REVIEWS FROM THE PRESS
Glorious Demonstration of High Art, Peerless Sound
It's hard to know which deserves more praise in this extraordinary release [of Mussorgsky's Pictures and Rachmaninoff's Symphonic Dances with the LSO]: the deep, detailed, remarkably resonant sound and its peerless demonstration of recording technology, or the passionate, richly romantic conducting that gives new glow to two tired war horses... it's a smashing success. The Rachmaninoff sizzles and sparkles, with every detail exploding with passion and new life. Music that can seem tedious and over-wrought in lesser hands here sounds spontaneous, heart-felt and, where appropriate, subtle and cunning. The powerful brass of the LSO shine with special sheen and double basses have never thrummed with more authoritative impact. The Mussorgsky is also a knock-outcomparable to the justly celebrated classic recordings with the Chicago Symphony and Reiner or Giulini. Altogether, an unexpected triumph. Don't miss this dazzling gem!
ArkivMusic, 06/2017
Mitridate, re di Ponto - Theater Solothurn, 13/04/2018
...Als Glücksfall für die Produktion erweist sich Predrag Gosta. Der serbisch-US-amerikanische Dirigent gilt als Spezialist für Alte Musik und erarbeitete die schwierigen, barock angelegten Partien mit seinen Sängerinnen äusserst detailliert, folgte ihnen mit dem spritzigen Sinfonie Orchester Biel Solothurn bis in die kleinste Phrasierung. Fazit: Mozarts Jugendwerk und frühe Seria wurde vom Tobs-Ensemble sehens- und hörenswert aufbereitet.
Silvia Rietz
Solothurner Zeitung, 16/04/2018
...Das Sinfonie Orchester Biel-Solothurn unter der Leitung von Predrag Gosta serviert ein rhythmisch aufgeladenes und tänzerischhöfisch verspieltes Mozart-Soufflé der Extraklasse bei dem auch die feinen Töne und einzelne Instrumentensoli transparent aufblitzen.
Peter Wäch
Berner Zeitung, 16/04/2018
...Der Eindruck, den die Produktion hervorruft, wäre nicht so nachhaltig, wenn sich nicht eine Riege von Könnern in ihren Dienst gestellt hätte. Das beginnt mit dem sehr beachtlichen Dirigat des Barockspezialisten Predrag Gosta, der bereits bei "Lucio Silla" vor einem Jahr eine Stimme veranlasst hatte, bei seinem Eintritt in den Orchestergarben nach der Pause "Bravo Maestro!" zu rufen. Dieser Ruf sei hiermit für "Mitridate" nachgeholt... Das Sinfonie Orchester Biel Solothurn, erfahren mit dem Stil des jungen Mozart, spielt engagiert, wach und federnd und führt die Zuhörer zu den überraschenden Schönheiten der Komposition mit der Beiläufigkeit souveräner Maestria. Das Orchester in Mailand kann nicht anders geklungen haben als das der Premiere in Solothurn. Jedenfalls nicht besser...
Michel Schaer
Der Stimme der Kritik, 14/04/2018
Glorious Demonstration of High Art, Peerless Sound
It's hard to know which deserves more praise in this extraordinary release [of Mussorgsky's Pictures and Rachmaninoff's Symphonic Dances with the LSO]: the deep, detailed, remarkably resonant sound and its peerless demonstration of recording technology, or the passionate, richly romantic conducting that gives new glow to two tired war horses... it's a smashing success. The Rachmaninoff sizzles and sparkles, with every detail exploding with passion and new life. Music that can seem tedious and over-wrought in lesser hands here sounds spontaneous, heart-felt and, where appropriate, subtle and cunning. The powerful brass of the LSO shine with special sheen and double basses have never thrummed with more authoritative impact. The Mussorgsky is also a knock-outcomparable to the justly celebrated classic recordings with the Chicago Symphony and Reiner or Giulini. Altogether, an unexpected triumph. Don't miss this dazzling gem!
ArkivMusic, 06/2017
Orfeo (Monteverdi) - New Belgrade Opera / Madlenianum, 18/11/2017
The Award for the Best Concert Performance in 2017 goes to "L'Orfeo" by Monteverdi, presented by the New Belgrade Opera and Opera-Theatre Madlenianum on November 18, 2017, conducted by Maestro Predrag Gosta.
Aleksandra Paladin
Musica Classica, 06/02/2018
Lucio Silla - Theater Solothurn, 21/04/2017
...Dirigent Predrag Gosta dirigiert Mozarts Frühwerk leichtfüssig und so klug ausgehorcht, dass man die Ohren gar nicht tief genug in den Orchestergraben hineinstecken kann. Das Sinfonieorchester Biel Solothurn nimmt Gostas Ideen begeistert auf...
