The Early Dreams project represents both a return to the source and a rebirth for Constantinople. It is the start of a new cycle. The group was born ten years ago around a meeting of the sonorous, musical and cultural worlds of two instruments—the setar and the European lute—the first, monodic and drawing melodic contours around the latter’s bass lines and harmonic patterns. This dialogue was complemented by the virtuoso percussion work of Ziya Tabassian and the rich sound of the viola da gamba, which can take on the roles of both bass instrument and solo voice. Since its inception, the ensemble has travelled the world to explore new projects arising out of unique musical encounters between old manuscripts and living musical traditions. Driven by a constant desire to renew itself through creation, the group’s projects draw from existing material while leaving room for informed improvisation. This new cycle begins with Early Dreams, in which the setar, the Baroque guitar, percussion instruments and the viola da gamba mingle with the voice of our long-time collaborator Françoise Atlan over the ostinato bass lines of Spanish and Mexican diferencias from the Baroque era. We used these bass lines, drawn primarily from the works of Lucas Ruis de Ribayaz (c.1626–c.1667) and Santiago de Murcia (c.1682–c.1740), two Spanish instrumentalists and composers whose works were widely played in 17th- and 18th-century Mexico, as a starting point to recreate both instrumental and vocal works. As part of this re-creation process, we immersed ourselves in the cultural essence of this promising New World and went to the heart of Baroque-era Mexico in search of what had fashioned the spirit of composers from the period: the fabric of the music, some written works, the grandeur of its cathedrals, and the treasures of its libraries. The cultural context of Mexico of that time is fascinating. There is clearly a strong Spanish influence on the society and as a result on the repertoire. Yet, Baroque Mexican culture stands out from its Spanish cousin by its religious and cultural syncretism. A major intellectual figure symbolizes the spirit of the entire period for both Mexico and Spain: Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz (1648–1695), the first great Latin American poetess.We were overwhelmed by her impassioned poetry and texts, and the musicality of her writing made us want to bring it to life again. A highly intellectual figure, Sor (sister) Juana Inés de la Cruz also composed music and was an undisputedly talented singer. However, her scores and compositions have not survived. To remedy this situation, we selected some of her poems and set them to music over known bass lines of the period. As part of this (re)creation project, we teamed up with Canadian composer Michael Oesterle and invited him to write a piece. Sharing our fascination for the poetry and time of Sor Juana, he composed Tres sonetos, a very personal reading of this famous scholar’s work. Throughout this creative process, we kept an image of Sor Juana playing and singing her poems over these ostinato bass lines in our hearts. Françoise Atlan, performing Baroque repertoire for the first time, lends her warm and unique voice to the project. Actively involved in the creative process and a veritable restorer of a flamboyant past, she devoted her remarkable talent to the service of this key literary and intellectual figure’s poems. The virtuosic dialogues between the Baroque guitar, the Persian setar, the viola da gamba and the percussion instruments also recreate a unique sound, one that is characteristic of our group. It’s a sound that is both ancient and modern, tinged with Mediterranean and Middle-eastern sonorities, this time with a daring gaze toward the New World, nourished with respect and admiration for one of the most celebrated women scholars of New Spain, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz. Sor Juana Inés de la CruzThe life of Sor Juana is relatively well known in spite of the normal uncertainties given the three centuries and the geographical distance separating her time and place from our own. Our modern fascination with Sor Juana could be explained by the uniqueness of her personality – an indispensable source of information is her biography written by the Mexican man of letters and diplomat Octavio Paz (1941–1998), winner of the Nobel Prize for literature in 1990. However, the primary source remains Sor Inés’ own