Latest News: Classical
-
Interview,
Bracing Change - Helen Grime on contemporary string quartets 11th April 2023Scottish composer Helen Grime discusses her second string quartet, which features on the second volume of Bracing Change string commissions from NMC and the Wigmore Hall.
-
Recording of the Week,
John Wilson conducts Rachmaninoff 7th April 2023The spotlight is squarely on the strings on this clear-eyed, almost Classical account of Rachmaninoff's 1908 symphony, with balance and restraint the order of the day until the final few minutes of the piece...
-
New Release Round-up,
New Release Round-Up - 7th April 2023 7th April 2023Messiaen's Des canyons aux étoiles... from the Utah Symphony & Thierry Fischer, Schubert from Carolyn Sampson & Joseph Middleton, Byrd from Fretwork & Alamire, and a sacred album from Joseph Calleja.
-
Favourites,
Music for Holy Week 6th April 2023A selection of recent recordings of music inspired by Holy Week - from early to contemporary, religious to humanist, and with a mix of choral, solo vocal, and instrumental works.
-
Announcement,
Our Streaming Journey - Part 1 5th April 2023An update on our streaming service, and our plans for the next 6-12 months.
-
Presto Chart,
The Presto Chart - March 2023 4th April 2023Our 25 best-selling titles across all formats for March, with Puccini's Turandot from Antonio Pappano (starring Sondra Radvanovsky, Jonas Kaufmann & Ermonela Jaho) in first place...
-
Presto Editor's Choices,
Presto Editor's Choices - March 2023 3rd April 2023Sleek but savage Stravinsky from the Orchestre de Paris & Klaus Mäkelä, Haydn red in tooth and claw from René Jacobs, and world premiere recordings of works for piano and orchestra by Maconchy, Lutyens & Wallen.
-
Presto Music Classical Podcast,
Episode 35: Tom & Will (& Jimmy & Roddy) – Tudor Anniversaries with Fretwork and The King's Singers 2nd April 2023Patrick Dunachie of The King's Singers and Richard Boothby of Fretwork talk about the madrigals and instrumental music of two Tudor titans.
-
Favourites,
Rachmaninoff at 150 1st April 2023A selection of some of the finest recent recordings of the Russian colossus, to mark his 150th anniversary.
-
Recording of the Week,
Visages Baroques from new Deutsche Grammophon signing Raphaël Feuillâtre 31st March 2023The 26-year-old guitarist makes his debut for the yellow label with a dance-suite-inspired programme of Bach and French Baroque works.
-
New Release Round-up,
New Release Round-Up - 31st March 2023 31st March 2023Rachmaninoff from John Wilson & Sinfonia of London, Solti's Siegfried in newly-remastered glory, Berlioz from John Nelson & Joyce DiDonato, and a Pushkin-inspired recital from Gemma Summerfield, Gareth Brynmor-John, Abi Hyde-Smith and Jocelyn Freeman.
-
Video Interview,
Tim Mead on Beauteous Softness 30th March 2023The countertenor discusses his new album of songs by Henry Purcell, John Blow, Pelham Humfrey and William Webb with La Nuova Musica & David Bates (released last week on Pentatone).
-
Box Set Selections,
Boxed Set Selections - March 2023 29th March 2023Bernard Haitink's complete studio recordings with the Concertgebouworkest, an anthology shedding 'New Light on French Romantic Women Composers' from the Palazzetto Bru Zane, and the Belcea Quartet's collected recordings on Warner Classics.
-
Obituary,
Christopher Gunning (1944-2023) 29th March 2023The English composer, whose output ranged from sweeping symphonies and concertos to award-winning music for a huge range of film and television productions, has died aged 78.
-
Obituary,
James Bowman (1941-2023) 28th March 2023The trailblazing English countertenor, who created the role of the Voice of Apollo in Britten's Death in Venice and opened up a wealth of new possibilities for his voice-type, has died aged 81.
-
Presto Music Classical Podcast,
Episode 34: Golden Oldies - The Brodsky Quartet at 50 26th March 2023Katherine is joined by cellist Jacqueline Thomas and viola-player Paul Cassidy for a whistle-stop tour through the quartet's first fifty years - including their landmark Shostakovich cycle in the 1990s and collaborations with Issey Miyake, Sting, Elvis Costello & Sir Paul McCartney
-
Recording of the Week,
Strauss and Debussy from François-Xavier Roth and the London Symphony Orchestra 24th March 2023The LSO and their Principal Guest Conductor present sumptuous, radiant performances of two virtuosic orchestral showpieces: Richard Strauss's Also sprach Zarathustra and Debussy's Jeux.
-
New Release Round-up,
New Release Round-Up - 24th March 2023 24th March 2023Previously unreleased recordings by Jessye Norman, Stravinsky from Klaus Mäkelä in Paris, variations by Beethoven and others from Cédric Tiberghien, and Beethoven & Ravel from Martha Argerich in Israel.
-
Interview,
Cyrille Dubois on So Romantique! 23rd March 2023The French light lyric tenor explains how he found his operatic niche as a lover rather than a fighter - and discusses his new album on Alpha Classics, featuring rarities by Louis Clapisson, Charles Luce-Verlet and Théodore Dubois alongside one or two old favourites...
-
Interview,
Simon Mayor on Carolan 22nd March 2023The mandolinist talks about his new album of music by the eighteenth-century Irish harpist Turlough O'Carolan, featuring his own arrangements that meld together Baroque, folk and chamber styles.