today as a tale about the overly severe punishment of women judged to have stepped out of line. Her punishment seems so brutal, as does the punishment that many women face today around the world. Richard’s concerto is an incredibly powerful piece and a story that is so relevant to women’s issues today.”
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A song recital which commemorates World War One brings to mind works by the poets and composers who fought valiantly for their country. But the affliction of the War was not restricted to the battlefields. As well as those who fought, there were those interned, those who stayed to defend their home, and those who were forced from their homes by the advancing armies. This recital draws its inspiration from those lives upturned by the Great War, whether friend or foe, soldier or civilian. Some survived the conflict to produce great catalogues of works. Others never made it home, penning their final songs in the mud of the trenches. Alongside established works, this recital programme introduces some little known songs to portray the humanity of those caught up in the torrent of The Great War. 2CD Set, Price of a Single CD
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Swiss guitarist Christoph Denoth is considered one of the foremost guitarists of the younger generation, much praised for his rich sound and musical expression. For this new recording from Abbey Road he joins the London Symphony Orchestra under Jesus Lopez Cobos to perform three much loved works for guitar and orchestra – Rodridgo’s much loved Concierto de Aranjuez, the Nocturnos de Andalucia by Lorenza Palomo, and a new orchestral arrangement by Denoth of Joaquin Malats’ Serenata Espanola.★★★★★ Throughout Denoth impresses both with his technique, but also with the engaging way he plays the music...Whilst the Rodrigo is a lovely, highly recommendable performance, it is the Palomo which makes this disc special. I do hope that the performance makes more guitarists take up this fascinating work - Planet Hugill It's attractive, without ever being too comfortable, and backward looking. It's very cleverly scored for large orchestra, and will give much pleasure - Classic FM Throughout, Denoth again shows himself to be a thoughtful musician of considerable taste and technical prowess - Gramophone Much praised for his rich sound and music expression, [Denoth] brings all his talent to bear on much-loved works for guitar and orchestra - The Northern Echo -
Their second Christmas album on Signum Records, Armonico Consort and Christopher Monks return with a new album featuring a collection of carols both old and new. They have created the perfect soundtrack for those who love an atmosphere at Christmas. Featuring world premiere recordings by Composer Toby Young and the first ever recording of ‘Star Song’ by Jonathan Dove on a Christmas album, there are also exquisitely sublime versions from ‘Silent Night’ to ‘Away in a Manger’. "It is ten years since our last carols recording, and we have collected some incredible works we have been so keen to record, including several commissioned from our composer in residence. Christmas somehow manages to inspire composers to write the most imaginative, both in terms of creativity and melodiousness, and Toby is an expert at making Christmas music sound just as we want it to be!" - Christopher Monks "This ["O Adonai"] is a beautiful, shimmering, numinous opener sung by soprano Emily Wenman. I could imagine this stilling the most restless of congregations at the start of a carol service and leading them into worship. There is a splendid selection of material… there is nothing that is not worth hearing in this collection, but my favourite is Elizabeth Poston's "Jesus Christ the Apple Tree". All the singing by the Armonico Consort is first-rate and ably supported by Edward Picton-Turberville on the organ of St Jude's Church, Hampstead. This is a well-chosen and well sung collection that should lift the hearts of all who hear it.” – Cross Rhythms"One of the most outstanding works of this recording is the already named The Star Song, a brilliant Christmas carol with a fabulously commissioned main theme, performed fabulously by the choir. The music selected by Christopher Monks is universal, within the best religious tradition. The sublime Angel's Carol by John Rutter and Jesus Christ the Apple Tree by the composer Elizabeth Poston live in the hearts of musicians, a wonderful canon of four sopranos that interweave the main melody with itself and create a delightful finale." - Sonograma Magazine -
The Sonata for organ by Peter Tranchell, a former Precentor of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, was written in 1958 for Peter le Huray, a fellow lecturer in the Music Faculty of Cambridge University, and Director of Music at St Catharine’s College. The music is closely based on the dedicatee’s name, and the third movement makes extensive use of the plainchant Antiphon Tu es Petrus. The title page quotes the Antiphon melody together with the Acrostic—an arrangement of the letters of the name Peter Geoffrey le Huray:EEGEFFEEHA PTRORYLURY
The first movement, Preludio – Allegro molto, is a toccata, with perpetuum mobile semiquavers in the right hand and mildly dissonant left hand chords in short crotchet and semiquaver phrases, suggesting the rhythms of Morse Code. These are, of course, the non-pitch letters of the name Peter Geoffrey le Huray: PTRORYLURY. The top notes of the chords and the angular pedal theme which follows are derived from the pitch letters EEGEFFEEHA (H = B natural). The left hand then introduces a two-part version of the EEGEFFEEHA theme, continuing on to a new melody, based on the LH chords of the opening in arpeggiated form, together with more dissonant harmonies. This section forms the central part of an arch-structure, and the movement closes with a short coda, finishing on a highly-spiced E major chord. Throughout this movement the harmonic idiom is highly chromatic and often dissonant, though there is always an underlying sense of tonality. The rhythm of the name Peter le Huray is frequently projected. Andante ostinato is imbued with feelings of longing, with two major climaxes, ecstatic or anguished, perhaps both. The opening three-part counterpoint makes extensive ostinato use of the retrograde version of the theme (AHEEFFEGEE), and this is in evidence for most of the movement. The predominantly dissonant idiom finally gives way to more romantic harmonies, ambiguously suggesting