Christian Berzins
NZZ am Sonntag, Zürich 30/04/2017
...Das Sinfonie-orchester Biel-Solothurn unter der Leitung von Predrag Gosta lässt die Frische dieses selten gespielten Dreiakters in reichen Schattierungen erklingen und wirkt selbst nach zwei Stunden unverbraucht...
Peter Wäch
Berner Zeitung, 25/04/2017
Lucio Silla - Theater Biel/Bienne, 08/04/2017
Dirigent Predrag Gosta... geleitete das Sinfonie Orchester Biel Solothurn mit Esprit, tänzerischer Dynamik und satten Klangfarben durch die Partitur. Vorwärtsstrebende Musiker im Graben sowie ein homogenes und junges Ensemble auf der Bühne liessen die Produktion auch musikalisch glänzen.
Silvia Rietz
Solothurner Zeitung, 11/04/2017
...Mit diesem "Lucio Silla" schuf das kleinste Stadttheater der Schweiz den Höhepunkt des Opernjahrs, jedenfalls soweit der Horizont der "Stimme" reicht. Am Champagnertisch treffen sich die Gäste wie in Trance. "Diese Kostüme!", ruft die ehemalige Kostümfrau der Münchner Staatsoper. "Diese Stimmen!", strahlt die Klavierspielerin. "Und erst die Intelligenz, mit der die Räume geschaffen werden!", stellt der Grafiker fest. Man spricht von nichts anderem als vom Glanz dieser Premiere. Dann geht die Vorstellung weiter. Dirigent Predrag Gosta betritt den Orchestergraben. Da ruft eine laut vernehmliche Stimme aus der Galerie: "Bravo, Maestro!"
Wenn so viel zusammenkommt, kann man, ohne zu übertreiben, von einem Ereignis reden.
Michel Schaer
Der Stimme der Kritik
...The audience warmly greeted the performers. After the concert, which the Karelian Philharmonic played together with its guest conductor Predrag Gosta, the audience did not want to let the performers go, calling them again and again to the stage for an encore.
Internet-Journal “Litzey”, May 2012
Concert with Karelian Philharmonic, Petrozavodsk, Russia
,… The concert of the [Karelian] State Philharmonic, directed by Predrag Gosta... sounded surprisingly powerful. Serbo-American, gentle and intelligent in appearance, was a soft dictator, whose conducting manner is fascinating... like a slow meal of a vampire... giving the music fluctuations, measuring 100 beats per minute, as it was necessary if music is played from the heart... the sound was clear... like a woman that is going from one man's hand to another ... I take my hat off to our London-based maestro Marius Stravinsky, but we must take off two hats to Predrag Gosta... whos passionate polyphonic sound of Shostakovich and Mussorgsky has spoiled our festival audiences...
Art-Bazaar, Internet-Journal "The Republic",
Petrozavodsk, Russia, May 2012
Concert with the Orchestra of the Hermitage Theatre, St. Petersburg, Russia
…Bright theatrical interpretation of the Mussorgsky by the U.S. conductor Predrag Gosta...
The program of the evening, which brought in a record audience, presented Masterpieces of Symphonic Music - works by L. van Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Strauss and Mussorgsky... The American conductor of Serbian descent, Predrag Gosta, triumphantly concluded the concert with his interpretation of M. Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition". Gosta presented to the public the orchestration by Maurice Ravel, which is not too popular in Russia due to its extravagant instrumentation that at first creates a small shock in the audience. Gosta overcame this shock with his genuine Slavic sweep, passion and variety of musical colours... "Gnomus", "Baba Yaga," and especially "Cum mortuis in lingua mortua," were all performed very stylistically by the orchestra. A powerful "Great Gate of Kyiv" completed this memorable concert not by putting a period, but with an exclamation mark.
Journal of the Interregional Charitable Foundation “Heritage",
St. Petersburg, Russia, August 2011
Piccolo Spoleto Festival 2011
Each piece... was polished and sparkled like something new. The playing was technically elegant and warmed by loving interpretation infused with infectious personality...
