Label: COVIELLO SACD 50501
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(arr. for Clarinet, English Horn & Bassoon)

Trio Lezard: Jan Creutz, clarinet; Stéphane Egeling, english horn; Stefan Hoffmann, bassoon
For a long time Bach’s Sonatas for Organ BWV 525-530 were suspected to be adaptations of his own trio sonatas. Several recordings tried to reconstruct the original scores of the sonatas. With this recording the Trio Lezard presents an adaptation of the adaptation, and claims in no way to have reached an authentic reconstruction. The ensemble’s arrangement (which has been published meanwhile) allocates the parts to a charming trio of English horn, clarinet and bassoon, certainly delighting not only friends of wind instruments.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 50502
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DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH (1905 – 1975): Piano Trios No. 1, Op. 8 & No. 2, Op. 67; PAUL JUON (1872 – 1940): Piano Trio, Op. 17 & “Trio Miniatures”

Trio Paian: Carl-Magnus Helling, violin; Marin Smesnoi, cello; Alexandra Neumann, piano
Probably the best known Russian composer of the twentieth century, Shostakovich only composed two piano trios, but he always judged them among his most important works, and posterity has judged them in the same way. Shostakovich was only 17 years old when he composed Piano Trio op. 8; it was one of his very first works and it was performed in 1925 at a public concert in Moscow. The second trio, written in 1944, is one of his emotionally most intensive compositions: the sudden death of his friend Ivan Sollertinsky had dealt him a devastating blow. While Shostakovich is a household name almost everywhere, most people would ask "who?" when confronted with the name Paul Juon - there are no similarities of either a biographical or stylistic nature between these two composers. Juon was the son of a Swiss family who immigrated to Moscow, where Paul grew up, and as a composer it is difficult to pigeonhole him. On this hybrid SACD, Trio Paian presents his piano trios in a charming and highly informative contrast to Shostakovich's two trios.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 50505
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Premiere complete recording of the Italian journey album from 1839/40

Dörthe Maria Sandmann, soprano; Ulrike Bartsch, alto
Philip Mayers, piano
Ensemble Vokalzeit
It had been Fanny Hensel’s childhood dream: when her parents, on a journey to Switzerland in 1822, decided to turn around as they reached the foot of the San Gottardo, and not to cross the mountains to Italy, the 16-year old made the resolution to return one day and realize this trip to the South. However, it would take another 17 years for her plan to be put into practice. Fanny and Wilhelm Hensel both treasured their happy memories of this voyage. In the spring of 1841, a young French composer paid them a visit with him they had often been in Rome together. They spoke greatly of the “heavenly days”, days that were "unforgettable" und "like stars in the sky". This must have been the time where the idea was born to record these memories in her own very personal manner: she selected some of her pieces composed in Italy, wrote a number of new scores and transcribed them onto differently colored manuscript paper. Her husband adjoined a vignette to each piece, a small penciled sketch, as recollections of certain situations, some of which are not individually known today.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 50710
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ASKELL MASSON (*1953): Shadows – concerto for solo trumpet & brass quintet; OTTORINO RESPIGHI (1879 – 1936): Suite from “Antiche Danze ed Arie” (arr. Matthias Gromer); OSKAR BOHME (1870 – 1938): Brass Sextet, Op. 30; DANIEL SCHNYDER (*1961): Brass Quintet; 3 pieces from “Little songbook” for soloist & brass quintet

Reinhold Friedrich, trumpet
Mannheim Brass Quintet

They compensate for an entire orchestra: It only takes six brilliant brass players to merge symphonic depth with soloistic brilliance. On this new SACD by the Mannheim Brass Quintett, established among the leading brass ensembles for many years now, Reinhold Friedrich appears as their celebrated guest – with the solo trumpet and the nowadays rarely heard and technically highly challenging cornet, he provides an alluring contrast to the perfectly balanced ensemble tone. The program reflects the variety of music history of the last century: Works from 1906 to 2003 draw back on the renaissance, late romantic splendor, sharply accentuated jazz rhythms and the sophisticated tonality of contemporary music. The technical and musical challenges could not be more diverse – and are mastered by these six top musicians with remarkable, almost nonchalant bravery.

REVIEW - AUDIOPHILE AUDITION

This is a very appropriate title for the enhancement of the brass quintet sound which hi-res surround can bring to it. The Mannheim Brass is one of the leading German brass quintets and is made up of soloists from the orchestras of various European opera houses. They were founded in 1990 and like most brass quintets have a very wide repertory, encompassing early music to jazz and avantgarde.