fulfilment or resignation, surmounted by the AHEEFFEGEE melody. Tu es Petrus in fuga starts with a grand, richly harmonised statement of the Tu es Petrus melody (Tempo comodo ma non lento), before embarking upon a fugue (Allegretto con moto), based on EEGEFFEEHA as the main subject, and of extreme complexity, both contrapuntal and rhythmic. The time signature is 4/4 , but as often as not the effect is 3 + 3 + 2/8 , and the periodic appearances of the plainchant melody in this rhythm, over a somewhat irreverent oom-cha-cha accompaniment, recall Tranchell’s compositions for the theatre. The fugue ends with two further expansive harmonisations of Tu es Petrus, linked by a characteristically pianistic flourish. There are hardly any indications of registration or dynamics, apart from a few crescendi and suggestions of balance, such as 'en dehors' and 'equal manuals'. The title page includes the instruction: Each movement may be played separately either loud or soft. The present edition, the first of Peter Tranchell’s Sonata for organ to be published, has been type-set from the composer’s manuscript by John Gwinnell and published by The Peter Tranchell Foundation. The Sonata for organ is recorded with permission from the Syndics of Cambridge University Library. "The perfectly in tune Compton proves itself the perfect vehicle for this richly varied repertoire, especially when as well recorded as it has been here by the Signum team…[Harper's] assured technique nakes light of some of the challenges that clearly exist, unerringly finding the heart and soul of every work in the programme…You won't be disappointed" - Organists' Review -
Christmas carols have a universal appeal stemming from the tradition of music being played, sung, rearranged and rewritten by different generations in many different countries and over a number of centuries. Louis Halsey’s Nova! Nova!, a collection of new arrangements of many of the most well-known and beautiful carols from as far back as medieval times, represents perhaps the largest collection of carols by a single composer for many years. Hertfordshire Chorus and David Temple have recorded 23 of these carols in this beautifully presented new collection, including English, German, French, Czech, Basque, Welsh and Irish melodies. “What I love about Louis Halsey’s arrangements is that they are both tasteful and simple, allowing the beauty of each carol to shine through. We are thrilled to share these with a wider audience with this new recording.” - David Temple, Musical Director“This is an attractive CD of many familiar Christmas hymns and carols in arrangements by Louis Halsey for choir and organ. People looking for different, singable and listenable settings of some familiar music need not look further than this disc. ‘Joy to the world’, ‘Ding dong! merrily on high’, ‘O come, O come, Emmanuel’, ‘Deck the hall with boughs of holly’ and many others are found here. The Hertfordshire Chorus give spirited and committed performances of this repertoire. Their diction is clear and crisp, the dynamic contrasts are excellent, and their command of French and German is impressive.” - RSCM -
The festival of Christmas means many things to many people. Its status as an international public holiday provides a rare opportunity for families and friends from far and wide to come together. Being creatures of habit, many communities establish rituals to prepare for and mark the occasion, finding comfort in the familiarity of an annual structure. For some, the birth of Christ the Saviour is at the centre of these practices, while others regard Christmas as a secular celebration characterised by Santa and mulled wine. These diverse, multifaceted traditions of Advent and Christmas are explored throughout Now may we singen. With works by composers of different generations, backgrounds and musical legacies, Christmas as both ancient holy day and modern, ever evolving holiday is embraced by Timothy Garrard (director), Ben Bloor (organ) and the Choir of Westminster School through bold, characterful musical interpretations. -
The second album from the Choir of St John’s with their new music director - Christopher Gray. At the centre of the programme are the atmospheric Quatre Motets pour le temps de Noël by Francis Poulenc, and the heartfelt Three Carol-An-thems by Herbert Howells who directed the Choir here at St John’s during the Second World War. Other items include the beautiful carol John Rutter wrote for the Choir in 1985, There is a flower, and the haunting Peace on earth by Master of the King’s Music, Errollyn Wallen. “My aim with this album has not been to break new ground with repertoire, but to ensure that classics remain fresh for the current generation” - Christopher Gray 9/10 - “all the singing is first class throughout.” - CrossRhythms ★★★★ - "Captures [the choir] in wholesome fettle" - BBC Music Magazine "A glorious mixture of impassioned performances" - Gramophone “A superb disc, beautifully presenting a procession os stellar performances with detailed notes and in sterling sound.” - Classical Explorer “The recording quality is of the excellent standard that all of John’s own label recordings have established” - MusicWeb International “The Choir of St John's clearly continues to thrive, and Christopher Gray has assumed the mantle of his distinguished predecessors with aplomb.” - Organists' Review -
Signum Records are proud to present the seventh album from film and television composer Oliver Davis. Similarly to his previous album SOLACE, AIR was written during lockdown and draws on themes of nature, environment and the natural world. Davis’s previous albums with Signum have reached the top 10 on both iTunes Classical and UK Specialist Classical Charts multiple times, receiving numerous five-star reviews and well over a million streams on Apple Music. British composer Oliver Davis has parlayed a long record as a composer of film and television scores into a successful career as a composer of orchestral music that in performance have attracted top-notch London orchestras and soloists. He has also been active as a composer of ballet – most recently premiering Lineage with choreographer Edwaard Liang at New York City Ballet’s prestigious Fall Fashion Gala. ★★★★ "Britain's Oliver Davis is a soundtrack composer who has turned to freestanding orchestral and chamber music with great success…Fresh and never sentimental or cloying, this recording benefits from fine studio sound on the part of Signum Classics, and overall, this may be a good recording to try for those curious about Davis" - AllMusic.com -
