Classical composers – and the pop stars who channel their moves
For Liszt, read Jimi Hendrix … for Wagner, Kanye West? Canadian MC and songwriter Chilly Gonzales – who learned his craft through classical piano – reflects on the crossover between the pop and...
View ArticleChiaroscuro Quartet: Mozart/Mendelssohn CD review – a shock to the ears of...
Chiaroscuro Quartet(Harmonia Mundi)Playing on gut strings, without vibrato and informed by a historical approach, the Chiaroscuro Quartet– Alina Ibragimova, Pablo Hernán Benedí, Emilie Hörnlund and...
View ArticleAl Bustan – the classical music festival in Beirut that survives war and...
In its 22 years, the festival has cancelled only a single concert. As its founder says: ‘Every year there’s some crisis and we say: “My God, are we going to carry on?” and we always do’Ten years ago,...
View ArticleKeys to Mozart CD review – an odd selection from Dutch high-flyer
Daria van den Bercken (piano)(Sony Classical)What are the keys to Mozart? You could make a neat CD of movements in all the different keys he used, but on this disc the rising Dutch pianist Daria van...
View ArticleWatch Argerich and Barenboim perform the final movement of Mozart's Sonata...
Martha Argerich and Daniel Barenboim, two legendary musicians – both born in Buenos Aires in the early 1940s – are friends and musical partners. They perform together on Monday 20 April at London's...
View ArticleMozart: Die Zauberflöte CD review – a fascinating snapshot of Covent Garden...
Carlyle/Lewis/Evans/Sutherland/Kelly/Hotter/Royal Opera/Klemperer(Testament)The studio version of The Magic Flute that Otto Klemperer made for EMI in 1964, with a cast including Nicolai Gedda, Gundula...
View ArticleThe BBC Proms go clubbing: 2015 lineup includes Ibiza dance night
A Radio 1 dance night and a Sherlock Holmes celebration are among the more unusual proms in the 92-concert season – which feature more matinees this year and put the piano centre stageMartin Kettle...
View ArticleBeethoven, Haydn, Mozart: An die ferne Geliebte CD review – clarity and brio...
Mark Padmore (tenor), Kristian Bezuidenhout (fortepiano)(Harmonia Mundi)This rewarding disc– two top performers who have already demonstrated their musical affinity in a highly praised Schumann...
View ArticleBudapest Festival Orchestra/Fischer review – an epic approach to Brahms
Royal Festival Hall, LondonIván Fischer and the BFO gave a colossal force and momentum to Brahms, while soloist Maria João Pires delivered a near-perfect performance of MozartBrahms has dominated Iván...
View ArticleLock of Mozart's hair set to fetch £12,000 at auction
Keepsake stored in a gold locket is among Mozart and Beethoven memorabilia to be sold by Sotheby’s this weekA wisp of fair hair in a gold locket, curled around a note explaining that it came from the...
View ArticleMozart: Opera Arias and Overtures review – a thrilling compilation
(Linn)It would be a mistake to dismiss this as yet another “best bits” compilation album, pairing arias from Mozart operas with their overtures. The glorious voice of Elizabeth Watts– now established...
View ArticleCut ties with BP, composers and musicologists tell Royal Opera House | Letter...
On Friday night, the Royal Opera House will stage a BP-sponsored performance of Mozart’s Don Giovanni, transmitted across the UK on “big screens” emblazoned with the oil company’s logo. By associating...
View ArticleFacing the music: Lars Vogt
He loves Bach’s St John Passion, loathes Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsodies and has a soft spot for Abba – the pianist who performs on the opening night of this year’s Proms tells us about his musical...
View ArticleBreakfast of champions: Mozart’s capon
The great composer was very fond of this Viennese recipe to help start a day of inspirationMozart breakfasted heartily, and recorded in letters that he ate half a capon at the meal.Serves twoBrown two...
View ArticleOpera in Aix-en-Provence: from the archive, 4 August 1958
A few days at Aix, which has the densest and most varied programme, may be followed by a few at Avignon, from which Orange makes an easy day excursionAix-en-Provence, August 3“Le touriste qui, venant...
View ArticleThe Marriage of Figaro at Edinburgh festival review – Fischer's innovative...
Festival Theatre, EdinburghIván Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra ditch the rules for this ‘staged concert’, but ultimately the results are conservative“Mozart’s music is extremely theatrical...
View ArticleThe Magic Flute at Edinburgh festival review – unforgettable and exhausting
Festival theatre, EdinburghThe Magic Flute as a silent film works like a manic dream in Barrie Kosky and theatre company 1927’s visually stunning productionThe Magic Flute has always stood apart....
View ArticleThe lost genius of Mozart's sister
Nannerl Mozart was a child prodigy like her brother Wolfgang Amadeus, but her musical career came to an end when she was 18. A one-woman play puts her back on the stage, where she belongs“I am writing...
View ArticleMarriage of Figaro - have you lost the plot?
Do you too struggle to follow every twist and turn of Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro? Help us get things clear, for once and for allDavid McVicar’s wonderful production of Nozze di Figaro opened for its...
View ArticleLe Nozze di Figaro review – beautiful and touching in equal measure
Royal Opera House, LondonThis revival brings new shades of meaning and insight to David McVicar’s much-loved production, with luxury casting and a particularly fine performance from Stéphane Degout as...
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