Allar Kaasik has enjoyed a long and fruitful career, in his native Estonia as well as abroad. Reflecting on it in the liner notes to this very personal disc, he singles out one particular aspect: the ambition to embrace the very latest compositions by Estonian composers. Performing in churches as he often does, Kaasik finds music resounding in a church a part of the Holy Service. This is reflected in many of the works which have been written for him, with composers such as Galina Grigorjeva and Kuldar Sink enriching the tradition of Estonian church music. Among Allar Kaasik’s many partners in performing these works, several appear on the present disc, including two eminent choirs – the State Choir Latvija and Estonian National Male Choir – as well as the Latvian organist Kristīne Adamaite. A focal point of the programme is the cello concerto Pro et contra by the most celebrated of all Estonian composers, Arvo Pärt. Kaasik is supported by the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Peeter Lilje and the recording has a particular significance – originally released by Melodiya in 1989, it was the first recording of Pärt’s music published on disc in the Soviet Union following the lifting of the unofficial ban on his music. The remaining works on Timeless Light were all recorded between 2014 and 2016.

Antonín Dvořák's 'American' chamber music works are the fruits of a happy, carefree time. And this is reflected in the music: colourful, vibrant, imbued with the musical and scenic impressions he gathered in the bustling metropolis of New York and during his summer holidays in rural Iowa.

Possessing not the greatest album sleeve in history - "Images" was nonetheless a bit of a Jazz-Funk peach. Produced by "Stix" Hooper, Wilton Felder & Joe Sample for "Crusader Productions, Inc." and mastered by long-standing expert Bernie Grundman, it followed so much of their Seventies output - really well-produced instrumental funky tracks followed by mellow ones that filled both the floor and the heart at one and the same time. Remastered from the original tapes by KEVIN REEVES at Universal Mastering in the States, it now sounds FABULOUS - really clear and defined - and virtually hiss-free. After a whole decade and umpteen albums of their particular type of funk & jazz, the same team that handled "Images" would finally hit paydirt a year later in 1979 with the global smash of "Street Life" and make Randy Crawford a star.

Echoes of birds, water, and wind: on her refreshingly unconventional debut album with GENUIN, the young musician Sophia Schambeck presents flute compositions spanning nine centuries. New works stand alongside ancient ones, solo pieces are interwoven with ensemble music, Irish melodies contrast with Japanese ones, and original works are placed beside arrangements. Listeners are drawn into fascinating sonic worlds ranging from Hildegard von Bingen to the present day – performed on no fewer than thirteen different recorders. This acoustic universe, shaped by a musician devoted to connecting styles and cultures, fills us with wonder and deep emotion.

Perry and Gerrard continued to experiment and improve with The Serpent's Egg, as much a leap forward as Spleen and Ideal was some years previously. As with that album, The Serpent's Egg was heralded by an astounding first track, "The Host of Seraphim." Its use in films some years later was no surprise in the slightest – one can imagine the potential range of epic images the song could call up – but on its own it's so jaw-droppingly good that almost the only reaction is sheer awe. Beginning with a soft organ drone and buried, echoed percussion, Gerrard then takes flight with a seemingly wordless invocation of power and worship – her vocal control and multi-octave range, especially towards the end, has to be heard to be believed. Nothing else achieves such heights, but everything gets pretty darn close, a deserved testament to the band's conceptual reach and abilities.

The Prague Chamber Orchestra contributes some very good string playing to this Mozart reading by Sir Charles Mackerras. The approach is modern but well informed, with clean, light, agile, and luminous results. Mackerras observes the repeats (including that of the first movement recapitulation) and chooses excellent tempos. The Romance is especially lovely. Telarc's recording yields a fairly realistic concert-hall perspective, but the distant pickup and reverberation tend to muddy the texture a little. The coupling is an excellent account of the Posthorn Serenade.

Three years as a Delphian artist have seen Sean Shibe record music from seventeenth-century Scottish lute manuscripts to twenty-first-century works for electric guitar, picking up multiple editor's choices and award nominations for each release, as well as the Royal Philharmonic Society's prestigious Young Artist of the Year accolade. Now he turns to the music of J. S. Bach, with three works whose obscure early performance history belies their status as repertoire staples for modern guitarists.

This extraordinary CD features an interesting chapter in music history that has given rise to many a speculation: Ludwig van Beethoven’s only opera, Leonore, in the world-premiere recording of the version of 1806.

