Considering the first night of David Alden’s (then) new production of Lohengrin in 2018, I found ‘a conceptual weakness at … [its] heart. I suspect it can be remedied: if…
Category: Reviews
Radamisto in Palo Alto (CA)
In some ways the Philharmonia Baroque’s Radamisto did not disappoint San Francisco Bay Area’s Handel fans. Handel is no stranger at San Francisco’s esteemed Philnarmonia Baroque Orchestra, just now it…
West Side Story in San Jose (CA)
No one can deny that Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story is one of the bigger moments in twentieth century theater. Its movies may be Oscar worthy films, but finally its…
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…
The Academy of Ancient Music bring Bach’s St John Passion, of 1725, to the Barbican
There are four versions of Bach’s St John Passion. The first was heard on Good Friday 1724, in the St Nicholas Church in Leipzig, during Bach’s first year of employment…
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…
London Handel Festival at St John’s Smith Square
On Wednesday 14 April 2022, two London festivals came together when the London Handel Festival brought a programme of Baroque sacred music to St John’s Smith Square’s Easter Festival. Adrian…
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…
The Handmaid’s Tale at English National Opera
‘I don’t want to be a dancer, my feet in the air, my head a faceless oblong of white cloth. I don’t want to be a doll hung up on…
Pacific Opera Project Iolanta: Love Is Blind
Estimable Pacific Opera Project (POP) does not always take such bold, bald chances as it has with producing the West Coast staged premiere of Tchaikovsky’s long one act, Iolanta. Far…