Label: COVIELLO CLASSICS SACD 30910
Our Price: $24.25
Quantity in Basket: none
FELIX MENDELSSOHN-BARTHOLDY (1809 – 1847)
Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 11
Symphony No. 5 in D major, Op. 107 "Reformation"

Aachen Symphony Orchestra/Marcus Bosch
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) managed the rare feat of already having composed twelve symphonies by the age of 15. These string sinfonias were never published with their own opus numbers, however, and are thus regarded as "substandard." The first "real" symphony with strings and winds dates from 1824 and was published as No. 1. A few years later Mendelssohn composed the symphony which was published only posthumously as his fifth – the 'Reformation' Symphony. Mendelssohn, who came from a Jewish family but was baptized as a Protestant, professes his faith in this work, particularly in the finale, with its quotation of Bach's chorale "Ein’ feste Burg ist unser Got” (A Mighty Fortress Is Our God).
Marcus Bosch and the Aachen Symphony Orchestra offer superb interpretations of the two works, whose origins are so close to each other – and allow fascinating insights into the musical development of the young Mendelssohn.

Label: COVIELLO CLASSICS SACD 30914
Our Price: $24.25
Quantity in Basket: none
ANTON BRUCKNER (1824 – 1896)
Symphony No. 6 in A major, WAB 106

Aachen Symphony Orchestra/Marcus Bosch
In 2002 German-Brazilian conductor Marcus Bosch (b. 1969) was appointed General
Music Director of the city of Aachen, which has a great tradition of conductors with predecessors like Fritz Busch, Herbert von Karajan and Wolfgang Sawallisch. Bosch appeared also as guest conductor at Teatro Filarmonico Verona, Orchestre National de Belgique, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, MDR Sinfonieorchester, Deutsches Symphonie Orchester Berlin, Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden, and Orchestra Nazionale della RAI Torino.
Marcus Bosch and the Aachen Symphony Orchestra continue their extremely successful series of Bruckner recordings with the Sixth Symphony. Bruckner himself considered this symphony to be his "boldest symphony".

Label: COVIELLO CLASSICS SACD 31002
Our Price: $24.25
Quantity in Basket: none
GUSTAV MAHLER (1860 – 1911)
Symphony No. 1 in D minor “Titan” (incl. Blumine: Andante allegretto)

Staatsorchester Braunschwieg/Alexander Joel
"It has turned out to be so overwhelming – as though it flowed out of me like a mountain stream!"
After four years of work, Gustav Mahler (1860-1911) was euphoric when he completed his first symphony in 1888. He revised it over the next eleven years in the course of the first performances, however, until it was published in 1899 – a monumental achievement that was to have a profound impact on the symphonic works of the 20th century. Characteristic are the extremely complex material – drawn from a wide variety of sources, from folksong melody to complex polyphony – expansive melodic lines and tremendous intensifications with sudden breaks, alternation between the extremes of intimate chamber music and eruptive orchestral sound, reflection and naïveté, euphoria and preoccupation with death.
Since the 2007/2008 season Alexander Joel is General Music Director of the Staatstheater Braunschweig. The Staatsorchester Braunschweig (Brunswick State Orchestra) is one of the oldest orchestras in the world. It traces its origin back to the court orchestra of Duke Julius of Brunswick/Wolfenbüttel which was established in 1587. The ensemble’s evolution to a modern opera and symphony orchestra can be followed through its historical development, which is associated with such names as Michael Praetorius, Heinrich Schütz, Carl Heinrich Graun, Louis Spohr, Felix Mendelssohn, Hector Berlioz, Franz Liszt, and Richard Strauss, who were conductors of the ensemble or conducted their own works in Brunswick.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 20602
Our Price: $24.75
Quantity in Basket: none
GIACOMO CARISSIMI (1605 – 1674): Jonas; Dixit Dominus; Magnificat; Judicium Extremum; GIOVANNI GABRIELI (1557 – 1612): Sonata for 8 Instruments in two Choirs from “Canzoni e sonate per sonar con ogni sorte de Instromenti”, Venedig 1615

