Andreas Skytte Hagen

Recorded in 1995 this album has never been one of the "hits" by German countertenor Andreas Scholl. It covers a repertoire that was (and remains) virtually unknown, and it doesn't really play to the sentimental side of Scholl's personality. Nevertheless, this is one of his very best releases, and even casual Scholl fans who missed it the first time around are advised to pick it up. In 1995 he was in absolutely prime voice, and even though he here has few of the pure melodies in which he excels, he finds plenty of subtle ways to deploy it in text expression and in delineating unusual harmonic moves.

Catharina "Nina" Hagen is a German singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her theatrical vocals and rose to prominence during the punk and new wave movements in the late 1970s and early 1980s. In 1982, Hagen signed a new contract with CBS and released her debut solo album NunSexMonkRock, which became her first record to chart in the United States. NunSexMonkRock marked Hagen's first release since her departure from the Nina Hagen Band, and was also her first album with all songs performed in English. Upon its release, NunSexMonkRock received mixed reviews from music critics. While some praised Hagen's theatrical vocals, others criticized its experimental production. Rolling Stone called it the "most unlistenable" album ever made.

This exceptional recording was made using three original instruments that belonged to Paganini himself: the powerful 1743 Guarneri del Gesù violin; a six-string guitar by Ory, Paris, dated 1797; and a magnificent 1736 Stradivari cello, property of the Nippon Music Foundation and entrusted to Clemens Hagen, cellist of the Hagen Quartet. The three instruments are played together for the first time on this release. It was Giulio Plotino who conceived this project and took upon himself the difficult task of reuniting the three instruments. Indeed, this unique recording would not have been possible without him.

Das Hagen Quartett ist ein in den 1970er Jahren gegründetes Streichquartettensemble aus Salzburg und gehört zu den führenden Streichquartetten der Welt. Bekannt wurde das Hagen-Quartett besonders durch seine Gesamteinspielung der Streichquartette Mozarts.

Famed for her hard-rocking, dance-inducing new-wave sound, ferocious vocals, cult-film acting and scandalous talk-show appearances, Nina saw her name spread westward from her native East Berlin as the '70s gave way to the '80s. Here's her 1979 debut LP Nina Hagen Band, 1982 English-language debut Nunsexmonkrock and relentlessly grooving 1983 LP Fearless. What it is (unmistakably featuring the Red Hot Chili Peppers) joins New York New York; My Sensation; Superboy; Der Spinner; Antiworld; Smack Jack; UFO; Dr. Art; her German-language version of White Punks on Dope, and more!

The gentle melancholy of the "Trout" quintet is beautifully realized here by Andras Schiff and members of the Hagen Quartet. The final two movements almost seem to be one longer movement with a unity of expression between them that is most compelling, to the extent that the themes of the final movement have the feel of being further-flung variations of the "Trout" theme itself. The lower strings are particularly effective in these movements, and Schiff's lucid and un-plushy Bosendorfer sound is ideal. The earlier movements had the feel of a Dumka before Dvorak, with their alternation of more assertive and more quiet sections – but it's the melancholy character that wins out and gives this performance its particular force.

Recorded between 1989 and 2004, the Hagen Quartet's recordings of Mozart's complete music for string quartet is clearly the finest set of the works released in the early digital age. For one thing, because the collection includes not only the 23 canonical string quartets but also the three early Divertimenti for string quartet, the five Fugues from Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier arranged by Mozart, and the late Adagio and Fugue in C minor, their set really is the complete music for string quartet.

This album marks a milestone in the extensive discography of the Hagen Quartett – myrios classics is honoured to present their first recording of a Brahms string quartet. The quartet op. 67 is paired with Brahms’ piano quintet op. 34. Here, the Hagen Quartett is joined by their regular collaborator, pianist Kirill Gerstein.