Divine Art Records

Genre: Chamber Music

  • Jonathan Östlund : Voyages (Download album)

    Jonathan Östlund : Voyages (Download album)

    Jonathan Östlund is a composer from Sweden who has pursued his passion for music with a BA and MA in Composition at the LTU, in Sweden. He has so far completed more than 100 works, including several orchestral pieces, a Piano Concerto and a Violin Concerto, and has been awarded many prizes in international competitions.

    ‘Voyages’, his second release under Divine Art (after ‘Lunaris’, in 2016), is a double album (issued in digital form only), featuring vocal, instrumental and chamber music, as on ‘Lunaris’, while in addition also featuring two orchestral recordings and works for organ. This new album with a focus on nature, enigmatic atmospheres and introspective journeys, is presented by top international soloists, some of whom have given the world premieres of these works.

    Östlund writes music with natural poetic melodies and highly sophisticated harmonies, blending tradition with contemporary expression.

    This album can also be obtained as a double CD (two tracks omitted in order to fit on 2 discs) HERE

  • Artyomov: A Sonata of Meditations, etc.

    Artyomov: A Sonata of Meditations, etc.

    Vyacheslav Artyomov is considered by many to be Russia’s greatest living composer. Since the fall of the Soviet regime his music has travelled the world to great acclaim. It is deep, ultimately spiritual and brilliantly crafted, with influences from the Russian symphonic tradition colored by Mahler, Scriabin, Honegger and Messiaen to name a few – but melded into a unique voice.

    The Divine Art Artyomov Retrospective is a mix of new recordings and former Melodiya releases. It continues with the seventh album containing two works for percussion ensemble and one orchestral – all typifying Artymov’s true genius as a truly individual composer who can make thoroughly modern music listenable and demanding further regular hearings. The three works on this album are all typical of Artyomov’s individual and impressive genius

    Mark Pekarsky leads the first percussion ensemble established in Russia and still the foremost group in that country. They perform A Sonata of Meditations and Totem while Russian-American conductor Virko Baley directs the superb Moscow Philharmonic in A Garland of Recitations.

  • Fragments – music for flute and harp by The Juniper Project

    Fragments – music for flute and harp by The Juniper Project

    We present The Juniper Project in their debut duo recording in the format of a concert recital with a variety of Romantic and modern works from Debussy to Lutosƚawski. The album title is named for the Lutosƚawski but also to represent the inclusion of highlight movements from works by Marson and Rutter.

    Greek flutist Anna Rosa Mari is a vibrant performer who has appeared around the world as a soloist, has been principal flute with the Chamber Orchestra of the Greek National Opera and has appeared with the Halle, BBC Philharmonic and many other leading orchestras.

    Eira Lynn Jones is one of the UK’s leading harpists with a wide range of activities including concertising, recording and teaching. A regular freelancer with most top UK orchestras, previously a member of the Manhattan Contemporary Music Ensemble, New York, she is currently also head of Harp at the Royal Northern College of Music.

  • Artyomov: The Way to Olympus and other works

    Artyomov: The Way to Olympus and other works

    Vyacheslav Artyomov is considered by many to be Russia’s greatest living composer. After the fall of the Soviet regime his music has travelled the world to great acclaim. It is deep, ultimately spiritual and brilliantly crafted, with influences from the Russian symphonic tradition colored by Mahler, Scriabin, Honegger and Messiaen to name a few – but melded into a unique voice.

    The Divine Art Artyomov Retrospective continues with the magisterial symphony The Way to Olympus, chamber orchestral works and Preludes to Sonnets, Artyomov’s only solo piano work.

    Recorded at the height of achievement of the major Soviet orchestras, conducted by major figures including the universally acclaimed Rozhdestvensky.

  • Rawsthorne and Other Rarities

    Rawsthorne and Other Rarities

    In one sense this is a sequel to the recent release ‘A Garland for John McCabe’ (DDA 25166) – originally intended as a 2nd disc in that set, but it grew to be a full album in its own right, and is also dedicated to McCabe with first recordings of works by McCabe’s fellow composers. Just as importantly it is a feast of fine music by British and American composers, all (except one very short track) recorded for the first time, including principally music by Alan Rawsthorne – the early and jolly String Quartet in B minor, the Chamber Cantata, and the piano version of the remarkable ‘Practical Cats’.

    Clare Wilkinson is receiving rave reviews for her work and is a mezzo with beautiful tone; veteran baritone Mark Rowlinson is the fine reciter of ‘Cats’. John Turner, one of the leading recorder players of today and former member of many world-renowned early-music ensembles, and pianist Peter Lawson, another highly regarded performer who has played with most top British orchestras and has a long and distinguished recording and teaching career, are joined by keyboard maestro Harvey Davies and the very fine Solem Quartet.

  • A Garland for John McCabe

    A Garland for John McCabe

    John McCabe was almost a legend in his own lifetime, acknowledged as one of the foremost British composers of our time and also as a brilliant pianist who championed the work of many contemporary composers. Following his recent death, 19 composers wrote pieces in tribute for an ensemble of clarinet, recorder, viola and piano (and variations of the mix) which are now collected into this album which is lovingly dedicated to John’s memory and also to his widow Monica, who was a tireless support and who now works to promote his musical legacy. We are grateful for her contributions to this project.

