Luigi Piovano / Antonio Pappano BRAHMS | MARTUCCI Two Sonatas and Two Romances for Cello and Piano

 

TWO SONATAS AND TWO ROMANCES FOR CELLO AND PIANO

 

Luka Šulić / Archi dell'Accademia di Santa Cecilia / Luigi Piovano ANTONIO VIVALDI The Four Seasons

After seven years of touring the world as part of the critically acclaimed duo 2CELLOS, Luka Šulić returns to his classical roots with his first solo album for Sony Classical.  A graduate of London's Royal Academy of Music and a prize-winning cellist, Luka Šulić takes on one of the most iconic works in classical music for his first independent recording project. Available everywhere Friday, October 25, his dramatic interpretation of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons is the first complete recording of the popular cycle of Baroque concertos arranged for a cello soloist.

"I've loved Vivaldi's Four Seasons since I was a child," says Luka Šulić of his newest project, adding, "I've always wanted to play the piece on the cello and love taking on new challenges."

Even in a Baroque masterpiece, Luka Šulić is ready to defy expectations and shatter boundaries. Though hundreds of traditional recordings exist of The Four Seasons with a violin soloist, Luka Šulić's recording will be the first complete version – his own painstaking work – that reimagines all four concertos of The Four Seasons for a cello soloist.

"Four Seasons is a very demanding piece for violin, let alone cello, so it was a long and difficult process for me," says Luka Šulić.  "I spent two years preparing the arrangement, little by little, piece by piece.  In the end, I hope listeners will feel the same excitement I did while making this album and bringing Vivaldi's iconic work to the cello for the first time."

Joining Luka Šulić for the recording is the Archi dell'Accademia di Santa Cecilia, conducted by Maestro Luigi Piovano, himself a cellist and musical director of the chamber ensemble and Rome's renowned Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.  Luigi Piovano commends Luka Šulić's ambitious undertaking, remarking, "If Vivaldi was alive, he would probably say, 'Wow, that's a great idea!'"

"Throughout my career, I'm always trying to introduce new audiences to the music I love and grew up with, selecting pieces I connect with on an emotional level," says Luka Šulić.  "Vivaldi's Four Seasons is an instantly recognizable piece, making it a perfect entry point to classical music.  I truly think it can make anyone fall in love with classical music and I look forward to releasing the album and performing it for audiences around the world."

Archi di Santa Cecilia / Luigi Piovano TCHAIKOVSKY - DVORÁK Serenades

Following the huge success of the 2017 release, “Cinema per archi”, featuring the music of Rota, Morricone and Piovani, the Arcana label is back with another recording by the Archidi Santa Cecilia conducted by Luigi Piovano, the eminent cellist whose duo performances with Antonio Pappano have met with widespread acclaim among chamber music aficionados. Composed of players from the excellent Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, the ensemble here interprets two of the best loved works of the entire string repertoire: the Serenata in C major op. 48 by Tchaikovsky, and the Serenata in E major op. 22 by Dvorák. Both of these works have been special attractions in concert programs at the Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome and in other prominent concert venues throughout Italy (Ravello Festival, Naples, Ravenna, Reggio Emilia, L’Aquila, Piacenza). The Ensemble’s enormously successful first recording of music by Schubert, including Mahler’s arrangement of Death and the Maiden, was described by Ralph Moore on “MusicWeb International”as «mesmerising, Intense, thrilling and liberated in away too few recordings are these days» and elicited David Vernier to declare in “Classics Today” that «the concluding fourth movement Presto is an impressive display of ensemble virtuosity».

Anastasiya Petryshak / Archi dell'Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia / Luigi Piovano VIVALDI Amato Bene

Anastasiya is a young, talented violinist. Born in Ukraine in 1994, she has been performing since the age of 8. Having just recently graduated at the ZHdk Academy in Zurich, this is her first album. In this recording, she plays the "Toscano", which is one of the best Stradivari violins. Luigi Piovano conducts the strings of the Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. Her interpretation of Vivaldi's Four Season is a unique combination of the Italian cantabile, the Slavic ardor and the Nordic limpidity.