Gustav Mahler never heard Das Lied von der Erde, his penultimate completed work, nor the Ninth Symphony, which followed it closely. He was probably working on them more or less simultaneously. Despite his state of health, he managed not only to complete the full score of Das Lied, but also to prepare a version with piano accompaniment in place of the orchestra. There is however a third version, started by Arnold Schönberg - who saw Mahler as his mentor - in 1920, and scored for a chamber orchestra. This release features the European Chamber Soloists under Nicol Matt, with soloists Anna Haase (mezzo-soprano) and Daniel Sans (tenor).

With its 32 professional singers, the Swedish Radio Choir forms an instrument with a range from the most delicate a cappella tones to oratorios of enormous power and versatility. Every individual is allowed his or her place in the group, resulting in an exclusive expressiveness – the Swedish Radio Choir’s unique sound. The Swedish Radio Choir, which is one of the world’s most respected a cappella ensembles, was founded in 1925, but it was not until 25 years later (1952), under the leadership of their new principal conductor Eric Ericson, that the choir began to develop into the flexible instrument that it has now become. And every principal conductor after him has also contributed to the character of the choir, adding new colour and accomplishments. The present principal conductor, since the autumn of 2007, is Peter Dijkstra.

Virpi Räisänen, one of the most sought after Finnish female singing talents at the moment, has garnered an impressive list of honours and achievements both as a mezzo soprano and earlier as a concert violinist. Next to her successful violin career singing was always her other passion, earning her singing diploma with the highest distinction. Her warm mezzo voice and her strong musicality is leading her from one success to another. "The Legacy of Mahler" is a collection of late Romanticism Lieder by Mahler as well as Alban Berg, Arnold Schoenberg, Dmitri Shostakovich and Benjamin Britten, who were all strongly inspired by Mahler. Räisänen's duo partner at the piano is the highly-acclaimed Marita Viitasalo.

Gustav Mahlers Symphony No.4 portrays another side of the composer, one hitherto unseen by the general public. No major battles are fought in this symphony; rather it is a childlike vision of life and a better world in the Hereafter. On this new Pentatone release, Marc Albrecht, its chief conductor, leads the Netherlands Philharmonic in performance of this work. The soprano Elizabeth Watts, whose voice was described by Intl Record Review as one of the most beautiful Britain has produced in a generation, is the touching last movements featured soloist.

After a relatively quick turnaround, German metal masters Rammstein added another highlight to their discography with eighth album Zeit…

Dave Hagedorn is an Artist in Residence at St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN, where he teaches percussion, jazz studies, and world music. Hagedorn has an album, “Solid/Liquid” on the Artegra label in SACD format released in October of 2003…

Born Chantal Vanlee in Hasselt in 1965, Dana Winner found fame in the early '90s with Flemish cover versions of the Carpenters' "On Top of the World" ("Op Het Dak van de Wereld") and the Cats' "One Way Wind" ("Westenwind"). Guided by Belgian composer Jean Kluger, she released her debut album, Mijn Paradijs, in 1994 and went on to achieve success in South Africa and Germany at the end of the decade after recording material in various different languages…

Japanese DSD collection of recordings by Johann Sebastian Bach's works, mostly recorded in the 60s by Munich Bach Orchestra under conducting by Karl Richter. From the archives of Archiv Produktion (German record label, originated in 1949 as a classical label for the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft - DGG).