Presto Team Choices | Updated Monthly
Curated by David Smith
Tracks from the recordings featured in the most recent Team Choices from the Presto Classical team. 2 hours 26 minutes
Sur
Daniela Mack (mezzo), JP Jofre Quartet
'This electrifying Piazzolla programme is one of those albums where the synergy between artists and repertoire feels positively alchemic. Mack clearly has this music in her blood, digging deep into the texts and into a rasping chest-voice to paint these vignettes of life in Buenos Aires in the boldest of primary colours; the quartet match her raw energy every step of the way, nailing the wild glissandi, rubato and percussive effects which bring this music to life with such gusto that you'll feel transported to a milonga from the very first bars.' (Katherine Cooper)
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Mahler: Symphony No. 5 On Period Instruments
Mahler Academy Orchestra, Philipp von Steinaecker
'Steinaecker and the Mahler Academy Orchestra shine fresh light on Mahler’s fifth in this tightly conceived and expressive recording on period instruments. There is energy and impact alongside a sense of textural space and timbral elucidation that doesn’t replace the warmer sound of much-loved modern instrument recordings but offers a precious alternative perspective. Thankfully the old-fashioned either/or debate is long gone, and we can embrace the greater musical insights that having both approaches brings. In my case that means placing this next to Haitink on the shelf.' (Matthew Ash)
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Bortniansky: Creonte (World Premiere Recording)
Serhiy Bortnyk (Creonte), Stanislav Pashchuk (Adrastus), Olha Fomichova (Antigone), Margharyta Bilokiz (Ismene), Danylo Kotok (Haemon), National Presidential Orchestra of Ukraine, National Choir of Ukraine 'Dumka', Herman Makarenko
'Rediscovered by chance in Portugal in 2023 by a musicologist from Lviv, this opera by the 'Ukrainian Mozart' receives its first recording here, with sessions conducted in Kyiv by an all-Ukrainian cast between Russian missile strikes in a manner reminiscent of the famous 1942 performance of Shostakovich's Leningrad symphony. The plot is nominally based on Sophocles's Antigone but departs significantly from the original, concluding in reconciliation rather than in tragedy. Compared to contemporary approaches to Mozart the performance is on the stately side (and indeed Bortniansky's music itself tends towards a slower harmonic pace). If Serhiy Bortnyk's titular Theban monarch occasionally betrays a hint of vocal weariness in his role's highly demanding, Tito-esque writing, Olha Fomichova as Antigone excels throughout.' (David Smith)
Available Formats: 2 CDs, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Bruckner: Symphony No. 3 'Wagner Symphony'
Anima Eterna, Pablo Heras-Casado
'Pablo Heras-Casado continues his cycle of Bruckner symphonies with Anima Eterna Brugge performed on period instruments, conducting the original, 1873 version of Symphony No. 3. As in their recording of the Fourth Symphony from 2024, the use of historical instruments is deeply fascinating, revealing the layered textures of Bruckner’s writing in a way that performances with a modern orchestra can find harder to do. The impact of using, for instance, gut strings is immediately evident - even in the opening few bars there is an earthiness to the string sound that magnificently complements the wind and brass, especially piquant oboes, fruity bassoons, and the use of F trumpets and valve trombones.' (James Longstaffe)
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Schubert: Die schöne Müllerin
Georg Nigl (baritone), Alexander Gergelyfi (square piano)
'This will be a love-it-or-loathe-it affair for many Schubertians, but I'm firmly in the former camp: Nigl is passionate about historically-informed performance of Lieder, and the strange soundworld created by Gergelyfi's square piano allows him space to whisper, croon and sometimes snarl his way through songs which are so often smoothed out with homogenous beauty of tone. The restoration of some of the poems which Schubert elected not to set pays dividends, not least in fleshing out the character of the miller's daughter. It's rarely pretty, but always revelatory.' (Katherine Cooper)
Available Formats: 2 CDs, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Bruckner: Symphony No. 7 in E Major (Chamber Version)
Renaud Capuçon and friends
'I've always liked arrangements of Bruckner; something about his music lends itself particularly well to such reimaginings. I enjoyed a recent cycle of his symphonies transcribed for organ, I remember scrabbling my way through a reduction of the Seventh Symphony for piano solo when I was younger, and a version of it for two pianos has also been recorded. This chamber reimagining is particularly special - the opening of the Adagio reworked as a noble French horn solo is probably my favourite moment, but there are constantly corners where the reduced forces bring out a side to the music that wasn't so apparent in the original.' (David Smith)
Available Formats: Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
American Tunes #1
Anne-Sophie Mutter (violin), Knut Johannessen, Roman Patkoló, Daniel Müller-Schott (cello), Lambert Orkis (piano), Mutter’s Virtuosi
'This second instalment in Anne-Sophie Mutter’s series ASM Forte Forward (presenting some of the many pieces she has commissioned throughout her celebrated career) focuses on works by the American composers André Previn and Sebastian Currier, all receiving their first recordings here. Ringtone Variations by the latter composer offers a drily humorous exploration of the sounds that emanate from mobile phones, for which Mutter is joined by double bassist Roman Patkoló (who, like so many of the performers in these recordings, is a former scholarship holder of Mutter’s foundation supporting talented young string players). Framing this are spirited performances of two pieces by Mutter’s late ex-husband: Previn’s Violin Concerto No. 2 from 2010 and his Piano Trio, composed in 2009.' (James Longstaffe)
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Brahms & Reger: Clarinet Quintets
Michael Collins (clarinet), Escher String Quartet
'Everything aligns perfectly here, in a coming together of musicians, composers and record label who share the same seriousness of purpose to create an emotionally engaging album. The Brahms and Reger works are perfect bedfellows, both from late in their respective composers’ lives and both encapsulating Janus-like qualities, respecting the past and looking to the future. The ensemble between all five players is superb in every sense, and Michael Collins’s characteristically expressive warmth, focus and dynamic control, even where the clarinet presents almost inhumane challenges, makes this album a joy to listen to.' (Matthew Ash)
Available Format: SACD
