For this new recording, taking the form of an initiatory journey, Marianne Piketty and Le Concert Idéal explore the subject of night-time and the fascination it holds for composers. From the capricious and exuberant nights of Antonio Vivaldi to the melancholy of Lili Boulanger’s D’un soir triste and the greater optimism of its partner piece, D’un matin de printemps, via the poetic and sensuous dreams of Eugène Ysaÿe, the musicians of Le Concert Idéal travel to different places and different periods in time, looking at the night sky, and reaching the present day with the concerto Bajo la estrella, commissioned from the composer Alex Nante and recorded here for the first time.

What an intriguing idea to want to transcribe one of Berlioz’s work for four accordions! What an even more curious idea to want to transcribe the Symphonie Fantastique and bring into their squeeze boxes this astounding and radical masterpiece, true breakthrough in the history of orchestra thanks to the introduction of rarely used, despised, or even forgotten instruments, in a celebration of sounds, and a magical demonstration of Berlioz’s Treatise of Modern Instrumentation and Orchestration.

Grokking Improvisations developed out of a completely informal recording session in the main concert hall of the Concertgebouw in Bruges on 8 February 2017. After a brief soundcheck three numbers were recorded spontaneously without any preconceived plan and the listener will discover an inspiring conversation that developed intuitively. The word to grok was coined by the American science fiction writer Robert A. Heinlein in his book Stranger in a Strange Land in 1961.

This is the first commercially available recording of Tippett's first opera in over 50 years, recorded in a landmark performance conducted by Tippett enthusiast Edward Gardner. Performed at the Southbank Centre's Royal Festival Hall and broadcast live on BBC Radio 3, this performance was a thrilling start to Edward Gardner's tenure as Principal Conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

Myrna Herzog is a well-known figure in the Early Music world, internationally praised as a viola da gamba performer, conductor and researcher in the field of viols. Her ground-braking articles on the Quinton, the English Division Viol, Stradivari's viols and viols in general have appeared in important journals (such as Early Music and the Galpin Society Journal) and books (The Italian Viola da Gamba; Across Centuries and Cultures); she is a contributor to the New Grove’s Dictionary of Music and Musicians. She studied cello with Iberê Gomes Grosso, viola da gamba with Judith Davidoff and Wieland Kuijken, and was mentored in conducting by Doron Salomon.

Between 1640 and 1720 the immigrant German Düben family produced three generations of Capellmeisters at Sweden’s wealthy and fashionable Royal Court, where they amassed a huge collection of printed music and manuscripts.The meticulous cataloguing of this collection at Uppsala University has allowed Spiritato’s Kinga Ujszászi to fulfil the ensemble's avowed aim of exploring a vast and little-known repertory. Of particular interest to the group was music that appears to show the first collaborations of the royal Capelle with the separate trumpet corps, bringing trumpets into the context of courtly music and allowing the players to push the boundaries of their instruments and skills.

Lodestar Trio blaze a trail with their unprecedented ‘baroque meets folk’ repertoire. With renewed interpretations of baroque classics (Bach, Lully, Couperin…), folk tunes and new compositions, they push the boundaries of their mystical and magical Scandinavian string instruments. With Max Baillie on violin, Olav Luksengård Mjelva on Norwegian Hardanger fiddle and Erik Rydvall on Swedish nyckelharpa, they skilfully showcase the dexterity of each instrument, bringing out new qualities, whilst paying tribute to the roots of a much-honoured musical period.

Odradek Records is delighted to present the complete Beethoven Piano Concertos performed by Artur Pizarro and the Sinfonieorchester Wuppertal under the baton of Julia Jones. This is a recording not to be missed: Artur Pizarros interpretations are renowned internationally for their insight and nuance, and this album represents for Pizarro and his fellow musicians a very personal labour of love, especially when overcoming the obstacles of the pandemic in order to record together.

In 1743, two years before Rameau's Platee, Boismortier created an extraordinarily modern and madcap "comic ballet", Don Quichotte chez la Duchesse. As the exuberant plot unfurls, Cervantes' hero encounters monsters, enchanters, princesses and people from Japan, making for plenty of offbeat and audacious dances and choruses. Musical beauty rubs shoulders with satirical and irreverent comedy. A choice work for Herve Niquet, who leads his Concert Spirituel with unparalleled energy!

Out of the drawers! Pia Davila and Linda Leine give new perspectives on "ostracised music".

Following on from their highly successful disc ‘A Winter’s Tale’, viola virtuoso Roger Benedict and renowned pianist Simon Tedeschi present a new studio album reimagining masterpieces by Debussy and Ravel for the rich, mellow tone of the viola – the ‘melancholy dreamer’, as Berlioz described it. With its wistful sound, the viola gives a new and fresh character to these pieces, which, even now, seem radical in their conception.

The Scriabin Mystery is brought to vivid life by acclaimed French pianist Vincent Larderet and celebrates the 150th anniversary of the birth of the Russian composer. Making his AVIE debut, Larderet presents a comprehensive survey of the scope of Scriabin’s output and the evolution of his style, from his early, post-Romantic works influenced by Chopin and Liszt, through to the modernism of the 20th century in his final works. His harmonies famously coloured by his synesthesia, Scriabin’s craft was a revolutionary fusion of freedom of expression underpinned by a sense of unity and geometric proportion, his psychologically complex constructions infused with incandescence and mysticism.

French grand-opéra specialist Marc Minkowski has at last recorded Robert le Diable, a jewel of the genre. A triumph at its premiere in November 1831, it captivated contemporaries, and its influence stretched as far as Verdi and Wagner. An imposing international cast brings this repertory cornerstone to life: John Osborn portrays a Robert at once valiant and tender, Amina Edris reveals her full resources in the perilous role of Alice, while idiomatic performances by Nicolas Courjal, Erin Morley and Nico Darmanin complete a line-up offering the most vivid contrasts of tessitura.

Rachmaninov’s ten chamber works, two left incomplete, all date from his twenties. The most widely performed and best known is the Cello Sonata. The two trios feature daunting piano parts – the composer was still finding his unique style and the influence of Tchaikovsky can be heard in No.1. The 2nd Trio is a massive work (as is Tchaikovsky’s own Trio), composed just days after Rachmaninov learned of the death of his mentor. It is dedicated ‘To the memory of a great artist’. The Cello Sonata is mature Rachmaninov, with hints of the 2nd Piano Concerto and 2nd Symphony.

Michael Rabin managed to be one of the most talented and tragic violin virtuosi of his generation. Hailed as a child prodigy, his talent matured gracefully into an adult level, but he failed to follow in his emotional growth, resulting in a cutting short of his career. He never reached the age of 36, yet remains one of the most fondly remembered of virtuoso violinists for listeners and fellow musicians such as Pinchas Zukerman, with whom he shared a teacher. Rabin's father was a violinist in the New York Philharmonic, and his mother a Juilliard-trained pianist.