Christmas fizz. Black Dyke presents John Rutter.
Naxos Classical Spotlight
John Rutter is the most acclaimed composer of Christmas carols alive today, while the Black Dyke Band occupies the highest rank in the worldwide brass band community. Raymond Bisha introduces a new album that bridges these two pinnacles in arrangements for brass of Rutter's celebrated seasonal works, together with three in their original choral versions, representing a span of some sixty years of Rutter's captivating output.
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Apollo’s Fire perform Israel in Egypt
Naxos Classical Spotlight
George Frederic Handel was one of the leading composers of the baroque, especially known for his Italian operas. When he presented his dramatic oratorio Israel in Egypt in 1739 it flopped. It has since returned to favour, and this recording by Apollo’s Fire shows why this turnaround has happened. Put simply, the music is stunning.
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Composer Kenneth Fuchs. The latest recordings.
Naxos Classical Spotlight
American composer Kenneth Fuchs discusses the programmes of his two most recent albums in conversation with Raymond Bisha; both recordings feature the Sinfonia of London and soloists under conductor John Wilson. Fuchs describes the unusual conception of his Concerto for Bass Trombone (a commissioning consortium of 21 bass trombonists was involved!) and the formative inspiration and sustained friendship he derived from abstract artist Helen Frankenthaler (1928-2011).
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Naxos Classical Spotlight meets the Military Music Appreciation Society
Naxos Classical Spotlight
The Military Music Appreciation Society was founded in 2008 by Roger Kennedy so he could share his passion for this music with other like-minded individuals. The Society now has more than 5000 members, with new people joining every day. In this podcast, Roger talks with host Raymond Bisha about the society and about his love for this music. This podcast includes performances by the Royal Marine Band, the Royal Artillery Band, the US Army Band, the Black Dyke Mills Band and the Band of the Coldstream Guards …. The opening and closing music features the Canadian Scottish Regiment...
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Two into one does go. The music of Nikolai Kapustin.
Naxos Classical Spotlight
“As soon as I started playing jazz, I understood it was something for me. I understood that I had to combine the two musics.” These were the words of composer Nikolai Kapustin, born in Ukraine in 1937 and a graduate of the Moscow Conservatory, the “two musics” being classical and jazz. From Kapustin's pen came an impeccable fusion of the two genres, with no trace of shallow crossover. Raymond Bisha introduces the programme on a recent recording that includes Kapustin's Second and Sixth Piano Concertos, with soloist Frank Dupree accompanied variously by the SWR Big Band and the SWR...
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Convention defied. Beethoven defined. The final three cello sonatas.
Naxos Classical Spotlight
Raymond Bisha introduces a new album featuring Beethoven's final three cello sonatas that are full of unexpected shifts of harmony and mood, virtuoso flourishes and experimental surprises, all of which defy convention. The cellist is Gabriel Schwabe, one of the leading cellists of his generation and a laureate of several national and international competitions; the exceptionally sympathetic pianist is Nicholas Rimmer. The first of their two volumes of Beethoven's complete cello sonatas (8.574529) was released in September: “I was totally engrossed by the duo’s warm, keenly articulated...
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Conductor Vahan Mardirossian, Armenian roots, global reach.
Naxos Classical Spotlight
Vahan Mardirossian grew up in Armenia surrounded by music, an upbringing that has given him a broad musical perspective and a desire to explore all kinds of music. In this podcast he talks about everything from his musical roots to his new position with the Czech Chamber Philharmonic Pardubice with whom he now has an ongoing recording program that guarantees we can look forward to many more recordings.
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Dale Kavanagh & Friends
Naxos Classical Spotlight
Renowned both as a distinguished soloist with some 1,800 concerts worldwide to her credit and as a member of the Amadeus Guitar Duo, Dale Kavanagh is one of the most prominent classical guitarists of her generation. Raymond Bisha discusses her latest Naxos album that features a programme of her own compositions, both solos and duos in which she is joined by an octet of acclaimed, award-winning colleagues and friends.
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Latin Landscapes
Naxos Classical Spotlight
Raymond Bisha's latest podcast introduces the twenty-four strings and forty fingers of the Guitalian Quartet in a programme from a new album featuring music from Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and beyond. Effortless guitar technique combines with folksy wit and lyrical introspection in performances that will have your feet tapping and your ears purring.
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Sheer Bliss
Naxos Classical Spotlight
Knighted in 1950, Sir Arthur Bliss was Master of the Queen’s Music in Great Britain from 1953 until his death in 1975. Raymond Bisha introduces a new album comprising both original works for brass band and arrangements of others for the ensemble that represent the breadth of the composer's output, from pieces of royal association (Welcome the Queen) to music for the concert hall (Kenilworth), the ballet stage (Adam Zero and Checkmate) and the cinema (Things to Come). John Wilson conducts the famous Black Dyke Mills Band, a highly distinguished contributor to the rich heritage of British...
info_outlineKnighted in 1950, Sir Arthur Bliss was Master of the Queen’s Music in Great Britain from 1953 until his death in 1975. Raymond Bisha introduces a new album comprising both original works for brass band and arrangements of others for the ensemble that represent the breadth of the composer's output, from pieces of royal association (Welcome the Queen) to music for the concert hall (Kenilworth), the ballet stage (Adam Zero and Checkmate) and the cinema (Things to Come). John Wilson conducts the famous Black Dyke Mills Band, a highly distinguished contributor to the rich heritage of British brass bands. Bliss himself readily acknowledged the astonishing virtuosity of such highly disciplined amateur players, noting that “their rules are nearly as rigid as those of football teams!”