autobiography, entitled Respuesta a Sor Filotea (Reply to Sister Filotea), published in 1691, and virulently criticized in intellectual circles. Juana Inés de Asbaje y Ramírez de Santillana, who was born in San Miguel Nepantla, in Mexico (New Spain at the time), in 1651 (some researchers say 1648) and died in Mexico City in 1695, seems to have been the illegitimate daughter of an adventurer who never admitted his paternity and a landed woman who never married. In a world where women were not allowed access to knowledge, and in particular a formal education, the young Inés demonstrated spectacularly precocious intellectual gifts (she wrote her first text at the age of seven) and rose up against prejudice by devising a scheme to disguise herself as a man in order to attend university. Although her plan failed, her mother sent her to Mexico City in 1664, and her remarkable talents eventually drew the attention of the court of Marquis de Mancera, Viceroy of Mexico, who was charmed by this) rare instance, for the time, of a female poet, and one with such a sweet and likable nature. She soon became a lady-in-waiting of the viceroy’s wife and proved to be just as brilliant in philosophy, theology, mathematics and astronomy, not to mention music, as she was in literature. She wrote with great relish, setting down poems, plays and texts to be sung at church—the popular villancicos so typical of Spanish music and essential components of the Empire’s great religious feasts. Her only interest being in the arts and sciences, Juana knew full well that the monastic world would allow her to dedicate herself entirely to these pursuits. Her first attempt to enter a Carmelite convent failed, but in 1669, she was successful and turned her back on the lavish court life and took the veil, becoming Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz at the monastery of Jeronimas de Puebla, where she continued to write and fascinate her compatriots throughout the world. At the monastery, Sor Inés was free to develop her immense intelligence and devote herself to her love of literature.What makes her œuvre so interesting is undoubtedly the numerous perspectives under which she is considered. Some see her as the ultimate expression of a certain Spanish classicism, others as incarnating the first expression of a true American identity. There are convincing justifications for either interpretation. Hence, her poem “Primer Sueño” (Early Dream), which describes the dreamlike voyages of the human soul, falls into a tradition of Spanish literature whose most obvious representative is Luis de Góngora (1561–1627), while her plays cannot but display her admiration for Calderón. But as Octavio Paz writes, numerous works, including “Primer Sueño,” are influenced by the Hermetic, mystical tradition of the Jesuit Athanasius Kircher. The polemics arising from her Reply to Sister Filotea clearly illustrate the problems raised by the existence of such a brilliant woman. A response to a letter attacking her for her focus on literature and the sciences and suggesting that she instead concentrate on theology, Sor Inés’ Reply is a remarkable text on the recognition of women in society of the day. It also takes a run at the inordinate power of the Inquisition, a sign that her personality, so highly appreciated by her contemporaries, also had an opinionated and determined side. Defending the place of women in society, Sor Inés was also a fervent advocate of other victims of social prejudice: She viewed prostitutes with a sympathetic regard and was also among the voices standing up for black slaves and aboriginals in Spanish territories. However, the Reply attracted the wrath of the Archbishop of Mexico, who condemned Sor Juana’s “waywardness.” She resolved to stop writing rather than submit to censure. In the end, only a small portion of Sor Inés’ œuvre, collected today under the title Complete Works, has survived, a quarter of it consisting of religious songs. Legend has it that her writings were saved by the Mexican viceroy’s wife herself, evidence that Sor Inés’ unique voice had echoed deeply among her entourage. Similarly, we now know that her texts were set to music for over a century (until the 1780s) by the most important composers of South America, though her poetry was “adapted” to local practices. It is moving to hear a voice in the struggle for liberty—a voice snuffed out by its suffocating era—sing out once again over the span of the centuries.