Lautten Compagney; Capella Angelica; Wolfgang Katschner, conductor

Label: COVIELLO SACD 20608
Our Price: $24.75
Quantity in Basket: none
CARLO GIUSEPPE TOESCHI (1731 - 1788): Quartet in D major, Op. 5 No. 1; MATTHIAS FRANCISCUS CANNABICH (1690 - 1753): Sonata in E minor; JOHANN BAPTIST WENDLING (1723 - 1797): Quartet in G major, Op. 10 No. 5; CHRISTIAN CANNABICH (1731 - 1798): Quartet in F major, Op. 1 No. 5; IGANZ HOLZBAUER (1711 - 1783): Quintet in G major; FRANZ XAVER RICHTER (1709 - 1789): Sonata No. 1 in G major: Six Sonates á de flutes traversiéres

Neue Düsseldorfer Hofmusik
The famous Mannheim Court Orchestra, considered one of the world's best orchestras around 1750, resided for a short while in Düsseldorf. The Electoral Prince, Carl Theodor, commissioned numerous chamber music works for his own enjoyment- members of his orchestra also performed in smaller ensembles together with the prince, and many of them were also leading composers of the time. Rediscovering the rich legacy is the goal of the Neue Düsseldorfer Hofmusik, which has established itself in recent years as one of the top ensembles for early music. Carl Theodor was a particular fan of the traverse flute, and thus the instrument plays a central role in this recording of his so-called “cabinet music”, where various masters of the “Mannheim School” show that they were much more the simple effects.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 20708
Our Price: $49.50
Quantity in Basket: none
6 Suites for Violoncello Solo BWV 1007 – 1012

Martin Ostertag, cello (2 CDs)

Label: COVIELLO SACD 20714
Our Price: $24.75
Quantity in Basket: none
*WORLD PREMIERE RECORDINGS!!!
JACOB OBRECHT (1457 – 1505): Missa “Sub tuum praesidium”; *ANONYM: Carmen; Gaudeamus omnes in Domino; Carmen in fa; Alleluia, Anna mater eximia; Luce lucens in aeterna; Diffusa est gratia; Carmen II; Lucis huius festa; Salve Regina; Alleluis, Sancta Dei Genitrix

Gesine Adler, soprano; David Erler, alto; Stephan Gähler, tenor; Sebastian Reim, tenor; Matthias Gerchen, bass
Capella de la Toree/Katharina Bäuml
Capella de la Torre is a group of musicians who have made a name for themselves as specialists in historical performance practice. The ensemble's aim is to give listeners an immediate experience of the rich and hitherto neglected repertoire of mediaeval and renaissance music by performing it to a professional standard. The name "de la Torre" has a double meaning. In the first place, it pays homage to the Spanish composer Francisco de la Torre, who wrote his "Danza Alta" at the beginning of the 16th century. This is probably the most famous piece for what was then known as "capella alta", an ensemble of wind instruments such as shawms, dulcians, sackbuts and cornetti. Capella de la Torre has specialized in music written for the "capella alta". Secondly, the name may be taken in a literal sense: "de la Torre" means "from the tower" and groups of wind players (Spanish: ministriles) often played on towers or balconies at festivals and other official occasions. "Torres de los Ministriles" are still to be found in many Spanish towns today. Capella de la Torre does not confine itself to Spanish music, however, but also plays music written throughout the rest of Europe for the "hauts instruments" or "loud instruments". In general, it tries to breathe life into the old traditions of "ministriles", "piffari" and "Stadtpfeiffer". In the music world of today there are very few ensembles centered around historical double-reed instruments. This is particularly so in Germany.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 20804
Our Price: $24.75
Quantity in Basket: none
BARTHOLOMAUS HESS (1518 – 1585): Passamezzo/Saltarello; Zeuner Tantz; Tanz/Nachtanz; PAUL KUGELMANN (d. ca. 1580): Ein frischer Gsang (1558); FRANCESCO CORTECCIA (1502 – 1571): Guardan almo pastore; ANON.: Hoftanz ‘Schwarzknab’ (1552); MORTIZ LANDGRAF VON HESSEN (1572 – 1632): Pavane de la Tromba Hollandica; PHILIPPE VERDELOT (1490 – 1562): Ultimi mei sospiri; JUAN AMBROSIO DALZA: Calata a la Spagnola (1508); GIOVANNI PIERLUIGI DA PALESTRINA (1514 – 1594): O Domine Jesu Christe; JUAN DE URREDA (1445 – 1500): Tantum ergo; FRANCISCO GUERRERO (1528 – 1599): Pange Lingua à 4; GIACOMO GORZANIS (1520/25 – 1575): Pavane El Bisson; La barca d’amore; ALESSANDRO STRIGGIO (1537 – 1592): Sara che cessi; ORLANDO DI LASSO (1530 – 1594): Che se la vers; ANTHONY HOLBORNE (1545 – 1602): Pavane Bona Speranza; Honey Suckle; Fairie Round; Allemande; The Night Watch; ANON., Kassel ca. 1650: Sonata à 5 bombardi; Fitzwilliam virginal Book ca. 1610 – ca. 1620 – Farnaby’s Dream; FRANCISCO CORREA DI ARAUJO (1584 – 1654): Tiento para dos tiples; JOHANN HERMANN SCHEIN (1586 – 1630): Pavane; Gagliarda; Courente; Allemande/Tripla

