Divine Art Records

Genre: Clarinet or Saxophone

  • Discovering Wilfred Heaton

    Discovering Wilfred Heaton

    “Creative Outlet and Classical Conduit: The Importance of British Brass Band” by Paul Hindmarsh – Classical Music

    Discovering Wilfred Heaton: Premiere recordings of major instrumental works by a remarkable yet overlooked English composer.

    Wilfred Heaton (1918-2000) is a name well-revered in brass band circles, but nearly unknown in the wider world of classical music. Discovering Wilfred Heaton seeks to change that with no less than seven premiere recordings from pianists Murray McLachlan and Rose McLachlan, tenor James Gilchrist, clarinetist Linda Merrick, and flutist Alex Jakeman.

    The album is anchored by the first recording of Heaton’s monumental Piano Sonata, which was performed in 2024 to rapturous applause by Murray McLachlan at Manchester’s Stoller Hall. The Sonata, composed in the 1950s, is a work of striking ambition and depth. Harmonically daring, emotionally raw, and technically formidable, it stands comparison with the great mid-century sonatas of Bartók and Prokofiev. From the muscular counterpoint of its opening, through a grief-tinged slow movement and a dazzling finale, Heaton’s sonata reveals a powerful, individual voice—he was fearless in embracing big themes, bold melodies, and contemporary idioms.

    Also featured are first recordings of the Three Pieces for Piano (1954), and the poignant piano suite Pilgrim Reflections, adapted from Heaton’s mystery play Pilgrim’s Song. A selection of Heaton’s rarely-heard songs—written in his youth and again in later life—are performed here by the acclaimed tenor James Gilchrist, accompanied by Rose McLachlan. Together, these works illuminate Heaton’s stylistic evolution: his command of bitonality, rhythmic complexity, and melodic invention, rooted in a deep understanding of Bach and Brahms, and influenced by Walton, Hindemith, Bartok and Stravinsky.

    Heaton’s career was shaped by a lifelong tension between personal conviction and professional ambition. A deeply private Yorkshireman, he turned away from a mainstream musical path after early promise—studying with Mátyás Seiber and submitting works to the Society for the Promotion of New Music—choosing instead a life of teaching, reflection, and selective composition. The result is a body of work of exceptional quality, much of it unpublished or unheard until now.

    This album is not only a significant act of musical archaeology by Heaton’s biographer and editor Paul Hindmarsh – it is a compelling argument for Heaton’s inclusion among Britain’s most original post-war composers.

    Track highlights:
    • Piano Sonata (premiere recording) – Murray McLachlan,piano
    • Three Pieces for Piano (1954)
    • Pilgrim Reflections (suite for solo piano)

    For fans of: Bartók, Britten, Prokofiev, William Walton, Elisabeth Lutyens, early Tippett.

    An essential discovery for collectors, performers, and listeners drawn to British 20th-century repertoire beyond the usual names.

  • Prokofiev: Cinderella & Romeo and Juliet Ballet Suites

    Prokofiev: Cinderella & Romeo and Juliet Ballet Suites

    Of the major works of Sergei Prokofiev, none (apart perhaps from Peter and the Wolf) have become so well loved by a wide audience as the ballets Cinderella and Romeo and Juliet. From the stage productions, to the orchestral suites, to the piano versions, many of these pieces are universally recognised.

    In the 1950s, four pieces from each ballet were arranged for clarinet and piano by Bronislav Prorvich, a clarinettist with the Bolshoi Theatre. Strangely, so far as we know, these sparkling arrangements have never previously been recorded. Ian Scott and his producer Malcolm McMillan have added a further 12 movements from the ballets, many of which strongly featured the clarinet in the original orchestral version. This has resulted in a lovely collection of pieces that are at once very familiar but also heard in a completely new light.

    SUPPORTED BY THE OLEG PROKOFIEV TRUST

  • Finzi and Brahms: Music for clarinet and piano

    Finzi and Brahms: Music for clarinet and piano

    Helen Habershon is both an accomplished performer and also an inspired composer of music which often evokes nature, or human emotions and sensibilities. Her first two CDs have been highly praised and were Album of the Month and Album of the Week on Classic FM (UK) respectively. Her album ‘Found in Winter’, released in 2019, has been aired by Classic FM ever since. Helen had an established performing career until a serious injury led her to turn to composing, but she is now once again able to perform.

