River of Music The Kanneh-Masons

• Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875 - 1912): Deep River (Arr. The Kanneh-Masons for Ensemble):
• 1 Coleridge-Taylor: Deep River (Arr. The Kanneh-Masons for Ensemble) 02:45
• Traditional: Ar Lan y Môr (Arr. The Kanneh-Masons for Ensemble):
• 2 Traditional: Ar Lan y Môr (Arr. The Kanneh-Masons for Ensemble) 02:34
• Isata Kanneh-Mason (b. 1996): Hiraeth:
• 3 Kanneh-Mason: Hiraeth 05:54
• John Hughes (1950 - 2009): Calon Lân (Arr. Braimah & Aminata Kanneh-Mason for 2 Violins):
• 4 Hughes: Calon Lân (Arr. Braimah & Aminata Kanneh-Mason for 2 Violins) 02:49
• George Frideric Handel (1685 - 1759): Trio Sonata in G Minor, HWV 393:
• 5 Handel: Trio Sonata in G Minor, HWV 393: III. Largo (Transcr. Beyer 2 Cellos & Piano) 03:32
• Edward Elgar (1857 - 1934): Sospiri, Op. 70 (Arr. Anon. for Violin & Piano):
• 6 Elgar: Sospiri, Op. 70 (Arr. Anon. for Violin & Piano) 03:48
• Frédéric Chopin (1810 - 1849): Fantaisie-Impromptu in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 66:
• 7 Chopin: Fantaisie-Impromptu in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 66 05:34
• Franz Liszt (1811 - 1886): Consolations, S. 172:
• 8 Liszt: Consolations, S. 172: No. 3 in D-Flat Major. Lento, placido 04:01
• Antonín Dvořák (1841 - 1904): Rusalka, Op. 114, B. 203:
• 9 Dvořák: Rusalka, Op. 114, B. 203: Song to the Moon (Arr. Parkin for Cello & Piano) 05:04
• Franz Schubert (1797 - 1828): Piano Quintet in A Major, D. 667 "Trout Quintet":
• 10 Schubert: Piano Quintet in A Major, D. 667 "Trout Quintet": I. Allegro vivace 12:27
• 11 Schubert: Piano Quintet in A Major, D. 667 "Trout Quintet": II. Andante 07:06
• 12 Schubert: Piano Quintet in A Major, D. 667 "Trout Quintet": III. Scherzo. Presto 03:52
• 13 Schubert: Piano Quintet in A Major, D. 667 "Trout Quintet": IV. Theme – Andantino – Vars. 1-5 – Allegretto 07:25
• 14 Schubert: Piano Quintet in A Major, D. 667 "Trout Quintet": V. Finale. Allegro giusto 06:11
• Total Runtime 01:13:02

Info for River of Music

River of Music the new album from “musical marvels” the Kanneh-Masons (The Guardian), set for release on 12 September 2025. Reuniting all seven siblings – Isata, Braimah, Sheku, Konya, Jeneba, Aminata and Mariatu – River of Music marks their second joint release with Decca Classics, following the success of Carnival (2020). The album features new arrangements of classical works and folk songs, with the centrepiece being Schubert’s Trout Quintet – a beloved family favourite the siblings grew up listening to together.

Recorded in Abbey Road Studios in summer 2024, River of Music shares how the Kanneh-Masons’ love of music has been passed on through generations. As a river flows from multiple sources whilst carving its path, this album celebrates the sources of the Kanneh-Masons’ musical inspirations routed in personal stories of home, love and family. “This is a story about our family and the sources of our music,” writes Konya Kanneh-Mason, who shares a special family story with the album, Grandad’s Dream. “Music runs like a river through the generations… flowing from the places and dreams they passed on.”

At the heart of River of Music is Schubert’s Trout Quintet, recorded with Edgar Francis on viola, and Toby Hughes on double bass. This piece that has long been special to the Kanneh-Mason family. It was one of the first chamber works the siblings played together while growing up in Nottingham. As Sheku writes in his latest book, The Power Of Music – published by Viking and now available:“Time in the family nine-seater car was always music time, whether we were on the way to piano lessons, or to a music festival competition, or to visit grandparents. We had been listening to Schubert’s Piano Quintet in A Major, D.667, known as the ‘Trout’ Quintet, on repeat for a whole week. We heard the chatter of five voices in the piano, violin, viola, cello and double bass, mimicking each other, joking, teasing, each trying to have the last comment, laughing, debating, talking seriously, questioning, having fun. It made me understand that chamber music is like family life. In the love and safety of those you know intimately, ideas are thrown around, caught, developed and changed in a glorious conversation of lively, individual voices. We loved this piece, and sang out each part. By the time we played it together, years later, we knew the piece intimately, and we were enduringly in love with chamber music.”

