New release highlights from Outhere Music (OH Music): May 2026
- On Delos, Wagner’s Complete Ring Cycle in live recording featuring Fabio Luisi conducting the Dallas Symphony Orchestra
- From Alpha Classics, Barbara Hannigan’s An American Dream? with the Gothenburg Symphony showcases the Canadian soprano/conductor’s fascination with American music in a program of Copland, Gershwin and Richard Rodgers
- Also from Alpha Classics: the 40th anniversary of Giovanni Antonini and Il Giardino Armonico reaches a high point with the latest installment of the Haydn2032 series: Vol. 19, Trauer
Delos
Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen
Fabio Luisi (conductor), Dallas Symphony Orchestra
Mark Delavan (bass-baritone), Lise Lindstrom (soprano), Sara Jakubiak (soprano), Daniel Johansson (tenor), Christopher Ventris (tenor), Deniz Uzun (mezzo-soprano), Tómas Tómasson (baritone), Michael Laurenz (tenor)
13-CD boxed set
Release date: May 22
Grammy-winning Music Director Fabio Luisi and the Dallas Symphony Orchestra (DSO)’s landmark live recording of Richard Wagner’s epic Der Ring des Nibelungen represents a rare undertaking for an American orchestra and is being released during the DSO’s 125th anniversary season, 150 years after the first performance of the complete Ring cycle at the Bayreuth Festival in 1876. Luisi and the DSO recorded their live performances of the four operas – Das Rheingold, Die Walküre, Siegfried, and Götterdämmerung – at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center in Dallas across the year in 2024, culminating in full-cycle opera-in-concert performances that October. Luisi comments:
“This is music that demands everything from you – technically, emotionally, spiritually – and I am very thrilled and proud of the orchestra for embracing it with me. Wagner’s Ring cycle has been one of the most important and meaningful projects of my time with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Being the first American symphony orchestra in recent history to perform the entire cycle was a moment of great pride, made possible by the courage and commitment of the musicians and the entire DSO organization.”
Charles Adriaenssen, Founder and President of Outhere Music (OH Music) and Delos Executive Producer, adds:
“For over 50 years, Delos has been a cornerstone of American musical life, and Outhere Music is committed to honoring that legacy while giving it bold new momentum. This new recording of Wagner’s monumental Ring cycle is a landmark event in the history of both the label and the orchestra. Fabio Luisi, a revered Wagnerian, is world-renowned as one of today’s most important operatic and symphonic conductors, and under his leadership, as the recording demonstrates, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra is performing at the very highest level. I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to Maestro Luisi, to the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, the brilliant cast, and the entire DSO organization, and to everyone who worked day and night to make this project possible. To quote Maestro Luisi: this is a “once-in-a-lifetime project” and, in the case of this recording, the culmination of a huge journey of community, passion and artistic endeavor. We’re proud to be part of this momentous event.”
Alpha Classics
An American Dream?
Barbara Hannigan (soprano and conductor)
Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra
1 CD
Release date: May 22
Soprano and conductor Barbara Hannigan’s recent tour-de-force performance singing and conducting a program of Poulenc and Richard Strauss with the New York Philharmonic led Parterre Box to declare:
“Barbara Hannigan’s approach to La voix humaine, as well as to Metamorphosen, may have been shockingly new and ambitious, but they represented – and offered to the audience – a deeper understanding of these pieces. Her performance, as the Philharmonic’s, was more than dazzling: it was insightful, it was emotionally wrenching, and it was deeply, richly pleasurable to the ear and eye.”
Now, the Canadian conductor and soprano collaborates with her longtime partners, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, on this program of works by American composers, with the aim of expressing her “admiration for the incredible creativity and tenacity of composers who shaped a musical language that was truly their own.” Featured is Robert Russell Bennett’s iconic arrangement, Porgy and Bess: A Symphonic Picture, from Gershwin’s operatic masterpiece about love, addiction, racism, and hope. Aaron Copland’s vibrant Dance Symphony came from a ballet he wrote after watching the silent film Nosferatu in Paris in 1925. The Carousel Waltz (arr. Don Walker) is the overture to the dark-themed Broadway musical Carousel by Richard Rodgers. For the grand finale, Hannigan reunites with American composer and arranger Bill Elliott in their joint creation, At the Fair. The suite starts with “Have I Stayed Too Long at the Fair?” and concludes with Jule Styne‘s famous hit “Don’t Rain on My Parade,” both sung by Hannigan. The middle section of the suite is instrumental and includes a multitude of well-known American songs and themes.
