Gregorian 20 2020 2 cd

In celebration of their 20th anniversary, Gregorian, the most successful choir worldwide, return with their 2019 album "20/2020". "20/2020" is filled with 32 songs on with the special Gregorian touch, stunning vocals and majestic instrumentals. 11 brand new interpretations of current chart hits like Alan Walker's "Faded", Coldplay's "Viva La Vida" and "Say Something" by A Great Big World and Christina Aguilera can be found alongside newly recorded, timeless versions of classics such as "Blowing In The Wind" and "Mary, Did You Know" as well as the brand new Gregorian original "20 Years".
Additionally, Gregorian take fans on a fantastic journey across all genres and decades on their additional Best Of, including reworked versions of their most beloved classics such as "Moment Of Peace", "The Sound Of Silence", "Masters Of Chant", "Join Me" and many more.

The Suspended Harp of Babel features revelatory performances of the choral music of Estonian composer Cyrillus Kreek (1889-1962). Kreek’s pieces, incorporating graceful settings of psalms and folk hymns, are juxtaposed here with instrumental fantasias and interludes created for this recording by Marco Ambrosini. Under the direction of Jan-Eike Tulve, the Vox Clamantis choir - whose previous ECM recordings have addressed works of Arvo Pärt, Erkki-Sven Tüür and Helena Tulve as well as Gregorian chant- prove to be ideal interpreters of a music poised between old and new. The Suspended Harp of Babel was recorded in Tallinn’s Transfiguration Church in August 2018.

Angelo Badalamenti, Jerry Goldsmith, Phil Collins, Kate Bush, The Doors and many more.

The version submitted by Howard Arman for the Bavarian Radio Chorus is based on surviving Mozart sources as well as on Süßmayr's additions; in several places, however, it reaches new conclusions that are implemented with due caution and humble respect for Mozart's magnificent original. Mozart's Requiem is followed by Neukomm's Respond Libera me, Domine - and for musical, liturgical and chronological reasons, the programme begins with Mozart's Vesperae solennes de Confessore KV 339 (1780), composed of psalms from the Old Testament as well as the Magnificat from the Gospel of St Luke and composed for the liturgical festival of a holy confessor.

In perpetual search of unpublished works and forgotten composers, Paul Van Nevel invites us to discover a Requiem Mass for five voices, composed in 1556 by Simone de Bonefont, canon and cantor at Clermont-Ferrand Cathedral. The Missa pro mortuis can be considered as one of the highlights of polyphonic vocal style, encompassing all the characteristics of Franco-Flemish techniques of the period. The richness of de Bonefont’s polyphonic writing and his mastery of counterpoint are truly astonishing. True to form, the Huelgas Ensemble honours this unpublished score with a powerful interpretation, delivering music of incredible luminous tranquility. The programme also includes four compositions by Franco-Flemish masters - that de Bonefont may well have heard - on one of the most profound texts of the Gregorian repertoire: Media vita in morte summus (In the midst of life we are in death).

The debut international long-player by the Bee Gees may shock anyone who only remembers them for their mid- to late-'70s disco mega-hits, or their quirky early-'70s romantic balladry. Up until 1966, they'd shown a penchant for melodic songs and rich, high harmonies, in the process becoming Australia's answer to the Everly Brothers. When the Bee Gees arrived in London late in 1966, however, they proved quick studies in absorbing and assimilating the progressive pop and rock sounds around them. In one fell swoop, they became competitors with the likes of veteran rock bands such as the Hollies and the Tremeloes, and this long-player, Bee Gees' 1st, is more of a rock album than the group usually got credit for generating. Parts of it do sound very much like the Beatles circa Revolver…