Eponymous Alison

Trumpet sensation Alison Balsom’s new recording of modern and contemporary repertoire, Seraph – released on EMI Classics, February 7, 2012 – marked an important artistic stepping stone in her career. The labor of love features the world premiere recording of Seraph, James MacMillan’s trumpet concerto written for Alison, works by Takemitsu and Zimmermann and her long-awaited recording of the ever popular Arutunian Trumpet Concerto. Joining Alison in the concertos is the Scottish Ensemble.
Take a listen to her conversation with host John Clare here.

The trumpeter has released today her new self-titled album, an ear candy collection of her most popular recordings. The thirteen tracks on Alison Balsom, each chosen carefully from her six EMI Classics albums recorded over the past decade, combine to offer a compelling portrait of Balsom’s artistic achievements, while also pointing in the direction of what’s to come in Alison’s exceptional career. Although the music is extraordinarily varied, all of the tracks share an emotional immediacy and listenability - whether it be the singing strains of a Bach Sarabande, the smoldering dance rhythms of a Piazzolla tango, or the hymn-like profundity of American standards like “Shanendoah” or “Nobody Knows The Trouble I’ve Seen” from her most recent album Seraph.
 On May 14, 2012, Alison Balsom will celebrate the release of the new album with an intimate audience at the Greene Space at New York Public Radio. The performance will be webcast live around the world and will be her first New York engagement since 2010. August 2012 will mark Balsom’s Hollywood Bowl performance debut, and will also see her touring all major U.S. markets.
Alison Balsom has broken ground as a classical musician on a traditionally challenging instrument with both impeccable credentials and a mainstream appeal that has drawn attention from meida outlets as varied as Town and Country and Women’s Wear Daily to the The New York Times which has praised her "clear, soaring tone, virtuosic technique and elegant phrasing." The awards and accolades around Balsom continue to pile up – she’s twice been named the Classical BRIT ‘Female Artist of the Year,’ along with a host of other international awards, and has performed on numerous television and radio appearances, including The Late Show with David Letterman, Prairie Home Companion, Sirius-XM and many more.