Classical
Funny, faithful and inventive: Scottish Opera’s Barber of Seville reviewed
A violinist friend in the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra used to talk about an orchestra’s ‘muscle memory’; a collective…
The miracle of watching a great string quartet perform
Joseph Haydn, it’s generally agreed, invented the string quartet. And having done so, he re-invented it: again and again. Take…
Rejoice that Hyperion’s impeccable back catalogue is finally available to stream
At the beginning of the 1980s a former ice-cream salesman called Ted Perry drove a London minicab to raise money…
Every crumb of Kurtag’s music is a feast: Endgame, at the Proms, reviewed
The fun starts early in Beckett’s Endgame. Within minutes of opening his mouth, blind bully Hamm decides to starve his…
A euphoric meat-and-two-veg programme: Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich/Paavo Jarvi, at the Proms, reviewed
We used to call it a ‘meat and two veg’ programme, back in my concert planning days: the reliable set…
Doesn’t get better than this: The Threepenny Opera, at Edinburgh International Festival, reviewed
It’s the Edinburgh International Festival, and Barrie’s back in town. Once, Edinburgh was pretty much the only place that you…
A brilliantly cruel Cosi and punkish Petrushka but the Brits disappoint: Festival d’Aix-en-Provence reviewed
Aix is an odd place. It should be charming, with its dishevelled squares, Busby Berkeley-esque fountains, pretty ochres and pinks.…
Imagine a school concert hosted by Bela Lugosi: Budapest Festival Orchestra and Ivan Fischer, at the Proms, reviewed
‘Audience Choice’ was the promise at the Budapest Festival Orchestra’s Sunday matinee Prom, and come on – who could resist…
Why is this genius playing to a half-empty Royal Albert Hall? Benjamin Grosvenor Prom reviewed
There were times during last Friday’s First Night of the Proms when it felt as if we’d been transported back…
The greatest female composer you’ve never heard of
One of the most intriguing piano concertos of the late 19th century is unknown to the public – and no…
Florid flummery: ETO’s Il viaggio a Reims reviewed
Lightning sometimes strikes twice. English Touring Opera hit topical gold last spring when, wholly by coincidence, they found themselves touring…
The coronation music was – mostly – a triumph
Sir Hubert Parry was upgraded from knight bachelor to baronet by King Edward VII in 1902, and my goodness he…
Discover who wrote the catchy music for the coronation of the cannibal Emperor Bokassa
If being asked to write music for the coronation of a king is an honour, then doing it for an…
The last unashamedly happy masterpiece: Haydn’s The Creation, at Ulster Hall, reviewed
Haydn’s The Creation is Paradise Lost without the Lost. True, the words aren’t exactly up there: translated into German by…
An old production that’s aged better than most: Royal Opera’s Turandot reviewed
Since its première in 1984, Andrei Serban’s production of Puccini’s Turandot has been revived 15 times at Covent Garden, not…
If you’re anywhere near Edinburgh, get a ticket: Scottish Opera’s Il trittico reviewed
It does no harm, once in a while, to assume that the creators of an opera actually know what they’re…
Why does everyone hate Max Reger?
The German composer Max Reger, born 150 years ago next week, is mostly remembered today for countless elephantine fugues and…
Dated and wasteful: Rusalka, at the Royal Opera House, reviewed
Careful what you wish for. There can be no definitive way to stage an opera, and it’s the critic’s duty…
The unknown German composer championed by Mahler
I was sceptical when the lady on the bus to Reading town centre told me that her father knew Liszt.…
Still ugly but worth catching for the chorus and orchestra: Royal Opera’s Tannhäuser reviewed
A classical concert programme is like a set menu, and for this palate the most tempting orchestral offering in the…
Stirring and sophisticated: RLPO, Chooi, Hindoyan, at the Philharmonic Hall, reviewed
Daniel Barenboim was supposed to perform with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra earlier this month. His recent health concerns made…
What makes a Christmas song Christmassy?
Temperature records for Los Angeles in the summer of 1945 are patchy, but 90 in the shade seems to have…
If Ravel’s Boléro makes you yawn, you’re not really listening
Only boring people are bored by Ravel’s Boléro. True, the composer – the slyest of wits – left his share…
Hugely entertaining: Royal Opera’s Alcina reviewed
A hotel bellboy, the story goes, discovered George Best in a luxury suite surrounded by scantily clad lovelies and empty…
