The Mountain Bride

The Ballad of Narayama is legendary Japanese director Shohei Imamura’s riveting view of the harsh existence of pre-war rural life in Japan. The 1983 film, set in a rural mountain village is an artful blend of naturalistic drama and dark comedy, highlighting the customs of a people so tied to the land and the cycle of life and death that their customs dictate that when their elderly reach the age of 70, they must leave the village and ascend the mythical Narayama mountain to die, making way for a new life. It is a place where third sons are denied the pleasures of having a wife or any sort of sexual pleasures to keep the population down, unwanted boy children are put to death and girls are sold off for money…..

Norway's most famous composer, Edvard Grieg was one of the late Romantics whose music was infused with the folk tradition of his homeland. He dedicated his career to the pursuit of a national sound. The respect he had for his predecessors illustrates the sincerity with which he worked towards this goal. He wrote in the Romantic tradition with, in his own words, the determination to "create a national form of music, which could give the Norwegian people an identity." The clear mountain beauty of a Scandinavian landscape can be felt in the pure modal harmonies and sustained transparent textures combined with the warmth of a Schumannesque melodic sensibility. This is especially true of his hundreds of piano miniatures – many based on folk dance rhythms – and his songs.

Fifty years, 11 CDs, 11 Doctors and 389 tracks. This is the release that Doctor Who fans worldwide have been waiting for, assembled after years of research and trawls through dusty archives and libraries. It's a comprehensive overview of the very special music that has accompanied the Doctor over his travels through time and space from William Hartnell in 1963 to present day Matt Smith. From Ron Grainer's iconic theme realised by the BBC Radiophonic Workshop's Delia Derbyshire to Murray Gold's orchestral tapestries, this is a musical saga of monumental proportions. The esteemed collection of composers featured include Tristram Cary, Brian Hodgson, Wilfred Josephs, Dudley Simpson, Geoffrey Burgon, Paddy Kingsland, Roger Limb, Malcolm Clarke, Keff McCulloch, Dominic Glynn, John Debney and many more. The lavish 32 page booklet with the set includes liner notes from Doctor Who composer Mark Ayres on the history of music in the series and details of the episodes.

"Dark Side of the Classical Music" is a blood-curdling collection of the heaviest classical music. These works have shaken nations for hundreds of years. The works breathe the great power and breathtaking impact of classical music. These songs and composers have inspired great rock and heavy musicians of our time, such as Richie Blackmore, Yngvie Malmsteen, Steve Vai, John Lord, Robert Plant, Rick Wakeman and Ozzy Osbourne.

Normally, one thinks of pearl-divers as of people from the Southern seas, typically the Tropical ones. Certainly, the ice-cold waters of the polar and subpolar seas are not those most immediately associated with pearl-fishing. And, indeed, the “pearls from the Northern Seas” represented in this Da Vinci Classics album are intangible and invisible, as they represent the domain of the audible.

A selection of classical masterpieces with conductor and violinist Leonard Sorkin leading the Musical Arts Symphony Orchestra. Remasters of 1950's performances.