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Following on from the popularity of previous volumes, ABC Kids has brought together a mix of the best-loved and most popular Christmas tunes on one superb album. Featuring a beautiful mix of Christmas classics such as ‘Deck The Halls’ and ‘Sleigh Ride’, Aussie favourites including ‘Christmas On The Station’ and ‘Aussie Jingle Bells’ and a smattering of festive tunes from The Wiggles, Jay Laga’aia, Sesame Street, Bananas In Pyjamas and many more beloved members of the ABC Kids family.
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‘Vibrant and seductive’ – The Guardian‘Magical’ – Berliner Morgenpost‘Kats-Chernin’s characteristic imaginative space might be likened to an old dance, heard in a surreal dream, interrupted by outbursts of outrageousness.’ – Sydney Morning HeraldABC Classics celebrates the 60th birthday of pre-eminent Australian composer Elena Kats-Chernin with a 10CD boxset, bringing together iconic works with pieces recorded especially for this collection.Kats-Chernin is one of the most cosmopolitan composers working today, with a prolific catalogue of works for theatre, ballet, orchestra, chamber ensemble and piano. Her dramatically vivid, brilliantly scored and often propulsive music communicates a mixture of lightheartedness and lingering melancholy, combining strong rhythmic figures with elements of cabaret, tango, ragtime and klezmer.This 10CD collection celebrates more than two decades of iconic recordings, starting with Elena Kats-Chernin’s first album of the ABC Classics label, released in 1996.Tracks include:Wild Swans · Prelude and Cube · Butterflying · Unsent Love Letters · Blue Silence · Variation in a Serious Black Dress · Piano Concerto No. 2 · Mythic · Torque · Re-inventions · Clocks · Cadences, Deviations & Scarlatti · Russian RagPreviously unreleased and newly recorded works include:Displaced Dances · Zoom and Zip · Big Rhap · The Witching Hour · Heaven is Closed · Golden Kitsch · The Three Dancers · The Sunshine Journal · Fleeting Moments · DivaFeaturing the Australian Chamber Orchestra, the Sydney, Adelaide, Melbourne and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras, Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Australian World Orchestra, The Idea of North, Gondwana Voices, Tamara-Anna Cislowska, Donna Coleman, Amelia Farrugia and many more.The set will be officially launced at Elena Kats-Chernin’s ‘Birthday Bash’, City Recital Hall, Sydney, 4 November 2017. www.cityrecitalhall.com
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Featuring songs from all your ABC KIDS favourites including Justine Clarke, The Wiggles, Teletubbies, Play School, Giggle and Hoot and more, Let’s Play! is jam-packed with 40 wonderful tunes that children will love singing and dancing along to throughout the summer.
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WINNER: Best Jazz Album – 2011 ARIA AwardsElixir is a trio of friends and musicians -- multi-platinum selling songstress Katie Noonan, outstanding saxophonist Zac Hurren and the highly-regarded jazz guitarist Stephen Magnusson. Each artist brings to the project an individual style and potency. The result is an improvised folk and jazz-inspired blend of music. Drawing inspiration from the likes of Nick Drake and Joni Mitchell, Elixir has always been about poetry, set to music. On this album, the works of celebrated poet Thomas Shapcott are Elixir’s key ingredient.“Our aim,” explains Katie, “is to make gentle, intimate music.”Elixir will cast a spell on you…“like a samurai sword through silk….this enchanting, honest, intimate album can’t fail” – The Mercury“Serenely ethereal” – The AustralianKatie Noonan | vocalsStephen Magnusson | electric, steel and nylon string guitarsZac Hurren | soprano and tenor saxophonesSee Elixir live in concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra: 2 – 4 November 2017Visit www.sydneysymphony.com for more information.
