Lukáš Vondráček and Sergei Rachmaninov. Scarcely do we encounter a connection between a musician and a composer so close, strong and energising. When, at the age of 15, Vondráček was invited by Vladimir Ashkenazy and the Czech Philharmonic to perform Rachmaninov’s Concerto No. 1, he had garnered international acclaim at numerous concerts and competitions. Just a year later, the pianist toured the USA and appeared at Carnegie Hall. At the age of 29, he triumphed at the Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels (2016), performing Rachmaninov’s Concerto No. 3, conducted by Marin Alsop.

This Da Vinci Classics album focuses on the soundtrack of an ancient Italian film, the subject of which is taken from a poem by Fausto M. Martini (1915). The film was made by Nino Oxilia and covered with sounds by Pietro Mascagni. The film revisits the myths of Faust and Dorian Gray, seen from a female perspective. Mascagni, whose fame was based mainly on his operas, sensed the potential of cinema which he considered as the future of opera, or the artistic expression that would replace singing theater as the public's preferred means of entertainment.

Brett Scott is Associate Professor of Ensembles and Conducting at the University of Cincinnati’s famed College-Conservatory of Music, where he conducts the CCM Chorale, teaches conducting and literature at the graduate and undergraduate level, and is Music Director of Opera d’arte. Under his direction, the CCM Chorale released its first commercial recording, Lux Dei—New Works for Choir by Douglas Knehans, through Ablaze Records, and has begun production of its second recording, focusing on sacred music for choir and electronics.

Born in Fiesole in 1986, Jacopo Salvatori is a pupil of pianist Maurizio Baglini at the Fondazione Musicale Monteverdi of Cremona. He first approached the piano when he was only four; two years later he began his piano studies at the Music School of Fiesole. He then graduated "cum laude" and with honourable mention at the “Girolamo Frescobaldi” Conservatory of Ferrara.

Born and raised in Vienna, Austria, Johannes Fleischmann epitomizes the young and aspiring artists of this vibrant city. As the “Viennese Violinist” he has developed a remarkable repertoire – consisting of hidden beauties and highly-valued treasures of varied eras. His versatility and passion for chamber music are evident in multiple collaborations with outstanding musicians like Norman Shetler, Christopher Hinterhuber, Hyung-ki Joo, Christoph Ulrich Meier, Julius Berger, José Gallardo and the Neue Wiener Concert Schrammeln.

The album consists of 13 tracks and invites the listener on a personal musical journey from dark and light, grief, passion, and pain. The melodic language of the music are similar to Norwegian folk music. Fredrik Falk has produced the album and also contributes with piano and soundscapes. Recorded by Ole Teigen in Crowtown recordings and mastered by Kenneth Amundsen. Artwork by Nihil.

John Wick: Chapter 4 (stylized as JW4) is a 2023 American neo-noir action thriller film directed by Chad Stahelski and written by Shay Hatten and Michael Finch. The sequel to John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019) and the fourth installment in the John Wick franchise, it stars Keanu Reeves as the title character, alongside a supporting ensemble cast including Donnie Yen, Bill Skarsgård, Laurence Fishburne, Hiroyuki Sanada, Shamier Anderson, Lance Reddick (in one of his final roles), Rina Sawayama, Scott Adkins, and Ian McShane.

When François Couperin published his Mass for the Convents in 1690, he had just turned 20, yet he had created the most exceptional collection of organ music to be written during the reign of Louis XIV. On the magnificent and historic Great Organ of the Royal Chapel of Versailles, over which Couperin presided from 1693 to 1730, the celebrated organist of Notre-Dame de Paris, Olivier Latry, performs a sumptuous version of this Organ Mass which, in a world premiere, is interlaced with captivating Chants sur le Livre, those sublime holy improvisations unique to French baroque music… for a moment of eternity.

Three pianist-composers from the first half of the last century form the programme for Joseph Moog’s new album. For this recording he is partnered by pianist Kai Adomeit in three works for two pianos – Rachmaninoff’s late Symphonic Dances from 1940, York Bowen’s Theme & Variations from 1951, and Rachmaninoff’s friend and compatriot Medtner’s Two Pieces. York Bowen had many Rachmaninoff works in his extensive concert repertoire, and he became known without much justification as ‘The English Rachmaninoff’. However strange that may sound, he like the two Russians on this recording represent (with Prokofiev) the last of the great pianist composers of the 20th century.

Trained at the Musical Dramatic Institute of the Moscow Philharmonic School, Viktor Sergeyevich Kalinnikov (1870-1927) was active as a conductor of choirs and orchestras in various Moscow schools and musical theaters, as well as a professor at the Conservatory from 1922 until his death. He was the brother of the symphonist Vasily Kalinnikov (1866-1901). Viktor Kalinnikov belongs to that group of Russian composers (along with Chesnokov, Golovanov, Kastalski, Nikolski and Shvedov, among others) who, at the turn of the two centuries, dedicated themselves mainly to the sacred choral repertoire, considerably enriching the musical corpus of Orthodox liturgies.

Silence is an indispensable condition for the appearance of sound, to make the verb habitable. When language could not express the deepest human abysses, music emerged as a privileged way to put us in contact with the mystical, with the transcendent element of reality. The musical rite then emerged, where word and melody go hand in hand to access a space where spirits and gods are honoured, where the unknown and even the forbidden are invoked.

Trio Brax is a chamber music ensemble based in Tromsø, Northern Norway, founded in 2015. In this first recording they showcase music by the three Norwegian composers; Kjell Habbestad, Håvard Lund, and Helge Iberg, as well as music by Paul Hindemith.

This album is something we never thought possible when we played our first notes together a decade ago. It pushed us to the brink of our abilities, and forced us to find sounds and extended techniques we didn’t know existed. It challenged us emotionally, forcing us to confront our purpose as an ensemble after spending over a year apart in lockdown. More than anything, it revealed to us – in small, sacred moments — a world of possibility for the next decade and more.

From the trademark melancholy tone of Scandinavian Jazz, to cinematic synth textures and propulsive programmed drum machines, Danish quintet ‘Andorra’ embodies the melting-pot spirit of jazz.

"The new album is an approach to my Turkish roots. From several hundred pieces, I then selected these five and arranged them."