• Ergo

    Catalog #: NV6089

    Release Date: April 14, 2017

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Piano

    With his Navona debut ERGO, pianist and composer Zhen Chen makes an impressive contribution to the decades-long legacy of composers blending Chinese and western instruments and musical materials. This musical trend can be traced back 20 years, when a potent generation of Chinese and Taiwanese composers who began to explode across American and European concert stages. Luminary composers like Bright Sheng, Tan Dun, Chen Yi, and Zhou Long paved the way for younger Chinese artists like Zhen Chen, who uses ERGO to continue this blend of his native musical culture with many parts of the Western musical tradition.

  • Reawakening

    Catalog #: NV6087

    Release Date: April 14, 2017

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Orchestral
    Cello
    Orchestra
    Piano

    Composer and pianist Jeffrey Jacob returns to Navona Records with REAWAKENING, a collection of varied works for orchestra and chamber ensembles. Jacob’s lush, mystical style pervades the album, often blending his piano’s sound with orchestral arrangements to create rich musical imagery, as in The Loch Before Sunrise and A Mirror Upon the Waters.

  • Dress Code

    Catalog #: NV6078

    Release Date: April 14, 2017

    Classical
    Chamber
    String Quartet

    Navona Records proudly presents DRESS CODE, the debut release from Colorado-based string ensemble Altius Quartet. Comprised of violinists Joshua Ulrich and Andrew Giordano, violist Andrew Krimm, and cellist Zachary Reaves, the quartet’s core mission is to strive for universality in their music and communicate directly with their listeners.

  • There Are Many Other Legends

    Catalog #: NV6086

    Release Date: March 10, 2017

    21st Century
    Vocal Music
    Choir
    Orchestra

    Both the New Hampshire Master Chorale and the Manchester Choral Society elevate the works of composer-in-residence Jonathan Santore on THERE ARE MANY OTHER LEGENDS, an expansive collection of works from Santore’s choral catalog. Each piece highlights the composer’s impressive command of choral writing and the ensemble’s traditions.

  • Forever Beeler

    Catalog #: NV6085

    Release Date: March 10, 2017

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Solo Instrumental
    Clarinet
    Oboe
    Piano

    FOREVER BEELER represents a sampling of composer Alan Beeler’s prolific output throughout his musical career, which is generally defined by his commitment to compositional craft and structural clarity. The works featured on this album also reveal a playfulness lying just under the surface of Beeler’s compositional perspective. This quality of Beeler’s music is most notable in the seven sonatas for piano, often accompanied by another instrument, included in FOREVER BEELER.

  • Dark Clouds in Life

    Catalog #: NV6082

    Release Date: March 10, 2017

    21st Century
    Orchestral
    Solo Instrumental
    Orchestra
    Piano

    A persistent goal of Mark John McEncroe is to create compositions that elicit an emotional response, as is echoed in the titles of his works. This is particularly true of the Australian composer’s Navona debut DARK CLOUDS OF LIFE, a conceptual release focused on overcoming addiction and depression, challenges McEncroe has personally struggled with. His sessions in Ostrava, Czech Republic with the Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra and pianist Helen Kennedy produced a cornerstone suite and three addendums that capture the essence of the record’s stated purpose.

  • An Arc of Quartets

    Catalog #: NV6081

    Release Date: March 10, 2017

    20th Century
    Chamber
    String Quartet

    As the title of this album suggests, AN ARC OF QUARTETS gives listeners unique access to a continuum of composer Michael G. Cunningham’s intricate and inviting string music. Five international string ensembles present the album’s seven compositions, including Sirius Quartet from New York; The Moravian Quartet from the Czech Republic; the Millennium Quartet from Florida; and The Pedroia Quartet and New England String Quartet, both from Massachusetts.

  • Shadowing

    Catalog #: NV6080

    Release Date: March 10, 2017

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Solo Instrumental
    Piano
    Viola
    Violin

    Navona Records proudly presents renowned composer Ruth Lomon’s SHADOWING, her debut album on the label. The release showcases her remarkable skill in writing for the piano, pushing the instrument’s timbre and color to its limits to create animated sound worlds such as those of the title work, Shadowing. Lomon writes of the colors in the piece: “’Shadowing’ means to have such a light touch, such a light tread, that one can move freely through the forest, observing without being observed… It is the equivalent of manifesting and then becoming like smoke, and then manifesting again…”

  • String Quartet No. 1 The Music of Erich Zann

    Catalog #: NV6083

    Release Date: February 10, 2017

    21st Century
    Chamber
    String Quartet

    Composer Michael J. Evans’ THE MUSIC OF ERICH ZANN is a startling and surreal musical interpretation of H.P. Lovecraft’s 1922 tale of the eponymous violist – a mysterious old man who seemingly protects himself from dark, magical forces by playing the viol. Evans is a gifted melodist, and his other PARMA Recordings and Navona albums showcase his predilections for the rich textures and harmonic language of late European Romanticism.

  • Tchaikovsky

    Catalog #: NV6079

    Release Date: February 10, 2017

    Romantic
    Orchestral
    Orchestra
    Violin

    While speaking on Édouard Lalo’s Symphonie Espagnole, Op.21, Pyotr Tchaikovsky posited that his colleague “does not strive after profundity, but carefully avoids routine, seeks out new forms, and thinks about musical beauty more than observing established traditions.” Acclaimed violinist Moonkyung Lee endeavors to emulate this approach on her Navona debut TCHAIKOVSKY – WORKS FOR VIOLIN AND ORCHESTRA, in which she presents several performances of beloved Tchaikovsky alongside the London Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Miran Vaupotić.

