Back from beyond, a blast of brilliant Tennstedt
From the Lebrecht Album of the Week: Klaus Tennstedt fled East Germany in his mid-40s in 1971 and hung around for half a decade before anyone noticed he was a truly remarkable conductor – ‘last […]
classical music
Hitler, the arts and how do we revive them
From my latest essay in The Critic: The harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani tweeted the other day asking, how many handshakes to Hitler? Most respondents touched Adolf at three or four removes. I managed it in one […]
MAGNIFICENT Bach Organ Works from Masaaki Suzuki
The grandeur of Bach’s organ wiring coms across viscerally in this recording, but so dos its brilliant. Masaaki Suzuki, famous for Bach Collegium Japan and his Bach Cantata recordings (plus stupendous St Matthew and St […]
Reports: Death of a great British baritone
Opera singers are sharing sad news of the death, on Thursday, of the legendary Benjamin Luxon. He was 85. A Cornishman from Redruth, Luxon created the role of Owen Wyngrave in an opera that Benjamin […]
Ruth Leon’s Pocket Musical Theatre Reviews
Hello Dolly! – London Palladium This is the show they don’t make ‘em like anymore. Imelda Staunton, completing her trio of big female roles – Mama Rose, Mrs. Lovat and now Dolly Levi – is the centrifugal force around which […]
Ohio pianist is killed on the road
Caroline Oltmanns writes: It is with great sadness that we have to say our final goodbye to Sean Ryan Baran who was tragically killed in a pedestrian accident yesterday near his home. Sean was one […]
Death of Germany’s leading composer, 72
The prolific German composer Wolgang Rihm died today in Ettlingen after an illness, his family announced. He was 72. His output included eight operas, at least two dozen works for orchestra and 13 string quartets. […]
French orchestra gets massively drenched
This was the French National Orchestra playing in the Olympics Opening Ceremony under the baton of Cristian Macelaru. Also inundated in the horrensdous Paris weather was the pianist Alexandre Kantorow. It seems remarkable that in […]
.jpg?w=510&resize=510,510&ssl=1 "Prom 10: Ryan Wigglesworth, Laura van der Heijden & BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in Britten, Cheryl Frances Hoad & Elgar")
Prom 10: Ryan Wigglesworth, Laura van der Heijden & BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in Britten, Cheryl Frances Hoad & Elgar
Cheryl Frances Hoad: Cello Concerto ‘Earth, Sea, Air’ – Laura van der Heijden, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Ryan Wigglesworth – Prom 10 (Photo: BBC / Andy Paradise) Britten: Gloriana – symphonic suite, Cheryl Frances Hoad: […]
The Rautio Trio returns in Beethoven
We met the Rautio Piano Trio prev9ously with a post entitled What was Beethoven’s Op. 1? The answer is three piano trios, and the ensemble played the first two of the on that Resonus Classics […]
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