Henry Purcell

Drawing together various previous releases from the Brilliant Classics collection, this compendium pays tribute to an instrument that was once at the forefront of everyday music making, tracing its extensive and highly fruitful career.

The lute counts among its writers some of the greatest names in music history, and indeed the anthology contains a large corpus of music by John Dowland – one of Britain’s most prolific Renaissance composers. His extraordinary varied music is accompanied by the likes of Henry Purcell, who rounds of the compilation, and by Johann Sebastian Bach, whose lute offerings represent the florid repertoire of the courtly salon music then in vogue. Interspersed between these big names, however, is a rich catalogue of works that are the missing links to understanding the development of lute music and of music in general; while Miguel Yisrael’s Les Baricades Mistérieuses programme recalls the dominance of the French school during the 17th century, Germany appears to have taken over as the new centre of European lute music by the mid‐18th century, as evidenced by the rich culture of music making at the court of Bayreuth (CD12).

Here a more galant, or cantabile expression of music was developing, and in Austria, too, lute music – particularly the lute trio – was seen as a precursor to the emergence of Viennese Classicism and the establishment of the new Empfindsamer style.The collection contains a wealth of lutenists, all of whom are at the top of their profession and enjoy international careers. Guaranteed to provide hours of engaging listening, this release records an essential but often‐overlooked facet of music history and is a must‐buy for anyone with an interest in string repertoire.

Many composers have been reluctant to set Shakespeare’s words to text, but Vaughan Williams remained undaunted, using his words many times in his compositions. This disc includes RVW’s ‘Orpheus with his lute’ and many other songs of longing of the early baroque. Performed by Swedish soprano Elisabeth Holmertz, the duo of Holmertz and Bock accompany her, along with Poul Hoxbro on low whistle.

Much anticipated new release from the Gramophone Record of the Year winning Vox Luminis!

We know now that Purcell’s three Funeral Sentences were not written for the funeral of Queen Mary in 1695. Following the tradition of the English court, it was pieces by Thomas Morley, originally written for the funeral of Elizabeth I, that were sung there. Purcell’s only contribution to the ceremony was the composition of two pieces for slide trumpets (March and Canzona), and the anthem in the archaic style Thou knowest, Lord. During the funeral procession to Westminster Abbey, a band of oboes played two marches written by John Paisible and Thomas Tollet.

This recording assembles the music composed for the funeral of Queen Mary and that used at the funeral of Elizabeth I in 1603. The programme is completed by Purcell’s sublime a cappella anthems and a moving anthem by Weelkes on the death of Thomas Morley.

After the success of the recording of Schütz’s Musicalische Exequien (RIC311), voted Record of the Year by Gramophone magazine, this disc will be one of the major events of spring 2013.

A celebration of the pioneering early music label Archiv, offering 55CDs ranged across the label’s entire 66-year history. Beautiful presentation, original jacket sleeves and documentation to the customary high standards of the label.

In more ways than one, 2013 will be an Archiv Produktion year. The beloved Silver Label – the “Early Music Studio of Deutsche Grammophon”, as it was called for many years – is being revived in a big way, both in frontline and catalogue. In early April 2013 an event in Berlin is being held to mark this relaunch. New albums from choral group Tenebrae, Anna Prohaska and Giuliano Carmignola are being released in the first quarter to coincide with this occasion.

Simple, striking and strong: in gleaming silver with the large blue Archiv Logo embossed on all sides. A large onsert on the top and back of the box details contents and is illustrated with a packshot showing contents.

Original Jackets: starting with the austere yellow covers of the 1940s and 1950s gradually giving way to the great historical illustrations and images that featured up to the 1990s, when artists at last began to make an appearance (there were no artist photos in the 1950s!)

The 180-page full-colour book has articles by journalist Nicholas Anderson, and “memoirs” by former directors of Archiv, Prof. Andreas Holschneider and Dr. Peter Czornyj, and Executive Producer, Marita Prohmann.

The book features many rare photos from Archiv recording sessions, as well as other memorabilia.

Anna Prohaska possesses a beautiful voice, perfect technique, interpretive originality, and genuine charisma and character.

