Presto Recordings of the Year, Finalist 2024

Levit’s utterly compelling accounts of the late sets are the more impressive element in this collection. He does not put a foot wrong in any of them; each piece is perfectly shaped, its subtly... — The Guardian, 10th October 2024, 5 out of 5 stars (Solo Works) / 3 out of 5 stars (Concertos) More…

As on the Presto Award-winning Libertà! back in 2019, Pichon presents compelling evidence that the seeds of Mozart’s mature masterpieces were sown in the composer’s extreme youth, and the results... — Katherine Cooper, Presto Music, 4th October 2024 More…

Purists may of course object, but I think the decision to go hunting for concertos from the violin and oboe repertoire is amply justified. Baroque Concertos is a wide-ranging collection that... — David Smith, Presto Music, 18th October 2024 More…

it’s always when Beethoven is at his most virile when Hamelin most excels, especially with sweeping runs up the keyboard or busy fugal complications — anything that needs flying fingers...there... — The Times, 23rd October 2024, 4 out of 5 stars More…

A new version which stands comparison with the best. Frang’s initial entry is immediately soulful and introspective, intently tuning in to Robin Ticciati’s compelling account of the long orchestral... — BBC Music Magazine, December 2024, 5 out of 5 stars More…

Bates's concerto is an ideal microcosm of the ideas at play in the album as a whole, variously hinting at the genres of jazz, film music and minimalism that Trifonov has performed earlier, whilst... — James Longstaffe, Presto Music, 11th October 2024 More…

Some extremely daring speeds guarantee excitement, pushing the technical limits in what are, of course, despite their generic title (Études , or Studies), so much more than technical exercises,... — BBC Music Magazine, July 2024, 5 out of 5 stars More…

this is an entirely excellent cast, both vocally and dramatically...But it’s also Wilson’s keen sense of style, and equally that of his orchestra the Sinfonia of London, that bring home the... — BBC Music Magazine, November 2024, 5 out of 5 stars More…

Hindoyan gives his compatriot Gustavo Dudamel a run for his money in terms of the energy and ear for detail which he brings to this music, and the Liverpool players sound like they’re having... — Katherine Cooper, Presto Music, 25th October 2024 More…

In what would turn out to be his final recording, this album from the late Maurizio Pollini (who died earlier this year) gains an extra layer of poignancy from the fact that it involves a collaboration... — James Longstaffe, Presto Music, 2nd November 2024 More…