Elliott Carter

A tribute to American music! An opportunity to sample some of the most up-to-date American music, with two masterpieces in the concertante genre: the clarinet concertos of Elliott Carter and John Corigliano.

Presented here by leading interpreters of this music, these two pieces are emblematic of the rich stylistic diversity of the American continent.

John Corigliano’s Clarinet Concerto of 1977 showcases the soloist’s virtuosity. It is a highly sensitive work in which the clarinettist plays the role of a valiant hero weathering the storm, the tumultuous, tempestuous material of the orchestra, glinting like a flash of lightning among the discordant detonations of the horns and the thunderclaps of the percussion. But the tumult soon makes way for dreams, the purely melancholy power of the music of this American master, sometimes recalling the most moving moments of his Violin Concerto, which served as material for François Girard’s film The Red Violin (Oscar for Best Film Score 1999).

A different style and a different way of introducing the narrative is found in Elliott Carter’s Clarinet Concerto, composed twenty years later, in 1997. This piece gives the impression of a veritable musical dramaturgy, in which each instrument is treated individually. The composer also treats the concerto itself in a new way, since he sets up an alternating dialogue between the soloist and each of the instrumental groups, which are independent of each other and laid out in a semicircle. The style of the work is characterised by both virtuosity and precision in the articulations and the accents. Elliott Carter, whose 104th birthday is celebrated this year, is unquestionably one of the most inventive composers of his time.

Two worlds, two visions, given a magnificent performance by the clarinet of Eddy Vanoosthuyse under the baton of Paul Meyer.

An immensely satisfying traversal of modern piano music as performed by arguably the greatest contemporary exponent of the repertoire.

Bringing together the finest collections from the American Classics range this beautifully-packaged boxed set appeals to any collector and offers a comprehensive overview of classical music composition in the US. This boxset takes the most successful titles from the American Classics range and brings them together in a comprehensive overview of classical music, broadway and jazz in the United States.

In the orchestra, the oboe gives the tuning A on account of the richness of its harmonics and its stability, but it is also a solo instrument in its own right. Céline Moinet begins her collaboration with harmonia mundi with a veritable tour de force, combining in her programme repertoire separated by more than 200 years. Hence JS and CPE Bach resonate with the 20th century of Benjamin Britten, Luciano Berio and Elliott Carter, in a project that combines exceptional musical coherence with gentle sonority.

Born in Lille in 1984, Céline Moinet studied oboe and chamber music at the Paris Conservatoire in the classes of David Walter and Maurice Bourgue. She also studied the Baroque oboe with Marcel Ponseele and Xenia Löffler. In 2004 and 2005 she completed her orchestral training as a member of the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester under the direction of Claudio Abbado. After this experience, she was invited to appear as guest principal with leading German orchestras and since June 2008 she has been the principal oboe of the celebrated Staatskapelle Dresden. In the autumn of 2011, she was invited by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra to appear on an extended tour of Asia and Australia. Céline Moinet performs regularly in solo and chamber repertoire and at the invitation of Fabio Luisi, she has given recitals and masterclasses at the Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo. Céline Moinet plays an oboe by Marigaux of Paris.

A back-catalogue reminder of the wonder of Gerard Schwarz, trumpeter, playing new works for our enjoyment.

This disc contains a number of major, though seldom performed, works for cello and piano. It commemorates the centenaries of Martinu and Carter and also includes works by Messiaen and the young British composer Joe Cutler.