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Olafur Arnalds:

And We'll Leave It There feat. Ella McRobb

Grammy-nominated composer and producer Ólafur Arnalds releases ‘and we’ll leave it there…’, the result of an unlikely encounter between the Icelandic composer and unsigned rising singer-songwriter Ella McRobb connecting by chance through social media. The 23-year-old Londoner was inspired and moved by Ólafur’s short sound check improvisation posted on Instagram reel, which grew into a global viral hit, reaching 2.2 million views and counting. Collaboration is the cornerstone of Ólafur’s work, who lists 2023 BRIT Award nominee Bonobo, Nils Frahm and RY X as collaborators amongst others.

This release of  ‘and we’ll leave it there…’ is the tale of two musical talents coming together through social media to create something special, and resonates like a modern day collaboration story for Ella McRobb. Moved by Ólafur’s music, Ella decided to improvise her own lyrics to one of the Icelandic composer’s improvisations to tell her personal experience on loss and heartbreak.

Wearing her heart on her sleeve, Ella added her soulful vocals to the piece creating a heart-wrenching new composition. Without expectation, ahead of playing netball, absolutely unaware of Ólafur and the colossal dimension of his body of work, she shared it on TikTok, using the duet feature of the platform. Stunned by the quality of the resulting creation and Ella’s talent, Ólafur reached out to her, starting an exchange of voice notes and zoom calls which then developed into a full-on collaboration. In less than two weeks, he offered her the opportunity to record a studio version and film a music video in Iceland.

Killius - Zehetmair - Royal Northern Sinfonia:

Bartok/Casken/Beethoven

This New Series album represents a summing up of Thomas Zehetmair’s work with Britain’s Royal Northern Sinfonia, described by the Austrian-born violinist and conductor, at the time of its recording, as “a résumé and a departure”.  In his 12 years as Music Director of the British chamber orchestra, Zehetmair was noted both for bringing compelling new music into the repertoire and for insightful performances of classical and modern composition.

The album includes the premiere recording of British composer John Casken’s That Subtle Knot, written in 2012-3 for Zehetmair, Ruth Killius and the Northern Sinfonia. Inspired by the poetry of John Donne, the composition establishes a broad arc between the English Renaissance and music of today, paints portraits of the dedicatees, and draws influence, too, from the rugged landscapes of the North of England.  The title of the piece comes from Donne’s poem The Ecstasy. The poem focuses upon two lovers sitting on a riverbank, hands entwined: “Our eye beams twisted and did thread / Our eyes upon one double string.” The image seemed to John Casken perfect for a double concerto for viola and violin.

Gianluigi Trovesi - Stefano Montanari:

Stravaganze consonanti

More than 20 years ago Umberto Eco singled out “the quest for ancient timbres and classical echoes” that contributed, alongside “original inventions” to the special character of Gianluigi Trovesi’s art. The clarinets and saxophone of the reedman from Italy’s Lombardy region have spoken a sort of polyglot tongue almost from the outset, and each of his ECM albums has differently combined, contrasted and blended ingredients of diverse idioms.

On Stravaganze consonanti, an inspired collaboration with noted baroque violinist and conductor and Stefano Montanari, Trovesi extends the line of musical enquiry posited on his operatic Prufumo di violetta album. Supported this time by a cast of players well-versed in the ancient sounds of period instruments and the art of historical performance practice, he looks anew at music of the renaissance and the baroque – at Purcell, Dufay, Trabaci, Desprez and more. He also adds compositions of his own and stirs some additional improvising with percussion and electronics man Fulvio Maras into the intoxicating brew. As Montanari writes in the CD booklet, “Trovesi grasps the power and refinement of a language that passes in the blink of an eye from Dufay to Purcell, arriving at jazz without ever losing the profound meaning of a musical fabric whose primary motive is universal communication.”

Rachel Willis-Sorensen:

Strauss - Four Last Songs

Sony Classical International proudly announces the second solo album by American soprano Rachel Willis-Sørensen, to be released on March 10. Presenting works of Richard Strauss’s later years, Willis-Sørensen’s latest release pairs the composer’s sublime Vier letzte Lieder (Four Last Songs) with the closing scene of his final opera, Capriccio. Renowned conductor Andris Nelsons leads the Gewandhausorchester and German bass Sebastian Pilgrim joins Willis-Sørensen for the Capriccio scene.

The first single “Frühling,” the opening track of the Four Last Songs is out today – Listen here.  Setting poet Hermann Hesse’s rapturous vision of spring, this matchlessly soaring music will provide listeners with an ideal introduction to Willis-Sørensen’s undisputable affinity for Strauss.

