Jethro Tull:The String Quartets Album Hits # 1

This week Ian Anderson reached the number one position again in the Billboard Classical Album charts with his new collaboration with the Carducci String Quartet, JETHRO TULL: THE STRING QUARTETS. Previously, his album DIVINITIES topped the Billboard Classical charts in 1995. In 1973 A Passion Play and, before that, 1972’s THICK AS A BRICK both hit number one in the Billboard Album charts. Those are number one hits every 22 years.

In addition to classical charts, JETHRO TULL: THE STRING QUARTETS debuted at #16 on the Independent charts, and #80 on Billboard’s album chart.

In the UK, JETHRO TULL: THE STRING QUARTETS entered at #2 on Classical, #56 on Album, and #6 for Independent.

THE STRING QUARTETS (track listing below) features 12 re-imagined Tull classics, allowing Tull fans and classical music connoisseurs to enjoy the band's vast catalog in a new way. 

Listen: Yo-Yo Ma, Chris Thile, Edgar Meyer Share New "Bach Trios" Track

Cellist Yo-Yo Ma, mandolinist Chris Thile, and bassist Edgar Meyer have shared their recording of J.S. Bach's Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, BWV 645, from their forthcoming album, Bach Trios, releasing April 7. You can hear it below.

Bach Trios comprises works by J.S. Bach originally written for keyboard instruments, plus one sonata for viola da gamba. In 2011, Ma, Thile, and Meyer—along with Stuart Duncan—collaborated on The Goat Rodeo Sessions, which won two Grammy Awards. The trio, which played Bach on the Thile–hosted radio program A Prairie Home Companion in December, performs in nine cities across the US beginning on April 21.

"For the Love of Brahms", out 9/30 from Joshua Bell and Steven Isserlis

Violinist Joshua Bell and cellist Steven Isserlis are joined by two acclaimed musical forces - pianist Jeremy Denk and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, of which Bell is Music Director - in a landmark joint recording, For the Love of Brahms (Sony Classical).  Available September 30, 2016, the new album is a unique project that features works of Brahms and Schumann that Bell calls "music about love and friendship."

A personal, deeply affectionate impulse frequently sparked the music of Johannes Brahms and his mentor, Robert Schumann – often including their mutual friend, the violinist and composer Joseph Joachim. It clearly drove all three works on For the Love of Brahms.

Bell, Isserlis and Denk unite here in Brahms's first published chamber work, the Piano Trio in B Major, Op. 8 in its rarely performed original 1854 version. Isserlis also joins Bell - as violin soloist and director - and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields in Brahms's last orchestral work, the celebrated Double Concerto (for Violin and Cello) in A Minor, Op. 102. Bell, Isserlis and members of the Academy also offer the first recording of an unusual coupling: the slow movement of Schumann's rarely heard Violin Concerto, in a version for string orchestra made by Benjamin Britten, who also added a short coda.

Cameron Carpenter's All You Need is Bach, Out June 3

Sony Classical is pleased to announce the release of Cameron Carpenter's new album All You Need is Bach available June 3, 2016. Bach's great keyboard masterpieces provide an ideal platform for

Carpenter's formidable creative gift and the seemingly limitless possibilities of his dream instrument;  his signature International Touring Organ (ITO).

Bach's complete organ music has been central to Carpenter's immense and multi-faceted repertoire. For his first all-Bach release, Carpenter has created a stimulating and wide-ranging program that reveals the scope of Bach's genius. Works included on the album are Contrapunctus IX from The Art of Fugue, Organ Sonatas in D minor and E-flat major, Prelude and Fugue in B minor, French Suite No. 1, Invention No. 8, the Chorale Prelude to "O Mensch, bewein dein Sünde groß" and, as a centerpiece, the great Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor.

