Ensemble Caprice and Ensemble Vocal-Arts Québec, under the direction of Matthias Maute, present George Frideric Handel’s Messiah featuring Karina Gauvin. Although it is certainly not the first recording of The Messiah, it serves as an opening act to new beginnings; a breath of fresh air after the isolation and empty concert halls caused by the pandemic. These Messiah excerpts feature Canadian soprano Karina Gauvin, known especially for her interpretation of Baroque music, and the recipient of the prestigious award of “Soloist of the year” award by the Communauté internationale des radios publique de langue français. The recording also features the flute part from Mozart’s arrangement of The Messiah, honouring the two giants, Handel and Mozart, of the classical compositional world.Opening the album is composer Jaap Nico Hamburger’s Hope and Belief, which served as the title track for Ensemble Caprice and Ensemble Vocal-Arts Québec Mini Concerts Sante, and closes with Matthias Maute’s piece “O magnum mysterium,” which “attempts to grasp something of the elusive mystery of music.”Album Booklet
Hank Knox found himself, like many musicians, with a lot of time on his hands due to the pandemic. He therefore spent the past 10 months immersing himself completely in the 30-piece sonata collection, Essercizi Per Gravicembalo, by Domenico Scarlatti. Knox’s recording of the Essercizi Per Gravicembalo offers the listener a view into Scarlatti’s richly inventive and imaginative work that was first published in 1739 in London, England. Essercizi Per Gravicembalo, meaning “Exercises for Harpsichord,” is a virtuosic composition that has been in uninterrupted print since its’ publication 275 years ago. The work has been arranged and transformed notably by George Fredric Handel and Johannes Brahms, and edited by famous pianists and pedagogues such as Muzio Clementi and Carl Czerny. The work is largely a compilation of manuscripts and reworking of sonatas from the past thirty years of Scarlatti’s life. The piece was dedicated to King John V of Portugal, whom was the father of longtime pupil, Queen Maria Barabra.Album Booklet
Lighthouse is for anyone who has experienced the loss of someone close.
It is, above all else, a love story...This album was created from letters and journals written on a journey through grief. And while the inspiration for the album came from our dear friend, its message is universal.This album as a whole represents a journey through grief that has been separated into 9 tracks. The music was composed by Grej (Gregory Harrison) in collaboration with Maureen. The concept is a marriage between classical and electronic genres that utilizes voice, piano, harmonium, synthesizer, and field recordings.Album Booklet
Juno nominated chamber choir Luminous Voices along with Spiritus Chamber Choir presents twelve works by Ukranian composer Artem Vedel (1767-1808). Considered one of Ukraine’s ‘Golden Three’ composers of the 18th century, these masterpieces of Ukrainian Classical Choral Music include twelve sacred choral concerti & Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom. Under the direction of Dr. Timothy Shantz and with support from the Ukrainian Music Society of Alberta, the works of Vedel continue to be associated with the boisterous wave of national rebirth, imbued with a connection and influence of national folklore.Album Booklet
Music of the Spheres is a live recording from Halifax Camerata Singers’ second concert in their 2018-19 ‘Look Up to the Heavens’ season. Under the direction of Jeff Joudrey and in collaboration with special guest narrator Ben Caplan, watch and listen and remember your sense of limitless wonder while looking at the Milky Way on a crystal-clear night. Let the lush harmonies of the music and the beauty of the poetry reflect like light off the gorgeous visuals accompanying this release. And in spite of the world’s many challenges, may a sense of awe, marvel, and hope in something much greater than we see around us linger long after the closing chords.Album Booklet
Recorded at the prestigious Studio Piccolo in the heart of Montreal, Quebec, Canadian duo Stick&Bow bring life and energy to ‘Studio Piccolo Sessions’. This audio release accompanies a series of five videos presenting works by: Sting, Pau Casals, Luis Naon, Jason Noble and Carlos Puebla. The dynamic duo highlight the technical finesse and energetic performance between cello and marimba. Watch the Piccolo Studio Sessions
Sonate a Quattro are the brilliant compositions from Italian composer Gioachino Rossini, written during the summer of 1804 at the young age of 12. These works, at the time, were commonly performed by wind quartet and it wasn’t until 1954 when the original manuscripts were discovered in the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. showing their original arrangement for string quartet. This recording of Rossini: 6 Sonate a Quattro features two of Canada’s most respected and beloved performers - Mark Fewer (violin), and Joel Quarrington (bass) - and two of North America’s rising stars - Yolanda Bruno (violin), and Julian Schwarz (cello) and produced by JUNO award-winning producer John D.S. Adams. These performances, from November 2017, were recorded in collaboration with the Lunenburg Academy of Music Performance using the newly released (2014) Critical Edition published by the Fondazione Rossini Pesaro.Album Booklet
This album is a curated and narrative collection of twelve Canadian piano solos about the moon, outer space, and the night and highlights both their folkloric name and more importantly the Mi'kmaw names. This album features all Canadian content by a Canadian artist and is contemporary classical music chosen for its relationship to our environment, for the prosperity of Canadian works and composers in a manner that is accessible to a wide-ranging audience. For this all-Canadian project recordings will be released in 12 monthly singles that correspond to each full moon of the year, starting in February 2021 until January 2022.
