• 3 Rhapsodies

    Catalog #: NV6219

    Release Date: March 22, 2019

    21st Century
    Concertos
    Orchestral
    East Asian
    Orchestra
    Piano

    It is tempting to compare Matej Meštrović's compositional style to his great predecessors in the late-Romantic tradition. After all, much of the Croatian composer's style and techniques would be right at home in Rachmaninoff’s concertos, Tchaikovsky's works, or Prokofiev's neoclassicism; and the name of the album's first work, Danube Rhapsody, naturally evokes associations with Smetana's similarly river-themed Vltava. Add to all of this that Meštrović, like most of his great musical ancestors, is a talented virtuoso pianist, and it's easy to see why 3 RHAPSODIES is bound to meet with enthusiasm.

  • 5th (S)eason

    Catalog #: NV5802

    Release Date: June 1, 2008

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Orchestral
    Orchestra
    Piano

    Jonathan Sacks composer “Incantations: Book V” Recorded August 2003 with the Warsaw National Philharmonic Orchestra. Conducted by Carl St. Clair “Litanies” and “Ghost Horses” Recorded December 2006 at Futura Productions in Boston, MA. Produced by Bob Lord “5th (S)eason” Recorded July 2000 [...]

  • A Fine Agitation

    Catalog #: NV6524

    Release Date: June 9, 2023

    21st Century
    Opera
    Stage Works
    Orchestra
    Voice

    Strong convictions make for strong emotion, and in Michael J. Evans' case, emotion transforms into operatic scenes. A FINE AGITATION is an eight-part stage work based on Susan B. Anthony's letters during her infamous voting trial, which sheds light on the beloved social reformer from a personal, intimate, and profoundly charming angle. Both biographies and political subjects are notoriously difficult to set to music without becoming either dry tragedies or kitschy pastiches, but Evans circumvents this pitfall with a compositional style that is subtly, tastefully shaded, and at times almost light-footed. It shows Anthony, an American social justice icon, from a perspective that might have been disregarded for the better part of a century – the perspective of being human.

  • Akanos

    Catalog #: NV5943

    Release Date: February 1, 2014

    21st Century
    Orchestral
    Electroacoustic
    Orchestra

    The music of Irish composer Gráinne Mulvey explores the juxtaposition of polar opposites, pitting the real against the synthetic in finely crafted and thought-provoking works. AKANOS, an all-Mulvey album on Navona Records, includes seven of her works.

  • All American Bass

    Catalog #: NV6464

    Release Date: September 23, 2022

    21st Century
    Orchestral
    Double Bass
    Orchestra

    A champion of repertoire and lauded by the New York Times as a virtuoso, double bassist Richard Fredrickson brings his instrument to the forefront on ALL AMERICAN BASS, an album of works composed specifically for him. Joining the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra and conductor Kirk Trevor, Fredrickson flawlessly navigates the works by Vittorio Giannini, John Carbon, and William Thomas McKinley. From Giannini’s darkly profound and agitated Psalm 130 to Carbon’s Endangered Species, which portrays the double bass as a wild and powerful beast that gracefully reins itself in, to McKinley’s modern, somber-then-lively Passacaglia, Fredrickson’s command of tone and melody creates an unforgettable recording and serves as an encapsulation of the instrument’s potential.

  • All Is Mere Breath

    Catalog #: NV6587

    Release Date: December 8, 2023

    21st Century
    Vocal Music
    Choir
    Orchestra

    "Havel havalim hakol hevel," — “Merest breath, all is mere breath.” In the throes of lockdown, Nicholas Weininger found himself reflecting on this Hebrew verse; what is the nature of our collective life sustained on if not breath and breath alone? It was a breath robbed and convoluted during the COVID-19 pandemic: the ravaged breath of the afflicted, the fear of coming too close to the breath of another. Our world seemed to pause and take a breath, busy city streets gone barren amid our collective anxieties. Debuted and recorded by the Empire City Men’s Chorus, ALL IS MERE BREATH asks us to question the nature of our changed society in the thought of mere breath alone, and offers us refuge in the breath of song, perhaps, now and then, the purest form of it.