Various:

Storytellers On Verbier Festival Gold

Verbier Festival Gold's first release of 2023 is based on the concept of storytelling, a theme that is central to many of the festival’s performances. This offering pairs two tantalizing performances from the very first summers of the organization's history. First, Peter Ustinov narrates Jean de Brunhoff's iconic tale "L'Histoire de Babar, le petit éléphant". Charming piano accompaniment by Poulenc, played by Roger Vignoles, serves as a backdrop to the text. Second, world-renowned soprano Barbara Hendricks is joined by Carmina Quartet for a stunning rendition of Fauré's “La Bonne Chanson”. The gorgeous poems of Paul Verlaine unfold their very own charm in Hendrick's interpretation.

Keith Jarrett:

Book Of Ways

‘Book of Ways’ was recorded on the 14th of July 1986 in Ludwigsburg. Rather amazing is the great variety of sound and rhythm – Jarrett played alternately one or two instruments simultaneously. Beyond unmistakeable echoes of lute music and Japanese koto, the whole range of modes of expression the clavichord is capable of is being fathomed out. All this has been supported by studio techniques, which recorded the sound of the instrument with rarely heard intensity.

About ‘Book of Ways’ Keith Jarrett noted in 2002:
„To my knowledge, this recording is unique in several ways. We had three clavichords in the studio, two of which were angled together so that I could play them both simultaneously, and the third off to the side. Also we miked the instruments very closely so that the full range of dynamics could be used (clavichords are very quiet and cannot be heard more than a few feet away). The two CDs were made on an off day between concerts with my Trio, and no material was organized beforehand. Everything was spontaneous. The recording was done in four hours.” – Keith Jarrett, 2002

Bobo Stenson Trio:

Sphere

The current incarnation of Bobo Stenson’s Trio, with Anders Jormin on bass and percussionist Jon Fält, has been active for almost two decades now, during the course of which they’ve recorded four albums – including this new one. The first, Cantando (2008), further investigated Bobo’s fluent ability to cover a wide range of influences and idioms, seamlessly integrating the new configuration into his personal sound from the start. The record prompted The Guardian to say, “few contemporary jazz groups sustain an atmosphere as evocatively as Swedish pianist Stenson’s trio, or conjure so many moods across a variety of material from Ornette Coleman to Alban Berg”. Praise continued with follow-up Indicum (2012), The New York Times noting that Bobo “is rightly heralded for his subtleties of touch and mood”, and then again with Contra La Indecision in 2018, which BBC Music Magazine called a “beautiful session”, proving ”that there is still much to be explored and revealed within this format.” More revelations and proof of the trio’s distinguished art are ever-present on Sphere.

Brandee Younger:

Brand New Life

GRAMMY®-nominated harpist and composer Brandee Younger announces her new album, Brand New Life (Impulse! Records), set for release on April 7th. Out now, the first single off of the Dorothy Ashby inspired album is the previously unrecorded and evocative Ashby composition, “You’re A Girl For One Man Only.” 

Produced by multi-hyphenate drummer and composer Makaya Mccraven, on Brand New Life, Younger celebrates one of her greatest inspirations, iconic jazz harpist and composer Dorothy Ashby. Ashby is widely credited with having asserted the harp’s place in contemporary music, showcasing the traditionally-classical instrument on groundbreaking albums such as Afro-Harping and Dorothy’s Harp. Her unparalleled body of work has continued to be influential for decades and has been heavily sampled and transposed across jazz, hip-hop, and R&B, by artists including Jay-Z, J. Dilla, Pete Rock and Flying Lotus.

Brand New Life is a stunning amalgamation of past and present, combining original works from Younger, select reinterpretations of Ashby’s work, and previously-unrecorded compositions by Ashby. Younger was initially introduced to Ashby’s work through the many hip-hop artists who sampled her music, and now collaborates with some of those very artists on Brand New Life, including the legendary Pete Rock and 9th Wonder. Brand New Life also includes features by Meshell N’degeocello, Mumu Fresh, and production by drummer and composer  Makaya McCraven. Younger says of the album, “Creating this album has been a longtime dream of mine. I really had a lot of living to do before being able to execute it, genuinely. The finished product is truly representative of where I am now and it is an honor to convey that through the compositions of one of my heroes.”

