Onslow - String Quintets - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Holst's The Planets received it's first public performance in 1919, and with it Holst achieved the first real success of his career. It is a remarkably effective work, very varied and brilliantly scored for the orchestra, with the character of each of the seven movements suggested by the astrological properties given to the various planets of the solar system. The new eighth movement, Pluto, was commissioned from Colin Matthews, as an 'appendix' to the Suite, the planet Pluto having been discovered on a few years before Holst's death. The Mystic Trumpeter is one of the most neglected of Holst's major works. The several influences on the work, notably that of Wagner, are welded by Holst's passionate feeling for Whitman's words into an integrated and convincing whole whose vitality and exuberance have few parallels in British music of the period. Album Tracks 1. Mars, the Bringer of War 2. Venus, the Bringer of Peace 3. Mercury, the Winged Messenger 4. Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity 5. Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age 6. Uranus, the Magician 7. Neptune, the Mystic 8. Pluto, the Renewer 9. The Mystic Trumpeter, Op.18 - Claire Rutter

Fernando Lopes-Graça was one of Portugal's most prolific and innovative 20th-century composers. This third volume of Songs and Folk Songs explores Portuguese poetry alongside Old English and French songs. The pianist Nuno Vieira de Almeida is joined by soprano Susana Gaspar. Volumes 1 and 2 can be heard on Naxos 8.579039 and 8.579082. Orchestral works by Lopes-Graça can be heard on 8.572817,8.572892 and 8.573461. Album Tracks 1. O Menino Da Sua Mãe, Op. 21 2. Six Old English Songs, Op. 52 3. TRÊS Sonetos de Camões, Op. 27 (Original Version) 4. Aquela Triste E Leda Madrugada, Op. 112 5. Por Que Vossa Beleze a Si Se Vença, Op. 133 6. Six Vieilles Chansons Françaises, Op. 50 7. O Sol É Grande, Op. 130

The brilliant young guitarist Kyuhee Park, winner of the 2010 Aguston Barrios and 2012 Alhambra International Guitar competitions, has crafted a recital that focuses on a sequence of sonatas and a quartet of evocative character pieces. The three Scarlatti sonatas exude dance, lyricism and virtuosity respectively, whilst Anton Diabelli's engaging Sonata in A, heard in Julian Bream's arrangement, is one of the relatively few extended guitar works of the Classical period. Lennox Berkeley's Sonatina is both elegant and complex. After Malats' popular encore piece Serenata Espanola and Barrios' sublime Un Sueno en la Floresta and Chopin-inspired Vals, the recital concludes with Lopez's richly varied Impresiones y paisajes, inspired by Lorca's first book. Album Tracks 1. Keyboard Sonata in D Major, K178/L162/P392 2. Keyboard Sonata in D minor, K32/L423/P14 3. Keyboard Sonata in G Major, K14/L387/P70 4. Allegro Moderato 5. Andante Sostenuto 6. Minuetto Quasi Scherzo 7. Rondo Allegretto 8. Allegretto 9. Lento - Tempo Rubato 10. Rondo Allegro Non Troppo - Lento 11. Serenata Española 12. Un Sueno en la Floresta 13. Vals, Op. 8, No. 4 14. Impresiones y Paisajes