This is Oliver Davis’ first album dedicated to the piano, and specifically two pianists, Dutch piano duo Beth & Flo. The album features this dynamic duo playing four hands piano and also on two pianos with full orchestra. The song cycle 'Siren Songs' features sopranos Grace Davidson, Julia Doyle and Grace's son chorister Joshua Davidson. The theme of the album is water, in its many forms with songs depicting a river journey, Sea Dances for four hands and strings, Sea Waltzes in addition to the Water Variations. The opening piece, The Water Garden, will be one of three singles being released prior to the album's launch. The pianists and singers are accompanied by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Paul Bateman. “[The] material nestles comfortably in the contemporary classical genre whilst avoiding the usual tediously contrived sentimentality some other composers rely upon...The opening track – Sea Dances for 4 Hands and Strings – quickly secured earworm status soon after I first heard the album” – Thoroughly Good Blog -
British composer Oliver Davis’s works have been described as being ‘beautiful’ (The Times) and having ‘pulsating rhythmic energy’ (Classic FM), and has been heard the world over through his frequent collaborations with ballet companies, from Edwaard Liang’s 13th Heaven which premiered in Singapore to Secrets, choreographed by Erico Montes and premiered by e Royal Ballet. In this new recording Liberty, Davis explores works for violin, soprano, strings and orchestra, working with a host of world-leading performers including violinist Kerenza Peacock, soprano Grace Davidson and cellist Katherine Jenkinson, all alongside the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Paul Bateman. Previous albums from Davis have been critically praised, entering in the top 10 in the UK specialist classical charts and becoming disc of the week on Classic FM and the Mail on Sunday and featuring in several ‘Best albums of the year’ listings. A host of world-leading performers - Northern Echo -
Recorded at the height of the international Covid lockdown, Oliver Davis’s sixth album for Signum is a feat of both technological as well as artistic achievement. Following from draws together artists from across the globe for a selection of moving works for a variety of forces – recording a violinist in Los Angeles, a piano duo in The Netherlands, a guitarist in Argentina and the Budapest Scoring Orchestra conducted by Péter Illényi in Budapest. Davis’s previous albums with Signum have reached the top 10 on both iTunes Classical and UK Specialist Classical Charts multiple times, receiving numerous five-star reviews and well over a million streams on Apple Music. British composer Oliver Davis has parlayed a long record as a composer of film and television scores into a successful career as a composer of orchestral music that in performance have attracted top-notch London orchestras and soloists. He has also been active as a composer of ballet – most recently premiering Lineage with choreographer Edwaard Liang at New York City Ballet’s prestigious Fall Fashion Gala. -
Armonico Consort return to disc on Signum with a festive selection of classic carols and hymns alongside new commissions and arrangements. The programme is rounded off by Benjamin Britten’s timeless A Ceremony of Carols. If you want this particular programme it is hard to imagine it being better performed - Early Music Review Highly recommended - Northern Echo Intimate, small-scale performances of mainly familiar titles - BBC Music Magazine -
Nigel Short leads Tenebrae in a new album of sacred and jazz inspired choral works by Alexander L’Estrange, one of Britain’s most popular living choral composers.L'Estrange's works add a jazz-infused chordal depth and a roving harmonic eye to Howell's declamatory muscularity and modal palette. It's attractive, approachable music, with nothing contrived or patronising about it - Gramophone Vivid, varied and completely satisfying - Choir & Organ The choir masterfully interprets all the works to perfection and gains power and warmth from one piece to the next, offering to its listeners deep bass sounds as well as the brilliant homogeneity of voices - BachTrack On the showing of this disc, Alexander L'Estrange is the go-to person for evocative and striking small scale new commissions, something lyrically attractive with some luscious harmonies... Each item is perfectly lovely with the fine performances of Tenebrae giving us plenty of magical moments - Planet Hugill -
★★★★ Performance ★★★★★ Recording “Charles Owen and Katya Apekisheva tackle Between Friends with an unassailable instinct for Dove’s playfulness, glittering sonorities and discursive breadth.” – BBC Music Magazine The Sacconi Quartet join forces again with celebrated composer Jonathan Dove for the latest instalment of their many fruitful collaborations and journeys. The String Quartet no 2 On the Streets and in the sky was written during the recent pandemic and was commissioned for the Sacconi Quartet to celebrate their 20th anniversary. Between Friends, is a world premiere recording, and a memorial to Graeme Mitchison (1944-2018), a multi-disciplined scientist, intrepid adventurer, cyclist, paraglider, mountaineer and a possessor of two pianos on which he and Dove would play together for over forty years. Who Wrote the Book of Love? Is an extended song cycle written for baritone Philippe Sly who performs the work here. Vanishing Gold is a compact five-minute piece written for the 40th anniversary of the Endellion Quartet, who then retired. Dove’s previous release with the Sacconi Quartet on Signum “In Damascus” was awarded Gramophone Recording of the Month and Presto’s Editors Choice in 2017. "You couldn’t hope for a finer way in which to discover the chamber world of this important British composer most recognised for his opera and vocal music. Essential listening, whether contemporary is usually your bag or not." - Gramophone -
A beautiful collection of songs, Only a Singing Bird features Michael Head’s best-known works, The Ships of Arcady and The Little Road to Bethlehem, as well as his beautifully-imagined, nostalgic song-cycle, Snowbirds. NYCoS National Girls Choir is joined by its patron and world renowned mezzo soprano, Karen Cargill for this incredible new recording. -
