Comment:At the end of the war Stalin expected a grandiose symphony, while Shostakovich's 9th is a masterwork of understatement. Symphony No. 10 of 1953, Mahlerian in concept, post Stalin, its second movement is said to be his musical portrait.

Comment:Marta Klouckova's Loving Season is a song cycle reflecting on times past and present, the seasons, our environment and the loving relationships that we have with each other. Marta is joined by a quartet of clarinets in her haunting journey.

Comment:These violin and piano works by Andrew Downes showcase his interests in musical forms and their sometimes non-musical inspiration. The Sacred Mass was originally played in monasteries, while The God Marduk, goes back to 2nd century BC, Babylon.

Comment:Messiaen's catalogue of bird song reimagined for piano is one of the greatest piano works of the 20th century. An enthralling ornithological journey lasting around 150 minutes. Amazing playing by Pierre-Laurent Aimard, who explains much on a bonus DVD.

Comment:For 38 years, between 1970 and 2008, Bob Watt held the position of Assistant Principal French Horn in the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra. On this disc he selects pieces that are a testament to the musical journey that his life has taken.

Comment:Johanna Lundy is a fearless French horn player. Her Canyon Songs is the result of a long term project that reflects music inspired by Art, Nature and Devotion. Recent pieces by American composers sit alongside reworked Bach and Messiaen.

Comment:Gabriel Dupont (1878-1914) was afflicted by an illness that killed him, at the age of 36, on the day World War 1 commenced. His opera La Glu had people talking of the next Carmen. On these two discs are his complete piano works to be discovered.

Comment:This has to be some of the most extraordinary music ever composed. Craig Sheppard brings his own take on Bach after a period long time pondering over Bach's score. The final Contrapunctus is played in a completion by Dr. Kevin Korsyn.

Comment:Book 2 of Bach's Well Tempered Klavier followed after a 20 year break from Book 1, printed in 1722. For Lithuanian harpsichordist, Giedre Luksaite-Mrazkova, in these 24 Preludes and Fugues we sense Bach's "inner freedom, his independence."

Comment:Thre is some evidence to suggest that Vivaldi visited Prague around 1729. Vivaldi's religious works on this disc are known to have circulated in Moravia and Bohemia.