Christmas fiddlers can draw on a rich and varied repertoire. This collection spans seven centuries, from the boisterous medieval Song of the Ass to contemporary tunes like Sleigh ride, taking in such traditional carols as Away in a manger and O little town of Bethlehem along the way. There is music in The Christmas Fiddler from England, Wales, France, Germany and North America.Of course Christmas time is not only a religious festival. Much of the music here - the Welsh carol Deck the hall, the 'fireside' movement from The Four Seaons, the modern classic Chestnuts roasting on an open fire - is as much a celebration of the ancient secular festival of the Winter Solstice.The arrangements in this collection can be performed as solos or duets, or by larger ensembles. The keyboard accompaniments are there for a multitude of purposes, from concert performances to playing at home- and the violin accompaniments will be invaluable for those Christmas busking sessions.The full range of traditional fiddle repertoire is now at your fingertips! Using these generous collections, you can create your own ceilidh, barn dance, jazz club, Sarajevo street-café or Gypsy gathering. Some of this music is familiar, some more exotic, but all of it is absolutely authentic, faithfully arranged and, above all, hugely enjoyable. Each title in the series is available in two formats: the violin edition (with an optional easy violin part and guitar chord)- or the complete edition, which also includes both keyboard and violin accompaniments. Either format is hugely flexible, which means the music can be played as solos, duets or trios as well as with larger ensembles. Edward Huws Jones has travelled extensively researching fiddle-playing traditions. In each book he explains the background of the particular musical style, giving his own suggestions for a lively performance. And to help recreate the spirit of the music, every book in the series is beautifully illustrated. / Violon Et Guitare

Les dix sonates pour piano et violon de Beethoven, ainsi que celles de Mozart, constituent le c'ur de ce genre de musique classique. Suivant l'exemple des dernières sonates de Mozart, Beethoven laisse la partie violon devenir de plus en plus indépendante de la partie piano. Non seulement l'édition critique de Clive Brown propose un texte méticuleusement édité, mais elle présente pour la première fois une liste de références et un rapport critique. De plus, Brown documente un grand nombre de passages où la notation soulève quelques questions, selon les normes actuelles. Ces passages avaient auparavant été négligés dans le manuscrit autographe, mais leur signification est maintenant clarifiée. Un exemple peut être trouvé dans le « Tempo di Minuetto » de Beethoven, extrait de la Sonat op. 30 n ° 3, où il utilise une idiosyncratie notationnelle basée sur le livre de son fils C.P.E. Bach « Versuch über die wahre Art das Clavier zu spielen », pour indiquer une pause. Ce symbole musical, figurant dans la première édition publiée du vivant de Beethoven, n'a été abordé dans aucune édition moderne à ce jour. De plus, une partition dénotant un accord arpégé ne peut pas non plus être retrouvée dans les éditions modernes précédentes.

Par IGUDESMAN ALEKSEY. Aleksey Igudesman might reasonably be described as a modern day Victor Borge. With his cabaret partner, Hyung-ki Joo, he has toured concert halls all over the world, wringing all that is humorous out of classical music with just the basic tools of violin and piano. The “Happy Birthday Variations” for violin and piano are dedicated to his good friend, the late Sir Roger Moore and are typical of Igudesman’s brand of humour. They take the internationally known musical greeting on a world-wide tour, from a Viennese Waltz, through a Big Band number, a Bulgarian Vivace in 7/8, a Russian Presto, a Tango and an Alpine Air to conclude in a Paganini-esque finale that’s not quite as difficult as it looks. A great concert showpiece for intermediate students, not least if someone in the audience is celebrating a special day! Or, if the teacher prefers to play the violin, Igudesman’s “The Soloist’s Ultimate Happy Birthday” (UE37199) does a different but equally funny job for violin duet./ Recueil / Violon et Piano

Raymond Briggs' charming Christmas story about the adventures of a boy and the snowman that comes to life is a modern children's classic. The tales popularity has been further enhanced by frequent television broadcasts of the award-winning cartoon film The Snowman . In this suite for Violin and Piano, composer Howard Blake recreated the story in music based on the scenes from the film. The music includes the hit song Walking In The Air . / Violon Et Piano