The Maiden's Prayer

�This repertoire is as delightful to listen to as it is to play � perfect evening listening� --Classic FM Magazine

�You may wonder when you last heard such beguiling, fine-toned fluency � this is a delectable disc finely recorded� --Gramophone Magazine

'Philip Martin is a pianist of great intelligence and much innate musicality; and the excellence of the recording is the final element in the equation for success' --musicweb.uk.net

CD OF THE WEEK (CLASSIC FM RADIO)
10 DE R�PERTOIRE

'A repertoire that makes for a welcome family evening around the piano; alas for us all that we cannot offer renderings of such sympathetic finesse and lyrical elegance as are here set down by Philip Martin �at home�' --Henry Kelly, Classic FM Radio

'77 minutes de bonheur pur sucre pour nous faire oublier la morosit� de la rentr�e!' --R�pertoire, France

The Violin

Just 26 years old, Nicola Benedetti has been making chart-topping recordings for 10 years. This album celebrates the best of those recordings, and her other successes - from winning the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition in 2004, to her 2012 best-selling album 'The Silver Violin'.

A collection of great violin music.

The album includes Nicola performing with leading orchestras and conductors, as well as some of her favourite chamber players. This album showcases the incredible range of Nicola's playing, and demonstrates her appeal to a wider audience across a range of markets.

Masters of the Piano

36 Piano Masterpieces...

For centuries the piano has touched the music lovers' hearts around the world. Masters of the Piano features a cross section of the most popular repertoire performed by the brilliant pianists of our time.

Masters of the Guitar

34 Guitar Masterpieces...

With the world renowned masters of the guitar, this collection features the most popular works for the instrument and showcases the full emotional range from the vibrant and passionate, to the tender and expressive.

In recital

��(what magically hushed pianissimos) and masterly pedalling� each element adjusted to each composer yet all unmistakably Stephen Hough - vintage Hough at that, for here is a pianist at the height of his powers. The "second half" is devoted to waltz time, beginning with Weber's pioneering Invitation (1819)... Hough's is the finest performance I have ever heard... exuberant, seductive and scintillating by turns with the repeats (all are given) subtly varied second time round. A great piano recording and front runner for instrumental disc of the year.� --Gramophone, May 2009

�The Mendelssohn Variations come over as truly 's�rieuses', on a par with anything by his friend Schumann, thanks to Hough's vivid characterisation and dramatic flair. And if the 'Arietta' of the Beethoven Sonata does not quite reach this level, it is partly because an over-brightness in the treble lends a somewhat strenuous edge to some of the loudest passages. But Hough's control of the different stands is little short of miraculous.� --Music Magazine, April 2009 ****

�Though labelled as "Stephen Hough in recital", this is in fact a studio-made recording, though based on a recital that Hough toured in the first half of last year. It is a typically thoughtful piece of programme building, which Hough describes as "two highly contrasting mini-recitals". Works dominated by variation form - the Mendelssohn, the Beethoven sonata - are set again a collection of pieces built around the waltz, beginning with Weber and ending with Liszt's Valse Oubli�e No 1 and first Mephisto Waltz, as well as an arrangement of Hough's own, and taking in examples by Chopin, Saint-Sa�ns, Chabrier and Debussy en route. The selection of works highlights different aspects of Hough's own versatile pianism, too. His clear-sighted path through both the Mendelssohn and Beethoven, every detail perfectly placed, belies the charm he brings to the bravura glitter of the Weber, the subtle ambiguities of Debussy's La Plus que Lente, and the more insidious allure of the Liszt. It's a beautifully accomplished sequence.� --The Guardian, 6th March 2009 ****

Quietude

Renowned harpist Yolanda Kondonassis has made several popular concept discs for Telarc, Quietude is the most highly focused album to date. It has been especially created to evoke a mood of calmness and serenity in the listener. "An additional goal of mine," said Kondonassis, "was to find and record music that might stimulate one�s inner realm in a way that only seems to happen when the �everyday� part of the brain begins to quiet down. Many different things can access that inner realm in me," she continued, "but quite often, it�s music."

"Miraculous is Kondonassis's playing . . . If you've never even considered a harp recording, this one's a great place to start." --ClassicsToday.com

Crossing the stone

Catrin Finch is not stuffy about her classical music; at the age of only twenty-three this Welsh lady has all the vitality, flair and technique to match the best on this oldest of instruments. Finch opens in scintillating style with "Mountain Dance", to an exciting multi-ethnic arrangement. "Harpers Bizarre" keeps the tempo moving with an over-dubbing of eight harp parts; though without notes it would be difficult at times to fully understand what is going on. Backed by The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Karl Jenkins, who did almost all of the arranging, this is a lush, sensual, inspiringly beautiful CD;

just listen to the title track "Crossing the Stone", an original Welsh song, then try and disagree. If you have never thought much about the harp before, then take in this slip of a girl and your heart will open. "The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba from Solomon" introduces Arabic instruments to this flying evergreen of popular classical pieces. Handel, who did have a sense of humor, would have been well pleased. Finch takes us through sixteen tracks of sparkling delight backed by innovative arranging. This will raise the tone of your CD rack.

