Latest stories
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Francesco Corti on Bach
10th Aug 2022by Katherine Cooper
The harpsichordist and conductor talks about the pleasures and challenges of reconstructing a harpsichord concerto from a single page of music - and how Bach's resourcefulness resonates with his own 'very Italian common-sense practical side!'.
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Adapted and reconstructed Bach concertos from Francesco Corti and Il Pomo d'Oro
22nd Jul 2022by David Smith
Francesco Corti continues his series of Bach harpsichord concerto recordings with an album of double concertos - including his own collaborative reconstruction with Francesco Zimei of a tantalising fragment.
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Francesco Piemontesi performs works for piano and orchestra by Ravel, Messiaen, and Schoenberg
8th Jul 2022by James Longstaffe
The Swiss pianist is joined by the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande and conductor Jonathan Nott for a dazzlingly characterful trio of performances.
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Ronald Brautigam performs piano concertos by Johann Wilhelm Wilms
1st Jul 2022by James Longstaffe
Fortepianist Ronald Brautigam is joined by the Kölner Akademie and conductor Michael Alexander Willens for the first of two volumes of concertos by the composer once described as "the Dutch Beethoven".
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Ravel Piano Concertos from François-Xavier Roth and Les Siècles
20th May 2022by David Smith
Les Siècles continue their successful series of Ravel recordings on period instruments under François-Xavier Roth, with Cédric Tiberghien at the piano and baritone Stéphane Degout.
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Jean-Efflam Bavouzet and Gábor Takács-Nagy on Mozart piano concertos
11th Apr 2022by David Smith
The pianist and conductor discuss Manchester, music as medicine, Mozart, motifs and Masonry.
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Martin James Bartlett on Rachmaninov and Gershwin
14th Mar 2022by David Smith
The pianist talks about his new album that draws links between two giants of the early twentieth century, via Earl Wild and the New York jazz scene in the 1920s.
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Episode 28: Karel Ančerl Live with Rob Cowan and Matouš Vlčinský
27th Feb 2022by Paul Thomas
The live recordings by the great Czech conductor Karel Ančerl, and Bohemian musical culture are explored by Rob Cowan and Matouš Vlčinský from Supraphon records.
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Lynn Arnold and Charles Matthews on Vaughan Williams and more
9th Feb 2022by David Smith
David talks to the piano duo about their recent album, including a transcription of Vaughan Williams's London Symphony and Maconchy's Preludio, Fugato e Finale
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Charles Richard-Hamelin on Chopin
22nd Jul 2021by Katherine Cooper
In the wake of his new recording of the 24 Préludes Op. 28 on Analekta, the Canadian pianist talks to Katherine about why playing Chopin's music always 'feels like coming home' to him.
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Beethoven Piano Concertos from Krystian Zimerman and Simon Rattle
16th Jul 2021by James Longstaffe
Zimerman, Rattle, and the London Symphony Orchestra present expressively exuberant performances of Beethoven's five piano concertos that are full of joy, wit, and drama.
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Antonio Pappano on Vaughan Williams and Strauss
16th Jun 2021by David Smith
The conductor discusses his recent recordings of Vaughan Williams symphonies and Strauss orchestral works, his recent appointment at the LSO, and the ongoing impact of lockdowns on musical life.
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Debussy from Daniel Barenboim, Martha Argerich and friends
11th Jun 2021by David Smith
Daniel and Michael Barenboim, Martha Argerich and Kian Soltani join forces for an all-Debussy programme, including the rarely-performed early Fantaisie for piano and orchestra.
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Leif Ove Andsnes on Mozart Momentum
5th Jun 2021by David Smith
The Norwegian pianist talks about his new album, the first of a diptych that focuses in on a formative moment in Mozart's evolution as a composer.
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András Schiff performs piano concertos by Brahms
4th Jun 2021by James Longstaffe
The Hungarian-born pianist is joined by the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment for a recording of Brahms's two piano concertos that strips away performance traditions to present refreshingly original accounts of both works, full of detail and character.
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Hélène Grimaud on The Messenger
7th Jan 2021by Katherine Cooper
The French pianist talks to Katherine about her recording of works by Mozart and Valentin Silvestrov with Camerata Salzburg, released at the end of last year on Deutsche Grammophon.
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Daniil Trifonov's Silver Age
6th Nov 2020by Katherine Cooper
The Russian pianist is by turns balletic, poetic and dramatic in solo works by Stravinsky and Prokofiev, whilst the Mariinsky Orchestra match his precision and imagination in concertos by the the latter composer and Scriabin.
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Episode 6: Played in the USA with Rob Cowan
15th Oct 2020by Paul Thomas
Rob Cowan returns to the show to discuss several box-sets by three European émigré artists who settled in America - pianist Andor Foldes, conductor Antal Doráti, and violinist Isaac Stern.
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Episode 2: The Art of Music Criticism with Harriet Smith
29th Jul 2020by Matt Groom
For the second Presto Music Podcast, Paul is joined by music critic Harriet Smith, to discuss the art involved in reviewing classical music recordings.
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Lars Vogt on Brahms
6th May 2020by Katherine Cooper
The German pianist and conductor talks to Katherine about the joys and challenges of directing the two Brahms concertos from the keyboard on his recent recordings with Royal Northern Sinfonia on Ondine.