Coming Soon,
Russian Emigrés and Henry Purcell
A pair of exciting new projects on the way from Vivat - from opposite ends of the musical spectrum.
28-year-old pianist and composer Alissa Firsova has a Rachmaninov-centred disc lined up entitled "Russian Emigrés" - a title not without personal resonance for Firsova. Just as Rachmaninov was forced to emigrate in the wake of the Revolution in 1917, Firsova's parents were denounced among Khrennikov's Seven, fled Russia in the early 1990s and now reside in the UK. The disc will also feature compositions not merely by Firsova but by both her mother Elena and father Dmitri Smirnov.
Firsova (Alissa, that is) is also due to have a major new commission performed at the BBC Proms in August - one to watch!
And from the contemporary to the early - The King's Consort continue their survey of Purcell's chamber music under Robert King, following their acclaimed recording of his Ten Sonatas in Four Parts with the Twelve Sonatas in Three Parts. Purcell's chamber music has never really gained the attention it deserves - due in part to the sheer popularity of his vocal and choral works, of course - so it's good to see Robert King and his Consort continuing to redress the balance.
Other Vivat Recordings
The main attraction on this disc - quite apart from the eponymous anthem and Elgar's stirring orchestration of Jerusalem - is surely the orchestral versions of some of Stanford's best-loved canticles. The Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in A is particularly resplendent.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Carolyn Sampson leads the lineup in this collection of French Baroque music for Holy week - the traditionally melancholy time in the Church's year inspiring Couperin to write some of his most characterful music.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
The Allegri String Quartet kick off their series of Beethoven quartets with these three relatively youthful works.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC, Hi-Res+ FLAC
A loving tribute to Monteverdi the madrigalist - the many shades of love among gods and mortals are portrayed here by a star-studded cast including Sarah Connolly, Carolyn Sampson and James Gilchrist.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Iestyn Davies is one of the most prominent of today's new generation of countertenors, and this album showcases the extraordinary beauty and versatility of his voice. Favourites such as Eternal source of light divine are juxtaposed with forgotten gems of the coutertenor repertoire.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
The quintessentially European chamber music of Henry Purcell, combining elements of the English, French and Italian schools, is here performed - appropriately enough - by an international lineup of musicians drawn from all over Europe.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Viola de Hoog gives a lively, spacious account of Bach's immortal Suites for solo cello, on a 1750 Guadagnini instrument.
Available Formats: 2 CDs, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
While Baroque string instruments may still be around, the number of surviving Baroque organs is tiny - which makes the organ of the Chiesa di San Nicolao in Alice Castello a particular treasure. Here Luca Guglielmi performs some of Bach's most famous works on an organ that he would surely have found familiar.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
David Smith - Head of Digital
