Guastavino: La rosa y el sauce

Chen Reiss’s debut album 'Liaisons' was internationally acclaimed for both the repertoire selection and the sheer brilliance of the musicianship displayed by Reiss.

Gramophone magazine called her performances of arias by Haydn, Mozart, Salieri and Cimarosa "standard-setting" and BBC Music magazine called it "top-drawer".

For her second ONYX CD Chen Reiss and pianist Charles Spencer have assembled a wonderful collection of songs on the subject of 'The Nightingale and the Rose' – songs that convey the magic of being in love, the heartbreak of love lost, the memories, the fun, the fantasies all associated with that strange, mysterious, dangerous and all-powerful condition –

love.

In repertoire that ranges from Purcell to Krenek, Hahn to Meyerbeer and Rimsky-Korsakov, and ends in Berkeley Square in London, this is a programme tailor-made for Chen Reiss’s remarkable voice and it will seduce you.

Although written during the 20th century, the two major works on this CD, Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s Violin Concerto No. 2 “I Profeti” and Respighi’s Concerto Gregoriano, hark back to a world of the past. The disc also includes an arrangement by violin soloist José Miguel Cueto of the song La Rosa y el Sauce by the Argentinean composer Carlos Guastavino. Cueto is accompanied by the St Petersburg Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Vladimir Lande.

Virtuoso violinist José Miguel Cueto was born in Puerto Rico where he received early piano and violin training. He studied violin at the Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico and Peabody Conservatory. He is admired by public and critics for his solid technique and beautiful tone.

Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco's Violin Concerto was written in 1931. It was commissioned by Jascha Heifetz who premiered it with Arturo Toscanini and the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. Castelnuovo-Tedesco referred to the piece as is a kind of biblical concerto, an evocation of times in the glorious past. Respighi’s Concerto Gregoriano also conveys through the use of chant and open harmonies a former time full of peace and spirituality. The musical style of the Argentinean Carlos Guastavino’s song La Rosa y el Sauce [The Rose and the Willow Tree], arranged here for violin and orchestra by the featured soloist José Miguel Cueto, is based around the composer’s native folk music.

This CD combines songs that - in different ways - illustrate the lively back and forth between the influence of European traditions and that of Latin American folklore on the composition of art songs in Argentina and Mexico.

Guastavino is one of Argentina’s major composers. He created an attractive national music using folk elements and a language firmly rooted in Romanticism. This collection includes his Clarinet Sonata, piano solos, as well as transcriptions of some of the maestro’s loveliest songs for clarinet. Héau is an important figure in the French clarinet school, performing as a soloist as well as giving master classes.

Soprano superstar Anna Netrebko steps away from the operatic stage to create her most personal and intimate album yet. Souvenirs is a gorgeous collection of short and sparkling pieces that allow Anna to display her amazing voice and temperament

“This recording is like a bridal bouquet, bursting with variety and colours,” says Anna Netrebko. “I want it to create a wonderful array of emotions – passion, fun, love, tenderness.”

The album includes repertoire from all over the world: songs in French, German, Italian, Norwegian, Latin, Czech, Yiddish, Spanish and – of course – Russian. These are pieces that are very close to Anna’s heart and include treasures by Dvorák, Grieg, Carlos Guastavino, Reynaldo Hahn, Offenbach, Richard Strauss, as well as rarely performed songs by Rimsky-Korsakov. For this special project, Anna is accompanied by conductor Emmanuel Villaume and the Prague Philharmonia. Villaume is well-known as the director of the Spoleto Festival (USA) and is a regular guest at major opera houses such as the Teatro La Fenice and the Met. He has previously worked with Anna in concert and is a perfect match for her passionate artistry. On this album Anna Netrebko has a few stunning guests to partner with her: Elina Garanca for Offenbach's Barcarole, Andrew Swait for Andrew Lloyd Webber's “Pie Jesu” (Requiem), Piotr Beczala for Heuberger's “Im Chambre Séparée”. Stunningly talented, gorgeous and intelligent, Netrebko already has the music world at her feet making this one of THE albums of 2008, eagerly awaited by her legions of fans as well as all music lovers worldwide.

Cap Box / Limited Edition: This will be the perfect Christmas gift package for the fans. It will have CD + booklet, bonus DVD, postcards and poster. A MUST HAVE!

Soprano superstar Anna Netrebko steps away from the operatic stage to create her most personal and intimate album yet. Souvenirs is a gorgeous collection of short and sparkling pieces that allow Anna to display her amazing voice and temperament

“This recording is like a bridal bouquet, bursting with variety and colours,” says Anna Netrebko. “I want it to create a wonderful array of emotions – passion, fun, love, tenderness.”

The album includes repertoire from all over the world: songs in French, German, Italian, Norwegian, Latin, Czech, Yiddish, Spanish and – of course – Russian. These are pieces that are very close to Anna’s heart and include treasures by Dvorák, Grieg, Carlos Guastavino, Reynaldo Hahn, Offenbach, Richard Strauss, as well as rarely performed songs by Rimsky-Korsakov. For this special project, Anna is accompanied by conductor Emmanuel Villaume and the Prague Philharmonia. Villaume is well-known as the director of the Spoleto Festival (USA) and is a regular guest at major opera houses such as the Teatro La Fenice and the Met. He has previously worked with Anna in concert and is a perfect match for her passionate artistry. On this album Anna Netrebko has a few stunning guests to partner with her: Elina Garanca for Offenbach's Barcarole, Andrew Swait for Andrew Lloyd Webber's “Pie Jesu” (Requiem), Piotr Beczala for Heuberger's “Im Chambre Séparée”. Stunningly talented, gorgeous and intelligent, Netrebko already has the music world at her feet making this one of THE albums of 2008, eagerly awaited by her legions of fans as well as all music lovers worldwide.

Argentinian-born Désirée Halac presents a beautifully performed recital of songs by Carlos Guastavino. The obituary written for The Guardian called Guastavino the most quietly distinctive voice in 20th century Argentinian music. His distillation of local folk elements into an avowedly romantic-nationalist idiom was unique and markedly different from his colleagues. Guastavino wrote some 300 works, more than half of them the delightful songs, often winsome or tinged with sadness, on which his reputation rests.