The Weaving of Life

Jan Ladislav Dussek was perhaps Europe's greatest pianist until Beethoven came along, and much of his music involves the piano. He wrote works in many genres, however, including some substantial choral music at the end of his life that, in places, looked forward to Schubert. Consider this Messe Solemnelle in G major, an hourlong work that receives not only its world premiere recording but possibly its first performance in any form; it was discovered by Academy of Ancient Music director Richard Egarr in a Florence library. Physical CD buyers will get a weighty scholarly apparatus, but even online listeners will find an enjoyable work that could easily find its way into the choral repertory.

Jan Ladislav Dussek was perhaps Europe's greatest pianist until Beethoven came along, and much of his music involves the piano. He wrote works in many genres, however, including some substantial choral music at the end of his life that, in places, looked forward to Schubert. Consider this Messe Solemnelle in G major, an hourlong work that receives not only its world premiere recording but possibly its first performance in any form; it was discovered by Academy of Ancient Music director Richard Egarr in a Florence library. Physical CD buyers will get a weighty scholarly apparatus, but even online listeners will find an enjoyable work that could easily find its way into the choral repertory.

The City of Tomorrow releases Blow, a collection of three works for wind quintet, anchored by the premiere of a multi-movement work written for them by Hannah Lash. Guided by their virtuosity and commitment to polished interpretation, the album is an exploration of finely crafted compositions that take advantage of the rich colors of the instrumentation in all of its permutations.

'The Man in the Iron Mask' is the exciting and ambitious new album from The Samurai of Prog. It was composed by Oliviero Lacagnina (of "Latte e Miele"), written in the "symphonic progressive rock" style - the musical genre he has been exploring and expanding since the 1970s. This CD will certainly satisfy lovers of classical and symphonic progressive rock; new music weaving in quotations and callbacks to great composers of the past, interpreted by keyboards and powerful electric guitars along with Steve Unruh's violin, Kimmo Pörsti's drums and Marco Bernard's Shuker bass. The album's theme is the life of, and events surrounding, the "Secret Twin of the Sun King". It visits key moments from the story (inspired by the texts of Alexandre Dumas and Voltaire).