Reviews
Neck to neck, two great symphony orchestras finished the festival programme on a high note. This was the Berlin Philharmonic (Monday 28th August) and Pittsburg Symphony orchestra (29th August). I took a few days off writing to journey to Italy, the home of opera and then on to Vienna for
Reviews
On Sunday 27th August, there was a concert performance of Donizetti’s bel canto masterpiece - Lucrezia Borgia. With a line-up of some of the best singers in the world, this was a three hour long performance. Victor Hugo’s Lucrèce Borgia, performed for the first time on 2 February
Reviews
It is not often that Anne-Sophie Mutter appears anywhere in recital. But here she is on my fourth day at the festival in recital with her long time accompanist Lambert Orkis. From start to finish it was clearly proving to be one of the most outstanding concerts of the
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This opera from the late period which includes other masterpieces like Don Carlo and the Requiem Mass represents Verdi at his finest. This has become traditionally music as political propaganda for fascist forces both Italian and German in the early twentieth century. It represents a beacon of fascist racial policy
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While I am familiar enough with the world of the classical guitar, and have earlier reviewed Mr Rupert Boyd’s previous collection of Fantasias on Serenade, I have heard cello music much less frequently and have never actually come across duets between these two instruments before. My first impression when
Reviews
It is not often that three of the world’s greatest string players come together to make chamber music. On the 24th of August violinist Frank Peter Zimmermann was joined by viola player Antoine Tamestit and cellist Christian Poltéra. In many ways the string trio formation (also that of two
Reviews
There is an air of extreme anticipation in the buzzing little city of Mozart’s birth, Salzburg. The French president is in the city and is expected to be at the concert of the evening of 23rd August. This is a soloist concert in the late evening at the Grosses
Reviews
First of all kudos to Giving Voice for producing this delightful comic opera using predominantly an Indian cast. This would not have been possible without the support of various sponsors and donors. However, had it not been for the artistic directors Patricia Rozario and Mark Troop who have single-handedly
Reviews
Jennifer Heemstra, the iconic entrepreneur, pianist and social activist (Yes, I actually said that) of cultural enlightenment and change, who has in three brief years made this city her second home and brought some great American talent to its audiences, presented in the latest of this year’s series, the
Reviews
A concert at the Sheldonian Theatre in Oxford is, at least for this reviewer, never just a concert at the Sheldonian. Woven into the Sheldonian’s tapestries are the stuff of legend; blending with its paintings are picture windows framing the gleaming, sunburnt walls of Oxford’s architectural treasures. This
Reviews
I was fortunate enough to hear Amar during both his performances in Mumbai, this year. Had I only heard him during his first appearance on Saturday 8th July, this would have been a lukewarm review. This was because his second performance was much better than the first one. The Prithvi
Reviews
The Théâtre des Champs Elysées Paris has, to its credit, revived the 17th century tradition of operas in concert version, where the orchestra appear on stage and the singers are allocated limited space in front of them, with few or no props. However, this demands an even higher standard of