A fine pianist whose chord voicings are a little reminiscent of Red Garland, Richard Wyands has spent most of his career as a sideman. He started working in local clubs when he was 16, graduated from San Francisco State College, and gained experience playing in the San Francisco Bay area. Wyands, who was a sideman on a few early dates for Fantasy, spent time accompanying Ella Fitzgerald (1956) and Carmen McRae. He moved to New York in 1958, where he played with Roy Haynes, Charles Mingus (1959), Gigi Gryce's quintet, Oliver Nelson, Etta Jones, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, and Gene Ammons, among others. Wyands was associated with Kenny Burrell, with whom he toured extensively during 1964-1977, and has played with many other top musicians, including Freddie Hubbard, Zoot Sims, Frank Foster, the Illinois Jacquet Big Band, Benny Carter, Ernie Andrews, and Milt Hinton, among others. On this recording for Venus, Wyands heads his own trio with Peter Washington on bass and Kenny Washington on drums.

A native of Italy, Renato Sellani has fast become one of the most popular jazz pianists in Europe. Japanese producer Tetsuo Hara discovered him and has recorded him regularly for his Venus label. With bassist Massimo Moriconi and drummer Massimo Manzi, Sellani mostly performs and records American tunes, but has also added Latin and Brazilian music to his roster.

Mozart’s Violin Concertos need little introduction and are some of his most well-known and best-loved works. Despite being written when the composer was just 19 years old, they feature Mozart at his elegant, witty and beguilingly changeable best. Handel and Haydn Society with their inspirational Concertmaster, Aisslinn Nosky, bring Mozart’s musical magic to life in these live recordings from Boston’s glorious Symphony Hall.

Like the first two releases in The Mozartists’ ongoing ‘Sturm und Drang’ series, this record- ing comprises three highly dramatic and turbulent orchestral works interspersed with similarly highly-charged vocal items. The repertoire dates from between 1771 and 1788, and again includes one of Haydn’s great minor-key symphonies – this time arguably the greatest of them all, the ‘Trauer’.

Tenebrae bring their trademark passion and precision to this live performance of music by J. S. Bach and Sir James MacMillan, to be recorded live at Snape Maltings in May 2023. Renowned for their technical difficulty, Bach’s motets are pillars of the choral repertoire, requiring minute attention to detail as well as a full emotional range. Here, Tenebrae performs the three most well-known of the set, culminating in the joyful Singet dem Herrn. Like Bach, Sir James MacMillan has written much of his music for the church, and his settings of the Tenebrae responsories paint a vivid picture of the events of Holy Week. This album also features the premiere recording of I saw Eternity the other night, which MacMillan composed for Tenebrae in 2021 to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the London Bach Society.

"The 17th century is surely the most interesting musical period to go rooting around in. While the 16th and 18th centuries are generally more stylistically uniform, in the mid-17th century you never know what you’re going to find. Yet digging up another ‘undiscovered masterpiece’ does require quality control. Some music is better left in libraries, falling out of use with good reason; Orazio Benevoli’s Missa Tu es Petrus mass is quite spectacularly not one of those pieces. At the recording sessions, the performers were amazed by its bravura, its invention and drama – and its very significant demands on them! This was also true of the motets by Benevoli’s Roman contemporary, Bonifazio Graziani. These miniatures go further than Monteverdi in some ways but have a similar intensity. We hope you enjoy discovering them."

Bach's six suites for cello (BWV 1007 to 1012) are regarded as the must-haves of the instrument's repertoire. In this recording, Valérie Aimard offers a generous version that radiates without ever seeking effect for its own sake. With finesse and subtlety, the performer honours Bach's greatness.

For his third album for Chandos, the saxophonist Marco Albonetti turns to the rich tradition of film music from his native Italy.

The Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin launches a series of Mozart symphonies to appear on Pentatone, starting with the composer’s “Paris” and “Haffner” symphonies. On this first album, the works are coupled with his enchanting Oboe Concerto – performed by the ensemble’s first oboeist Xenia Löffler – and the bold overture to Die Entführung aus dem Serail in Mozart’s own woodwind arrangement. Taken together, these pieces demon-strate the rich palette and expressive power of Mozart’s music in the period between 1777 and 1783, during which he finally managed to spread his wings and leave his hometown of Salzburg.

Ispiciwin, meaning “Journey,” embarks on an unprecedented musical exploration, bridging cultures and perspectives. Winnipeg and Cree composer Andrew Balfour describes it as a dream collaboration, one that deepens the understanding of truth and storytelling from an Indigenous standpoint. With the powerful voices of Luminous Voices, alongside artists Jessica McMann and Walter MacDonald White Bear, Ispiciwin is an evocative testament to the transformative power of music and a small, but important step toward reconciliation.

White City: A Novel is a solo concept album by English musician Pete Townshend of rock band the Who. It was originally released in November 1985, on Atco. The album's title refers to a story (called a "novel" in the album title) that accompanies the album, and which takes place in a low-income housing estate in the West London district of White City, near where Townshend had grown up. The story tells of cultural conflict, racial tension and youthful hopes and dreams in the 1960s — a world of "prostituted children", "roads leading to darkness, leading home" and despairing residents living in "cells" with views of "dustbins and a Ford Cortina".

The Iron Man: The Musical by Pete Townshend, released in 1989, is an adaptation of Ted Hughes' story The Iron Man, produced and largely composed and performed by Pete Townshend of The Who. It also stars Roger Daltrey, Deborah Conway, John Lee Hooker, and Nina Simone. The three then-surviving members of The Who (Daltrey, John Entwistle, and Townshend) performed as a group in two songs, "Dig" and "Fire", although the latter was not penned by Townshend. A stage version was mounted at the Young Vic theatre in London in 1993. On the strength of this, Warner Bros. optioned the story for a movie which, with a very different adaptation of the story, became The Iron Giant; Townshend received an Executive Producer credit.

"Who's Missing" is a rare compilation album by the acclaimed British rock band comprised of previously unreleased tracks. The record was released in 1985 and was later superseded by the follow-up album Two's Missing. Who's Missing features James Brown cover "Shout and Shimmy", Paul Revere & the Raiders cover "Lubie (Come Back Home)" as well as a few original works by The Who.

"Two's Missing" is a compilation album by The Who that was released in 1987. It gathered singles and EP tracks that hadn't appeared on an album or CD and was produced by Glyn Johns, Kit Lambert, Shel Talmy, and The Who.

Discover Tim Allhoff's musical tapestry, weaving classical elegance reminiscent of Bach and Edvard Grieg, soul-stirring Singer-Songwriter essence, soothing Jazz, and reimagined Pop covers. This album transcends genres to focus on evoking emotions. SILENCE IS ACTUALLY SOMETHING YOU CAN HEAR invites you to pause, breathe, and surrender to music that touches the heart. Collaborations with Morphing Chamber Orchestra and SIGNUM Saxophone Quartet elevate the auditory journey. Tim Allhoff's original "KANON" composition resonates with enchanting saxophone harmonies. Inspired by Haruki Murakami, the album's title encapsulates its essence. Let melodies carry you to a realm where time slows, finding solace in unspoken notes. This isn't just an album; it's a 50-minute oasis of calm where music becomes whispers of the heart.