2012 marks the 15th anniversary of the first release from the leading independent classical label Signum Records. Beginning life as an early music specialist (with a landmark release of the Complete Works of Thomas Tallis with Chapelle du Roi), Signum has grown since 1997 to a catalogue of over 300 releases across a wide range of genres. The organ collection combines works by world class performers (including Simon Preston, David Goode, Jeremy Filsell, Naji Hakim, Joseph Nolan and more) recorded on organs from Freiberg, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey & Cathedral, the Royal Albert Hall and more - all selected from titles across the Signum catalogue.A sampler ranging from the boxy organ of Buckingham Palace to the magnificent instruments of Freiberg and Rouen; nearly as many players, too, and repertoire from Bach to Langlais - BBC Music Magazine Among the plentiful gems here, David Goode's Messiaen in Eton, Samuel Wesley's Choral Song courtesy of James Vivian in London's Temple Church, and Robert Quinney's haunting performance of 'Nimrod' in Westminster Abbey especially stand out - Choir & Organ -
The Choir of Jesus College Cambridge present this album of sacred works which follows events in the Church calendar. From Ash Wednesday, through to the final feast of the year – Trinity, the recording features works by Bryd, Purcell, Casals, Elgar, Stanford, Britten, Tallis and James MacMillan, all directed by Mark Williams. ★★★★★ Bairstow's The Lamentation is interpreted with marvellous subtlety here - Choir & Organ Brooding and refined - The Telegraph Fresh, engaging performances of works spanning the church year, from a choir moving swiftly up the Oxbridge pecking order. The Rorem and MacMillan pieces get especially fine performances - BBC Music Magazine -
This album marks the culmination of a landmark project to re-imagine new works from old for saxophone, choir and organ. Celebrated saxophonist Sam Corkin is joined by Canterbury Cathedral Choir to bring a fresh perspective to some well-loved repertoire, recorded within the iconic surroundings of Canterbury Cathedral. Featuring fifteen specially commissioned works by leading composers including Gabriel Jackson, Errollyn Wallen and Roderick Williams. "The overall sound of this recording is excellent, capturing the ambience of the cathedral, the impeccable diction of the singers and the balance between the solo saxophone and singers and on some tracks the powerful interjection of the organ. Overall, an excellent album warmly recommended." - Clarinet and Saxophone Magazine “The performances are exemplary. Sam Corkin has great control of the saxophone and his timbres are par excellence. The edginess he infuses at times heightens tensions. Do have a listen – it’s inventive, interesting, and at times intense.” - The Organist -
A seductive and fascinating disc for fans of contemporary music, this collection of works for Bassoon with choir and orchestra feature works by British composer Stephen Frost and Norwegian composer Kjell Mørk Karlsen. The disc’s title work Parapraxis, for solo bassoon and choir, melds together a mix of sacred latin text and secular English poetry, pushing and playing with the illusory ‘boundary’ that seems to exist between the two. The other two works – Frost’s Bassoon Concerto and Karlsen’s Serenata – are beguiling and stimulating pieces that show off the talents of Norwegian bassoonist Sigyn Birkeland and the Belarusian State Chamber Orchestra. In demand as a soloist, Sigyn Birkeland has been Principal Bassoon in the Norwegian Radio Orchestra since 1992. She continues to champion the instrument by commissioning, performing and recording new works for the instrument in a variety of unique ensembles and settings. -
As a schoolboy at Eton in the 1860s, Parry was very much alive to the traditions of part-singing—the glee, madrigal and part-song — that had become increasingly popular in Britain since the middle of the eighteenth centuries. Though the popular entertainment genre of the glee had, by his time, run its course as a subject of composition, it was still a style of music that was widely sung by many vocal societies and choral unions. It was, however, the 'madrigal' and the 'part-song' that were emerging as more important foci. "[The choir’s] youthful radiance offers substantial rewards” - BBC Music Magazine -
Will Todd has established himself as one of the UK’s most popular choral composers. His anthem, The Call of Wisdom, was performed at the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations with a TV audience of 45 million people. His breakthrough work, Mass in Blue, has been performed hundreds of times all over the world. Passion Music was commissioned for the choirs of St Martin-in-the-Fields and continues the fusion of jazz and choral music so successfully blended in Mass in Blue. The structure highlights different points in the Passion story, beginning with a new setting of ‘Greater love has no man’ and including an evocative Stabat Mater, a movement focusing on the seven last words of Christ, and a setting of ‘Were you there when they crucified my Lord?’. The Jazz Missa Brevis gives new life to the sung Latin Mass texts in an accessible, short setting which embraces a variety of jazz styles, from the swinging jazz waltz Kyrie to the up-beat Latin-groove Gloria. The smooth jazz ballad Sanctus, 7/8 Benedictus and soulful Agnus Dei complete this inspiring Mass setting.Shaneeka Simon would sound just as confident singing Broadway material and the St. Martins Voices [perform] with what can only be described as relaxed reverence - Choir & Organ Sensitively, often rapturously written and immaculately performed - BBC Music Magazine A stimulating release, beautifully recorded and produced - Gramophone There is a great deal to admire in this release from an important and gifted British choral composer - Church Times A must for devotees - The Northern Echo -
A programme of concert arias by Mozart, Haydn and BeethovenLeading British soprano Sophie Bevan performs a sumptuous programme of concert arias by Mozart, Haydn and Beethoven. Bevan is accompanied on this new recording by The Mozartists, recently launched by Ian Page’s internationally renowned period ensemble Classical Opera as an expansion of its continuing exploration of Mozart and his contemporaries. Complementing Classical Opera’s ongoing recording series of the complete operas of Mozart, the creation of The Mozartists reflects the group’s expanding repertoire and ambitious plans, and they can be heard in concert from September 2017. -
