Catalog

Few things have informed and inspired as much music as humanity's search for God. Acclaimed baritone, arranger, and conductor Courtney Carey explores the relation between the worldly and the divine on I WANNA BE READY, a set of 12 spirituals arranged for different instrumentations — and each piece packs a punch. Six of them are songs for a solo voice (soprano or baritone) and piano, and Carey, being a trained vocalist himself, deploys this setup to its fullest effect, allowing for powerful brilliance. The other half are choral pieces, which are furnished with extra layers of depth and vigor by the splendidly expressive Concert Chorale ensemble. Even individually, these spirituals would be remarkable; together, they are a tour de force.

ICE & FIRE, the debut Navona Records album by Stephen Scott, showcases a variety of works for bowed piano. The album features The Bowed Piano Ensemble, an experimental piano group based at Colorado College in Colorado Springs that was founded by Scott.

There are many composers who intertwine eclectic influences into one coherent picture, but few people do it as ambitiously and convincingly as New York City based composer Debra Kaye. On IKARUS AMONG THE STARS, she vibrantly explores themes both real and surreal, perpetual and fleeting, nonchalant, and profound. Kaye's sources of inspiration are unnumbered; it seems there is nothing which she cannot turn into a composition. The works presented (two of them multiple award winners) draw their inspiration from Spanish poetry, real-life tragedy, and from the pieces of fellow contemporary composers. All of these sources are woven together by Kaye's measured choice of tonality, and the resulting tapestry is remarkable.

Introducing the album is Lee Actor’s Duo for Violin and Cello. The track, which won the Eva Thompson Phillips Award for Composition in 1979, is a short, textured, and powerful piece. In ABA form, the energy of the stringed instruments swings like a parabola from the height of sharp, angular rhythms down into deep and gentle expressions and builds up to a sharp, explosive climax.

Acclaimed piano four-hand duo Dana Muller and Gary Steigerwalt come together once more for IN YOUR HEAD, a collection featuring the work of six composers that highlights both fresh compositional talents and earlier successful works. Each piece demonstrates the unique synergy between the two performers. With twice the hands, twice the talent, and twice the interpretation, the piano is pushed to dynamic and sonoric extremes.

Composer/Performer John Alan Rose presents INEFFABLE TALES, an album of four of his ensemble compositions, recorded at Reduta Hall in Olomouc, Czech Republic. In addition to renowned soloists Jungwon Choi (cello), Moni Simeonov (violin), the recording features the composer’s wife Sing Rose (soprano), and the composer himself (piano). The album also features the Moravian Philharmonic, under the direction of Miran Vaupotić.

On his debut release on Navona Records, INNER MUSIC, composer Ruud van Eeten presents three works that highlight the refinement and control evident in his compositional style. Throughout the four movements of Piano Quintet No. 1, the composer adds no excess; every note has a role. Yet the piece exudes emotion, particularly the second movement which develops a deep sense of longing.

Curt Cacioppo composer Impressioni venexiane (Impressions of Venice) Andrea Vio, violin Alberto Battiston, violin Luca Morassutti, viola Angelo Zanin, cello Recorded May 20, 2009, Preganziol (TV), Italy Sulla Via dei Sette Ponti (On the Road of the Seven Bridges) Recorded June 1, 2009, [...]

Life can sometimes seem like an infinity mirror of colors reflecting off of themselves, each tint deeply distinct in its own right, yet profoundly beautiful when viewed as a whole. This sentiment is thoughtfully expressed in KALEIDOSCOPE from composer Craig Morris and Navona Records. Morris’s compositional strengths are far-reaching and dynamic, and aptly showcased here with orchestral and chamber works written in a variety of orchestrations. Sentiments of gentle reflections, care and acceptance, and love are echoed throughout this release, a cohesive collection of works written from powerful emotions that tie into the kaleidoscope that is the human experience.

KEYBOARD3 Navona's second all-Sergio Cervetti album takes the listener to a world of kinetic and emotionally charged sound forged from three keyboard instruments. Sometimes it is the pianoforte, the king of instruments or the double keyboard of the harpsichord.

