![Eric Zuber, Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, Wilbur Lin – The Young Chopin (2022) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]](https://imghd.xyz/images/2023/01/11/lb18v4f6yyf7a_600.md.jpg)
Eric Zuber, Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, Wilbur Lin – The Young Chopin (2022) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]
Hailed as an “irresistibly fluid” by The New York Times and “illuminating” by the Cleveland Plain Dealer, pianist Eric Zuber releases his debut album, The Young Chopin, with the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra and conductor Wilbur Lin. The release celebrates the early piano repertoire of Frederic Chopin (1810 – 1849), including his Variations on ‘Là ci darem la mano’ from Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Op. 2; Andante spianato & Grande polonaise brillante, Op. 22; and his Piano Concerto No. 1 in E Minor, Op. 11. Zuber writes, “The ingenuity of [Chopin’s early] piano writing shows a complete technical understanding of the craft of the instrument, and the seductive beauty of his melodic and harmonic writing is second to none. And to think he was only 17 when he wrote the variations as a school assignment! These early compositions are tremendously difficult from a technical perspective, and Chopin was clearly seeking to showcase his abilities as a pianist. Yet, there is little of the empty displays of virtuosity that appear in the works of some of his contemporaries. Everything serves a purpose to create a clear emotional effect.”
![David Russell – Cantigas de Santiago (2021) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]](https://imghd.xyz/images/2022/12/08/ir2f8qo5sk1na_600.md.jpg)
David Russell – Cantigas de Santiago (2021) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]
David Russell joins Azica Records as releases his latest album of contemporary works written just for him. Classical guitarist David Russell is world renowned for his superb musicianship and inspired artistry, having earned the highest praise from audiences and critics alike. In recognition of his great talent and his international career, he was named a “Fellow of The Royal Academy of Music” in London in 1997. In May 2003 he was bestowed the great honor of being made “adopted son” of Es Migjorn, the town in Minorca where he grew up. Later the town named a street after him, “Avinguda David Russell”. David Russell spends his time touring the world, appearing regularly at prestigious halls in main cities, such as New York, London, Tokyo, Los Angeles, Madrid, Toronto or Rome. Concert-goers everywhere are in awe of his musical genius and inspired by his captivating stage presence. His love of his craft resonates through his flawless and seemingly effortless performance. The attention to detail and provocative lyrical phrasing suggest an innate understanding of what each individual composer was working to achieve, bringing to each piece a sense of adventure.
![Christopher Houlihan – Franck & Vierne: First and Last (2023) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]](https://imghd.xyz/images/2023/03/09/x16elvs5kjagb_600.md.jpg)
Christopher Houlihan – Franck & Vierne: First and Last (2023) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]
The organist Christopher Houlihan has established an international reputation as a “passionate and intelligently virtuoso musician” (Gramophone), hailed for his “glowing, miraculously life-affirming performances” (Los Angeles Times).
Houlihan has performed at Disney Concert Hall with the principal brass of the Los Angeles Philharmonic; the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, presented by the Philadelphia Orchestra; and at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., presented by the National Symphony Orchestra. The Los Angeles Times raved about his Disney Hall debut, proclaiming, “Houlihan is the next big organ talent.”
![Carol Wincenc – Misericordia (2019) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]](https://imghd.xyz/images/2022/11/05/upr7qgra9pnrb_600.md.jpg)
Carol Wincenc – Misericordia (2019) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]
Internationally renowned flutist Carol Winsenc joins forces with the Escher String Quartet, Tanya Dusevic Witek also on flute, and pianists Stephen Gosling and Emile Naoumoff to present this dynamic recording of the compositions of Yuko Uébayashi. The opening piece, Misericordia pour flûte et quatuor à cordes was composed for Carol Wincenc. Hailed “Queen of the Flute” (New York Magazine) at the outset of her, now, brilliant 48 year career, flutist Carol Wincenc was First Prize Winner of the (sole) Walter W. Naumburg Solo Flute Competition, as well as the Lifetime Achievement Award recipient from the National Flute Association, the National Society of Arts and Letters Gold Medal for Lifetime Achievement in Music, and Distinguished Alumni Awards from Manhattan School of Music and the Brevard Music Center. During the past two seasons she performed, recorded and gave masterclasses as an exclusive Burkart Flutes Artist in Beijing, Shenyang, Seoul, Warsaw, Prague, Venice, Nice, and Thessoloniki.