  • An Orchestral Journey

    Catalog #: NV6047

    Release Date: August 12, 2016

    21st Century
    Orchestral
    Orchestra

    A composer equally accustomed to writing for orchestra, opera, film, theater, chorus, and chamber ensembles, Brian Wilbur Grundstrom’s voice includes a strong affinity for long melodic lines, distinctive tonal harmonic vocabulary, engaging rhythms, skillfully executed counterpoint, and dramatic imagery, all of which are reflected in the five orchestral works which span fourteen years on his debut release with Navona Records, AN ORCHESTRAL JOURNEY, to create a visionary and lyrical expedition that is quite accessible and easily travelled for the listener.

  • Anthelion

    Catalog #: NV6402

    Release Date: January 28, 2022

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Solo Instrumental
    Cello
    Orchestra
    Viola

    Navona Records presents ANTHELION, showcasing favorite works from composer Adrienne Elisha (1958-2017). The works that comprise the album are technically demanding and rich in philosophical significance. Anthelion, for one, is a sonic contemplation of a natural phenomenon in which the sun’s light is projected across the sky, reflecting itself on the opposite horizon. The two-movement work, scored for flute, clarinet, violin, violoncello, percussion, and piano, expresses moments of “sonic abstraction” and continuous reverberation by way of unique instrumental timbres. In TranscenDance, on the other hand, Elisha makes a humanistic statement about the Syrian civil war, borrowing joyful melodies from Arab music and reimagining them in an orchestral setting. In this way, the music of ANTHELION is at once abstract and deeply contextual, challenging yet ultimately transcendent.

  • Astral Travels

    Catalog #: NV6015

    Release Date: November 13, 2015

    21st Century
    Orchestral
    Orchestra
    Saxophone

    With an innate sense of curiosity and a drive for knowledge, humans constantly push the boundaries of their physical and psychological environments, attempting to break through and discover the unexpected. On his debut Navona Records release ASTRAL TRAVELS, composer and double bassist David Arend explores several frontiers, including perceived boundaries between musical genres, earth and outer space, humanity and nature, and perception and reality.

  • At the Precipice

    Catalog #: NV5948

    Release Date: May 1, 2014

    21st Century
    Orchestral
    Orchestra

    AT THE PRECIPICE, the third release on Navona Records featuring the music of the late composer Yves Ramette (1921-2012), showcases four world premiere recordings of the composer's works. Recorded with the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra in the summer of 2013 after his passing, these four orchestral pieces follow on the heels of Ramette's albums CASCADING INTO REVERIE for piano and orchestra and WITH PASSION for solo piano, and offer interesting insight into not only the composer himself but also the times in which he worked.

  • Black is Beautiful

    Catalog #: NV6599

    Release Date: February 9, 2024

    21st Century
    Vocal Music
    Choir
    Orchestra

    BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL from Dr. Diane Retallack and The Eugene Concert Choir is an ode to hope in the face of injustice. This Navona Records release showcases music by Black composers that shed light on the Black experience including two choral masterworks: Seven Last Words of the Unarmed by Joel Thompson and the world premiere recording of Dr. Undine Smith Moore’s oratorio Scenes from the Life of a Martyr. Thompson’s composition is modeled after Haydn’s The Seven Last Words of Christ; in this work, Joel Thompson quotes the last words of seven unarmed African American men killed by police or authority figures. Moore’s oratorio depicts the life of Martin Luther King, Jr, from birth to carefree childhood, young love, a calling to amplify the voice of his people, the hatred he experienced for his commitment, the grief of his untimely death, and the power of his message. These works are joined by the world premiere of The Hymn! by Stacey V. Gibbs and an arrangement of Glory from the film Selma by Dr. Eugene Rogers.

  • Carmen’s Revenge

    Catalog #: NV5837

    Release Date: November 1, 2010

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Stage Works
    Orchestra
    Piano
    Voice

    CARMEN'S REVENGE is Osias Wilenski's humorous homage to Bizet's Carmen. Wilenskidraws from the works of Bizet, Mozart, and others to create a sort of operatic medley that places Carmen within modern society. This recording features soprano Maria Rosa López and baritone César Puente.

  • Centuria S-Quark

    Catalog #: NV6200

    Release Date: January 25, 2019

    21st Century
    Orchestral
    Orchestra

    Composer Stas Namin has been recognized throughout his lifetime for using art to critique society and stand up against injustice, and his latest work with the London Symphony Orchestra is certainly no exception. CENTURIA S-QUARK, Namin’s symphony, is the composer’s prediction of a strange, material world to come in which humanity functions less as a community and instead favors individual interests. Using the sonata form as a base, Namin builds from multiple themes to create the symphony — after all, life itself is so complex that the human experience does not build from just a couple themes.

