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 little guy with his mustache, his bowler hat and his bamboo cane is world-famous. But, who is the man behind this figure? Mario Schröder wondered the same thing when choreographing “Chaplin”. His rise to fame makes Chaplin a person of public…

Music from Gustav Mahler in Arrangements from Anne Champert, Rainer Riehn, Arnold Schönberg and Otto Singer A progressive outlook versus fear of the unknown, the bitterness of the outsider, a manic drive versus self-absorption… Gustav Mahler’s music…

The fiftieth anniversary of Toscanini’s death in 2007 was celebrated with gala concerts around the world, one of the most glamorous events being this benefit concert at the basilica of St Mark’s in Venice. The 11-year-old child prodigy Lorin Maazel…

When Nobuyuki Tsujii, the co-winner of the Gold Medal of the 2009 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition appeared on the stage for his Carnegie Hall debut, his dream had come true. The most important event in the career of any performer, for…

Hans van Manen began his career in 1951. He was active as a dancer, choreographer and as artistic director both at the Nederlands Dans Theater and Het Nationale Ballet, where he was appointed Resident Choreographer in 2003. The DVD recordings are…

Surely Bach’s French Suites, which he composed during his years at Cöthen (1717–1723), are among the finest inducements to practise that any teacher has ever made to a pupil. In this case Bach wrote them for his young wife, Anna Magdalena. The over…

Four decades after bursting onto the European musical scene, American pianist Stephen Kovacevich remains one of the great living soloists, chamber musicians and conductors. Also known as Stephen Bishop, he has appeared on concert stages worldwide…

This recording presents the most important work of the baroque keyboard repertoire – The Well-Tempered Clavier - played by four world-class pianists. Each artist performs twelve Preludes and Fugues selected from this well-cherished collection of…

On New Year’s Eve 2009 Havana’s legendary nightclub, Tropicana, celebrated its seventieth birthday with a colourful revue, and the evening’s special guest was the world-famous Omara Portuondo. Together with her five-man band, which ranges in style…