Permutations is a new work by Freya Waley-Cohen, commissioned as part of a Aldeburgh Festival’s 2017 season and exploring the relationship between architecture and music. Born in London in 1986, Tamsin Waley-Cohen enjoys an adventurous and varied career. In addition to concerts with the Royal Philharmonic, London Philharmonic and BBC orchestras, amongst others, she has been associate artist with the Orchestra of the Swan and works with conductors including Andrew Litton and Tamás Vásáry. She enjoys a duo partnership with Huw Watkins, whose Concertino she premiered, and together they have recorded for Champs Hill and Signum Records, for whom she is a Signum Classics Artist. In 2016-2017 she will be a recipient of the ECHO Rising Stars Awards. She studied at the Royal College of Music and her teachers included Itzhak Rashkovsky, Ruggiero Ricci, and András Keller. Freya Waley-Cohen’s music has been performed by the Manson Ensemble at the Royal Academy of Music, conducted by Oliver Knussen, the Orchestra of the Swan, conducted by David Curtis, CHROMA ensemble, e Hermes Experiment, Reverie Choir, Richard Watkins, Huw Watkins and others, at venues including the Sage Gateshead, Spital elds Festival, e Ryedale Festival, e British Film Institute, Snape Maltings Aldeburgh, Dartington, e National Portrait Gallery, and Kew Gardens. -
The Choral Scholars of University College Dublin and Artistic Director Desmond Earley follow up their debut release with a programme of new choral music inspired by the evocative imagery of the natural world in traditional Irish and Scottish folksong and poetry. The disc includes a number of world-premiere recordings of new works and arrangements commissioned by the choir. The Choral Scholars of University College Dublin, under the artistic direction of Desmond Earley, is Ireland’s leading collegiate choral ensemble. With a large repertoire ranging from art to popular music, and stretching from the medieval to the contemporary in style, this choir gives many concerts throughout the academic year, both in Ireland and abroad. This whole project exudes quality - Gramophone Excellently sung - BBC Music Magazine Earley [shapes] a sequence of traditional Irish settings with contemporary material, [and his] setting of 'Danny Boy' [is] quite beautiful - Choir & Organ -
Mark van de Wiel joins the Philharmonia Orchestra under Christopher Warren-Green in the premiere recording of Joseph Phibbs’ Clarinet Concerto, praised by The Sunday Times following its UK debut as a work “that will surely be performed all over the world ”. Following a long friendship between composer and soloist, Phibbs and van de Wiel collaborated to create this stunning and virtuosic new work for the clarinet and orchestra, which features a thrilling cadenza at the end of the first movement. It is paired with a scintillating live concert-recording of Mozart’s timeless Concerto for Basset Clarinet in A Major, K. 622, performed with the London Chamber Orchestra. -
2012 marks the 15th anniversary of the first release from the leading independent classical label Signum Records. Beginning life as an early music specialist (with a landmark release of the Complete Works of Thomas Tallis with Chapelle du Roi), Signum has grown since 1997 to a catalogue of over 300 releases across a wide range of genres. The piano collection collects performances from John Lill, James Rhodes, Jill Crossland, Jeremy Filsell, Alessio Bax, Llyr Williams and Ana-Maria Vera. -
The new recording from percussionist Joby Burgess includes ambient electronics fused with mellow vibraphone, explosive cinematic drumming and the delicate muted sounds of 1960’s New York.Psappha Iannis Xenakis
Psappha is an archaic form of Sappho - a great Greek poetess from the Island of Lesbos, born in the 600's BC. Composed for six groups of instruments (of wood, skin and metal) Psappha is muscular, abrasive and often violent - an intensely masculine work in contradiction to its title. The inspiration comes from Sappho's poetry, whose rhythms appear constantly in both small cells and the large scale over arching structure. Instrument choice is left to the performer, Xenakis writes ‘timbre serves only to clarify the rhythmic structures’ - my performance seeks maximum range and colour, with a nod to touring practicalities.
Ekstasis Linda Buckley
A ‘leading figure in the younger generation of Irish composers’ Linda Buckley combines medieval harmony, ambient electronic music and the hypnotic atmosphere of Javanese Gamelan in her commission for Pioneers of Percussion. Referring to the Greek term for ‘trance, to stand outside oneself, rapture’ Ekstasis is composed for vibraphone, Thai gongs and electronics. Premiered by Joby Burgess in 2016, Ekstasis was commissioned using funds from Arts Council England.
The late musicologist Bob Gilmore writes: ‘Buckley engages with an area of experience that new music is generally shy of, which, simplified and reduced to a single word, I’d call ecstacy. Not the drug-induced euphoria of dance music, but exultant, heightened states of being that are the product of an excitable sensibility, of an emotional response to the world that sees the bright places of life as clearly as the dark.’The King of Denmark Morton Feldman
Feldman’s reply to Stockhausen’s Zyklus is the great early anti-percussion composition, where a collection of soft sounds, twinkle like stars in the night. In The King sounds move without weight as dust through a gentle breeze, to create a deep seemingly disconnected sonic canvas. Feldman captured the muted soundscape of New York from Coney Island on a summer afternoon in 1964.
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This new recording for Signum Records includes silvery vibraphone with live looping, a quasi rock n roll documentary exploring censorship and a musical picture of the subtle shifts in our changing Seasons.
The Filthy Fifteen Nicole Lizée
Montreal based composer Nicole Lizée has been called a musical scientist, with a body of work inspired by the glitches of outmoded and well-worn technology. The Filthy Fifteen is a quasi rock n roll documentary taking a satirical look at censorship and the PMRC. Formed in 1985 the ‘Parents Music Resource Center’ was a committee of ‘Washington wives’ including Tipper Gore, which led to the labeling of albums with ‘Parental Advisory’ stickers. The live percussion - which includes a 'censorship kit' (typewriter, books, papers) - meld and intermingle with the rhythmic and pitch inflections of voices taken from footage and recordings related to the hearings. Premiered by Joby Burgess in 2016, The Filthy Fifteen was commissioned using funds from Arts Council England.
