Album Notes

NSS MUSIC is proud to present Together, a landmark recording celebrating the musical union of one of today’s foremost violinists, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, and San Francisco’s celebrated 17-year old conductorless string chamber orchestra, the NEW CENTURY Chamber Orchestra. Ms. Salerno-Sonnenberg became Music Director and Concertmaster of the ensemble at the beginning of the 2008-2009 season. The CD is a showcase of passion, energy, musical skill and depth.

An aural depiction of the joy these musicians feel performing together, the recording also includes several surprises.

The star work of the recording is Piazzolla’s Four Seasons of Buenos Aires, featuring Ms. Salerno-Sonnenberg as soloist. An incredibly moving, expressive and sensuous piece, it is just now emerging as a tour de force in the violin literature. This is the second Four Seasons that Nadja Salerno-Sonn-enberg has recorded; she recorded Vivaldi’s work for Angel/EMI at the beginning of her career.

Together is also the premiere recording of the chamber orchestra’s commissioned work, Impressions, by the talented composer Clarice Assad, the ensemble’s first composer-in-residence since Ms. Salerno-Sonnenberg became music director. Impressions is based on Ms. Assad’s observations of the ensemble and Ms. Salerno-Sonnenberg as they performed together, and is written specifically for the orchestra.

Bartok’s virtuosic Romanian Dances gets a colorful twist with Ms. Salerno-Sonnenberg giving the solos that traditionally are performed by the concertmaster to various members of the orchestra.

This joyful recording concludes with Gershwin’s Bess, You Is My Woman Now, with Ms. Salerno-Sonnenberg as the soloist.