It figured that some other prolific composer of Handel’s time would have composed a competing “Water Music,” but Telemann’s half-hour work–otherwise known as an Overture in C–remains relatively obscure. Written for the centenary of the Hamburg Admiralty a few years after Handel’s “Water Music,” it is an invigorating piece of work, consisting of an Overture and nine dance movements with various watery descriptions from mythology that the listener can take or leave.

By the evidence of My Secret Passion, Michael Bolton's secret passion is opera. For several years, he had included arias in his concerts, but he had never recorded them until My Secret Passion. Bolton's bombastic style is relatively well-suited to arias, since he certainly can project his voice quite powerfully. He doesn't have the subtlety to deliver this repertoire completely convincingly, but the Philharmonia Orchestra, under the direction of Steven Mercurio, helps camouflage his weaknesses, as does the guest appearance of soprano Renee Fleming. In other words, My Secret Passion isn't the disaster that Bolton's detractors were expecting, but it isn't a triumph, either. Instead, it's a welcome change of pace from a singer who has become a touch too predictable.

Drummer Winard Harper leads a fine hard bop quintet on Trap Dancer, which consists of five standards and a variety of obscure originals, including one song apiece from Gary Bartz and Jimmy Heath. Trumpeter Patrick Rickman, tenor saxophonist J.D. Allen, and pianist George Cables take consistently worthwhile solos, and although there are a couple brief percussion pieces ("Oamara" and "Allahu Akbra"), Harper does not feature himself all that much except in support of the lead voices…

Spanish flamenco artists Mayte Mateus and Maria Mendiolo were already performing together in 1977 for tourists when they were snapped up by RCA exec Leon Deane. Named Baccara, the duo partnered with Rolf Soja, who penned their debut, "Yes Sir I Can Boogie." Released in the middle of 1977, the song rocketed up the U.K. charts, scoring the band a number one in September. On the strength of that song, their self-titled debut album was an instant success, and a further follow-up single, "Sorry I'm a Lady," gave the duo another U.K. hit in early 1978. Touring Europe brought Baccara a larger fan base and even wider audience for their follow-up albums.

Concerto Suite for Electric Guitar and Orchestra in E Flat Minor Op.1 is the eleventh studio album by guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen, released on 4 February 1998 through Canyon International. The album was Malmsteen's first attempt at a classical concerto suite featuring electric guitar solos. All of the music was composed by Malmsteen, though his compositions were scored by his friend and fellow musician David Rosenthal. The music is conducted by Yoel Levi, and performed by the Czech Philharmonic. Malmsteen has been keen to emphasize that unlike other collaborations between rock musicians and classical orchestras (such as Deep Purple's Concerto for Group and Orchestra), which feature a rock group playing with orchestral accompaniment, this is orchestral music which happens to have an electric guitar as its solo instrument.

Ghosts was the last album by the Strawbs to appear while the band was on its upward curve of commercial success; a more lyrical follow-up to Hero and Heroine, it was the group's last thrust at wide-audience appeal, with a hoped for-hit ("Lemon Pie") that didn't materialize. The group's mix of acoustic guitars, electric lead and bass, and Rod Coombes' heavy drumming was very compelling on this, their smoothest album. The title track introduction, mixing multiple overdubbed harpsichords, acoustic guitars, and church bells was a gorgeous beginning, and the melodies only got better further into the album.

Pilgrim is the thirteenth studio album by Eric Clapton, released in 1998. The album was recorded at Olympic Studios in London in late 1997. Pilgrim's release marked Clapton's first album of original material since 1989's Journeyman. Reviews for Pilgrim were mixed upon release. Allmusic described the album as "bland", while Rolling Stone's David Wild gave it four out of five stars, stating, "Pilgrim is the work of someone who has learned in the hardest way imaginable that although he cannot change the world, he might be able to change himself." The album experiments with drum machines and certain sounds like synthesizers, guitars, strings reminiscent of R&B. The song "Pilgrim" also appears on the Lethal Weapon 4 soundtrack. Four tracks of this album were included on the One More Car, One More Rider album of 2001.

Glass Hammer is a Symphonic Progressive Rock band from the United States. They formed in 1992 when multi-instrumentalists Steve Babb and Fred Schendel began to write and record Journey of the Dunadan, a concept album based on the story of Aragorn from J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy. To their surprise, the album sold several thousand units via the Internet, The QVC Shop-At-Home Network and phone orders, leaving Babb and Schendel convinced that the band was a project worth continuing.
Musically, they lean towards 70's driven symphonic rock, with strong keyboard orientation; specifically Hammond organs in the tradition of ELP. They have a superb melodic flow to the music they make, encapsulating real power and dynamics without ever becoming overpowering…

This is the second album by One for All, an all-star sextet of young jazz veterans totally steeped in the hard bop tradition and group dynamic of Art Blakey and Horace Silver's classic ensembles. Eric Alexander, the rising tenor sax phenom, trombonist Steve Davis (Jazz Messengers, Jackie McLean, Chick Corea's Origin), and Peter Washington, the talented and ubiquitous bassist, are probably the best known players here…

A selection of monumental Roman works from the Cappella Sistina music manuscripts in the Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana dating from the time of popes Julius II, Leo X, and Clement VII (1503-1534). This CD, recorded for Pure Classics/Glissando, was produced to be sold at the exhibition titled "Hochrenaissance im Vatikan (1503-1534). Kunst und Kultur im Rom der Päpste I" shown at the Kunst- und Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland in Bonn, Germany, in the year 1998. It is Pomerium's most popular recording. Includes such classic's of Renaissance sacred music as Josquin's Benedicta es, celorum regina and Virgo salutiferi, Mouton's Tua est potentia, Carpentras's Lamentationes Jeremie, and Willaert's Enixa est puerpera.

Most of Ciconia’s eight surviving motets are dedicated to prominent Paduan and Venetian dignitaries of the time, including three bishops of Padua, a Venetian doge, and cardinal Francesco Zabarella, Ciconia’s main Paduan patron. They constitute a highly solemn repertory in which virtuoso singing hides and at the same time reveals complex and fascinating musical structures. Sidus preclarum presents Ciconia's motets in a blend of four to six singers and four to five instrumentalists.