Can’t Sleep Rebecca Dale
Hailed by Classic FM as "one of today's most exciting young composers" Rebecca Dale is a London based composer, working most often with large orchestral and choral forces in the worlds of cinema and theatre. Written for solo vibraphone and live looping Can’t Sleep explores the moments around sleep, where our brains fire ideas around to keep us from resting. Premiered by Joby Burgess in 2016, Can’t Sleep was commissioned using funds from Arts Council England.
Seasons Tōru Takemitsu
Tōru Takemitsu is one of the most influential Japanese composers of the 20th Century. Combining traditional Japanese music with ideas from the American experimental and European Avant-Garde, Takemitsu created a sound uniquely his own for both the concert hall and film scores. Seasons (1970) is a 16 minute exploration of the sounds between our Seasons, using only metallic materials to describe the subtle shifts and changes. At the heart of my performance is the Canna Sonora (Aluminium Harp) - a Capone-era friction instrument, designed and built in Chicago - this replaces Francois and Bernard Baschet’s instrument of glass bars ‘Trombone’, which featured in the early performances of this work. Seasons is notated graphically, with an echo effect applied to this generally soft music, a response to statements of an almanac, atmospherics and astrology.
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Michael Finnissy was born in Tulse Hill in 1946. He studied at the Royal College of Music with Bernard Stevens and Humphrey Seale, and in Italy with Roman Vlad. Much of his early work was first performed in France and the Netherlands, while he was working as a freelance repetiteur and pianist for dance-classes. He taught at the Royal Academy of Music, at the universities of Sussex and Southampton, and at the Katholiek Universiteit in Leuven. He has also given summer courses at Dartington, and been resident artist at the Victorian College of the Arts in Melbourne (Australia). He has been featured composer at the Huddersfield Festival several times, at the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, and many other places across the world, most recently at SICPP in Boston USA. Here, The Choir of St. John’s College, Cambridge perform Finnissy’s deep, rich and fulfilling music in what has been a four year process. It has taken Conductor and Director Andrew Nethsingha, four years to gradually become acquainted with the pieces on this recording. He says it “has been a deeply enriching experience which I want others to share”. All downloads include booklets. RUNNER UP - Contemporary: Gramophone Recordings of the Year 2021 "Nethsingha’s choristers and supporting players do Finnissy’s music proud" - Classical Source -
The King’s Singers explore the folk songs and melodies of the world in a new programme entitled Postcards. In their own words: “In our travels we have amassed a wonderful collection of folksongs and popular songs from numerous countries, many of which we use as encores when we visit. The influences and sources are extraordinarily far-ranging, and each song has its own local characteristics. To celebrate the diversity of music that we perform and the numerous countries we visit each concert season, we have recorded an album of some of our favourite folksongs from around the world.” Typically immaculate performances of songs collected by the King's Singers on their global travels, and used as encores. Velvet vocal blending is a given, and mellifluous arrangements - BBC Music Magazine -
Poulenc was a skilled pianist, cultivating a style of playing characterised by colourfulness and clarity, possessing an ear for melody that distinguished him as France’s finest song composer since Fauré. ★★★★★ Lucille Chung proves a fantastic Poulenc advocate... A release to savour - Classical Ear For me the most attractive piece here is Poulenc’s own arrangement for two pianos of his Concerto for two pianos. The slow movement alone is worth the price of this exceptional disc - Classic FM A very special disc indeed - MusicWeb International -
Composing over 150 works for piano and voice over a period of 44 years, the songs of Francis Poulenc remain consistently popular to concert audiences the world over. Varying in their individual style and character in a way that defies generalization, Poulenc set music to a wide range of different French poetry – both ancient and modern, and from the serious to the surreal. This second release in a new series charts the complete songs of Francis Poulenc, performed by some of the greatest singers of the day and accompanied by the exceptional Malcolm Martineau. Praise for the first disc includes: "Lisa Milne performs wonderfully throughout this Poulenc disc. She really sings the French as to the Manoir born … A nicely balanced and arranged recital for all of these voices, so a promising start to this new Poulenc series." Hilary Finch and Andrew McGregor, CD Review, BBC Radio 3 -
Composing over 150 works for piano and voice over a period of 44 years, the songs of Francis Poulenc remain consistently popular to concert audiences the world over. Varying in their individual style and character in a way that defies generalization, Poulenc set music to a wide range of different French poetry – both ancient and modern, and from the serious to the surreal. This is the third release in our series that will build to encompass the complete songs of Francis Poulenc – performed by some of the greatest singers of the day and accompanied by the exceptional Malcolm Martineau. Praise for the first disc includes: "Lisa Milne performs wonderfully throughout this Poulenc disc. She really sings the French as to the Manoir born … A nicely balanced and arranged recital for all of these voices, so a promising start to this new Poulenc series." Hilary Finch and Andrew McGregor, CD Review, BBC Radio 3 -
Composing over 150 works for piano and voice over a period of 44 years, the songs of Francis Poulenc remain consistently popular to concert audiences the world over. Varying in their individual style and character in a way that defies generalization, Poulenc set music to a wide range of different French poetry – both ancient and modern, and from the serious to the surreal. This is the fourth release in our series that will build to encompass the complete songs of Francis Poulenc – performed by some of the greatest singers of the day and accompanied by the exceptional Malcolm Martineau.
