William Shield rose from relatively humble beginnings to become the ‘house’ composer to Covent Garden, for which he wrote stage works full of panache and tunefulness. He met and befriended Haydn who was to prove a lasting influence. In 1782 Shield published his Six String Quartets, Op. 3, some of the most richly rewarding works of their type in 18th-century England. The transparency of parts, use of imitation, infusion of Sturm und Drang elements as well as the bucolic and folkloric writing, all demonstrate Shield’s art, as does the progressive writing of the last of the six, in C minor.

Inspired by Californian collective Supersonic Blues Machine, of which he’s also a member, Kris Barras put together a British jam band to fully embrace his blues rock roots and work with guest collaborators.

This captivating new release from PENTATONE celebrates the glittering world of 19th-century opera and the timeless beauty of the golden age of bel canto. Featuring music by Gaetano Donizetti, Gioacchino Rossini, Georges Bizet, Léo Delibes, and Giuseppe Verdi, the album showcases soprano Erin Morley and tenor Lawrence Brownlee—two of today’s most exciting voices—joined by the Münchner Rundfunkorchester under the baton of conductor Ivan Repušić. Together, they bring fresh brilliance to the French and Italian repertoire with performances that balance vocal agility, lyrical finesse, and emotional power. This carefully curated collection of operatic gems highlights iconic duets and arias that continue to resonate with modern audiences through their passion, beauty, and dramatic flair. It marks an exciting PENTATONE debut for both Lawrence Brownlee and Ivan Repušić, while Erin Morley returns following her acclaimed performance in the label’s recording of Handel’s Alcina (2024). The Münchner Rundfunkorchester also makes a welcome return, having previously appeared on PENTATONE’s release of Gordon Getty’s Plump Jack (2012).

An intimate voice-and-piano album weaving five witty originals among six classic standards. Captures Angela and pianist Ray Gallon in a late-night, romantic mood with In the Wonder of the Night.

Seine posthume Bekanntheit verdankte der Protagonist dieser Produktion einem Irrtum: Die »Jenaer Symphonie«, die man 1909 in der Universitätsbibliothek der Stadt entdeckte, wurde als ein vermeintliches Frühwerk Beethovens gründlich studiert, diskutiert und sogar eingespielt. Seit 1968 weiß man allerdings, dass es sich bei der Komposition mitnichten um die »Nullte« des Titanen, sondern um die 14te von insgesamt 23 Symphonien handelt, die Friedrich Witt aus dem baden-württembergischen Niederstetten geschrieben und zu erheblichen Teilen auch publiziert hat. Ganze fünf Wochen älter als sein Bonner Kollege, den er um neun Jahre überlebte, war er seit 1802 Hofkapellmeister zu Würzburg, wo sein symphonisches Schaffen einen staunenswerten Aufschwung nahm und offenbar neu sortiert wurde: Die drei hier eingespielten Symphonien Nr. 1 bis 3 sind einige Jahre jünger als ihre vielgelobte Schwester, deren verheißungsvolle Qualität sie indes konsequent fortsetzen.

This recording is the first of a collaboration between René Jacobs, the Kammerorchester Basel, the Zürcher Sing-Akademie and Alpha Classics and will involve the release of four albums between 2025 and 2028; the first of these is the Missa Cellensis, then three albums devoted to Haydn’s last six masses. Haydn was commissioned in 1766 to write a Missa Solemnis, the Latin term for a fully scored mass with trumpets and timpani; it is the third and largest of Haydn's fourteen masses. It was under this erroneous name that the 1766 Missa Cellensis remained known until 1975, when a fragment of the autograph score containing the title page, Kyrie I and Christe was found in Bucharest and revealed that Haydn had in fact composed two Missæ Cellenses. It is the first of these (1766) that is recorded here. René Jacobs puts all his expertise and enthusiasm at the service of this music that he loves so much, in collaboration with soloists with whom he works regularly, an orchestra that is also a longstanding partner, and the remarkable choir of the Sing-Akademie of Zürich.

While one has to wonder whether the demand for Malo's product is wide enough to merit a four-CD box set rather than individual reissues of some or all of their albums, Celebracion certainly does a great job of presenting the band's legacy in total. Each of their four 1972-1974 Warner Brothers albums is included in gatefold sleeves, with a 20-page booklet that goes over the band's history with some depth, bolstered by interview quotes from several bandmembers. Two to five bonus tracks are added to each disc/album, though unfortunately these are just shorter single edits of album tracks. There's one previously unreleased cut, "Pana," but that's just an unreleased single edit of the same track of that name that appears on their debut album…