Acclaimed flautist Lisa Friend writes: It has long been a dream of mine to record an album featuring the works of some of my favourite American composers. Having grown up in New York, I have cherished memories of watching, as a young child, my father, Rodney Friend (concertmaster), perform with the New York Philharmonic under the baton of his close friend Leonard Bernstein. I recall being in rehearsals, where my father and Bernstein would often discuss the scores during breaks – a time I wish I could relive. This album brings together a selection of American works and original arrangements that hold a special place in my heart. Dad always played Heifetz’s version of Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair, hence my wanting to record it here. Bernstein’s West Side Story, and especially the theme ‘Somewhere’, has been one of my all-time favourites. I have recorded Ashokan Farewell for my brother Steven, knowing how much he loves this beautiful melody.

“We have wanted to record Bach’s violin concertos with Sophie Gent ever since she joined Ensemble Masques in 2003”, says Olivier Fortin, harpsichordist and founder of the ensemble that explores Baroque music with such passion. "Sophie is an exceptional musician with an extremely convincing, honest and unpretentious style”. Another pillar of the group is Kathleen Kajioka, who is the soloist for Telemann's viola concerto. "Telemann is a fantastic storyteller," she says, "who provides a plot, characters, costumes and props — and leaves you to put it all together”. Two sinfonie by Albinoni link the concertos and shine a spotlight on each musician in the ensemble.

Following up her critically acclaimed recording of Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber's Rosary Sonatas, violinist and musical director Rachel Podger leads Brecon Baroque on Just Biber, an album of Sonatas from Biber's 1681 collection Sonatæ Violino Solo and his theatrical Sonata Representivo. These works are extremely virtuosic with extensive multiple stopping and dazzling passages of stylus fantasticus. In Biber’s time, harmony was something cosmic, vibrating in a God-given resonance between human, instrumental and celestial bodies. Dedicated to Archbishop Maximilian Gandolf, the sonatas were not only designed to delight, but also potentially to balm and heal; Biber described the sonatas as a kind of prayer for the Archbishop’s longevity and good health.

An artist whose work fuses the bold punch of arena-ready rock with defiant, thoughtful songwriting, John Mellencamp's most famous music is full of passion, heart, and an understanding of the lives of ordinary folks living in the American Midwest. One of the cornerstone artists of the heartland rock movement of the 1980s, Mellencamp's musical roots lie in the sounds of the '60s, particularly the muscular wallop of the Rolling Stones and their garage-y imitators, along with the folk-rock revolution pioneered by Bob Dylan. His early hits, such as "Hurts So Good," "Jack & Diane," and "Pink Houses" are knowing sketches of small-town life accompanied by a crack rock & roll band, and albums like 1982's American Fool and 1983's Uh-Huh took him to stardom. As his career progressed, Mellencamp evolved toward socially conscious storytelling. He co-founded the charity Farm Aid the same year he released his defining album, 1985's Scarecrow, which reflects the same kind of populist philosophies, and his characters changed little with time, even when his music did. Elements of folk, blues, and other roots rock music became more prominent in his arrangements, and his themes grew more introspective beginning with 1993's Human Wheels – those themes became dominant in his work as the '90s gave way to the 2000s. 2010's No Better Than This marked the point where he fully immersed himself in folk and roots music as his voice gained the grit of an elder statesman, and 2023's Orpheus Descending was a tough, rootsy blend of political and personal observations.

Seven years after their album "Debussy… et le jazz", the artists of the Quatuor Debussy have conceived the idea of celebrating Ravel in three quite different ways. As well as the French composer’s famous Quartet, they have recorded a transcription by Alain Brunier of Ma mère l’Oye (the Mother Goose suite), as well as inviting vibraphone virtuoso Franck Tortiller to join in the fun by combining the original score of Le Tombeau de Couperin with jazz improvisations – an approach that Ravel, from all we know of him, would have greatly relished.

Entité unique en son genre, les Talking Heads auront démontré la possibilité de faire rimer cérébral avec animal et de faire se rencontrer groove et rigueur en une recette art pop singulière, descendante du Velvet Underground autant que des rythmiques funk secouant New York à la fin des années 70, le tout sans sombrer dans la prétention. S'appuyant sur la section rythmique constituée de Tina Weymouth (basse) et Chris Frantz (batterie), futurs Tom Tom Club, ainsi que la guitare et les claviers de Jerry Harrison, la personnalité atypique et la voix unique de David Byrne trouvent un canevas de choix, menant à la publication d'une série de cinq albums hautement influents, entre 1977 et 1983, parmi lesquels les classiques Fear of Music (1979) et Remain in Light (1980) tandis que défilent les collaborateurs de choix à l'instar d'Adrian Belew ou Bernie Worrell avant la fin de l'aventure en 1991.

Baritone Florian Boesch and pianist Malcolm Martineau continue their successful collaboration on Linn with a recital pairing two geniuses who hated each other. Exploring the rivalry between Johannes Brahms and Hugo Wolf, the album showcases some of their most compelling songs which express deep emotion and philosophical themes.