Lamp of Murmuur

By the time Stanford received a commission from the Norfolk and Norwich Festival to write a choral work for them in 1884, he had, at the age of 32, already begun to assert himself as one of Britain’s leading composers. The Elegiac Ode was, however, his first mature foray into the world of major British choral festivals. Some of the Elegiac Ode had in fact been sketched three years earlier in 1881, but after the Norwich commission was received, Stanford evidently grasped the opportunity to complete the work in its entirety in July 1884.

Kuckuck was responsible for releasing many great albums in Germany in the early 1970s, including those by the wonderful Out Of Focus. Featuring Moran Neumuller (vocals, sax, flute), Remigus Dreschler (guitar), Hennes Hering (keyboards), Stephan Wisheu (bass) and Klaus Spori (drums), this legendary Munich based band were contemporaries of acts such as Amon Duul II and recorded three classic and highly collectable albums for the label. Their music is somewhat similar to early British prog but will gradually evolve to a certain jazz-rock while staying very politically and socially conscious (in the typical German style of those years).

At the finale of the "Musikfest Berlin" 2022, the musicians of the Deutsche Oper Berlin and their BigBand performed “Epitaph” as a tribute to the 100th birthday of Charles Mingus.

Balance Of Power are back with new band members and a brand-new album! Founding members Tony Ritchie (bass) and Lionel Hicks (drums) are joined the band's new lead vocalist Hazel Jade as well as guitarists Chris Young and Adam Wardle, who have since taken over the reins from guitarists Chris Masimore and Stoney Wagner, with whom the band worked on and recorded the upcoming album "Fresh From The Abyss". Largely about life and death, "Fresh From The Abyss" is a collection of songs that either stops the clock and points to a moment in time or stands back and encompasses the vastness of time and space, and living and dying.

Daughters of Albion is happy Californian pop/rock music, imbued with streaks of the kind of weirdness that only cropped up in otherwise normal pop/rock records in the late 1960s. Some of the harmonies are good, if a little on the super-sweet and high side. The odd interjections of orchestration and weird little effects - most likely producer Leon Russell was a strong contributor in this regard - make this more interesting than you might expect from the basis of the songs alone. If you're looking for rough ballpark cult figures that might indicate whether you should seek this out, it's kind of between the albums of the era by Millennium and the Judy Henske-Jerry Yester duo. With its frequent good-time bounce, it's closer to Millennium than the darker and more resonant Henske-Yester collaboration, though it doesn't sound extremely close to either act, and isn't as good as either…

The titles of the musical movements of “Actus tragicus” are taken from various passages of the Bible, as well as texts by Martin Luther, used in the cantata of the same name by Johann Sebastian Bach (BWV 106, also known as “Actus tragicus”). This is one of his earliest cantatas, written when Bach was only 22 years old. The bright, almost joyful nature of the music delights me, as well as the attitude to death it expresses, hence I decided to write my “own” Actus tragicus.

In 1968, an ad from Frank Zappa in the L.A. Free Press read: “The Mothers of Invention cordially invite you to join them on Tuesday, July 23, 1968 when they will be taking over the Whisky a Go Go for 5 full hours of unprecedented merriment, which will be secretly recorded for an upcoming record album. Dress optional. Starting sometime in the evening. R.S.V.D.T.” That album ultimately ended up remaining mostly unheard, until now. The live collection Whisky a Go Go, 1968 is set to finally be released June 21st, 2024, via Zappa Records/UMe.

At the finale of the "Musikfest Berlin" 2022, the musicians of the Deutsche Oper Berlin and their BigBand performed “Epitaph” as a tribute to the 100th birthday of Charles Mingus.
Under the energetic baton of Titus Engel, the musicians of the BigBand and the Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin and the Jazzinstitut Berlin explore the realms of expression of dark threat, profound songfulness, conflict and ecstasy with irrepressible joy of playing and remarkable clarity. Star trumpeter Randy Brecker lets his wonderfully clear tone soar to the highest heights. It becomes touching when Jorge Puerta sings "Freedom" with a powerful voice and the musicians hum along…

Studio Album and Live Album recorded with National Orchestra of Bretagne conducted by Zahia Ziaouni.