Classical music
Owen, Manchester Camerata, Takács-Nagy, Stoller Hall, Manchester review - more Mozart made in ManchesterSaturday, 24 May 2025
Manchester Camerata spent eight years performing and recording a complete edition of Mozart’s piano concertos with Jean-Efflam Bavouzet as soloist, together with conductor Gábor Takács-Nagy, and inevitably there was the question: what next?Their... Read more... |
Josefowicz, LSO, Mälkki, Barbican review - two old favourites and one new oneTuesday, 20 May 2025
Every now and then a concert programme comes along that fits like a bespoke suit, and this one could have been specially designed for me. Two established favourites from big names of the 20th century plus a new-to-me piece by a forgotten figure... Read more... |
Classical CDs: Jelly Babies, porridge and kazoosFriday, 16 May 2025
Brahms: Lieder Christian Gerhaher (baritone), Gerold Huber (piano) (Sony)The concert I attended of Brahms Lieder in the Sheldonian Theatre in Oxford in October 2024, with Christian Gerhaher in fabulous voice and Gerold Huber at the peak of his... Read more... |
Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, Wigmore Hall review - too big a splash in complete RavelFriday, 16 May 2025
It was a daring idea to mark Ravel’s 150th birthday year with a single concert packing in all his works for solo piano. Jean-Efflam Bavouzet knows them by heart, has bags of charisma and energy, so why not? I could give more than one reason, but the... Read more... |
Karim Said, Leighton House review - adventures from Byrd to SchoenbergWednesday, 14 May 2025
William Byrd, Arnold Schoenberg and their respective acolytes go cheek by jowl, crash into one another, soothe, infuriate and shine in their very different ways This is all in a typical programme of pianist, conductor, composer and all-round pioneer... Read more... |
Stile Antico, Wigmore Hall review - a glorious birthday celebrationTuesday, 13 May 2025
There was a wonderful festal spirit at the Wigmore Hall last night, as the vocal ensemble Stile Antico ran through a Greatest Hits selection in celebration of their 20th anniversary, in front of a packed and enthusiastic audience. The 12-strong... Read more... |
Hallé, Elder, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester review - premiere of new Huw Watkins workMonday, 12 May 2025
Huw Watkins’ Concerto for Orchestra, the fourth new work of his to be commissioned and premiered by the Hallé and Sir Mark Elder, is another beautifully crafted and highly appealing construction.It’s also intriguing in its game-playing with genre,... Read more... |
First Person: young cellist Zlatomir Fung on operatic fantasies old and newTuesday, 06 May 2025
My new album, Fantasies, recorded with pianist Richard Fu, is the culmination of my years-long fascination with the wonderful genre of instrumental opera fantasies. I first fell in love with opera fantasies while attending summer music camps as a... Read more... |
Classical CDs: Chinese poetry, rollercoasters and old bookshopsSaturday, 03 May 2025
Jürg Frey: Voices EXAUDI Vocal Ensemble/James Weeks (Neu Records)A new CD from EXAUDI is a guaranteed treat for all the senses: the sound quality is always impeccable, the CD presentation a tactile pleasure. Heck, it even smells good (a... Read more... |
La Serenissima, Wigmore Hall review - a convivial guide to 18th century BolognaWednesday, 30 April 2025
When Giuseppe Torelli made the journey from his birthplace of Verona to Bologna in the late 17th century, the trumpet was still seen as something of a brash outsider, suitable for military displays but not for sophisticated music ensembles. Within... Read more... |
Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Isata Kanneh-Mason, Wigmore Hall review - family fun, fire and finesseMonday, 28 April 2025
I came to Isata and Sheku Kanneh-Mason’s Wigmore Hall recital on Saturday armed with a certain degree of scepticism. Not about the siblings’ stupendous talent and technique – their manifold achievements speak for themselves – but about the popular... Read more... |
Mahler 8, LPO, Gardner, RFH review - lights on highMonday, 28 April 2025
Transcendence is everywhere in Mahler’s most ambitious symphony, from the flaming opening hymn to the upper reaches in the epic setting of Goethe’s Faust finale. You’d think no visuals could match the auditory phantasmagoria, just as dance, music... Read more... |
