Peter Philips was the most famous English composer of his time, and only Byrd, a generation older, had more compositions published. Much of Philips’s life was spent on the Continent, where he wrote music of intricate, text-conscious colour, both deeply expressive and architecturally powerful. His motets and anthems, whether celebratory, meditative or dramatic, embrace the widest range of feeling and texture. The much-admired Sarum Consort’s disc All the Queen’s Men (8572582) was praised for its ‘energy and aplomb’.
Peter Philips was the most famous English composer of his time, and only Byrd, a generation older, had more compositions published. Much of Philips’s life was spent on the Continent, where he wrote music of intricate, text-conscious colour, both deeply expressive and architecturally powerful. His motets and anthems, whether celebratory, meditative or dramatic, embrace the widest range of feeling and texture. The much-admired Sarum Consort’s disc All the Queen’s Men (8572582) was praised for its ‘energy and aplomb’.
Terms such as “fastidious”, “intimate” and “quietly nuanced” have long been applied to the immensely respected Ingrid Haebler’s interpretations. She was a “purist” in the best sense of the word and has often said that she always sought to convey the essence of the music and the structure and the message of the work, without anything to disrupt it. With an imposing discography, Haebler was regarded by many as Philips’ “house pianist”. Decca now proudly presents her Complete Philips Recordings on 58CDs in tribute to this rare and special artist.
The first collaboration between Stephen Philips and Numina (Jesse Sola). Titled "From Within The Abyss" this CD explores sonic territory that spotlights the dark sonic terrain that lies somewhere between these two artists. It emotionally explores the deep and dark caverns that reside in all of us. Lightness moves to dark, moves to black, moves to the hollow empty void that is the abyss. Musically it's deep ambient chill with beats, textures, and subtle grooves interspersed with quiet spaces that runs the gambit of emotions.
This set documents over three decades of exceptional artistry by Sir Colin Davis, one of the musical pillars of the Philips label, who died on Sunday 14th April 2013. He was a musician of incomparable integrity and class.
After signing to Philips exclusively in the mid-1960s, Davis produced work for the label of the highest quality and range over the next three decades: the first Berlioz cycle , pioneering Tippett, superb Haydn and Mozart, top-rank Sibelius, Beethoven, Stravinsky, Dvorak and Britten, and much else.
These sessions document unequivocally why Dizzy Gillespie is still considered one of the greatest improvisers in the history of jazz, for his mastery of the instrument, his command of time, his control over musical ideas, and his ability to entertain. He was blessed during this period, which spans 1954 to 1963, with stellar sidemen, unparalleled arrangements, and a surge of excitement for making music.