Simone Porter, Karina Canellakis & Isabelle Faust
Simone Porter Nominated for BBC Music Magazine Award
Violinist Simone Porter has been nominated for the BBC Music Magazine 2026 Newcomer Award for her solo debut album ad tendo, released on Bright Shiny Things. “Simone Porter delivers a poignantly focused recital shaped by Simone Weil’s belief that, ‘Attention taken to its highest degree is the same thing as prayer’. Spanning music from Hildegard of Bingen to Reena Esmail and beyond, the album demands deep listening with performances that are ‘completely secure in the technical demands of the music.’”
We also celebrate two additional BBC Music Magazine nominees from our roster. Karina Canellakis’s recording Bartók: Duke Bluebeard’s Castle with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra—released on our partner label Pentatone—was nominated for Best Opera Recording. “Our reviewer was amazed and chilled by this concert take on Bartók’s blood-curdling masterpiece our ‘Opera Choice’ for June. Gábor Bretz and Rinat Shaham are brilliantly risk-taking in their roles, and Karina Canellakis ‘conducts the orchestra as if her life depended on it,’ we wrote.” Isabelle Faust was nominated for Best Chamber Recording for Bach Sonatas for Violin and Continuo on Harmonia Mundi with Kristin von der Goltz and Kristian Bezuidenhout, “a carefully considered and exquisitely performed programme showcasing the demanding material of Bach’s little-known violin works. According to our reviewer, Faust is a ‘splendid guide, not just thoughtful, but on occasion provocative.’”
The nomination follows Simone Porter’s weeklong residency with New Century Chamber Orchestra, where she led students from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, with whom we are proud to partner. San Francisco Classical Voice called her “absolutely the perfect choice,” noting her ability to both inspire students and curate a compelling concert experience.
Porter’s upcoming engagements include performances at the 92nd Street Y and Swarthmore College with Third Coast Percussion and electronic music composer Jlin, featuring Simone and TCP playing Lou Harrison’s rarely performed violin and percussion concerto inspired by the Javanese gamelan, along with a world premiere by Jlin and works by Jessie Montgomery.