Incantations
Catalog #: NV6690
Release Date: January 10, 2025
21st CenturyChamberString QuartetThe Sirius Quartet speaks past the veil in INCANTATIONS, a collection of nine works honoring memory, grief, and the aspect of loss as it appears in our interpersonal and social relationships. The music of INCANTATIONS is a speaking vessel to concentrate the profound loss experienced at the individual and communal level in recent decades into a great beyond, a release of grief for its composers, performers, and listeners alike. Exploring grief as it exists in political, cultural, and familial spaces, the Sirius Quartet commentates on the loss of loved ones as eloquently as it commentates on the loss of shared humanity in the great American political divide, or the devastating loss afflicted by unnecessary war. Pulling from various cultural diasporas, INCANTATIONS teaches a lesson in the universal language of loss, and the unique and beautiful ways we respond and adapt to it.
Viola Fantasies
Catalog #: NV6692
Release Date: December 13, 2024
BaroqueChamberSolo InstrumentalViolaVIOLA FANTASIES from virtuoso Misha Galaganov presents the groundbreaking solo works Fantasies for Bass Viol (1735) by Baroque composer Georg Philipp Telemann. These compositions are the only known solo works from a major Baroque composer to almost ideally complement the modern viola’s range and tonal characteristics. In this album, Galaganov uses natural gut strings and modern tuning to interpret Telemann’s beautiful melodies, inventive polyphony, and dance rhythms. Galaganov uses his scholastic research, knowledge, experience, and musical instincts to inform each performance regarding dynamics, tempi, ornamentation, and other aspects of interpretation. Essential and pleasant listening for all audiences, these works also offer a study in polyphony, ornamentation, bow technique, and more.
Kleemation
Catalog #: NV6658s2
Release Date: December 13, 2024
21st CenturyChamberSolo InstrumentalOboeViolinComposer Michael K. Slayton continues his quest of lending a musical voice to the paintings of 20th century artists with KLEEMATION, the second single from his upcoming Navona Records album, SAGE BRUSHES. Commissioned by oboist Jared Hauser, this piece features responses to the highly imaginative and evocative work of the Swiss-German Expressionist/Cubist/Surrealist artist Paul Klee (1879–1940). The twinkle-in-the-eye of “Senecio,” the stark, cubed contrasts of “Ancient Harmony,” and the optical expressive energy of “Kettledrummer” served as catalysts.
Sonata for Flute and Piano
Catalog #: NV6685
Release Date: December 6, 2024
21st CenturyChamberFlutePianoSONATA FOR FLUTE AND PIANO by Timothy Schmalz is a vibrant and eclectic three-movement piece. This technically-demanding sonata incorporates a wide range of musical styles, inspired by Schmalz’s years spent studying works from the classical and pre-Romantic periods as well as the 20th and 21st centuries. The musical vernacular of the work is at once daring and playful, with the final movement representing a full “dream cycle.” Likened to a “musical children’s book” by the composer, this piece — Schmalz’s first foray into sonatas for small chamber ensembles — invites listeners young and old into the realm of imagination.
Shifting Direction
Catalog #: NV6681
Release Date: November 15, 2024
21st CenturyChamberClarinetFluteViolinA resilient voice for new music, Eric Allen conducts the Texas Tech University Contemporary Music Ensemble in SHIFTING DIRECTION, a collection of three works by composers Joan Tower, Jennifer Jolley, and Jennifer Higdon. Elevated by Allen's precise conducting and careful attention to detail, SHIFTING DIRECTION provides three unique listening directions for contemporary music enjoyers to delight in. In Petroushskates, Tower paints an image of a carnival on ice, a whirling winter affair inspired by the thematic material of Stravinsky's Petrushka as it appears in the opening Shrovetide fair sequence. Weaving and flowing, the music creates the graceful effect of seeing a figure skating routine. Jolley's Blue Glacier Decoy pays tribute to the path of modern dancer and choreographer Trisha Brown, who revered the glacier and incorporated its landscape and movement into her work. SHIFTING DIRECTION closes with a bang — or rather, a zap — with Higdon's Zaka, a word which is defined as doing the following at great speed: zap, sock, race, turn, drop, sprint. The ensemble moves at an electric pace to capture the essence of the term.
