fiona-maddocks
The week in classical: Requiem; Jerusalem Quartet review – another five-star fusion from Opera North
Sorrowful Mozart meets unstoppable Neo Muyanga in an inspired double bill from Opera North and Phoenix Dance Theatre. Plus, the sounds of Yiddish cabaret…
Fiona Maddocks
03, Jun, 2023 @11:30 AM
Classical home listening: more Eric Coates from John Wilson; Serse from Harry Bicket; and John Bridcut’s new film
Wilson and the BBC Philharmonic mine more gems by the neglected British composer; the English Concert and a stellar cast excel in Handel’s opera seria; and Bridcut gets to the heart of Michael Tippett
Fiona Maddocks
03, Jun, 2023 @11:00 AM
I was writing a book about Rachmaninov in exile when my own world changed for ever
In lockdown, the Observer’s classical music critic began work on a book about the Russian composer’s later years. Then war, and events in her own life, began to reshape the narrative
Fiona Maddocks
28, May, 2023 @12:00 PM
The week in classical: Wozzeck; Don Giovanni – Christian Gerhaher and Anja Kampe thrill in five-star Berg
Direction and music are as one in Deborah Warner’s gripping new Royal Opera production, while a fine young cast redeems thoughtful if low-key Mozart
Fiona Maddocks
27, May, 2023 @11:30 AM
Classical home listening: Daniel Hope’s Music for a New Century; 1919: Coda
Contrasting works by Glass, Heggie, Turnage and Tan Dun provide a fine showcase for Hope and his ensemble, while Benjamin Baker and Daniel Lebhardt explore the turbulent 1910s
Fiona Maddocks
27, May, 2023 @11:00 AM
Director Adele Thomas: ‘In theatre, you need a private income just to live’
The theatre and opera director on how her working-class Welsh background informs her work, the strangeness of Il trovatore, and her eclectic running playlist
Fiona Maddocks
14, May, 2023 @8:30 AM
The week in classical: Abomination: A DUP Opera; Aida – review
Its Belfast premiere positively crackled, and four years on, Conor Mitchell’s lush, searing satire on DUP homophobia continues to provoke
Fiona Maddocks
13, May, 2023 @11:30 AM
Classical home listening: Carl Nielsen: The Symphonies; Alex Paxton’s Happy Music for Orchestra
Thrilling performances from the Danish National Symphony Orchestra and Fabio Luisi could convert anyone to Nielsen, while Paxton will make your ears ping
Fiona Maddocks
13, May, 2023 @11:00 AM
The week in classical: Symphony of Sorrowful Songs; RPO/Petrenko; LPO/Mäkelä – review
Chart-topping Górecki becomes exquisite spectacle at ENO; Mahler’s Third is worth the wait; plus, the Finnish flourish of Klaus Mäkelä
Fiona Maddocks
06, May, 2023 @11:30 AM
Classical home listening: Coronation albums; Christopher Purves’s My Soul, What Fears You?
Handel and Purcell from the Royal Chapel, Versailles leads a trio of albums in honour of Charles III. And bass-baritone Christopher Purves turns to Lieder
Fiona Maddocks
06, May, 2023 @11:00 AM
The week in classical: Blue; Bach: Mass in B Minor – review
A potent US tale of Black lives hits home with fervour and humanity at ENO. Plus shock and roar from John Eliot Gardiner at 80
Fiona Maddocks
29, Apr, 2023 @11:30 AM
Classical home listening: The Planets from Daniel Harding and the BRSO; Sean Shibe and Karim Sulayman
The British conductor and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra record a revelatory performance of Holst’s ‘mood pictures’, while the guitarist-tenor duo cross continents and genres on the atmospheric Broken Branches
Fiona Maddocks
29, Apr, 2023 @11:00 AM
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