The Momenta Quartet, an ensemble in residence at Temple University in Philadelphia, specializes in music written by living composers. They have also received great acclaim for performances they have given of music written by composers of past generations and centuries. This beautifully...

Here’s one for lovers of lush, romantic orchestral scores. The ballet Legend of Love by Azerbaijani composer Arif Melikov was completed in 1961, only a year and a half after the composer had graduated from the Baku Conservatory. It promptly premiered on the stage of the Leningrad Kirov...

Capriccio Records has shown an increasing commitment to repertoire of the 20th and 21st centuries, bringing to light a number of fine compositions by composers who are scantly represented in the recorded catalog. This program of orchestral music by Luigi Dallapiccola (1904-1975) is a recent...

The Dutton record label initially built its reputation issuing audiophile-quality transfers from 78-rpm shellac discs recorded between 1920 and 1970. While the label has continued this avenue of activity, it also issues world-premiere recordings of little-known but deserving works by...

This recent release from Coviello Classics titled Swiss Aspects presents live recordings from concerts marking the fiftieth anniversary of the Argovia Philharmonic. Its subtitle reads Orchestral Music from Argovia 1945-1970. This sent me to Google maps where I discovered Argovia is one of the...

Virgil Thomson was a great force behind American music in the 20th Century. Not only was he a great composer, but an outspoken and intelligent voice for music. The Mother of Us All was the second opera he composed. The first, Four Saints in Three Acts, used an all Afro-American cast. The...

This release marks the fifth CD issued by Naxos dedicated entirely to the music of Alexandre Tansman and is the second of the composer’s piano music. Belgian pianist and contemporary music specialist Eliane Reyes performs both piano programs by this composer who, during his lifetime, was...

The cover of this Verso CD reads: Luis de los Cobos, complete orchestral works. Normally, you would expect a CD labeled this way to include a composer’s works for solo instruments with orchestra and perhaps even scores for chamber orchestra, but de los Cobos’ compositions in these...

Conductor Werner Andreas Albert conducts the NDR Radiophilharmonie Hannover in what appear to be the world premiere recordings of three gripping orchestral works by German composer Paul Graener (1872-1944). This release comes from cpo, a label with a penchant for bringing to light fascinating...

With the release of this second CD from Naxos of music for orchestra by Azerbaijani composer Kara Karayev, the current catalog has on offer three full programs of music by this fine composer. The previous Naxos release was of Karayev’s Symphony No. 3 and two tone poems; this new release...

This new album is the third in cpo’s survey of Kabalevsky’s orchestral works. The NDR RadioPhilharmonie has performed on each, and its the second conducted by Japanese conductor Eiji Oue. On this recording, we hear Kabalevsky’s Cello Concertos Nos. 1 & 2, magnificently...

In this program of rarely heard 20th century piano pieces by seven Hungarian composers, pianist Mariann Marczi performs over an hour of music that has factored prominently in her academic studies and performing career. The album takes its name from the opening work, Splinters, Op. 6/d by...