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Chris O'Reilly
Chief Executive
Chris grew up in London and studied cello from the age of 5. He never did enough practice to get really good at it, but caught a passion for Classical music which would stick with him forever. He has wide ranging musical tastes, still plays Chamber music and particularly loves Mahler.
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Gramophone Editor's Choices - October 2026
21st Sep 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Chris introduces next month's selection, headed by an 'outstanding' account of Handel's Giulio Cesare from The English Concert and Harry Bicket on Linn (with Christophe Dumaux in the title-role and Louise Alder as Cleopatra).
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BBC Music Magazine - October 2026 Choices
14th Sep 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Chris introduces next month's selection, headed by a Liszt recital from Yulianna Avdeeva which 'combines tumultuous panache with phenomenal technical accuracy'.
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Gramophone Awards 2026 - The Finalists
11th Sep 2026by Chris O'Reilly
The three finalists in each of the eleven categories for this year's Awards (presented in partnership with Presto Music) were revealed this morning, with Ann Hallenberg, Yunchan Lim, I Fagiolini and Sean Shibe among those in the running...
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The Presto Chart - August 2026
1st Sep 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Our 25 best-selling titles across all formats for August, with Mitsuko Uchida's 'life-affirming' live recordings of Beethoven's last three piano sonatas on Decca in the top spot.
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BBC Music Magazine - September 2026 Choices
24th Aug 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Chris introduces next month's selection, headed by a 'uniquely striking' coupling of violin concertos by Chevalier de Saint-George and Thierry Pécou from Romuald Grimbert-Barré, the Orchestre national de Cannes and Benjamin Levy on Aparté.
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Gramophone Awards 2026 - The Shortlist
21st Aug 2026by Chris O'Reilly
The six contenders in each of the eleven categories for this year's Awards (presented in partnership with Presto Music) were revealed this morning.
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Gramophone Editor's Choices - September 2026
10th Aug 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Chris introduces this month's selection, headed by 'an example of how an unknown opera should be recorded' from Decca - namely a scintillating account of Umberto Giordano's Marina, starring Eleonora Buratto and Freddie De Tommaso.
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The Presto Chart - July 2026
3rd Aug 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Our 25 best-selling titles across all formats for July, with Dvořák's 'New World' Symphony and Carlos Simon's Four Black American Dances from Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra retaining its place in the No. 1 spot.
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BBC Music Magazine - August 2026 Choices
17th Jul 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Chris introduces next month's selection, headed by 'a debut of striking insight and assurance' from the Amsterdam Piano Trio in Tchaikovsky and Schoenberg.
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Gramophone Editor's Choices - August 2026
14th Jul 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Chris introduces next month's selection, headed by an 'engagingly fresh' account of Dvořák's Symphony No. 9 and the world premiere recording of Carlos Simon's 'riotously colourful' Four Black American Dances from Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony on Reference.
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The Presto Chart - June 2026
1st Jul 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Our 25 best-selling titles across all formats for June, with a bracing double-bill of Dvořák and Carlos Simon from Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in the No. 1 spot.
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BBC Music Magazine - July 2026 Choices
24th Jun 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Chris introduces next month's selection, headed by a 'thrillingly original' musical journey from Venice to Buenos Aires in the company of Andrés Gabetta and his eponymous consort on Pentatone.
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Gramophone Editor's Choices - July 2026
18th Jun 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Chris introduces next month's selection, headed by a 'consistently luminous and assured' set of Bohuslav Martinů's symphonies from the Bamberger Symphoniker and Jakub Hrůša on Deutsche Grammophon.
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The Presto Chart - May 2026
1st Jun 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Our 25 best-selling titles across all formats for May, with Bohuslav Martinů's complete symphonies from the Bamberger Symphoniker and Jakub Hrůša in the No. 1 spot.
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BBC Music Magazine - June 2026 Choices
26th May 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Chris introduces next month's selection, headed by a portrait of 'a composer and choir in complete harmony' - namely The Tallis Scholars' album of works written for them by Nico Muhly on Linn.
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Gramophone Editor's Choices - June 2026
19th May 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Chris introduces next month's selection, headed by 'a new Beethoven cello sonatas benchmark' from Paul Watkins and Alessio Bax on Signum.
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Presto Presents... Timothy Ridout and Jonathan Ware
14th May 2026by Chris O'Reilly
In the latest episode of Presto Presents, viola-player Timothy Ridout and pianist Jonathan Ware perform and discuss music from their new album Alto Appassionato, released on Harmonia Mundi last month.
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The Presto Chart - April 2026
4th May 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Our 25 best-selling titles across all formats for April, with Arvo Pärt's complete symphonies from the Iceland Symphony Orchestra and Eva Ollikainen in the No. 1 spot.
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BBC Music Magazine - May 2026 Choices
29th Apr 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Chris introduces next month's selection, headed by a 'brilliantly subtle and irresistibly seductive' debut album on Sony from the young Moscow-born pianist Alexander Malofeev.
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BBC Music Magazine Awards 2026: The Winners!
23rd Apr 2026by Chris O'Reilly
Exciting news from last night's glittering ceremony at Kings Place, including details of the well-deserved Recording of the Year and Personality of the Year Awards...