Latest News: Classical
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Interview,
Dr Samantha Ege on Florence Price 15th April 2021The pianist and musicologist talks to Katherine about Fantasie Nègre (released on Lorelt last month), and her fascinating research on the lives and work of Black female composers in mid-twentieth-century Chicago.
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Coming Soon,
Brahms from Sir András Schiff and other forthcoming highlights 14th April 2021The pianist directs Brahms's concertos from the keyboard with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Cecilia Bartoli sings a gender-fluid Ariodante from Salzburg, and soprano Elizabeth Llewellyn champions Samuel Coleridge-Taylor.
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Awards,
BBC Music Magazine Awards 2021: The Winners! 14th April 2021Chris introduces this year's winners, with the final instalment of an 'unforgettable musical odyssey' from Peter Phillips and the Tallis Scholars taking the palm for Recording of the Year.
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Interview,
Andrew Nethsingha on Magnificat 13th April 2021The Director of Music at St John's College Cambridge talks about the choir's second volume of Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis settings, ranging from Howells and Sumsion to contemporary composers such as Julian Anderson.
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Presto Music Classical Podcast,
Episode 15: Clarinet Chronicles with Julian Bliss 11th April 2021Paul is given a guided tour of the clarinet's history by Julian Bliss, from its first appearances in the eighteenth century, up to the present day, and the important role it played in the development of jazz.
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Recording of the Week,
Stravinsky & Eötvös from Pablo Heras-Casado and the Orchestre de Paris 9th April 2021The Spanish conductor delivers a very Gallic Rite of Spring, whilst Isabelle Faust is bewitched and bewitching on the world premiere recording of Péter Eötvös's 'Alhambra' Concerto.
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New Release Round-up,
New Release Round-Up - 9th April 2021 9th April 2021Bach from Augustin Hadelich, Beethoven from Teodor Currentzis, Mozart from Albrecht Mayer, and an homage to the Rameau family from Justin Taylor.
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Interview,
Helen Charlston and Michael Craddock on their Isolation Songbook 8th April 2021The mezzo and baritone (and nearly-weds!) discuss how their open call for new music to sing together during lockdown spiralled into a full-scale album of commissions, released last month on Delphian...
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Gramophone Choices,
Gramophone Editor's Choices - April 2021 7th April 2021Chris introduces this month's Choices, headed by Paul Lewis and Steven Osborne's 'peerless' album of French piano duets (including Fauré's Dolly Suite and Ravel's Ma Mère l'Oye) on Hyperion.
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Obituary,
Simon Bainbridge (1952-2021) 7th April 2021The British composer, whose major works included Spirogyra, Diptych and settings of Primo Levi, has died aged 68.
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Interview,
Martin Suckling on This Departing Landscape 5th April 2021The Scottish composer talks about his new album of orchestral and concertante works, drawing on inspirations ranging from childhood friendships to contemporary ceramic art and the philosophical musings of Morton Feldman.
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Obituary,
Jane Manning (1938-2021) 3rd April 2021The British soprano and contemporary music champion, who premiered works by composers including Harrison Birtwistle, Judith Weir, Oliver Knussen and John Cage, has died aged 82.
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Recording of the Week,
Lise Davidsen in Beethoven, Wagner and Verdi 2nd April 2021The powerhouse Norwegian soprano is in expansive, radiant voice for Wagner’s Wesendonck-Lieder and arias from Fidelio, Otello, La forza del destino, Medea, and Cavalleria rusticana with Sir Mark Elder and the London Philharmonic Orchestra.
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New Release Round-up,
New Release Round-Up - 2nd April 2021 2nd April 2021Bach transcriptions from Francesco Piemontesi, Hindemith from Les Vents Français, Byrd from Fretwork and Alamire, and an impressive debut disc from Franco-Armenian mezzo Varduhi Abrahamyan.
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Presto Chart,
The Presto Chart - March 2021 1st April 2021Our 25 best-selling titles across all formats for March, with French duets from Steven Osborne and Paul Lewis on Hyperion in first place...
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Interview,
Ksenija Sidorova on Piazzólla's legacy 1st April 2021The Latvian accordionist talks about her new album paying tribute to the great Astor Piazzólla, and tracing the modern legacy of his advocacy for the instrument.
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Presto Editor's Choices,
Presto Editor's Choices - March 2021 31st March 2021A touching and often witty recital of lockdown commissions from Helen Charlston and Michael Craddock, electrifying Ives from Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and a revelatory recital of Florence Price's piano music from Samantha Ege.
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Box Set Selections,
Boxed Set Selections - March 2021 30th March 2021A celebration of Claudio Abbado's years with the London Symphony Orchestra, two collections commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of Stravinsky's death, and the complete Arthur Grumiaux recordings on Philips.
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New Release Round-up,
Music for Holy Week 2021 29th March 2021A brief round-up of recent releases focusing on Passiontide and Easter.
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Recording of the Week,
A Mozart postscript from Rachel Podger 26th March 2021Rachel Podger and Christopher Glynn bring to life a selection of musicologist Timothy Jones’s thoughtful completions of fragmentary Mozart works, offering a variety of plausible perspectives on what might have been.