Haydn2032 series: Vol. 19, Trauer
Giovanni Antonini (conductor)
Il Giardino Armonico
1 CD
Release date: May 8
While Haydn’s 44th Symphony is entitled “Trauer” (“Grief”) and is melancholic at times, the prevailing spirit, especially in the fast movements, is dramatic and lively. This 19th volume of Haydn’s complete symphonies coincides with the 40th anniversary of Il Giardino Armonico, the ensemble created and conducted by Giovanni Antonini, artistic director of the Haydn2032 series. Il Giardino has made its mark on the baroque world with its revolutionary approach to Vivaldi, but Haydn has long been part of the Italian group’s history, and Symphony No. 44, featured in this volume, was the first work by Haydn they performed together. Gramophone said of the recording: “As ever, Antonini and his crack period band are attuned both to the spirit and the fine details of Haydn’s music. For sheer rhythmic vitality these performances are hard to beat.” The “Trauer” Symphony – also known as the “Funeral Symphony” – inspired the inclusion in the program of Samuel Scheidt‘s Paduana dolorosa, published in 1621 at the beginning of the bloody Thirty Years’ War, and Arvo Pärt‘s Da Pacem Domine, dedicated to the memory of the victims of the 2004 Madrid train bombings; Antonini also conducts Haydn’s Symphonies Nos. 52 and 108 on this album. The Haydn2032 series is dedicated to celebrating one of the key composers in the history of music. Seeing the music of Haydn as “a kaleidoscope of human emotions,” Antonini has chosen to record the symphonies not in chronological order, but in thematically based programs.
About Outhere Music
One of the world’s largest independent classical music production and recording groups, Outhere Music (OH Music) produces and distributes its recordings all over the world. They range from early to contemporary music, by way of jazz and world music. With a clear focus on making an impactful cultural contribution, OH Music emphasizes production quality, strong ties with the artists and scrupulous attention to the realization of each project. It proactively embraces new forms of distribution and engagement, targeting a wide variety of audiences.
Alpha Classics, Delos, Analekta, Arcana, Channel Classics, Linn Records, and Fuga Libera represent the group’s best-known labels; their catalogues encompass eclectic repertoires and artists of international stature.
Ricercar, Phi, and Ramée, the group’s specialist labels, have strong individual identities and offer outstanding, more specific musical experiences.
The Outhere Music group was founded in 2004 by Charles Adriaenssen and has offices in Brussels and Paris, with partners in London, Milan, the Netherlands, the US, Montreal and Mexico.
About Alpha Classics
With repertoire ranging from the Renaissance to the 21st century, performed by emerging and established talents, Alpha Classics is committed to artistic projects that are demanding, bold, and often off the beaten track.
The excellence of Alpha Classics artists and recordings are regularly recognized by the classical music industry worldwide. As well as receiving the much coveted “Label of the Year” award multiple times in recent years, Alpha Classics recordings have won Grammy, Opus Klassik, Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik, Gramophone, BBC Music Magazine, Juno, Diapason d’or de l’année, and Choc Classica de l’année Awards among others.
More than ever, Alpha Classics is determined to push boundaries in a changing musical landscape, to dare to undertake ambitious projects and to build long-term relationships with artists.
Based in Paris, Alpha Classics is masterminded by Didier Martin, who is also the CEO of the Outhere Music group, which was founded and has been chaired by Charles Adriaenssen since its inception in 2004.
About Delos
Delos is the flagship U.S. label of the Outhere Music Group. A beacon for American composers and musicians since its foundation by Amelia Haygood in 1973, this historic West Coast classical label continued to thrive under the expert guidance of pianist Carol Rosenberger. Following its 50th anniversary, the artistic direction of Delos has been overseen by Charles Adriaenssen, who has revitalized this prestigious label whilst retaining its focus on American artists, ensembles and repertoires. With over 700 recordings and a roster that has expanded to include international talent, young artists and contemporary music, Delos has achieved true international recognition.
Advance music, physical copies and additional information on all releases from Outhere are available upon request.