Dona Nobis Lark

Groundbreaking new music from Mason Bates and the Richmond Symphony! Reference Recordings is proud to present a World Première recording of MASON BATES: Children of Adam, songs of creation Commissioned by the Richmond Symphony; coupled with RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS: Dona nobis pacem. These pieces both draw inspiration from Walt Whitman s poetry and this release celebrates his bicentennial (born 1819). Children of Adam is a collection of exuberant celebrations of creation, from American poets to sacred and Native American texts.

The Lark Quartet brings its stellar 34 year career to a close with this celebratory album. On it, the Lark Quartet offers premiere recordings of works by John Harbison, Kenji Bunch, Anna Weesner and Andrew Waggoner, all composed for this occasion. Assisting Lark Quartet are Yousif Sheronick, percussion (Bunch), Romie de Guise-Langlois, clarinet (Weesner) and the Lark's four founding members (Waggoner).

'The Stradgrass Sessions' is the long-awaited album from American violinist Tessa Lark. A recording in which Lark invited multi-Grammy award winners to join her on a recording of violin exploration through classical, folk and jazz. The album also includes the premiere recording of John Corigliano's STOMP.

Günther Ramin heads the Bavarian State Orchestra and Teachers Choral Society of Munich in this live rendition of J.S. Bach's monumental Mass in B Minor, BWV 232.

The Monteverdi Choir and English Baroque Soloists are renowned of their spectacular performances of Bach’s epic masterpiece, which they have toured extensively.

San Francisco-based early music ensemble Cantata Collective continues its major series of J S Bach's choral works with the Mass in B Minor, a towering testament of sacred music and the composer's crowning achievement of his final years. With celebrated conductor Nicholas McGegan, four of today's most distinguished early music vocal soloists and a refined chamber choir, this live recording exudes a spontaneity that reveals the depth and passion of Bach's glorious affirmation of faith.

The Monteverdi Choir and English Baroque Soloists are renowned of their spectacular performances of Bach’s epic masterpiece, which they have toured extensively.

A composition as brilliant as it is protean – the earliest sections date back to 1724, others were written in 1733 in the hope of obtaining a post in Dresden – the Mass in B minor occupied Bach until the end of his life. The work, which is more ecumenical than strictly Catholic, offers a digest of his art at its expressive peak: a world in itself. It is an understatement to say that the performers on this recording were eager to revisit it, following their acclaimed interpretations of the two Passions and the Christmas Oratorio.

Sometimes you come across a performance that may not be exactly to your taste, but is nonetheless so persuasive of its type that it disarms criticism. This is one. It's not quite a "one to a part" interpretation of the work, but with 10 choristers and eight strings, it is intimate, and that always risks minimizing the majesty that Bach built into the Sanctus, the eight-part Osanna, and the choruses with trumpets and drums.

With the Missa solemnis, Beethoven created one of the most haunting settings of the liturgy of the Mass, whose premiere, however, already took place in the concert hall and not in a church setting.