The Norwegian Soloists' Choir, Grete Pedersen
Veni: Songs of Christmas II [ BIS SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 4/Nov/2023 ] December is a time of anticipation. We wait and we hope - veni, come! The songs on this album encompass many nuances and moods - from joy and jubilant celebration to deep melancholy and longing. They move between folk tunes, English carols and... |
ARVO PART
Pärt: Passio Helsinki Chamber Choir, Nils Schweckendiek [ BIS SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 3/Aug/2021 ] "What impresses me immediately about this new recording is the lustrous depth of the sound of the choir and solo singers, which brings out every dissonance and resolution almost forensically" Gramophone Editor's Choice Nov 2021.. |
PERTTU HAAPANEN
Reports - choral works by Perttu Haapanen Helsinki Chamber Choir, Petri Kumela, Heikki Parviainen, Nils Schweckendiek (conductor) [ BIS / CD - released 10/Apr/2019 ] Playful and with an acute ear for the full range of possibilities of the human voice, Perttu Haapanen has established himself as one of the most exploratory and intellectually curious composers of vocal music active in the Nordic countries. His... |
SERGEI RACHMANINOV
Rachmaninov: All-Night Vigil (Vespers) Netherlands Radio Choir / Kaspars PutniĆš [ BIS SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 22/Feb/2014 ] Phrases reminiscent of liturgical chant appear in Rachmaninov's music...and from the time of its first performance in 1915, his All-Night Vigil has been recognised as a supreme achievement in the music of the Russian Orthodox Church. |
EINOJUHANI RAUTAVAARA
Rautavaara: Vigilia - All-Night Vigil in Memory of St. John the Baptist Niall Chorell (tenor), Tuukka Haapaniemi (bass), Helsinki Chamber Choir / Nils Schweckendiek [ BIS SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 6/Sep/2019 ] "the 21 professional voices sing with tremendous flexibility and clarity, meaning that however full and generous the choral textures may be, clarity is always achieved. It helps that BIS have recorded the performance magnificently." MusicWeb |
ALFRED JANSON
The Wind Blows: Music For Choir by Alfred Janson Norwegian Soloists' Choir (Det Norske Solistkor) / Grete Pedersen, Alfred Janson (melodica), Members of the Oslo Sinfonietta [ BIS / CD - released 10/Aug/2018 ] Works by Norwegian composer Alfred Janson spanning several genres and four decades. |
BENT SORENSEN
Sørensen: St Matthew Passion The Norwegian Soloists' Choir, Ensemble Allegria Grete Pedersen, conductor [ BIS SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 3/Mar/2023 ] "It's a virtuoso account of a piece that takes the spirit of Bach and says something quite new." Gramophone Editor's Choice July 2023 |
VARIOUS COMPOSERS
Femina moderna - music for mixed choir Allmänna Sången Choir, Marina Goundorina (conductor) [ BIS SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 20/Nov/2016 ] "The choir's sound is fresh and direct. Its ensemble is tight and its diction crisp" BBC Music |
VILLA-LOBOS
Floresta do Amazonas Anna Korondi (soprano) / Sao Paulo Symphony Orchestra / Sao Paulo Symphony Choir / John Neschling [ BIS / Hybrid SACD - released 1/Jun/2010 ] "It's a typical Villa-Lobos patchwork, including a male chorus chanting in an Amazonian language, extravagant vocalise for the soprano solo and lushly romantic textures straight out of Hollywood...this recording...reveals the score in all its... |
ALFRED SCHNITTKE
Symphony No. 2 St. Florian Bellini, Eliasson, Ernman, Borelius (soloists) / Mikaeli Chamber Choir / Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra / Leif Segerstam (conductor) [ BIS / CD - released 1/Jan/1995 ] Leif Segerstamis currently chief conductor of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra. In addition he holds honorary titles with the Danish National Symphony Orchestra and the Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz in Germany. |