Brahms was a spirited, fair-haired youth of twenty-one when he composed his first chamber work, essaying the delicate art of the trio for piano and strings. The result was a masterpiece. Quartets, quintets, sextets followed… and many years went by before he returned twice more to the piano trio genre. The horn too was given its own trio, with a part that could be borrowed by the cello. The maturity and life experience he had gained left their mark over the years. The time had come for wisdom, gravity and nostalgia, while the inner passion and fire remained.

Since it was founded in 2015, this vivacious trio has revelled in big ideas and committed itself to refreshing great works of the piano trio repertory with a new dynamic. Following its debut recording of the complete Beethoven piano trios, no less, Trio Sōra has now delved into all that Brahms has to offer in the oeuvre for its second album, this Nme on the La Dolce Volta label.

The Dream of Gerontius by Edward Elgar is a two-part work for voices and orchestra composed in 1900 to text by John Henry Newman. Widely regarded as Elgar’s finest choral work, and by some his masterpiece, Gabrieli’s first-class performance, and McCreesh’s superb interpretation demonstrate why their recordings are seen as some of the best in classical music today.

Following the tremendous success of her 2011 album Kuniko Plays Reich, and subsequent recordings of works by the pioneering composer, percussionist Kuniko has established a reputation as one of the foremost interpreters of Steve Reich. Here she has recorded Kuniko Plays Reich II, a bold programme of innovative works which span Reich's artistic career and showcase some of his groundbreaking techniques. Composed in his early thirties, Piano Phase is performed in Kuniko's own mesmerising arrangement for two vibraphones; characteristically Kuniko plays both parts. While Nagoya Marimbas uses some composition tools which Reich popularised in Piano Phase, Four Organs draws its inspiration from the Middle Ages. Closing this riveting recital, Mallet Quartet sees Reich in a more melodically expansive mood, albeit with his trademark tight rhythmic drive and canonic textures.

Departure from the Northern Wasteland, a classic of the progressive electronic genre, contains four pieces that are almost perfect in their realization of the sequencer as a compositional tool. Hoenig took the concept of repetitive music further than most anyone in his homeland and claimed his inspiration was drawn from American minimalist composers Philip Glass, Steve Reich, and Terry Riley. The title track is a sublime 20-minute journey through ever-changing melodic and rhythmic phase relationships, creating the vivid sensation of a train ride through misty Northern European landscapes. "Hanging Garden Transfer" then speeds things up a little and is therefore less ideally suited for falling asleep (or waking you up). "Voices of Where" makes the picture of Path Finder on the desolate planet of Mars, appear before the mind’s eye, searching for any proof of life: not a single beat, just wonderful dreamscapes…

Violinists Simone Lamsma and Candida Thompson explore connections between J.S. Bach and Arvo Part on their new release Part uber Bach with Amsterdam Sinfonietta. Arvo Part's groundbreaking Tabula Rasa is presented alongside Bach's Concerto for Oboe and Violin in the version for 2 violins, and Part's own Collage uber B-A-C-H, written in 1964 wherein the Estonian master intertwines his own modernist music with phrases from J.S. Bach's music.

Alan Parsons was 19 years old when he landed a job at the world famous Abbey Road Studios, an important first step on his journey to becoming a world class engineer, producer and artist. Following his beginnings with George Martin and The Beatles, his contribution to Pink Floyd's classic 'The Dark Side Of The Moon' earned him worldwide attention. As a producer he had many hits with Pilot, John Miles, Ambrosia and Al Stewart. Together with his manager and creative partner at the time, Eric Woolfson, he developed the Alan Parsons Project. Following their debut album "Tales Of Mystery And Imagination" (1976), they released a series of hit albums; namely "I Robot" (1977), "Pyramid" (1978), "The Turn of a Friendly Card" (1980), "Eye in the Sky" (1982), "Ammonia Avenue" (1984), "Vulture Culture" (1985), "Stereotomy" (1986) and "Gaudi" (1987).