Adolphus Hailstork: Chamber Works
Catalog #: NV6667
Release Date: November 15, 2024
21st CenturyChamberPianoString QuartetVoiceIt'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.
Denmark Vesey
Catalog #: NV6676
Release Date: November 8, 2024
21st CenturyChamberString QuartetComposer Thomas Cabaniss and the Charleston Symphony String Quartet bring a new and exquisite recording of Cabaniss's third, fourth, and sixth string quartets to Navona Records. A complementary record to the previously released FOUR ELEMENTS, DENMARK VESEY completes Cabaniss's six-quartet series. Bearing endless musical complexities masked in an air of exquisite melodic simplicity, the Charleston Symphony String Quartet effectively captures the evolving story between each movement and each quartet. Just as easily as they lean into the melancholy lines of the sixth, whose narrative tells the viscerally emotional story of Denmark Vesey, a slave revolt leader, they capture the harsh futuristic elements of the fourth and the flowing dance movements of the third. No doubt, DENMARK VESEY again proves Cabaniss to be a composer of wide variety, a collaboration that cements his legacy in the string ensemble genre.
Beethoven: The Complete Cello Sonatas
Catalog #: NV6673
Release Date: November 8, 2024
RomanticChamberString QuartetLauded cellist Emily Mantone is accompanied by Umi Garrett on BEETHOVEN: THE COMPLETE CELLO SONATAS, working in tandem to bring a new and distinctive tone to the five sonatas weaving through the lifetime of the great composer.
Second Nature
Catalog #: NV6672
Release Date: November 8, 2024
21st CenturyChamberBrass EnsembleAs a musical ensemble and non-profit organization, Calliope Brass flourishes in its joint mission of cultivating both entertainment and education. And with the freshly-commissioned contemporary works on SECOND NATURE, this vibrant ensemble proves that innovation lies at the very core of its existence. Leaning heavily into tailor-made commissions can be an artistic gamble for any musical group, but in this case it pays off. The compositions’ motives are diverse in their representations of nature — meditations on mushrooms, Greek mythology, and modern dating, to name a few — but the performance given by Calliope Brass is one thing only: comprehensively flawless.
From the Sea to the Stars
Catalog #: NV6666
Release Date: October 25, 2024
20th Century21st CenturyChamberOboePianoOutside of Russian ballets and Mozart symphonies, the oboe is an instrument that generally does not get a lot of credit. But on FROM THE SEA TO THE STARS, the instrument is thrust into the spotlight it deserves. The driving force? Accomplished American oboists Lindsay Flowers and Andrew Parker. Center stage, it turns out, is a surprisingly merited place for the oboe and its bigger sister, the English horn — especially in contemporary composition. Flowers and Parker have curated a moody selection of beautiful, minimalist pieces that allow the respective instruments to shine on their own — accompanied only here and there by a pleasingly subtle piano. Delicate, lyrical, and utterly charming.
Esfahân
Catalog #: NV6647
Release Date: October 25, 2024
21st CenturyFolk MusicChamberGuitarString QuartetVoiceESFAHÂN features eight cross-cultural compositions by Reza Vali. Blending Persian and Western classical traditions, the album is the first commercial recording of these works. Highlights include Hajiani, for Karnâ and electronics, as well as Sornâ (Folk Songs, Set No. 17) for Persian wind instruments and ensemble, featuring traditional Persian wind instruments. Highlights also include Four Persian Mystic Poems for mezzo-soprano and ensemble, and Esfahân for string quartet. Vali’s music is both highly innovative and deeply rooted in tradition; the unique modal system he uses borrows from the ancient Persian Dastgâh-Maqâm system, which was rediscovered through his extensive study of Iranian folk music. Despite eschewing Western approaches to counterpoint and musical form, Vali’s music is polyphonic and highly structured. The result is a compelling marriage of East and West, old and new.
