In 1998 an article appeared in The Times claiming the non-existence of talent. Just as the eminent psychologist R.D. Laing explained that ‘schizophrenia’ was a fabricated term for an analysable condition, so the Times writer stressed that talent was a fancy description for hard work. For him the success of a musical star – he took the violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter as his example – had more to do with perspiration than inspiration.

"Passione" is a lush collection of Mediterranean love songs featuring duets with Jennifer Lopez and Nelly Furtado. Bocelli is an international superstar with a myriad of breathtaking career achievements to his name. Here, Bocelli reunites with 16-time GRAMMY Award-winner David Foster. Foster produced his 2006 collection of romantic songs, "Amore", which sold over 2.5 million copies and debuted at #3 on the Billboard 200. Passione is essentially the second volume. It features several beloved classics including “Love Me Tender,” “Quizas, Quizas, Quizas,” “Il Nostro Incontro,” “Corcovado (Medley)” and more. It is a repertoire of endless beauty that collects some of the most intense songs of all time.

The incredible artistic pathway of Markus Klinko: from studying harp at the Paris Conservatoire with Lily Laskine to photographing the greatest pop stars and models on the planet. Markus has produced iconic shots of David Bowie or Beyoncé, but have you ever listened to the beautiful albums he recorded for EMI? Before his hand injury forced him to redirect his career, he gave two exquisite recitals dedicated to French Romantic and modern music, praised by the critics. The first one includes solo pieces by Fauré, Roussel or Saint-Saëns and transcriptions of piano works by Debussy and Satie.

The two piano quintets, composed seven years before and seven years after 1900, point to two special features in Huber’s development as a composer. If in the earlier quintet he was still endeavoring to find his place in the European music world in keeping with the best of his times, then in the later quintet he self-confidently went his own way as a Swiss composer who did not hesitate even to incorporate native folk songs into his music. The fact that the earlier quintet was first performed some eight years after its composition possibly had to do with Huber’s recognition that during his earlier years he had much too thoughtlessly published compositions that had proven to be not quite finished.

Lahav Shani and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra bring a superb recording of Bruckner's 5th Symphony.

Michael Haydn predominantly composed these works in three movements; only the F major quartet is comprised of four movements. The four-movement format of the string quartet became most common for the then-emerging “king among genres”, notably in the epochal quartets of his brother Joseph. However, throughout the 18th century, works with three movements (symphonies, chamber music, and concertos) were more prevalent. Michael Haydn consistently incorporates a minuet, which was among the preferred courtly dances, into his compositions. Despite their lighter character, these pieces are creatively crafted, featuring rich melodies, tonal delicacy, and occasional surprising harmonic twists. At times, one can discern contrapuntal finesse, characteristic of Michael Haydn’s style but used more sparingly in these works. Another notable aspect is the individual involvement of all four instruments, although the first violin is given a prominent position, reflecting the taste of the time. This may also suggest that the composer, serving as concertmaster, played this part himself during performances, allowing him to shine a bit.

The musical works of this program were composed during the Seven Years’ War (1756–1763), one of the earliest wars fought across several continents. It involved France as a major European power (backed by the Habsburg Monarchy, the Electorate of Saxony, Russia, and Sweden) against an alliance comprising England and Prussia (supported by the Electorate of Hanover, Hesse-Kassel, Brunswick, Bückeburg, and Saxony-Gotha). The primary focus was on European dominance, with underlying interests in the North American and South Asian colonies of England and France.

These sonatas for violin and continuo, dating from the court of the Holy Roman Empire in Innsbruck in 1660, are little known; perhaps the only other recording of them is a later one by their champion, Andrew Manze. If you like the woolly world of seventeenth century violin music, this composer belongs in your library. The later recording, which includes all the sonatas, lacks the theorbo heard in this 1992 performance, presumably reissued by Channel Classics in order to compete with Harmonia Mundi's release, but both are superb. The music's neglect is largely due to Pandolfi Mealli's obscurity; nothing is known of him beyond this group of works – not even whether a Sicilian composer named Pandolfi working around the same time was the same person or not.

