Allebou Prelude

Julian Bream is, without a doubt, one of the premiere classical guitarists of the modern recording era. Comparisons between great guitarists is often unfair and misleading as they each have their own styles - and each musician and his/her style tends to be particularly well suited to certain types of music. For example, Andres Segovia's style, cultivated by self-teaching throughout his now ended life, concentrated on flowing legatto smoothness and flowing melodies. Bream's, on the other hand, while equally masterful, is better characterized as emphasizing the precision and crispness of each and every individual note. What better composer to focus on to show this particular proclivity that J. S. Bach, whose work, having been written largely for the keyboards (harpsichord) but also for the lute and triple harp, tends to emphasize the kinds of music Bream excels at. Stacatto phrasings, each written to be played with crystalline exactness, are the types of pieces wherein Bream's magnificence is conspicuous and best showcased. Thus, the special relevance of this particular compilation of some of his best Bach work on this CD.

The six Trio Sonatas for organ seem to belong to the earlier years of Bach's period in Leipzig, dated conjecturally to 1727, apparently devised for the use of the composer's eldest son Wilhelm Friedemann, who became one of the most distinguished organists of his generation in Germany. The sonatas demand clarity of performance and distinct enunciation of the two melodic lines and bass pedal part.

Eddie Higgins has headed his own trio at several leading Chicago night clubs for many months. Some of the best musicians of the area have played with him (Junior Mance, Johnnie Pate, Bob Cranshaw). He recorded with Coleman Hawkins, Don Goldie, Al Grey, Lee Morgan, Bill Henderson, Wayne Shorter, Jack Teagarden, Sergio Mendes. "Prelude to a Kiss" is is first work as leader….

Considering the `boom' period of what would later become referred to as the `Neo Prog' sound was the early Eighties and encompassed such groups as Pendragon, I.Q, Twelfth Night, Marillion and others, there's earlier examples of groups that were already playing in a classic-period Genesis manner, a band all those above mentioned groups used as a starting point…

This disc presents a highly varied programme centred on the combination of solo tuba and wind band. It covers a wide spectrum of styles, from the Concerto by Boris Diev (b. 1924) – a leading figure within the great Russian wind orchestra tradition – to Swedish composer Fredrik Högberg’s (b.1971) wisecracking and effect-laden Trolltuba, a re-telling of the folk tale Three Billy Goats Gruff. A highlight on the disc is tubaist/composer Baadsvik’s own piece, the unique Fnugg Blue, a highly enjoyable showcase for pioneering tuba techniques – including percussive effects and multiphonics.

Without doubt Last Dinner Party will be the sound of 2024. Their debut album Prelude To Ecstasy is released via Island Records. It was produced by James Ford in London, and features the breakthrough singles, “Nothing Matters”, “Sinner”, and “My Lady Of Mercy”.

Three years as a Delphian artist have seen Sean Shibe record music from seventeenth-century Scottish lute manuscripts to twenty-first-century works for electric guitar, picking up multiple editor's choices and award nominations for each release, as well as the Royal Philharmonic Society's prestigious Young Artist of the Year accolade. Now he turns to the music of J. S. Bach, with three works whose obscure early performance history belies their status as repertoire staples for modern guitarists.