We live in an age of mysteries. The omnipresence of today's recordings of classical music, many of which are of little-known repertoire, might lead us to believe that there is little left of the past to discover. Yet we have only to move back in time by a little over a hundred years to find the ghosts of a forgotten Romanticism waiting to be reanimated and to present to us an aesthetic very different from that of our own age. This was the era when the piano was at the centre of musical life; at the heart of the home and at the crux of the conception of the Romantic as artist.

Romantic Discoveries Recordings seeks to present innovative world première recordings informed by extensive research into the performance history of the Romantic era, and recorded in a natural ambience evoking the acoustic of the Romantic salon. These are not intended to be audiophile releases; rather, interpretatively faithful performances that aim at an honest, direct and sympathetic portrayal of music that is being introduced to the listener for the first time.

A recent disc includes first recordings of original works by Mendelssohn along with transcriptions of his music by his contemporaries Theodor Kirchner, Stephen Heller and Sydney Smith.

The Kirchner series continues with a seventh disc devoted to original works. The next instalment of our series on the Danish masters consists of two discs which explore hitherto unrecorded works of Carl Reinecke and Ludvig Schytte respectively.

The piano music of Adolph Bergt disappeared from view with his suicide in 1862. Acclaimed by his contemporaries for his "great inner feeling", his music is original and quite unlike anyone else of his period.

Three discs present the collected piano music of Swiss Late Romantic master Hans Huber (1852-1921), including his über-Gothic Sonata on Mörike's "Maler Nolten".

The Piano Symphony and Sonata of Theodor Kullak (1818-82) receive their first recording. The Symphony may have pre-dated Alkan's famous work in that rare genre.

Two discs present significant works of Adolf Jensen (1837-79), one of the most popular composers of his time, including for the first time the complete cycle of Romantic Etudes, op 8.

A two disc exploration of Woldemar Bargiel (1828-97) and the circle of Brahms includes the first recording of his large-scale and symphonic Sonata.

Two discs explore the complete piano music of Heinrich von Sahr (1829-98), a much-admired friend of Brahms whose work possesses a starkly original and deeply introspective voice.
 
Our ongoing series of the piano music of Theodor Kirchner (1823-1903) ("the piano miniaturist of the Romantic era") includes his most accomplished and personal collection, the Romantic Poems, op 73.

Continuing our exploration of Danish music, we present our first disc of music by Johann Peter Emilius (1805-1900) and his son Emil Hartmann (1836-98), with further Emil Hartmann works scheduled for future release. Another disc explores the music of the influential Leopold Rosenfeld (1849-1909), a lyrical master of the mature Romantic style.

Among our archive series you can find first recordings of a major unfinished Beethoven sonata and of original works and transcriptions by Alkan, among others.