Cristiano Porqueddu – Franco: Music for Guitar (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 03:21:10 minutes | 990 MB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Brilliant Classics
Born in Torino in 1967, Alfredo Franco was involved in non-classical music in his youth before taking up the classical guitar. He then undertook advanced studies in the historical and critical fields in the Department for Art, Music and Theatre of the University of Turin. He would later abandon concert activity as a performer and focus instead on composition. His now prolific classical guitar output has been well received by important interpreters such as Cristiano Porqueddu and increasingly programmed on the stage and in the studio.
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Bach Collegium Japan & Masaaki Suzuki – J.S. Bach – The Vocal Works (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:43:46 minutes | 1,87 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © BIS
Hailed by the international music press and highly praised by music connoisseurs, the recordings of Bach’s entire body of vocal music made by the Bach Collegium Japan (BCJ), its conductor Masaaki Suzuki and numerous prestigious soloists, many of whom have remained remarkably loyal to the undertaking from the outset, are here brought together to form the only complete set of these works in high-resolution format.
Suzuki’s aim with these works is to deliver ‘a message which can touch the human heart, regardless of nationality or cultural tradition’, and so he delivers performances characterised by a particular attention to natural phrasing and timbral homogeneity in the service of transparency, a finely articulated expression without affectation and a balanced dialogue between voices and instruments.
In addition to its 78 albums which include sacred and secular cantatas, the two Passions, the Christmas, Easter and Ascension Oratorios, the Mass in B minor, the motets, the Magnificat, the Lutheran Masses as well as songs and alternative movements, this box set includes four booklets providing essays about the music (in English, German and French) by world-renowned experts on the music as well as all the sung texts (in German and English translation).
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Amsterdam Sinfonietta, Simone Lamsma & Candida Thompson – Pärt über Bach (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 58:04 minutes | 1,72 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Channel Classics
Violinists Simone Lamsma and Candida Thompson explore connections between J.S. Bach and Arvo Part on their new release Part uber Bach with Amsterdam Sinfonietta. Arvo Part’s groundbreaking Tabula Rasa is presented alongside Bach’s Concerto for Oboe and Violin in the version for 2 violins, and Part’s own Collage uber B-A-C-H, written in 1964 wherein the Estonian master intertwines his own modernist music with phrases from J.S. Bach’s music.
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Alborosie – Dub Pirate (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 42:56 minutes | 465 MB | Genre: Reggae, Dub, Dancehall
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © evosound
Alborosie’s classic roots reggae album, “Soul Pirate” (which has over 223 million Spotify album plays) gets a dub version makeover. Featuring the classic tracks, “Kingston Town” and “Herbalist”- the “Soul Pirate” album was the result of Alborosie’s six years at Geejam studios in Jamaica and was in partnership with local artists. Now, this classic album has a new dub remix produced by Alborosie.
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Aart Bergwerff & Eric Vloeimans – Canto Ostinato Arranged for Organ and Trumpet (DeLuxe) (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 01:10:11 minutes | 647 MB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Brilliant Classics
A new and strikingly effective arrangement of a modern minimalist classic.
Canto Ostinato is a familiar landmark of modern Dutch art music. Known affectionately and simply as the Canto, it receives many performances each year in a plethora of arrangements, whether with the two or four pianos which Simeon ten Holt had in mind when he wrote the work in 1976, or performed by soloists and ensembles. This flexibility is inherent in the form of the piece. Ten Holt supplies a sequence of 106 rhythmic cells which may be repeated one or many more times, thus potentially creating a duration of one or many more hours. The simple and repetitive patterns blur the listener’s sense of time, which becomes space: space for the performers, space for creation, but also space for the listeners, space for imagination.
At the invitation of Orgelpark Amsterdam, the organist Aart Bergwerff has been giving annual performances of Canto Ostinato, always in a new instrumentation, in company with different musicians. This groundbreaking version for trumpet and organ arose as the result of a chance meeting backstage between Bergwerff and the trumpeter Eric Vloeimans. The recording captures a concert given in October 2023 at the Orgelpark, presenting Canto Ostinato as a kind of monody for trumpet and organ, like a long-spun solo with basso continuo. Bergwerff and Vloeimans had known each other as students at the conservatoire in Rotterdam, and so this artistic partnership was a renewal of friendship as well as a synthesis of common musical values.
Relying as it does on the stamina of a solo trumpeter, this version of Canto Ostinato is necessarily shorter than most of the canonic versions, but it illuminates the piece with a fresh perspective, more melodically focused than keyboard-centric instrumentations, and evolving more rapidly through Ten Holt’s cycle of harmonic change.
