The trained pianist and occasional organist, Sarah Vaughan ranks among the Big Four of female jazz singers, alongside Bessie Smith , Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald . Her early formal education on the piano has influenced her vocal technique…

There was probably no other artist, who was involved creatively in so many stages of the development of Jazz music as Duke Ellington . His sonic individuality originated in his peculiar style of composing and arranging, in which he was interweaving…

This concert recording from 1961 is one of the last recordings with two outstanding musicians from Basie’s band, Joe Williams and Joe Newman, who both departed from the band in 1961 to pursue solo careers. Joe Williams, known for having a deeper and…

The Hagen Quartett is regarded internationally as one of the foremost string quartets. Their mentors included stars such as Harnoncourt and Kremer. Having played together since their childhood (the three siblings), the musicians combine exceptional…

Gidon Kremer is not only one of the leading violinists in the world, but also – thanks to his unquenchable curiosity and search for new impulses – one of the most fascinating musical personalities of our time. His repertoire ranges from Bach to the…

The Belcea Quartet is one of the world’s leading chamber music ensembles, having won many international accolades. Now, with the string quartets, the musicians have rediscovered a gem of twentieth century chamber music. “Here is a composer moving…

The Gala presented by the Deutsche Oper Berlin in 2011 in support of Aids-related charities brought together the cream of Europe’s opera singers, in a programme of well-lover operatic excerpts, from Rossini, through Verdi to Wagner. Conducting was…

The Kuijken Ensemble, made up of the three Belgian Kuijken brothers on flute, violin and viola da gamba and the harpsichordist Robert Kohnen count among the most distinguished of all present-day early-music specialists. They have long since branched…

The German Brass Ensemble presents some of Bach’s most popular tunes in breathtakingly brilliant and virtuoso arrangements for brass instruments. Recorded live in “Bach’s church” – the wonderful St Thomas’s Church in Leipzig - the programme includes…

The moving text of the “Stabat Mater” has been an inspiration to many composers from the Renaissance onwards. Luigi Boccherini, a virtuoso cellist and master of chamber music, composed this religious work with profound respect for the text and it’s…