Alice Robbins - Sonatae a Violino Solo of 1681 - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Michael Korstick ranks among the most important German pianists of our time. His playing is documented on numerous award-winning CDs which bear witness to the enormous breadth of his repertoire. The recording now being released by Gramola features Russian piano music from the 19th and 20th century. The piano cycle Pictures at an Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky can rightly be viewed as one of the most well-known works for piano, not least due to the immense number of later orchestrations (most notably by Maurice Ravel). Following up on the programmatic nature of musical pictures is the Doumka (Scène rustique russe) in C minor, Op. 59 by Peter Iljitsch Tschaikowsky as well as the Caucasian Lesghinka by Sergej Lyapunow, who alike portray traditional Russian themes and musical motifs in many of their compositions. Less tangible in extra-musical content appears the Sonata for piano No. 8 in B flat major Op. 84 by Sergej Prokofiev, having been composed during the years of World War II from 1939-1944.

DON GIBSON was already an established Country star, with a dozen or so crossover Pop successes under his belt, when Ray Charles suddenly made him a household name in the Summer of 1962. Brother Ray's LP, InchModern Sounds In Country & Western MusicInch, had sold more than 500,000 units in three months, when Gibson's 'I Can't Stop Loving You' was culled from it as a 45. It sold it's first million copies virtually overnight, topped the US charts, and rolled out to become a massive worldwide success. This compilation features 34 of Gibson's songs, by a variety of artists, including himself, which range from multi-million-selling, worldwide hits to serious collectors' rarities. Featured artists include George Jones, Hawkshaw Hawkins, Warren Smith, Ferlin Husky, Bob Luman, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, Skeeter Davis, Kitty Wells, Sue Thompson, Ray Charles, and more.

The figure of prodigiously gifted violinist Nicola Matteis looms large in this program featuring composers active in Restoration England. Transplanted from his native Italy to London, he was one of a host of artists and performers from across Europe who flocked to the city and made a crucial impact on the country's musical culture. The artistry of Alice Julien-Laferrière and the members of the ensemble Ground Floor, demonstrates that this sumptuous and sonically seductive repertoire from the middle of the 17th century can truly hold it's own against the work of later masters.