BBC National Orchestra of Wales

BBCNOW CoLaboratory/Monbet review – experimental evening is great fun

French-Irish conductor and violinist Fiona Monbet oversaw a chameleonic programme that incorporated blues, bossa nova and a ballet suite

Rian Evans

02, May, 2022 @11:22 AM

BBCNOW/Bicket review – St Matthew Passion of drama and lightness of touch

The large assembled Chorus of Wales under the expert handling of Harry Bicket brought heft and tension to a poignant performance of Bach’s Passion

Rian Evans

11, Apr, 2022 @10:02 AM

BBC 100: Celebrating the BBC Orchestras review – party weekend has some fizz but ultimately feels flat

Seven concerts around the UK – one from each of the BBC’s performing groups – included some glorious moments, but the motley collection of works failed to create a celebratory or memorable whole

Andrew Clements

14, Feb, 2022 @2:41 PM

BBC National Orchestra of Wales/Downie Dear review – mesmerising and moving

Sarah Lianne Lewis’s works performed by BBCNOW were brash and buoyant, while John Woolrich lent beauty and Ravel provided festive relief

Rian Evans

12, Dec, 2021 @12:35 PM

The week in classical: BBC NOW/ Bancroft; The Pirates of Penzance; Tsoy, Philharmonia/ Emelyanychev

No diagram needed in a vibrant Proms premiere; the very model of a night of G&S; and a blazing Brahms marathon

Fiona Maddocks

14, Aug, 2021 @11:30 AM

Proms: BBCNOW/Bancroft; Bournemouth SO/Karabits review – new works mark Albert Hall’s founding ambitions

Proms on consecutive evenings featured premieres of Augusta Read Thomas’s Dance Foldings and Mason Bates’s Auditorium. Both full of interest, the former work felt the more successful

Andrew Clements

10, Aug, 2021 @12:37 PM

BBCNOW/Bancroft review – panache, poignancy and a howl of protest

Ryan Bancroft’s first concert as principal conductor packed an emotional punch with a suite of American classics and a fierce new commission by Gavin Higgins

Tim Ashley

10, Sep, 2020 @11:12 AM

Beethoven: the 1808 concert review – a remarkable evening, then, and now

Two conductors, two orchestras and two pianists recreated this historic four-hour four-premiere concert in a passionate and glorious evening of music

Rian Evans

20, Jan, 2020 @12:36 PM

BBCNOW/Peleggi – defiant heroines shine for International Women's Day

Composers Joan Tower, Clara Schumann, Augusta Holmès and Florence Price brought romanticism and exuberance to this celebratory concert, helmed by Valentina Peleggi

Rian Evans

10, Mar, 2019 @1:46 PM

BBCNOW/Paterson – Mealor's third symphony seeks the spiritual

From Paul Mealor’s Illumination to Jonathan Dove’s Sunshine, this BBC National Orchestra of Wales concert was filled with light

Rian Evans

03, Dec, 2018 @3:35 PM

Finzi: Cello Concerto; Grand Fantasia and Toccata, etc CD review - perfectly captures Finzi's wistful voice

Gerald Finzi’s Cello Concerto ranks among the finest British works for cello and orchestra, and Paul Watkins’ warmly expressive but slightly detached performance suits the work perfectly

Andrew Clements

07, Sep, 2018 @4:51 PM

Prom 17: BBCNOW/Brabbins review – affirmative, jaunty, with hints of school assembly

The Proms’ centenary-year tribute to Hubert Parry, the composer of Jerusalem, paired his tight Fifth symphony and a choral work with Vaughan Williams and Holst

Andrew Clements

29, Jul, 2018 @11:44 AM