The album title All You Need Is Bach not only refers to the immense popularity of Bach, but also to The Beatles' classic 1967 recording All You Need Is Love, where Bach's Invention No. 8 in F major rises out of the coda's collage-like texture.  In creating the ITO, the organ building team of Marshall & Ogletree apply sophisticated computer technology to digitally reproduce the sounds of many diverse American pipe organs without any of their mechanisms. Carpenter can access these sounds with unprecedented immediacy and flexibility. The ITO also draws upon the scientific findings relating in the field of historically informed performance practice. For example, Bach's Passacaglia and Fugue uses the Werckmeister III in a transposition centering the Werckmeister "sweet key" on C and the Trio Sonatas are presented in Kirnberger and Kellner temperaments in D and D#. While O Mensch, bewein dein Sünde groß and the Prelude and Fugue in B minor both feature equal temperament.

Most importantly, Carpenter's virtuosity, the musical potential of the International Touring Organ, and their meeting through the lens of the unique relationship between an instrument and its designer, allow him to delve unusually deep into Bach's emotional world.

Judy Collins’ 1974 Oscar Nominated Documentary About The First Female Conductor Of Major Orchestras Re-Released On DVD!

Antonia: A Portrait Of The Woman, the celebrated documentary film about the first woman
conductor of major orchestras in the U.S. and Europe, Antonia Brico, was recently re-released on DVD via Cleoptra Records. Folk music icon Judy Collins produced and co-directed this highly acclaimed 1974 Academy Award nominated documentary film, which explores themes of gender discrimination that are still highly relevant today.

An unforgettable and inspiring figure, Brico faced hardship after hardship, overcoming enormous obstacles and prejudice to pursue her life’s passion in the male-dominated field of classical conducting. Alongside co-director Jill Godmillow, Collins tells the story of Brico, her former piano teacher, with tremendous emotion and skill using both historic news clippings as well as an in-depth interview with the Maestro herself. This 2015 Edition includes the feature-length film as well as bonus features including a photo gallery and commentary tracks, plus a brand new interview with Collins who reflects on the personal and professional impact of Brico’s life and pioneering spirit.

Violinist Itzhak Perlman Awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom

Israeli-born American violinist Itzhak Perlman has been chosen as one of 17 recipients of this year's Presidential Medal of Freedom, and was awarded the honor in a ceremony on November 24.

The awards celebrate important lifelong contributions to security, world peace, and the arts: President Obama described Perlman and other recipients from the cultural sphere as "artists who expanded our imaginations...enriched our lives and helped define our shared experience as Americans."

The accolade comes the year of Perlman's 70th birthday celebrations, which has seen his complete Warner Classics catalogue of iconic recordings released in a collectors' boxed set of his Complete Warner Recordings (see image below, available from B&T through our Titlesource platform).  He has dazzled generations of music-lovers in repertoire as diverse as Paganini's Caprices and soulful klezmer, collaborating with some of the greatest musicians of the last century - Daniel Barenboim, Yo-Yo Ma, Isaac Stern and André Previn - who Perlman counts among his closest friends.

The prize also acknowledges his contribution to the future of classical music and his generosity to young artists through his teaching activities at the Juilliard School in New York. In 1994, with his wife Toby, he founded the Perlman Music Program, an intensive summer school and mentoring program for talented young string players.

Placido Domingo Brings In The Holiday Season With The Release Of His New Album, "My Christmas"

A heart-warming world of Christmas magic comes alive on Placido Domingo's new holiday album, My Christmas (available now on Sony Classical). Available now, the album is filled with seasonal favorites, plus duets with a variety of special guests including Idina Menzel, Jackie Evancho, Placido Domingo Jr., The Piano Guys and others.

My Christmas features Domingo performing his favorites numbers like "Guardian Angels," the haunting song composed by Harpo Marx and made famous by Mario Lanza with Idina Menzel, fresh from her triumph as the voice of Queen Elsa in Disney's Frozen; "Pie Jesu" the pure, ethereal melody from Andrew Lloyd Webber with Jackie Evancho, the 15 year-old American singing phenomenon, who is also the youngest top-10 debut artist in USA history; "White Christmas," the evergreen Irving Berlin classic with his son Placido Domingo Jr.; and "Silent Night" with The Piano Guys, whose witty mash-ups of classical favorites and pop standards have been seen over half a billion times on YouTube.

