Complete Works for Piano & Cello

This 2-disc set includes Sonata No. 1 in F major, Op. 5 No. 1; Sonata No. 2 in G minor, Op. 5 No. 2; Sonata No. 3 in A major, Op. 69; and Variations for Piano and Cello in G major, F major, and Eb major. Grammy Award-winning engineer Adam Abeshouse is the producer for the recording. Ms. Dinnerstein and Mr. Bailey have performed together regularly for more than a decade, and together they received the Classical Recording Foundation Award in 2006 and 2007. Both are known as highly accomplished musicians with a flair for arresting interpretations. They have performed the Beethoven Sonatas for capacity audiences at The Metropolitan Museum in New York and the National Gallery in Washington, DC.

Of the new recording, Ms. Dinnerstein says, “Learning Beethoven’s complete works for piano and cello was the first major project that Zuill and I undertook when we first began working together as a duo. It is music we’ve lived with, mulled over, considered and reconsidered. Committing our interpretation to disc is a milestone in our ongoing journey together.” Mr. Bailey adds, “Beethoven’s masterpieces for piano and cello represent arguably the greatest evolution of musical composition by one of the world’s most remarkable and creative minds. The five sonatas and variations chronicle refined points in the early, middle and late stages of his compositions. The works continue to parallel Simone’s and my own musical journey. This recording of Beethoven’s complete works is a true celebration of the first decade of our own personal musical evolution.”

Noted in the press as a “one of the most exciting cellists to come along in years” (The Kansas City Star) and “enormously gifted and splendid . . . heartstopping” (Toronto Globe), Zuill Bailey’s recent appearances include performances in Minnesota, Nashville, Chicago and Toronto. Pianist Simone Dinnerstein released her debut solo CD, a recording of Bach’s Goldberg Variations on Telarc, in August 2007. The disc met with critical acclaim and earned the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Classical Chart in its first week of sales. Her second release on Telarc, The Berlin Concert, is a live recording of Ms. Dinnerstein’s recital debut at the Berlin Philharmonie. It too has been met with critical praise and also rose to the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Classical Chart.

Price: $10.30

Mission Bell

Amos Lee has announced the January 25, 2011 release of Mission Bell, his fourth album for EMI’s Blue Note Records, and his richest and most fully formed album to date. Mission Bell, which was produced by Joey Burns of the acclaimed band Calexico, displays both range and cohesion, an array of emotions unified by Lee’s eclectic taste and distinctive vocals. With a remarkable set of guests–including Lucinda Williams, Willie Nelson, Sam Beam (Iron & Wine), Priscilla Ahn, Pieta Brown, and James Gadson–and the musical backing of Calexico, the album marks the arrival of Amos Lee as a mature artist who continues to explore his musical and thematic interests.

“There’s a real searching element to a lot of these songs,” says Lee, who has evolved into one of the most important and prolific songwriters of our time, a point that’s driven home by the 12 new originals on Mission Bell, and the presence of legends such as Williams and Nelson, who were eager to interpret Lee’s songs.

The most obvious change on Mission Bell is the album’s intimate yet expansive sound, which Lee credits to Joey Burns and John Convertino of Calexico. After a chance meeting, the idea came up for Lee to go out to the band’s Wavelab studio in Tucson and try some recording. “The musicality that those guys bring is just amazing,” Lee says. “It was especially nice to work with John and get a very different texture rhythmically. They’re great at creating atmosphere–sonically, they brought a beautiful dimension into a lot of the songs, and helped them to expand and breathe more.”

Price: $6.98

The Berlin Concert

Dinnerstein chose this program because of how the pieces speak to each another, and because of their relationship to the music of Bach. “My hope with this concert was to program a group of pieces that would contrast with and relate to each other, despite being separated by hundreds of years,” she explains. “So much music written since Bach has been influenced by him, and the Beethoven and the Lasser recorded here are no exceptions. Philip Lasser’s variations on the very dark Bach chorale, Nimm von uns, Herr, du treuer Gott (Take from us, Lord, Thou faithful God), draw on Bach’s intense and meditative side. Lasser’s writing is intricately crafted and encompasses a range of styles, from a contrapuntal energy reminiscent of Bach, to French Impressionism and even jazz. Beethoven’s Opus 111 sounds surprisingly contemporary in this company. The first movement looks ahead to Liszt and the second movement, with its set of variations on a chorale-like arietta, looks back to Bach and ahead to jazz. All three works are densely layered, but also have a sense of freedom and directness of expression. Though they span almost 300 years, in many ways, to me, they each feel grounded in the present.”