CVNC: An Online Arts Journal in North Carolina, June 2011
Bach’s B-minor Mass from New Trinity Baroque and Georgia Tech Chamber Choir
...a thoughtful, energizing exception that gave the B-minor Mass a fresh sound. Under New Trinity founder and conductor Predrag Gosta, they illuminated the various madrigal-like choruses and operatic arias with individual attention... Emotionally heartfelt... strong performance... Saturday night at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal, which was filled to capacity... It’s a special pleasure to hear a student choir sing at a high level with enthusiasm and clarity of purpose. ...The four vocal soloists were often compelling, more so in duets with the fine instrumentalists... Conductor Gosta kept it all pushing forward... His tempos were not overly fast, but they felt fleet and he ended sections with a crisp cutoff — a very pleasant sensation. The Serbian-born harpsichordist and conductor is audibly gaining in interpretive heft, in parallel with his nascent conducting career, from the Gwinnett Ballet to concerts in Russia and Eastern Europe…
ArtsCriticAtl.com, March 2011
Concert with the Orchestra of the Bulgarian National Philharmonic in Rousse, Bulgaria
The Serbian-American conductor, Predrag Gosta, led a spirited and faithful reading of Mussorgsky's “Pictures at an Exhibition” with the Rousse Philharmonic... Gosta is a conductor with great flair and élan.
Opera Rousse, January 2011
Concert of the Belgrade Philharmonic, Belgrade, Serbia
During the Belgrade Philharmonic’s season cycle “Autumn,” we heard one of the greatest specialists for early music, Belgrade-born Predrag Gosta... Without reducing the orchestra to the usual baroque settings, he presented a full, monumental sound - on which Handel always insisted - especially in his “Music for the Royal Fireworks” and “Water Music,” which were intended for performance in the open space. We heard a completely new sound from our Philharmonic players, baroque-majestic, with plenty of spirit and nobility, celebratory-marching as well as gentle that was presented through a variety of chamber instrumental groups.
Musica Classica, Belgrade, Serbia, January 2011
Without a doubt [Predrag Gosta] has worked very meticulously with the [Belgrade Philharmonic] Orchestra on Baroque performance practice... [His interpretation] was accepted with passion and performed with great admiration in the capacity-full concert hall... The best impression was given by the smoothes of some chords from the woodwinds, and the exposure of the trumpets. In his hometown, Predrag Gosta has presented himself with an excellent conductor's posture and a precise hand that showed every sign and requirement, not allowing the concentration to diminish even for a moment. This was a magnificent and grand interpretation of the Baroque... And, while the question of symphonic interpretation of Baroque music may still be open for discussion, one thing we can be absolutely certain of - and this is that maestro Gosta, from one quite bizarre piece such as the Alt-Flute Concerto "Bulk" by German composer Robert HP Platz, created the composition.
PolitikaDaily, Belgrade, Serbia, November 22, 2010
State Capella of St. Petersburg, after its official end of the season, has enchanted its audience with yet another excellent concert of symphonic music. On June 29, the Orchestra of the State Capella, under the direction of the American conductor Predrag Gosta, presented the program with music from two continents - America and Europe... This concert was a brilliant and unforgettable event of the season... The musicians and the audience created together a holiday atmosphere. The orchestra responded not only to every gesture and every movement of the conductor - it seemed that even their breaths were united. Predrag Gosta knew how to achieve a true creative atmosphere in the hall... The general enthusiasm which prevailed in the hall was transformed into tremendous applause by the appreciative audience, which did not want to part with the artists. At the end of the concert, as an encore, the orchestra played the sparkling overture from Glinka's opera "Ruslan & Ludmila."
St. Petersburg Times, Russia, June 30, 2010
...An excellent 2002 Edition Lilac recording [of Purcell’s “Dido & Aeneas”] featuring Predrag Gosta leading the Atlanta-based Chorus and Orchestra of New Trinity Baroque... This is a wonderfully colorful yet always musical performance. It is what Noorman attempted but failed in the Parrott recording. Gosta’s ensemble is excellent... the playing is so sensitive and secure. The choral work is excellent, too, with a true sense of character projected by the nameless witches, sailors, and attendants. This self-produced recording... is definitely well worth acquiring – a true sleeper... That’s nine recordings of Dido and Aeneas and I haven’t even scratched the surface. Which one is best? ...If I was forced to take one recording to a desert island, it would be the one by Lieberson and McGegan – but I would be sure to have Tubb with Gosta and Graham with Haim in my iPod.