Roots is Ventus Machina's second full-length album. Track list includes eight arrangements by Ventus Machina's clarinetist James Kalyn, including Canadian folk hits by Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell and Gordon Lightfoot; tunes by local bluegrass legend Ray Legere; and traditional songs that have been chosen by the members to represent their heritage and first musical influences. Guests on the album include Ray Legere, Andrew George, Joel Cormier, Christian “Kit” Goguen and Atlantic String Machine. 
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In honour of Remembrance Day and the 75th Anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands, Canadian composer Jaap Nico Hamburger presents two symphonies recorded in November 2019. While confronting serious and challenging themes, these works are imbued with hope and optimism.Chamber Symphony No. 1 “Remember to Forget” Ensemble Caprice under the direction of Matthias Maute
Produced by: Martha de Francisco
Recorded in studio: Église St-Augustin, Mirabel, QC (17/11/2019 - 18/11/2019)“Remember to Forget” is a phrase from Tenach, The Old Testament. The sentence alludes to the notion that doubt (“I should have…I could have…”), rather than being critical (“Where can I improve?”), is inherently self-destructive. We are not necessarily in control of the outcome of events, but that should not deter us from working hard and striving for the best, all toward the positives in life. “Remember to Forget” is a tone poem, using the colours and structures of sound to advance that story, inspired by the biography of György Ligeti (1923-2006).This symphony in two movements is an apostrophe to one of the great musical minds of the age. Ligeti’s own influences stretched back to the 15th century and the richness of polyphony, from folk inspirations and a drenched chromaticism through to jazz and polyrhythm of every description. His work is best known through the soundtrack for Stanley Kubrick’s 2001 – A Space Odyssey. This work is a metaphor of a train journey, moving from youth to catastrophe, and through survival to rebuilding, forgiveness, and ultimately to the lessons of the biblical Joseph: to live, work, build, create, and love to the best of your abilities, under all circumstances, every day.Chamber Symphony No. 2 “Children’s War Diaries” l’Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal under the direction of Vincent de Kort
Produced by: Misha Aster
Recorded live at the Violins of Hope concert: Maison symphonique de Montréal (02/11/2019)“Children’s War Diaries” Five diaries of teenagers who were murdered during the Second World War inspired this piece. These children did not survive, but their diaries did. Twenty years after reading these diaries, composer Jaap Hamburger’s 89-year-old mother, Jannie Moffie-Bolle, published her autobiography “Een hemel zonder vogels” (“A sky without birds”). She too was a teenager at the outbreak of the Nazi war in Europe.
The book, among other things, describes her experiences in multiple Nazi death camps, including Auschwitz-Birkenau. In 2010, Jaap travelled with her to Israel on the occasion of the presentation of her book at Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Memorial Center in Jerusalem.
The architecture of the Children’s Memorial at Yad Vashem is uniquely sobering. It memorializes 1.5 million murdered children, approximately 95% of all Jewish children ages 0-18 years old in occupied Europe. This staggering number is what led Raphael Lemkin to introduce the term “genocide” in his 1944 landmark publication, Axis Rule in Occupied Europe. When Jaap – overwhelmed by the starkness of the Children’s Memorial – had left the building and stepped into the blazing Jerusalem sunlight, the contours of a new symphonic work came to mind, virtually complete. The composer went home and wrote it down. “Children’s War Diaries” is a symphony for chamber orchestra in five short movements. Album Booklet
Album BookletLeaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, that specializes in high quality classical music recordings by artists and composers from across Canada. Our growing catalogue of solo, orchestral and chamber music is distributed by Naxos of America to the world’s most important music retail, download and streaming providers.
We are also recognized as a leading provider of professional audio production, post-production services, and integrated music marketing/distribution in Canada.
Visit our services page for more details or contact us to learn more about our team and the services we provide.
Leaf Music est une étiquette d'enregistrement indépendant à Halifax, Nouvelle-Écosse, qui se spécialise dans les enregistrements de musique classique de haute qualité par des artistes et compositeurs du Canada. Notre catalogue d'enregistrements croissant de musique solo, orchestrale et de chambre est disponible dans le monde entier sur tous les grands services de téléchargement et de streaming.
Nous sommes également reconnus comme un important fournisseur de production audio-vidéo professionnel, post-production audio-video, et services intégrée de marketing et de distribution de musique classique dans la région. Visitez notre page de services pour plus de détails ou contactez-nous pour savoir plus au sujet de notre équipe et les services que nous fournissons.
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