by Ferdinand Maylin

Spirit of Brazil

��there are gems such as the successful arrangement of Villa-Lobos's Bachianas Brasileiras No 5 by former Aquarelle member Richard Safhill, and the incredible six-movement Br�sils by Roland Dyens, in which the AGQ manage convincingly to sound like an Amazonian rainforest and a marching band at the Carnival de Rio. Guitarquartetophobes - your cure has arrived!� --Gramophon, May 2009

�With outstanding playing an infectious spirit, this is no mere niche guitar CD, but a luscious and lively general-appeal winner.� --BBC Music Magazine, June 2009 *****

�If one guitar quartet can give a traditional string quartet a run for its money in terms of abundant technique and breathtaking artistry, it is the Aquarelle Guitar Quartet� --INternational Record Rewiev, June 2009

��this is the best Brazilian program I�ve heard in quite a while.� --American Record Guide

The Wigmore Hall Recital: Schubert, Brahms, Mendelssohn, J.S. Bach

Over four decades since securing worldwide recognition as one of the finest musicians of her generation, Maria Jo�o Pires continues to transfix audiences with the immaculate integrity, eloquence and vitality of her art. With Pires partnered by Antonio Meneses, cellist with the Beaux Arts Trio and artist of great wisdom and imagination, this recital is clearly a red-letter event for chamber music connoisseurs. "[Meneses's] warmly eloquent understatement matched Pires's own, and grave us something close to perfection" --The Telegraph, Jan 2012

"Portuguese pianist Maria Jo�o Pires shared her recital with cellist Antonio Meneses, in a performance which brought a real sense of community, of intimately shared music-making." --The Times

Spheres

�P�rt's Fratres is more transcendental than celestial but Hope's performance exudes both virtuosity and romanticism, as if drawing inspiration from Paganini and Joachim in equal measure...'Spheres' is, at times, quite literally out of this world.� --Gramophone Magazine, May 2013

�Provocative? To a degree, though classical purists shouldn�t shriek too loudly...Hope dances a path through a string of otherworldly new pieces, some intriguing, some sweet, some too brief to make much impression. Gabriel Prokofiev�s Spheres, an impressive highwire act for Hope, easily stands out.� --The Times, 14th February 2013 ***

Award-winning violinist Daniel Hope presents an eclectic and accessible mix of neo-Baroque, minimalist and soundtrack favourites, including works and arrangements by contemporary masters like Ludovico Einaudi, Arvo P�rt, Karl Jenkins, Max Richter, Gabriel Prokofiev, Alex Baranowski and many more

�Spheres� features a curated collection of repertoire celebrating the idea, first brought forward by Pythagoras, that planetary movement creates its own kind of music, bringing beauty, harmony and simplicity to our complex solar system. This idea has fascinated philosophers, musicians, and mathematicians for centuries.

Featured as main soloist on Max Richter�s acclaimed �Vivaldi Recomposed�, Hope is known for an effortless classical sound and intriguing approach to repertoire

Daniel is collaborating in 2013 with Einaudi, and joint dates are in the planning stage.

Dim Sum

In all of the selections on this disc, there is a conscious blending of sounds, techniques and ideas from traditional Chinese music with the string quartet of the Western classical tradition. At first hearing, the listener may be struck by the fresh and exotic sounds, textures and harmonies that result from this fusion. The play of these two traditions points to an even larger context, however, one shared by music the world over: that in the most profound way, sounds can capture the thoughts,

feelings and longings of the universal human spirit. The vitality of exchange between East and West only seems to grow stronger and more relevant each year, and this disc of musical dim sum offers a thought-provoking perspective on the dynamic artistic possibilities of this nexus.

The Silver Violin

�Benedetti�s latest album has lots to commend it...Karabits and the Bournemouth Symphony provide full-blooded backing. Extracts from two Shostakovich film scores are indecently enjoyable� --The Arts Desk, 27th October 2012

�her broadly romantic approach and genuine affection for this Hollywood-inspired concerto shine out...Benedetti is joined by star accordionist Ksenija Sidorova in a show-stopping performance which will have you on your feet! The warm acoustic of the Decca recording comes in appropriate widescreen sound.� --Gramophone Magazine, November 2012

�Benedetti decorates this repertoire with gleaming high-register pirouettes, plus vibrato throbs and hesitations that never descend into schmaltz...Such good taste is a pleasure, though her discretion can make the music paler than necessary.� The Times, 24th August 2012 ***

�The lush, romantic sound of Hollywood � 1930s to the present � suits her well� The Observer, 26th August 2012

�Benedetti's decision to place [the Concerto] in this particular context actually serves to enhance its musical stature. Certainly her performance is beautifully honed with a particularly atmospheric account of the central Andante...she has an instinctive grasp of the ebb and flow of Korngold's melodic lines and avoids the obvious temptation of becoming overtly mannered in order to intensify the musical expression.� BBC Music Magazine, November 2012 ****