Rosa Caracciolo

Brazilian singer, songwriter, and guitarist Rosa Passos is known worldwide for her stunning voice and her interpretations of classics as well as her own originals. Her last two records reflect this: 2004's Amorosa was a tribute to João Gilberto, while 2005's Rosa por Rosa was a collection of Passos' own songs. So it's nice, then, that her subsequent effort, Rosa, contains some of both. The album is, in short, reflective of what she is, a combination of the past and present. It's simple, too, in that perfect way: just her and her guitar and 15 tracks to show them off. The sound throughout the record is very consistent, with Passos' smooth, sensuous voice coupled with the warm tones of her guitar. It produces a very welcoming effect, and the two instruments complement each other so well that there almost seems to be something missing during the opener, an a cappella version of Garoto's "Duas Contas"…

Sophie Rosa and Ian Buckle have curated a fascinating recital that partners Montgeroult’s sonata (receiving its world premiere recording) with her duo partner Viotti’s 10th sonata, and the precocious F minor sonata by the 14 year old Felix Mendelssohn. Their recital concludes with Weber’s short and sparkling 2nd sonata written with gifted amateur musicians in mind.

Microcosm and macrocosm, might and focus: On her new GENUIN CD, pianist Marie Rosa Gunter combines Ludwig van Beethoven's late "Hammerklavier Sonata" and his "Bagatelles" op. 126 with Anton Webern's aphoristic Variations op. 27, as well as the world premiere recording of Variations on "Jerusalem" by Braunschweig composer Ulrich. The CD is an insight into magnificent later works in a highly demanding pairing born out of the silence of the pandemic. Once again, the pianist, who teaches at the University of Music and Drama in Hanover, brings out a CD with profundity at the highest level following her production featuring Bach's Goldberg Variations!

The first CD recording of the duo Benjamin Beck (viola) and Marie Rosa Günter (piano), released by GENUIN, extends beyond all horizons – namely, from a perspective that links this world with the hereafter and that asks about the possibilities of eternal love. Beck's velvety yet pithy viola tone coaxes out the nuances that make the thoughtful compositions of Robert Schumann, Ralph Vaughan-William, Sergei Prokofiev and Benjamin Britten so appealing. And with music from three centuries, this CD is by no means monotonous since it is about artistic realizations of borderline human experiences. Among these, a composition by Francois-Hugues Leclair, which is available on this CD as a world premiere recording and is dedicated to Benjamin Beck, is of particular importance.