Photos: Navona Records Releases New Albums from Contemporary Composers

Navona Records released a new set of albums on October 9th, 2026, spanning tributes to historical figures, fresh interpretations of classic works, and new voices offering unique musical perspectives. The releases feature composers and performers including Fred Broer, Louis Babin, Francis Cathlina, Jenna Sehmann, Joseph A. Santo, Moravian Philharmonic Olomouc, Quatra Duo, Denise Tryon, David Jaeger, and Olivia Esther.

SILVER ECHOES IN BLUE

Composers: Eric Ewazen, Gerard Cousins, Giacomo Susani, Olga Amelkina-Vera, Grant Ferris

Quatra Duo: Jeff LaQuatra, guitar; Michelle Stanley, flute

View the album page at navonarecords.com.

If one were to ask which instrumental duo packs the greatest punch, the answer 'guitar and flute' may not be the immediately obvious choice. Quatra Duo, comprised of guitarist Jeff LaQuatra and flutist Michelle Stanley, are likely the most formidable counterexample. SILVER ECHOES IN BLUE follows their acclaimed debut album PAINTED MUSIC and continues the duo's mission of performing commissions by living composers.

The mix is eclectic but strikingly beautiful and lyrical. There's vibrant, unapologetically modern neoclassicism in abundance; only occasionally do the selected pieces veer into territory closer to meditation, and even then, they remain firmly tonal. The predominant mood is bright and breezy, the ambiance profoundly enjoyable.

SELECTED PIANO MUSIC WORKS

Fred Broer, composer; Joseph Havlat, piano

View the album page at navonarecords.com.

With over 60 original compositions to his name spanning a variety of chamber ensemble, solo, and orchestral works, composer Fred Broer invites audiences to experience the unusual diversity of his music with SELECTED PIANO MUSIC WORKS. Performed by pianist Joseph Havlat, a leading interpreter of new music, this program traverses through a broad range of music from the romantic, lyrical Impromptu to the quirky and surprising Three American Folk Songs, the cutting Some Sarcastic Music, and more.

THE HORN SPEAKS

David Jaeger, composer; Olivia Esther, French horn

Sara Schabas, soprano; Victor Prado, French horn; Stephanie Chua, piano; Joyce Lai, violin

View the album page at navonarecords.com.

What if a horn could speak? What stories would it tell? On THE HORN SPEAKS, the French horn becomes a singular voice, inviting listeners into an immersive world where music and poetry meet in quiet conversation.

Inspired by poetry and shaped by deep artistic collaboration, composer David Jaeger has created a collection of evocative instrumental art songs that place the French horn at the center of the narrative. Each work is tailored to the artistry of Olivia Esther, whose expressive performance brings these deeply personal compositions to life with sensitivity, warmth, and emotional depth.

By turns pensive, lyrical, and deeply moving, THE HORN SPEAKS invites listeners to slow down, listen closely, and enter a rich artistic landscape, which lingers long after the final note has faded.

BETWEEN LOVE AND LAW

University of Memphis University Singers; Dr. Francis Cathlina, conductor

View the album page at navonarecords.com.

BETWEEN LOVE AND LAW is the debut recording of the University of Memphis University Singers under the direction of Dr. Francis Cathlina. Featuring repertoire from two conference performance sets — Asimov's 3 Laws of Robotics (2024 TnMEA) and 5 Love Languages (2026 Southern ACDA) — the album explores what it means to be human in a world shaped by both technology and relationship. Through innovative programming, expressive singing, and a live recording from the ensemble's historic Southern ACDA performance, BETWEEN LOVE AND LAW captures the artistic vision that has defined the choir's recent rise to national recognition.

PHOENIX

Louis Babin, composer and conductor; Tara-Louise Montour, violin; Orchestre classique de Montréal

View the album page at navonarecords.com.

Representing rebirth, energy, and death, the mythical phoenix is ripe for musical interpretation. Composer Louis Babin does just that with his violin concerto PHOENIX. Babin's playful and cinematic musical language tracks the phoenix's lifecycle, from its soaring flight and graceful movement to its fiery demise and profound rise from the ashes, representing existence as the redirection of life that can't be lived in a straight line. Binding the music together is the fluid sound of the violin, performed on this recording by Tara-Louise Montour, one of North America's foremost Indigenous classical violinists.

TRANSFORMING TEXT

Jenna Sehmann, Oboe; Dan Kubus, Piano

View the album page at navonarecords.com.

Since its rise to prominence in the Baroque era, the oboe has remained one of classical music's most expressive voices. On TRANSFORMING TEXT, accomplished soloist Jenna Sehmann takes the oboe into the 20th and 21st centuries, performing little-known historic gems and contemporary compositions.

As the title suggests, these instrumental works for oboe — solo or accompanied by piano — draw their inspiration from a variety of texts: Cervantes' Don Quixote, Shakespeare's Sonnet No. 18, Verlaine's Puisque l'aube grandit, and even Tolkien's The Hobbit, to name but a few. The oboe, one of the closest instruments to the human voice, makes for an excellent storyteller indeed — especially under a command as flawless as Sehmann's.

ŽIVOT V PRAVDĚ (LIVING IN TRUTH)

Joseph A. Santo, composer; Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra

Jiří Petrdlík, conductor

Patrik Sedlář, solo violin

View the album page at navonarecords.com.

ŽIVOT V PRAVDĚ (LIVING IN TRUTH) is a work for narrator and orchestra inspired by the words and legacy of the late Czech president, writer, and statesman Václav Havel. Incorporating excerpts from Havel's historic 1990 address to a joint session of the United States Congress, the composition reflects themes that remained central throughout his life and work: truth, freedom, moral responsibility, and the enduring human struggle for democracy and human dignity.

From the beginning, composer Joseph A. Santo envisioned the possibility of one day hearing the work performed using President Havel's original Czech text. This recording fulfills that artistic and personal aspiration, allowing the music and language to exist together in a form that feels both historically authentic and emotionally immediate.

BORROWED BACH

J.S. Bach, composer; Denise Tryon, horn

View the album page at navonarecords.com.

A masterpiece of Baroque composition, Bach's Cello Suites are a staple of cello repertoire and a paradigm of classical music's beauty. Endless interpretations exist of the work, but Denise Tryon takes a more novel approach on BORROWED BACH, performing the pieces on horn. Working from her own transcriptions, Tryon proves that Bach's music transcends any single instrument and explores how the timbre, breath, and expression of the horn uncover new musical perspectives within the iconic suites.