Other artists featured on My Christmas singing holiday classics with Domingo include the German superstar Helene Fischer ("What Child Is This"), whose albums have sold more than 9 million copies to date; the French heart-throb tenor Vincent Niclo ("Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"); and the New Zealand singer Hayley Westenra performing "Loving Christmas," a new song written by Placido Domingo Jr.

Warm Up with Quadriga Consort's New CD, Winter's Delights

Early Christmas Music and Carols from the British Isles, France and Canada Performed on

Period Instruments

Packed full of engaging and appealing seasonal offerings, Winter's Delights is Quadriga Consort's new album and welcome addition to Yuletide.

English composer and poet Thomas Campion (1567–1620) famously wrote 'Summer hath his joys and Winter his delights,' and the consort has taken this memorable line as its starting point for this attractive collection of popular and lesser-known winter melodies.

The album includes traditional English carols such as "The First Nowell," "The Three Kings" and "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel," together with Scottish tunes such as "Gloomy Winter," "The Traveller Benighted in Snow" and "Leanabh an Aigh" (The Blessed Child), better known in recent years as the hit song "Morning has Broken." From Ireland comes the traditional jig "A Merry Christmas" as well as the medley consisting of "Early in the Morning" (trad. hornpipe) / "The Ivy Leaf" (trad. reel) / "Christmas Comes But Once A Year" (trad. jig). Nova Scotia beckons with "The Stormy Scenes of Winter" and France happily presents "Noel Nouvelet – Sing We Now of Christmas."

There is a charm and freshness to this unconventional edition and, most importantly, a sense of joy and delight in music-making that cannot fail to cheer and lift the spirits, even on the bleakest of winter nights.

Yo Yo Ma and Kathryn Scott Release "Songs from the Arc of Life"

"I like to think of Songs from the Arc of Life as an invitation to our audience to remember and imagine what the soundtracks of their lives might be," Yo-Yo Ma says.  "Kathy and I have talked for years about recording an album of music we absolutely love, pieces that express the context of a life, of our lives.  Childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, middle age, old age: what do they sound like?"

"I love this title," Stott says, "the 'Arc of Life' – because it is one big arc. Once we arrived at the idea, we began to see a beautiful story, a journey through life's experiences. It has taken us a long time and much discussion, back and forth, to discover what that journey might be, because everyone's journey is slightly different."

Songs from the Arc of Life begins and ends with two, much-beloved settings of the traditional "Ave Maria," opening with the soaring, radiant Bach/Gounod arrangement and closing with Schubert's more serene, contemplative version.

The Who's Pete Townshend Talks with Baker & Taylor About His New "Classic Quadrophenia" Release

It’s a rare event to pose questions to the great Pete Townshend - one of the world’s greatest living songwriters and a sea-change musical visionary. Pete is very enthused to release his classic rock opera, Quadrophenia, finally in a classical and operatic form, on June 9, 2015, and he graced Baker & Taylor with an illuminating, personal interview. Without further introduction, we present Pete’s feedback (of the written kind) on Pete Townshend’s Classic Quadrophenia.
B&T: What would you tell a customer in a music store or library that would encourage them to pick up Pete Townshend’s Classic Quadrophenia?

Pete: This is a modern opera, or cantata – the story is one that we have all lived through. It will connect because the story is so simple. It’s about a few very difficult days in the life of a young person. We’ve all been there. What is unusual in this case perhaps is that the hero’s difficulty becomes a conduit for an explosion of passion, sexual frustration, anger and awkward love. My music seems to be especially good at expressing all this, and The Who band members were great at performing it. Audiences respond according to their ability (or need) to reconnect with this part of their growing up. Or, they might simply look back sadly or fondly to the way they got through it all. In literature there are many examples of this kind of inconclusive story. Catcher in the Rye is maybe the most well-known. This orchestral version unlocks an entire range of new shades in this tale of teenage struggle.

