Wagner Siegfried Idyll; Wagner Excerpts from Götterdämmerung. London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Simon Rattle conductor. Anja Kampe Brünnhilde. Elizabeth DeShong Waltraute This concert was organised in probably the best way to arrange these ‘bleeding chunks’. Dawn and Siegfried’s Rhine Jourmey, plus Waltraute’s narration in the first half; Sigfried’s Idyll, leading to the Funeral March and theContinue reading “Wagner, Götterdämmerung extracts; LSO, Barbican, 24/5/26”
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Nielsen, Storgårds: BBC Philharmonic, Bridgewater Hall, 16/5/26
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, John Storgårds conductor, Simone Lamsma violin. Rautavaara, Cantus Arcticus; Sibelius, Violin Concerto; Nielsen, Symphony No. 5 This was an absorbing concert and one I enjoyed very much. It also had quite a full and very appreciative audience. The BBC Philharmonic sounded glorious – really at the top of their game, and thisContinue reading “Nielsen, Storgårds: BBC Philharmonic, Bridgewater Hall, 16/5/26”
Du Yun, Angel’s Bone. ENO Manchester, Aviva Studios, pm 16/5/26
Kip Williams, Director; Marg Horwell, Designer, Allison Cook, Mrs X E; Rodney Earl Clarke, Mr X E; Matthew McKinney and Mariam Wallentin, Angels; Kantos Chamber Choir; BBC Philharmonic; conductor Baldur Brönniman This production is the UK premiere of this opera, by the Chinese-American composer Du Yun and Canadian librettist Royce Vavrek, staged by Kip Williams,Continue reading “Du Yun, Angel’s Bone. ENO Manchester, Aviva Studios, pm 16/5/26”
Britten, Peter Grimes. ROHCG, 12/5/26
Conductor, Jakub Hrůša. Peter Grimes, Allan Clayton; Ellen Orford, Maria Bengtsson; Captain Balstrode; Bryn Terfel, Swallow, Clive Bayley; Ned Keene, Jacques Imbrailo; Auntie, Catherine Wyn-Rogers; Mrs Sedley, Christine Rice; Bob Boles, John Graham-Hall; Hobson, Barnaby Rea; Rev. Horace Adams; James Gilchrist; First Niece; Jennifer France; Second Niece, Natalia Labourdette. Director, Deborah Warner; Set designer, MichaelContinue reading “Britten, Peter Grimes. ROHCG, 12/5/26”
Nicky Spence, ‘My Father’s Son’, Wigmore Hall, 9/5/26
Nicky Spence tenor; Malcolm Martineau piano. Howells The little boy lost; Britten Midnight on the Great Western; Fauré Les berceaux Op. 23 No. 1. Tippett, Songs for Ariel: Full fathom five. Orr, Songs of a Childhood: No. 5 Shy Geordie; Frederic Rzewski, Dear Diary: No Good; Britten, Who are these Children? Op. 84: No. 8Continue reading “Nicky Spence, ‘My Father’s Son’, Wigmore Hall, 9/5/26”
Bach, Pierre-Laurent Aimard, South Bank Centre 9/5/26
Pierre-Laurent Aimard, piano. Bach: The Well-Tempered Clavier Book 2, BWV.870-893 It is a bit of a shock to the system – auditory, mental, emotional – to sit down and listen to two and a quarter-ish hours of Bach piano music, 48 separate pieces, which are without any sort of narrative or clear structure (unlike theContinue reading “Bach, Pierre-Laurent Aimard, South Bank Centre 9/5/26”
Tchaikovsky, Halle Orchestra, Elder – Bridgewater Hall, 7/5/26
Halle Orchestra, Sir Mark Elder conductor. Kostas Smoriginas baritone. Hallé Choir, Matthew Hamilton, choral director. Stravinsky Song of the Nightingale; Rachmaninov Spring; Glinka, Ruslan and Ludmilla Overture; Tchaikovsky Symphony No.2 This was a nicely designed programme featuring a couple of rarely heard works (and unknown to me) and a popular symphony (which, despite that popularity, I don’t think I’ve everContinue reading “Tchaikovsky, Halle Orchestra, Elder – Bridgewater Hall, 7/5/26”
Tchaikovsky, Eugene Onegin: Met Opera live screening, Sheffield Curzon Cinema, 2/5/26
Conductor, Timur ZangIniev; Asmik Gregorian, Tatiana; Maria Barakova, Olga; Iurii Samoilov, Eugene Onegin; Larissa Diadakova, Filippyevna; Stanislas De Barbeyrac, Lenski; Prince Gremin, Alexander Tsymbalyuk. Production, Deborah Warner, Set Designer, Tom Pye; Costume Designer; Chloe Obolensky; Lighting Designer, Jean Kalman I really haven’t seen many productions of this work – I remember the Peter Hall oneContinue reading “Tchaikovsky, Eugene Onegin: Met Opera live screening, Sheffield Curzon Cinema, 2/5/26”
Bartholomew LaFollette & Friends, Conway Hall, London. 26/4/26
Bartholomew LaFollette, ‘cello; Hyeyoon Park, violin; Caroline Palmer, piano. Nadia Boulanger; Three Pieces for cello & piano; Rachmaninoff, Cello Sonata in G minor Op.19; Schubert, Piano Trio in E flat D929 I’ve never been to the Conway Hall before. According to its website it is “a hub for ethical thought and dialogue since it openedContinue reading “Bartholomew LaFollette & Friends, Conway Hall, London. 26/4/26”
‘Hidden Gems’ of French Baroque Music, Ensemble Molière, Wigmore Hall, 26/4/26
François Collin de Blamont, Diane et Endymion, overture; Sébastien de Brossard, Sonate en Trio in E minor SdB. 220; Michel Corrette Sonata in B flat Op. 20 No. 4 ‘Les délices de la solitude; Louis-Gabriel Guillemain, Sonata in A minor Op. 17 No. 6; François Couperin, La sultane; Jean-François Dandrieu, Sonata in G minor Op.Continue reading “‘Hidden Gems’ of French Baroque Music, Ensemble Molière, Wigmore Hall, 26/4/26”
John's musical journey 