L. DRE:

LOFI Symphony

A new music genre has emerged in the last few years, mainly thanks to streaming playlists: LoFi beats are chilled instrumental hip-hop tracks whose hazy, hissing aesthetic makes them sound as if they’ve been lifted from well-worn cassette tapes. LA-based producer L.Dre is a true master of this style, but in making his album LoFi Symphony for Deutsche Grammophon he rose to a completely new challenge by blending LoFi beats with high-quality orchestral recordings of classical music. His bold combination of two musical worlds, involving a conscious clash of styles, has led to impressive results on an album that’s more than just the sum of its parts.

Sandrayati:

Safe Ground

Moving from place to place whilst growing up, to follow her parents' calling in fighting for the rights of indigenous people, meant that human connection became home. Developing an intimate relationship with land also plays a role in defining her home. Sandrayati draws her inspiration for this from a particular indigenous community, the Mollo people from East Indonesia. The enchanting single “Suara Dunia,” out today on Decca Records, represents the admiration she has for them.

Tyler Bates - Timothy Williams:

Agent Elvis

Milan Records today releases AGENT ELVIS (SOUNDTRACK FROM THE NETFLIX SERIES) by TYLER BATES and TIMOTHY WILLIAMS. Available everywhere now, the album features music written by the composing duo for Netflix’s new animated series, which follows the King of Rock and Roll on a fictional foray into espionage. From the suave bassline of the series’ main theme to the surf rock-tinged end credits number, the 24-track collection pays homage to the classic spy films of the ‘60s, infusing the series with the perfect soundtrack to Elvis’ secret missions. Also included on the album is a special cover of Chuck Berry’s blues standard “Memphis, Tennessee” performed by Craig Robinson. Created by Priscilla Presley and John Eddie, Agent Elvis makes its debut exclusively on Netflix on Friday, March 17 from Sony Pictures Animation.

Joseph Shirley:

CREED III

Sony Music Masterworks today releases CREED III (ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SCORE SOUNDTRACK) with music by composer JOSEPH SHIRLEY. Available everywhere now, the album features score music written by Shirley for the third installment in the successful franchise starring Michael B. Jordan. Having worked alongside composer Ludwig Göransson for the first two Creed films, Shirley now takes the reins as lead composer and expands the original soundscape to encompass the new story. Creed III marks lead star Michael B. Jordan’s directorial debut and is out now in theaters and IMAX from MGM Studios. See the trailer HERE.

Hans Zimmer:

LIVE

Sony Classical today releases HANS ZIMMER LIVE, an album of the legendary composer’s greatest hits newly rearranged and recorded with an ensemble of soloists and past collaborators. Available everywhere now, the album includes newly reimagined versions of Zimmer’s Academy Award-winning melodies and themes from Hollywood blockbusters like Dune, The Lion King, The Dark Knight, Inception, Interstellar, The Last Samurai, Man of Steel, No Time to Die, Pirates of the Caribbean and more.

“I tried to pick pieces of music that people adore, and then I tried to pick pieces of music that might be a little bit more obscure that we as the band love playing. And I think we finally got it right," says HANS ZIMMER about the new album, adding, “Capturing these moments in time, with this extraordinary band of musicians playing at their very, very best, is the reason this record exists. It exists because I love the musicians, I love the musicianship, I love the audience and what happens when we bring these two diverse families together.”

Martin Hayes & The Common Ground Ensemble:

Peggy's Dream

Martin Hayes & The Common Ground Ensemble - Brian Donnellan, Cormac MacCarthy, Martin Hayes, Kyle Sanna, Kate Ellis

Martin Hayes and The Common Ground Ensemble will release their debut album 'Peggy's Dream' on Ireland's 251 Records (Faction) on March 24, 2023. A master of the Irish fiddle, Hayes is regarded as one of Ireland's leading musicians. He's also known for his wide-ranging collaborations, and here he brings together artists from the jazz, classical, and folk worlds, all with ties to Irish music, to explore their common tradition.

An album release concert will take place at the National Concert Hall in Dublin on March 26.

The Common Ground Ensemble is English cellist Kate Ellis (Artistic Director of Crash Ensemble), Irish jazz pianist Cormac McCarthy (Peter Washington, Phil Woods), Irish traditional musician Brian Donnellan (bouzouki, concertina, harmonium, and like Hayes an alumnus of Hayes's father's Tulla Ce´ili´ Band), and New York guitarist Kyle Sanna (Bela Fleck, Chris Thile). Collectively they span the worlds of traditional, contemporary classical, jazz improvisation, and experimental music. These genres are forged with the Irish tradition and give each musician’s talents the space to shine.