Ink Traces
Catalog #: NV6670
Release Date: October 4, 2024
21st CenturyChamberSolo InstrumentalPianoViolinInspiring curiosity, cultural interaction, and deep listening, INK TRACES reflects violinist Julia Glenn’s 15-year journey exploring Chinese culture and interactions between Chinese language and music, fueled by frequent trips and three years living in China. This Navona Records release reflects a greater interdisciplinary approach seen in Chinese arts - one that blends poetry, dance, painting, calligraphy, and music and shows fascinating interchanges between gesture and sound. The title, inspired in part by Pan Kai's Ink Traces of Sigh for solo violin, is a nod to such interplay. The album explores three threads: probing the musical-linguistic play possible in the music of Chinese speakers, broadening perspectives on Chinese music, and fostering cultural dialogue between China and the United States. It features works by Chinese and Chinese-speaking composers, stretching traditional Western musical boundaries to create rich, imaginative soundscapes and processes.
American Woman
Catalog #: NV6659
Release Date: October 4, 2024
20th CenturyRomanticChamberCelloPianoThe cello-piano duo is justly hailed for its tremendous expressiveness. Cellist Juliana Soltis and pianist Ruoting Li remarkably demonstrate this setup's emotive power on AMERICAN WOMAN while championing a noble cause — highlighting underrepresented women composers. Featuring works by Mary Howe, Amy Beach, Margaret Bonds, Helen Crane, Dorothy Rudd Moore, and Florence Price, AMERICAN WOMAN sheds light on a treasure trove of rarely heard gems of cello-piano literature. The general tone is sweeping, romantic, expressive, at times fierce and energetic, then again tender and delicate. Soltis and Li show extraordinary ability not only in bringing out the unique style of each composer, but also in uniting them all in a great artistic effort.
Polyglot
Catalog #: NV6655
Release Date: October 4, 2024
21st CenturyRomanticChamberCelloClarinetPianoEric Schultz’s masterful clarinet playing speaks in new and known tongues on POLYGLOT, a concept album celebrating music as a language of cultural identity and the self. A strong advocate of living composers, Schultz opens with an engrossing performance of Iván Enrique Rodríguez’s Sonata Santera, exploring the development and evolution of three Caribbean Santeria rituals. Schultz captures the enchanting, mystical nature of the rituals between the rhythmic, driving movements, occasionally accompanied by percussive elements. Schultz follows with Críptico no. 9: DAVЯTHAN, an interpretive piece that centralizes language and text-setting at the core of its composition. Shortly followed is Johnny Navarro’s romantic Danzón, a nostalgic work punctuated by fleeting moments of sensuality. The same intimacy is carried into Chiayu Hsu’s Summer Night in a Deep Valley, showcasing meditative episodes on the natural beauty expressed in Guo Xi’s Chinese landscape paintings. Likewise, Gabriel Bouche Caro’s Escenas explores a meditation on self-identity and its existence as a product of culture, the clarinet never languishing in melancholic passages, but always remaining reflective and curious. POLYGLOT culminates with the Brahms Trio, Op. 114, a composition inspired by the clarinet playing of friend Richard Mühlfeld, an inspiration so strong it served to pull the composer from retirement. To Schultz, a quarterfinalist for the 2025 GRAMMY® Music Educator of the Year, music is a hallmark of metamorphosis that drives cultural change across history, the performer and composer working in tandem to create something inspired and new — speaking each other’s language, you might say.