![Catalyst Quartet – Uncovered, Vol. 2: Florence B. Price (2022) [FLAC 24bit, 96 kHz]](https://imghd.xyz/images/2022/02/27/vgynsyb2pl7mc_600.md.jpg)
Catalyst Quartet – Uncovered, Vol. 2: Florence B. Price (2022) [FLAC 24bit, 96 kHz]
Over the course of time there have been many overlooked artists in classical music, because of their race and/or gender. It is important to acknowledge that we have not yet heard the whole story due to this sidelining of voices. Composers Joseph Boulogne Chevalier de Saint-Georges, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, William Grant Still, Florence B. Price, Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, and George Walker, have all contributed beautifully crafted works to the repertoire, but are not widely celebrated. Another contributing factor to this unfortunate reality is access to their manuscripts and recordings of their work which we believe would lead to greater awareness and programming of their incredible music.
![Catalyst Quartet – Uncovered, Vol. 3: Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, William Grant Still & George Walker (2023) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]](https://imghd.xyz/images/2023/03/01/u6zxrppm5phva_600.md.jpg)
Catalyst Quartet – Uncovered, Vol. 3: Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, William Grant Still & George Walker (2023) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]
Catalyst Quartet continues their highly regarded series of music by Black composers. Uncovered, Volume 3 includes quartets written by Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, William Grant Still, and George Walker.
“Uncovered, Vol. 3” is the third issue of a multi-volume anthology highlighting string quartet works by historically important Black composers, which aims to bring greater awareness and programming of their music. Volume 3 profiles three American composers who lived through the various Black artistic, political, and social projects that transformed the 20th century; and the deep contradictions that continue to plague the U.S. today: George Walker and his String Quartet No. 1 “Lyric,” Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson’s String Quartet No. 1 “Calvary,” and William Grant Still’s Lyric Quartet.
![Catalyst Quartet – Uncovered, Vol. 1: Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (2021) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]](https://imghd.xyz/images/2022/11/06/teotaco7q8r4b_600.md.jpg)
Catalyst Quartet – Uncovered, Vol. 1: Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (2021) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]
Over the course of time there have been many overlooked artists in classical music, because of their race and/or gender. It is important to acknowledge that we have not yet heard the whole story due to this sidelining of voices. Composers Joseph Boulogne Chevalier de Saint-Georges, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, William Grant Still, Florence B. Price, Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, and George Walker, have all contributed beautifully crafted works to the repertoire, but are not widely celebrated. Another contributing factor to this unfortunate reality is access to their manuscripts and recordings of their work which we believe would lead to greater awareness and programming of their incredible music.
UNCOVERED, concieved in 2018, is an ongoing performance and muti-volume anthology recorded on the Azica label. Vol. 1, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor with guest collaborators Stewart Goodyear (piano) and Anthony McGill (clarinet), releases on February 5th, 2021. Vol. 2 is devoted to Florence B. Price and future volumes will include Joseph Boulogne Chevalier de Saint-Georges, Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, William Grant Still, and George Walker.