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Slava Grigoryan’s acclaimed Bach journey continues with the second volume of the Cello Suites.Volume I – released in November 2016 – has entered recording history through its phenomenal success, receiving global critical acclaim and multiple awards (including the 2017 ARIA Award for Best Classical Album), and smashing the record for the longest spell at the top of the Classical Chart.Grigoryan again chooses the richly resonant baritone guitar for Volume II, whose lower pitch allows the Suites to be performed in their original keys. The Sixth Suite was, however, originally written for an instrument a fifth higher than the cello – the same degree higher as a classical guitar from the baritone. As such, Grigoryan performs the Sixth Suite on a standard classical guitar.The musical challenges of these three Suites are considerable. In the Fourth and Fifth, Bach’s musical writing is often dense and detailed, requiring astonishing dexterity, particularly when played on the guitar; there are also moments of deep emotion, most notably the incredible Sarabande of Suite No.5. In the Sixth, the music emerges into sheer joy, with cadenza-like moments which revel in exuberant virtuosity.To record Volume II, Grigoryan returned to the UKARIA Cultural Centre in the Adelaide Hills. Reflecting on his experience of living with and recording this defining music, Grigoryan said:‘What can I say that hasn’t been said about the Cello Suites before? I’m constantly staggered by the universe of ideas in each movement of every Suite. The simplicity, the elegance, the structure and the spirit are simply breathtaking. It’s been such an honour to play this music. I know that, over time, there will be many changes as I continue to play them in live performances, but I also know that that’s kind of the point: there will never be a perfect version, just a long-term relationship with notes on a page that trigger feelings and emotions on a deeply profound level for the musician attempting to communicate through them.’PRAISE FOR BACH CELLO SUITES VOLUME IWinner – ARIA Award for Best Classical Album, 2017Winner – AIR Award for Best Independent Classical Album, 2017‘Grigoryan’s Bach has been well-worth the wait. Thank goodness the second instalment is being recorded this year’ ★★★★½ – Limelight Magazine‘An absorbing new angle on some of the greatest music-as-music our culture has.’★★★★ performance | ★★★★★ recording quality – BBC Music Magazine (UK)13 weeks at number one, ARIA Classical Chart – the record for an Australian albumTRACKLISTINGJOHANN SEBASTIAN BACHCello Suites · Volume II 1–6. Cello Suite No. 4 in E-flat major 7–12. Cello Suite No. 5 in C minor 13–18. Cello Suite No. 6 in D major Slava Grigoryan baritone and classical guitars
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A richly textured songbook that swings effortlessly from the cigar-and-rum-perfumed atmosphere of Old Havana to the humid abandon of Kingston’s heaving nightclub scene, Havana Meets Kingston weaves together Spanish-language ardour and entrancing Jamaican patois, spinning a musical web that transcends language – speaking to nothing so clearly as hips and heart, in equal measure.The first single ‘Carnival’ (featuring British-Jamaican singer Randy Valantine and Cuban singer Solis) was released in February, making waves across the UK and Europe. It remains in the Global Reggae and iTunes (World Music) charts with BBC’s David Rodigan a big supporter.HAVANA MEETS KINGSTON brings together established and emerging Cuban and Jamaican musicians in an album of all mostly original songs, as well as covers of classic Cuban material. The main recording sessions took place over 10 days in June 2015 at the famous Egrem Studio in Havana, Cuba. Savona personally flew seven Jamaicans into Havana for these sessions, including Sly & Robbie, Boopee and Bongo Herman among other greats. In the studio they joined Buena Vista Social Club musicians Barbarito Torres and Rolando Luna, alongside Cuba’s most influential percussionist Changuito (Los Van Van) and many more.
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Discover the sparkling musical treasures of old-time Naples, as the new Australian baroque orchestra Van Diemen’s Band presents its debut album – connecting the pristine wilderness and Antarctic gateway of present-day Tasmania with one of eighteenth-century Europe’s greatest sea ports.Recorded in the beautiful acoustics of Government House in Hobart, this album unveils a rich and much-neglected artistic culture, where music flourished in churches, courts and academies. At the centre of the album stands Nicola Fiorenza, a composer and violinist with a famously eccentric and hot-blooded temperament, who played for many years in the Orchestra of the Neapolitan Royal Chapel. His Cello Concertos, four of which are presented here, are by turns urgently virtuosic, stunningly rhapsodic, and almost completely unrepresented in recordings – until now.Musicians from leading early-music orchestras throughout the world gathered in Hobart for these sessions, reflecting the