Karl Richter was regarded as one of the great Bach conductors of the twentieth century, noted for solid regularity in rhythms and a serious approach to the music, though he was not given to following the changing pronouncements of musicologists concerning historical accuracy in performance. He was brought up in the tradition of German Protestant religious music; his father was a minister in the central German regions near where Johann Sebastian Bach had lived. Richter learned piano and organ, and as he approached his 12th birthday entered the Kreuzschule school in Dresden.

These are carefully considered and precisely executed interprations. Nicolet has a warm tone, his excellent breathing technique creates wonderful phrasing.

After being intermittently active during the mid-'80s, Ian Hunter returned full force to the world of rock & roll with this 1989 album. As usual, Mick Ronson plays an important role, making a substantial contribution to the songwriting and supplying an array of tasty guitar licks. The result is a strong outing that brings Hunter's classically styled rock up to date: the standout example of this is "American Music," a heartfelt tribute to the music that inspired "Hunter" as a child that combines power chords with a slickly harmonized chorus to create a punchy slice of pop-flavored rock & roll. YUI Orta is the slickest-sounding album in Hunter's catalog thanks to the efforts of Bernard Edwards, the producer best known for being half of the creative brain trust behind Chic and producing slick outings for the Power Station and Robert Palmer. This pairing might seem odd in concept but it results in an effective sound that rocks hard but offers enough ear candy elements to make the whole package listener friendly. For instance, Edwards adds a serpentine horn riff to "Cool" that cleverly enhances its soulfulness without taming the song's hard rock edge.

Following their massive 1986 European stadium tour for the A Kind of Magic album, Queen took an extended break. Rumors swirled about an impending breakup, but it turned out the break was brought on by a painful marital divorce for guitarist Brian May (who subsequently battled depression and contemplated suicide), and Freddie Mercury being diagnosed with AIDS. Instead of sinking further into misery, the band regrouped, worked on each other's mental state, and recorded one of their most inspired albums, 1989's The Miracle. Lyrically, the songs tend to reflect on the band's past accomplishments ("Khashoggi's Ship," "Was It All Worth It") as well as the state of the world in the late '80s (the title track, "I Want It All").

What I Did on My Vacation is an official compilation album from Ian Gillan, released in 1986 in UK by 10 Records. The album covers Gillan's recordings between 1977 and 1982 and was released in three formats (2LP, CD, MC). All songs from the album had been previously released. Although not credited on the cover, "Scarabus" is preceded by an instrumental piece by Colin Towns, which was used as the intro to "On The Rocks" (from the Glory Road album).

Suddenly, and not before time, the Sixth Symphony of Bruckner is riding high. And deservedly so since it is the tersest of his mature symphonies and the most openly exultant. Unlike the superficially more alluring Fourth, it needs a real musician to direct it, no mere master of orchestral ceremonies. What's more, it needs a Brucknerian with a passion for musical logic, a musical realist rather than a musical romantic. As such it is a work better suited to a Rosbaud, a Klemperer, or a Wand rather than someone like Jochum or Furtwangler however inspirational they may be at certain critical moments in the score.

By the time Cutting Crew released their second album in 1989, they were viewed as irrelevant by both critics – who always despised them anyway – and the fickle public that elevated "(I Just) Died in Your Arms" and "I've Been in Love Before" onto the pop charts two years earlier. The cold shoulders which welcomed The Scattering were most likely due to the lack of immediately catchy songs; nevertheless, while The Scattering doesn't have ear candy like the band's hit singles, the music is less-blatantly commercial and more personal. It's still slick stuff – big '80s synthesizers, glossy FM radio guitars, in-your-face drums – but Nick VanEede's vocals have a frosty glow that creates a mood and sustains interest.

Salvatore Accardo is an outstanding Italian violin virtuoso, best known as a master of the works of Niccolò Paganini, but equally accomplished across a wide variety of repertory for the instrument. His playing is characterized by a taut, visceral tone and a disciplined musical approach that avoids self-indulgence. Having also established himself as a successful conductor, chamber musician, and teacher, Accardo may be considered one of the most accomplished and influential musicians of his generation.

The standard nonet – consisting of five wind instruments (flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, bassoon) and four stringed instruments (violin, viola, cello, double bass) – is the mid-size SUV of chamber ensembles: hefty enough to produce pseudo-orchestral horsepower, but still maneuverable enough to accelerate from zero to sixty at a respectable clip. Nowhere are its virtues more evident than in this 1989 album from Ensemble Wien-Berlin (a super-group of principal players from the Berlin and Vienna Philharmonics, formed earlier in the decade), whose jocular interplay and burnished blend bring shine to two of the finest works written for the nonet, Louis Spohr’s seminal 1813 Nonet in F and Bohuslav Martinu’s zingy, neo-classical Nonetto No. 2.

At The Beeb consists of two BBC sessions Queen recorded for producer Bernie Andrews to be broadcast on the Sounds of the 70's TV show. The eight songs, recorded Feb. 5th and Dec. 3rd, 1973, are nearly identical to the versions found on Queen and Queen II. The exception is "Son and Daughter." Here, the composition is expanded to over twice the length of the album version, extended by instrumental flourishes from Brian May and Roger Taylor which hint at what would later become "Brighton Rock" and "Now I'm Here." This alone makes the CD worthwhile. The recordings are of exceptional sound quality, and the performances are fresh and crisp.

In the words of a survey of nineteenth-century Italian opera, published by the Corriere della sera to mark the turning of the century, Mascagni was "condemned to a masterpiece": after the triumph of Cavalleria rusticana nothing less would do. He lived for another 55 years, and although some of his 14 subsequent operas were immensely successful for a while (he claimed that Iris was better received than Cavalleria, and there was a near-riot of enthusiasm at the premiere of Il piccolo Marat) none was judged by the critics to be the awaited 'masterpiece', and nearly all had fallen from the repertory by the end of his life.

So Far So Close is the fourth studio album by Brazilian jazz artist Eliane Elias. This album is great. It is mainly straight ahead jazz with touches of fusion due to the use of synthesizers along with her fantastic piano playing. Like most of her earlier albums her signing is minimal and mainly adds another musical sound more than anything else. Surprisingly, this album has barely a hint of Latin or Brazilian flavor.

Leon "Ndugu" Chancler was an American pop, funk and jazz drummer. He was also a composer, producer, and university professor. Chancler began playing drums when he was thirteen years old. He would publicly reminisce about being asked to leave a classroom for continuously tapping on the desk, only to be later heard tapping on the poles in the hallway. His love for the drums took over while attending Gompers Junior High School and it became his lifelong ambition. He graduated from Locke High School having been heavily involved in playing there with Willie Bobo and the Harold Johnson Sextet. He graduated from California State University, Dominguez Hills with a degree in music education. By then he had already performed with the Gerald Wilson Big Band, Herbie Hancock, and recorded with Miles Davis, Freddie Hubbard, and Bobby Hutcherson.