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Presto News - 20th April 200920 Years of NMC |
 There aren’t many record companies that are also registered charities, but that is the case with the label NMC, which is almost exclusively devoted to releasing and promoting works by living British composers.  Colin Matthews NMC was founded in 1989 by Colin Matthews with the financial support of the Holst Foundation. The initials in the name stood for ‘New Music Cassettes’ which just 20 years ago was still the most common format for recordings. The Holst Foundation had built a substantial fund from the revenue gained from the composer’s music (particularly The Planets) and although most of his music had by then gone out of copyright, the foundation was set on using its funds to help promote contemporary music. Twenty years on the foundation still provides the backbone of funding for NMC, underwriting all the administrative costs of the label. Furthermore a change in EU legislation in the mid 1990s extended the copyright term of printed music from 50 to 70 years and so Holst’s music went back into copyright and the foundation suddenly found a new, and very lucrative source of further revenue. This resulted in a further expansion of NMC’s catalogue with big projects like Birtwistle’s Mask of Orpheus and Anthony Payne’s realisation of Elgar’s Third Symphony suddenly becoming possible. To celebrate their 20th Anniversary NMC has commissioned and released a boxset called ‘The NMC Songbook’. At first glance it is a surprising choice (as there was previously very little song on the label), but I think that was probably partly the reason behind it – to help redress the balance a little. Also, in the form of a short song they had found a way of involving as many composers and performers as possible and provide the listener with a wide range of styles and subjects – I suppose a sort of ‘something for everyone’. The result is spectacular. Nearly 100 composers are represented (including a small handful for whom we previously had no CDs listed) and the singers are of the highest calibre. The texts for the songs were chosen by the composers and cover a vast array of subjects, from well-known poems by Blake and Byron through to a list of the Kings and Queens of England, extracts from a National Trust brochure, chants from the Leyton Orient terraces (a football team in East London, which incidentally is the team I’ve followed since a kid), a whisky recipe, and a colourful rant about road rage. The whole project has been really well put together and comes highly recommended. I’ve also put a short introductory video on the website which tells you a bit more about it.
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 The NMC Songbook4-CD set with special packaging and a 60-page booklet |
Chris O'Reilly - chris@prestoclassical.co.uk |
Watch a short preview videoNew Releases20th April 2009 |
This is just the pick of the recent releases. The New Releases and Future Releases pages are always available for browsing all the new and forthcoming releases. |
 Il Pianto di Maria - The Virgin's LamentBernarda Fink, Il Giardino Armonico, Giovanni AntoniniA rare recordings of two settings of Mary’s passionate Easter lament. For their second L’Oiseau Lyre disc, Il Giardino Armonico, again under their director Giovanni Antonini, are joined by celebrated mezzo-soprano Bernarda Fink, for a project exploring the Passion of Christ as seen through the eyes of the Virgin Mary. The two central works are both vocal settings of the Virgin’s lament. The first, Il Pianto di Maria, was long thought to be by Handel – a clear reflection of its outstanding musical quality. It was not until the 1990s that handwriting experts established it as the work of the little-known Venetian composer Giovanni Ferrandini. The other key vocal work is the World Premiere recording of an aria by Francesco Conti – composer to the Habsburg court of Vienna - in which the martyr Lorenzo, threatened with being burnt alive, refuses to deny his Christian faith. This deeply touching aria features a rarely heard ancestor of the modern clarinet, frequently used in ‘pathetic’ arias of the period – the soprano chalumeau. Short instrumental pieces form a musical setting around these vocal jewels, and include music by Caldara, Marini, Pisendel, Weiss and Vivaldi. |
 Schubert - Chamber MusicPiano Quintet in A major, D667 'The Trout', Flute Variations and Notturno in E flat major for Piano TrioMartin Helmchen and Christian Tetzlaff lead a superb line-up of young musicians in this fine recording of Schubert's Trout Quintet, one of the best loved of all chamber works. |
 Handel - Arias & Suites from AlcinaChristine Schafer (soprano), Berlin Baroque Soloists, Rainer KussmaulStar soprano Christine Schafer sings scenes and arias from one of Handel’s most popular operas. The combination of Handel and Schafer ensure this is going to a major release. |
 Schubert Live - Volume 1Imogen Cooper (piano)Imogen Cooper returns to AVIE with the first in a series of 3 double CDs, recorded live at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, exploring the late piano music of Schubert written between 1823 and 1828. The first volume includes the A minor Sonata D845, the D major Sonata D850 and the A major Sonata D959. “She is an outstanding artist, one of the finest pianists now playing.” Daily Telegraph |
 Wilms - Sonatas for piano 4-handsHans-Peter & Volker Stenzl (piano duo)Hans-Peter & Volker Stenzl play these charming pieces by the Dutch composer Johann Wilhelm Wilms (1772-1847). Sonata Op. 41 is a world premiere recording. |
 Telemann: St Matthew Passion, TWV 5:31Konzertchor Darmstadt & Kammerorchester Darmstadt, Wolfgang SeeligerGeorg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767) composed 46 Passions of which 20 have survived complete or as fragments. These are glorious performances from all the forces concerned of this little known choral masterpiece. |
 Reger - Chamber MusicEnsemble Villa MusicaOnce again Ensemble Villa Musica introduces us to forgotten pearls of the chamber music repertoire, this time in the form of Reger's Clarinet Quintet in A major and String Sextet in F major. |
 Rigel - The French SymphoniesConcerto KölnConcerto Koln has wrenched the French symphonies of the composer Henri-Joseph Rigel from oblivion! In diverse ways, these works reflect a revolutionary era in which - despite the turbulent events of the time - an active bourgeois appreciation of music was developing. Yet another discovery by the Cologne ensemble and, as always, a dazzling performance! |
 BBC Radio 3 CD ReviewSaturday 18th April 2009 |
Building a Library - Handel: Water Music |
 First ChoiceL'Arte dell'Arco, Federico Guglielmo (conductor) |
Disc of the Week |
 Maconchy - The Sofa & The DepartureNicholas Sharratt (tenor), Sarah Tynan (soprano), George von Bergen (baritone), Josephine Thorpe (mezzo-soprano), Alinka Kozari (soprano), Anna Leese (soprano), Patricia Orr (mezzo-soprano), Patrick Ashcroft (tenor), Louise Poole (mezzo-soprano), Håkon Vramsmo (baritone), Independent Opera Ensemble, Dominic Wheeler (conductor) |
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