Yuhao Guo - Butterworth, Gurney & Vaughan - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

The Masters Collection compiles the iconic recordings of some of the most renowned artists of Hungaroton. The album features records which define an œuvre, a specific era and which will be an unforgettable experience for all listeners. The Ferenc Liszt Chamber Orchestra was founded in 1963 by string players in their final year at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest. They took the name of the great composer, to pay homage to the genius who became inseparable with the establishment of Hungarian music and whose spirit irradiates the musical life of the entire world. Since then they plays a very significant role in Hungary's musical life, and have attained a world-wide reputation. The FLCO consists of 17 strings and according to the programmes a harpsichord soloist completes the Ensemble, as well as wind and other instrumentalists. Their first music director was Frigyes Sándor. Since his death in 1979, this post has been held by János Rolla, one of Hungary's leading violinists, who has been concert-master of the orchestra since it's inception. The repertoire of the FLCO spans almost the entire history of music from Monteverdi, J.S. Bach, Antonio Vivaldi, W.A. Mozart to the Romantics and to the 20th Century composers.

American jazz singer and songwriter Herb Jeffries began his recording career with legendary pianist Earl Hines' orchestra in 1934 and went on to record with Duke Ellington from 1940 to 1942. Jeffries' most famous song, InchFlamingo,Inch recorded in 1940 with Ellington, sold over 50 million copies. Brazilian master guitarist Laurindo Almeida first came to prominence in the US as a member of Stan Kenton's band during the height of it's success in the 1940s and then became one of the world's most sought after studio musicians. In 1953 he recorded two of the first Brazilian styled jazz albums with Bud Shank called Brazilliance, which led to sessions with Baden Powell, Stan Getz and Herbie Mann, among others. In 1961, Almeida won multiple Grammy Awards for Best Engineered Album, Classical and Best Chamber Music Performance. The following year he won Grammy Awards for Best Classical Performance - Instrumental Soloist or Duo and Best Contemporary Classical Composition. In the late 1970's, under the direction of the legendary record producer Ray Lawrence, Almeida and Jeffries collaborated on an album of Duke Ellington classics which included a wonderful reprise of InchFlamingo,Inch Jeffries' huge hit with the Ellington band in 1940. The session is presented here, newly remastered and finally available in the digital domain.

His third album for Just Music, The Grape & The Grain sees Leo Abrahams explore instrumental English Folk music in this collection of tender and melodic pieces, featuring mainly guitar, but with added instrumentation, including a Hurdy Gurdy which Leo learnt to play specially for this record. Leo is a hugely respected musician who already has a proven track record playing live, both solo and as a guitarist / multi instrumentalist for many artists including Vashti Bunyan, Eliza Carthy, Kathryn Williams and June Tabor on the 'Daughters of Albion' shows and the Sea Shanty project 'Rogues' Gallery' with Richard Thompson, Martin Carthy and James Cooke. He has recently performed successful solo shows in across Europe, Russia and the US. In the studio he has worked with a huge array of artists as both a producer and instrumentalist, including Brian Eno, The Waterboys, Paul Simon, King Creosote, David Holmes, Roxy Music, Nick Cave, Jarvis Cocker, Marianne Faithfull and recently produced the acclaimed album by new folk act Smoke Fairies. His first album, Honeytrap, was critically acclaimed and explored instrumental acoustic, folk & world music. His second was a series of collaborations with artists such as KT Tunstall, Ed Harcourt & Foy Vance. His new album, The Grape & The Grain, is a more direct collection of English Folk pieces.