Henri Duparc

With a Negro spiritual, spectacular bel canto, romantic song and comic opera, Lawrence Brownlee unveils the breadth of his repertoire and the lyric tenor voice that has won acclaim at the New York's Metropolitan Opera (for his 'agility, elegance and Rossinian style) and farther afield.

One of the most sought-after bel canto tenors on the international scene.

Includes songs by Duparc, Donizetti, Liszt (3 Petrach Sonnets), Rossini, Ginastera and American contemporary composer Ben Moore.

La folie française is an odyssey of the French classical composers from the 19th Century (Georges Bizet, César Franck…) to nowadays (Pierre Boulez, Henri Dutilleux…), as well as the golden age (Satie, Debussy, Ravel or Saint-Saëns), reflecting the concert’s programme.

It’s a great opportunity to hear such masterpieces of this prolific period in the history of music as “La Mer” by Debussy, Bizet’s “Carmen suite”, the “Bolero”, two “Gnossiennes”, “L’Apprenti sorcier” by Paul Dukas (best known for being used in Fantasia’s soundtrack), César Franck’s violin sonata… and the more unusual Oboe sonata by Charles Koechlin, d’Indy’s “Symphonie sur un chant montagnard français”, and works by Chausson and Séverac. French melodies by Massenet, Duparc and Hahn, jazzy classical pieces of Darius Milhaud and Jean Wiéner, and great symphonic works by Poulenc and Roussel complete this compilation of 64 tracks and over 5 hours of music, all served by the greatest performers: Samson François, Michel Plasson, Jean Martinon, Alexandre Tharaud, Georges Prêtre, Anne Queffélec, Augustin Dumay, etc

The glamorous soprano Kiri Te Kanawa was born in 1944 in Gisborne, on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand. After winning a number of major vocal competitions in Australia, she came to London in 1966 to study singing at the London Opera Centre, where she trained for three years. Then in 1970 she was accepted by the Royal Opera at Covent Garden as a junior member of the company. Her big break came in 1971, when she was chosen to sing the Countess in a new production of Le nozze di Figaro.. It was something of a gamble for the Covent Garden management to cast an inexperienced singer in such an important role, but on the opening night Kiri’s performance stole the show.

After the Covent Garden Nozze di Figaro, an international career was assured. With a carefully chosen repertoire that included the principal soprano roles of Mozart, as well as a number of Verdi, Puccini and Richard Strauss heroines, Kiri went on to triumph in the major opera houses of the world. She first appeared at the Salzburg Festival in 1979 and became a regular and much-loved performer at Glyndebourne, a venue for which she has a particularly strong affection, and in 1981 Kiri was chosen to sing at the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer in St Paul's Cathedral, an event seen by a world-wide television audience estimated at more than 600 million people

Not surprisingly, her vibrant but creamy voice, together with her attractive stage presence, made her an ideal interpreter of the main Richard Strauss roles, and it was not long before she was singing the Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier, a part with which she scored a particular success. After a number of popular Italian and French arias, Kiriis heard in this programme in the Marschallin's Act I monologue, 'Da geht er hin', as well as in arias from several other German operas, including Wagner's Tannhäuser, Der Freischutz by Weber and Korngold's unjustly neglected romantic masterpiece Die tote Stadt. As a brief reminder of Kiri's achievements on the concert stage, the first CD closes with three orchestral songs by the French composers Ravel and Duparc, all of which show off the lustrous beauty of her voice to full advantage.

In addition to opera and so-called serious music however, Kiri is also a great enthusiast for the lighter repertoire, including folk music and the songs of Broadway and Tin Pan Alley. When performing this material, she uses the warm, lower part of her rich voice to give idiomatic performances of songs by some of America's greatest composers of popular music, such as George Gershwin, Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin and Cole Porter. Also heard here are Franz Gruber's familiar Christmas carol 'Silent Night' and a number of traditional British folk songs. These are followed by two Maori songs, in which Kiri is joined by a group of Maori singers and a number of specialist musicians who together capture the authentic style of these fascinating pieces.

Rouleau was acclaimed on the world’s greatest opera stages and performed with the greatest singers, including Sutherland, de Los Angeles, Callas, Pavarotti and Domingo. This collection draws from his impressive discography and includes arias by Donizetti, Verdi, Boito and many others; all demonstrating his vigour and vitality.

Compelling for her intensity and integrity as much as for her unmistakeable voice, Dame Janet Baker struck a distinctive path as a performer, primarily on the concert and recital stage. Among her most celebrated recordings are her interpretations of Elgar with Sir John Barbirolli, here complemented by songs and oratorio arias by composers such as Bach, Handel, Schubert, Schumann, Brahms, Mahler, Strauss, Fauré, Vaughan Williams and Britten.

A Lesson in Love tells the universal story of a love won and lost, and contains some beautiful and emotional German lieder, English and American songs and French mélodies.

Kate Royal’s first two orchestral discs for EMI have been critically acclaimed. Here she turns her attention towards a more intimate recital disc with piano.

A Lesson in Love charts the journey of a young girl’s relationship: from the first kiss and thrill of a blossoming love and initial intimacy through to the joy of a love fulfilled, to the disappointment and anger when the relationship breaks down - it ends with the girl’s acceptance and a cheeky sense of optimism about what her future love life might hold… Kate here creates her own unique song cycle, a thematic journey through the highs and lows of love, of young naivety lost and emotional maturity gained, feelings and experiences everyone can relate.

Kate leads us through her own personal choice of song, and her innate sense of drama and her passion for musical storytelling brings a fresh and youthful interpretation of the disc repertoire. A Lesson in Love contains a mixture of well-known songs as well as some surprising rarities, with a range of song styles and languages to appeal to a broad audience. She is joined by the most esteemed and respected accompanists, Malcolm Martineau.

This anniversary collection by Jeunesses Musicales marks 60 years of service to the young: 60 years of excellence. The compilation presents some of the best recordings made at ANALEKTA by artists who toured under the aegis of JMC or have been associated with the Montreal International Musical Competition, founded in 2002. Discover some of the great performers of the Canadian music scene.