• Wykonawca Constantinople
• Data premiery 2011-03-01
• Nośnik CD

The music of Josef Suk, pupil of Dvorak and married to the elder composer’s daughter, is only now beginning to be recognized for its true worth. Presented here are three relatively early works, brimming with youthful enthusiasm but already showing considerable individuality, a highly developed approach to structure, and, occasionally, a touch of the melancholy introspection which was to inform many of the composer’s later works. A talented violinist, Suk lends to his chamber compositions a true understanding of the genre, while his thoroughly ‘Czech’ musical upbringing ensures strong representation for the folk and dance influences to be found in the music of many of his contemporaries.As our understanding of the tradition of Czech music expands both forward and backward from the national revival of the nineteenth century, it is informed by a great diversity of riches. Janácek and Martinu are now well established in the international repertoire, while the Czech composers of the eighteenth century are seen as an important part of the context in which Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven worked. In all of this, the presence of Josef Suk has not loomed large, but is now beginning to come much more to the fore.The facts of Suk’s life are well known. Like many contemporary Czech musicians, he was initially tutored by his family in a musically literate setting; compositional success arrived at an early stage during studies at the Prague Conservatory. A favourite pupil of Czech music’s greatest luminary, Antonín Dvorák, he joined that august composer’s family when he married Dvorák’s daughter Otilie in 1898. A talented violinist, he became a founder-member of one of Europe’s most important string quartets, the Czech Quartet, and over the years was seen as a senior figure in Czech music and a mentor for many, including Martinu.Although Suk, given his similar educational background and sensibility as both string player and performer, might seem the ideal successor to Dvorák, there are many differences between the two. Unlike Dvorák, Suk did not compose operas and despite a tendency among commentators to see his music in a line of descent from the older composer, their musical languages were quite different; one of the great qualities of Dvorák’s teaching is that he ensured his pupils were no mere imitators. Even in Suk’s early works there is considerable individuality and a highly developed approach to structure. There is also a tendency towards expressive melancholy perceptible well before the dual tragedies of Dvorák’s death and that of Otilie, in 1904 and 1905 respectively. This watershed experience turned introspection into an eloquence found in the symphony Asrael (1905–6) and subsequent orchestral works that, once discovered, speak to an audience with a force comparable to that of Mahler.Many of these qualities are already evident in the Piano Quintet in G minor Op 8; although it was published in 1915 it was, in fact, composed in 1893, relatively early in Suk’s career. Another strand is also apparent in the Quintet: it is dedicated to Brahms, an old friend of Dvorák, who had already given Suk advice and encouragement. The influence of the German composer can be felt in the rhetoric of certain passages, notably in the first movement. But the Quintet is far from being a compendium of youthful enthusiasms for the work of more venerable composers; many aspects of the melodic style, in particular, are typical of Suk throughout his career.The Quintet’s first movement opens in robust fashion with vigorous motion in all parts and soaring lines for viola and cello. Throughout this bracing movement the impetus rarely flags, although there are moments of repose; the last of these is in an extended passage based around G major. This leads into a bouncy coda which, just before the major-key close, broadens out into a grand final peroration. The Adagio lives up to its secondary marking, Religioso, with an inspiring chant-like opening in which chords for the strings alternate with sweeping arpeggios for the piano. The cello leads the melodic material of a central section which results in a remarkably ardent climax.An airy pentatonic theme, a common feature in Czech music since the early days of Smetana and Dvorák, introduces an extended scherzo which, while embracing counterpoint and energetic development, provides an aspiring, almost bardic theme for the viola. Unsurprisingly, there is a passing homage to Dvorák’s great A major Piano Quintet in the trio, but Suk’s youthful adventurousness takes his attractively harmonized main theme in unexpected directions before the return of the scherzo. Dvorák’s Quintet seems to be a presence again in the a tempo introduction to the finale, perhaps also in the fugato passage in the development. But Suk’s individuality is evident at many stages, not least in some piquant harmony and the inventive transformation of the main theme of the first movement, which provides much of the finale’s material.The Four Pieces for violin and piano Op 17 were composed in the spring of 1900 and dedicated to Karel Hoffmann, a fellow violinist in the Czech Quartet. The structure of these movements is simple, but their wide-ranging rhetoric proclaims a clearly sophisticated compositional temperament. The first movement, beginning with near-Impressionist colouring, also embraces extravagant romantic gestures in its central section. There is a hint of the national accent in the emphatic cross-rhythms which characterize the outer sections of the Appassionato second movement; these frame a passage of rapt lyricism entirely typical of Suk’s early maturity. This tendency is echoed in the intense opening of the third movement, although once again Suk, somewhat in the manner of alternation favoured by Dvorák in his Dumka movements, mingles seriousness with a brisker style of writing owing something to the Polka. The finale adopts the manner of a perpetuum mobile, drawing in a pastiche of the Classical manner amid the instrumental pyrotechnics.Suk’s three-movement Piano Quartet in A minor is his Op 1 and was dedicated, appropriately enough, to his teacher Dvorák. Composed in the early 1890s, it is no surprise that it was taken up by the Prague publisher Urbánek, since it is brimming with character and confidence. The very opening idea of the first movement, which looks forward to that of the Piano Quintet, is both striking and original. Equally effective is the writing for the instruments, particularly in the lead-up to the movement’s secondary material. A wide-ranging and challenging development shows the young Suk to be completely in command of his ideas. Inevitably there are hints of his teacher’s style, but there is much that is entirely characteristic of Suk, including a tendency toward introspection, even in the outwardly confident opening Allegro appassionato. The slow movement, led off by the cello and piano, has a nocturne-like quality; an expressive central section, marked to be played a little quicker, has something of the ardent, fairy-tale atmosphere Suk later brought to his music for the play Radúz and Mahulena. The last movement combines the characteristics of scherzo and finale. A bold, march-like opening idea introduces a number of episodes, some gently yearning in manner, before an ebullient close.

