The Norwegian Radio Orchestra is proud to announce the release of Herman Vogt: Cello and Piano Concerto, a showcase of contemporary Norwegian composition at its finest. This album, featuring two striking works by composer Herman Vogt, highlights his intricate interplay of soloist and orchestra, offering listeners an immersive musical experience.

The Cello Concerto, performed by cellist Audun Sandvik, is a deeply emotive work, rich in tonal exploration and lyrical depth. Vogt’s mastery shines in this piece as he balances the cello’s expressive voice with the dynamic power of the orchestra.

The Piano Concerto, featuring Sveinung Bjelland as the soloist, is equally captivating. This work seamlessly integrates virtuosic piano passages with sweeping orchestral textures, creating a vibrant and intricate soundscape that pushes the boundaries of modern concerto writing.

Both concertos are brought to life under the baton of the esteemed conductor Anna-Maria Helsing, leading the Norwegian Radio Orchestra with precision and sensitivity. The performances capture the essence of Vogt’s artistic vision, presenting music that is at once innovative and profoundly resonant.

Herman Vogt, a celebrated voice in contemporary Norwegian music, has crafted works that resonate with emotional intensity and intellectual depth. This album cements his place as a leading composer in the Nordic contemporary music scene.

Audun Sandvik, Cello
Sveinung Bjelland, Piano
Norwegian Radio Orchestra
Anna-Maria Helsing, Conductor

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This journey begins at sunset and ends with the first light of day. In this unforgettable experience we will be accompanied at all times by the beauty and spirituality of baroque art. It is also worth mentioning that this album features the World’s First Recording of the work ‘Adiuvanos Deus’ by the Neapolitan master Gaetano Veneziano.

Miguel Ulla – Countertenor, Percussion
Fernando Reyes – Theorbo

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Created by the trail-blazing duo of the Weimer Republic, Kurt Weill and Bertold Brecht, the satirical ballet-chanté ‘The Seven Deadly Sins’ was to be the pair’s final collaboration. Hitler had come to power, and the Jewish Weill and Marxist Brecht had both left Germany in haste.

Weill was to come to terms with capitalist America more readily than Brecht, writing a series of popular musicals for Broadway with other collaborators. But, in ‘The Seven Deadly Sins’, Brecht’s pen is still dripping with venom as he excoriates the continent’s sleazy, materialistic values, the biblical septet of vices here given a contemporary twist.

The story tells of daughter Anna (Magdalena Kožená), who is sent away from her family, tasked with bringing back enough money to build a house on the Mississippi River. Through seven years and seven cities—from Memphis and Los Angeles to Philadelphia and San Francisco—Anna encounters the seven deadly sins, and is forced to make her choice between what is profitable and what is right.

Sir Simon Rattle, the London Symphony Orchestra and a star-studded line-up of soloists bring this shamelessly entertaining work to life alongside a collection of Weill’s other most memorable works, including Death in the Forest and Little Threepenny Music.

Magdalena Kozena
Andrew Staples
Florian Boesch
Ross Ramgobin
Alessandro Fisher
London Symphony Orchestra
Sir Simon Rattle, Conductor

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Available in Stereo DSD 512, DSD 256, DSD 128, DSD 64 and the DXD 32 Bit Edit Master Source at NativeDSD. 

The album includes the famous “Moments musicaux”, two collections of German Dances and the amazing “4 Improumts D.935”. A deep moving performance of one of the greatest ever romantic piano composers.

John Bryden, Pianist 

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Goodbye, Mr. Chips is a Double Album in Stereo and 5.1 Channel Surround Sound DSD that is Gordon Getty’s fourth opera. This is a new studio recording featuring Nathan Granner, Melody Moore, Lester Lynch, and Kevin Short, as well as the San Francisco Boys Chorus and Barbary Coast Orchestra, under the baton of Dennis Doubin.

