Verse – 08 六月 2021

Bruce Springsteen once said he intended to make an album with words like Bob Dylan that sounded like Phil Spector where he sang like Roy Orbison, a nifty summary of many, but not all, of his artistic ambitions and a key to his appeal.

The PUBLIQuartet is dedicated to the performance of contemporary chamber music, including new works and interpretations of classics.

This Rough Guide traces the development of the Texas blues during its 1920s / 30s heyday and features many blues legends including Blind Lemon Jefferson, Leadbelly, Blind Willie Johnson & T-Bone Walker - plus the slide guitar wizardry of blues pioneers Black Ace, Oscar Woods & Ramblin' Thomas and classic tracks by blues divas Victoria Spivey and Bessie Tucker.

The Choir of King’s College, jewel of the British choral tradition, often paid homage to Henry Purcell in its long recording career. This collection highlights works conducted by Philip Ledger, Stephen Cleobury and Gustav Leonhardt such as two odes for Queen Mary’s birthday, but also the Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary, which is especially appropriate right now.

Dandrieu’s Premier Livre de Pièces d’Orgue was printed a year after the composer died in 1738. It contains six suites of pieces in differing church tones, each followed by six versets suitable for performance under the canticle Magnificat.
While the Magnificat verses have a logical sequence, the other movements in the suites are somewhat haphazardly planned. Even setting aside the Pascal hymn in the Premier Suite, the remaining pieces have no apparent order, perhaps reflecting a desire to make the publication as generally useful as possible. s.

Johann Schneider was a German organist, violinist and composer (1702, Lautertal–1788, Leipzig). He was a pupil of Nicolas Mueller in his hometown and continued his studies with Johann Hartmann Reinmann in Saalfeld between 1717 and 1720. Around 1720, he became Johann Sebastian Bach's organ and harpsichord pupil in Köthen. In conjunction with his keyboard work with Bach, he studied violin with Johann Gottlieb Graun in Merseburg and with Johann Graf in Rudolstadt. In 1721, Johann Schneider became court organist and first violinist (concertmaster) in Saalfeld in his native Coburg. From 1726 he was employed as violinist in the court chapel in Weimar (Weimarer Hofkapelle), and he was later appointed organist of the Nicolaikirche in Leipzig in 1729, holding this position for the rest of his career. Schneider achieved a commendable reputation as a truly great organist, as Lorenz Mizler quotes: 'His organ preludes are of such good taste in this field, with the exception of Mr. Bach, whose pupil he was, that one cannot hear better in Leipzig'.

Back Lot Music will release a soundtrack album for DreamWorks Animation’s feature The Bad Guys. The album features the film’s original score composed by Daniel Pemberton (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, The Trial of the Chicago 7, Enola Holmes, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Being the Ricardos, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, Birds of Prey, Steve Jobs). Also included are songs performed by Anthony Ramos, Elle King and The Heavy.

With his thick, robust sound and bluesy yet still harmonically adventurous style, Swiss-born trombonist Samuel Blaser has made his mark as an internationally recognized jazz leader. Arriving on the scene in the early 2000s, Blaser displayed his knack for aggressive post-bop jazz that hinted at edgier sounds found on his 2008 quartet debut 7th Heaven.

ATMA Classique is delighted to release the world premiere recording of David Bontemps’ 2020 chamber opera La Flambeau, based on the eponymous drama by Haitian playwright Faubert Bolivar. La Flambeau was premiered on February 7, 2023 at Montréal’s Salle Pierre-Mercure with Suzanne Taffot, Catherine Daniel, Paul Williamson and Brandon Coleman and the Orchestre classique de Montréal, conducted by Alain Trudel.Set in Haiti, the libretto for La Flambeau was adapted by Bontemps himself. La Flambeau tells the story of a dysfunctional couple, Monsieur (a narcissistic, ambitious intellectual obsessed with the ideals of the Republic) and Mademoiselle (who talks to her dead parents), who hire a working-class housewife. Through imposed dogma and deceptive behaviour, Monsieur abuses Mademoiselle. After a trial and a surreal confession, Monsieur is condemned through a kind of popular justice to become a zombie at the service of all.

ATMA Classique is delighted to release the world premiere recording of David Bontemps’ 2020 chamber opera La Flambeau, based on the eponymous drama by Haitian playwright Faubert Bolivar. La Flambeau was premiered on February 7, 2023 at Montréal’s Salle Pierre-Mercure with Suzanne Taffot, Catherine Daniel, Paul Williamson and Brandon Coleman and the Orchestre classique de Montréal, conducted by Alain Trudel.Set in Haiti, the libretto for La Flambeau was adapted by Bontemps himself. La Flambeau tells the story of a dysfunctional couple, Monsieur (a narcissistic, ambitious intellectual obsessed with the ideals of the Republic) and Mademoiselle (who talks to her dead parents), who hire a working-class housewife. Through imposed dogma and deceptive behaviour, Monsieur abuses Mademoiselle. After a trial and a surreal confession, Monsieur is condemned through a kind of popular justice to become a zombie at the service of all.