  • Collected Works of Beth Mehocic

    Catalog #: NV6410

    Release Date: January 14, 2022

    21st Century
    Orchestral
    Orchestra

    The music of composer Beth Mehocic comes together as a fulfilling and enticing whole in the COLLECTED WORKS OF BETH MEHOCIC. This all encompassing album merges the many corners and triumphs of Mehocic’s library, with commissioned pieces, tone poems, and various styles colliding in celebration of her extensive breadth of repertoire. Find early works like Piece by Piece alongside the more recent Left of Winter, Picasso’s Flight, and others with performances from Trio Casals, Croatian Chamber Orchestra, Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava, Altius Quartet, Zagreb Festival Orchestra, and more.

  • Comme Bon Lui Semble

    Catalog #: NV6560

    Release Date: October 27, 2023

    21st Century
    Orchestral
    Solo Instrumental
    Orchestra
    Piano
    Violin

    Composer Sophie Dupuis presents dazzling, profoundly eclectic compositions inspired by visual art on COMME BON LUI SEMBLE. Dupuis' musical language is measured, almost minimalist, but the colors she weaves into bright tapestries of sound certainly aren't. Pop culture or high culture, she draws inspiration from numerous sources — leading to compositions that are at once highly abstract, yet highly descriptive. It's a tightrope to walk, and at dizzying heights, but thankfully, Dupuis is not susceptible to musical vertigo.

  • Concerto 2000 and Other Works

    Catalog #: NV6291

    Release Date: June 26, 2020

    21st Century
    Concertos
    Flute
    Orchestra

    Jan Järvlepp's first Navona release, CONCERTO 2000, presents a tonal concerto, scored for orchestra – one might think Wagner or Mahler when listening. Except that Wagner and Mahler might not quite have agreed with the directness of his tonal language: for Järvlepp's work unabashedly aspires to appeal on a popular level.

  • Concerto For Soprano Saxophone & Orchestra

    Catalog #: NV6032

    Release Date: March 11, 2016

    21st Century
    Concertos
    Orchestra
    Saxophone

    I met the Swedish saxophonist Anders Paulsson in the early 90s through my friend and mentor John Corigliano. Anders, always a very entrepreneurial sort of musician, was to be the focus of a 1996 concert on Swedish Public Television. Fortunately for me, the program included funding for a commission of a new concerto, and Anders kindly asked me to compose something for soprano sax and large orchestra.

  • Contemporary Colours

    Catalog #: NV6322

    Release Date: November 20, 2020

    21st Century
    Orchestral
    Orchestra

    Conductor Sergey Smbatyan leads the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra on their new album CONTEMPORARY COLOURS. Featuring music exclusively by Maltese composers, the album combines full orchestration with pre-recorded elements, traditional instruments, and contemporary sounds to bring the pieces to life.

  • Continuum

    Catalog #: NV5836

    Release Date: November 30, 2010

    21st Century
    Orchestral
    Orchestra

    CONTINUUM features the modern orchestral works of Stephen "Lucky" Mosko, Tim Sullivan, Dan Crozier, and Michael G. Cunningham. From Mosko is the premier recording of Transliminal Music, one of only three of the composer's orchestral works. From Sullivan is Polychrome, a piece based in instrumental colors that finds the perfect balance between experimentalism and accessibility. From Crozier is Fairy Tale, an "opera scene without words" that explores the narrative power of music. From Cunningham is TransActions, which is driven by actions, gestures, and lines on one orchestra level bringing about reactions on other levels.

  • Cross Connection

    Catalog #: NV5903

    Release Date: March 1, 2013

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Orchestral
    Orchestra
    String Quartet

    CROSS CONNECTION features the works of Henry Wolking and James Scott Balentine, two composers whose works perfectly complement each other through musical studies of crossed paths and human togetherness. Both composers works consider the meaning of life, love, and music, and the relationship between each: Gone Playin', a spirited musical riff on epitaphs and their connection of life and death; The Old Gypsy, a Hungarian-influenced piece for string quartet that reflects on the perpetuity of musical themes and influences; and Dun Eideann Blogh, a recollection of times past with friends and family.