Archive for News
Remembering Richard Freed
Esteemed music critic and writer Richard Freed passed away on New Year’s Day, a few days after his 93rd birthday. Reference Recordings is incredibly fortunate that he provided superb music notes for 17 of our albums in the last thirty years. For decades, Mr. Freed corresponded frequently with our founder Tam Henderson. We will miss him, and the classical music world has lost a great soul. —Marcia Martin Richard Freed (1928 – 2022) Richard Freed, distinguished…
Brahms & MacMillan a NativeDSD Album of the Year
NativeDSD.com released their 2021 albums of the year, and the Orchestral winner is Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s recording of Brahms: Symphony No. 4 and Macmillan: Larghetto for Orchestra! “Athletic! I see that word applied to many of Honeck’s recordings – strong, emphatic performances! Sometimes he has been accused of being a bit over the top, but I find this Brahms Fourth to be excellent in every way. If I had to choose…
2022 GRAMMY® Nominations!
Reference Recordings is excited to announce multiple nominations for the 2022 GRAMMY® Awards! Best Orchestral Performance Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 Manfred Honeck, conductor (Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh & Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra) Best Engineered Album, Classical Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 Mark Donahue, engineer; Mark Donahue, mastering engineer (Manfred Honeck, Mendelssohn Choir Of Pittsburgh & Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra) Congratulations to all involved in this double-nominated album!!! Producer of the Year, Classical David Frost Congratulations to producer David…
Remembering Carlisle Floyd
We were saddened to hear of the death of Carlisle Floyd, considered the “Father of American Opera”, yesterday, September 30, 2021 at the age of 95. Reference Recordings was proud to have released recordings of two of his operas, “Wuthering Heights” and “Prince of Players”. “Prince of Players” garnered his first ever GRAMMY® nomination for Best Contemporary Classical Composition. In the liner notes of Prince of Players, Floyd wrote, “having this outstanding performance recorded for…
Fiona Boyes and Blues In My Heart Nominated for Blues Blast Music Awards!
In June 2021, a group of Blues music industry professionals including music critics, journalists, festival promoters, music venue managers, producers, musicians and other Blues music industry professionals nominated the best in Blues music in twelve categories. We are excited to share that Fiona Boyes was nominated for Female Artist of the Year and her Blues In My Heart album was nominated for the Historical/Vintage Recording of the year! Fan voting for the award is open…
Manfred Honeck Discusses Beethoven Symphony No. 9 with The New York Times
Don’t miss this incredible look at Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with Manfred Honeck and New York Times critic David Allen! See it on nytimes.com “Manfred Honeck is one of today’s leading Beethoven conductors. As music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, he has created notably exciting recordings of the Third, Fifth and Seventh Symphonies. Now he and the orchestra, founded 125 years ago this month, are releasing their interpretation of the mighty Ninth. What makes Honeck’s approach so…
Carlisle Floyd: Prince of Players Receives Two 2021 GRAMMY® Nominations
The 2021 GRAMMY® Award Nominations were announced today and Reference Recordings releases appeared on four nominations! 2021 GRAMMY® Nominations for RR releases: Best Opera Recording Carlisle Floyd: Prince Of Players — William Boggs, conductor; Keith Phares & Kate Royal; Blanton Alspaugh, producer (Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra; Florentine Opera Chorus) Best Contemporary Classical Composition Carlisle Floyd: Prince Of Players — Carlisle Floyd, composer (William Boggs, Kate Royal, Keith Phares, Florentine Opera Chorus & Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra) Producer of the Year, Classical…
Available NOW: Leshnoff Symphony No. 3 & Piano Concerto!
Michael Stern and the Kansas City Symphony’s Leshnoff World Premiere Recordings are available today! Reference Recordings® proudly presents two new works from leading American composer Jonathan Leshnoff. Distinguished by The New York Times as “a leader of contemporary American lyricism,” Leshnoff is renowned for his music’s striking harmonies, structural complexity, and powerful themes. These world premiere recordings showcase the Kansas City Symphony performing his third symphony, inspired by World War I letters home, with texts sung by baritone Stephen Powell.…
Pittsburgh Symphony’s Tchaikovsky & Leshnoff Recording Nominated for 2021 ICMA
The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Manfred Honeck’s Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 and Leshnoff: Double Concerto recording has been nominated for the 2021 International Classical Music Awards in the Assorted Programs category! See the full list at icma-info.com Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 & Leshnoff: Double Concerto for Clarinet and Bassoon Reference Recordings® proudly presents Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4 in an exquisite interpretation from Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. It is coupled with a World…
Rafael’s Music Notes Reviews The Kansas City Symphony’s Leshnoff Recording!
The first review is in for the Kansas City Symphony, Michael Stern, Stephen Powell, and Joyce Yang’s Leshnoff World Premiere Recordings! “Thanks to various CD’s released by Reference Recordings, I have become an admirer of the music of American composer Jonathan Leshnoff. … The impressive lineup of soloists and the sterling work of the Kansas musicians numbers immense artistic rewards in this treasure of a recording, impeccably engineered and produced by Dirk Sobatka of Soundmirror. ……
The Train of Change
The song “The Train of Change” was being born around 2007 in Costa da Caparica Portugal, before President Obama was elected. During this European tour I saw hope, love, joy, and a vision of peace just about everywhere I went. President Obama served two terms and this song slowly drifted from my awareness. Then with the killing of George Floyd, I saw America rise up and say ‘Enough Is Enough’! I watched as so many…
Happy 25th Anniversary to EnjoyTheMusic.com!
Reference Recordings offers EnjoyTheMusic.com a hearty congratulations on their 25th Anniversary! In honor of the occasion, they’ve invited our own Marcia Martin an opportunity to write about the history of the Reference Recordings label. See it (and wish them congrats) at enjoythemusic.com. Thank you for the opportunity to write about our label for Enjoy the Music.com. First, hearty congratulations on your 25th anniversary, a real milestone! For so many years, Enjoy the Music.com has presented well-written, impartial information…
Now Available: “Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 & Leshnoff: Double Concerto” from the Pittsburgh Symphony and Manfred Honeck
Out Now WorldWide! Reference Recordings® proudly presents Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4 in an exquisite interpretation from Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. It is coupled with a World Premiere recording of leading American composer Jonathan Leshnoff’s Double Concerto for Clarinet and Bassoon, featuring the extraordinary talents of the Pittsburgh Symphony’s own Principal Clarinet Michael Rusinek and Principal Bassoon Nancy Goeres. This hybrid SACD release was recorded in beautiful and historic Heinz Hall, home of…
Pittsburgh Symphony Release Party on Friday, May 15
This Friday, May 15, at 8pm EDT, the Pittsburgh Symphony’s Friday Night Virtual Concert series, Extraordinary Measures, will feature a sneak peek at their new Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4 and Leshnoff: Double Concerto recording! Register to get the Release Party link!
Doug MacLeod Wins 2020 Blues Music Award!
The Blues Music Awards hosted a virtual Blues Music Awards Show and Doug MacLeod was announced as the 2020 Acoustic Artist of the Year! The 2020 Blues Music Award was Doug’s 11th nomination and marks his fourth Blues Music Award in the past 5 years (2018 Acoustic Album of the Year, 2016 & 2017 Acoustic Artist of the Year)! Congratulations to Doug! Watch Doug’s Acceptance Speech from Home: Watch the awards ceremony: Doug MacLeod Recordings…