New Enchantments
Catalog #: NV6665
Release Date: September 20, 2024
21st CenturyRomanticChamberBaroque EnsembleBassoonPianoFairy tales have deeply and consistently fascinated humanity throughout the centuries. Enter NEW ENCHANTMENTS, bassoonist Cornelia Sommer's exploration of magical archetypes that features music by living composers along with new arrangements by Sommer herself across six world premiere recordings. Sommer has also written a prize-winning dissertation on the subject of fairy tales in music, adding further depth to this performance that showcases her musical virtuosity, great feeling for nuance, lyrical storytelling, and profound expertise to illuminate every last detail. Enriching and engrossing, this album could not be more aptly titled.
Mirórs
Catalog #: NV6658S1
Release Date: September 20, 2024
21st CenturyChamberClarinetFluteViolinNavona Records is pleased to present Mirórs, the first single from composer Michael Slayton’s forthcoming album SAGE BRUSHES. Mirórs seeks to honor the visionary work of Spanish painter and sculptor Joan Miró (1893–1983). Each movement highlights the flute, violin, and clarinet, respectively, attempting to aurally render the thematic heartbeat of Miró’s work.
Voices from the Other Side
Catalog #: NV6662
Release Date: September 6, 2024
20th Century21st CenturyChamberVocal MusicCelloVoiceVOICES FROM THE OTHER SIDE is a collection of evocative chamber works performed by cello octet — several with soprano soloist Gabrielle Haigh. Included are Arvo Pärt’s tintinnabuli-style Fratres as well as his L’abbé Agathon, inspired by the remains of a 12th-century leper hospital near Beauvais, France; as well as the beloved Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5 by Heitor Villa-Lobos. Two works by American composer Margi Griebling-Haigh are featured: the title piece is a setting of three otherworldly poems by Edna St. Vincent Millay, and a single-movement work called Cantilena allows the cellists to shine individually as well as together. Griebling-Haigh’s music has been praised for memorable melodies and strong rhythms; her colorful scoring and harmonic language have been compared to Barber, Ravel, and Poulenc.
LiveWire and Meeting of Minds
Catalog #: NV6660
Release Date: September 6, 2024
21st CenturyChamberString QuartetAnthony Brandt’s LIVEWIRE and MEETING OF MINDS features two innovative dance scores created for collaborations with NobleMotion Dance and the University of Houston IUCRC BRAIN Center that were part performance and part scientific experiment. In order to better understand how brains interact, several dancers wore mobile brain-body imaging devices, with live visualizations of the neural synchrony between their brains displayed in real time. Brandt’s music offers “sonic brain scans” that explore our mental lives and how we engage with others, from our most automated behavior to our most flexible and dynamic. These string quartets celebrate the human mind and the way it shapes our reality.
Book of Brass
Catalog #: NV6651
Release Date: August 16, 2024
21st CenturyChamberBrass EnsembleLyrebird Brass presents the world premieres of five new contemporary brass quintets in BOOK OF BRASS, an album shaking up the scene with an assortment of boundary-pushing works by highly lauded and awarded composers. Opening with three time GRAMMY® award winner Jennifer Higdon’s Book of Brass, this titular composition can be played and listened to in any order one pleases. From the intense energy of “Ramp Up” to the puzzling, slowly unfolding maze of “Acrostic,” Higdon certainly knows how to sell a story. Alice Humphries is no stranger to puzzlings in Uncertain Meditations, which considers ideas in isolation, reflecting on their vast possibilities. Reflection is at the core of Grace-Evangeline Mason’s poetic As Bronze, too, and found even in Kate Neal’s Fanfare, which, composed during the 2020 lockdown period, challenges what a fanfare represents. Alan Holley rounds out the recording with The Goodchild Canzonas, a four movement work exploring atriums, cathedrals, and the heavens above, but perhaps most appropriately: the Lyrebird. BOOK OF BRASS is a winning installment in Lyrebird Brass's already impressive oeuvre, pulling out all the stops with spirited fanfares and contemplative odes.
Deep River
Catalog #: NV6650
Release Date: August 16, 2024
20th CenturyFolk MusicChamberVocal MusicStringsVoiceOne 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.