![Brentano String Quartet – Mozart: String Quartets Nos. 19 & 16, K. 465 & 428 (2019) [FLAC 24bit, 96 kHz]](https://imghd.xyz/images/2022/02/27/my231atuej87b_600.md.jpg)
Brentano String Quartet – Mozart: String Quartets Nos. 19 & 16, K. 465 & 428 (2019) [FLAC 24bit, 96 kHz]
The Brentano Quartet, in their second release for Azica Records, present the Mozart String Quartets No. 19 in C Major, K. 465, Dissonance, and No. 16 in E Flat Major, K. 428. Since its inception in 1992, the Brentano String Quartet has appeared throughout the world to popular and critical acclaim. Passionate, uninhibited and spellbinding, raves the London Independent; the New York Times extols its luxuriously warm sound [and] yearning lyricism; the Philadelphia Inquirer praises its seemingly infallible instincts for finding the center of gravity in every phrase and musical gesture; and the Times (London) opines, the Brentanos are a magnificent string quartetThis was wonderful, selfless music-making. Within a few years of its formation, the Quartet garnered the first Cleveland Quartet Award and the Naumburg Chamber Music Award; and in 1996 the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center invited them to be the inaugural members of Chamber Music Society Two, a program which was to become a coveted distinction for chamber groups and individuals. The Quartet had its first European tour in 1997, and was honored in the U.K. with the Royal Philharmonic Award for Most Outstanding Debut. That debut recital was at Londons Wigmore Hall, and the Quartet has continued its warm relationship with Wigmore, appearing there regularly and serving as the halls Quartet-in-residence in the 2000-01 season.
![Apollo Chamber Players – With Malice Toward None (2021) [FLAC 24bit, 96 kHz]](https://imghd.xyz/images/2022/07/01/eyohgb2gi8bca_600.md.jpg)
Apollo Chamber Players – With Malice Toward None (2021) [FLAC 24bit, 96 kHz]
Anchored in an optimistic synthesis of classical, folk, rock and electronic music, “With Malice Toward None” elevates the idea of what it means to be human in the 21st century. Pamela Z artfully deconstructs her folk rock heroes while paying homage to youthful nostalgia and childhood songcraft, while Christopher Theofanidis and Mark Wingate partner to craft a jaggedly ethereal adaptation of poet Samuel Beckett’s haunting final masterpiece.
![Apollo Chamber Players, John Herrington – Moonstrike (2022) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]](https://imghd.xyz/images/2022/10/10/rudx9et9fscxc_600.md.jpg)
Apollo Chamber Players, John Herrington – Moonstrike (2022) [FLAC 24 bit, 96 kHz]
This album is a universal celebration of storytelling, space and folk song, realized through new works by Jennifer Higdon, Jerod Tate, and Pierre Jalbert. Higdon’s In the Shadow of the Mountain (2020) is inspired by her upbringing in the Great Smoky Mountains and incorporates the sounds and colors of the area. Next is the title work, Emmy-winning Chickasaw composer Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate’s multidisciplinary MoonStrike (2019), which honors the Apollo space program through American Indian moon legends as narrated by astronaut John Herrington, the first Native American to fly in space. French-Canadian composer Pierre Jalbert’s L’esprit du Nord (2019) is a three-movement work that fuses three of his culture’s folk songs with his unique, contemporary musical language.
![Aeolus Quartet – Many-Sided Music, Vol. 2: Ariel & Other Poems (2021) [FLAC 24bit, 96 kHz]](https://imghd.xyz/images/2022/06/02/s3oed75b0wp1b_600.md.jpg)
Aeolus Quartet – Many-Sided Music, Vol. 2: Ariel & Other Poems (2021) [FLAC 24bit, 96 kHz]
The award winning Aeolus Quartet offers the second installment in their Many-Sided Music Project. This ongoing project collects distinctive voices of American composers, combining the classic with the modern. “Ariel and Other Poems” takes its name from the original title of Sylvia Plath’s last manuscript. The poems contained therein include the work that inspired Christopher Theofanidis’ Ariel Ascending, and joined by the rich expansive tones of the Copland, the buzzing electricity of the Mazzoli, and the deep catharsis of the Barber : the album “Ariel and Other Poems” seeks to offer a small sampling of the multi-faceted collection of American chamber music.