Wednesday, September 6, 2017

Label in the Spotlight: Tactus Records



Tactus Records was founded in 1986 by the late Mr. Serafino Rossi (1927–2009), dedicated to music’s Italian heritage and not least the discovery of forgotten Renaissance and Baroque composers who made important contributions to it. The label has also discovered many talented performers; Rinaldo Alessandrini, Enrico Gatti, Sergio Vartolo, Federico Maria Sardelli, and Modo Antiquo are just some who began their recording careers with Tactus.

Tactus Records is also the sponsor of Glissando episode 1.3 with special guest Christopher D. Lewis.

To hear a sampler of recent Tactus releases, access NML as usual, go to the Playlists section, and select the Label in the Spotlight folder under the Themed Playlists tab. You can also access it via the rotating banners. If you are on your institution's premises, you may also be able to access it if you CLICK HERE.

Opening Notes: September 2017 - New Release Playlist

We've sifted through all the new releases for this month, and we're highlighting our favorites. Some of these are obscure works that may be unknown to you, while others are fresh takes on standard repertoire. If you're like us and are constantly craving something new to enjoy, take a spin through these tracks to get a taste of what is now available to you in NML. And if you hear something you love, click on the cover art in the player window to be taken directly to the full album!

To hear the playlist, access NML as usual, go to the Playlists section, and select the Opening Notes folder under the Themed Playlists tab. If you are on your institution's premises, you may also be able to access it if you CLICK HERE.


Terry Riley
Dark Queen Mantra: II. Goya With Wings
Gyan Riley; Del Sol String Quartet
Sono Luminus - DSL-92215
Eriks Ešenvalds
Passion and Resurrection: Part III
Portland State University Chamber Choir
Naxos - 8.579008
Jane Antonia Cornish
Into Silence I
Elashvili; Thorsteinsdottir; Sullivan; Berry; Chow
Innova - INNOVA976
Bryce Dessner
Lewisburg
Nicholas Photinos
New Amsterdam - NWAM090
Steve Reich
Electric Counterpoint: III. Fast
Trevor Babb
Innova - INNOVA972
Valerie Coleman
Portraits of Langston: VI. Harlem's Summer...
McGill/McHale Trio; Mahershalalhashbaz Ali
Cedille - CDR90000-172
Ludwig Van Beethoven
Diabelli Variations: XXIV. Fughetta - Andante
Filippo Gorini
Alpha - ALPHA296
Carl Ditters Von Dittersdorf
Ajax et Ulysse: II. Recitativo andante
Michael Tsalka; James Tibbles
Naxos - 8.573740
Franz Schubert
Sehnsucht (Die Scheibe Friert)
Bo Skovhus; Stefan Vladar
Chandos - CHAN10023
Robert Schumann
Symphony No. 2 (piano 4 hands): II. Scherzo
Eckerle Piano Duo
Naxos - 8.572880
Helen Hopekirk
Waltz in F-Sharp Major
Gary Steigerwalt
Toccata - TOCC0430
Anton Bruckner
Symphony No. 4, "Romantic": III. Scherzo
Dresden Staatskapelle; Christian Thielemann
Profil - PH16064
Georgy Sviridov
Russia Adrift: No. 12. O Motherland, O Happy and Eternal Hour!
Lyudmila Shkirtil; St Petersburg State Symphony
Naxos - 8.573685
Vincenzo Bellini
Bianca e Gernando, Act II: Sorgi, o padre
Virtuosi Brunensis; Antonino Fogliani
Naxos - 8.660417-18


Fernando Sor
Lagrime mie
Nerea Berraondo; Eva Beneke
Naxos - 8.573686
Richard Strauss
6 Lieder: No. 2 Serenade (arr. for piano)
Gerhard Oppitz
Hänssler Classic - HC16048

Leoš Janácek
On the Overgrown Path: The Barn Owl Has Not Flown Away!
Jan Michiels
Fuga Libera - FUG743
Rebecca Clarke
Viola Sonata: II. Vivace
Ellen Nisbeth; Bengt Forsberg
BIS - BIS-2182

Ralph Vaughan Williams
Bucolic Suite: IV. Finale: Allegro
Rheinland-Pfalz State Phil.; Karl-Heinz Steffens
Capriccio - C5314
Edward Elgar
Serenade in E Minor: I. Allegro piacevole
Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra; Sakari Oramo
Naxos - 8.573647
Olivier Messiaen
Poèmes pour Mi, Book 2: No. 8. Le collier
Jane Archibald; Seattle Symphony; Ludovic Morlot
Seattle Symphony Media - SSM1016
George Tsontakis
Anasa: I. Donya - Pistoli
David Krakauer; Albany Symphony; D. A. Miller
Naxos - 8.559826


Diego Conti
String Quartet No. 5: II. Scherzo
Officina Musicale
Tactus - TC950390
Philippe Manoury
Le livre des claviers: III. Sixxen
Third Coast Percussion
New Focus - FCR187



Each month, Naxos Music Library presents a new release playlist for our subscribers to enjoy. We know that a database of over 2 million tracks can be a bit daunting, so we'd like to highlight some of the amazing music that has become available to you just this month. Let it kickstart discovery!

