Maureen Cochoni

For decades there has been only one recording of Admeto available: a quite splendid performance from 1977 (Virgin Records 5613692) directed by Alan Curtis with Il complesso barocco. One of the first baroque operas to be recorded with original instruments, it reflects the best of the historical performance movement. It is thus with considerable anticipation and curiosity that one approaches this new release of Handel’s Admeto, sung in English (to a fine translation by Geoffrey Dunn), directed by Sir Anthony Lewis, and recorded just nine years earlier in 1968. The cast for this recording is no less remarkable. Dame Janet Baker plays the self-sacrificing Alcestis; Admetus is sung elegantly and expressively by Maureen Lehane; Sheila Armstong is a brilliant and stylish Antigona, and the mezzo soprano Margaret Lensky provides a touching portrayal of the lovesick Thrasymedes.

Few rock groups can claim to have broken so much new territory, and maintain such consistent brilliance on record, as the Velvet Underground during their brief lifespan. It was the group's lot to be ahead of, or at least out of step with, their time. The mid- to late '60s was an era of explosive growth and experimentation in rock, but the Velvets' innovations which blended the energy of rock with the sonic adventurism of the avant-garde, and introduced a new degree of social realism and sexual kinkiness into rock lyrics were too abrasive for the mainstream to handle.

Netflix series. After crash-landing on an alien planet, the Robinson family fight against all odds to survive and escape, but they're surrounded by hidden dangers. Creators: Irwin Allen, Matt Sazama, Burk Sharpless Stars: Mina Sundwall, Molly Parker, Toby Stephens

"Bernard Haitink: The Symphony Edition" is one of two recent box sets from Decca, marking Haitink's eighty-fifth birthday in 2014. Together with Haitink: The Philips Years this set offers a broad, tantalizing overview of the great Dutch conductor's compelling artistry, and makes a near-perfect introduction to one of the truly magnificent recorded legacies of our time. Haitink will be 85 on 4 March 2014, and this set presents his six complete symphonic cycles by cornerstone classical composers: Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, Mahler, Schumann and Tchaikovsky.

While “Cowboy Outfit” has a slightly different meaning as UK Slang, Nick Lowe and His Cowboy Outfit marks a turn towards a more rootsy persona for our hero. Anchored by the international number one “Half a Boy and Half a Man”, the album introduces a tex-mex/roller-rink organ sound, although the lineup of Bobby Irwin, Paul Carrack, Martin Belmont and Lowe is essentially unchanged. Newly discovered Johnny Horton covers “Honky Tonk Hardwood Floor” and “Walk on By” (included here as bonus tracks) show that there may have been a more twangy intention to the record– but as it is full on rockers like “Maureen” and Mickey Jupp’s “You’ll Never Get Me Up (in One of Those)” rub shoulders with pop like Dusty Springfield’s “Breakaway” and Nick’s own “L.A.F.S.” (featuring the TKO Horns who had recently punched up arranger Elvis Costello’s own “Everyday I Write the Book”).

Screen superstar Hugh Jackman (X-Men, Les Misérables) and acclaimed actress Maureen Lipman (The Pianist) head a spirited cast in this visually stunning adaptation of the beloved Broadway favorite from Rodgers & Hammerstein! Some of the greatest songs ever written! Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin', The Surry with the Fringe on Top, People Will Say We're in Love, Oklahoma and more!

As a special project to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Eugene Ormandy's death, we will release 10 stereo recordings that represent the essence of Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra from the vast amount of recordings he left behind for Sony Classical and RCA. The rich orchestral sound, with its thick string parts as the foundation, its unparalleled woodwinds, and its beautiful brass, is beautifully imprinted with the spirited 1950s and 1960s, and the 1970s, when Ormandy's voice grew more mature and profound, as he reached the pinnacle of 20th century orchestral art.