Respighi’s suite blended renaissance and baroque music themes with a late-romantic style in his orchestral work. It may seem surprising to hear it transferred to an all-brass ensemble, but this arrangement by Matthias Gromer works beautifully. Oskar Bohme was a composer of early in the 20th century who specialized in music for brass instruments. His Sextet features a cornet solo in its second movement, here played by Reinhold Friedrich, the leader of the ensemble. Swiss composer Daniel Schnyder regularly transitions between classical music and jazz in both his composing and performing as a saxist and flutist. His quintet puts jazz and Latin music in contrast to a European framework of harmony and polyphony, and the selections from his Songbook are three light little movements with a sort of jazz chamber music feeling to them.

If this album is to your liking, you should check out the quintet’s earlier Coviello SACD, “Boundless.” Switching between the stereo and surround options of this SACD makes one wonder why anyone would invest in one of the several super-high-end two-channel-only SACD players. - John Sunier

Label: COVIELLO SACD 50712
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Cosi fan tutte (arr. Tarkmann): Overture; Terzettino: Soave sia il vento; Aria: Un aura amorosa
Don Giovanni (arr. Triebensee/Tarkmann): Overture; Duettino: La ci darem la mano; Canzonetta: Deh vieni alla finestra; Finale und Höllenfahrt: Ah signor – per carita
Le nozze di Figaro (arr. Wendt/Tarkmann): Overture; Aria: Porgi amor; Cherubin-Arietta: Voi che sapete; Finale Scena ultima
La Clemenza di Tito (arr. Tarkmann): Overture; Ara Sextus: Parto, parto; Rondo Vitellia: Non piu di fiori
Die Zuaberflote (arr. Heidenreich/Tarkmann): Overture; Arie: Alles fühlt der Liebe Freuden; Arie: Der Hölle Rache; Finale

Wind Soloist of the Deutschen Kammerphilharmonie Bremen
For almost two hundred years, one could hardly ever hear them, in Mozart's time, harmony musicians were a popular substitute for large complicated works, particularly opera, when the spatial and financial requirements for a "proper" performance couldn't be met. Arrangements for wind ensemble were particularly popular and made then contemporary music available to a wider audience- hearing live opera and symphonies was only possible for a small number of people. In the 19th century, harmony musicians were derided as an emergency solution and were slowly forgotten. Unfairly, as we know today, and as this new SACD from the wind principals of the Bremen Kammerphilharmonie clearly demonstrates. The drama of a large Mozart opera "en miniature" focuses on the fundamental, yet is no less fascinating than the original.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 50902
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DANIEL SCHNYDER (*1961): Cubac (Bach in Cuba); JOHANN STRAUSS (1825 – 1899): Ein Strauss von Blech (Vienna Brass) – A Johann-Strauss-Operetta Medley*; FREDERICK LOEWE (1901 – 1988): Suite from the musical My Fair Lady*; CHARLES GOUNOD (1818 – 1893): A Cross Section of the opera Faust*; FRANZ VON SUPPE (1819 – 1895): Overture from the operetta Leichte Kavallerie (Light Cavalry)*

City Brass Stuttgart
*arranged for Brass Ensembles by Andreas N. Tarkmann
Stuttgart has some new "heavy metal" – and for once it has nothing to do with cars. The brass ensemble launched as the Stuttgart Brass in 2005, which was founded by Stuttgart music professors and quickly established itself on the music scene, is now known as City Brass Stuttgart. The ensemble is based at the artistically outstanding University of Music and the Performing Arts in Stuttgart. City Brass Stuttgart is led by brass professors Wolfgang Bauer (trumpet), Christian Lampert (horn), Henning Wiegräbe (trombone), and Stefan Heimann (tuba). The other members of the ensemble are usually current or former students from their classes. After its critically acclaimed debut at the Stuttgart Courtyard Concerts in the Old Palace in 2005, the ensemble thrilled audiences during concert tours to Russia, Hungary, and Austria. The ensemble's programs are always varied, ranging from Renaissance music to modern popular music. The Stuttgarter Zeitung praised "the tremendous level of assurance in their teamwork – a virtue that this ensemble has cultivated."