• Wykonawca The Nash Ensemble
• Data premiery 2012-07-01
• Nośnik CD

Tracklista:1. Gratuitous Sex2. When Do I Get to Sing 'My Way'3. (When I Kiss You) I Hear Charlie Parker Playing4. Frankly, Scarlett, I Don't Give A Damn5. I Thought I Told You To Wait In The Car6. Hear No Evil, See No Evil, Speak No Evil7. Now That I Own The BBC8. Tsui Hark9. Ghost Of Liberace10. Let's Go Surfing11. Senseless Violins

• Wykonawca Sparks
• Data premiery 2006-05-01
• Nośnik CD / Album

Tracklista:1. I've Come Too Far With You (To Turn Back Now)2. How Can You Lose Something You Never Had3. Mama Was a Bad Seed4. You Better Keep What You Got5. I Can Feel My Love Comin' Down6. For That Man of Mine7. It's Nice to Know8. That Hurts9. Willow Weep for Me12. A Woman's Way13. Who You Gonna Love (Your Woman Or Your Wife)14. Holding the Losing Hand15. Chained and Bound16. Can't You Just See Me18. To Love Somebody19. (I Like Making That) Early Morning Love20. It's Been So Nice21. How Can You Lose What You Never Had22. I Can Feel My Love Comin' Down23. I've Come Too Far With You (To Turn Back Now)10. Understand My Man11. Mine Was Real

• Wykonawca Rozetta Johnson
• Data premiery 2016-10-28
• Nośnik Audio-CD

Adrian Chandler’s and La Serenissima’s 10th release for Avie – coinciding with the label’s 10th Anniversary – has all the hallmarks that have made the Vivaldi specialists one of the best-selling and acclaimed period-instrument bands performing today. Adrian’s erudition and his ensemble’s crowd-pleasing performances combine to produce recordings that are at once popular and enlightening. Venice by Night evokes an era of the Venetian Republic when the arts flourished, attracting audiences from all over Europe including scores of royalty. Feeding the tourist trade, the resident composers revelled in creating everything from grand operas and serenatas, virtuoso concertos and sinfonias, motets and gondoliers’ ballads. As with the chart-topping Vivaldi: The French Connection 2 (AV 2218) which featured the world-premiere recording of the flute concerto Il Gran Mogol, Adrian has once again unearthed numerous works from this period that are recorded for the first time.

• Wykonawca Lawson Mhairi , Munday Simon , Whelan Peter , La Serenissima
• Data premiery 2012-06-01
• Nośnik CD

This chronological exploration of the musical universe of György Ligeti begins in 1948, with a brief piece for solo piano composed by a 25-year old music student in Budapest and ends with his final compositions, also for solo piano, when Ligeti had long since become established as one of the truly great figures of 20th-century music. On the way, it takes in a number of works which demonstrate the kaleidoscopic qualities of the composer and his oeuvre – from the sharply delineated sense of humour displayed in the Six Bagatelles to the otherworldliness of Lux Aeterna (used by Stanley Kubrick in his film 2001 – a space odyssey), and the sheer mass of Volumina for organ, in which the performer uses elbows, arms and the palms of his hands in order to strike the largest possible number of keys at the same time. The music and its creator are described in an enlightening essay by the musicologist Arnold Whittall, who quotes a remark by Ligeti himself as one explanation for this almost bewildering range of moods and atmospheres: ‘every­thing that is direct and unambiguous is alien to me’. Ligeti’s œuvre certainly bears this out, while also testifying to another observation by the composer: ‘what is serious is at the same time comical, and the comical is terrifying’. The present, amply filled anthology brings together some seminal Ligeti works in interpretations that were highly praised when originally released, by performers of international standing, including Nobuko Imai, the Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet, Fredrik Ullén and Hans-Ola Ericsson, as well as the eminent vocal ensemble Schola Heidelberg.

