Tot ver in de achttiende eeuw was de luit hét instrument van de Europese adel. De beste renaissance- en barokcomponisten schreven talloze werken voor het instrument. Een van de beste luitisten van dit moment, Christopher Wilson, maakte een prachtige keuze uit het enorme luitrepertoire uit de Franse renaissance. Verfijnd, rustgevend en sfeervol.

Written by a young and ambitious Chopin as self-promotional vehicle to demonstrate his performance capabilities and, to a lesser degree, his compositional skills, the two piano concertos have remained as an important part of the instrument's repertoire. Often derided for their somewhat trite orchestral parts, these concertos are nevertheless beautiful, thoroughly enjoyable works. While there are countless recordings of the piano works of Beethoven and Mozart on period instruments, this inclination has found its way to Chopin's works with less frequency. This album, produced by The Fryderyk Chopin Institute, makes use of an 1849 Erard fortepiano made in Paris, very similar to the instruments Chopin himself would have used.

Konjovic is the most significant representative of the nationalism of the Serbian modernism in music. His most famous works are his operas. The period between two world wars was defined by Konjovic who introduced several genres into Serbian music. His Czech experience encouraged his natural inclination toward folk sources and he began developing melodies, like Janacek, out of the inflection of speech. Konjovic's mature style strives for direct communication with broad audience while incorporating a sophistical harmonic vocabulary. His work includes over one hundred folk songs arrangements and twenty original choral pieces.

Memento Mori (stylised as "Memento | Mori" on the album cover) is the fifteenth studio album by Depeche Mode, released on 24 March 2023, through Columbia and Mute. The album was produced by James Ford and Marta Salogni. It was preceded by the single "Ghosts Again" and the track "My Cosmos Is Mine" (released on streaming platforms), and is the first Depeche Mode studio album to be released after the death of co-founder and keyboardist Andy Fletcher on 26 May 2022. The album is promoted by the Memento Mori World Tour.

Jazz Master Kenny Barron's Songbook, is a landmark recording that will cement his place in the pantheon of jazz greats. Joined by his long-standing trio -Kiyoshi Kitagawa on bass and Johnathan Blake on drums - he unveils a collection of original compositions interpreted by an extraordinary cast of guest vocalists, including Cécile McLorin Salvant, Kurt Elling, Ann Hampton Callaway, Catherine Russell, Jean Baylor, Tyreek McDole, Ekep Nkwelle, and Kavita Shah. Seamlessly blending lyrical sophistication, harmonic depth, and rhythmic vitality, Songbook is both a celebration of Kenny Barron's artistry and a defining statement in a career that has shaped the sound of modern jazz. This is not just a new album- it is a legacy in the making.

The Everly Brothers were American country-influenced rock and roll singers, known for steel-string guitar and close harmony singing, formed by brothers Don Everly (born February 1, 1937) and Phil Everly (born January 19, 1939 - died January 3, 2014). They had their greatest success between 1957 and 1964. They were inducted into Rock And Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 (Performer).

Future World is the second album by the Danish hard rock/heavy metal band Pretty Maids. The album was released by CBS in 1987. The album charted at number 165 on the Billboard 200 in the United States. Future World was produced by Eddie Kramer, who was fired during the recording sessions because he fell asleep at the mixing console, according to guitarist Ken Hammer. The band then finished the album with engineer Chris Isca, who was credited as co-producer on the album. Mixing duties were shared between Metallica, Rainbow and Morbid Angel producer Flemming Rasmussen, and Kevin Elson, known for producing multiplatinum albums by Journey, Mr. Big and Europe.

The Pacifica Quartet presents The Korngold Collection, a landmark recording of Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s complete string quartets and rarely heard chamber works tracing the composer’s extraordinary evolution from prodigy of post-imperial Vienna to pioneering film composer in Hollywood.

The Korngold Collection is a concert and recording project celebrating the Pacifica Quartet's 30th anniversary (1994-2024). This offering presents the complete string quartets of Erich Wolfgang Korngold, taking listeners on a unique musical journey through his development as a composer, from his earliest years in Vienna as a burgeoning teenage prodigy to his assured and mature style in Hollywood as a distinguished film composer. In addition to Korngold’s three string quartets, written between 1923-1945, this project also features his kaleidoscopic String Sextet (1914) and ravishingly beautiful Piano Quintet (1920), in collaboration with regular chamber music partners the likes of Orion Weiss, award winning pianist as well as internationally recognized guest colleagues.

