Critic Dean Frey reviews Nadia Shpachenko’s The Poetry of Places recording on his Music for Several Instruments blog: “…this marvellous disc from pianist Nadia Shpachenko…music [interacts] with a wide range of human activities: fine and applied arts (architecture and design), the heritage arts and the natural world. … I happen to share a fondness for and a deep admiration of some of the architects of these special places, especially Frank Gehry and Louis Kahn. But…
Nadia Shpachenko’s latest Reference Recordings release The Poetry of Places features World Premiere recordings of works for solo piano, for two pianos, percussion, electronics, voice, and toy piano in a fascinating mélange inspired by great architecture and places. The eight compositions monumentalize places as wildly diverse as the Copland House in Cortlandt, NY, The American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, Louis Kahn’s National Assembly Buildings in Bangladesh, Newgrange Ancient Temple in Ireland, and Frank Gehry’s House in…
Fiona Boyes has just received The Blues Foundation’s 2019 Blues Music Award nomination for the prestigious Koko Taylor Award for Traditional Blues Female Artist. This is Fiona’s 8th BMA nomination, her 3rd in this category. Voting is open to all Blues Foundation members and ends February 28th. Membership is open to all, simply click the Join button on the Blues Foundation website. The awards ceremony takes place May 9 in Memphis, TN. Fiona was also…
The 2019 Australian Blues Music Awards finalists were announced by the Australian Blues Music Festival, and Fiona Boyes and her Voodoo In The Shadows recording were nominated in four categories: Album of the Year Song of the Year – “Call Their Name” Artist of the Year Duo or Group of the Year – Fiona Boyes Band See the full list of nominees and awards categories on the Australian Blues Music Festival Facebook Page, and keep…
The New York Times has released its “25 Best Classical Music Tracks of 2018” and the GRAMMY-nominated Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Manfred Honeck recording of Beethoven’s “Funeral March” from Symphony No. 3 made the list! “The most interesting and innovative Beethoven recording since these forces set down the Fifth and Seventh, this intense “Eroica” nods in the direction of tradition but sounds completely new, rethought from the ground up.” —David Allen, The New York Times See the…
December 11, 2018, 8pm (EST), PBS broadcasts the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Manfred Honeck’s Tree of Life: A Concert for Peace and Unity featuring renowned violinist Itzhak Perlman. The concert was in remembrance of the city’s Tree of Life Synagogue tragedy. Learn more about the broadcast and local station information at pbs.org Watch the PBS Preview
Reference Recordings is excited to announce five GRAMMY® Nominations for the 2019 GRAMMY® Awards! John Williams At The Movies Best Engineered, Classical & Best Classical Compendium John Williams is a game changer. Early in his career he crossed the lines between music that was “art” and music that was “commercial,” and never looked back. He is one of the best known, most awarded and most successful composers in US history, and his name is inextricably…
The PaTRAM Institute’s Teach Me Thy Statutes recording has been named the 2018 MusicWeb International Recording of the Year! “In this twelve month period, we published more than 2400 reviews. There is no easy or entirely satisfactory way of choosing one above all others as our Recording of the Year, but this year the choice was a little easier than usual. … none stood as deserving of this accolade as much as the choral works of…
Manfred Honeck joined YourClassical‘s New Classical Tracks® program to talk about his new recording of Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 and Strauss: Horn Concerto No. 1 with the Pittsburgh Symphony. The recording is the featured CD of the week on New Classical Tracks, which means you have a chance to win the recording! “Because I was a member of the Vienna Philharmonic as a viola player, I could watch all of the best conductors in the…
Culture Spot LA‘s Henry Schlinger has a new review for Quartet San Francisco’s new recording, A QSF Journey: “The new CD on Reference Recordings by the Quartet San Francisco (QSF), A QSF Journey, is a wonderful addition to the string quartet catalogue. The CD contains 12 tracks, many of which were either composed or arranged by the quartet’s founder and first violinist Jeremy Cohen and played to perfection by the quartet whose other members include…
Fiona Boyes follows up her 2017 Music Victoria Award for Professin’ The Blues with a “Best Blues Album” nomination for her new Voodoo in the Shadows recording! Australia’s largest publicly voted music awards The Age Music Victoria Awards is back for its 13th year in 2018. Boasting a massive night of live music and accolades, the 2018 Awards will take place on Wednesday 21 November during Melbourne Music Week. The “Best Blues Album” is an…
Fiona Boyes is putting together the stories behind the songs from her new Voodoo in the Shadows recording! First up is “Call Their Name”. Get the background, and then watch a live performance: Voodoo in the Shadows Release Date: October 19, 2018 Fiona Boyes is Australia’s most successful and celebrated international Blues artist. Her previous Reference Recordings release, Professin’ The Blues, received the 2017 Acoustic Album of the Year award from Blues Blast Magazine. The…
Gramophone Magazine’s James Jolly gives praise to the
Voodoo in the Shadows Fiona Boyes is Australia’s most successful and celebrated international Blues artist. Her previous Reference Recordings release, Professin’ The Blues, received the 2017 Acoustic Album of the Year award from Blues Blast Magazine. The Blues Foundation in Memphis has honored her with 6 Blues Music Award nominations, including Acoustic Album of the Year and Best Acoustic Artist in 2017. In 2003, she won their International Blues Challenge, representing The Melbourne Blues Appreciation…
Reference Recordings would like to wish Maestro Manfred Honeck a Happy 60th birthday today! Friday, September 21, 2018, Maestro Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony will release their eighth recording on our FRESH! From Reference Recordings label, and in honor of his birthday, we’re offering our entire Manfred Honeck catalog of recordings on sale through September 30! So start celebrating, and saving! From The Pittsburgh Symphony Staff and Orchestra: Manfred Honeck on FRESH! From Reference Recordings