Handel’s Serse at Barbican
Most recently seen in March in a stunning Tamerlano at Shorreditch Town Hall as part of the 2026 London Handel Festival, Douglas Cummings and the Academy of Ancient Music gave us Serse of 1738 (premiered […]
classical music
As Ryan Wigglesworth steps down as chief conductor of BBC SSO, his replacement is announced as Antony Hermus, principal guest conductor of Opera North
Antony Hermus (Photo: Marco Borggreve) Next year, Ryan Wigglesworth completes a remarkable five seasons as chief conductor of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra [see my recent interview with Ryan focusing on his being Featured Artist […]
Allow yourself to be seduced: Tsinandali Festival features the Pan-Caucasian Youth Orchestra at historic estate in Georgia
Tsinandali Festival amphitheatre The current Foreign Office travel advice for Georgia is somewhat inconclusive, yet the country has long seduced European travellers. Friends of mine travelled to Tblisi last year and not only had a […]
ECHO Rising Stars announced for 2027-28 including Laura van der Heijden, Junyan Chen, Fibonacci Quartet, Aaron Azunda Akugbo
The European Concert Hall Organisation (ECHO) has announced the artists selected for its 2027-28 ECHO Rising Stars season. As part of the ECHO Rising Stars programme, these artists will perform on the stages of leading […]
%20BPA-9.jpg?w=510&resize=510,510&ssl=1 "From Young Apollo to the Cello Symphony to the Poet's Echo to Phaedra: the range of Britten's composing career explored by Britten Sinfonia at Aldeburgh Festival alongside new works")
From Young Apollo to the Cello Symphony to the Poet’s Echo to Phaedra: the range of Britten’s composing career explored by Britten Sinfonia at Aldeburgh Festival alongside new works
Genevieve Lacey, Gemma New, Britten Sinfonia, Aldeburgh Festival (Photo: Britten Pears Arts) Steve (Stelios) Adam: et døgn (one day), Lisa Illean/Binchois: Chansons, Lisa Illean: New works for recorder, strings and pre-recorded sounds, Brett Dean: Carlo, […]
Light & shade: Laurence Cummings, Academy of Ancient Music & a terrific cast make Handel’s Serse into a captivating & engaging evening in the theatre
Handel: Serse – Paula Murrihy, Louise Alder – Academy of Ancient Music, the Barbican (Photo: Mark Allan) Handel: Serse; Paula Murrihy, Louise Alder, Rachel Redmond, Rebecca Leggett, Claudia Huckle, Luca Tittoto, Thomas Chenhall, Academy of […]
Exploring Sullivan’s range & experiencing how he evolves artistically: conductor John Andrews on his continuing exploration of the music of Sir Arthur Sullivan including a new disc of songs
John Andrews at recording sessions for his disc of Sullivan songs When conductor John Andrews and I met up for a chat recently, it was the music of Sir Arthur Sullivan that was high on […]
Glazunov String Quartets: the Tippett Quartet
We first met the Tippett String Quartet via Penderecki Complete Music for String Quartet, also on Naxos, then live at Thaxted Festival. Now, one of the most cruelly under-rated composers out there: Alexander Glazunov (1865-1935). […]
Living Voices: Whitehall Choir, Ian Tindale & Joanna Tomlinson to give premiere of Russell Hepplewhite’s choral cycle setting contemporary poets’ responses to the modern world
I first came across the composer Russell Hepplewhite in 2013 when English Touring Opera performed his opera Laika the Spacedog at the Science Museum in London [see my review]. Described as an opera in one act for […]
To encourage Birmingham’s young people to get involved with creative opportunities & training: Birmingham Opera Company’s Voices of the Future
Almost 1 million young people aged 16 to 24 are not in education, employment or training. And in Birmingham, more than double the national average of young people are on Universal Credit and looking for […]
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