Together with its artistic director Julian Azkoul, the United Strings of Europe develop engaging programmes with the aims of finding threads between different works and epochs, musical cultures and backgrounds, of blending the familiar with the new and of encouraging people to listen to works in different ways and discover new repertoire.

A complete collection of Brahms’s work for trio, illuminating the span of his career in new, Italian-made recordings. Over the course of almost 40 years, the greater span of his career, Brahms composed five trios in different instrumentations. Whereas he wrote piano sonatas and later symphonies within specific periods of his life, Brahms always returned to songs and to chamber music. The piano is the central, unifying presence in the trios, and often the dynamic engine driving their material forward.

Violinist Arabella Steinbacher, the Luxembourg Philharmonic and conductor Gustavo Gimeno present violin concertos by Beethoven and Lentz. Beethoven's violin concerto may well be the most iconic contribution to its genre, and to Steinbacher, it is the most "sacred" and sublime in the repertoire, never ceasing to reveal new perspectives.

In this superb programme structured around major pieces composed in the last ten years of Mozart’s life, Anna Prohaska and Riccardo Minasi sweep away the image of the well-mannered figure that tradition has tended to impose. They paint a bracingly complex portrait of the Salzburger after his move to Vienna, subtly blending the maestro’s historical expertise with the vigour and freshness of Resonanz, here in electrifying form.

Greek mythology has profoundly shaped society, influencing cultural norms, traditions, and even giving rise to celebrated works like those of Claude Debussy, which redefined Western art music and revolutionized the flute’s role within it.

NOW is proud to present the next instalment in our ongoing ‘Yearbook’ series – and take a trip back 50 years in Pop history – with 82 tracks on 4 CDs, to celebrate a stellar year of Pop singles… NOW – Yearbook 1974. This format is Special Edition 4CD set housed in ‘hard-back-book’ packaging, including a 28-page booklet featuring a summary of the year, a track-by-track guide, a quiz. Opening with ‘Killer Queen’ the first Top 5 single for Queen, and followed by the classic ‘Jet’ by Paul McCartney & Wings, and the still breathtakingly original, and hugely influential ‘This Town Ain’t Big Enough For Both Of Us’ from Sparks - this epic beginning to the 1974 Yearbook continues with a run of ‘glamtastic’ Pop from Sweet and Slade, and including #1s from Suzi Quatro, Alvin Stardust and the years’ biggest seller ‘Tiger Feet’ from Mud. The #1’s keep coming with Pop gold from David Essex, The Rubettes and Paper Lace, plus a huge hit from Pilot and the first Top 3 singles for the Bay City Rollers with ‘Shang-A-Lang’, and Leo Sayer with ‘The Show Must Go On’. 1974’s biggest selling singles act was The Wombles, and their debut ‘The Wombling Song’ is up next along with the global smash ‘Kung Fu Fighting’ from Carl Douglas.

Festive baroque or sparkling virtuoso: the trumpet has many faces, and it is still an absolute exception to find a woman among the great virtuosos of this instrument. The young British trumpeter Alison Balsom is one of these exceptional phenomena. In 2006, Alison Balsom was crowned "Young British Classical Performer of the Year" by the quality watchdogs of classical music; the British Gramophone magazine also awarded her a Gramophone Award 2006. Their current album "Caprice" combines exotic and high virtuosity, lyrical and romantic.

For her marvelous new album, Luce e Ombra, soprano Myriam Leblanc assembled a collection of her favourite works by the Venetian composer Antonio Vivaldi. She chose opera excerpts, a chamber cantata, along with instrumental pieces transcribed or adapted for the Ensemble Mirabilia, consisting of Antoine Malette-Chénier on the baroque triple harp, Marie-Michel Beauparlant on the cello and Grégoire Jeay on the flute. The vocal performance, the arias’ nuances and the intimate relationship with the highly capable ensemble make for an accomplished and convincing album.

Heino Eller was much more than anything I can express in words. It was largely due to him that music in Estonia was able to achieve a cultural and professional dignity. - ARVO PÄRT. This second volume in a series dedicated to the orchestral works of Heino Eller (18871970) by the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra under conductor Olari Elts is a ground-breaking introduction to one of the founders of the Estonian school of music. The present volume consists of Ellers symphonic poems and contains some of Ellers earliest symphonic works, including one of his most well-known works, Dawn (Koit).

Tenor Cyrille Dubois and pianist Tristan Raës bring together Nadia and Lili Boulanger's finest works as they release their new record. The precocious early talent that is reflected in these mélodies echoes to their singular path. Nourished from Debussy and Fauré, these pieces also show a remarkable boldness and unusual nature that would probably have given birth to the most striking works of the twentieth century, if Lili's life hadn't been taken away aged 24, leading her sister Nadia to stop composing.

Three CD collection containing British pop group Joboxers' entire recordings. Features 28 previously unreleased tracks including 12 studio cuts and 16 live recordings. Formed in 1982 when former members of The Subway Sect teamed up with charismatic US singer Dig Wayne, JoBoxers stormed the UK chart the following year with their anthem 'Boxerbeat'. Their music was an explosive mix of northern soul, swing, rockabilly, punk and new wave and they seemed set to take over the world but inexplicably their 1985 second album Skin & Bone wasn't released and their third 'Missing Link', begun straight after, also failed to appear.

Muddy Waters had a great ear for talent and accordingly the formation which you will hear on this DVD was one of the very best: The pianist Pinetop, the drummer Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, the bass player Calvin Jones, the two guitarists Luther "Guitar Jr." Johnson and Bob Margolin and the harmonica player Jerry Portnoy. At the Rockpalast recording on December 10, 1978 at Westfalenhalle Dortmund Muddy Waters still was at the height of his creative power, his mighty vocals and his splendid charisma on stage fascinated the audience.

Awarded by Songlines Magazine as 2015's best album, “Mundo” marks the awaited return to records of the most international Portuguese artist after a five year interregnum (the previous record, "Fado Tradicional" was released in 2010). During that period, Mariza released her first "Best Of" in 2014. Still on the charts, “Mundo” debuted at number 1 on the Portuguese Top. Produced by Javier Limón (multiple Grammy winner and producer of the record “Terra”, released in 2008), “Mundo” features 14 songs, including the singles “Paixão”, “Melhor de Mim” and “Alma”.

Keeping It Real for More Than 50 Years: Bill Withers' Still Bill Is an Understated Soul Masterwork Distinguished by Unstinting Consistency, Universal Emotions, and Smooth Singing. Mastered on Mobile Fidelity's Renowned Mastering System: Numbered-Edition Hybrid SACD Plays with Lifelike Richness, Detail, Texture, and Transparency. Named One of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time by Rolling Stone: 1972 Benchmark Includes the Hits 'Lean on Me' and 'Use Me'. As it turns the corner on it's 50th anniversary, Bill Withers' Still Bill remains true to it's title - and stands as the greatest malefronted soul album not made by a singer named Marvin, Al, Sam, James, or Ray. Though the saying 'keeping it real' did not exist in popular parlance when Withers released his sophomore effort, no words better capture the music's approach, mindset, and value.

Van Morrison does exactly what he wants, when he wants, and continually mines the past no matter the cost. It's been four years since the Celtic soulman issued a collection of new, original studio material (Born to Sing: No Plan B), but given the music, it could have been yesterday. Morrison has no interest in innovation, he's already done that. The pace here is (mostly) laid-back, the music drenched in jazz, R&B, blues, and classy pop. He revels throughout in an elegant slow burn; his lyric themes are bittersweet, melancholic, filled with emotional and symbolic memory; his longing for the previous prevalent.