At the very end of the 1980s, Anssi Karttunen and Kari Kriikku, old friends from their days at the Sibelius Academy, decided to commision works from all major Finnish composers for the then-usual combination of cello and clarinet. Sure enough, most composers agreed, and the two performers were even able to premiere the pieces in short order. It took 15 years, however, for Ondine to release the recording which Karttunen and Kriikku promised. I am not a fan of all the composers here, so I will limit my comments to four works……….. Lots of fun.

Christopher Culver @ Amazon.com

This is a 2 CD collection of choral works from one of Sweden's great modern composers, Ingvar Lidholm. The title reflects his love of the ancient Greek texts which he often set to music. The liner-notes are very informative, and Eric Ericson's choir is one of the best in the world. A must have for anyone interested in modern choral music.

melquist @ Amazon.com

Finding the Sacred Heart: Live in Philly 1986 captures Dio's heavy metal antics in full swing in a live performance at the Spectrum in Philadelphia on June 17, 1986. Although Dio are touring to promote the mediocre Sacred Heart album, the show is a classic of the era, full of lasers, explosives, and a massive robotic dragon overlooking the stage…

The RICHIES: The Complete CD Collection (1989-1997)
6x EAC Rip | FLAC+CUE+LOG or MP3 CBR 320 | 208:58 min | Complete Scanwork | 1,45 GB or 474 MB
- Rock / Power Pop / Old School Pop Punk | Includes 4 studio albums + 1 Mini-CD + 1 split CD -

The Richies were a German Rock band also known as "Duisburger Ramones". The press release of the record company promoted the band as the "Monty Python of punk". Like the Ramones, they have a wide range of variety in the way they approach song writing. So there's punk songs, pop songs, hardcore songs, and several cool ballads. But all of them have that big and simple guitar attack, straight ahead drumming, and technically unsophisticated but otherwise outstanding vocals that made the Ramones so great. Now you get a chance to own the band's entire collection in a terrific digital form. Everything from the complete cover-art to more than 200 minutes of great Rock & Roll Music brings you the ultimate satisfaction. Have fun!

Born in Mexico City in 1974, Enrico Chapela studied at CIEM academy in Mexico. He obtained a Master degree at the University of Paris Saint-Denis in 2008. Since the year 2002 he has won recognitions at several national and international competitions such as The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowships, National System of Art Creators (FONCA-Mexico), the International Rostrum of Composers (UNESCO), International Alexander Zemlinsky Composition Competition and The Barlow Endowment for Music Composition Prize.

If you are responsive to Simpson's exhilarating command of musical movement and space you will find this disc as rewarding as any in Hyperion's wonderful recorded cycle.

(Gramophone)