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Composing over 150 works for piano and voice over a period of 44 years, the songs of Francis Poulenc remain consistently popular to concert audiences the world over. Varying in their individual style and character in a way that defies generalization, Poulenc set music to a wide range of different French poetry – both ancient and modern, and from the serious to the surreal. The final disc in Signum’s series of The Complete Songs of Francis Poulenc features a cast of the finest singers of our generation, accompanied by Malcolm Martineau as well as additional instrumental soloists for Poulenc’s larger-ensemble settings of his songs. Featured works in this final volume include Rapsodie Negre, Le Bestiaire, Quatre poe?mes de Max Jacob, Vocalise, Quatre poemes d’Apollinaire, Banalite?s and Le Bal Masque?. -
Hymns are a living link with the past, yet they still find freshness and relevance in the twenty- first century. Saint Thomas Aquinas comments that ‘hymns are the praise of God with song; a song is the exultation of the mind dwelling on eternal things, bursting forth in the voice’ and this explains neatly the vital place that hymnody has enjoyed throughout the ages, and continues to do so today. Praise my soul celebrates this glorious tradition of hymnody and showcases some of the hymns heard in Jesus College Chapel in their own regular pattern of choral services. Some of these, including Drop, drop, slow tears and Glory to thee, my God, this night have been sung regularly for hundreds of years. Others such as All my hope on God is founded or Christ Triumphant have become classics over the last half-century.
The Choir of Jesus College Cambridge return to disc on Signum with their seventh release, and their first under choral director Richard Pinel.
A magnificent disc of fine hymn tunes and outstanding music making - MusicWeb International -
This programme explores that vast twentieth-century secular English choral repertoire which goes under the generic title ‘partsongs’. It is an extraordinarily rich repertoire to which almost all the famous composers contributed. Buried amongst vast quantities of slightly twee pastoralism – the much-derided “cow-pat” school – are to be found many settings of glorious poetry, forming a corpus of sublime twentieth-century madrigals at least as fine as their famous renaissance forebears. However, this programme has another particular theme: how poets and composers reflect upon the natural world as a metaphor for our own emotional experience. At the heart of this programme is the complex relationship between man and nature, the bitter-sweetness of a radiant and beautiful dawn creating the same unbearable sadness of a ravishing song, and both with intimations of mortality. ★★★★★ This is a simply gorgeous CD, superbly executed - Choir and Organ ★★★★ The Gabrieli Consort, conducted by Paul McCreesh, sings Stanford’s The Blue Bird with such abstracted beauty that enchantment sets in from the opening minutes. Their collection of English part-songs mostly inhabits a dreamy, pastoral world, the home ground of Howells, Warlock and Vaughan Williams, though Elgar’s bleak Owls (loneliness or foreboding of death?) goes further. Outgoing narrative settings by Jonathan Dove and Grainger add story-telling and a dash of bold colours - Financial Times ★★★★ The effect is arresting, and typical of the attention to text and score demonstrated by Paul McCreesh and his singers. These miniatures are rich, each in need of proper savouring - The Observer ★★★★ The selection of pieces is evocative and thoughtful… Stanford’s The Blue Bird is concentrated and controlled, with a lovely clarity of line and a fine-grained elegance of sound. This song exemplifies the many virtues of the performances on this disc - Planet Hugill The result is a clever mixture of moods – a disc that takes the part-song into the 21st century not only in repertoire but also in style - Gramophone Successful and very cherishable… The key to its success is the gorgeous attention to detail which draws the most exquisite sounds from the choir - Music Web International -
Following an acclaimed debut recording of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake with the Philharmonia in 2020, Santtu-Matias Rouvali returns with a recording of Sergei Prokofiev’s iconic Symphony No. 5. Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 5 was first performed in 1944, 14 years after his previous symphony. Prokofiev described his Fifth Symphony as a “hymn to free and happy Man, to his mighty powers, his pure and noble spirit,” explaining that, “I cannot say that I deliberately chose this theme. It was born in me and clamoured for expression. The music matured within me. It filled my soul.” ★★★★★ "It is a magnificent achievement on everyone's part; the conductor, the players and, not least the outstandingly brilliant sound achieved in what is generally a dry acoustic…[Santtu] judges the finale perfectly too allowing the slow introduction to lead to an exhilarating conclusion" - Musical Opinion ★★★★ Performance ★★★★ Recording "The mildly resonant acoustic allows details of orchestral colour to emerge that I do not recall in other recorded accounts Santtu-Matias Rouvali also draws fascinating parallels between the fifth and the eerie third symphony created by Prokofiev" - BBC Music Magazine ★★★★ "The live recording here plays to the performance's strengths; a recording that promises new ideas from the Philharmonia's new conductor" - AllMusic -
Simon Desbruslais leads the performances on this disc of world premiere recordings from some of the UK’s leading composers. Seeking to expand the trumpet’s repertoire of concerto and orchestra works, Simon Desbruslais was inspired after performing Robert Saxton’s Psalm to help comission the three new works on this programme: Saxton’s Shakespeare Scenes, Deborah Pritchard’s Skyspace and John McCabe’s La Primavera. Four vibrant, attractive concertos – three written within the past three years – by three of Britain’s brightest and best, and performed with dazzling virtuosity and musicianship by Simon Desbruslais and the Orchestra of the Swan ... The concluding held note for the trumpet unaccompanied is just one sign of his consummate mastery. A hugely enjoyable disc, strongly recommended - Gramophone Desbruslais's immaculate playing and faultless musicality serve all these works well. I do not think that his playing in these works could be bettered although I sincerely wish that these works were avidly seized upon by any adventurous trumpet player - MusicWeb International Four new British trumpet concertos, brilliant, seductive and engrossing - Planet Hugill -