Capella de la Torre/Katharina Baum
During the Renaissance and early Baroque, the best-known instrumental ensembles in Europe consisted primarily of wind musicians. Composers such as Johann Herrmann Schein and Michael Praetorius often expressly called for the use of specific wind instruments. As musicians in the service of towns or courts, as waits, piffari, or ministriles, they not only had to entertain guests during dinner at festive events and accompany dancing; their instruments also resounded in churches, both to praise God and to demonstrate the power, pomp, and artistic sensibility of their employers. Capella de la Torre, which specializes in period wind instruments and has been highly acclaimed by critics for its previous recordings, embarks on a journey through Europe of early modern times. With cornett and trombone, shawm and dulcian, they recreate the sounds of the sixteenth and seventeenth century "Stadtpfeifer".

Label: COVIELLO SACD 20808
Our Price: $24.75
Quantity in Basket: none
From the Oratorio Jephtha (1752): “Waft her, angels, through the skies”; “His mighty arm, with sudden blow”; From the Serenata Acis and Galatea (1781): “Love in her eyes sits playing”; From the Oratorio Alexander’s Feast (1736): “Give the vengeance due”; “The princes applaud with a furious joy”; From the Oratorio Samson (1743): “Thus when the sun from’s sat’ry bed”; “Total eclipse! No sun, no moon!”; From the Sacred Oratorio Messiah (1742): “Comfort ye my people”; “Ev’ry valley shall be exalted”; From the Ballet-Suite Terpsicore (1734): Chaconne; From the Opera Rodelinda (1725): “Fatto inferno è il mi petto”; “Pastorello di povero armento”; From the Opera Alcina (1735): “Un momento di contento”; From the Oratorio Semele (1744): “Where’er you walk, cool gales shall fan the glade”; From the Opera Ezio (1732): “Se povero il ruscello”; From the Oratorio L’Allegro, Il Penseroso ed il Moderato (1740): “As steals the morn upon the night”*

Christoph Genz, tenor; Julia Wagner, soprano*
Handelfestspielorchester/David Timm
“The tenor voice has often been neglected on recordings of Handel arias in the past. Handel recitals were left primarily to sopranos, mezzo-sopranos, or countertenors. The fact that this situation has changed recently – there are now several CDs with his tenor arias – shows that there was a demand for this repertoire. Tenor parts are almost always supporting roles in Handel's operas, and it is naturally difficult to compete with "hits" like "Lascia ch’io pianga," "Ombra mai fu," "Cara sposa," and "Verdi prati." The situation is different with the oratorios, where Handel treats the tenor voice equally, sometimes even as the title role, as in Jephtha or Samson. The selection was greater here, but by no means easier as a result!” (Christoph Genz)
The German tenor, Christoph Genz, began his musical studies as a member of the renowned Leipzig Thomanerchor, followed by study at King 's College, Cambridge where he was also a member of the King’ s College Choir. His prizes include First Place in Leipzig’s Bach Competition and Grimsby (England) International Singers Competition. Hailed as one of the most exciting tenors to keep an eye on, Christoph Genz has performed worldwide with conductors such as Philippe Herreweghe, Frans Brüggen, Ton Koopman, Sigiswald Kuijken, and Sir Simon Rattle.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 20905
Our Price: $24.25
Quantity in Basket: none
JOSEPH HAYDN (1732 – 1809)
The Seven Last Words of our Saviour on the Cross
Seven String Quartets, Op. 51 Nos. 1-6 Hob.III:50-56

