Arvo Pärt Cantus in memoriam Benjamin Britten; Dvořák Violin Concerto in A minor; Sibelius Symphony No. 2 in D major. Isabelle Faust violin, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Andris Nelsons conductor Again, not a totally obvious bit of programming, but I guess the common theme is new nations asserting themselves against dominant powers (Finland/Russia – Czechia/Austro-Hungarian EmpireContinue reading “Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra/Nelsons. RAH, BBC Proms 26/8/25”
Tag Archives: classical-music
BBC NOW, Bancroft. RAH, BBC Proms 15/8/25
Sofia Gubaidulina Revue Music for Symphony Orchestra and Jazz Band; Ravel Piano Concerto in G major ; Shostakovich Symphony No. 13 in B flat minor, ‘Babi Yar’. Benjamin Grosvenor piano, Kostas Smoriginas, bass; Synergy Vocals, BBC National Chorus of Wales (lower voices), BBC National Orchestra of Wales. Ryan Bancroft conductor Yet another Prom completely packed out…..this just wouldn’t have seemed possibleContinue reading “BBC NOW, Bancroft. RAH, BBC Proms 15/8/25”
Budapest Festival Orchestra, Ivan Fischer. RAH, BBC Proms, 6/8/25
Beethoven Symphony No. 7 in A major; Bartók – Duke Bluebeard’s Castle. Dorottya Láng, Judith; Krisztián Cser, Duke Bluebeard. Budapest Festival Orchestra, Iván Fischer conductor This was a late choice of Prom – it was one I flagged up when booking, decided against, dithered, and finally bought a ticket for…..The BFO and Fischer are alwaysContinue reading “Budapest Festival Orchestra, Ivan Fischer. RAH, BBC Proms, 6/8/25”
Boulez / Mahler – BBCSO, Lintu. RAH, BBC Proms 4/8/25
Boulez, Rituel in memoriam Bruno Maderna; Mahler Das klagende Lied (original version, 1880). Natalya Romaniw soprano; Jennifer Johnston mezzo-soprano; Russell Thomas tenor; James Newby baritone. Constanza Chorus, BBC Symphony Chorus, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Hannu Lintu conductor It is now 57 years since I went to my first Prom. I missed out on them for manyContinue reading “Boulez / Mahler – BBCSO, Lintu. RAH, BBC Proms 4/8/25”
R.Strauss, Die Liebe der Danae, Bayern Staatsoper, Munich 22/7/25
Conductor, Sebastian Weigle; Director, Claus Guth; Designer, Michael Levine; Costumes, Ursula Kudrna; Lighting, Alessandro Carletti; Jupiter, Christopher Maltman; Mercury, Ya-Chung Huang; Pollux, Vincent Wolfsteiner; Danae, Malin Byström; Xanthe, Erika Baikoff; Midas, Andreas Schager; Four Kings, Martin Snell, Bálint Szabó, Paul Kaufmann, Kevin Conners; Semele, Sarah Dufresne; Europe, Evgeniya Sotnikova; Alkmene, Emily Sierra; Leda, Avery Amereau IContinue reading “R.Strauss, Die Liebe der Danae, Bayern Staatsoper, Munich 22/7/25”
2nd Festival Baroque concert, Cuvilliés Theatre, Munich, 21/7/25
Violin, Verena-Maria Fitz,Clara Scholtes; Viola, Johanna Maurer; Cello, Allan Bergius; Zinc (which I think means cornet – presumably a high Bach trumpet), Gebhard David; Conductor and organ; Stefan Steinemann; Augsburg Cathedral Boys’ Choir I was to be off from Berlin at 1028 am, allegedly, on a train to Munich, though in fact it didn’t arriveContinue reading “2nd Festival Baroque concert, Cuvilliés Theatre, Munich, 21/7/25”
Weill/Brecht, The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny; Deutsche Oper Berlin, 20/7/25
Conductor, Stefan Klingele; Director, Benedikt von Peter; Design, Katrin Wittig; Costumes, Geraldine Arnold; Lighting, Ulrich Niepel; Leokadja Begbick, Evelyn Herlitzius; Fatty, Thomas Cilluffo. Dreieinigkeitsmoses, Robert Gleadow; Jenny Hill, Annette Dasch; Jim Mahoney, Nikolai Schukoff; Jack O’Brian, Kieran Carrel; Bill, Artur Garbas; Joe, Padraic Rowan I spent the morning, as I have done whenever I haveContinue reading ” Weill/Brecht, The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny; Deutsche Oper Berlin, 20/7/25″
R. Strauss, Die Schweigsame Frau, Thielemann, Staatsoper, Berlin, 19/7/25
Conductor, Christian Thielemann; Production: Jan Philipp Gloger; Design, Ben Baur; Costumes: Justina Klimczyk; Lighting: Tobias Krauß; Video: Leonard Wölfl; Choreography: Florian Hurler; Sir Morosus: Peter Rose; His housekeeper, Iris Vermillion; Barber Cutting Beard: Samuel Hasselhorn; Henry Morosus: Siyabonga Maqungo; Aminta, his wife: Brenda Rae; Isotta: Evelin Novak; Carlotta: Rebecka Wallroth; Morbio: Dionysios Avgerinos; Vanuzzi: ManuelContinue reading “R. Strauss, Die Schweigsame Frau, Thielemann, Staatsoper, Berlin, 19/7/25”
Ning Feng, Wigmore Hall 16/7/25
Ning Feng, violin; Yeol Eum Son, piano. Stravinsky, Divertimento from The Fairy’s Kiss; Alfred Schnittke, Violin Sonata No. 1; Szymanowski, 3 Paganini Caprices Op. 40; Prokofiev, Violin Sonata No. 2 in D Op. 94bis This was another of those concerts I would never have made the effort to go to specially but went because IContinue reading “Ning Feng, Wigmore Hall 16/7/25”
Beethoven etc. Wigmore Soloists. Buxton Festival, St John’s Church, 15/7/24
F Berwald Grand Septet in B flat major. C Nielsen Serenata in Vano. L van Beethoven Septet in E Flat, Op. 2 Wigmore Soloists is intended to be a new super-group of chamber music players, led by the clarinettist, Michael Collins. It clearly has a flexible group of players – two of the musicians inContinue reading “Beethoven etc. Wigmore Soloists. Buxton Festival, St John’s Church, 15/7/24”
John's musical journey 