Cuando dos músicos de la sapiencia, el estilo y la maestría del contrabajista JAVIER COLINA – piedra fundamental del sonido Jazz Flamenco del Siglo XXI – y el eclecticismo, la inventiva y la elegancia del pianista ALBERT SANZ, unen sus fuerzas para enfrentar juntos sus standards brasileños favoritos, lo natural es esperar un placer musical distinto a los demás, a todos los demás…

After fifty–five years of spectacular music–making the venerable Ted Heath Orchestra finally closed the door and turned out the lights for the last time in December 2000 but not before presenting an absolutely ripping farewell concert at London’s Royal Festival Hall, almost every moment of which is safeguarded on this wonderful two–disc set.This was not only an historic event, marking the end of an era whose like may never come again, but also a concert for the ages, one that should not to be passed over by anyone whose heart is quickened by the matchless sound of an awesome big band in full flight.

Ted Heath has been rightfully described as the biggest name in British swing music but he was much more than that. For many years the American bands and orchestras ruled the world of swing and dance music and it is somewhat ironic that at a time when big bands were beginning to take second place to the vocalists of the day, Ted should form an orchestra that rated such attention and adulation: from fans everywhere. This CD contains all of Ted's UK chart entries including 'Hot Toddy', 'Dragnet', 'Skin Deep' and 'Swingin' Shepherd Blues' as well as many other instrumental favourites and several of his vocalists' best remembered recordings including 'Allentown Jail', 'You Belong To Me' and 'Blacksmith Blues'.

A compilation of the two albums Benton made for the French Black & Blue label in 1983 and 1985, this 15-song collection rates with his best.

After a few years passed collaborating with drummer Pavel Fajt, Iva Bittová teamed up with Rale guitarist Vladimír Václavek to write and record the beautiful two-CD set Bílé Inferno (White Inferno). The singer remains true to her stripped-down aesthetics, keeping arrangements sparse, letting the songs show their power with as little embellishments as possible.

The eight tracks that make up multi-instrumentalist Alice Coltrane's volume of The Impulse Story series – single CDs to accompany both the box set The House That Trane Built and Ashley Kahn's book of the same name, is among the most satisfying in the entire collection. The tracks here range widely, documenting an artist who was indeed ahead of her time – and for many still is. Not that she cares. She's taken some 20 years off between her last recording for Warner Bros. and her final recording on this set to devote her time to spiritual concerns – the title cut from her magnificent 2004 comeback release, Translinear Light, is a fitting inclusion here.

Albert Ayler was a lightning rod for criticism both from within the music community and from without. His free-thinking approach made him a bane for jazz traditionalists, and his incorporation of popular American musical styles like soul, R&B, and even rock made him a sellout to the free jazz crowd. His volume in The Impulse Story series – one of ten individual artist titles to accompany both the book The House That Trane Built: The Impulse Story by Ashley Kahn and the four-CD label history set of the same name from Universal, is in many ways the very evidence of both points on the scale.

Charles Mingus recorded only three albums for the Impulse label, all in 1963. Two of those are bona fide classics: The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady, an album-length composition, and Mingus, Mingus, Mingus, Mingus, Mingus, a ferocious big-band set. The third, Mingus Plays Piano, is no less a revelatory work, but given that it is a solo recital of a man for whom the piano was a second instrument, he was less popular, though politely and even reverently in some circles, received at the time. This output has been compiled for the Mingus volume in the Impulse Story series of individual artist releases that accompany Ashley Kahn's book, The House That Trane Built: The Impulse Story, and the four-CD label history box set.

Like the Archie Shepp and Alice Coltrane volumes in the Impulse Story series, the Pharoah Sanders issue is one of the flawless ones – despite the fact that it only contains four tracks. Ashley Kahn, author of the book the series is named after, wisely chose tracks with Sanders as a leader rather than as a sideman with John Coltrane (those were documented quite well on the John and Alice volumes).

On his second release for Evil Penguin, Belgian piano prodigy Julien Libeer teams up with the new ensemble Les Métamorphoses to contrast authentic and neo guises of 18th century music. The true classicists are featured on this disc with unusually restrained work: Haydn’s Passion Symphony no. 49 is broodingly solemn, Mozart’s last piano concerto no. 27 deceptively intimate.

The widespread acclaim which met the release of Artur Pizarro's first volume of Ravel ensured that the popular pianist would be back to record Vol. 2. 'Phenomenal', 'scintillating' and 'super-refined' were just some of the superlatives used to describe Pizarro's performance. The Complete Works of Ravel Vol. 2 surpasses the incredibly high standards set by Vol. 1 as Pizarro reaches new heights with an outstanding performance.

Renowned for his lyrical poeticism and outstanding virtuosity, pianist Artur Pizarro is the perfect choice to perform the complete piano music of the French impressionist Maurice Ravel. ‘Phenomenal’, ‘scintillating’ and ‘super-refined’ were just some of the superlatives used to describe Pizarro’s performance.This challenging programme, including Gaspard de la nuit, well known for being one of the most demanding works in the piano literature, highlights Pizarro as a accomplished Ravel interpreter.

Aafje Heynis was a Dutch contralto vocalist. She quickly established her reputation, to begin with in the field of oratorio. With her performance in Johannes Brahms' Alto Rhapsody with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra under the direction of Eduard van Beinum, she attracted wide attention. She performed many concerts in churches, Lieder recitals, and numerous performances of Johann Sebastian Bach's St Matthew Passion. For the Philips label she made a series of recordings of works by Brahms, Bach, George Frideric Handel and Felix Mendelssohn, this is CD, one of it.

When this performance was first released (on Bruno Walter Society LP No. BWS-742 in 1980) critic Mortimer H. Frank wrote in the USA journal Fanfare: I have always felt that Bruno Walter was at the height of his powers during the years 1941-54. This is well illustrated in this released Beethoven Ninth, recorded in concert on November 13, 1947. Those who never heard Walter in his prime may be shocked by this London performance in which the first movement has a fiery, tough tension at times suggestive of Toscanini. With stabbing, powerful accents, crashing fortes, and uncommon vigor, Walter insistently presses forward in a reading of thrilling drama and power The Scherzo (with neither of its repeats observed) dances with demoniac fervor, although its "trio" would have been more effective at a slightly faster trempo… this Beethoven Ninth reveals a conductor of trenchant kinetic urgency. Those who have doubted Walter's greatness may well change their view after hearing it.

“Even if you’re not familiar or terribly interested in jazz, Ahmed’s music deserves your attention, and she’ll most likely make you second guess your thoughts on jazz.”