Okko Kamu

Symphonic in scale and ambition, the incidental music to Shakespeare's play The Tempest was among the last orchestral works Sibelius composed before entering the mysterious 'silence of Järvenpää' that lasted until his death. Commissioned by leading Danish theatre producer Johannes Poulsen in 1925, the wide expressive demands of the play saw Sibelius calling on large musical forces. From the terrifying tone picture of the opening shipwreck via ethereal songs, boisterous character portraits and remarkable evocations of nature, Sibelius took full advantage of being set free to convert the themes of Shakespeare's magical world into his own unique sound.

The precocious son of a symphony double bass player, Okko Kamu began his formal studies at age six. Initially a violinist, he later turned to conducting and subsequently found himself the center of world attention after winning first prize in the first Herbert von Karajan International Competition.

The Finnish composer Kalevi Aho and his younger colleague and compatriot Sebastian Fagerlund have both received international recognition for their masterful treatment of large orchestral forces. This they have demonstrated in purely orchestral as well as in concertante works – Aho has written 26 concertos to date (most of them in his monumental project to compose a concerto for each of the main orchestral instruments), and Fagerlund’s concertos for clarinet and for violin have been released by BIS to critical acclaim.

Michala Petri war und ist das weibliche Gesicht der Blockflötenrenaissance. Die sympathische Dänin brillierte nicht nur virtuos im barocken Hit-Repertoire, wie ihre furiose Version von Vivaldis "Vier Jahreszeiten" eindrucksvoll belegt. Ihr unverwechselbarer, warmer Klang machte auch weniger bekannte Bach- und Händel-Sonaten mit Jazz-Legende Keith Jarrett zu einem Hörereignis. Auf diesen insgesamt 17 CDs, die zwischen 1987 und 2001 entstanden sind und die hier erstmals komplett erscheinen, zeigt sich das Können der ECHO Klassik-Preisträgerin bei einem immensen Repertoire von Bach und Telemann bis zu Raritäten von Grieg, zeitgenössischen, melodiösen Kompositionen, einem faszinierenden Weihnachtsalbum und herrlich-nostalgischen Piecen von Fritz Kreisler.

Alfred Schnittke - Symphony No. 4 & Requiem (1990) {BIS Schnittke Edition, BIS-497} (Item #7)
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 234 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 186 Mb
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© 1990 Grammofon AB BIS | BIS-CD-497
Classical / Contemporary Classical / Symphony

Two large scale Schnittke works featuring choir. The Symphony No. 4 is brittle, frequently dissonant and abstract, but not wholly inaccessible; not a piece to immediately grab at a listener. While demanding, the work has sections of alien beauty, such as before and after the entrance of "Ave Maria". Unfortunately the entire piece is relegated to a single track on the CD. The Requiem is more immediately approachable. Eerie and gothic, I'm surprised that it hasn't shown up in a soundtrack. The rock drumming near the end seems a little shocking but is surprisingly effective without seeming a pandering fusion piece.

A highly versatile musician, Ulf Wallin has recorded a succession of discs for BIS, including music by Schoenberg, Schnittke, Janacek and Hindemith. Lately he has focussed on Romantic composers, resulting in an acclaimed recording of Schumann's complete works for violin and orchestra (Daily Telegraph: 'It's hard to imagine more sympathetic and insightful performances of these wonderful pieces'). Supported by the eminent Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin conducted by Okko Kamu, Wallin now offers a programme spanning some 30 years of the long career of Max Bruch.

A 7CD collection tracing Nigel Kennedy’s journey from the phenomenal Elgar concerto with Vernon Handley in 1984 through to his ground-breaking Vivaldi Four Seasons with the English Chamber Orchestra in 1989 – the recording which launched him to global super-stardom. “If it wasn’t for a spiky-haired Nigel Kennedy’s 1989 recording of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons,” the Classic FM radio station told its website’s readers a few years back, “you and I might not be listening to Classic FM today”. The station had launched in 1992 with a mission to bring classical music to a wider public, three years after the runaway success of young violinist Nigel Kennedy’s Vivaldi album had revealed an untapped audience just waiting for the right invitation.

Alfred Schnittke - The Ten Symphonies (2009) {6CD Set, BIS Schnittke Edition, BIS-1767~68} (Item #26)
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 1.61 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 1.01 Gb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 43 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2009 BIS Records AB | BIS-CD-1767~68
Classical / Contemporary Classical / 20th Century

BIS is proud to present the only available collection of the complete symphonies by Alfred Schnittke. The recordings, part of the Schnittke Edition begun in 1987, have been brought together in a 6-CD boxed set which also includes an initiated essay by Schnittke’s close associate Alexander Ivashkin: a fascinating chapter in the history of the late 20th-century symphony.