Scaramouche Quartett: Werner Neugebauer, violin; Cornelia Löscher, violin; Firmian Lermer, viola; Detlef Mielke, cello
The biblical scene has provoked theological debates for centuries, because it displays Jesus on the cross in his dual nature – on the one hand, as a suffering, despairing mortal, and on the other, as the Son of God in the certainty of victory over death. This dramatic emphasis on an essential core of faith is conveyed in the seven last words of the Messiah. They have often served as the basis for sacred music. One of the most familiar settings is that of Joseph Haydn – in its original version, seven orchestral interludes which were intended to fill the contemplative pauses during the recitation and interpretation of the biblical texts. Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) himself approved the quartet version shortly after the original was performed – no easy task for only four strings to explore the thematic dimension of the work's religious depths. On its debut CD, the Scaramouche Quartet has taken up this challenge and passed with flying colors.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 20907
Our Price: $24.25
Quantity in Basket: none
THE GUARD ON THE BATTLEMENT
MICHAEL PRAETORIUS (1571 – 1621): Jubilate Deo prima pars; Jubilate Deo secunda pars; Laudate Dominum; Nun bitten wir den Heiligen Geist à 2 (6 versions); Benedicamus Domino; Fundamenta tenet mundi prima pars; Fundamenta tenet mundi secunda pars; Passamezzo; Gagliarda; Exsultemus adiutori nostro; Salve Regina; Salve Rex noster; Peccavi; Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme Choral; Wachet auf, ruft uns die stimme à 7
SAMUEL SCHEIDT (1587 – 1654): Canzon Est-ce Mars que je vois; Gagliarda la Battaglia

Dominique Visse, alto

Capella de la Torre/Katharina Bäuml
In the early 17th century the Guard of the Battlement was not only the watchman but more and more the Town Piper. He had to communicate with his fellow guardians by acoustic signals.
Sooner or later the town council discovered that these talents could be used for prestige purposes.
This boosted the reputation of the town pipers, and consequently even the most prominent musicians such as Michael Praetorius and Samuel Scheidt, who both worked at the court of Markgrave Christian Wilhelm of Brandenburg in Halle.. Their spectacular sound effects revealed the expertise of the musicians.
The way the ensemble Capella della Torre revives this exciting music on period instruments makes it more than understandable that they received many awards.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 21008
Our Price: $48.50
Quantity in Basket: none
(on original violins by Jakob Stainer, c.1617-1704)

ARTISTS: Daniel Sepec, violins; Hille Perl, viola da gamba; Lee Santana, archlute, theorbo; Michael Behringer: organ, harpsichord.

Heinrich Biber’s Rosary (Mystery) Sonatas—fifteen sonatas for violin and continuo portraying the fifteen Mysteries of the Rosary, and an extended passacaglia for solo violin—constitute a high point in virtuosic Baroque violin music: each sonata employs scordatura, a different tuning of the violin’s strings. Violinist Daniel Sepec presents an authentic interpretation of Biber’s famed sonata cycle on original violins of the celebrated Tyrolean violin maker Jakob Stainer (c. 1617-1683), with outstanding continuo accompaniment by Hille Perl, Lee Santana and Michael Behringer.
(2 SACD)

Label: COVIELLO SACD 30507
Our Price: $24.75
Quantity in Basket: none
WILLIAM WALTON (1902 – 1983): Concerto for Viola & Orchestra (1962)
SALLY BEAMISH (*1956): Concerto for Viola & Orchestra No. 1 (1995)
BENJAMIN BRITTEN (1913- 1976): “Lachrymae” (on a Dowland song)