Long-term ELP fans will doubtless recognize much of this box set as a reprise of sundry, previously released collections and anthologies, most notably the three Manticore Archives box sets of the early 2000s. The cumulative cost of those boxes, however, makes this a magnificent alternative, cherrypicking the very best of those earlier releases to create a one-stop portrait of one of the world's most exciting live bands at its best. With 43 tracks spread across four discs, the first three CDs are sensibly divided between the three primary eras of the band - soundboard quality collections of "the early 1970s," taking us up through the band's 1974 tour; "the late 1970s," rounding up the Works tours of 1977-1978; and "the 1990s," capturing the reunions…

Ulf Wallin and Roland Pöntinen made their first duo-recording for BIS in 1991 and have released acclaimed recital discs ranging from Schumann and Liszt to Alfred Schnittke, by way of Schoenberg and Hindemith. With the present disc they bring their most recent project to a close: a recording of all the works by Johannes Brahms for violin and piano. These include not only the three well-known and -loved numbered violin sonatas, but also the Scherzo from the so-called F.A.E. Sonata and the composer’s own violin versions of the two sonatas for clarinet and piano.

The extant concertos by Johann Sebastian Bach for one harpsichord and strings were all composed before 1738, which makes them some of the first, if not the first keyboard concertos – a genre destined to become one of the most popular within classical music. In all likelihood Bach wrote them for his own use (or that of his talented sons) – probably to be performed with Leipzig’s Collegium Musicum of which he had taken over as director in 1729. The fresh and exuberant character one finds in the concertos seems to reflect how much Bach enjoyed the opportunity to engage with his fellow musicians.

György Vashegyi’s new recording of Rameau’s Dardanus superbly demonstrates the Dijon-born composer’s genius, but also the mastery which Vashegyi – with his Orfeo Orchestra and Purcell Choir – has acquired in the music of the Late French Baroque. In conjunction with the preparation of a fresh edition for the Rameau Opera Omnia of the May 1744 version of Dardanus (under the aegis of the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles), Vashegyi conducts from a score prepared by the composer (and his librettist Leclerc de La Bruère) following the work’s rejection by Paris Opéra audiences in 1739, with the intention of reinforcing the tragédie’s dramatic action.

Richard O'Brien - The Rocky Horror Show (Richard O'Brien's Original Demotape Recordings) These original demo recordings, all including Richard O'Brien's commentary storyline, were originally recorded for presentation to The Royal Court Theatre as an outline of the songs and storyline for The Rocky Horror Show. The recordings secured him the gig Upstairs at The Royal Court Theatre and the rest was history. - The Rocky Horror Show is the longest continuously-running contemporary musical anywhere in the world. Seen by millions, it continues to delight audiences on it's sell-out international tours.

History of "Get Back" Bootleg (Revised) For over 20 years, the collecting public has been fed a continuing stream of bootlegs drawn from the Twickenham sessions. These have usually been chopped up, placed out of sequence, and presented in inferior sound quality. Of course, bootleggers can only work from material at their disposal, and in the beginning the only material available was the film "Let It Be". The first Twickenham material to appear, then, came from the soundtrack of the film on a double album called "Cinelogue: Let It Be", which was released in February, 1974 by Contra Band Music. Of course, this was back in the days before home video, so fans were more delighted to be able to enjoy the "Let It Be" soundtrack on record! The release of the "Let It Be" videotape in 1982 provided a new audio source, and bootlegs produced after that date were mastered from the video soundtrack rather than film. The first of these was "In a Play Anyway", a 2 LP set on Circuit Records (matrix number TWK 2262). A further reissue by Beeb Transcri- ption Records (on a new plate TR-2170) was titled "The Last Blast". It was released in 1988 and it's sound quality is slightly inferior. Of course, most of the film soundtrack from Twickenham is completely useless because longer source tapes have surfaced.

This fantastic debut album from psychedelic Welsh sextet (who'd previously issued two Mod singles on Deram) was released in December 1968 by Mercury Records. lt was very enjoyable combination of pumping R’n’B, swirling psychedelia, early progressive rock & some jazz influences - full of spontaneous guitar playing, inventive Hammond organ & mellotron sounds, powerful drumming and classy vocals. Highlights include acid-tinged and very psychedelic ‘Prodigal Son’, dreamy arrangements of Handel’s ‘Largo’, powerful rendition of The Beatles’ ‘Yesterday’ and two Graham Bond songs (who also wrote the sleeve notes): ‘Love ls The Law‘ and ‘Crossroads Of Time‘.

The latest issue (#158) of German metal magazine "Legacy" features Mille Petrozza, the mastermind behind thrash metal legends Kreator, as its cover story. The 14-page feature includes an extensive interview, a detailed profile and information about the documentary film "Hate & Hope" and his autobiographical book "Your Heaven, My Hell".
Of particular interest to thrash fans is the exclusive tribute CD with 11 impressive Kreator cover versions by bands from all over the world.
Napalm Death, Pessimist, Enthroned, Dark Tranquillity, Godslave and others.