Singing Baroque arias by Cavalli, Handel, Monteverdi, Morley, Purcell, and Vivaldi – Anna Prohaska vividly brings life to all the fairy-like characters who inhabit this extraordinary music. Favoured by such maestri as Claudio Abbado, Daniel Barenboim, and Pierre Boulez – Anna Prohaska, with Enchanted Forest, demonstrates a mature mastery of coloratura and cantilena singing.

SIR JOHN ELIOT GARDINER CELEBRATES HIS 70th BIRTHDAY IN STYLE

30-CD box, in the packaging-style of the Messiaen Edition of 2008: tremendous value for this calibre of recorded material.

Original Jackets

The 108-page booklet includes an extended interview-article (2,500 words) with Jonathan Freeman-Attwood, Principal of the Royal Academy of Music in London, recording producer and trumpet-player.

The truly great DG / Archiv & Philips recordings from across his career, ranging from Monteverdi to Stravinsky via Handel, Bach, Mozart and Verdi.

Released to co-incide with his 70th birthday, several major performances, at least one TV appearance and the publication of his long-awaited book on Bach

One of the great advocates of period-instrument performance he has received more Gramophone awards than any other living artist … and now Sir John Eliot Gardiner is reaching the ripe old age of 70 without any signs of letting up on his almost frenetic life in music.

It’s an overwhelmingly vocal collection, a sequence of highly dramatic musical works that faithfully reflects Gardiner’s musical ideals and predilections. Sung texts and translations will be available as a digital download. The 30-CD box, in the packaging-style of the Messiaen Edition of 2008, presents the recordings in their original jackets, the 108-page booklet includes an extended interview-article with Jonathan Freeman-Attwood, Principal of the Royal Academy of Music in London, recording producer and trumpet-player. As ever with Gardiner, this provides a stimulating account of his life and music, and we plan to make the full interview, conducted earlier this year, available on the special website we are preparing for the occasion.

The birthday itself falls on 20 April 2013. Around it will be a marathon concert in London’s Royal Albert Hall, consisting of all the Bach Passions and Oratorios performed in a single day. Gardiner is also publishing a book on Bach, and there will be TV appearances as well (The Andrew Marr Show in the UK).

The 1994 film 'Farinelli' catapulted the countertenor voice into the limelight. Nearly 20 years later, one thing is clear: countertenors are sought after by opera houses, record companies and agents more than ever. The English singer James Bowman was one of the pioneers of the countertenor repertoire: his ability to create a luscious sound with a fluid legato is ably demonstrated in his legendary recording of the aria from Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice, “Che faro senza Euridice”, and in “Va tacito e nascosto” from Handel’s Giulio Cesare.

In the French countertenor firmament Dominique Visse stands out for his musicianship. His voice takes on a biting, slightly stinging quality in the aria from Vivaldi’s 'Montezuma'. Gérard Lesne founded Il Seminario Musicale in 1985.

Today Lesne’s expanded musical horizons include both jazz and pop recordings. The American Derek Lee Ragin, took off with his recording of the 'Farinelli' soundtrack. The film’s director, Gérard Corbiau, had the bold idea of mixing Ragin’s countertenor voice with that of soprano Ewa Mallas-Godlewska, thereby creating the unique timbre of a castrato.

Andreas Scholl's excerpts from two Bach cantatas showcase his fascinating timbre as well as his sense of rhetoric and phrasing.

A brilliant new generation of counter-tenors continues to carry the torch. Foremost among them is Philippe Jaroussky; his instantly recognisable voice is of an audacious purity. Iestyn Davies, born in 1979, is a great admirer of James Bowman.

His voice combines expressive flexibility and technical agility, and these qualities stand out in his recording of an aria from Vivaldi’s 'Griselda'. The rising Korean star David DQ Lee displays robust vocal foundations and masterful breathing technique.

If further proof of the countertenors’ achievements were needed, it can be found in the fact that major opera houses now slate works with entirely male casts, bringing together up to nine countertenors! What was once just a fashion has become the cutting edge.

Henry Purcell is regarded as the first great master of English Baroque music, and his works find their best interpreters today in Andrew Parrott and his ensemble. Purcell's oeuvre features splendid works written for festive occasions at court as well as dramatic operas and melancholy lute songs. This recording offers a representative cross-section of the composer's work, whose popularity remains unbroken.