Trevor

One of the more puzzling remarks about the music of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach came from Mozart, who said that anyone who listened closely would realize his debt to the German composer. That seemed unlikely, given that Mozart only rarely availed himself of the Sturm und Drang ("storm and stress") style of C.P.E.'s keyboard music. But listen to this release by flutist Emmanuel Pahud and you'll get an idea of what Mozart was talking about. It's not just that the flute concertos are basically galant in style, not Sturm und Drang. It's a certain nervous energy that makes the flute bloom rapidly out of squarish themes and keeps you guessing as to what's coming next.

This recording of Handel's Acis and Galatea (or Acis und Galatea) features the German translation and arrangement completed by Mozart in Vienna circa 1788, per the instructions of the Baron Gottfried von Swieten to "modernize" Handel's pieces - including Alexander's Feast, Messiah, Ode for St. Cecilia's Day, and Acis and Galatea. Mozart kept much of Handel's original string arrangements, but proceeded to layer harmonies with a degree of sophistication that Handel could only have dreamed of (quoting the author, Roger Hamilton, in the very informative enclosed booklet with the libretto).

Trevor Pinnock directs The English Concert, a period-instrument orchestra with soloists Simon Standage, violin; Stephen Preston, flute & Anthony Pleeth, cello, in a performance of four concertos by Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) and a bonus concerto by Carl Philip Emanuel Bach (1714-1788).

These performances of the three most popular examples of Mozart's youthful sacred music represent a golden age of The English Concert - a period-instrument ensemble founded by harpsichordist and conductor Trevor Pinnock in 1973. They excelled in blowing away the cobwebs from fascinating repertoire from Purcell to Haydn during their fruitful years of collaboration with Deutsche Grammophon's Archiv label. This album also features a choir that is a veritable Who's Who of the booming British early music choral scene in the early 1990s.

In comparison with their contemporary, Telemann, German composers such as Fasch, Graupner, Heinichen and Stolzel enjoy a dimin ished profile among present-day concert-goers and music enthusiasts. None of them, admittedly, was anything like so prolific as the Hamburg Director Musices but they all had one thing in common - a fascination with woodwind instruments whose role in concertos and suites was imaginatively developed in their hands. Early on in life Fasch took Telemann as a model, on at least one occasion successfully passing off a piece of his own music as that of the elder composer.

Superproducer Trevor Horn presents Echoes – Ancient & Modern, his Deutsche Grammophon debut album, featuring fresh orchestral takes on 11 iconic tracks. Horn himself sings vocals on the Roxy Music classic “Avalon”, as well as producing Marc Almond, Tori Amos, Rick Astley, Andrea Corr, Steve Hogarth, Lady Blackbird, Jack Lukeman, Iggy Pop, Seal and Toyah Wilcox & Robert Fripp in tracks originally performed by Pat Benatar; The Cars; Depeche Mode; Frankie Goes to Hollywood; Billy Idol; Joe Jackson; Grace Jones; Kendrick Lamar; Nirvana and Yes.

This recording by Trevor Pinnock is one of the finest ever. Played on original baroque instruments, the sound is a little thinner than what we are used to with modern orchestras. This is not a fault - it is actually an advantage. It brings Bach to life - every instrument is heard clearly, the feel is gutsy, real, lively. This is the Brandenburgs as Bach himself would have heard it. Wonderful stuff.

Since 1822 the Royal Academy of Music has inspired generations of musicians to connect, collaborate and create. This recording of Bach Partitas continues this mission, reuniting renowned harpsichordist and conductor Trevor Pinnock with students from the Royal Academy of Music and The Glenn Gould School of The Royal Conservatory in Toronto. Following the success of Goldberg Variations (arr. for small orchestra by Józef Koffler), the Principal of the Academy, Jonathan Freeman-Attwood commissioned ‘re-imaginings’ of three of Bach’s most celebrated keyboard Partitas for the same scoring, by alumnus composer Thomas Oehler. The creative challenge – to bring a fresh perspective to some of Bach’s most elegant resourceful and refined keyboard writing – pays off in the hands of wonderfully talented musicians, and reveals how Oehler’s faithful response to Bach’s score allows the music to glow as brightly as ever.