    Leading instrumentalists include Linda Merrick (clarinet) who is Principal of the Royal Northern College of Music; Alistair Vennart (viola) whose career is blooming both as soloist and founder member of the Solem Quartet; John Turner, one of the leading recorder players of today and former member of many world-renowned early-music ensembles, and pianist Peter Lawson, another highly regarded performer who has played with most top British orchestras and a long and distinguished recording and teaching career.

  • Violin Muse

    Violin Muse

    Seven world premiere recordings of works by British composers with a range of styles but all in a modern but approachable and often very lyrical idiom from the deep and heartfelt Violin Concerto ‘Soft Stillness’ by Guto Puw to the stunningly simple yet beautiful new work from Michael Nyman. Many of these works were specifically written for, and premiered by, Madeleine Mitchell so this is a very special album for her personally as well as being a fine virtuoso concert. Most works on the album are for violin and piano with Nigel Clayton; Cerys Jones appears in the super violin duet ‘Atlantic Drift’ by Judith Weir, and Puw’s Concerto is a BBC recording with the BBCNOW and American conductor Edwin Outwater.

    Madeleine Mitchell is an internationally acclaimed soloist with a fine discography and has been an inspiration to composers and painters, including Gerald Marks who created his artworks ‘The Madeleine Series’ between 1989 and 1991.

    Madeleine Mitchell talks about ‘Violin Muse’ on YouTube here

  • France Revisited

    France Revisited

    Piano-a-Deux – Husband and wife team Robert and Linda Stoodley are an adventurous duo with a very wide range of repertoire from the pops to major classical works which they present to appreciative audiences all around the world, spending much time as recitalists on cruise ships.

    This new album features a programme of French music, including Debussy’s well known Petite Suite and the superb First Sonata for Piano Duet by George Onslow, contemporary of the young Mozart and on this showing an equal in compositional skill. Add to that Poulenc’s ‘Songs of Love and War’ arranged by Linda into a new suite of pieces, and we have a very entertaining and instructive album beautifully played.

  • Enigmas

    Enigmas

    A varied range of masterful works from English 20th century composers – some familiar and all major works of importance. Elgar composed his Enigma Variations at the piano; it was always suitable for a solo version and Elgar himself wrote this. Bowen’s Flute Sonata is well known – a Romantic staple — as is Leighton’s Elegy, which deserves to be better known. The piano solo work Folio I is lively and full of fun, while the two Sonnets of Rubbra are exquisitely gorgeous and absolutely essential listening.

    Fine performances by pianist Elspeth Wyllie who is an accomplished soloist and chamber musician/accompanist, working throughout the UK and other countries. The young set of musicians here show exceptional talent and musicianship in the recorded works which are very varied yet make up a coherent concert album.

  • Travelling Light: Music of Jim Parker

    Travelling Light: Music of Jim Parker

    Perhaps the name of Jim Parker is not well known – but his music is loved worldwide. Composer of numerous film and theatre scores, he is best known for his television music which includes Foyle’s War, House of Cards, Midsomer Murders and House of Elliott among many more. He has won the British Academy Award for Best TV Music on no less than four occasions.

    This brilliant album collects a number of Parker’s recent compositions which are not directly for TV but still have a marvelous pictorial quality and display his remarkable talent for memorable melodies and coloration, whether it be the recorder acting like a Peruvian pipe, or violins emulating the Hurdy-Gurdy.

    Light music albums of this quality are very rare these days and this is a joyful gem.

  • David Matthews: Romanza

    David Matthews: Romanza

    World Première Recording

    This work was commissioned by Madeleine Mitchell, who also gave the first performance with Nigel Clayton in 2012, following her premiere earlier that year of a version for violin and orchestra. It is a beautiful piece full of emotional warmth and lyricism. This digital single is also from Madeleine’s album of lyrical contemporary music for violin “Violin Muse”.

    Foremost British violinist Madeleine Mitchell commissioned this piece from David Matthews. She gave its first performance in the version for violin and orchestra in October 2012, and in this violin and piano version the following month. It is a remarkable work, thoroughly of today but filled with lyricism and warmth.

    Madeleine Mitchell has performed in over 50 countries and is one of the UK’s most distinguished violinists; she is a ‘pioneer of new music’ (The Times) and specializes in new music of the more lyrical kind rather than the avant-garde. She recently premiered Guto Puw’s Violin Concerto with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales – another work included in the Violin Muse album.

  • Wind Blown – Sonatas for Wind Instruments

    Wind Blown – Sonatas for Wind Instruments

    Peter Hope is one of those remarkably talented composers whose music is far netter known than his name. An arranger and composer of light music for decades, working with the BBC Concert Orchestra and writing themes for public events, his music has been heard worldwide – and by millions of British watchers of BBC TV News which used Peter’s theme for over a decade.

    A selected set of wind soloists present the first CD devoted to Peter Hope’s compositions which are fresh, vigorous and enchanting – and as the composer says, ‘unashamedly tonal’.