Bernard Herrmann was perhaps one of the greatest musical all-rounders of the 20th Century. Although he is best known for his scores to perhaps some of the most iconic films ever made ('Vertigo', 'Citizen Kane', 'Psycho'), he was also a talented composer for the concert hall, with an early career marked out by his skill as a conductor - praised by Stravinsky amongst others, who autographed Hermann's score for his Symphony in 3 Movements with "To the excellent musician and conductor, Bernard Herrmann. Cordially, I. Stravinsky." The Tippett Quartet capture the energy and musical finesse of Herrmann's works in this recording, accompanied for Souvernirs de Voyage by the clarinetist Julian Bliss and featuring a new arrangement of his score for 'Psycho'. Chillingly delivered … it is impossible to imagine more expert renditions than these - GramophoneClarinettist Julian Bliss plays with exquisite restraint, as though wanting not to disturb the intimate conversations of the Tippett Quartet - The Independent
Splendid - The Sunday Telegraph
This album is an engaging, suspenseful adventure through Herrmann’s life and career, bound by short themes, an emphasis on effect rather than melody, and a sense of unease. I highly recommend this album! - The Clarinet Online -
In Puccini’s anniversary year, Chief Conductor of Welsh National Opera Carlo Rizzi has created new, purely orchestral versions of some of his most well-known and beloved works. Staying pure and faithful to Puccini’s original orchestration without anything added to ‘cover’ any perceivable lack of vocal line, the brilliance of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, Tosca, and other works shine through in this album of world premiere recordings. “I hope that those who already love Tosca and Butterfly will enjoy the opportunity to focus wholly on the orchestra as they listen, and that people who are usually more drawn to the concert hall than to the opera house will be rewarded by exploring something new. In the end my only aim is to share and celebrate Puccini with all of them” – Carlo Rizzi“Carlo Rizzi, one of The Metropolitan Opera’s often under-appreciated maestros in the Italian repertoire, conducted both “Ballo” (with steady drive) and “Bohème” (with sumptuous clarity).” - New York Times "It [Capriccio sinfonico] is well played here, with spruce attention to detail, and the orchestral playing sounds excellent in the resonant acoustic of Cardiff’s Hoddinott Hall. This was a thoroughly enjoyable wallow...the orchestra remains on excellent form." - MusicWebInternationalPerformance ★★★★ Recording ★★★★ - BBC Music Magazine -
Purcell’s ever-green chamber opera Dido & Aeneas, its story drawn from Virgil’s epic, the Aeneid, is performed by the Armonico Consort with an astounding selection of soloists. Armonico Consort is one of the largest and most innovative organisations of its kind in the UK, existing to inspire audiences with its unique programmes. ★★★★ Lithe, colourful, tastefully phrased and dynamically astute playing...[the cast] sing compellingly and inhabit their roles with the same sensitivity that distinguishes the whole performance - The Daily TelegraphA clean, uncluttered account featuring crystalline voices, good diction, safe tempos and well-defined phrasing...vocal ensembles are luminous and the instrumental playing is bright and streamlined. Best of all is Rachael Lloyd's dignified Dido, rich-voiced, poetic and flawlessly delivered - The Guardian The Armonico Consort and its musical director, Christopher Monks, capture this abundance of inspiration in a performance full of life and variety...Rachael Lloyd's dignified Dido and Elin Manahan Thomas's bright Belinda are well contrasted - Financial Times This small-scale version of Purcell's evergreen masterpiece has much to commend it - Early Music Today -
The great patriotic opera of the 17th century, recorded here in a lively new performing edition after two decades in the Gabrieli’s touring repertoire. Notoriously difficult to present on disc or in concert, this version presented by Gabrieli was created to allow an obvious musical narrative, despite Purcell’s music often being completely dislocated from much of the original theatre context. Gabrieli have been performing the music from King Arthur for nearly a quarter of a century, evolving their interpretation over time. With the score having to be pieced together using separate versions (due to Purcell’s originals being lost), and with Gabrieli’s evolved interpretation of the music, the end product of this recording is truly unique. Their next release on Signum will be with the semi-opera by Purcell, Fairy Queen, in April next year, which is an adaptation of A Midsummer Nights Dream. All downloads include booklets."The wondrous music-making repeats beguiling dividends from diligent application of research-informed practices and the expressive sagacity of the performers. A class of its own" -Top Choice: Purcell’s King Arthur, Gramophone
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Purcell’s The Fairy Queen is based on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a play not frequently performed in the late 17th century, nor very well regarded (“the most insipid ridiculous play that ever I saw in my life” - Samuel Pepys’ diary, 1662). Despite this, the play would go on to work well within an opera, as the characters of Pyramus and Thisbe could conjure up singing and dancing accomplices. Purcell’s masterful composition, Gabrieli’s first-class performance, and McCreesh’s superb interpretation demonstrate why their recordings are seen as some of the best in classical music today. Gabrieli are world-renowned interpreters of great vocal and instrumental repertoire, from the Renaissance to the present day. Founded by Paul McCreesh in 1982, Gabrieli have both outgrown and remained true to their original identity: whilst the ensemble’s repertoire has expanded beyond any expectation, McCreesh’s ever-questioning spirit, expressive musicianship and a healthy degree of iconoclasm remain constant and are reflected in the ensemble’s dynamic performances. Gabrieli’s repertoire includes major works of the oratorio tradition, virtuosic a cappella programmes and mould-breaking reconstructions of music for historical events. Above all, Gabrieli aims to create thought-provoking performances which stand out from the crowd. All downloads include booklets.