Vladimir Ashkenazy has had a particular affection for the music of Rachmaninoff throughout his professional life, and his performances have long had the ring both of authenticity and of deep commitment. This is not surprising in a Russian-born and…

Vladimir Ashkenazy closed the 1984/85 season in London with a recital at the Royal Festival Hall that was regarded by many of those present as a new peak in his musicmaking. If that perception is correct, it is a remarkable achievement in a career…

This festive concert from the Gethsemanekirche in Berlin marks the 60th anniversary of the RIAS Kammerchor. Under the baton of the new chief conductor Hans-Christoph Rademann, the RIAS Kammerchor and the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin are performing…

The essence of Verdi’s Requiem can be found in the words Libera me - “Free me”. The great composer employs every means at his disposal to portray man as prisoner of himself, with both his fear of death and yearning for salvation. Recording Dates: 14…

1970 was the 200th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven’s birth and, to mark the occasion, Daniel Barenboim and Christopher Nupen collaborated on a thirteen-part series about the man and his music. Close friends at the time, Barenboim as artist and…

With this festive concert the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden under the baton of Fabio Luisi celebrates the moving event of the re-opening of the Frauenkirche in Dresden. After the Bombing of Dresden on February 13, 1945, the church burnt out and…

Lutoslawski’s delicate lament serves as prelude to Berlioz’s Requiem, a superlative work requiring an impressive cast of two orchestras and choirs, here under the direction of Pablo Heras-Casado. An event not to be forgotten! The concert was recorded…

Dietrich Buxtehude (1637-1707) is considered today one of the founding fathers of the 17th century German school, whose influence on composers such as Johann Sebastian Bach, his spiritual son, cannot be overestimated. Not only was he an indisputable…

“Jazz is more than just a style of music”, says Amro Salah. “It’s about freedom.” Salah, a jazz pianist, is an enthusiastic promoter of the genre. Every year he organises the Cairo Jazz Festival, but doesn’t view himself as a festival director: He is…

A Christmas television special from Prague. The programme features a Thanksgiving service in the beautiful Baroque Church of St. Jacob and carol singing in the medieval Old Town Square.