Classical Recommendations
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Gramophone Editor's Choices - September 2026
10th Aug 2026
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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New Release Round-Up - 7th August 2026
7th Aug 2026
Finnish orchestral works from Rumon Gamba in Oulu, Strauss from Gianandrea Noseda in Zürich, and the world premiere recordings of two recent American operas: Mark Adamo's Lysistrata and Missy Mazzoli & Royce Vavrek's Breaking the Waves.
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Verdi from Lise Davidsen and other forthcoming highlights
5th Aug 2026
The Norwegian soprano offers a foretaste of her Lady Macbeth, with other highlights for the autumn including Handel's Messiah from Christophe Rousset and the Monteverdi Choir, Mahler's Symphony No. 2 from Simon Rattle in Munich, and Mendelssohn from Bertrand Chamayou.
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The Presto Chart - July 2026
3rd Aug 2026
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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New Release Round-Up - 31st July 2026
31st Jul 2026
A visit to eighteenth-century Leipzig with Reinhard Goebel, Bruckner from the late Michael Tilson Thomas in Verbier, a lively collaboration between VOCES8 and Swedish barbershop group Ringmasters, and Robert Schumann from Matthias Goerne and Markus Hinterhäuser.
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Presto Team Choices - July 2026
30th Jul 2026
Berlin cabaret from Anne Sofie von Otter, youthful Mahler from Joseph Middleton and friends, Finzi from the Choir of Trinity College Cambridge, and Franco-Belgian rarities from Elena Urioste and Tom Poster.
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Early Music Round-Up - Summer 2026
29th Jul 2026
English viol consort works from Private Musicke, rediscovered Spanish sonatas for viola from Pablo de Pedro Cano, an intimate French recital from gambist Caroline Nicolas, the final volume of Vivaldi bassoon concertos from Sergio Azzolini, and more.
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New Release Round-Up - 24th July 2026
24th Jul 2026
Two new orchestral works from Joe Hisaishi, Bruckner from Nathalie Stutzmann in Atlanta, John Williams's Flute Concerto from the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, and a ninetieth-birthday celebration of Zubin Mehta.
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BBC Music Magazine - August 2026 Choices
17th Jul 2026
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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New Release Round-Up - 17th July 2026
17th Jul 2026
A Franco-Belgian recital from Elena Urioste and Tom Poster, Peter Donohoe's favourite Chopin, a Finzi triptych from the Choir of Trinity College Cambridge, and Schubert from George Xiaoyuan Fu and Lotte Betts-Dean.
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Gramophone Editor's Choices - August 2026
14th Jul 2026
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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New Release Round-Up - 10th July 2026
10th Jul 2026
Youthful Mahler Lieder from Joseph Middleton and friends, the songs of French chanteuse Barbara from Jessica Walker, Douglas Moore's Pulitzer-winning opera Giants in the Earth, and Goldmark and Sibelius from Sueye Park.
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Don Giovanni from Iván Fischer and other forthcoming highlights
6th Jul 2026
The Hungarian conductor embarks on a Mozart opera trilogy, with other highlights for late summer including a gallery of femmes fatales from Aigul Akhmetshina and Antonio Pappano, Guys & Dolls from Sinfonia of London and John Wilson, and a classy nocturnal concept-album from Bruce Liu.
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New Release Round-Up - 3rd July 2026
3rd Jul 2026
Piano Postcards from Sir Stephen Hough, Schumann from Adam Laloum, Berlin cabaret from Anne Sofie von Otter, and a final volume of Vivaldi bassoon concerti from Sergio Azzolini.
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The Presto Chart - June 2026
1st Jul 2026
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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Presto Team Choices - June 2026
30th Jun 2026
A birthday celebration of composer and violist Sally Beamish, Copland and Walker from Pappano and the London Symphony Orchestra, Bach with a twist from Ayres Extemporae, and Haydn from Peter Donohoe.
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New Release Round-Up - 26th June 2026
26th Jun 2026
Schubert from Paavo Järvi in Bremen, a new oratorio from British composer Edward Picton-Turbervill, Strauss from Edward Gardner and the LPO, and an exhilarating live Carmina Burana from Jader Bignamini in Detroit.
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BBC Music Magazine - July 2026 Choices
24th Jun 2026
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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Opus Klassik Awards 2026
23rd Jun 2026
Revealed in advance of October's ceremony at the Konzerthaus Berlin, the winners of this year's 'Deutscher Musikpreis' awards include Anna Lucia Richter, Andrè Schuen, Andris Nelsons and Alexander Malofeev.
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New Release Round-Up - 19th June 2026
19th Jun 2026
Haydn from Denis Kozhukhin, Arthur Sullivan from David Webb and the Academy of Ancient Music, Debussy from Louis Lortie and Hélène Mercier, and Sibelius from Jukka-Pekka Saraste in Helsinki.