Early Music America, Fall 2009
Raves for New Trinity Baroque... Crack Atlanta "period performance" ensemble will take you back a few centuries
The church was pretty well-packed for the afternoon's "Grand Tour"... Since NTB offers "historically informed" performances on original ancient instruments (or their replicas), authentic period sound and style are guaranteed. Directed by Predrag Gosta (also the harpsichordist) ...[NTB] began their musical tour with everybody's favorite early Italian master, Antonio Vivaldi, offering a scintillating rendition of one of his many concertos for strings... NTB treated us to a vibrant and fascinating "passacaglia" of [Handel], drawn from the "balletto" (dance) sequence of one of his many Italian-style operas. The final English selection was an intricate and lovely chaconne in four parts by Henry Purcell. If you dig Baroque music, you need to hear this terrific ensemble; they're one of America's premier period groups.
Charleston City Paper, May 23, 2009
Giacomo Carissimi (1605-1674) is best known for these two additions to the early oratorio genre ["Jephte" and "Jonas"], and so it is no surprise to find them recorded together on this release. What is a surprise, and a pleasant one at that, is to see that this version of 'Jonas' contains previously unrecorded material... New Trinity Baroque, performing beautifully as always on period instruments, accompanies the vocal parts simply and tastefully... the opening ‘sinfonia’, in its dramatic restraint and sense of ensemble, sets the tone for the rest of the recording. ... the instrumental portion of the recording is consistently delightful... Julia Matthews's rendition of the nameless daughter in "Jepthe" is particularly beautiful - definitely a highlight of the recording ..."Jephte" is strong in its dramatic presentation and in its musical precision... Well done.
Early Music America, Spring 2009
New Trinity Baroque [conducted by Predrag Gosta] plays superbly... The program was all Antonio Vivaldi, one of the greatest Venetian composers who wrote many concertos for strings, and he must have had a group like this in mind when he put all those mountains of notes on paper... It was an hour of exuberant music played to a fair-thee-well by a group of musicians who obviously know what they're about.
Charleston Post & Courier, May 25, 2008
Viva Vivaldi! The Red Priest Soars In New Trinity Baroque’s Piccolo Debut
From the first delicate yet driving bounce of the String Concerto in C major, RV 114, a crisp wave of clarity washed over the crowd, enveloping the church with its bright, lithesome sonorities... [Predrag Gosta] received a much deserved standing ovation from a crowd that clearly wanted more...
Charleston City Paper, May 24, 2008
New Trinity Baroque’s 'St. John' Passion a Tour de Force...
...With his period-instrument band, Gosta made a strong case for the as-Bach-heard-it authenticity of this performance, with the nine soloists singing the 'choruses,' joined on the 'chorales' by the larger church organ and choir. ...this sounded better than Bach himself ever heard.
Pierre Ruhe
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, March 3, 2008
New Trinity gives baroque new life...
New Trinity Baroque, Atlanta’s most established early music group... a first-time listener is struck by the earnestness and engagement of the players... Predrag Gosta, the group’s founder, conducted from the keyboards... his tempi were lively and sensitive. His witty and informed comments enlivened the evening.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, September 3, 2007
New Trinity Baroque, Atlanta's most adventurous period-instrument ensemble... sharply planned and wonderfully performed concert...
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, October 23, 2006
New Trinity Baroque's Zesty Mozart... Baroque Players do Mozart proud
In recent seasons, conductor-organist Predrag Gosta and the period-instrument band have delivered bracing, often illuminating readings from the century or two before Mozart was born. ...'Eine kleine Nachtmusik,' a little evening serenade, got a balanced, zesty performance. As in the Divertimentos nos. 1 and 3 – also known as Salzburg symphonies – Mozart’s tunefulness flows like water from a spring, inexhaustible and pure, yet a tiny twitch in the harmony can suggest a change in mood or undercurrent of tenderness, melancholy, even despair. Gosta and his players were alert to these nuances... in the fast movements they touched on the exuberance of a life that, seemingly, could never end. That was another benefit of New Trinity’s Mozart. Where modern orchestras present music by the tragic genius who died too young... the early music context catches him in the full flower of life, a vital presence in the here and now.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, September 4, 2006
No music ensemble in Atlanta creates so much excitement ... No group seems as vital ... [Predrag Gosta and New Trinity Baroque] delivered the most satisfying concert of this classical holiday season – a model for how to do it.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, December 19, 2005
CD recording of Dido and Aeneas
There's clean singing from the choir, and impeccable work from the 13-piece band (including five continuo players). Predrag Gosta shows good musical instincts, and, unlike some period performers, you feel he’s willing to depart from the strict letter of the score if they lead him that way...
Opera Magazine, London, January 2005
New Trinity harpsichordist Predrag Gosta led a delightful show... The performance burst with energy and fun.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 10/2004
New Trinity Baroque is one of Atlanta’s most prized ensembles. A group of ambitious free-lance musicians, led by organist Predrag Gosta: they play on period instruments and consistently deliver vital, artistically satisfying programs...
