Category Archives: Uncategorized

Cast: Mark Le Brocq Gustav von Aschenbach;  Roderick Williams The Traveller | Elderly Fop | Hotel Manager | Hotel Barber | Leader of the Players | Voice of Dionysus; Timothy Morgan  Voice of Apollo; Antony César Tadzio; Diana Salles The Polish Mother. : Leo Hussain Conductor; Olivia Fuchs Director; Nicola Turner Designer; Robbie Butler LightingContinue reading “Britten, Death in Venice – WNO, Oxford: 26/3/24”

Conductor: Christian Thielemann; Director, David Bösch; Stage design Patrick Bannwart; Costumes Moana Stemberger; Lighting Fabio Antoci; The Emperor Eric Cutler; Empress, Camilla Nylund; The Nurse, Evelyn Herlitzius; The ghost messenger, Andreas Bauer Kanabas; A Guardian of the Threshold of the Temple, Nikola Hillebrand; Apparition of a Young Man, Martin Mitterrutzner; The Voice of the Falcon,Continue reading “R.Strauss: Die Frau ohne Schatten. Dresden Semperoper, 23/3/24”

Conductor: Johannes Fritzsch, Director, Josef E. Köpplinger, Stage design Walter Vogelweider, Costumes Dagmar Morell, Choreography Ricarda Regina Ludigkeit, Lighting Fabio Antoci. Cast: Sarastro, Dimitry Ivashchenko; Tamino, Joseph Dennis; Queen of the Night, Aleksandra Olczyk; Pamina, Elbenita Kajtazi; Papageno, Michael Nagl; First Lady, Roxana Incontrera; Second Lady, Sabine Brohm; Third Lady, Michal Doron; Monostatos, Simeon Esper; Speaker,Continue reading “Mozart: The Magic Flute. Dresden Semperoper, 22/3/24”

Keri-Lynn Wilson, Conductor; David Alden, Director; Charles Edwards, Set Designer; Jon Morrel, Costume Designer; Adam Silverman, Original Lighting Designer. Jennifer Davis, Jenufa; Susan Bullock, Kostelnicka; Richard Trey Smagur, Laca; John Findon, Steva; Fiona Kimm, Grandmother; Darren Jeffery, Mill Foreman; Freddie Tong, Mayor; Madeleine Shaw, Mayor’s Wife It was fascinating to experience a theatrical version ofContinue reading “Janacek, Jenufa – ENO: 20/3/24”

Wagner: Die Walküre: Ride of the Valkyries and Wotan’s Farewell and Magic Fire Music; Huldigungsmarsch; Das Rheingold: Abendlich strahlt der Sonne Auge; Götterdammerung: Prologue: Dawn and Siegfried’s Rhine Journey; Act I: Duet; Act III: Siegfried’s Death and Funeral Music, Brünnhilde’s Immolation and Finale; Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg: Prelude to Act I and Was duftet dochContinue reading “Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, V. Petrenko, Wagner extracts: Royal Albert Hall, 13/3/24”

Bruckner Symphony no 8; Halle Orchestra, Mark Elder As I have said elsewhere in this blog, I have been lucky to hear several very fine Bruckner 8s live over the years. This performance was the equal, at the very least, of nearly all of them, as I experienced it. Astonishingly, this run of performances withContinue reading “The Big Bruckner Weekend, Glasshouse, Gateshead    2/3/24 – Bruckner 8, Halle Orchestra”

Bruckner Mass No. 3 ‘Great’: Royal Northern Sinfonia; Chorus of Royal Northern Sinfonia; Durham University Choral Society. Thomas Zehetmair conductor. Elizabeth Watts soprano; Hannah Hipp mezzo-soprano; Thomas Atkins tenor; Mark Stone baritoneThe Big Bruckner Weekend involved not only two concerts but also the Chorus of the Royal Northern Sinfonia singing a selection of Bruckner’s motetsContinue reading “The Big Bruckner Weekend, Glasshouse, Gateshead    2/3/24 – Bruckner Mass”

Brahms, Violin Concerto; Shostakovich Symphony No 4. Sir Simon Rattle conductor; Isabelle Faust violin; London Symphony Orchestra This was a very generously planned concert. It is ages and ages since I sat down and listened intently to the Brahms concerto. My abiding memory from my teenage years of listening to this work is of IdaContinue reading “LSO, Rattle – Brahms/Shostakovich. Barbican 29/2/24”

Director, Tim Albery; Set Designer, Michael Levine; Costume Designer. Constance Hoffman; Lighting Designer, David Finn; Movement, Philippe Giraudeau; Conductor, Henrik Nánási. Cast: The Dutchman, Bryn Terfel; Senta, Elisabet Strid; Daland, Stephen Milling; Erik, Toby Spence; Mary, Kseniia Nikolaieva; Steersman, Miles Mykkanen I saw this production in 2015, conducted by Andris Nelsons with, as this time,Continue reading “Wagner, Der Fliegende Hollander (dress rehearsal):ROHCG  27/2/24”

Britten Sinfonia, Guy Johnston cello: Beethoven Grosse Fuge Op.133; Bartók Divertimento for String Orchestra; Tavener The Protecting Veil This, by contrast to the previous concert, did not seem to be a clear model of coherent programming. Other than the fact that all the works are focused on the use of a string chamber orchestra, IContinue reading “Britten Sinfonia – Beethoven, Bartok, Tavener; Bridgewater Hall 20/2/24”