This recording proposes to illustrate the musical context in which evolved the Flemish painter Jan van Eyck. At that time, the duchy of Burgundy, under Philip the Good (Dijon, 1396-Bruges, 1467), father of Charles the Bold (Dijon, 1433- Nancy, 1477), is much more powerful than the kingdom of France, weakened by the Hundred Years War. His sovereign, Charles VII, is discredited by a hint of illegitimacy, and it is Joan of Arc who will lead him to Reims to be crowned in 1429.
If you think of funk and sax, Candy Dulfer is one of the first names that comes to mind. Her breakthrough came in the late 80s and early 90s, initially with her 1989 single Lily Was Here from the soundtrack of the film of the same name, which she recorded with Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics, reaching number 6 in the UK singles charts. Ever since then, this charming Dutch lady has been an ambassador for funk all over the world. And having worked with the greats such as Prince, Van Morrison, Maceo Parker, Dave Stewart, Beyoncé, Pink Floyd, Aretha Franklin, Jimmy Cliff, Tower Of Power, Angie Stone and Alan Parsons, she can quite rightly call herself a star. On the album Crazy, Candy Dulfer once again shows her creativity and ambition as a musician.
Skip Sempé, distinguished for many years as a master interpreter of the French classical harpsichord repertoire, has recently been hailed as the quintessential ambassador of French Baroque music. With his ensemble Capriccio Stravagante, Sempé presents a fascinating collection of orchestral repertoire from the seventeenth century. La Belle Danse revives the tradition of the 24 Violons of Versailles the most celebrated orchestra of seventeenth century Europe. The album transports the listener to Versailles at the time of Louis XIII and Louis XIV with a dazzling tour of ouvertures and suites by Lully, Marais and Muffat. A selection of rare repertoire that influenced the first generation musicians of the 24 Violons is also included, with dance and theatre music by Michael Praetorius, William Brade and Luigi Rossi.
For his 3rd album on Phi, his new label published by the group Outhere, Philippe Herreweghe has brought together a splendid set of artists in the Lutoslawski hall in Warsaw. Ann Hallenberg, whose voice won over the public of some of the world’s most prestigious concert halls, takes on the Rhapsody for contralto solo and men's chorus by Brahms while the rest of the programme leads the listener through his essential works for chorus and orchestra. Herreweghe’s long-time affinity with the composer of A German Requiem has enabled him to provide a coherent and personal vision of those musical pages in which Brahms gave free course to his most intimate thoughts.
BBE Records proudly presents its 5th and arguably most exciting compilation with the French dj and ambassador of disco, Dimitri from Paris. This compilation focuses on Dimitri’s essential disco era tracks - made in Philadelphia, that feature the core of the rhythm section that created and defined the sound of the genre. For this compilation Dimitri has exclusively reworked 5 tracks from the original multitrack tapes of Gamble and Huff with a further 4 being edited from the original 2 track stereo masters.
The Fiction Issue, a collaboration with the string quartet Brooklyn Rider, is Gabriel Kahane's first album of chamber music, comprising three pieces written between 2011 and 2015. The title work, featuring Shara Worden, was commissioned by Carnegie Hall, and premiered in 2012. It was revised in 2014. Bradbury Studies (2014-2015), for quartet alone, is a deconstruction of the song "Bradbury (304 Broadway)" from The Ambassador, and is dedicated to Brooklyn Rider. Finally, Come On All You Ghosts (2011), on poems by Matthew Zapruder, closes the set.