Label: COVIELLO SACD 51004
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Bennewitz Quartet
(winner of the 1st prize “Premio Paolo Borciani” in 2008)

Label: COVIELLO SACD 60504
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”the sealed angel”, Russian liturgical music based on Nikolay Leskov

Sophie Klußmann, soprano; Judith Simonis, alto; René Vosskühler, tenor; Lorenz Wüsthof & Richard Schwennicke, boys
The Berlin Radio Choir; Gergely Bodoky, flute; Stefan Parkman, conductor
Rodion Shchedrins’s Russian liturgy “The Sealed Angel” for mixed choir a capella, soloists and flute was composed in 1988 for the occasion of the Millennium of the Christianisation of Russo. It was first performed on the 18th of June 1988 by the Moscow Chamber Choir under the National Choir of Academies of the USSR under Wladimir Minin. Rodion Shchedrin, was born in 1932 in Moscow and become world-famous for his ballet music composed for his wife, the Russian prima ballerina Maya Plissezkaja (Carmen Suite, 1987; Anna Karenina, 1971; The Gull, 1979 amongst others). He came from a religious background. His grandfather was a priest. He received his first musical education between the age of 12 and 18 at the Moscow Choir School, where the pupils were introduced to the treat liturgies and vespers of the 18th and 19th Centuries with worldly versions of the tests. It had long been his wish to compose a piece, which would resume the tradition of Russian orthodox music that had been interrupted by the October Revolution. In the face of the Perestroika in the mid 1980s the time seemed right. However, the complications surrounding the premiere of his Stichira for the millennium of the Christianisation of Russia in March 1988 taught him otherwise. With his following work he therefore resorted to a tried and tested trick of Soviet times: Rather than calling the score Russian Liturgy as he had intended, he gave it the rather more harmless title “The stamped Angel” after a popular narrative by the great Russian realist Nikolai Leskow (1831-1895).

Label: COVIELLO SACD 60703
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ERKKI-SVEN TUUR (*1959): Architectonics II for clarinet, bass clarinet & piano (1986/2000); ANDREAS SORG (*1959): Höllental for 2 bass clarinets and piano (2000); ELLIOTT SHARP (*1951): Howlin’ At The Wolfgang for basset horn, bass clarinet and piano (2005); GERHARD MULLER-HORNBACH (*1951): Verblassende Schatten for clarinet in A, basset horn in Es and piano; PATRIK BISHAY (*1975): About Eve for clarinet, bass clarinet and piano (2004); GARY KULESHA (*1954): Mysterium Coniunctionis for clarinet, bass clarinet & piano (1980)

Bärmann trio: Sven van der Kuip, clarinet, basset horn, bass clarinet; Ulrich Büsing, bass clarinet & basset horn; John Noel Attard, piano
Felix Mendelssohn was a fan of this particular tone color: a trio with two clarinets (or related instruments, such as the basset horn) and piano has its own aura of the mysterious with its deep resonances. With contemporary compositions – partly written under the ensembles own initiative – the Bärmann Trio has continued the fascinating Romantic tradition. The compositions go in different directions however. Impressions of Black Forest landscapes are the theme, architecture made audible, disappearing shadows, the- for almost all composers- compulsory discourse on Mozart, on the biblical Eve, even on philosophical mysteries. The works, written between 1980 and 2005, once again demonstrate the aesthetic and continual variety of composers today for the Coviello Contemporary label.

Label: COVIELLO SACD 61009
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Sylvia Nopper, soprano; Truike van der Poel, mezzo-soprano; Matthias Horn, baritone; Helena Bugallo, piano; Cellotrioblu, Schlagquartett Köln; Erik Ona, director

Die Macht der Geräusche. Szenische Poesie von Carola Bauckholt (The Power of Noises Staged Poetry by Carola Bauckholt) – that was the original title of the sound opera Hellhörig, which was premiered at the Munich Biennale in 2008, and it is a perfect description of the work’s focus. The composer does not follow the usual path of transforming the sound of traditional instruments into noises but takes the opposite approach. Noises are the starting point; instrumentsand human voices establish a relationship with them and imitate them, creating a disconcerting interplay. There are no words in this opera, resulting in a unique musical idiom. In addition to cellos and percussion, the instruments also include a zinc tub, scrub sponges, and metal lampshades. A collection of cans and boxes, marbles and balls of various materials, vacuum cleaners, balloons,and plastic cups add ever new listening dimensions.