Latest stories
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Michael Waldron on his new Christmas album with London Choral Sinfonia
27th Nov 2025
The Musical Director of London Choral Sinfonia visited Presto to talk about his latest album of Christmas music, released on Orchid Classics to celebrate the ensemble's tenth anniversary.
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Music Books of the Year - Finalists 2025
20th Nov 2025
In anticipation of our upcoming Presto Music Awards on Thursday, 4th December, we have compiled our shortlist of fifteen music book titles all in contention for one of our five awards for Music Books of the Year.
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Christmas Gift Ideas for Readers
19th Nov 2025
Not sure what to get the music-loving reader in your life as a Christmas present? Then look no further! Here are our gift suggestions from books published within the past twelve months, including composer and artist biographies, and publications about music history, opera, music theatre, song, and popular music.
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New Music Book Publications - November 2025
17th Nov 2025
The history of the world in fifty pieces from BBC Radio 3 presenter Tom Service, an exploration of Vivaldi's famous set of concertos, The Four Seasons, a journey through Western classical music with composer Robin Holloway, the hidden life of the metronome, a look at the contribution of the songs of the Sherman brothers to the making of the Walt Disney classic, Mary Poppins, curiosities from the history of music, and a study of opera-going in Britain.
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Walton's Cello Concerto and Symphony No. 1 from John Wilson and Sinfonia of London
7th Nov 2025
John Wilson and Sinfonia of London continue their survey of the orchestral works of William Walton, combining a compelling, mesmerising account of the Cello Concerto (featuring Jonathan Aasgaard as soloist) with an impressively detailed, thrilling performance of Symphony No. 1.
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New Music Book Publications - October 2025
20th Oct 2025
A guide to the church cantatas of Johann Sebastian Bach, a new edition of Igor Stravinsky's 1939 Harvard lectures, a book of classical music puzzles, an exploration of the history of the Argentinian tango, an examination of the middlebrow musical in 1940s America, a collection of letters written by musicians through the ages, and a guide to the operatic aria repertoire.
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Anna Clyne and Marin Alsop on Abstractions
8th Oct 2025
The composer and conductor talk about their long history of working together, including their first collaboration at the Cabrillo Festival back in 2010, the Last Night of the Proms in 2013, and their latest album of four pieces with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.
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The Pavel Haas Quartet perform string quartets by Martinů
19th Sep 2025
Three years on from their previous recording of music by Brahms, the Czech quartet returns with a stunningly virtuosic album of four string quartets by their compatriot Bohuslav Martinů, showcasing an enormous dynamic range combined with an impressive precision and unanimity of purpose.
Featured product
Martinů: String Quartets 2-3-5-7
Pavel Haas Quartet
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New Music Book Publications - September 2025
15th Sep 2025
The first biography of celebrated composer John Williams, a guide to movie music from noted film critic Mark Kermode, a paperback version of John Suchet's latest book exploring the life and music of Beethoven, a new edition of neurologist Oliver Sacks's examination of the power of music on the brain, diaries and memoirs from baritone Christian Gerhaher and oboist Albrecht Mayer, and the Boosey & Hawkes music diaries for 2026.
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New Music Book Publications - August 2025
12th Aug 2025
An examination of the film scores of Erich Wolfgang Korngold, a companion to Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring, a collection of letters by Broadway composer Frank Loesser, volumes dedicated to composers including Arnold Schoenberg, Bohuslav Martinů, and Pierre Boulez, essays by musicologist Susan McClary, a paperback edition of the memoir by composer and Master of the King's Music Errollyn Wallen, an exploration of the art of orchestration in musical theatre, an analysis of Dolly Parton's Jolene, and the debut novel by Harriet Constable.
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Orchestral transcriptions of Bach's organ works by Andrew Davis
1st Aug 2025
The late conductor demonstrates his love of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach with a series of orchestral transcriptions of the composer’s organ works, the recording of which was completed by Martyn Brabbins after Davis’s death last year.
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New Music Book Publications - July 2025
14th Jul 2025
Biographies of French composer Maurice Ravel and Norwegian soprano Kirsten Flagstad, a cultural history of the baritone voice through the centuries, an analysis of musical forgeries, the story of pianist Stephen de Bastion as told by his granddaughter Roxanne, an examination of ruralness and national identity in Czech opera, a collection of interviews with composers of movie music, and a picture-book biography of cellist Yo-Yo Ma.
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Orchestral Works by Grażyna Bacewicz
11th Jul 2025
Sakari Oramo and the BBC Symphony Orchestra continue their survey of the orchestral works by the Polish composer, including Symphony No. 2, the Concerto for Large Symphony Orchestra, and the Piano Concerto with soloist Peter Donohoe.
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New Music Book Publications - June 2025
17th Jun 2025
A selection of Hector Berlioz's music criticism, a paperback edition of a book exploring Rachmaninoff's life after moving to the USA, books on composers including Brahms, Purcell, Manuel de Falla and Margaret Bonds, an examination of the musicals of Cole Porter, a survey of the classical concert scene in Nazi Germany, plus a selection of recent music fiction books by Martha Jean Johnson, Michael Ball, and Will Fraser.
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Edward Gardner on the LPO, Tippett, and Britten
17th Jun 2025
The British conductor talks about his memories of conducting the London Philharmonic Orchestra for the very first time, why he chose an opera by Tippett for his first concert as their Principal Conductor back in 2021, and his new album of works by Benjamin Britten.
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Klaus Mäkelä conducts Berlioz and Ravel
6th Jun 2025
The Finnish conductor and the Orchestre de Paris present an incredibly colourful and terrifying reading of Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique alongside a riotously chaotic account of Ravel's La valse.
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John Wilson completes his cycle of Rachmaninoff symphonies
16th May 2025
John Wilson and Sinfonia of London present the third and final album in their survey of Rachmaninoff’s symphonies, offering a dramatic reading of the early Symphony No. 1 (notoriously a disaster at its first performance in 1895) alongside an exquisite account of the Symphonic Dances.
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New Music Book Publications - May 2025
15th May 2025
The official guide to this summer's BBC Proms season, two books by cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, a memoir by Sheku's mother Kadiatu about what it means to grow up as a Black artist today, paperback reissues of Harvey Sachs's book on Schoenberg and Susan Tomes's exploration of women at the piano, a collection of essays on Wagner, a book telling the story of Polish music during and after the Holocaust, and a limited edition volume reproducing issues of the 1960s Californian rock music newspaper, World Countdown.
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Simon Rattle conducts Janáček's Jenůfa
2nd May 2025
Continuing their survey of Janáček's operas, Simon Rattle and the London Symphony Orchestra bring out the tenderness present throughout much of the score, alongside exceptional performances by Agneta Eichenholz, Nicky Spence, Aleš Briscein, and Katarina Karnéus.
Featured product
Janáček: Jenůfa
Agneta Eichenholz (Jenůfa), Katarina Karnéus (Kostelnička), Aleš Briscein (Laca), Nicky Spence (Števa), Jan Martiník (Starek, the Foreman/Mayor), Carole Wilson (Grandmother Buryjovka) London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus, Sir Simon Rattle
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New Music Book Publications - April 2025
15th Apr 2025
Biographies of composer Gustav Mahler and choreographer Martha Graham, a book telling the story of the Women's Orchestra of Auschwitz, a new paperback edition of Robert Philip's A Little History of Music, a guide to JS Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier, an analysis of Beethoven's violin sonatas, two books on medieval music, a new edition of Kofi Agawu's classic text on musical semiotics, and an exploration of the music of Duke Ellington.
