• 40 Years of Contemporary Music

    Catalog #: NV6172

    Release Date: July 13, 2018

    20th Century
    21st Century
    Chamber
    Large Ensemble
    Percussion
    Voice

    Since composer, conductor and musicologist Alicia Terzian founded Grupos Encuentros in 1978, the six-person group has garnered international acclaim for its success at bringing the music of avant-garde Argentinian and Latin American composers to the world. On 40 YEARS OF CONTEMPORARY MUSIC, their debut recording for NAVONA RECORDS, the group combines compositions from such well-known Latin American composers as Heitor Villa-Lobos, Alberto Ginaslera, and Terzian herself with works by an international array of composers that ranges from Anton Webern (Germany) to Luciano Berio (Italy) to Franz Schreker (Austria) to Pierre Boulez (France).

  • A Phoenix Rising

    Catalog #: NV6532

    Release Date: July 14, 2023

    21st Century
    Romantic
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Piano
    Voice

    Tenor Brian Smith Walters is a force to be reckoned with — endowed with a dark, thundering timbre and magnificent, towering style, he is the embodiment of a Heldentenor. His first Navona Records release is a challenging cross-section of chansons and Lieder spanning five centuries, and Walters navigates them with stunning bravado. It doesn't matter whether he sings Purcell or Copland, Schubert or Saint Saens, Tchaikovsky or Barber, Wagner or Szymanowski – the energetic grip Walters has on every single piece is awe-inducing, every rendition buzzing with vibrance and profundity. Accompanied here by only the piano, there is only one word to describe the tenor and A PHOENIX RISING: intense.

  • A Song For Silenced Voices

    Catalog #: NV6405

    Release Date: February 4, 2022

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Solo Instrumental
    Piano
    String Quartet
    Voice

    New York City native Michael Cohen surprises with a formidable cross section of his oeuvre, the splendidly and mysteriously named A SONG FOR SILENCED VOICES. Narrowly skirting traditional notions of (a)tonality, this selection of works leaps to and fro between collected serenity and impassioned melodicism. The setups are as diverse as the music: A SONG FOR SILENCED VOICES includes a string quartet, an excerpt of Cohen's opera Rappaccini's Daughter, a Prelude for Piano, a chamber/vocal work titled I Remember based on works from his musical Yours, Anne, as well as the album's namesake piece, which happens to be not a song, but a duo for cello and piano.

  • Adolphus Hailstork: Chamber Works

    Catalog #: NV6667

    Release Date: November 15, 2024

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Piano
    String Quartet
    Voice

    It's admittedly rare to hear contemporary classical music that delivers a shot of energy and drive like a cup of coffee: strong enough to wake you up, but in a way that is still pleasing to the senses. ADOLPHUS HAILSTORK boasts exactly this rare and invigorating combination — and the energetic performance by The Harlem Chamber Players adds an extra boost on top. Hailstork’s music blends African, American, and European traditions; there are parts that positively sound like something Shostakovich or Prokofiev might have written, perhaps echoes of Hailstork's studies with Nadia Boulanger in the 1960s. There are moments of contemplation, but if this album is anything, it's invigorating and profound.

  • Aria

    Catalog #: NV6577

    Release Date: January 5, 2024

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Harp
    Piano Trio
    Voice

    Composer Michael Cohen delivers an enticing follow up to his 2022 Navona Records release with ARIA, his second full album of original chamber works. Featuring a mix of studio and live recordings captured from various points in his diverse and expansive career, Cohen’s music emanates a thorough line of vitality and fervor. While strikingly rooted in tonal principles, these works embrace an elegant, confident, and ebullient character, permeated by a magnificent, effervescent spontaneity throughout.

  • ARK Resounding

    Catalog #: NV6493

    Release Date: February 3, 2023

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Cello
    Piano
    Voice

    Non-standard setups in classical music may be interesting, but they are commonly faced with the problem of limited repertoire. The ARK Trio, formed by soprano Allison Charney, cellist Kajsa William-Olsson, and pianist Reiko Uchida, has found a way of circumventing this challenge by commissioning works from contemporary composers as well as re-arranging classics, and the result can be heard on their debut release, ARK RESOUNDING. The pieces presented here may be an eclectic mix of American history, Bachian and Schubertian influences, and timeless poetry, but they are all united by one common denominator: the bittersweet trials and tribulations of love.

