Katana Jig Ai

Two classic easy-listening albums by Paul Mauriat and His Orchestra, originally released in 1970 on the Philips label, together on one CD and remastered from the original analogue stereo tapes for Vocalion's trademark crystal-clear sound. French composer/conductor Paul Mauriat is a classically trained musician who decided to pursue a career in popular music. His first major success came in 1962, as a co-writer of the European hit "Chariot." In 1963, the song was given English lyrics, renamed "I Will Follow Him," and became a number one American hit for Little Peggy March. Mauriat is best remembered for his 1968 worldwide smash "Love Is Blue."

A wonderful prog album that is difficult to categorize as it has eclectic elements throughout: symphonic, neo, jazz fusion, psychedelia, trip-hop, Ange-like theatrics, and even funk-pop influences. The band's core is a trio each coming from quite disparate musical backgrounds, all from Montréal, Québec. Very accessible and melodic.

Excellent session by dynamic violinist Leroy Jenkins, once part of the wonderful avant-garde trio The Revolutionary Ensemble. Jenkins cut this session in 1978, shortly after the trio's demise, and it's loaded with great violin solos, as well as some unusual, intriguing arrangements and compositions.

This eagerly awaited follow up to his acclaimed albums Signal to Noise (2014), 3 Days at Sea (2016) and Twelve Half Steps (2023) sees this original musician and producer explore new musical ground to great effect. AI AJ is an album which was inspired by the ongoing debate about the impact of artificial intelligence technology on our lives. As one has come to expect of Andy Jackson, this new album is once again an impressive and thoughtful musical work of sonic excellence. The release also features a Blu Ray disc featuring a stunning 96 kHz / 24-bit 5.1 Surround Sound mix. AI AJ is destined to become one of the most original, impressive and talked about progressive albums of the year.

This eagerly awaited follow up to his acclaimed albums Signal to Noise (2014), 3 Days at Sea (2016) and Twelve Half Steps (2023) sees this original musician and producer explore new musical ground to great effect. AI AJ is an album which was inspired by the ongoing debate about the impact of artificial intelligence technology on our lives. As one has come to expect of Andy Jackson, this new album is once again an impressive and thoughtful musical work of sonic excellence. The release also features a Blu Ray disc featuring a stunning 96 kHz / 24-bit 5.1 Surround Sound mix. AI AJ is destined to become one of the most original, impressive and talked about progressive albums of the year.

The recording of this work "AI Factory" was performed at the Sony Music Studio in Nogizaka, Tokyo, which can be said to be an old house, with the support of young top musicians Shingo Tanaka and Akito Shirai, and mastering by American master engineer Bernie Grandman. Analog cutting was applied. The album title "AI Factory" has the meaning of "a robot factory of near future love (AI) and friendship". The present form of T-SQUARE, which has continued to evolve for more than 40 years since its formation, is engraved.

Soprano Sandrine Piau has been known mostly as a Baroque specialist, but she has recorded several albums of 19th century French mélodies with spectacular results. Si j'ai aimé (the title comes from one of three songs by the little-known Théodore Dubois) will be very hard for her to outdo. The list of attractions is very long and begins with the repertory. There are some familiar pieces here, such as the opening pair of songs by Saint-Saëns, but many of the composers – Dubois, Charles Bordes, Alexandre Guilmant – are rarely performed, at least outside France, and all the songs here are top-notch.

The oratorio as a musical form emerged toward the end of the seventeenth century as a kind of "spiritual exercise" encouraged by the Congregazione dell'Oratorio in Rome. The performances took place in oratories (prayer halls) constructed above church naves and were intended to be attractive but edifying entertainments. Then as later, oratorios generally reflected the popular forms and styles of secular music – and in late Renaissance and Baroque Italy, this meant opera, though based on religious rather than mythological and heroic themes. The most prolific composer in this genre was Antonio Caldara (c1670-1736); New Grove lists 43 oratorios (in addition to many operas) and there are probably more that have been lost, written for patrons in his native Venice, Rome, Florence, Mantua, and Vienna.

Born in Venice around 1670, Caldara gave Barcelona the first opera ever heard in Catalonia, Il più bel nome (1708), commissioned by his patron, the future Emperor Charles VI, before eventually settling in Vienna in the latter’s service in 1716.