Mdr Kammerphilhamonie

Before his emergence as one of the greatest musical figures of the 19th century, Richard Wagner wrote a series of overtures that chart his early compositional development. The two high-octane Concert Overtures reflect his Beethovenian and Classical lineage, whereas the overture to the historical tragedy König Enzio reveals a greater sense of melancholy and nobility. Heroism is the key to his first opera, Die Feen, while his second, Das Liebesverbot, is saturated in beguiling Mediterranean colour. Siegfried Idyll, a surprise birthday gift for his second wife, Cosima, is a tender and intimate celebration of scenes of family life.

On her clarinet, Sharon Kam expresses something for which there are no words. At one with her instrument, she thrills in this compilation with a virtuosic suppleness and sensitive cantabile in a class of its own. A firework display of vivacity and emotion. This reissue includes works by Weber, Rossini, Mendelssohn, Brahms and Massenet.

The first release by the MDR Radio Chorus under its new director Risto Joost is not just a confession of faith, but truly a confession of sound as well: the ensemble’s second GENUIN release presents Russian sacred music. What impressive musical contrasts we hear in the remarkable acoustics of Leipzig’s Paul Gerhardt Church: distinctive contours from the too-little-known classicist Dmitry Bortniansky (1751–1825) feature alongside the monumental blocks of sound and etheric soundscapes of Alfred Schnittke’s Concerto for Choir. Both works bear witness not only to the power of faith, but also of music, interpreted by the MDR Radio Chorus with eloquence, sparkling precision, and total commitment – absolutely recommended!

Ralph Vaughan Williams jokingly said of himself that he was born »with a small silver spoon in his mouth« , which made him independent of a time-consuming teaching and instrumental activity, which otherwise saps a lot of energy from a composer. As soon as he was sure of his creative vocation, he gave up the position he had taken on as organist in the London congregation of St. Barnabas after completing his studies. When Vaughan Williams died in 1958 at the age of 85, he was recognized as the most important figure between Edward Elgar and Benjamin Britten and was buried alongside Henry Purcell in Westminster Abbey, the pantheon of greats from England's past.