  • Ask of Me What the Birds Sang

    Catalog #: NV6481

    Release Date: December 9, 2022

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Flute
    Guitar
    Voice

    Modern traditionalist composer Garth Baxter’s album ASK OF ME WHAT THE BIRDS SANG presents a wide variety of instrumental works as well as vocal music; each of these unique pieces has a special connection with a song. When Lights Begin to Show, for example, includes a musical quote from “Afternoon on a Hill,” which is the first song in Three Poems from Edna St. Vincent Millay. The songs referenced sometimes come from earlier works by Baxter or borrow from folk music. An unabashedly lyrical composer, Baxter combines the traditions of form and clear melodic writing with contemporary approaches to harmony and other elements.

  • Ask the Moon

    Catalog #: NV6133

    Release Date: January 12, 2018

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Piano
    Voice

    Composer Garth Baxter makes his PARMA debut with a collection of his exquisite works for voice entitled Ask the Moon. This album is about the human condition and the pursuit of light in darkness. A setting of Sara Teasdale’s “Nights Without Sleep,” for voice and piano commences the album’s journey of introspection.

  • Brass Rail Blues

    Catalog #: NV5953

    Release Date: May 1, 2014

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Clarinet
    Piano
    Voice

    On her second release on Navona Records, BRASS RAIL BLUES, Canadian composer and oboist Patricia Morehead showcases her ability to incorporate varying instrumentation into her compositions, from mezzo-soprano and chamber ensemble; to flute and piano; to mandolin, cello, and clarinet. Because of this variety, the composer creates a world of imagery, setting poems by such writers as Margaret Atwood, Anne Sexton, and Cathy Ann Elias in several of her pieces.

  • Butterfly Effects

    Catalog #: NV6196

    Release Date: November 9, 2018

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Flute
    Piano
    Voice

    BUTTERFLY EFFECTS AND OTHER WORKS contains four pieces of music, each with its own personality. Vercoe composed Butterfly Effects using evocative melodies reminiscent of a butterfly in flight. The mood of each of the seven movements, set by the interplay of harp and flute (piccolo, bass, alto, or concert flute), is at times somber and reflective, and at other times bluesy and brilliant. Vercoe experiments with various techniques, sometimes with soaring melodies and trills in the flute, and at other times with more primal, percussive sounds such as beat boxing and key slaps.

  • Cadence

    Catalog #: NV6061

    Release Date: October 14, 2016

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Liturgical
    Vocal Music
    Piano
    Voice

    CADENCE, the new vocal music compilation from Navona Records, offers a set of inspired, emotive premiere recordings by composers Christopher J. Hoh, David Kirtley, Joanne D. Carey, and Timothy Kramer in works juxtaposing the ethereal and the earthy, the diaphanous and the muscular, and the serene and the agile.

  • Cantilena

    Catalog #: NV6293

    Release Date: June 26, 2020

    20th Century
    Romantic
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Cello
    Voice

    Since the late 18th century, art songs have combined poetic vocals and equally intricate instrumental accompaniments to delight listeners with intimate compositions across the globe. The Malta Philharmonic Orchestra Trio’s CANTILENA spans the centuries and continents to highlight the form’s enduring appeal.

  • 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.

  • Chamber Works of Éric Tanguy

    Catalog #: NV6451

    Release Date: August 26, 2022

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Piano
    Voice

    CHAMBER WORKS OF ÉRIC TANGUY from Navona Records and composer Eric Tanguy delivers three world premiere recordings and a curated selection of the composer’s chamber pieces that demonstrates his illustrative style of punctuated modality. Brought to life by talented artists Ambroise Aubrun (violin), Cécilia Tsan (cello), Steven Vanhauwaert (piano), Martin Chalifour (violin), and Elissa Johnston (soprano), these seven pieces reflect many years of past collaboration amongst the performers resulting in a connection that is translated through thoughtful yet intense musical stylings. Tanguy’s ear-catching melodies and personalized compositions foster a sound quality that showcases the strengths and dexterity of the performers, all the while providing a stimulating and intimate listening experience.

