Bernstein: Somewhere (from West Side Story)

The Art of Renée Fleming brings together 18 defining tracks spanning Renée’s finest Decca recordings, including favorite arias by Puccini, Handel and Gershwin and duets with Bryn Terfel and Plácido Domingo. Four special bonus tracks reflect Renée’s prominence beyond classical repertoire with two Broadway classics, Amazing Grace - which she memorably sang at the site of the World Trade Centre and a brand new version of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah.

Russell Watson explores the full-blooded romantic potential of the operatic repertoire with this collection of some of the best-loved tenor arias of all time.

This ‘songbook’ is unique to the Schola Cantorum choristers of Tewkesbury Abbey. “Essentially, it’s a showcase for the Abbey trebles,” their Director of Music Benjamin Nicholas explains. “We’ve been assembling our own 'Songbook' for quite a while now – the songs the trebles sing, from time to time, in boys-only concerts, and which they are taught in individual singing lessons. I’ve always been keen to build each boy up as a soloist, not necessarily with the express idea of them singing lots of solos, but so that they can learn to sing in a soloistic way.”

This is evident most of all in the distinctive singing of 11-year-old Laurence Kilsby, whose gifts won him the BBC Chorister of the Year competition in 2009. On this recording, he features as soloist in two Shelley settings by Roger Quilter, the Bach/Gounod Ave Maria and in John Ireland’s beautiful, sincerely-felt Passiontide motet Ex Ore Innocentium from 1944.

Celebrated soprano Karita Mattila has proved herself to be irresistible in any musical genre.

This mid-price compilation couples live performances of some of the world’s best-loved opera arias together with the Finnish diva’s unique interpretations of songs from Broadway musicals and the Great American Songbook.

Winner of the first 'Singer of the World' competition in Cardiff, Karita Mattila is one of the most illustrious soprano singers in the world today. She is recognised as much for the beauty and versatility of her lyric voice as for her extraordinary stage ability.

This release marks her 50th birthday in 2010, coinciding with Ondine’s 25th anniversary.

A bright new talent in the classical world, the flautist Lisa Friend presents a new disc of romantic works, accompanied by piano, cello and violin. Lisa’s compositions and performances have drawn great praise from both professional musicians and concert-goers alike. Also featured on disc, performing with Lisa, is her father Rodney Friend, one of the most respected and celebrated English-born violinists of the last 45 years. Lisa Friend started playing the flute aged five. At 16 she studied in New York with flautist Renee Siebert of the New York Philharmonic. She was then awarded a flute Scholarship to study with Julius Baker in Connecticut. At 17 Lisa won a Scholarship to the Royal College of Music. Twice winner of the Martin Music Scholarship this enabled her to study at the Paris Conservatoire with Alain Marion and Ida Ribera. As soloist, Lisa has appeared with the Philharmonia Orchestra, Prague Philharmonic, Liverpool Philharmonic and toured throughout the UK, France, Germany, Japan, China and the USA. Other solo appearances include BBC ChildLine, a concert for Royal Family at Buckingham Palace as soloist with the late Yehudi Menuhin, the Britten theatre with the late Sir George Solti and for Steven Spielberg after writing and performing a track for his foundation SHOAH. Lisa has given live recitals for Classic FM and Radio 3. Live television has included Brandenburg 5th Concerto in Spain with her father.