  • Pheonix Ensemble

    Catalog #: NV6076

    Release Date: February 10, 2017

    20th Century
    Chamber
    Clarinet
    String Quartet
    Wind Ensemble

    Navona Records is proud to present PHOENIX ENSEMBLE: CHAMBER WORKS OF HENRI MARTEAU AND ALEXANDER ZEMLINSKY. The Phoenix Ensemble is a mixed instrument chamber music ensemble. Founded in 1991 by New York-based clarinetist Mark Lieb, the Phoenix Ensemble aims to “inspire a new and diverse audience for classical music.” They undertake this challenge by presenting two works by late romantic French composer Henri Marteau, who is relatively unknown in the music world, as well as presenting one work by Austrian composer Alexander Zemlinsky. Both composers were active at the turn of the 19th century.

  • Playing Favorites

    Catalog #: NV6075

    Release Date: February 10, 2017

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Piano
    Trombone

    Trombonist Deb Scott makes her PARMA debut with her new Navona release PLAYING FAVORITES, accompanied by pianist Ron Petti. She performs a variety of her favorite pieces that appeal to her background in jazz and to her considerable technical skill. She writes: “What I love about each one is its ability to engage a diverse audience making for enjoyable and exciting musical moments.”

  • Bright Circle

    Catalog #: NV6074

    Release Date: February 10, 2017

    Romantic
    Solo Instrumental
    Piano

    BRIGHT CIRCLE is an exquisitely programmed showcase of the interconnectivity underlying the tradition of solo piano in Classical music. Pianist Beth Levin shines as she navigates the romantic masterpieces of Schubert and Brahms, and their very new counterpart – David Del Tredici’s 2014 work, Ode To Music.

  • Clay Jug

    Catalog #: NV6073

    Release Date: February 10, 2017

    21st Century
    Vocal Music
    Choir

    The choral music of Minnesota-based composer Edie Hill shines on CLAY JUG, a compendium of large and small works for a cappella choir and choir accompanied by chamber ensemble. Though the works featured on CLAY JUG vary in scope, they all demonstrate Hill’s keen sensitivity to ensemble texture and harmonic density, as well as the incorporation of text across four languages.

  • Sunset at Noon

    Catalog #: NV6072

    Release Date: February 10, 2017

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Vocal Music
    Choir
    Clarinet
    Piano

    Sergio Cervetti returns with an exciting collection of works on his sixth Navona Records release, SUNSET AT NOON. A diverse composer, his works range from instrumental and vocal music to electronic compositions, often reflecting his South American, French and Italian heritage. His vocabulary draws from an early interest in twelve-tone and minimalism, and his current approach is flexible and free of constraint. With SUNSET AT NOON, Cervetti focuses on keyboard-based compositions for half of the album, with a foray into chamber music on the other half.

  • The Spectra Series

    Catalog #: NV6077

    Release Date: January 13, 2017

    21st Century
    Solo Instrumental
    Vocal Music
    Choir
    Orchestra
    Piano

    In 2008, PARMA Recordings acquired Capstone Records, the highly respected New York-based classical label founded by composer Richard Brooks in 1986, with the intent of shepherding the company and its music into the digital era. This album was originally released on Capstone and is being re-released by PARMA Recording's Navona Records.

  • Butterflies in the Labrynth of Silence

    Catalog #: NV6071

    Release Date: January 13, 2017

    21st Century
    Solo Instrumental
    Guitar

    In his second project with PARMA Recordings, Swiss composer Georges Raillard gifts us with 12 solo classical guitar compositions on BUTTERFLIES IN THE LABYRINTH OF SILENCE, all performed by renowned guitarist David William Ross.

    The album follows the Sinking Islands suite, Raillard’s first project with PARMA Recordings, which appeared on BETWEEN THE ECHOES, a Navona Records compilation album featuring chamber works.

  • Lines to Infinity

    Catalog #: NV6070

    Release Date: January 13, 2017

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Solo Instrumental
    Flute
    Piano

    PARMA Recordings artists Peter Greve and Hans Bakker have come together to give us LINES TO INFINITY, a stunning album that revolves around emotive and dramatic scores for primarily piano and flute. The two composers hail from the Netherlands and share a knack for creating thoughtful contemporary chamber works that appeal to the listener’s imagination.

  • Exultet Terra

    Catalog #: NV6069

    Release Date: January 13, 2017

    21st Century
    Liturgical
    Vocal Music
    Choir

    Navona Records welcomes Cappella Clausura, directed by Amelia LeClair, to the family with their new release of the choral works of Hilary Tann, entitled EXULTET TERRA. For the first half of the album, LeClair and Tann juxtapose Tann’s works for women’s voices, a cappella, with pieces by Hildegard von Bingen, in soaring arrangements by LeClair.

  • The Passing Sound of Forever

    Catalog #: NV6068

    Release Date: January 13, 2017

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Solo Instrumental
    Flute
    String Quartet
    Violin

    Sound and space are two elements that emerge at the heart of Jane O’Leary’s THE PASSING SOUND OF FOREVER. The collection showcases O’Leary’s compositional gifts through a variety of her chamber compositions. O’Leary’s string writing soars in THE PASSING SOUND OF FOREVER, and demonstrates her remarkable sensitivity to the instruments’ sonic palette and expressive potential. Every color, from ethereal natural harmonics to frenetic bowing, is at O’Leary’s disposal, and is exploited beautifully to produce evocative and compelling soundscapes.