Avner Werner Less

Werner Heinrich Schmitt, born in Mannheim in 1961, began to study the piano in boyhood, and soon started to compose as well. Since then he has earned his living as a pianist, writing music as time permitted. This first album of his works reveals a composer of considerable substance, particularly in the two moving song-cycles that book-end this album. The sensitivity and resourcefulness of Schmitt's aural imagination are confirmed in the chamber and piano pieces heard here. Some are infused with joy, others with sorrow, but they all speak a musical language that aims to speak to the listener directly.

Werner Heinrich Schmitt, born in Mannheim in 1961, began to study the piano in boyhood, and soon started to compose as well.

David Werner's name doesn't roll off the tongue: he hasn't released an album since 1979, and only the most avid rock snob will have heard them – because they're not in print anymore. Whizz Kid is a typically earnest debut that seemingly draws on its artist's record collection: Bowie and Beatles influences are present, and a little glam, too. (The original back cover shot of a heavily lipsticked Werner is priceless; he also calls his publishing company Sassy Brat Music!) Werner takes a more measured tack than his flashier brethren, though Mark Doyle's and Max Kendrick's guitars can pounce and snarl with the best of them. Songs alternate between mid-tempo rockers and plaintive ballads like "The Lady in Waiting" and "It's Too Sad," which offers encouragement to a lonely person ("but you're no one's clown/'cause they're the ones that have to grow"). "One More Wild Guitar" opens the album decisively, casting its rocker-versus-fogeyish-parents lyric as a coming-of-age story – a theme he further develops on "The Death of Me Yet" and the title track ("everything I try to say somehow comes out crazy"). The musicianship isn't flashy, but it's first-rate throughout (especially Doyle and Kendrick, who carry most of the load).

David Werner's name doesn't roll off the tongue: he hasn't released an album since 1979, and only the most avid rock snob will have heard them – because they're not in print anymore. Whizz Kid is a typically earnest debut that seemingly draws on its artist's record collection: Bowie and Beatles influences are present, and a little glam, too. (The original back cover shot of a heavily lipsticked Werner is priceless; he also calls his publishing company Sassy Brat Music!) Werner takes a more measured tack than his flashier brethren, though Mark Doyle's and Max Kendrick's guitars can pounce and snarl with the best of them. Songs alternate between mid-tempo rockers and plaintive ballads like "The Lady in Waiting" and "It's Too Sad," which offers encouragement to a lonely person ("but you're no one's clown/'cause they're the ones that have to grow"). "One More Wild Guitar" opens the album decisively, casting its rocker-versus-fogeyish-parents lyric as a coming-of-age story – a theme he further develops on "The Death of Me Yet" and the title track ("everything I try to say somehow comes out crazy"). The musicianship isn't flashy, but it's first-rate throughout (especially Doyle and Kendrick, who carry most of the load).

Luminous and daring, this celebration of Héloïse Werner’s multifaceted gifts is nourished by rich dualities. Phrases reveals Werner as both singer and composer, as an artist shaped by both her native France and her adopted UK, and as a soloist of captivating individuality who is also an intrepid collaborator.

Werner Heinrich Schmitt, born in Mannheim in 1961, began to study the piano in boyhood, and soon started to compose as well.

Werner Heinrich Schmitt, born in Mannheim in 1961, began to study the piano in boyhood, and soon started to compose as well. Since then he has earned his living as a pianist, writing music as time permitted. This first album of his works reveals a composer of considerable substance, particularly in the two moving song-cycles that book-end this album. The sensitivity and resourcefulness of Schmitt's aural imagination are confirmed in the chamber and piano pieces heard here. Some are infused with joy, others with sorrow, but they all speak a musical language that aims to speak to the listener directly.

Héloïse Werner’s first album, Phrases, was received ecstatically. For her second, she wanted to create a programme with a cohesive narrative arc – a journey, but one that the listener can take in their own time and their own way. For it, she has assembled a group of musicians who both share in her concept but also bring to the project their own varied musical personalities to complement Héloïse’s own distinctive voice.

Werner Haas' programme of Chopin's 14 Valses, released in 1959 by Decca Records France, is a beautiful and masterful collection of some of Chopin's most beloved works.