All Press Secured by Judith Joiner Publicity

Gustavo Santaolalla - David Fleming:

The Last Of Us -Season 1 Strack. HBO Orig. Series

Milan Records today releases THE LAST OF US: SEASON 1 (SOUNDTRACK FROM THE HBO ORGINAL SERIES) by 2-time Academy Award® winner Gustavo Santaolalla And David Fleming. Available everywhere now, the album features score music written by the duo for the first season of HBO’s new drama based on the critically acclaimed video game of the same name. Having scored both the original video game and its 2020 sequel, Gustavo Santaolalla builds on his previous work, expanding the intimate, guitar-driven soundscape to deliver a score as emotionally laden as the story itself. Starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, The Last of Us airs on Sunday nights at 9PM ET/PT on HBO and is available to stream on HBO Max.

Of the soundtrack, composer GUSTAVO SANTAOLALLA says, “Creating the music for the HBO series based on the video game The Last Of Us was, in a way, an expansion of what we have developed and recorded for the first installment of the game. Once again, the emotion at the heart of the score this time driven by the vision of Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin and by the power of this amazing story.” 

PBS - GREAT PERFORMANCES:

Now Hear This - Season 4

In April 2023, Conductor and violinist Scott Yoo is on the road again, to more fantastic, far flung locations. In Now Hear This Season 4. Scott visits the many barrios of Buenos Aires to learn the tango and Piazzolla’s conflicted relationship with it. In Scotland and Germany, he explores the connection between mental health and creativity. In New York, he meets an unassuming visionary who’s combining elements that shouldn’t work, to point classical music in a new direction. And he revisits southern Spain, in a breathtaking portrait of Andalusia, as painted in music by Albéniz. Here’s a ‘what's coming up’ complete with videos to watch and share.

401. Piazzolla’s History with Tango
Scott and his wife Alice Dade, a leading flutist, travel to Buenos Aires to discover the music of Astor Piazzolla, who fell in love with tango. Then fell out of love. Then tango fell out of love with him. Scott and Alice play with Argentina’s greatest musicians and dancers, to find out if Piazzolla and tango could ever reconcile.

402. Schumann: Genius and Madness
Many composers have struggled with mental health problems, few more famously than Robert Schumann. Scott goes to Scotland, Germany and France, with leading musicians, psychiatrists and scholars, to try to understand the connection between mental health and creativity in the work of Schumann and other great artists.

403. Andy Akiho Found (his) Sound
Scott follows modern composer, steel pan virtuoso and video artist Andy Akiho, off the beaten path through Andy’s neighborhoods of New York, to try to figure out how this unassuming musical visionary has combined Caribbean, Asian and jazz influences to become one of the most in-demand composers in classical music today. 

404. Albéniz: Portraits of Spain
Like Scarlatti before him, Isaac Albéniz was a keyboard composer captivated by Spain. Scott travels with guitarist Manuel Barrueco and pianist Juan Perez Floristan through the great Spanish cities of Andalusia, to see how Albéniz captured their culture, history and sounds in a brilliant series of musical portraits, his most celebrated works.

Rick Cutler:

The Unfolding

Keyboardist-Drummer-Composer for Dateline NBC, Later TODAY, the theme for the NY Yankees: Rick Cutler, Releases: ‘The Unfolding.’ The album combines different sized groups of musicians, including solo piano, duo, trio as well as a quintet. With a wide range of styles such as jazz, new age, and piano, with 12 new original compositions, including a cover of synth-pioneer Thomas Dolby’s “Airwaves,” using vocal, keyboards, and spoken word, as well as “Butterfly” by Tokyo-based guitarist Hiroki Endo. “Exit’ reunites his fusion band from the ‘70s that toured with Gloria Gaynor as her backing band and opening act, with pianist Mark Soskin, Sonny Rollins’ pianist and renowned jazz drummer Billy Mintz. 

Rick has been playing drums since the age of 5 and keyboards since his teens, studying at Julliard School with Chick Corea. Performing in Broadway shows including Hair, The Wiz, Candide, They're Playing Our Song, Woman of the Year and Seesaw, Ray has composed music for TV, including the Emmy-nominated theme for Dateline NBC, Later Today on NBC, the theme for the New York Yankees on the MSG network and the Outlaws & Lawmen mini-series on the Discovery channel.