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Georg Katzer – Georg Katzer – Friedrich Goldmann (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 59:45 minutes | 1001 MB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © NEOS Music
In the GDR, Friedrich Goldmann (1941–2009) and Georg Katzer (1935–2019) were the defining minds within a group of then younger composers, which had been growing since the late 1960s and which – increasingly audibly – contradicted the official demands for ‟Socialist Realism” in artistic creation. They countered the clichés of musical popularism and mass appeal with compositional concepts aimed at absolutely self-determined stylistics and a degree of technical complexity corresponding to international professional standards. Thus, in the four compositions compiled on this release, one can observe with ease the departure from serial hermeticism and the openness for sound games, with conventional tonality and traditional craftsmanship, which consciously thematises the relationship of these works with historical European music traditions.
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Frankie and the Witch Fingers – Live At LEVITATION (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/48 kHz | Time – 44:39 minutes | 563 MB | Genre: Rock
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © The Reverberation Appreciation Society
The Reverberation Appreciation Society are proud to welcome Frankie and the Witch Fingers with the Twelfth vinyl release in the Live at LEVITATION series. The release showcases the bands appearance at the festival with their 2022 performance at the legendary Stubbs in Austin TX. Pulling heavily from the latest LP ‘Data Doom,’ these recordings are immortalized on beautiful RSD exclusive Splatter vinyl.
The vinyl will be released for Record Store Day on April 20th 2024 in extremely limited quantities to support independent record shops! Head to recordstoreday.com & recordstoreday.co.uk now to find your local record shop and how to take part in this year’s celebrations!
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Emma Donovan – Til My Song Is Done (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/48 kHz | Time – 44:41 minutes | 539 MB | Genre: Soul, Alt. Country, Female Vocal
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Cooking Vinyl Australia
Emma Donovan releases her first ever solo album ‘Til My Song Is Done’ Tapping into her childhood memories for inspiration Emma has created a stunning body of work featuring fellow Australian music royalty such as Paul Kelly and Liz Stringer. This record is about Emma stepping into her own magnificence, an instant classic to add to the collection!
Emma Donovan is one of Australia’s most revered voices. She first appeared on the stage with her renowned family band The Donovans, performing church song renditions with her mother Agnes, her five uncles and maternal grandparents Micko and Aileen.
Emma was part of greatly admired Melbourne rhythm combo The Putbacks and the extraordinary Black Arm Band project.
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Einar Steen-Nøkleberg & Håvard Gimse – Mozart/Grieg Sonatas (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:26:46 minutes | 1,35 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Fabra
Einar Steen-Nøkleberg (* 25. April 1944 in Østre Toten, Fylke Oppland, Norwegen) ist ein norwegischer Pianist.
Steen-Nøkleberg absolvierte Studien bei Nicolai Dirdal und Hans Leygraf und gewann Wettbewerbe und Preise, wie zum Beispiel 1975 den Preis der Norwegischen Presse für seine Interpretation von Edvard Griegs Klavierkonzert. Die BBC in London zeichnete seine Aufnahmen des gleichen Werkes als die beste auf dem Markt aus.
Steen-Nøkleberg konzertierte als Solist international mit Orchestern wie dem London Symphony Orchestra, der Königlichen Kapelle Kopenhagen, den Warschauer Philharmonikern, den Chinesischen Philharmonikern sowie den Osloer Philharmonikern. Zu seinem Repertoire zählen Werke verschiedener Stilrichtungen vom musikalischen Barock über die Wiener Klassik, die Romantik bis hin zu Werken von u. a. Maurice Ravel, Paul Hindemith und Arnold Schönberg. Hierzu zählt insbesondere auch das gesamte Klavierwerk von Edvard Grieg, Halfdan Kjerulf und Harald Sæverud.
Steen-Nøkleberg lehrte ab 1970 als Dozent am Institut für Musikwissenschaft der Universität Oslo und von 1973 bis 1975 an der Norwegischen Musikakademie Oslo. Anschließend war er bis 1981 sowie von 1994 bis 2012 Professor für Klavier an der Musikhochschule Hannover. Zudem wurde er 1982 zum Professor an der Norwegischen Musikakademie ernannt. Seit seiner Emeritierung im Jahr 2014 unterrichtet er weiterhin. Er gibt weltweit Meisterkurse u. a. am Mozarteum in Salzburg sowie an der École Normale de Musique de Paris und wirkt außerdem als Juror bei zahlreichen internationalen Wettbewerben.
Im Jahr 1993 gründete er in Oslo die Oslo Grieg Society, die den „Concours Grieg“ für Pianisten sowie den Edvard-Grieg-Komponistenwettbewerb durchführt. Im Jahr 2000 gründete er den Internationalen Grieg Klavierwettbewerb in Bergen. Zudem leitete er die Neuausgabe der Klavierwerke von Edvard Grieg beim Verlag Henle.
Steen-Nøklebergs Diskografie umfasst mehr als 50 Aufnahmen und beinhaltet neben der Aufnahme des gesamten Klavierwerkes von Edvard Grieg, Halfdan Kjerulf, Harald Sæverud und Thomas Tellefsen auch Werke von u. a. Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Schubert und Frédéric Chopin.
