Tenebrae is one of the UK’s national treasures and like a perfectly manicured county cricket pitch barely a blade of grass is out of place. Everything in this Wigmore Hall…
Author: David Truslove
Atmospheric performances from Vox Luminis at St John’s Smith Square
The week-long St John’s Smith Square Easter Festival concluded with a rare appearance by the Belgian early music ensemble Vox Luminis, offering choral gems from two masters of the German…
Thrilling sounds from the Choir of King’s College Cambridge
On the surface this new disc from the Choir of King’s College Cambridge presents mainly standard repertoire for Holy Week and Easter. Some might consider the compilation a little too…
Impressive Mahler from Bychkov and the Czech Philharmonic
Any new recording from Semyon Bychkov is to be eagerly anticipated, not least the launch of this first disc in a new Mahler cycle, a recent collaboration with Pentatone. Judging…
Technically accomplished Marian Consort at Turner Sims
In a concert that could have been titled ‘Towards Bach’, the Marian Consort fashioned a themed programme that linked two towering German composers: Heinrich Schütz and Johann Sebastian Bach. They…
Angel Blue excels as Violetta at the Royal Opera House
Another revival of Richard Eyre’s seemingly timeless production of La traviata (first unveiled in 1994) has returned to the Royal Opera House. It provides a further opportunity to hear yet…
Dove, Weir and Martin from the Choir of Westminster Abbey
Hyperion has brought together three composers with a special affinity for choral music, as already demonstrated in earlier recordings devoted solely to their music on Delphian, Naxos and Opus Arte…
Eastertide Evensong from St John’s College, Cambridge
Does the release of a second live evensong album from this celebrated choir reflect a growing interest in the music and ritual within our great cathedrals and collegiate chapels? Whatever…
Mixed performances in Menotti and Weir from the Guildhall School of Music & Drama
In food terms this was a programme comprising starter and main course, a well-designed menu beginning with a romantic comedy and followed by a picaresque meditation on fate with much…
Covent Garden’s ‘Heart of Darkness’ Rigoletto
In his first production since taking up his appointment as Director of Opera in 2017,Oliver Mears’s thought-provoking staging clearly acknowledges Rigoletto as a timeless classic. His presentation debuted in September…