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, April 2004
New Trinity Baroque, led by harpsichordist Predrag Gosta, takes a renegade tact, dusting off obscure scores and... finding life in them.
Gramophone, April 2004
Impassioned performances ... taut and loaded with nuance.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, November 2003
Ensemble of consistent merit and refinement, boasting the highest artistic values. Stylish playing of the orchestra … where supporting players more than carried their weight – a sign of a finely tuned group.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, September 2003
Defined, gripping, thoughtful, full of temperament, fearless. The very first notes commanded attention.
Concert Artists Guild, New York, January 2003
Skillfully, passionately performed… Exuberant and exactingly prepared…
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, September 2002
The music was hauntingly beautiful, and sensitively conducted and performed. The voices and choir sang so perfectly in tune that many harmonic overtones thrilled the ear.
The Pipeline, Newsletter of the Atlanta Recorder Society, May 2002
Mustering what in the early music world ranks as mighty forces, Predrag Gosta and his New Trinity Baroque ensemble presented the Vespers of the Blessed Virgin (1610) by Claudio Monteverdi in two performances... [A recording] can never substitute for a live performance of the quality we heard from New Trinity Baroque.
Broadside, Newsletter of the Atlanta Early Music Alliance, April 2002
All superlatives belong to Predrag Gosta, an artist of dynamic temperament and impeccable expression.
Radio Television of Belgrade, Channel 1, July 1996
A LONGER BIOGRAPHY
Predrag Gosta has been recognized as one of the pioneers of the early music movement in the Balkans and one of the most interesting conductors of his generation. He is the artistic director of New Trinity Baroque, a widely-acclaimed and recorded period-instrument orchestra; the founder and the artistic director of the Belgrade Baroque Academy, Belgrade Early Music Festival, New Belgrade Opera, and the Makris Symphony Orchestra; as well as the music director and chief conductor of the Gwinnett Ballet Theatre in Atlanta, USA. He served as the assistant conductor of the National Philharmonic in Washington DC, was a faculty member at Oxford College of Emory University in Atlanta, and is currently conducting doctoral research at the University of Oxford, where his research focuses on the late 18th century English opera.
Born in Belgrade, he started studying violin at the age of six. After starting his studies at Belgrade Music Academy, he was awarded a full scholarship from the Leverhulme Trust and Trinity College of Music in London, receiving his undergraduate and postgraduate degrees from Trinity. He then went to the USA where he received three Master of Music degrees from Georgia State University in Atlanta, studying under a graduate assistantship and the Regents Opportunity Scholarship. His conducting teachers include Alexander Polyanichko and Ennio Nicotra (Russia), Jonathan Brett (England), Gustav Meier (USA), Jorma Panula (Finland), Colin Metters (UK), and others.
Predrag Gosta appeared at many concerts and festivals in the USA, UK, Russia, Sweden, Finland, Sweden, Germany, Poland, Switzerland, Mexico, Bulgaria, Serbia Croatia and Montenegro. He collaborated with artists and conductors such as Evelyn Tubb, Juilliane Baird, Vivica Genaux, Marijana Mijanovic, Florian Deuter, Ilia Korol, John Holloway, Antoinette Lohmann, Marion Verbruggen, Ottaviano Tenerani, Steven Devine, Anthony Rooley, Michael Fields, Justin Bland and many others. He performed at the Piccolo Spoleto Festival, Boston Early Music Festival and Amherst Early Music Festival in the USA; Sastamala Gregoriana Festival in Finland; Belgrade Early Music Festival in Serbia; Korkyra Baroque, Varazdin Baroque Evenings and Dubrovnik Summer Games in Croatia; Dartington International Summer School in England, etc. He conducted internationally renowned orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra, the Russian National Orchestra in Moscow, the St. Petersburg State Capella "Glinka", the National Philharmonic in Washington DC, the Sofia Philharmonic, the Belgrade Philharmonic, and more. He appeared in opera houses in the USA, Switzerland, Germany, Bulgaria and Serbia.
Gosta is an active recording artist and has almost twenty CD recordings to his credit. He recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra (two albums), the Makris Symphony Orchestra and New Trinity Baroque, among others.
As a vivid educator, he regularly teaches at the Belgrade Baroque Academy. He is a member of the Phi Beta Delta Honor Society for International Scholars, Golden Key Honour Society, Mu Phi Epsilon International Music Fraternity, as well as the MENSA and the International High IQ Society.