    Here she teams up with the successful pianist and arranger John Lenehan, who has appeared on over 70 recordings including several solo albums for Sony. It follows their March 2022 release ‘Found in Dreams’ – a collection of romantic lighter pieces, where Helen and John offer a wonderfully diverse collection of repertoire. This includes beautiful arrangements of some of their favourite pieces; a couple of short movements from the Brahms and Finzi works played in full on the new album, and some delightful new compositions of their own.

    As grand master of the high Romantic era, Brahms and his first Clarinet Sonata need no introduction. Here, that work is partnered by two songs and two of his Intermezzi, all arranged by John Lenehan for clarinet and piano. As counterpoint we have the Five Bagatelles by Gerald Finzi, a composer in the English post-Romantic pastoral tradition (with Vaughan Williams, Delius etc). Written in 1940 they are simply enchanting, delightful pieces – perhaps not in the modernist fashion of the day but which will prove enduring despite the composer calling them ‘only trifles’.

  • Found in Dreams

    Found in Dreams

    Helen Habershon is both an accomplished performer and an inspired composer of music which often evokes nature, or human emotions and sensibilities this is music which is ‘easy listening’ and in the light music tradition, and is unpretentious, but never facile: it has deep meaning. Her first two CDs have been highly praised and were Album of the Month and Album of the Week on Classic FM (UK) respectively. Her most recent album, ‘Found in Winter’, released in 2019, has been aired by Classic FM ever since. Helen had an established performing career until a serious injury led her to turn to composing, but she is now once again able to perform. Here she teams up with the successful pianist and arranger John Lenehan, who has appeared on over 70 recordings including several solo albums for Sony.

    For Found in Dreams Helen Habershon and John Lenehan offer a wonderfully diverse collection of repertoire. This includes beautiful arrangements of some of their favourite pieces; a couple of short movements of outstanding clarinet repertoire by Brahms and Finzi and some delightful new compositions of their own. As well as his beautifully crafted arrangements John has also written two lovely pieces to add to Helen’s. The cover design is a dream image from Helen’s five year old grandson.

    Throughout history mankind has been intrigued by the idea of dreams and Helen is no exception. As she says: “It’s interesting that all happenings begin as an idea and in order to get an idea one has to be in a receptive place. When creating I find myself in a kind of timeless space, rather like a daydream. I love the freedom of dreams, anything can happen. There are no boundaries and we are free to explore with no limits. The theme of ‘dreams’ came quite naturally and many of the pieces in the album reflect this.”

  • Jonathan Östlund: Imago

    Jonathan Östlund: Imago

    “Östlund’s 2019 double CD Voyages and 2020’s Mistral elevate him to the status of the 21st century’s Debussy.”– Jan Hocek (His Voice)

    Jonathan Östlund (b.1975) is a Swedish composer who has recently been living in Romania and before that London before returning to his home country in 2021. He has manifested an avid interest for music from an early age and has pursued his passion with a BA and MA in Composition at the Luleå Tekniska Universitet, in Sweden. He has studied under the artistic guidance of Prof. Rolf Martinsson, Prof. Jan Sandström and Prof. Sverker Jullander, among others, and has so far completed over 100 works, including several orchestral pieces, a Violin Concerto and a Piano Concerto, and has been awarded many prizes in international competitions.

    This new album follows the distinctive format of previous programs in that it features orchestral, vocal, choral, instrumental and chamber music. Östlund’s primary inspiration is nature which is brought out fully in beautiful Impressionist works such as L’eau de l’oubli and La nuit étoilee. He is also fascinated by the art of composing fantasies and paraphrases on classics and several are included here. A large team of soloists (several of whom also gave the world premieres of these works) were gathered in various locations, often having to work through lockdowns, to record this album. Östlund’s music is very accessible and tonal and often full of wit and humor, and is always atmospheric.

  • ‘From Russia’ – music for clarinet and orchestra

    ‘From Russia’ – music for clarinet and orchestra

    Pure enjoyment is provided by this delightful new recording of popular Russian music arranged for clarinet and orchestra by Robin White. From Rimsky-Korsakov’s Clarinet Concerto – originally scored for military band – to the Andante Cantabile from Tchaikovsky’s first string quartet (a staple for arrangers for decades) this is a beautifully played album by one of Britain’s busiest orchestras. An interloper (but a welcome one) from Italy (but of Eastern European style) provides a superb finale.

    Ian Scott is the principal clarinet of the Royal Ballet Sinfonia and has been guest principal with several top London orchestras. He has previously made premiere recordings of Clarinet Concertos for ASV and Dutton. Arranger and conductor Robin White has enjoyed a very busy and varied career; his first recording (1992, Chandos) was very popular and he has made other recordings of light music for several labels. He has managed his own orchestra and choir and appeared, with his choir, in a pivotal episode of the British TV drama series EastEnders. As an arranger of light music, his work has been broadcast by BBC orchestras many times.