September 2017 - Featured Playlist: Anthems for the Underdogs

It's a common trope in film and television that athletics and the arts are two completely different worlds that rarely cross paths but to butt heads. Artistic characters tend to care little for whatever sportsball event is going on, while the popular jocks reinforce their status by beating up the band kids.

But I think we all know that's not actually the way it is in real life. It makes for easy, simplistic storytelling, but most humans are more complex than that. A person may find their community as a player on or fan of a particular team, but that doesn't mean their musical vocabulary doesn't stretch well beyond their team's fight songs. And a person might not know or care about the difference between a tailback and a tight end, but that doesn't mean they don't appreciate the amazing things the human body can do, and see beautiful rhythm in the tension and release of a baseball game.

Composers have many times been inspired in their art by the drama, surprise, triumph, and disappointment to be found in sports, and of course there's always the satisfaction that comes from seeing a David defeat a Goliath, whether that is on the athletic field or the opera stage. So this month we're offering up a collection of tunes inspired by athletics, what we might call, in the spirit of the creative personality, Anthems for the Underdogs.

To hear the playlist, access NML as usual, go to the Playlists section, and select the Playlist of the Month folder under the Themed Playlists tab. If you are on your institution's premises, you may also be able to access it if you CLICK HERE.


1. Jack Norworth, Albert Von Tilzer
Take Me Out to the Ballgame
Jacqueline Schwab, piano
Nonesuch - 075597934069

2.Alan Courtney, Ben Homer
Joltin' Joe DiMaggio
Les Brown Orchestra
Nonesuch - 075597934069

3. Leonard Bernstein
Wonderful Town: Pass the Football
Birmingham Contemporary Music Group; Simon Rattle
Warner - 5099996713655

4.Cy Coleman
City of Angels, Act I: The Tennis Song
James Naughton; Peter Davis; Gary Kahn; Amy Jane London
Sony Classical - 074644606720



5. James Horner
Cocoon, The Return: Basketball Swing
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; James Horner
Varese Saraband - VSD-5208

6. John Williams
Call of the Champions
United States Air Force Band; Larry H. Lang
Naxos - 8.573405

7. William Schuman
The Mighty Casey, Scene 2: Oh, somewhere
Juilliard Opera Center and Orchestra; Gerard Schwarz
Delos - DE1030

8. Dmitry Shostakovich
The Golden Age, Act II Scene 4: Football March
Royal Scottish National Orchestra; José Serebrier
Naxos - 8.570217-18



9. Bohuslav Martinů
Half-Time
Brno Philharmonic Orchestra; Petr Vronský
Supraphon - SU3058-2

10. Sergey Prokofiev
4 Marches: No. 1 Athletic Festival March
President's Own United States Marine Band; Albert F. Schoepper
Altissimo - 75442261982

11. Harvey J. Woods
The Golf Girl
United States Navy School of Music Faculty Band; Ronald Van Hoose
Altissimo - 75442203572

12. Thierry Darnis
Paralympic Movement: Anthem of the Future
Slovak State Philharmonic; Peter Breiner
Marco Polo - 8.225360



13. Charles Ives
Yale-Princeton Football Game
Malmö Symphony Orchestra; James Sinclair
Naxos - 8.559370

14. Arthur Honegger
Rugby: Allegro
New Zealand Symphony Orchestra; Takuo Yuasa
Naxos - 8.555974

15. Alfred Schnittke
Sport, Sport, Sport Suite: VI. Der moderne Sport
Berlin Radio Symphony; Frank Strobel
Capriccio - C5002

16. Annie Gosfield
Brooklyn, October 5, 1941
Lisa Moore; Annie Gosfield
CA-21061

17. Bob Chilcott
The Modern Man I Sing: The Runner
Tenebrae; Nigel Short
Signum - SIGCD904

18. John Weinzweig
Hockey Night in Canada
Opera in Concert; Robert Cooper
Centrediscs - FMDC4602-2

19. Traditional
Radnage Cricket Song
Cantabile
Signum - SIGCD217

20. Elizabeth R. Austin
To Begin: II. Ballgame
Constitution Brass
Ravello Records - RR7838



21. Wilhelm Peterson-Berger
Frosoblomster, Book 1: No. 3 Lawn Tennis
Christian Bergqvist; Mats Bergstrom
Swedish Society - SCD1067

22. Clark Gessner
You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown: T.E.A.M. - The Baseball Game
Kristin Chenoweth; Anthony Rapp; Roger Bart; Kimberly Grigsby
RCA - 090266338429

23. Woodrow Buddy Johnson
Did You See Jackie Robinson Hit That Ball?
Natalie Cole; Jim Hughart; Terry Trotter; Harold Jones
Nonesuch - 075597934069

24. Anonymous
Baseball: Eulogy for Jackie Robinson - Steal Away
Jesse Jackson; Jacqueline Schwab
Nonesuch - 075597934069





Each month, Naxos Music Library presents a themed playlist for our subscribers to enjoy. We know that a database of over 2 million tracks can be a bit daunting, so we'd like to highlight some of the amazing music that is available to you. Let it kickstart discovery!