Kavakos

Emanuel Ax, Leonidas Kavakos, and Yo-Yo Ma release the fourth album in their Beethoven for Three series. This album features Symphony No. 1 (Op. 21) and the "Gassenhauer" (Op. 11) and "Ghost" (Op. 70, No. 1) piano trios. These three works span more than a decade of the composer's output. From Beethoven's cheerful "Gassenhauer" trio to the symphony that introduced his revolutionary voice to the world, this album offers a careful reinterpretation for piano, violin, and cello by Shai Wosner. The singular "Ghost" trio is also included, marking another milestone in the journey of three friends through the marvels of this extraordinary composer.

The album includes Brahms’ Clarinet Quintet, one of the most seminal works for the instrument – combined with Hungarian dances and waltzes by Brahms, all newly arranged to include additional material from Brahms' original musical sources, with an authentic folk twist.

Tigran Mansurian's music is rooted in Armenian folk and church music filtered through contemporary Europeans, especially Bartók. In many respects he resembles other post-Soviet composers like Schnittke and Svirdov, sharing their combination of elusiveness and accessibility. Kim Kashkashian has long championed his works, and the outstanding violist is superb here. She's the center of gravity in the Viola Concerto, titled "…and then I was in time again," a quote from Faulkner and resembling his stream-of-consciousness style. The complex interplay of soloist and 18 strings fascinates, the two going their own ways and coming together again in unpredictable fashion but always to expressive effect. It's in two movements, the first more dramatic, the second poignant. In Lachrymae,.. –Dan Davis

Live Bird lives! On February 22, 1953, the great Charlie Parker recorded a concert with Joe Timer’s Orchestra at Club Kavakos in Washington, D.C. Elektra Musician released the live show thirty years later. The eight tracks from that record are reissued here on The Washington Concerts. When it was originally released, Lundvall included an interview he conducted with Parker’s former trumpet player Red Rodney, which is also included here.