  • Vyacheslav Artyomov: Album XI

    Vyacheslav Artyomov: Album XI

    2021 ICMA Nominee: Contemporary Music

    Vyacheslav Artyomov is considered by many to be Russia’s greatest living composer. His music 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 (which to date has received wonderful reviews internationally) is a mix of new recordings and former Melodiya releases. This is the eleventh album, containing a selection of studio and live concert performances of chamber works for slightly unusual combinations: flute quartet, and saxophones much to the fore. Apart from ‘Hymns of Sudden Wafts’ and Clarinet Sonata these are all premiere releases. The works are performed by some of the best of Moscow’s orchestral and chamber musicians and represent a somewhat lighter (though the term is relative) side to Artyomov’s work than his massive, granitic symphonies. It includes a touching set of songs on poems by Ashot Grashi.

    The extensive list of performers is drawn from the cream of Russia’s chamber and orchestral musicians at the time of the recordings which were made between 1970 and 1991 (and totally remastered in 2019):
    Ruzanna Lisitsian (soprano); Karina Lisitsian (mezzo-soprano); Lev Mikhailov (soprano sax); Alexander Oseichuk (alto sax); Alexei Nabatov (tenor sax); Vladimir Yeriomin (baritone sax); Oleg Tantsov (clarinet); Vladimir Pakulichev, Alexander Timochin & Albert Gofman (flutes); Sergei Khokhlov (alto flute); Valery Popov (bassoon); Alexei Semionov (harpsichord); Yuri Smirnov, Piotr Meschaninov & Vyachelsav Artyomov (pianos); Ilia Spivak (vibraphone, bells)

  • Robin Stevens: Prevailing Winds

    Robin Stevens: Prevailing Winds

    The British composer Robin Stevens is a great talent waiting to be discovered by the global music community. His varied, stimulating and expressive work is exemplified by this collection of music for wind instruments, ranging from the jolly and accessible (yet very difficult to play) Concert Rondo to the darker, deeper and meaningful Grief’s Portrait.

    Stevens has a brilliant touch, and also is an excellent pianist, cellist and guitarist and plays all three instruments here, alongside some of the foremost instrumentalists from the musical hotspot of Manchester, England: John Bradbury (principal clarinet, BBC Philharmonic); John Turner (recorderist: Academy of Ancient Music etc.); Richard Simpson (principal oboe, BBC Symphony), Janet Simpson (former principal keyboardist, Hallé Orchestra); and wonderful soloists Sarah Miller (flutes); Helen Peller (bassoon) and Lindsey Stoker (horn).

  • Mind Music

    Mind Music

    An Album for Charitable Support.

    Parkinson's UK
    Proceeds from the sale of this CD are in aid of Parkinson’s UK

    Degenerative brain diseases (Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s in particular) cause immense distress to sufferers and their families. This album is released to raise funds for research into cures, through Parkinsons UK. Both the soloists lost parents to these diseases hence their wish to support the research. They have chosen works by composers all of whom were similarly afflicted – either in themselves or their close families. Mendelssohn died at a very young age due to degenerative disease, Strauss wrote his work during a period of severe influenza and depression, and Kevin Malone and John Adams struggled to cope when their fathers both succumbed to Alzheimers.

    The works here are serious, often poignant, but also humorous and full of hope. A delightful performance by the two clarinet soloists is bolstered by the excellent Northern Chamber Orchestra.

  • 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’.

  • Absolutely! – Music for string quartet and jazz soloists

    Absolutely! – Music for string quartet and jazz soloists

    When issued, this was our disc of the year, this is so new, different and unique we just love it… not mundane and simplistic crossover but a true fusion and blend of soft jazz solos and improvisations, over standard ‘straight’ classical playing: bring together the top performers Uwe Steinmetz, composer and saxophonist, jazz violinist Mads Tolling and the renowned Fitzwilliam String Quartet. Beautiful, atmospheric and a wonderful experience from beginning to end……

  • The Voice of the Clarinet

    The Voice of the Clarinet

    Along with the cello, the clarinet is often regarded as the most “voice-like” expressive instrument. In a unique programme, 20 art-songs and lieder (and one swing classic!) have been newly arranged for clarinet and piano. The result is a beautiful, unusual and uplifting recital with music from across the world.