Of Dinnerstein’s performance of Beethoven’s Op. 111 during the March 2007 Bach Festival of Philadelphia, The Philadelphia Inquirer raved: “Emotionally, intellectually and technically, this music couldn’t be more demanding, and Dinnerstein’s performance was in a league with any of the great Beethoven pianists of our time . . . I’ve heard Dinnerstein play fine performances, but none with the thunderbolt-hurling confidence of this one.”

Price: $10.15

Chant: Music For The Soul

Chant, is the most peaceful music imaginable. Chant: Music for the Soul, is the ultimate in relaxation and stress relief – the perfect antidote to our fast-moving modern world. Chant has proven to heal, calm and also give strength; its power is timeless and universal. Previous albums of chant have sold in the tens of millions. Further fueling the huge general demand is Chant’s use in the smash-hit computer game Halo – this is chant for a new computer-gaming generation.

Price: $9.42

Bach: Goldberg Variations

Dinnerstein’s Goldberg Variations was recorded in the neoclassic auditorium of the Academy of Arts and Letters in New York in March 2005. The piano she plays, a 1903 Hamburg Steinway model D concert grand, was originally owned by the town council of Hull, in Northeast England. During World War II, Hull was extensively bombed and the town hall in which the piano was housed was severely damaged. The piano, however, survived intact and was used in a series of concerts after the war to restore Hull’s spirit. In 2002, it was restored by Klavierhaus in New York City, in time to be used at the re-opening of the World Trade Center’s Winter Garden, playing the same role as it had in Hull over fifty years earlier.

Price: $13.75

Now Or Never

Poised to release his fourth studio album Now or Never, Tank is ready to share the intensely intimate themes his fans have come to love, even as he prepares to show an entirely new side of himself. “The sound of this new album is still the traditional R&B formula, but sonically it’s very current,” says Tank. His first single, “Sex Music,” perfectly illustrates his new sound. The high-energy track lives up to its name with a spacey, shuddering beat. Produced by Song Dynasty with Harvey Mason Jr. (Dreamgirls, Kelly Clarkson, Justin Timberlake), “Sex Music” is sure to appeal to die-hard Tank fans.

Price: $6.99

O, Yeah! Ultimate Aerosmith Hits

2002 compilation featuring 30 tracks from their years with Columbia & Geffen. Hologram cover. 2002.

Price: $12.30

Bach: A Strange Beauty

Simone Dinnerstein’s first recording for Sony Classical, Back: A Strange Beauty, has the critically-acclaimed pianist returning to Bach,this time combining three transcriptions of his Chorale Preludes, with one of his English Suites and two of his Keyboard Concerti, again revealing her intense and expressive playing style, as well as her individual approach to Bach’s music.

Price: $8.96

Love Me Back

2010 sophomore album from the seven-time Grammy nominated singer/songwriter. Producers on the album include Ne-Yo, Los da Mystro, Ryan Leslie, Lamb, Missy Elliott and Salaam Remi. Jazmine’s first album, Fearless, was certified gold and debuted at #2 on the Billboard R&B Albums Chart. Jazmine has won a BET Centric Award and has been nominated for 11 additional industry awards.

Price: $8.43

The Allman Brothers Band at Fillmore East

There has never been a better showcase for improvisational rock than this 1971 concert recording, and few (if any) live rock albums are in its rank. With only two studio albums (and plenty of touring) under their belt, the Georgia sextet tore into the Fillmore East with road-tested buoyancy. Titanic guitarist Duane Allman was at the peak of his powers, pushing his foil, Dickey Betts, to unsurpassed peaks. Vocalist-keyboardist Gregg Allman would have been a star in any other setting; here he’s merely one more component in a brilliant ensemble. Duane Allman died shortly after At Fillmore East shipped, and the Brothers haven’t scaled such heights since. But, then, neither has anyone else. –Steven Stolder

Price: $8.16

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