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East of the River, Nina Stern & Daphna Mor – Ija Mia: Soundscape of the Sephardic Diaspora (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/88,2 kHz | Time – 41:44 minutes | 819 MB | Genre: Classical, World
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © AVIE Records
The spirited New York City-based ensemble East of the River debuts on AVIE with Ija Mia: Music of the Sephardic Diaspora.
Directed by the dynamic duo of internationally renowned “recorder virtuosos” (The New York Times) Daphna Mor (regular collaborator with Apollo’s Fire) and Nina Stern, the album is inspired by love and commemoration of the musicians’ collective cultural backgrounds – Nina’s Venetian Jewish ancestry, and Daphna’s Ladino heritage.
Spanning a vast range of Sephardic folk and traditional musics – stories and dances, prayers and anthems – Ija Mia is by turns haunting, soulful and exuberant. Daphna and Nina’s cosmopolitan collaborators include an astonishing assortment of musicians including renowned Armenian-American oud player Ara Dinkjian, Silk Road percussionist Shane Shanahan, the phenomenal Israeli bassist Tal Mashiach, and Palestinian multi-instrumentalist Zafer Tawil on qanun, violin, and percussion.
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Christopher Guild – Johnson: 12 Preludes & Fugues (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:04:07 minutes | 1,04 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Divine Art
Dr David Charles Johnson (27 October 1942 in Edinburgh – 30 March 2009 in Edinburgh) was a Scottish composer and a scholar of 18th-century Scottish music. Johnson was “an internationally recognised scholar” whose work significantly contributed to rediscovering and redefining 18th-century Scottish music within its historical context. His research focused on the music and social life of lowland Scotland during the 18th century, exploring influences, tastes, and key musical figures of the era.
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Christian Schmitt – Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy: Organ Works (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/48 kHz | Time – 02:57:58 minutes | 1,65 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © CPO
Since his debut with the Berliner Philharmoniker under Sir Simon Rattle and the Salzburg Festival with Magdalena Kožená, Christian Schmitt has been one of the most sought-after organists internationally. In the 22/23 season he will make his debuts at Carnegie Hall New York under Dennis Russel Davis, with the Dallas Symphony and with the Gothenburg Symphony under Christoph Eschenbach. in 2021/22 he was “Artist in Focus” of the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich as well as curator of the “International Organ Days” there and inaugurated the new organ under the direction of Paavo Järvi. Since 2014 he has been principal organist of the Bamberger Symphoniker, for which he curates the organ series for the Konzerthalle Bamberg.
Recent highlights have included his debut at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, presented by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, performances with the Staatskapelle Berlin conducted by Daniel Barenboim, the Japanese premiere of Toshio Hosokawa’s “Embrace – Light and Shadow” with the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra at the Suntory Hall, as well as the release of his most recent recording, Hindemith Chamber Music No. 7 with conductor Christoph Eschenbach.
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Cappella nova graz – Biber: Missa ex B (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 28:41 minutes | 296 MB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © fra bernardo
Biber was among the major composers for the violin in the history of the instrument. His own technique allowed him to easily reach the 6th and 7th positions, employ multiple stops in intricate polyphonic passages, and explore the various possibilities of scordatura tuning. Among other pieces, Biber wrote operas, sacred music and music for chamber ensemble. He also wrote one of the earliest known pieces for solo violin, the monumental passacaglia of the Mystery Sonatas. During Biber’s lifetime, his music was known and imitated throughout Europe. In the late 18th century he was named the best violin composer of the 17th century by music historian Charles Burney. In the late 20th century Biber’s music, especially the Mystery Sonatas, enjoyed a renaissance. Today, it is widely performed and recorded.
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Anders Eidsten Dahl – Exultate – Knut Nystedt Organ Works (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 01:19:12 minutes | 2,64 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Lawo Classics
Anders Eidsten Dahl presents a new programme entitled Exultate, featuring the organ works of Knut Nystedt. Nystedt was one of Norway’s most important composers and was responsible for the spreading of contemporary choral music in Norway and worldwide. His musical language showed his understanding of developments in the avant-garde of his time while remaining true to conventions of his forefathers.
Anders Eidsten Dahl (b. 1976 in Drammen) graduated with a degree in church music from the Norwegian Academy of Music and later completed a Master’s degree in solo organ performance at the same institution. Following two years of solo performance study at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen, he gave debut concerts in Copenhagen and Oslo in 2003. He has studied organ with Professor Terje Winge, cathedral organist Kåre Nordstoga and Professor Hans Fagius.
Eidsten Dahl is much in demand as organ soloist, chamber musician and harpsichordist, and he has given organ concerts at festivals in a number of European countries. His repertoire spans from the Baroque to the music of today, with emphasis on J. S. Bach and organ music from the Romantic period. Since 2001 he has served as organist and director of music at Bragernes Church in Drammen, where he is artistic and administrative director of the church’s organ concert series.
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