Last Thursday night, at the close of a performance of Handel’s Hercules, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir announced the launch of a new record label: Tafelmusik Media.
Speaking about the initiative, Tafelmusik’s music director Jeanne Lamon said, “the launch of Tafelmusik Media is such an exciting moment in our 34-year history because recording has always been an extremely important part of Tafelmusik’s activities. Recordings are important artistically, as they bring focus and depth to our understanding of the repertoire. There is nothing like a recording studio to expose every last detail of a performance. This meticulous attention to detail and the opportunity to capture the true spirit of the music is carried forward in our concerts. Recordings are simultaneously a permanent legacy of Tafelmusik’s music-making, and our most current calling card for future touring and recording engagements. Aside from the obvious international exposure it offers, recording on our own label gives us the chance to assume complete artistic control and make a lasting artistic statement.”
Tafelmusik Media releases will include new digital, live performance, studio CD and DVD recordings, and re-releases of previous Tafelmusik recordings from SONY Classical and CBC Records. A new Watch and Listen site has also been launched as the precursor for a future digital concert hall, which will feature live concert broadcasts and podcasts via social media and on internet television.
In its first three months – beginning March 27 – Tafelmusik Media will release a total of nine recordings. They include CD and DVD recordings of The Galileo Project created by Alison Mackay, which has been seen in Asia, Mexico, the U.S. and Canada, and which will be experienced by audiences in Australia and New Zealand this spring. March re-releases include the JUNO Award-winning Bach Brandenburg Concertos (2-CD package), and Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, which garnered the prestigious Penguin Guide Rosette — both originally recorded for SONY Classical.
And there’s much, much more to come, both from Tafelmusik’s existing (and extensive) discography and videography, as well as newly recorded work.
Tafelmusik Media recordings will be distributed by Naxos USA throughout the Americas, and by Naxos Global Logistics in the rest of the world, as well as through iTunes, Amazon and other digital retail outlets. Tafelmusik has also created high-definition performance films in anticipation of the movement towards internet television. These films are also available on the newly-launched interactive Watch & Listen site, along with audio materials and samples of all of Tafelmusik’s new releases.
Visit tafelmusik.org to watch a short video about Tafelmusik Media.
