Manuel Valera - VesselManuel Valera advises his students at New York University to write music every day. "I tell them that composition is essentially another instrument the more you practice, the better you get at it," says the 42 year old piano master, who, by his count, has generated some 200 recorded pieces since he entered the fray in the early aughts. Vessel, Valera's second album for Criss Cross, showcases eight recent works, each "honoring a different person who's

of a work commissioned by Angelo Marchese

Strauss II/ Smirnitskaya/ Estonian National - Strauss in St

But when Stephanie and Greggs fortunes come true

or leading community outreach

a true miracle of music

studying with Ingolf Turban

Schubert / Eugene Asti / James Rutherford - Schubert: Schwanengesang

In Omar Tomasoni's personal note in the booklet he writes: "I want this album to be a testimony to the artist I am today

the intricate artwork mirrors the band's gritty aesthetic and pays homage to their unrivaled influence in the punk scene

" (BBC Music 4)

A harp creates completely different overtones than a grand piano

von Weber's Perpetuum Mobile) and 'the Age of the Great Virtuosos' (Liszt and Rubinstein