Arabesque Records is an American record company and

label A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product, on which is written or printed information or symbols about the product or item. Information printed dir ...

specializing in

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

and

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

. It was founded by

Caedmon Audio Caedmon Audio and HarperCollins Audio are record label imprints of HarperCollins Publishers that specialize in audiobooks and other literary content. Formerly Caedmon Records, its marketing tag-line was Caedmon: a Third Dimension for the Print ...

as a classical music label. In 1988 it was bought by Ward Botsford and Marvin Reiss, becoming an independent label, and in 1992 added jazz to its production, with early releases by

Craig Handy Craig Mitchell Handy (born September 25, 1962) is an American tenor saxophonist. Born in Oakland, California, he attended North Texas State University from 1981 to 1984, and following this played with Art Blakey, Wynton Marsalis, Roy Haynes, Ab ...

and

Carmen Lundy Carmen Latretta Lundy (born November 1, 1954) is an American jazz singer. She has been performing for three decades, with a focus on original material. She has been positively compared with Aretha Franklin, Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. Lu ...

. Its catalogue grew to include

Jane Ira Bloom Jane Ira Bloom (born January 12, 1955) is an American jazz soprano saxophonist and composer. Early years Bloom was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Joel and Evelyn Bloom. She began as a pianist and drummer, later switching to the alto saxophon ...

Thomas Chapin Thomas Chapin (March 9, 1957 – February 13, 1998) was an American composer and saxophonist/multi-instrumentalist. Though primarily an alto saxophonist, he also played sopranino, as well as soprano, tenor, baritone saxes and flute. Ma ...

, Dave Douglas, Art Farmer,

Billy Hart Billy Hart (born November 29, 1940) is an American jazz drummer and educator. He is known internationally for his work with Herbie Hancock's "Mwandishi" band in the early 1970s, as well with Shirley Horn, Stan Getz, and Quest, among others. Bi ...

Myra Melford Myra Melford (born January 5, 1957) is an American avant-garde jazz pianist and composer. A 2013 Guggenheim Fellow, Melford was described by the ''San Francisco Chronicle'' as an "explosive player, a virtuoso who shocks and soothes, and who can m ...

, and Charles McPherson, and

Horace Tapscott Horace Elva Tapscott (April 6, 1934 – February 27, 1999) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He formed the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra (also known as P.A.P.A., or The Ark) in 1961 and led the ensemble through the 1990s. Early lif ...

Discography

Jazz

Classical (early issues)

* ''Schubert and Schnabel – An Historical Recording, Volume IV.'',

Therese Behr Therese Schnabel (''née'' Behr; 14 September 1876 – 30 January 1959) was a German contralto. She was best known for her interpretations of lieder. Life Therese Behr was born to interior designer Carl Behr and his wife Lina Behr (née Zenegg) i ...

(1987) * ''Ralph Vaughan Williams'' -

Sir Yehudi Menuhin ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as p ...

Conducting the English Chamber Orchestra (1988) * ''The Complete Chopin Piano Works'' –

Garrick Ohlsson Garrick Olof Ohlsson (born April 3, 1948) is an American classical pianist. He is the only American to have won first prize in the International Chopin Piano Competition, at the VIII competition in 1970. He also won first prize at the Busoni Com ...

, piano (1989) * ''Music of Alkan'' – Ronald Smith, piano (1985) * ''The Complete Piano Variations of Johannes Brahms'' –

Ian Hobson Ian Hobson is an English pianist, conductor and teacher, and is a professor at University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign and at Florida State University. His pianistic repertoire spans the baroque to the contemporary, but he specialises in th ...

, piano (1994) * ''George Gershwin: An American in Paris, Rhapsody in Blue, Concerto in F'' – London Symphony Orchestra, Mitch Miller, conductor, David Golub, piano (1992) * ''Mozart: Complete Works for Four Hands'' –

Artur Balsam Artur Balsam (February 8, 1906 – September 1, 1994) was a Polish-born American classical pianist and pedagogue. Biography He was born in Warsaw, Poland, and studied in Łódź, making his debut there at the age of 12 then enrolled at the Berlin ...

& Gena Raps, piano (1995) * ''Richard Strauss: Sinfonia Domestica; 4 Orchestral Songs'' –

Wilhelm Furtwängler Gustav Heinrich Ernst Martin Wilhelm Furtwängler ( , , ; 25 January 188630 November 1954) was a German conductor and composer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest symphonic and operatic conductors of the 20th century. He was a major ...

, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra (1989) * ''Benjamin Britten: Illuminations; Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge; Simple Symphony'' -

English Chamber Orchestra The English Chamber Orchestra (ECO) is a British chamber orchestra based in London. The full orchestra regularly plays concerts at Cadogan Hall, and their ensemble performs at Wigmore Hall. The orchestra regularly tours in the UK and internationall ...

;

Elisabeth Söderström Anna Elisabeth Söderström (married name Olow; 7 May 192720 November 2009) was a Swedish soprano who performed both opera and song, and was known as a leading interpreter of the works of Janáček, Rachmaninoff and Sibelius.Elizabeth Sleeman, ' ...

, Soprano;

Gilbert Levine Sir Gilbert Levine, GCSG (born January 22, 1948) is an American conductor. He is considered an "outstanding personality in the world of international music television." He has led the PBS concert debuts of the Staatskapelle Dresden, Royal Phi ...

, Conductor (1989) * ''Dmitri Shostakovitch: Symphony No. 1; Piano Concerto; Age of Gold Suite'' - Cracow Philharmonic Orchestra; Garrick Ohlsson, Piano; Gilbert Levine, Conductor (1989)

Classical (later issues)

* ''Encore Rossini'',

Rockwell Blake Rockwell Blake (born January 10, 1951) is an American operatic tenor, particularly known for his roles in Rossini operas. He was the first winner of the Richard Tucker Award. Biography Born and raised in Plattsburgh, NY, Blake was the son of a m ...

* ''Inner Cities'' (2003),

Alvin Curran Alvin Curran (born December 13, 1938) is an American composer, performer, improviser, sound artist, and writer. He was born in Providence, Rhode Island, and lives and works in Rome, Italy. He is the co-founder, with Frederic Rzewski and Richard ...

Bruce Brubaker Bruce Brubaker is a musician, artist, concert pianist, and writer from the United States. Concepts Brubaker's work uses and combines Western classical music with postmodern artistic, literary, theatrical, and philosophical ideas. He is associat ...

, piano *''Chopin: 24 Etudes, op.10 and op.25'',

Matthew Cameron Matthew Cameron (born 20 September 1985) is an Australian Paralympic athletics competitor. He competed at the 2008 Summer Paralympics. At the 2012 Summer Paralympics, he won a bronze medal. Personal Cameron was born on 20 September 1985 and i ...

, piano (2015) * ''Schumann: Liederkreis (Kerner Lieder; Lenau Lieder and Requiem; Eichendorff Liederkreis)'',

Sergey Schepkin Sergey Schepkin (born September 24, 1962) is an American pianist of Russian birth. He lives in Brookline, Massachusetts. Performer Schepkin was born in St. Petersburg. He started playing piano at the age of five under the tutelage of Leah Zeli ...

with Darren Chase, baritone (2013) * '' Quynh Nguyen plays Schubert, Chopin'' (2004) * ''

plays Romantic Favorites for Piano'' (2012) * ''Forgotten Americans'' Z6823, includes: "A Life,"

Ernst Bacon Ernst Lecher Bacon (May 26, 1898 – March 16, 1990) was an United States of America, American composer, pianist, and Conductor (music), conductor. A prolific author, Bacon composed over 250 songs over his career. He was awarded three Guggenheim ...

, Joel Krosnick, cello and Gilbert Kalish, piano. * ''

La fedeltà premiata ' (''Fidelity Rewarded''), Hob. XXVIII/10, is an opera in three acts by Joseph Haydn first performed at the Eszterháza palace in Fertőd, Hungary, on 25 February 1781 to celebrate the reopening of the court theatre after a fire. The opera was ...

'', Haydn, Z6751-3 (1999) * ''Schumann: Song Cycles Op. 24, 42 & 48'' –

Leon Fleisher Leon Fleisher (July 23, 1928 – August 2, 2020) was an American classical pianist, conductor and pedagogue. He was one of the most renowned pianists and pedagogues in the world. Music correspondent Elijah Ho called him "one of the most re ...

, Phyllis Bryn-Julson, John Shirly-Quirk (2009) * ''Franz Schubert: String Quartets'' –

Guarneri String Quartet The Guarneri Quartet was an American string quartet founded in 1964 at the Marlboro Music School and Festival. It was admired for its rich, warm, complex tone and its bold, dramatic interpretations of the quartet literature, with a particular aff ...

, (2009)

References

External links

Arabesque Records website
{{Authority control New York (state) record labels Jazz record labels