Dacapo

The medieval concept of Venus’ Wheel is the symbolic framework for this collection of timeless choral works by the Danish composer Bo Holten (b. 1948). Himself a renowned conductor, Holten leads the Flemish Radio Choir on a passionate journey through the many facets of love, using the whole of musical history as a framework and sounding board for his own contemporary idiom.

Per Nørgård (b. 1932) is regarded by many as Denmark's greatest living composer, with some of his music being hard edged and difficult to approach. This music on this disc will not suit everyone, it is quite difficult to understand where the composer is going at times, and in the case of the "Plutonian Ode", which is for soprano and solo cello, I found little to like, perhaps it is because the first two sections are for recitation, but I found it just grates with me! This is not to say that there isn't anything to like here, on the contrary, the disc opens with his "Two Recitatives Op. 16" which sets texts by the Swedish poet, playwright and novelist, Pär Fabian Lagerkvist.

The Danish DJ, composer and producer Katrine Ring is one of the few DJs at the international level who has specialized in classical music. On this album she remixes and deconstructs a number of chamber concertos by the composer Vagn Holmboe in a musical game of hide-and-seek that breathes new life into the works in a constant play of memory and recognition. The original recordings by the Danish National Chamber Orchestra and the conductor Hannu Koivula are included as a bonus CD.

While Joseph Haydn is quite rightly regarded as the most important co-inventor of genres such as the symphony, the string quartet and the piano trio in the form in which they have been handed down since the middle of the 18th century, the instrumental concerts are somewhat different. They primarily served the purpose of giving the individually outstanding members of the Esterházy court orchestra the opportunity to perform as soloists. Nevertheless, one can always appreciate their quality and, upon closer listening, discover a variety of beautiful things in them. Developed from the tradition of the Baroque concerti grossi, Haydn probably created a total of about 40 solo concertos, probably four of them for violin.