Wigmore Hall
Best of 2017: Classical concertsWednesday, 27 December 2017
Did Simon Rattle's return to the UK as Principal Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra live up to the hype? Mostly, and when it did, the music-making was superbly alive. But it's vital to observe that another orchestra and chief conductor have... Read more... |
Octets, Wigmore Hall review - Heath Quartet and star friends effervesceSaturday, 16 December 2017
To compose a masterpiece in your teens is rare enough; to choose the most elaborate form in chamber music, an octet for eight strings, ensures a peculiar kind of immortality. George Enescu, a still-underestimated genius described by protege Yehudi... Read more... |
Mark Padmore, Mitsuko Uchida, Wigmore Hall review - direct and uncompromising SchubertTuesday, 12 December 2017
Expectations ran high for Mark Padmore and Mitsuko Uchida in Winterreise. Both singer and pianist are well known for their Schubert, and their deep and intimate relationship with his music was everywhere apparent in this performance of sensitivity... Read more... |
Christian Tetzlaff, Lars Vogt, Wigmore Hall review - lyrical Brahms from veteran duoWednesday, 06 December 2017
Sonata no 1 – Sonata no 2 – Sonata no 3 – that’s barely a recital programme, it’s just a list. Fortunately, violinist Christian Tetzlaff and pianist Lars Vogt (pictured below by Neda Navae) have good musical reasons for presenting the Brahms violin... Read more... |
Florian Boesch, Justus Zeyen, Wigmore Hall review - power, intimacy and atmosphereSaturday, 11 November 2017
Florian Boesch is a big man. He’s tall, stocky, and with his bald head and stubble could seem more like a gangster than a Lieder singer. His voice is beautiful, but it matches his appearance – big, weighty and imposing. He has subtlety too, though... Read more... |
'Their DNA is forever ingrained in the keys' - Roman Rabinovich on playing composers' own pianosThursday, 09 November 2017
I was recently in the UK for some solo recitals and to make my debut with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. One of the highlights of the trip was playing a similar programme in two very different settings: first on some magnificent period... Read more... |
Angela Hewitt, Wigmore Hall review – Bach Partitas shine and singThursday, 19 October 2017
On paper this was a fairly austere piece of programming. No variety in composer, genre or style, just four Bach Partitas in a row, works of similar approach, length and technique. And yet in performance, in the hands of Angela Hewitt, there was... Read more... |
Guy Johnston on his 1714 Tecchler cello - 'every day I start again and explore the possibilities within'Saturday, 07 October 2017
This adventure began in 2014 when my cello turned 300 years old. As birthdays go, it was a big one, so for me it felt important to do something special to celebrate. Why not imagine a journey back to Rome where it was made?The role of the cello has... Read more... |
Anne Schwanewilms, Charles Spencer, Wigmore Hall review - going deep in SchubertTuesday, 03 October 2017
They say that Wigmore Hall audiences know their Lieder singers, but last night's far from packed house dispelled that illusion; the hall has been full for much lesser artists than German soprano Anne Schwanewilms. No matter; she gave her usual... Read more... |
Ke Ma, Wigmore Hall review - a debut of distinctionFriday, 14 July 2017
The turnout in the Wigmore’s Kirckman series of young-artist showcases was unusually high for this 23-year-old Chinese pianist. With the Op. 28 Preludes of Chopin, it became clear that many of the audience had known what they were waiting for. Up to... Read more... |
Ensemble InterContemporain, Wigmore HallWednesday, 21 June 2017
The Paris-based Ensemble InterContemporain brought a wide-ranging programme to the Wigmore Hall. They are known as new music specialists – the group was founded by Pierre Boulez as the house band for the IRCAM electronic music studio – so Ravel and... Read more... |
Lise Davidsen, James Baillieu, Wigmore HallWednesday, 10 May 2017
Few young singers make a UK recital debut like Lise Davidsen’s. But then, few singers come to that debut with such a weight of reputation and expectation. Taking not only the First Prize but also the Audience Prize and Birgit Nilsson Awards at 2015’... Read more... |
