Presto Playlist,
The Presto Playlist - Week One
Working from home is uncharted territory for the majority of the Presto team, and as we've all attempted to settle into our new routines over the past week there's been much online group discussion about the music that's helping us all to find our rhythms now we're away from a busy (and frequently noisy!) office atmosphere. As well as the usual suspects from the editorial department, several of my colleagues from other areas of the business have pitched in to share their thoughts on the albums which are keeping them company in quarantine, and we'll be updating this page regularly with our respective personal play-lists over the coming weeks...
'Trapped for many years in the employ of Prince Esterhazy, Haydn was, creatively at least no stranger to isolation and as many have pointed out during the last few days his genial & rational music is the perfect antidote to our current times. As well as the more famous symphonies & string quartets, Haydn also pioneered the piano trio, paving the way for Beethoven and the Romantics that followed. The Beaux Arts Trio are consummate guides to this music in these landmark recordings.' (Paul Thomas, Product Manager)
Available Formats: MP3, FLAC
'At this time of isolation and solitude, many of us will find ourselves turning to the profundity, and joyfulness, of J.S. Bach. For me, there are few better recordings than this from Trevor Pinnock and The English Concert. lively, enjoyable and life-affirming. Lifts the soul, and raises the spirits.' (Graham Southern, Chief Operations Officer)
Available Formats: MP3, FLAC
'No-one captures loneliness in springtime better than Schubert (OK, Mahler gets an honourable mention), and no-one moves me in Schubert quite so much as Gerhaher and Huber, so this treasurable recital has been my trusty companion on several of my government-approved daily rambles round the Warwickshire countryside near my home: Frühlingsglaube, unsurprisingly, resonates particularly strongly with me as I wander.' (Katherine Cooper, Head of Editorial)
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC
Bernstein: Wonderful Town
Danielle de Niese, Alysha Umphress, Nathan Gunn, Duncan Rock, Ashley Riches, London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus, Sir Simon Rattle
'Whenever I feel the energy flagging or I need to raise my spirits, I find myself turning to this live recording of Bernstein's 1953 musical about life in New York. With oodles of sass, annoyingly catchy tunes, and some of the filthiest vibrato I've ever heard from the LSO trumpets, this toe-tapping pick-me-up never fails to brighten my day.' (James Longstaffe, Head of Sheet Music)
Available Format: SACD
'No chance of climbing any mountains for the next few weeks, so instead i'm letting Sherpa Karajan carry me up and down an Alp in style on this justly famous 1980 recording with the Berliner Philharmoniker; despite its relative age the sound quality on this recording is phenomenal, and the playing of the Berliners peerless. Just make sure the neighbours don't mind you cranking up the volume!' (Paul Thomas)
Available Formats: MP3, FLAC
Mary Poppins Returns - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Emily Blunt, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ben Whishaw, Emily Mortimer, Joel Dawson, Pixie Davies
I followed it up with the soundtrack to the recent sequel Mary Poppins Returns, whose characterful songs and lush orchestration pick up where the original film left off (to my mind anyway - not everyone in the office agreed with me!). (Flora Lucas)
Available Format: CD
'This time gives a chance to explore some of the lesser travelled highways and byways of the symphonic repertoire. Of particular interest in this set is the E flat symphony by Anton Eberl, which received its public premiere at the same concert as another symphony in the same key, Beethoven's Third. "Of the two symphonies...", the Viennese press reported the next day "the Eberl is clearly the superior piece" - one likes to think that the standard of music journalism has improved since 1805!' (Paul Thomas)
Available Formats: MP3, FLAC
'A bit of a guilty pleasure, this one - but with no one to stop me dancing round the flat I can indulge in these classic performances of music that Michael Nyman wrote for the films of (among others) Peter Greenaway, including the famous 'Chasing sheep is best left to shepherds'. Nyman, who turned 76 last week, has made many recordings of his music, but these recorded by Argo in 1992 remain definitive for me, not least because of the outstanding saxophone playing of John Harle.' (Paul Thomas)
Available Formats: Presto CD, MP3, FLAC
Across The Stars
Anne-Sophie Mutter (violin), The Recording Arts Orchestra of Los Angeles, John Williams
'Barely a day goes by when I do not listen to something by John Williams, and this album is one I dip into frequently: Anne-Sophie Mutter dazzles in Williams's own re-workings for violin and orchestra of some of his many film scores, with familiar themes from Star Wars and Harry Potter sitting alongside lesser-known gems such as Sabrina, Cinderella Liberty, and Dracula.' (James Longstaffe)
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
'For something a bit more calming and soothing, it has to be the Bach album by Víkingur Ólafsson, an hypnotically beautiful selection of preludes, fugues, and other pieces, including a mesmerising, exquisite account of Widerstehe doch der Sünde in Ólafsson's own transcription. Pure bliss.' (James Longstaffe)
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
'The launch-concert for this lovely album of English song at Wigmore Hall last month was the last live performance I attended before the venue shut its doors; Sampson and Middleton's exuberant account of William Walton's 'ditty in praise of the city' in A Song for the Lord Mayor's Table should just about keep me going until London's open for business once again!' (Katherine Cooper)
Available Formats: SACD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
'England might like to think it dominates the field for early-music vocal consorts, but New York Polyphony's interpretation of Palestrina and Victoria from across the Atlantic is second to none. The rich sonority of a lower-voices ensemble - bringing the music down a fourth from where it's most often performed today - shows the well-loved Missa Papae Marcelli and Missa O Quam Gloriosum in a completely different light, and the motets interspersed among the Masses are no less enjoyable. The highlight of the album is unquestionably the glorious Tu es Petrus (again benefitting enormously from the lower pitch), in which the ensemble's phrasing and musical gestures are unified to the point of perfection. I have simply never heard a finer rendition of this magnificent work, or indeed of Renaissance polyphony in general.' (David Smith)
Available Formats: SACD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
'Not one for the purists, but this is a magical collection of vocal performances from the wonderful world of film. Katherine’s exquisite voice is enhanced by the likes of The Prague Symphonia, the Czech Film Orchestra and a multitude of fine arrangers and choirs. Includes work by Leonard Bernstein, Ennio Morricone, Andrew Lloyd Webber and John Williams to name a few, and pieces from The Wizard of Oz, West Side Story and Saving Private Ryan. Kept me happy while I worked from home for the entire 65 min.' (Andrew Lock, Warehouse and Manufacture on Demand)
Available Formats: MP3, FLAC
Katherine Cooper - Head of Editorial