  • Compelling Portraits

    Compelling Portraits

    Catalog #: NV6552

    Release Date: September 8, 2023

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Cello
    Trombone
    Voice

    COMPELLING PORTRAITS from lauded trombonist Kenneth Thompkins celebrates the music of contemporary Black composers. The album features five pieces, three of which are commissioned trombone chamber music works. These compositions take listeners on a journey from the contemplative to the triumphant, showcasing Thompkins’s range and sensitivity as a performer. The title track, composed by James Lee lll, is a musical ode to the paintings in Jacob Lawrence’s Migration Series and in particular his painting Confrontation at the Bridge (Selma, Alabama). Drawing upon the works of multiple contemporary artists, COMPELLING PORTRAITS reflects the contribution of contemporary Black composers to a rich musical legacy.

  • Conversations with My Soul

    Catalog #: NV6336

    Release Date: February 5, 2021

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Piano
    String Quartet
    Voice

    Newly released from Navona is CONVERSATIONS WITH MY SOUL, a collection of new chamber works from acclaimed composer-pianist Bun-Ching Lam. The music sets in different languages the poetry of Shelley, Heine, Rimbaud, and Lasker-Shüller, as well as the poems of 9th Century Chinese mystic Han Shan and contemporary writer Etel Adnan. In a compositional voice The New York Times has called “alluringly exotic,” Lam incorporates baritone voice, piano, viola, flute, French horn, and harp to elucidate timeless works concerning life’s fundamental questions.

  • Crimson & Lace

    Catalog #: NV6006

    Release Date: August 14, 2015

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Voice

    On CRIMSON & LACE, Navona Records' compilation of modern works for voice and chamber ensemble, composers John G. Bilotta, David DeVasto, and Paula Diehl present works that depict the struggles as well as the rewards of human experience, such as heartache, death, love, hope, uncertainty, tragedy, and the resilience of the human spirit.

  • David Jaeger: Chamber Works for Viola

    Catalog #: NV6528

    Release Date: June 9, 2023

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Piano
    Viola
    Voice

    CHAMBER WORKS FOR VIOLA from composer David Jaeger gathers together some of Jaeger’s most defiantly creative compositions and demonstrates the vast possibilities of the viola and the chamber music genre as a whole. The album includes pieces like Diptych for viola and piano, lamenting at one moment and brazen the next. Six Miniatures on poems by David Cameron, for solo viola brings to life the poetic works of David Cameron, winner of the 2014 Hennessy Literary Award for Poetry. The album features the tasteful virtuosity of violist Carol Gimbel and pianist Cullan Bryant. Jaeger’s music will surely remind listeners—and perhaps even some other composers—of the rich tonal palate the viola offers.

  • Daytime & Night Songs

    Catalog #: NV6256

    Release Date: October 25, 2019

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Cello
    Guitar
    Voice

    Composer Mira J. Spektor presents both sensitivity and passion in her new album DAYTIME & NIGHT SONGS. She combines masterful, original compositions with thought-provoking poetry written by a number of artists.

  • Deep River

    Catalog #: NV6650

    Release Date: August 16, 2024

    20th Century
    Folk Music
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Strings
    Voice

    One might be tempted to think that there is no crossover in music that hasn't been done yet; and thankfully, one would be mistaken. DEEP RIVER presents a vibrant selection of 21 African American spirituals, interpreted by countertenor Michael Walker II and early music consort Alchymy Viols. A curious collaboration? Not at all, according to director Philip Spray. The viol consort's historical purpose was to arrange popular tunes of its day; so it appeared only logical to try this setup on America's first folk songs. It worked. Additional harmonies are provided by a distinctly anachronistic grand harp, and accompaniment by a small field pump organ. The effect is stunning: a music so utterly, distinctly American, one wonders why this hasn't been done before.