Category Archives: Uncategorized

Director, Daisy Evans; Set Designer, Molly O’cathain; Lighting Designer, Jake Wiltshire; Conductor, Peter Whelan with the Irish Baroque Orchestra. Clistene, Chuma Sijeqa; Aristea, Alexandra Urquiola; Argene, Sarah Richmond; Megacle, Gemma Ní Bhriain; Licida, Meili Li; Aminta, Rachel Redmond; Alcandro, Seán Boylan Two years or so after Bajazet (an Olivier award-winning production for outstanding achievement inContinue reading “Vivaldi – L’Olimpiade – ROHCG Linbury, 24/5/24”

MOZART Ach, ich fühl’s! (from The Magic Flute); MOZART String Quintet No.4 in G minor K516; TRAD. Se solen sjunker (Swedish folksong); SCHUBERT Piano Trio No.2 in E flat. Ella Taylor, Robin Ireland & Ensemble 360 I was listening, with one ear, while waiting for my car’s servicing to be finished, to the music onContinue reading “Ensemble 360, Mozart and Schubert – Crucible, Sheffield, 20/5/24”

Sir Mark Elder conductor, Halle Orchestra, Sir Stephen Hough piano: Dvořák Scherzo capriccioso; Stephen Hough Piano Concerto (The World of Yesterday); Butterworth A Shropshire Lad: Rhapsody for Orchestra; Elgar Variations on an Original Theme, “Enigma” This was Mark Elder’s last appearance in Sheffield as the Halle’s music director so for once the hall in SheffieldContinue reading “Halle / Elder – Sheffield City Hall, 18/5/24”

Director, Katie Mitchell; Designer, Vicki Mortimer; Lighting Designer; Jon Clark. Conductor, Giacomo Sagripanti. Lucia, Nadine Sierra; Edgardo, Xabier Anduaga; Enrico Ashton. Artur Ruciński; Raimondo Bidebent, Insung Sim; Arturo Bucklaw, Andrés Presno; Normanno, Michael Gibson; Alisa, Rachael Lloyd My younger self would have found it fairly unbelievable that I would be voluntarily going to a DonizettiContinue reading “Donizetti, Lucia di Lammermuir. ROHCG – 8/5/24”

Conductor, Antonello Manacorda; Carmen, Aigul Akhmetshina; Don José, Piotr Beczala; Escamillo,  Kostas Smoriginas; Micaëla, Olga Kulchynska;  Zuniga, Blaise Malaba; Frasquita, Sarah Dufresne;  Mercédès, Gabrielė Kupšytė; Royal Opera Chorus And Orchestra; Director, Damiano Michieletto; Set Designer, Paolo Fantin; Costume Designer; Carla Teti; Lighting Designer, Alessandro Carletti I travelled to this screening in a rather gloomy frameContinue reading “Bizet, Carmen – ROHCG screened live at the Odeon Sheffield 1/5/24”

London Philharmonic Orchestra, Vladimir Jurowski conductor. PJ Harris director. Burkhard Fritz tenor, Siegfried; Svetlana Sozdateleva soprano, Brünnhilde; Albert Dohman bass, Hagen; Günter Papendell baritone, Gunther; Sinéad Campbell Wallace soprano, Gutrune; Robert Hayward baritone, Alberich; Kai Rüütel-Pajula mezzo-soprano, Waltraute; Claudia Huckle contralto, 1st Norn; Claire Barnett-Jones mezzo-soprano, 2nd Norn; Evelina Dobraceva soprano, 3rd Norn; Alina AdamskiContinue reading “Wagner, Götterdämmerung  – LPO, Jurowski. RFH, 27/4/24”

Halle Orchestra, Sir Mark Elder conductor. Germán Enrique Alcántara baritone | Simon Boccanegra; Eri Nakamura soprano | Amelia; Iván Ayón-Rivas tenor | Gabriele Adorno; William Thomas bass | Jacopo Fiesco; Sergio Vitale baritone | Paolo Albianil David Shipley bass | Pietro; Beth Moxon mezzo soprano | Amelia’s maid. Chorus of Opera North Another Verdi operaContinue reading “Verdi Simon Boccanegra (original version 1857): Halle/Elder – Bridgewater Hall, 18/4/24”

Ruth Gipps Song for Orchestra; Nielsen Violin Concerto; Borodin Symphony No.2. RLPO – Andrew Manze conductor; Johan Dalene violin (Young Artist in Residence) This was a really good concert. Though it was a far from generous programme, and had at least two works which almost everyone in the audience hadn’t heard live before ( andContinue reading “Royal Liverpool Philharmonic: Gipps, Nielsen, Borodin: Philharmonic Hall – 11/4/24”

Director, Jude Christian; Designer, Charlotte Henery; Lighting, Ben Ormerod. Conductor, Gerry Cornelius. Manon, Jenny Stafford;  Des Grieux, ? (cover for Gareth Dafydd Morris); Lescaut, Aidan Edwards; Geronte, Edward Hawkins;  Edmondo, Brenton Spiteri Manon Lescaut is an early work of Puccini’s, composed between 1889 and 1892 (so a very long time before, say, Turandot).This production wasContinue reading “Puccini, Manon Lescaut – ETO, Buxton Opera House, 4/4/24”

Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Peter Whelan director. Miriam Allan soprano, Rebecca Leggett mezzo-soprano, Ruairi Bowen tenor, Malachy Frame baritone, Choir of the Age of Enlightenment: Bach: Cantata No.66 `Erfreut euch, ihr Herzen’; Cantata No.6 `Bleib bei uns, denn es will Abend werden’; Bach: Easter Oratorio, BWV.249 The QEH was sold out for thisContinue reading “Bach, Easter Oratorio: OAE, Whelan. QEH South Bank, 27/3/24”