The Tenors UNDER ONE SKY Arrives on June 2

UNDER ONE SKY is THE TENORS new recording that combines a mix of originals alongside new interpretations of familiar favorites that releases on June 2, 2015 from Decca Records. Highlighting their signature blend of classical and contemporary pop, the record includes the popular hits “Tears in Heaven” (Eric Clapton) “Lean On Me” (Bill Withers) and “Who Wants To Live Forever” (Queen) as well as the soaring original title track, “Under One Sky” and the inspirational “New Day’s Begun.”

The foursome dedicates the classic Joe Cocker track, “You Are So Beautiful” to their mothers and all mothers around the world, while “My Father’s Son” pays universal homage to dads. The group pays extra tribute to their moms in the forthcoming hardcover book, “A Letter To My Mom” by Lisa Erspamer to be released April 7. Honoring their respective mothers, the book also includes letters from Melissa Rivers, Shania Twain, will.i.am, Christy Turlington, and Kristin Chenoweth among others.

Sony Classical Marks Moog Anniversaries with "Bach to Moog" CD Release

In January 2015, Moog Music, the 60-year-old analogue synthesizer company, announced that for the first time in more than 30 years, it would once again build the large format modular synthesizers that were first introduced by its founder, Dr. Robert Moog in 1964. 2015 also marks the 10^th anniversary of the passing of Dr. Robert 'Bob' Moog (1934-2005), inventor of the Moog synthesizer.
To mark these anniversaries, Sony Classical is releasing Bach to Moog on May 4th.

The new album showcases the reissued Moog Modular Synthesizer as well as the modern generation of Moog synthesizers and presents the glorious works of Johann Sebastian Bach in a compelling and contemporary way. Bach to Moog is produced by American-born composer, arranger and record producer Craig Leon, famous for his work with The Ramones and Blondie, as well as his work in the classical arena with such leading artists as Luciano Pavarotti, Joshua Bell and Sir James Galway. Leon is also celebrated for his seminal synthesizer albums from the 1970s, Nommos and Anthology of Interplanetary Folk Music Vol. 1 which were rereleased in 2014 to great acclaim and to a new generation of electronic music fans. On Bach to Moog, Leon blends his love and mastery of classical music, electronic music and synthesizers and is joined by acclaimed British classical violinist, Jennifer Pike (the youngest ever winner of the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition) alongside the Sinfonietta Cracovia.

2CELLOS Announce "Celloverse" January 27 Album Release

2CELLOS, music's most electric and dynamic instrumental duo, release a new music video for "Wake Me Up" by Avicii.  View it below from B&T.  In the video, we see the 2CELLOS friendship grow over the course of three time periods; childhood, present day and old age (year 2069).  From the classroom to the retirement home, the guys never fail to shake things up and turn heads with their creative playing and edgy humor.

They return with their new album Celloverse (out via Portrait/Sony Music Masterworks) on January 27, 2015.  They then will head out on the USA leg of their world tour beginning in February.

Self-produced by Sulic and Hauser, Celloverse showcases 2CELLOS' unique ability to reinvent current and classic rock/pop songs, starting with "The Trooper Overture," a metal-meets-classical mash up of Iron Maiden's hit and Rossini's "William Tell Overture."  The album includes their take on AC/DC's "Thunderstruck" (the video has 31 million views), "I Will Wait" by Mumford & Sons and Michael Jackson's "They Don't Care About Us."   Rounding out Celloverse is the Paul McCartney classic "Live and Let Die," with special guest Lang Lang and the title track, an original song penned and arranged by 2CELLOS.

2CELLOS are the first instrumentalists to be featured on Glee.  They have also appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Tonight Show, and The Bachelor Live Wedding Special.  Their self-titled debut album and IN2ITION are available on Sony Music Masterworks from B&T.