Messe de Minuit: I Fagiolini

Long, long ago,Oh! so long agoChrist was born in BethlehemTo heal the world’s woe. On Christmas Eve in 1940, while he was a prisoner of war at Laufen Castle in…

VOCES8 sing Winter Tales

VOCES8’s concerts often resemble a Christmas tin of Quality Street chocolates – there’s something for everyone, and ‘favourites’ abound.  But, the ensemble’s range – and ambition – is impressive; during…

John Sheppard’s Media vita: The Choir of New College, Oxford

Modern scholarship directed at the English Reformation composer John Sheppard (c.1515-58) has come a long way since Peter le Huray’s research during the 1960s and David Wulstan’s pioneering performances a…

Christmas with Opera Holland Park premieres tonight at 7pm: A virtual festive concert with a twist

Presented by Petroc Trelawny, Christmas with Opera Holland Park is a new film featuring the company’s principals and chorus in the beautiful interior of Leighton House, Kensington, and outside Holland House in…

ETO to bring Shostakovich, Britten and Tippett productions to Marquee TV on New Year’s Day

On new year’s day, English Touring Opera will launch a series of broadcasts on Marquee TV showcasing productions of music by Britten, Tippett and Shostakovich. The four-part series will launch…

Choir of Keble College, Oxford: Ave Rex Angelorum

Ancient plainchant, medieval texts and numinous harmonies form a unifying thread for this uplifting recent disc from the Choir of Keble College Oxford recorded in the warm acoustic of Buckfast…

Iestyn Davies and Arcangelo, at Wigmore Hall

I have a vague memory of having heard Iestyn Davies sing Handel’s Nine German Arias before at Wigmore Hall, perhaps ten or so years ago … but my review files…

Pagliacci: The Grange Festival

If theatre in general, and verismo opera in particular, is based on the tension between pretence and reality, art and life, this performance of Pagliacci at The Grange in leafy…

Sky Arts to broadcast new documentary following Glyndebourne’s battle to ensure that the show could go on

A new documentary going behind-the-scenes of an extraordinary summer at Glyndebourne will be free for everyone to watch on Sky Arts on Sunday 20 December 2020. Glyndebourne: No Ordinary Summer tells the…

Roderick Williams joins Sir Mark Elder and the Hallé

Roderick Williams has had a busy pandemic.  The last couple of weeks alone have seen the baritone joining with VOCES8 for a concert in their Live from London – Christmas…