This disc is a sequel to the Hommage à Bach release by German pianist Andreas Staier, likewise devoted to the music of Schumann. Here Staier devotes himself to Schumann's late music (from his last year or so among the sane), playing the Gesänge der Frühe, Op. 133, himself, and taking on violinist Daniel Sepec for the two violin sonatas and Schumann's arrangement of Bach's Chaconne (here "Ciaconna") from the Partita for unaccompanied violin in D minor, BWV 1004. Both players use historical instruments, Staier's 1837 Erard is the same piano that's heard on the earlier release, and it's safe to say that those who enjoyed Hommage à Bach will also find much to admire here, even though the two performances are quite different in overall effect.

This is a very compelling performance of Tchaikovsky's Op.44. Perhaps too expansive for my taste, but skilfully well played and always convincent. Postnikova and Rozhdestvensky make a good match in this music and as a great advantage, they chose the composer's original version. While she is known to many for her recordings of the complete piano output of Tchaikovsky and all five piano concertos of Prokofiev, Viktoria Postnikova has played a broad range of solo, chamber, and concerto repertory, from J.S. Bach and Haydn to Chopin, Rachmaninov, and Shostakovich. In addition, Postnikova has played less traditional fare by Busoni, Ives, and Janácek, and contemporary works by Schnittke and Boris Tishchenko.

The Who One of the major bands of the rock & roll era, the Who straddle the gap separating art-pop and hard-rock, creating kinetic, exploratory music that helped expand the genre's lexicon. Arriving during the second wave of the British Invasion, the Who came out of the R&B-besotted Mod scene and married that groove to the crunching power chords pioneered by the Kinks. After their debut single "I Can't Explain" cracked the U.K. Top Ten in 1965, the band quickly gained a reputation for their volcanic live performances, which could escalate into Pete Townshend violently shattering his guitar while Keith Moon destroyed his drum kit with glee.

I’m an avid fan of the TV comedy series Benidorm (like every night), about the adventures of a motley crew of ‘Brits’ on their annual holiday in Europe’s biggest resort town at the 3-Star Solana Hotel and which is on a permanent loop on a retro TV station here.

Intrada announces a 40th-anniversary edition of Brad Fiedel's popular score to Fright Night (1985). The score from Columbia Pictures' darkly humorous horror film proved challenging to release the first time around: first-generation masters were incomplete and the full score was taken from second-generation masters. In the intervening years, the first generation masters were discovered, allowing album producer Edwin Wendler to produce an all-new master of the complete score in film order in brilliant sound. It's the definitive presentation of Brad Fiedel's music Intrada had always wished to issue, including an additional 17 minutes of previously unreleased score. The album was mastered by Doug Schwartz with updated cover design by Stéphane Coëdel and updated notes by Daniel Schweiger. Fiedel crafted a score that was both state-of-the-art and old school—imbuing the hip villain with the stuff of supernatural legend. While Fiedel followed the story from a humorous beginning to an unexpectedly shocking climax, Fright Night’s experimental jolts were also firmly bound by the same melodic laws of a classic Hammer film–-filled with themes and motifs that paint The Vampire as an eternal creature of seduction. A highlight of the score is the main theme that introduces vampire Jerry Dandridge with a swaying, hypnotic rhythm, enticing Charlie to peep on his neighbor and the beautiful call girl he’s undressing. It’s a sensual build worthy of a rock god and his conquest.

As the producer of such legends as Hank Snow, Porter Wagoner, Dolly Parton, Dottie West, Waylon Jennings, Jerry Reed……not to mention Elvis, The Everly Brothers, Eddy Arnold and Jim Reeves, you may be forgiven for overlooking the fact that our featured artist, internationally known as Mr. Guitar, A.K.A. Chet Atkins was indeed a superbly influential and innovative guitarist in his own right. We feature 5 of his late 1950s to early 1960s albums plus bonus tracks which will give you a flavour of the range of Chet’s musicianship and a man who won the Country Instrumentalist of the Year award no fewer than 9 times between 1967-1988.