Revered pianist Mitsuko Uchida presents a brand new recording of this Everest of the piano repertoire. This long-awaited, much-anticipated cornerstone of her discography was recorded at Snape Maltings, one of the world's great concert halls with which Mitsuko feels a close affinity.

Modern day recognition of the music of Benedetto Marcello (1686-1739) has been totally eclipsed by the music of Antonio Vivaldi (1675-1741). If one looks back at Marcello's popularity in the first half of the 18th century in Venetian Music, you will find that he was considered to be one of the musical glories of Italy on a par with Palestrina and Pergolesi, and was referred to as the 'Noble Venetian'. He was admired for his skillful counterpoint, his masterly attention to the words of the text he set and the noble simplicity of his melodies. All of these attributes are present in this lovely and entertaining Requiem.

Leopold Anton Kozeluch (1747-1818) gehört zu jener Generation von Böhmen, die in Wien im 18. Jahrhundert ihr Glück zu machen suchten. Schon 1781 hatte Kozeluch einen dermaßen guten Ruf, dass er vom Salzburger Erzbischof das Angebot erhielt, als Nachfolger von Mozart das Amt des Hoforganisten zu übernehmen. Seine Klaviertrios müssen sehr beliebt gewesen sein, denn von 1781 bis 1810 waren über 60 davon erschienen.

This Blind Pig CD reissues material from 1983-84. The legendary veteran Jimmy Rogers (taking most of the vocals and occasional guitar solos) is heard teamed up with the talented harmonica player Rod Piazza and his jumping group. The results are consistently exciting. Piazza's harmonica serves as a perfect foil to Rogers' voice, and the impressive backup band (which also features Honey Piazza on piano) clearly enjoys jamming on the basic blues changes. The many strong solos and the superior material make this an easily recommended set.

The pairing of electric guitarists Bill Frisell and John Scofield had to be one of the most auspicious since John McLaughlin and Carlos Santana. Acoustic bassist Marc Johnson's stroke of genius in bringing the two together on Bass Desires resulted in a sound that demonstrated both compatibility between the guitarists and the distinctiveness of the two when heard in combination. Add drummer Peter Erskine and you had a bona fide supergroup, albeit in retrospect a short-lived one, before Frisell and Scofield would establish their own substantial careers as leaders. The guitarists revealed symmetry, spaciousness, and a soaring stance, buoyed by the simplicity of their rhythm mates. This is immediately achieved on the introductory track, "Samurai Hee-Haw," as hummable, head-swimming, and memorable a melody as there ever has been, and a definite signature sound.

Borodin’s First Symphony isn’t especially interesting, but his Second is a masterpiece, tightly constructed, brilliantly orchestrated, and tunefully delightful. It’s really the only work of its period to rank with the symphonies of Tchaikovsky (along with, possibly, Balakirev’s First), and Tjeknavorian’s performance of it, indeed of all three works, is outstanding. He doesn’t fuss with or manipulate tempos or textures, preferring instead to keep the music moving energetically and allowing the musicians of the National Philharmonic to inject as much color and vitality as possible. The scherzo flashes by like lightning, the slow movement is aptly seductive, and the finale dazzles. As I suggested, the other two works are less obviously successful, but the performances are no less adept. Produced by Charles Gerhardt, we can expect fine sonics, and that’s just what RCA delivers. In this music, you won’t find better.

Instrumental jazz for Christmas featuring a stellar line up of best selling Green Hill jazz artists.

The Emerald Duets is a crowning achievement among Wadada Leo Smith's many recorded duo collaborations with drummers/percussionists, that have previously featured such creative giants as Ed Blackwell, Jack DeJohnette, Milford Graves, Louis Moholo-Moholo and Gunter Sommer, among others. The Emerald Duets features four master drummers who have each, in their own unique fashion, contributed to the way modern drumming has developed in the past six decades and how it is now perceived. Pheeroan akLaff, Andrew Cyrille and Han Bennink are each featured on one disc and Jack DeJohnette on two discs, including Smith's five-part composition "Paradise: The Gardens and Fountains" that fills the fifth disc of this boxed set in its entirety.

Dreamers is the new project from the legendary British saxophonist and composer Mark Lockheart featuring Elliot Galvin (Dinosaur, Elliot Galvin Trio), Tom Herbert (Polar Bear, The Invisible) and Dave Smith (Robert Plant). Stylistically free and psychedelic in nature, the release of Dreamers signals a new trajectory for the musician who has already featured on a wide ranging and diverse catalogue of albums including Radiohead’s Kid A. As a founding member of Loose Tubes and Polar Bear, Mark Lockheart has always remained ahead of the curve and has constantly explored new directions in his own music. Dreamers epitomises this adaptation and evolution, allowing the music to speak beyond the boundaries of genre and predictability. Mark has created an album which is direct and unpretentious but also surprising and unexpected.

Except for occasional trips to the New York live scene and recording sessions, John Hart devotes his time in teaching younger generations as the head of the Jazz Guitar Department at the Frost School of Music, University of Miami. The inspiration for the unusual instrumentation of this album (baritone sax, guitar, bass and drums) came from one of his classrooms where he tutors ensemble playing. He then, of course called his favourite baritone man Gary Smulyan to join the session. Checkmate, the third album by John Hart on SteepleChase was recorded a few weeks before the onset of the Corona virus pandemic. Now after a long dark year of lockdown we hope we can call "checkmate" on the virus.

Esoteric Recordings are pleased to announce a newly remastered edition of the classic self-titled debut album by the legendary Dutch Progressive Jazz Rock group Solution. Solution formed in Groningen, Holland in 1968. Featuring a line-up of Tom Barlage (saxophone/flute), Willem Ennes (keyboards), Peter Van De Sande (bass guitar, vocals) and Hans Waterman (drums), the band recorded their debut album for Dutch EMI label Catfish in May 1971. A fine work, Solution’s music was a Progressive Rock and Jazz fusion that took influences from contemporaries such as Soft Machine, but was uniquely their own. Tracks such as ‘Koan’, ‘Phases’ and ‘Trane Steps’ became classics of the genre and set Solution as one of the finest Dutch groups of their era. This Esoteric Recordings reissue has been newly re-mastered from the original master tapes and includes a booklet that fully restores all original album artwork with a new essay.