Hebrides Ensemble
The Hebrides Ensemble has built a reputation as Scotland's foremost chamber group, touring frequently throughout Scotland, appearing at international music festivals and broadcasting regularly on BBC Radio 3.
The Ensemble has commissioned and premiered new works by more than forty composers including Nigel Osborne, Sally Beamish, Stuart MacRae and Gordon McPherson and performs a celebrated series of concerts each year at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.
The 2005/06 season includes the Ensemble's second Scottish Arts Council Tune Up Tour and a major new mixed media commission, "Shoreline...Stories of Love and War" from composer Nigel Osborne and film maker / animator Rachel Bevan Baker in collaboration with Opera Circus and Scottish Dance Theatre. Hebrides Ensemble received high critical acclaim for their outstanding performance of the music of Elliott Carter at the 2005 Edinburgh International Festival.
Consort of Voices
Based in Edinburgh and founded in 1991, the Consort of Voices specialises in performances of a cappella music and small-scale choral repertoire from the 15th century to the present day. The group performs regularly throughout Scotland and made its English debut at the Ryedale Festival in Yorkshire in 1996 under the direction of William Conway.
The Consort has been closely associated for many years with the music of John Bevan Baker, and participated in the first performances of his chamber opera The Seer. They first performed Songs of Courtship and Hymn for the Nativity at a memorial concert for the composer at the Queen's Hall, Edinburgh, in 1995.
For further information -
www.hebridesensemble.org.ukPartituren"Eine rundum gelungene Einspielung in optimalem Klang."
more >>Klassik.com
"Schon ihretwegen werden Messiaen-Fans zu dieser SACD greifen."
more >>Ensemble"...überwältigend."
more >>Atlanta Audio Society"...distinguished and thoroughly compelling accounts..."
more >>Nottingham Evening Post
"...Simply unmissable...mastered superbly."
more >>BBC Music Magazine"...these are superb performances...placing this firmly among the best accounts on disc."
more >>The List"It takes its place among the best interpretations of the work on disc..."
more >>SA-CD.netAbsolutely captivating and a wonderful contribution to the centenary of Messiaen's birth - highly recommended.
more >>The Sunday Times
[a] stirring account of Quatuor pour la fin du temps
more >>The Sunday Times (Live Review)"captivating...daring but triumphant Wigmore debut."
more >>Music OMH - Live Review"...this was as eloquent as anything we've heard in London so far."
more >>The Observer"...an impressive account from the Hebrides Ensemble..."
more >>Classical Source - Live Review"London appearances from the Hebrides Ensemble should ideally be more frequent."
more >>The Times (Knowledge)A performance full of "intensity".
more >>Audiophile Audition"...transparent surround sonics greatly aid the listener's experience of this amazing work."
more >>Manchester Evening News"Messiaen's music is like no other..."
more >>The Guardian"...vivid, beautifully judged performances from the Hebrides Ensemble..."
more >>Music OMH"...well worth coughing up for...crisp and detailed..."
more >>BBC OnlineHowever, this disc is more than just a premiere recording. This is special playing from a special group of musicians.
more >>The IndependentA strong, truthful recording by the ensemble
more >>Financial TimesThe Hebrides Ensemble play as if they believe in every note.
more >>The ScotsmanA performance "with vibrant intensity and genuine belief in the music"
more >>High Fidelity (Danish)virkelig god musik I en venlig, imødekommende stil...
more >>Classic FM MagazineCertainly worth knowing
more >>GramophoneA late-flowering composer who was inspired by his love of Scotland...
more >>International Record ReviewThis is Gebrauchmusik in the best sense of that word
more >>McAlister Matheson Music Newsletter"This is beautifully crafted, transpar-ently honest music, of great warmth and melodic fecundity, and I am delighted it is receiving wider attention." Sir Peter Maxwell Davies
more >>The ScotsmanTribute to a modest man with the common touch...
more >>