Tatjana Masurenko, viola
NDR Radiophilharmonie (Philharmonic Orchestra of the Northern German Radio)
Garry Walker, conductor
On this hybrid SACD the well-known violist Tatjana Masurenko demonstrates more facets of her wide-ranging musical and virtuosic qualities by performing three twentieth-century British works for viola and orchestra. The compositions, recorded with the NDR Radio Philharmonia of Hanover under Garry Walker, form an arch from the late Romantic era to the modern day: William Walton's Viola Concerto, written in its original version in 1928/29, experienced an erratic editorial history before finally being published in its final form in 2002. In her Viola Concerto of 1995 Sally Beamish has movingly set the story of Peter's denial of Christ from the New Testament. The source of inspiration for Benjamin Britten was a retrospective look at the late Renaissance: he took John Dowland's song of lamentation If my Complaints could passions move in 1950 as the basis for a complex series of variations.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 30509
Our Price: $24.75
Quantity in Basket: none
Symphony No. 5 in B flat major

Aachen Symphony Orchestra/Marcus Bosch (Live recording)
In its final shape the Fifth Symphony can be viewed as an attempt by Anton Bruckner to demonstrate his technical abilities in a largely conceived form. So it was that Bruckner referred to the work as "my contrapuntal master-piece. Still, he was never to hear the work performed. At first glance it is evident that Bruckner employed the classical four movement form for his Fifth Symphony. Unusually the introduction does not serve to prepare thematic material to come; instead the material of the introduction appears often in the course of the movement. A peculiar restraint is evident in the first three movements of the symphony, and the tonal emphasis is weaker than in comparable movements of other Bruckner symphonies. As in the example of Mozart’s "Jupiter", the whole work revolves around the last movement, the longest of the piece, the luminosity of which is not allowed to be undermined by reaching the high point too soon. Bruckner begins this Finale with a short reprise of the themes from the slow introduction and the first and second movements, following the model of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Then a broadly conceived fugue unfolds, the theme of which was previously played by the clarinet interwoven with the themes of the first movement. Bruckner's mastery goes beyond combining both fugues into a double fugue and the trumping of the Mozart model in complexity and enormity. More important is that the contrapuntal arts, as masterfully as they are applied, never become merely a goal in themselves, but serve to reveal the musical meaning of the first movement themes only at their reappearance in the Finale. All is here tied together, each musical idea pervades the others, and the beginning is seen retrospectively in a whole new light. Bruckner binds and unbinds themes and motifs within and between all four movements with a degree of rigour that even he never managed to achieve again.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 30512
Our Price: $24.75
Quantity in Basket: none
Melba Ramos, soprano; Gabriele May, alto; Michael Ende, tenor; Martin Blasius, bass
Choir of the “vocapella”
Symphony Orchestra Aachen/Marcus Bosch, Live Recording
There are similarities of excess in both the enthusiasts ’high praise of Verdi’s Requiem and the critics’ condemnation of the work as sentimental and theatrical. George Bernard Shaw called the Messa da Requiem ‘Verdi’s greatest opera’, a judgement not so far a field from conductor and Wagnerian Hans von Bülow, who branded it an ‘opera in sacred clothing'. That Verdi was a consummate man of the theatre – he once seriously applied this term to himself instead of the designation ‘composer’ – is apparent throughout the score of the Requiem. Verdi displays the mastery of the great dramatic musician in the simple beauty of the folk tune or Gregorian chant derived melody of the ‘Agnus Dei’ that delves deeper with every new variation, the weave of the motifs served by the surprising colors of the orchestra, and the varied use of harmony. Performance directions like ‘as quietly as possible’, ‘plaintively', ‘gloomily’, ‘dolcissimo morendo’, and even ‘weepingly’ show that Verdi was aiming to recreate the realism that he achieved in his operas by illustrating the tension and conflict of the protagonists with their fellow humans and with society. It is this insistence on realism that truly sets the Requiem alongside Verdi’s operatic creations.