EMA Recording & Book Reviews

All early musicians, at some point, will need to edit or arrange music for practice or performance. Finally, there's a sensible how-to guide that covers the basics and beyond, from making the most of historical sources to making interpretive decisions about modern critical editions and more.

Radiant soprano Amanda Forsythe and Apollo's Fire continue their fruitful relationship in music by Bach, with two cantatas and two arias. Proof, as artistic director Jeannette Sorrell puts it, of Bach's love affair with the soprano voice.

Described as a "pardo" -- of mixed race -- Vicente Lusitano might be the first published composer of African descent. This new recording shows a composer of high imagination and style, with a daring approach to chromaticism.

Music for solemn occasions has long called for the dark gravitas of a brass ensemble. With its latest recording, Belgium-based period-instrument ensemble InAlto focuses on an especially rich period in the genre's history.

Anyone who has realized new musical insights while playing a historical instrument will learn much from this new book, examining a French pianoforte that changed Beethoven's writing style.

A deluxe new film and CD explores Galileo's scientific achievements through music of his time. The visuals can be hit-and-miss, but "the performances exploring religious themes are simply gorgeous."

In their recent recording 'Virtuosa,' Infusion Baroque proves there is always more to be discovered about women in music. This two-disc set revisits a few familiar names and presents others that will be new to many listeners. The strong performances are enthusiastic and convincing.

She spent most of her life in the convent and composed prolifically. Suor Isabella Leonarda's sacred and instrumental music is given deluxe performances in this terrific new recording.

Machaut’s narrative poem and music for 'The Remedy for Fortune' is a collaborative recording between two of America’s leading ensembles, Blue Heron and Les Délices. The results is musically compelling and makes for cohesive storytelling.

The Indigenous peoples of British North America did the trapping and skinning of animal pelts and traded them to European settlers. To keep these mutually beneficial exchanges flowing, the disparate cultures used music, dance, and sound as a vital means of communication. This fascinating book explores how music helped forge cross-cultural trade.