Finnish conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali has been making waves internationally for some time. The chief conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra is set to take over from Esa-Pekka Salonen as principal conductor of the Philharmonia Orchestra in 2021.
Category: Reviews
Tristan und Isolde in Bologna
East German stage director Ralf Pleger promised us a Tristan unlike anything we had ever seen. It was indeed. And Slovakian conductor Jura Val?uha gave us a Tristan as never before heard. All of this just now in the most Wagnerian of all Italian cities — Bologna!?
Seductively morbid – The Fall of the House of Usher in The Hague
What does it feel like to be depressed? “It’s like water seeping into my heart” is how one young sufferer put it.
Daring Pairing Doubles the Fun by Pacific Opera Project
Puccini’s only comedy, the one act Gianni Schicchi is most often programmed with a second short piece of tragic fare, but the adventurous Pacific Opera Project has banked on a fanciful Ravel opus to sustain the mood and send the audience home with tickled ribs and gladdened hearts.
Bieito’s Carmen returns to English National Opera
‘Men Behaving Badly’ wouldn’t be a bad subtitle for Calixto Bieito’s production of Carmen, currently being revived at ENO.
Twilight People: Andreas Scholl and Tamar Halperin at Wigmore Hall
Twilight people: existing betwixt and between states, slipping the bounds of categorisation, on the edge of the norm.
A French Affair: La Nuova Musica at Wigmore Hall
A French Affair, as this programme was called, was a promising concept on paper, but despite handsomely sung contributions from the featured soloists and much energetic direction from David Bates, it never quite translated into a wholly satisfying evening’s performance.
Unusual and beautiful: Mirga Graûinyt?-Tyla conducts the music of Raminta äerkönyt?
Mirga Graûinyt?-Tyla conducts the music of Raminta äerkönyt? with the Kremerata Baltica, in this new release from Deutsche Grammophon.
Pow! Zap! Zowie! Wowie! -or- Arthur, King of Long Beach
If you might have thought a late 17thcentury semi-opera about a somewhat precious fairy tale monarch might not be your cup of twee, Long Beach Opera cogently challenges you to think again.