KLEEMATION AND OTHER WORKS is the debut Navona release from Rockport-based composer Elizabeth Vercoe, featuring six of the composer's works for small ensemble and solo instruments. The title piece, Kleemation for flute and piano, draws its inspiration from five drawings by Swiss artist Paul Klee. Through her expertly crafted music, Vercoe effectively captures the moods and styles of the visual elements from which she works, ranging from wry humor to anxiety about the state of our world.

LA LEYENDA DEL KAKUY is the latest Navona release from acclaimed Spanish composer Osias Wilenski. Lauded for his compositional style by Gramophone, Audiophile Audition, and more, Wilenski's unique works range from narrative symphonic poems to operatic spin-offs to instrumental miniatures.

Can you satisfy God with one sound? This question was repeatedly posed to Lachlan Skipworth by his shakuhachi teacher during a three-year period of intensive study in Japan. It sparked a deep exploration of cross-cultural aesthetics that finds expression in this self-titled Navona Records album. At the beginning of each shakuhachi lesson, student and master begin by repeatedly playing a single note on the end-blown bamboo flute. This focuses their minds on core questions of technique: “have I made progress? Am I closer to mastery of this, shakuhachi’s most fundamental note?”

A collection of works by Curt Cacioppo celebrating and lamenting the history of the Native American peoples. Composed and performed with impeccable attention to detail and historical accuracy, these vibrant and emotional tone poems urge the listener to consider the vibrancy and plight of Native American culture as they guide us through musical narratives of the past.

On LINES AT DUSK, acclaimed hornist John McGuire presents seven pieces, written by a variety of composers, with performances that are at once deep and expansive. The three movements of Landscapes, Series II, inspired by Japanese landscape paintings and woodcuts, travel from the dangerous mountains through the tranquility of the countryside and the bustling energy of a large city. It closes with an extended coda, with longer note values and a more sustained piano part that indicates a return to a calmer, more serene environment.

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.

Considered by American Record Guide as a composer who “approaches his pieces with respect and care,” Carl Vollrath presents the second volume of his clarinet and piano works on Navona Records, LINGERING LONGINGS: MUSIC FOR CLARINET AND PIANO VOL. 2. Expanding upon the first release in this collection, PAST RECOLLECTIONS: MUSIC FOR CLARINET AND PIANO VOL. 1, the composer continues to celebrate past events through musical narratives, tenderly and radiantly performed by clarinetist Michael Norsworthy and pianist Yoko Hagino.

LOCK AND KEY opens the door to discover harmonious, melodic chamber works tied together by a shared understanding of the most treasured aspects of humanity. Through diverse experiences and impressionism, each composer highlights that which makes us human but is all too easy to hide away. Navona presents these works together as a reminder that inspiration can be found through appreciating the beauty of nature, the thrill of a first kiss, lighthearted fun on a night out, or simply by being alive.

LOCK & KEY VOL II is the second presentation of five composers drawing from the well of inspiration – in highly heterogeneous ways and from a plethora of sources, yet all united by a common theme: the profound depths of the human experience. The pieces all revel exuberantly: in the natural beauty of Iceland, the nostalgia evoked by a distantly familiar melody, the random augury of a deck of tarot cards, late 19th Century anthems adapted for woodwind quintet, or the kinetic energy of musical gestures.

On LORD, HOW COME ME HERE?, composer Shawn Okpebholo turns the mirror of history on today’s society with his own work and a reimagined collection of spirituals by enslaved Africans and American folk hymns that draws upon music from the past to critique contemporary racial injustices in the United States and around the globe. An ensemble of mezzo-soprano (J’Nai Bridges), baritone (Will Liverman), piano (Paul Sánchez), cello, and flute poignantly bring Okpebholo’s music to life, from hopeful anthems celebrating community to laments between a mother and her Creator and hymns celebrating faith and hope over hate and fear.