Touring as keyboardist and drummer for Liza Minnelli, Ray performed in her Tony-winning Broadway show, "Liza's At The Palace.” For 18 years, he served as keyboardist and musical director for Gregory Hines and "Boom," performed at the nationally-televised Gala For The President and Mrs. Clinton. He also composed the music for The Gregory Hines Show on CBS and was one of the original percussionists for Leonard Bernstein's "Mass," for the opening of the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.

Benjamin Grosvenor:

Schumann & Brahms

The acclaimed British pianist, Benjamin Grosvenor, still only 30 and yet a well-established favourite of critics and audiences around the globe, takes Robert Schumann’s haunting Kreisleriana as his starting point in his new album, Schumann & Brahms. This eight-movement work portrays the mercurial personality of the fictional Johannes Kreisler, created by E. T. A. Hoffmann: Kreisler’s highs and lows, and his dreamy nature, clearly mirror Schumann’s own tragic manic-depressive tendencies. Grosvenor responds to the composer’s autobiographical honesty with playing of sublime tenderness, dazzling variety, and imaginative empathy.

He accompanies the work with the melancholic Variations on a Theme by Robert Schumann by Schumann’s beloved wife Clara (who, incidentally, stated that she was much disturbed by the visions conjured up in Kreisleriana). Further kaleidoscopic variety is provided by Robert’s Blumenstück, and Quasi Variazione: Andantino de Clara Wieck. The recital also includes Brahms’ Three Intermezzi, autumnal works which shed a fascinating light on the complicated relationship which existed between Robert, Clara and Brahms himself. Grosvenor’s own arrangement of Robert’s Abendlied completes the programme.

The recording is Benjamin Grosvenor’s seventh for Decca since 2011, when he became the youngest musician - and also the first British pianist in more than sixty years - to sign to the label. Since then he has won inter alia several Gramophone Awards, and the prestigious Diapason d’Or de l’année. After a spectacular win, at the age of just 11, in the keyboard section of the BBC Young Musician competition, he went on to become the youngest soloist ever to appear at the opening night of the BBC Proms in 2011.

Rafal Blechacz:

Chopin

“I feel that I have had some adventures with these pieces before recording them,” says Rafal Blechacz, whose latest album is a tribute to his compatriot Chopin. “I’m freer today regarding the use of tempo rubato, dynamic contrasts and emotional extremes, and maybe I’m braver with certain ideas. I didn’t want to wait any longer before going into the studio.” 

Blechacz’s devotion to the art of Chopin predates his victory in the 2005 Warsaw International Chopin Piano Competition – when he became just the fourth Polish winner in its prestigious history. It has continued to deepen and mature over the years, underpinned by a desire to uncover fresh layers of expression and meaning. Rafal Blechacz – Chopin presents his insightful interpretations of Sonatas Nos. 2 and 3, among the most musically adventurous and technically demanding in the piano repertoire. It also includes two carefully chosen companion pieces: the Nocturne Op. 48 No. 2 and the Barcarolle Op. 60. The album will be released by Deutsche Grammophon in all formats, including a 2-LP vinyl edition, on 3 March 2023. 

Chopin completed his Piano Sonata No. 2 in B flat minor in 1839 while staying at Nohant, the novelist George Sand’s idyllic country manor south of Paris. The work channels elements of technical display, lyricism and dance rhythms into the framework of a four-movement sonata. Its sombre slow movement, the famous Funeral March, originally conceived in 1837 as a free-standing piece and often performed as such, is one of Chopin’s most popular compositions; its pathos and drama, however, are intensified when heard in the context of the sonata as a whole. 

Chad Lawson:

drift

Pianist/composer Chad Lawson releases ‘drift’ (Decca Records US). The EP is a collection of reimagined soothing piano reworks of songs from his highly praised and chart-topping release, breathe.

The music was specially arranged to allow you to be lulled to a peaceful sleep with each passing track

Designed to gradually slow your heart rate as you listen from beginning to end, each song on the five-track EP slows by exactly 10 beats per minute – with the first song starting at 80 BPM and ending at an ideal 40 BPM as you gently drift to sleep. It’s a peaceful and purposeful journey into a blissful sleep.

Says Chad of drift, “drift is the perfect album for those looking to drift off peacefully into dreamland. I’ve recreated five of my favorite pieces from my last recording, breathe, with a serene minimalist texture as each song progressively becomes slower in tempo, with an extra layer of softness and stillness added for your ultimate relaxation. May each note of this release carry you off to an oasis deep in dreamland, far away from reality.”

The focus track off the EP, “with you (sleep rework),” is accompanied by a hypnotic visualizer that embodies the soothing spirit of drift. 

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