sea-faring cosmopolitanism of Hobart and Naples. Julia Fredersdorff, returned to Australia after many years performing and studying in Europe, is the orchestra’s Artistic Director. The Lake Como-based soloist, Catherine Jones, is one of the most in-demand baroque cellists on the international stage. And the orchestra itself is hand-picked from the most promising players of the new generation as well as the cream of the established crop.Alongside music by Fiorenza, the album features works by other Neapolitan luminaries: a Sinfonia by Alessandro Scarlatti (another by his son, Domenico, is available as a digital bonus), and a Concerto Grosso by Francesco Geminiani, all of which show the irresistible influence of the art form that was popular in Naples at the time – opera.TRACKLISTINGNICOLA FIORENZA (1700–1764)1–4. Cello Concerto in F majorALESSANDRO SCARLATTI (1660–1725)5–8. Sinfonia to ‘Clori, Dorino e Amore’NICOLA FIORENZA9–12. Cello Concerto in B-flat majorFRANCESCO GEMINIANI (1687–1762)13–15. Concerto grosso in E minor, Op. 3 No. 3NICOLA FIORENZA16–19. Cello Concerto in D major (with violetta)20–23. Trio Sonata in B minor24–27. Cello Concerto in D majorCatherine Jones celloVan Diemen’s BandRecorded in Government House, Hobart, 9–13 March 2017
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Wiggly, Wiggly Christmas! is sure to get everybody in the festive spirit with songs and carols that will have the whole family singing, dancing, laughing or just plain enjoying! There is a carol medley sing along, some lovely songs about the very first Christmas and some fun numbers all about Santa Claus! Greg Wiggle stops by in Wiggle Town to duet on the old Wiggly classic “Go Santa Go”. There is ballet dancing, reindeer prancing, mistletoe and elves dancing, fast and slow!
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Classical music opens up a whole new world of imagination and delight. From the majesty of the orchestra to the delicacy of the piano, music helps us to sing, dance and dream. This album is the perfect introduction to the timeless tunes of the great composers, all carefully selected to delight younger listeners and start a journey through the wonderful world of classical music.MP3 READY: The convenience of fewer discs – 10 hours and 160 tracks on just 2 discs! Load them onto your iPod. Play them on your PC. Or enjoy them on your home or car CD player, provided it’s MP3 friendly.Over 10 hours of music and 160 tracks on two MP3 CDs, including the very best of:OrchestraBalletViolinPianoMozartBachBeethovenLullaby
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Gorgeous tunes and orchestral thrills for the young and young at heart: with a twinkle in her eye, the warm, whimsical and occasionally wicked Miriam Margolyes leads us through an orchestral story-telling extravaganza: matching instruments to their animal counterparts in Prokofiev's timeless classic, Peter and the Wolf; exploring witty vignettes and a dazzling fugue in Benjamin Britten’s The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra; and magical tales of love and fantasy in Borodin’s Polovstian Dances from Prince Igor.Margolyes is joined by the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra with Principal Conductor Nicholas Carter in a captivating program filmed live in concert at the 2017 Adelaide Festival – a sell-out performance season that was a crowd-pleaser for young and old. ★★★★☆ “Miriam Margolyes and the ASO are a dream team,their respect and love for orchestral music is infectious.”– Limelight Magazine“Miriam Margolyes was the perfect choice as narrator...She was, as always, utterly captivating.”– Adelaide Now“A fresh and thrilling experience.”– Stage Whispers
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Four of Australia’s finest singers together on the stage of the Sydney Opera House, in a soaring program that blends the exuberance of the great stage musicals with the passion of grand opera.From Puccini to Rodgers & Hammerstein, from Bizet to Gershwin and from Verdi to Cole Porter, From Broadway to La Scala is a unique concert experience showcasing many of the greatest songs, arias and duets of the last two centuries.Renowned for their charisma, stagecraft and musical versatility, tenor David Hobson and bass baritone Teddy Tahu Rhodes join musical theatre star Lisa McCune and the breathtaking soprano Greta Bradman in seamless blend of classical elegance and theatrical glamour.This deluxe edition also includes a special CD album of highlights from the show, recorded in the studio along with three additional tracks: Bring Him Home, Oh What a Beautiful Morning and Nella fantasia.Featuring favourite tunes from:West Side StoryMy Fair LadyCarmenThe Barber of SevilleThe Sound of MusicSouth PacificThe Phantom of the OperaThe Pearl FishersKiss Me KateCrazy for YouCarouselThe King and IGRETA BRADMAN | DAVID HOBSON | LISA McCUNE | TEDDY TAHU RHODESOpera Australia OrchestraVanessa Scammell Musical DirectorTyran Parke Stage DirectorPhil Bathols and Andrew McKinnon ProducersLive show touring nationally November to December 2017 | frombroadwaytolascala.com.au