• Wykonawca Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet , Ullen Fredrik
• Data premiery 2012-11-01
• Nośnik CD

Tracklista:1. The Good Years2. Sorry3. Better Things4. Rivers Run5. Painted It White6. Firethief7. Behind Our Eyes8. The News9. Sorrowlessfield10. Tongue That Cannot Lie

• Wykonawca Polwart Karine
• Data premiery 2008-03-10
• Nośnik CD

Tracklista:1. Lonely This Christmas 2. Driving Home for Christmas 3. Still Got the Blues for Christmas 4. Please Come Home for Christmas 5. Santa Claus Got the Blues 6. How Blue Can You Get at Christmas 7. Thank God It's Christmas 8. Merry X-mas Everybody 9. Wind of Change 10. Do They Know It's Christmas 11. Angel Girl 12. I'd Rather Go Blind 13. Magic Christmas 14. Christmas Crossroads 15. I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas 16. I Need Your Love So Bad 17. Now That the Music Has Gone 18. Miss Celie's Blues 19. Did You Ever Had the Feeling at Christmas 20. I've Got The Blues for You at Christmas

• Wykonawca Various Artists
• Data premiery 2006-01-01
• Nośnik CD

  To run parallel with his complete Haydn series, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet is now starting a complete, chronological cycle of Beethoven’s piano sonatas. This first set covers the sonatas composed in the 1790s. Two further volumes, of middle and late sonatas, will follow in 2013 and 2014 respectively. Each volume in the series will be available as  3 CDs for the price of 2. In a recent cover feature in International Piano, Michael Church spoke with the pianist about the new project and reported: ‘For Bavouzet, the particular pleasure of coming to Beethoven after Haydn lies in the fact that although their basic harmonic language is roughly the same, in Beethoven’s scores the dynamics are clearly indicated, especially where they seem completely independent of the music’s so-called natural harmonic tensions.’ Bavouzet added: ‘The accents are in exactly the wrong place, and that’s what creates his music’s excitement. I am so happy to have these two streams of my work running side by side for the next few years.’   This recording covers the sonatas from Opus 2 to Opus 14, and includes a novelty: two different versions of Op. 10 No. 1. In the words of Bavouzet: ‘Professor William Drabkin has reconstructed for me the development section of the third movement. It’s based on Beethoven’s sketches, which had just one line, one voice, but all the bars are full, so we have the exact length, and the line is not always the top line. This makes  us realise how he arrived at the concept of his three-movement sonatas, for this was not originally supposed to be in three movements, but four… I will also record the longer development, and the extra movement, so that people can see how he reduced and concentrated the work from four movements to three. I must stress that this is surmise, but it is very well thought through.’  

• Wykonawca Bavouzet Jean-Efflam
• Data premiery 2012-04-01
• Nośnik CD

Tracklista: CD 1 1. Alreet (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 2. Georgia On My Mind (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 3. Fool Am I (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 4. Just A Little Bit South Of North Carolina (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 5. Slow Down (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 6. Let Me Off Uptown (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 7. Green Eyes (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 8. Kick It! (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 9. Amour (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 10. Stop! The Red Light's On (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 11. Watch The Birdie (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 12. The Walls Keep Talking (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 13. Two In Love (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 14. How Do? (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 15. Coppin' A Plea (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 16. Bolero At The Savoy (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 17. Skylark (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 18. Thanks For The Boogie Ride (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 19. Pass The Bounce (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 20. Harlem On Parade (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 21. Side By Side (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 22. That's What You Think (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 23. Fightin' Doug Macarthur (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 24. Barrelhouse Bessie From Basin Street (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 25. Deliver Me To Tennessee (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) CD 2 1. Massachusetts (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 2. Murder He Says (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 3. Ain't Misbehavin' (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 4. Ride On (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 5. Build It Up, Paint It Nice, Tear It Down (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 6. I Lost My Sugar In Salt Lake City (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 7. You Betcha (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 8. Gotta Be Gettin' (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 9. In A Little Spanish Town (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 10. Are You Livin' Old Man (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 11. Singing The Blues (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 12. Special Delivery (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 13. And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 14. Tabby The Cat (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 15. I'm Going Mad For A Pad (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 16. I Want A Grown Up Man (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 17. Travelin' Man (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 18. Them There Eyes (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 19. How Come (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 20. I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 21. Opus 1 (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 22. That Feeling In The Moonlight (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 23. Boogie Blues (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 24. Chickery Chick (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 25. In The Middle Of May (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra) 26. Tea For Two (With The Gene Krupa Orchestra)

• Wykonawca Anita O'Day
• Data premiery 2013-09-16
• Nośnik CD / Album