Simon Trpčeski - Makedonissimo - Presto Classical

Listening to this joyous, madcap album from the Macedonian pianist and friends feels like eavesdropping on an uproarious late-night jam-session, but in fact almost everything here is composed by Trpčeski’s compatriot Pande Shahov, and it’s life-affirming stuff, fusing elements of Macedonian folk music, klezmer and jazz with a few gestures toward Prokofiev and Shostakovich in film-music mode along the way. (I’ve found it also happens to be the ideal soundtrack for a long run – the energy is infectious, even for a sluggard like myself).