Chamber Works 1943-1951
"There is something quite ephemeral and special about the prepared piano – it’s mostly to do with how every instrument responds differently to these treatments but also that it’s not very exact, even if, in the case of Cage, is quite precise. His instructions seem quite prescriptive: although, unless you know actually piano model he was using and the objects he was talking about, you’re always making adjustments. The preparing is just like other notation – there is quite a bit of interpretation …
Listening Time
A 45-minute piece from 2024 composed by Ferdinand Schwarz in collaboration with AREPO ensemble.
De l’art d’induire en erreur
The music of Fabien Lévy thrives on ambiguity, paradox and sonic illusion. With a deep interest in cognitive perception, he creates complex textures where clarity meets mystery, virtuosity blends with playfulness, and every composition becomes a daring exploration. Influenced by spectralism and his mentors Grisey and Risset, Lévy embraces musical allusions – from visual arts to world traditions – creating pieces that challenge and transform the listener’s perception. Whether through kaleidophoni…
The Living Mountain
*2025 stock* Austrian composer Thomas Larcher’s new album features premiere recordings of three strongly contrasting works. The Times has hailed Larcher’s music as a world “of haunting landscapes and dreams, stylistically disparate but fused by the composer’s astonishing ear and quizzical attitude to traditional forms”, a description borne out by the compositions here. The Living Mountain, for soprano and ensemble, draws upon the memoir of the Scottish poet and nature writer Nan Shepherd. Unerzä…
Moving
Moving is the abstract translation of long travels through the southern US into music for pedal steel guitar, chamber ensemble, organ, and electronics. The live performances of Moving feature 5 video projections with video art by Chaz Underriner which form the basis of the design of the CD. Moving particularly focuses on waterways in the south, including recordings from Blue Springs in Florida and the Atchafalaya Basin in Louisiana, the largest wetland and swamp in the US.
Chaz Underriner (b. 1…
Chamber Works for Strings
Felipe Lara’s Chamber Works for Strings redefines the ensemble as a resonating body, where strings become vocal cords and bows breathe sound into existence. In Corde Vocale and Tran(slate), the quartet is not a polite conversation but a raw, elemental force – organic, urgent, and monstrous. Sonare unfolds in processional waves, while Archi elastici stretches time to its breaking point, embodying breath itself. With Postcard and Prisma, Lara explores dialogue and divergence. Across these works, t…
interius/exterius
*Limited edition of 300 copies.* A striking new addition to the evolving catalog of Berlin-based composer Catherine Lamb, 'interius/exterius' is a long-form chamber nonet developed through a sustained dialogue with the musicians of New York’s Ghost Ensemble. Scored for flute, oboe, accordion, viola, cello, four- and five-string contrabasses, harp, and hammered dulcimer, the work investigates how collective intentions or focal points allow various and sometimes unusual sonic pathways to emerge in…
Mural
*2025 stock* New York City-based, Puerto Rican-born composer, guitarist, and visual artist Gabriel Vicéns releases his fourth studio album Mural, a recording devoted to his chamber works.
Vicéns continues his musical journey by releasing a record of contemporary classical music including pieces for piano trio, wind quintet, Pierrot ensemble and more; featuring some of today's finest performers of the New York City classical scene.
The immersive and mood-inducing music on this record spans a four…
Le Corps De L’ouvrage
1994 release ** "Composer, performer and improviser René Lussier is one of the dominant figures in contemporary Canadian music. In 1989 he won the Paul Gilson Prize for his radio work Le Trésor de la langue which he recorded on the Ambiances Magnétiques label and which he presented in concert version in Canada and abroad. Here he presents his latest album entitled “Le corps de l’oeuvre” which is made up of a series of instrumental pieces for large and small ensembles written and refined over the…
Degrees of transparency
This is volume 2 in a collection created in collaboration with Echonance Festival, Amsterdam, coming just one year after volume 1 (Phill Niblock / Looking for Daniel) and just in time for the third edition of the festival in February 2025. Here is and opus centered on the piano by composer and sound artist Gabriel Paiuk. Those thought provoking pieces are rendered with exquisite precision and depth by the extraordinary musicians, pianist Reinier van Houdt, Maurice Quartet, and Paiuk himself.
Wunderkammer
*100 copies limited edition*
Elena D'Alò: fluteCosimo Fiaschi: soprano saxophoneLuca Venitucci: accordion, objectsSarvin Asa: celloGabriele Pagliano: prepared double bassNicholas Remondino: percussion, objectsFrancesco Toninelli: percussion, objects
Penumbra
Four beautifully reduced duets, jointly developed by violinist Morgan Evans-Weiler and pianist J.P.A. Falzone. Music which is as delicate as a feather, but also as tough as nails.
Longing Landscape
Three recent and typically exquisite chamber works by Swiss composer Jürg Frey, all written for and performed by the Prague Quiet Music Collective - one in collaboration with the Norwegian new music group asamisimasa.
O a | F g
Two wonderfully mysterious 20+ minute compositions for ensemble by Teodora Stepančić, played by Ordinary Affects.
G o m b e r t
Seven beautiful, melancholic motets and a chanson by Renaissance composer Nicolas Gombert, arranged for instruments by James Weeks, who also composed the interludes. "One of the least expected and most beautiful records we are likely to hear this year." - Clive Bell
Towards a slowing of the past
Virtuosic & highly-acclaimed 45-minute work for two pianos and electronics, Mark Knoop & Roderick Chadwick.
Recorded by Simon Reynell at the University of Huddersfield, October 2024. Edited & mastered by Mark Knoop. The work was commissioned with support from Hinrichsen Foundation, the Vaughan Williams Trust, and The Marchus Trust.
Lacinia
Returning to Die Schachtel with his forth full-length with the label, the Genoa born, Bologna based, guitarist and electroacoustic composer, Stefano Pilia, delivers “Lacinia”, a new, immersive cycle of compositions, delving deeper into the realm of metaphysical, spiritual, and divine meaning, weaving astounding arrangements of sonority from a palette of synths, strings, brass, organ, various electroacoustic instruments, and percussion. Resting at a refined intersection of the acoustic and electr…
Bonbori
Noriko Baba’s music transforms fleeting details into profound artistic expressions, weaving nostalgia, nature, and her Japanese heritage into evocative soundscapes. From the intimate, lantern-lit glow of Bonbori to the tumultuous echoes of the 2011 tsunami in Shiosai, her works balance delicacy and intensity. 9600 romanticizes the age of steam locomotives, while Au pavillon de (Monsieur) Porcelaine offers a deeply personal meditation on joy and loss through Mahlerian inspiration. With Avant le c…
Zone Grise
Didier Rotella’s "Zone Grise" unfolds in a space of perpetual transformation, where sound navigates between density and purity, acoustic and electronic, structure and fluidity. Catharsis combines hybrid instruments and spatialized textures to evoke a dramatic journey of evolution and renewal, while Fragrances draws inspiration from perfume composition, blending musical elements into a rich, multi-layered tapestry. Mogari reflects on ritual and humanity through augmented instruments and poetic ge…
Your Message Could Not Be Delivered to One or More Recipients
Oriol Saladrigues Brunet’s music crafts intricate interactions between time and communication, turning moments into rich artistic expressions. His compositions treat time as a flexible and multi-layered concept, balancing precision with unpredictability. Musical textures emerge and transform, revealing patterns that are both structured and fluid, creating a space where a dialogue between instruments and ideas unfolds. Through thoughtful exploration of irregularity and balance, Saladrigues create…