Based on the popular 1934 novella Goodbye, Mr. Chips and other stories by James Hilton, the opera tells the heart-warming story of a teacher at Brookfield, an all- boys English boarding school to which “Chips” dedicates most of his adult life. The opera chronicles Chips’ story of love, loss and learning over his decades-long tenure at Brookfield. Along the way, we’re reminded of the difference one good teacher can make as we watch Chips and his children, “thousands of them, and all boys,” enrich each other’s lives.

Writing both the music and libretto of his opera, Getty has shaped Hilton’s cherished story into a memory play, in which the protagonist looks back on important episodes of his life. The score encapsulates the intimacy of the plot and the nuances of its characters. Just like Chips, Getty treats each personality with a profound understanding of – and love for – the human spirit, with all its strengths and flaws. For Getty, after decade of fascination with the character and story of Mr. Chips, the completion of this opera is the realization of a long-held dream.

Gordon Getty is a PENTATONE artist with a vast discography. Goodbye, Mr. Chips is his fourth opera recording on the label, after Plump Jack (2012), Usher House (2013) and The Canterville Ghost (2015). Melody Moore, Nathan Granner, Lester Lynch and Kevin Short have been featured on many PENTATONE recordings. Conductor Dennis Doubin and the San Francisco Boys Chorus make their label debut.

Barbary Coast Orchestra
San Francisco Boys Chorus
Dennis Doubin, Conductor

Cast (in order of appearance)
Merrivale – Lester Lynch, baritone
Chips – Nathan Granner, tenor
Kathie – Melody Moore, soprano
Faulkner – Michael Jankosky, tenor
West – Bruce Rameker, baritone
Ralston – Kevin Short, bass-baritone
Rivers – Kevin Short, bass-baritone
Grayson – Kevin Korth, baritone
Maynard – Samuel Faustine, tenor
Linford – Melody Moore, soprano

The post Goodbye, Mr. Chips [Double Album] [Exclusive Early Release at NativeDSD] appeared first on NativeDSD Music.

Miguel Ulla, Countertenor & Percussion
Carlos Cantero, Theorbo & Baroque Guitar

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In discussing musicianship, one often highlights technical mastery. Yet what sets these performers apart is their ability to channel pure emotion into every note. Listen to Roosmarijn Tuenter’s enchanting viola introduction on Woman in Three Stages, Jeroen van Vliet’s tranquil piano on Madonna, Joost Lijbaart’s almost imperceptible percussive textures on Starry Night, and Sanne Rambags’ mesmerizing voice on Dance of Life.

Each moment brims with authenticity and depth, with silence and space as integral as the notes themselves. This is not easy music, yet it flows organically, like amount in stream in springtime. Premiered at the November Music Festival to critical acclaim – “Moments arise where, under the influence of goosebumps and moist eyes, we are driven to the edge of our seats” (JazzProg) – this suite is a deeply moving experience. Thanks to Frans de Rond’s extraordinary recording technique, described as “A Van Gogh painting come to life, vivid and multidimensional” this masterpiece has been immortalized. It offers listeners the rare chance to step into the music and experience it as if standing among the musicians themselves.

Sanne Rambags, Vocals & Compositions
Roosmarijn Tuenter, Viola, Vocals & Effects
Jeroen van Vliet, Piano & Effects
Joost Lijbaart, Drums & Percussion

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Mozart was not an innovator after the likes of Monteverdi, Beethoven or Wagner, partially due to music patrons and aristocratic hierarchies of the 18th Century not allowing composers freedom to engage in willful personal expression. The era of the fully ‘freelance’ composer was a generation hence.

Instead, composers were either in the employ of a church parish/diocese, or wealthy aristocrats/nobles, both of whom expected their composer-servants to conceive music within certain boundaries and styles, providing serviceable but pleasing material for specific occasions/ceremonies. Rarely were these compositions performed more than once or twice in a composer’s lifetime, while outbursts of individualism were viewed askance by most employers.