Alongside Schubert’s Trout Quintet, the album includes new arrangements of classical music, folk songs and spirituals. From Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s African American spiritual “Deep River” to traditional Welsh hymns like “Ar Lan y Môr”, the music honours the family’s roots and the stories passed down through generations. It pays tribute to their Welsh grandmother, who followed love across the sea to Sierra Leone, and their Antiguan grandfather, who once dreamed of a musical life.

The siblings showcase their unique connection through their performing, arranging and writing skills such as in Braimah and Aminata Kanneh-Mason’s arrangement of John Hughes’ “Calon Lân”. The album also features “Hiraeth” by Isata Kanneh-Mason, with its title using the untranslatable Welsh word for longing, love and connection with the homeland. It encapsulates an impossible nostalgia for a home that is always in the heart and is evoked by all seven of the Kanneh-Mason siblings performing Isata’s emotive work. Throughout the collaborative album, the Kanneh-Masons celebrate their familial bond and musical legacy whilst showcasing each musicians’ individual artistry and identity.

Other musical works on the album include Handel’s Largo (Trio Sonata in G minor HWV 393), Elgar’s Sospiri Op.70 for violin & piano, Chopin’s Fantaisie-impromptu, Liszt’s Consolation No.3 and Dvořák’s Song to the Moon.

Konya Kanneh-Mason commented, ‘It was wonderful to be given the opportunity to share in my own words the stories and memories of our family through the generations. The creative arts are essential for all children and young people, and music and storytelling are central to our family life.’

On the 12 September, the siblings will come together in a performance at the Barbican, for a very special evening in support of the music education charity Music Masters. This unique concert coincides with the release of their new album, River of Music, and will feature works from the album as well as selections from their first family album, Carnival. Decca Classics is proud to support Music Masters alongside the Kanneh-Mason family, with all proceeds going directly to the charity’s transformative programmes to improve access to, quality of, and progression through music for children and young people in the UK, including through their Flagship Schools initiative and pioneering teacher training programme.

The Kanneh-Masons

The Kanneh-Masons
are seven brothers and sisters ranging in age from 29 to 15 years old, all of whom play either violin, piano or cello. They have won many prizes and awards and appeared in numerous television shows; the five eldest performed at the Bafta awards in 2018 and all seven appeared in the December 2019 Royal Variety Show. Other shows featuring all seven include Strictly Come Dancing (2020), and Sky Arts Awards (2024). In October 2020, they released their first album Carnival on Decca Classics to great critical acclaim and in May 2021 received the Global Award for Best Classical Artist. Their second album, River of Music, will be released on Decca Classics in September 2025All the children attend or have attended London’s Royal Academy of Music and its Primary and Junior Academies, except pianist Jeneba who has progressed to London’s Royal College of Music for her undergraduate and postgraduate studies.

They were raised in Nottingham, England by parents Stuart Mason, a business executive and Dr Kadiatu Kanneh, a former university lecturer. Both parents played musical instruments to a high standard but never pursued professional careers. Born in Sierra Leone but moving to Wales as a young girl, Kadiatu lectured in English at the University of Birmingham, while Stuart, both of whose parents were born in Antigua, was born in London and works for a luxury experiential travel company. Oneworld published Dr Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason’s inspiring memoir entitled: House of Music – Raising the Kanneh-Masons in September 2020, and her recent book, To Be Young, Gifted and Black (May 2025).

Sheku and the family have been the subject of a number of documentaries, including CBS Sunday Morning, BBC FOUR’s Young, Gifted and Classical and, opening BBC One’s 2020 Imagine series with a uniquely produced lockdown film entitled This House is Full of Music. The family won two Royal Television Society Awards with, Christmas With the Kanneh-Masons (BBC One 2022) and The Hills Are Alive With The Kanneh-Masons (BBC Four 2023)

This album contains no booklet.