Musgrave: Mary, Queen of Scots – Heidi Stober & cast in the Act One party scene – English National Opera, 2025 (Photo: Ellie Kurttz) As we welcome in 2026, we take the opportunity to look […]
Handel: Deidamia – Nicolò Balducci – Wexford Festival Opera (Photo: Pádraig Grant) Opera in 2025 featured a genuine rarity in Thea Musgrave’s undeservedly neglecting Mary, Queen of Scots, whilst Mary was also a focus in […]
Bach: Mass in B Minor – Peter Whelan, Irish Baroque Orchestra & Choir, Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin The unusual, the rare and the undeservedly neglected often feature strongly in my own personal interests. 2025 featured […]
Mahler: Symphony No. 4 – Manfred Honeck, New World Symphony – New World Center, Miami Johann Strauss: Overture to Die Fledermaus, Haydn: Symphony No. 93 in D major; Mahler: Symphony No. 4; Lauren Snouffer, New World […]
George Parris & the Carice Singers (Photo: Lidia Crisafulli) Conductor George Parris and the Carice Singers have been exploring Arvo Pärt‘s music alongside that of other Estonian composers, most recently (13 November) at St Giles […]
Handel: Partenope – English National Opera (Photo: Lloyd Winters) Handel: Partenope; Nardus Williams, Hugh Cutting, Ru Charlesworth, Jake Ingbar, Katie Bray, William Thomas, director: Christopher Alden, conductor: William Cole, English National Opera; London ColiseumReviewed 26 […]
Cupid’s Ground Bass: Strozzi, uccelini, Farina, Cavalli, Kapsberger, Biber, Monteverdi; Lucine Musaelian, Kieran White, The Bellot Ensemble; FHR RecordsReviewed 26 November 2025 A young ensemble in one of those intelligently put together programmes where the […]
Qalali Folk Band at Aga Khan Music Awards 2025 (Photo: Joao Peixoto) Eleven artists were honoured at the weekend as this year’s winners of the Aga Khan Music Awards in a ceremony in the Southbank […]
Anselm McDonnell Belfast-based composer Anselm McDonnell appeared on these pages earlier this year with my review of his third album, Politics of the Imagination, featuring music where political commentary and sheer playfulness combine with a […]
The Richard Shephard Music Foundation (RSMF), the York-based music charity founded in 2021 to bring ‘the experience and enjoyment of music to children and young people in Yorkshire and beyond’ is celebrating its most successful […]