Very few examples of truly freelance composers existed before Mozart, who in fact came as close to freelance as any composer could before the French Revolution of 1789. Innovation therefore was also expected to be held at bay by composers, writers and artists in general, though we are in no doubt Mozart was composing at the very cutting edge of his time. His increasing use of chromatic harmonies and inner voicings, leading us into territories no other composer was capable of, including Haydn, audiences found eccentric, even mystifying. He often explores very dark places, occasionally for a few moments, sometimes for long periods, and in a few instances, entire works, and these chromatic harmonies appeared far more frequently in his later works.

One need not look for anything before, nor for a decade or more after, his Rondo in A minor (K511), or his Adagio in B minor (K540), to find more darkly introspective, melancholic, wrenching chromaticism! Even Mozart’s father complained of “excessive demands made on his listeners”. Conductor Nikolaus Harnoncourt says “Mozart was told he should write “easier” music with a less complicated elaboration of the individual voices – that it was difficult to follow and understand his music; that he should not go so far in his harmonies (hard, dissonant tensions), etc. Despite universal admiration for his genius (few critics doubted Mozart was the greatest composer of his time), these opinions reveal a certain dismay at the unsettling effects of his tonal language: could and should music convey such things?”.

Gil Sullivan, Steinway & Sons Model D Concert Grand Piano, Hamburg

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Embark on a captivating musical adventure with “Voyage,” an album from the Organ Music Specialists at Base2 Music that explores the rich world of organ music at Saint Ouen, Rouen on one of the greatest organs in the world.

Featuring the talents of Jean-Baptiste Monnot, a protege of renowned organists Jean Guillou and Olivier Latry from Notre Dame Cathedral, this album offers a unique blend of traditional and innovative sounds and featuring in the mix, the ultrasonic contributions of the bats who flew during the recording.

The album is Exclusively Available in Stereo and 5.1 Channel Surround Sound DSD 256, DSD 128 and DXD plus Stereo DSD 512 from NativeDSD.

At the heart of the album is the Grand organ, the 1890 ‘michaelangelo’ masterpiece crafted by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll, known for its thunderous 32ft Contra Bombarde stop. This organ, often regarded as one of the world’s most thrilling and frequently recorded instruments, captivates listeners with its powerful and unique sound complimented by the 130 metre long Abbey’s superb acoustics.

The second part of the album introduces L’orgue du Voyage, a portable organ built by Jean-Baptiste Monnot, featuring an all Bach programme. Recorded in immersive 5.1 surround sound, the emphasis is on enveloping the listener in between the pipe modules as they surround you.

Produced by Jake Purches for Base2 Music, the album was recorded with a 100 kHz bandwidth, utilising Sennheiser MKH8020 omni-directional microphones and recorded in 32-bit linear at 352.8 kHz PCM (DXD), the recordings capture every detail of the music with exceptional resolution. This level of resolution allows listeners to experience the full spectrum of sound up to 50kHz, from the powerful bass notes of the organ to the delicate harmonies and harmonics. In addition to the musical performances, the recordings reveal the presence of bats calling amidst the organ’s melodies.  The bats sing at 47 to 80 kHz, and a coda was made at the end of the album with a tenfold reduction to bring the bat song into our own audio range, adding an unusual touch to the album’s atmosphere

The album features classic pieces such as Widor’s 6th Allegro, showcasing the Grand organ’s commanding and powerful presence with its famous 32ft contra-bomarde, then more gentle Bach, Brahms and increasing in power with César Franck’s Pièce héroique followed by a brand new composition by producer Jacob Purches who under the touch of Jean-Baptiste Monnot, explores the organ’s subtleties and sonic depths in his ‘Prelude, Passacaglia and Lament’.

Jean-Baptiste Monnot, Organist

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The album features a selection of Briggs’ transcriptions of Cochereau’s renowned improvisations. Briggs meticulously researched and transcribed these works from available recordings. The resulting performance took place on the Walker organ at Exeter College, Oxford, in September 2024.

Available in Stereo and 5.1 Channel Surround Sound DSD 256, DSD 128, DSD 64 and the recorded format and bit rate of DXD 32 Bit plus Stereo DSD 512 at NativeDSD. 

David Briggs, Organ

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