Viele versuchen es, aber wenige erreichen es: das Kunststück, als Popkünstler und Alte-Musik-Experten zu gleicher Zeit authentisch zu wirken. Dass sie zu denen gehört, die es erreicht hat, macht Hille Perl zur Ausnahmekünstlerin. Mögen sie und ihr Partner Lee Santana sich auch inszenieren – in ihrem Spiel gelingt der stets schwarz gekleideten Rotweinliebhaberin eine so vollkommen natürliche Verbindung zwischen Sinnlichkeit und melancholischer Endzeitbetrachtung, dass moderne und barocke Lebenslust, heutige Weltflucht und barockes Memento mori zu einem Lebensgefühl zu verschmelzen scheinen.

Sir Neville Marriner Rivaled only by Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Neville Marriner was one of the most important of the early figures who spearheaded the reawakening of modern interest in Baroque and early Classical music. In the 1950s, he founded Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, the first British early music ensemble to find a large international audience. Marriner has since become one of the most popular conductors in the world, acclaimed for his interpretations of composers from Bach to Britten. Marriner was first taught the violin as a child, by his father, and attended the Royal College of Music, beginning at age thirteen.

Herbert von Karajan was the most renowned conductor to emerge from Europe in the post-World War II era – and through fortuitous timing throughout his career, and in spite of controversy that dogged his early years, he was the most recorded conductor of the 20th century, and is likely to remain one of the most visible (and biggest-selling) conductors well into the 21st century. Born in Salzburg and descended from a family of Greek origin with deep roots in Austria – including scholars and physicians in Vienna and Salzburg – he was a music prodigy, playing the piano at three and playing his first recital a year later.

Justus Frantz (born 18 May 1944 in Inowrocław, Poland, then Hohensalza, Germany) is a German pianist, conductor, and television personality. Frantz mostly plays music from the Classical and Romantic periods, particularly by Mozart. He has played many pieces for piano duet or four hands with Christoph Eschenbach.

Sylvius Leopold Weiss was born in the then Bohemian province of Silesia (now in Poland) in 1687 and grew up under the strong influence of Losy, which can be seen clearly in his early compositions. After his Italian sojourn (1710-14), Weiss became deeply involved with the Prague musical milieu and, according to numerous documents, he must have spent much time there even after he was invited by Augustus the Strong, on the 23rd of August 1718, to become an "Electoral Saxon and Royal Polish Chamber Musician" at his court in Dresden. In the years between 1717 and 1724 he worked closely with Johann Christian Anthoni von Adlersfeld at the Prague Music Academy to create one of most extensive collections of his music ever assembled, what we now know as the "London Manuscript."

SOMM Recordings is proud to announce a recital disc from cellist Adrian Bradbury and pianist Andrew West titled The Pre-Raphaelite Cello – at once ground-breaking and celebratory, and rich with first recordings. The curiosity piqued by the album’s unusual name will be amply rewarded with the fascinating story of the artistic threads this programme weaves together and their relevance to important commemorations being observed this year.

Star pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard presents Landler, a collection of delightful dances composed by Franz Schubert. Rustic and cheerful, these miniatures display a fascinating side of Schubert's musical persona. Their simplicity is deceptive, as these dances are frequently shaken up by Schubert's harmonic wandering soul, yet remaining lyrical, picturesque and tuneful. For Aimard, there is a kinship between Schubert's Landler and Kurtag's Jatekok, pieces that he often performs side by side, sharing a combination of playfulness and Modernism that also calls the great twentieth-century miniaturist Anton Webern to mind. By avoiding almost any repetition, Aimard evokes a sleepwalker's journey rather than a series of dances. A renowned champion of twentieth-century music, Pierre-Laurent Aimard has released multiple acclaimed albums in his exclusive contract with Pentatone, including Messiaen's Catalogue d'Oiseaux (2018) and Visions de l'Amen (2022), along with Beethoven's Hammerklavier Sonata & Eroica Variations (2021). He also joined Tamara Stefanovich in Etudes and Frames (2023), with music by Vassos Nicolaou, and recorded Bartok's Piano Concertos with the San Francisco Symphony and Esa-Pekka Salonen (2023).