Ravel and the Basque Country have always been one and the same. His Concerto in G major is the central work of this album and is presented here in an original arrangement for piano and small ensemble. Pianist Aurèle Marthan also pays homage to his splendid hometown, Guéthary, where he founded the festival Classic à Guéthary. All of the works recorded here illustrate the richness of a region that has been cherished by so many artists: Stravinsky arranged his Petrouchka in Biarritz, Pablo de Sarasate chose to reside there and Isaac Albéniz opted to spend his last days there. Another Basque celebrity, although on the Spanish side, is Alberto Iglesias, director Pedro Almodóvar’s house composer. The Basque coast is often compared to California because of its excellent beaches for surfing; Aurèle Marthan evokes the Eagles as well as his passion for the American minimalists (Glass) and for cinema, with music from the films Amen and Waltz with Bashir; he also provides a piano version of the Biarritz-based rock band La Femme’s hit Sur la planche.
DG presents the third physical release from Max Richter's Retrospective catalog, Infra. Written for piano, electronics and string quartet, Infra is an expansion on Richter's score for Wayne McGregor's ballet of the same name that was created as a response to the London bombings on 7/7. Infra follows Richter's latest album, Three Worlds: music from Woolf Works, an album featuring his score for another McGregor ballet, Woolf Works. This CD version of Infra features the bonus track, "Sub Piano."
Rough Trade presents “Behind the Counter with Max Richter“. This spectacular compilation put together by much-loved British composer Max Richter is the first in Rough Trade Shop’s Behind the Counter series, in which some of our favourite artists create mixes especially for us using the records we sell on the shop floor. As big fans of Max, Rough Trade invited him to curate a mix, knowing he would pick out some unexpected gems. The result is a 36-track (on CD) and 33-Track (On Vinyl) compilation of soundbites, pieces of composition, interesting mixes and curious musical choices including tracks from Mogwai, Boards of Canada, Philip Glass, Aphex Twin and Low among some classical works by Rachmaninoff and Bach.