Tuesday 5 November 2024

Specializing in the performance of Wagner operas, the London Opera Company forges ahead in a concert performance of Siegfried at Sinfonia Smith Square, London.

Jean de Reszke as Siegfried (c. 1896)
Jean de Reszke as Siegfried (c. 1896)

Wagner: Siegfried; Colin Judson, Brad Cooper, Simon Thorpe, Stephan Loges, Thomas D Hopkinson, Louise Fuller, Harriet Williams, Cara McHardy, conductor: Peter Selwyn; London Opera Company at Sinfonia Smith Square
Reviewed by Tony Cooper, 2 November 2024

London-born conductor, Peter Selwyn, conducted Wagner’s Siegfried in a performance dedicated to Ben Thapa who sang Siegmund in Die Walküre last year. He sadly passed away earlier this year. 

A strong and formidable cast witnessed Australian-born tenor, Brad Cooper, in the pivotal role of Siegfried (he’ll be reprising the role for Grange Park Opera’s upcoming new Ring cycle starting in 2026) while Cara McHardy and Simon Thorpe took the roles of Brünnhilde and Der Wanderer with Colin Judson (Mime), Stephan Loges (Alberich), Thomas D Hopkinson (Fafner), Louise Fuller (Der Waldvogel) and Harriet Williams (who sang Fricka in Die Walküre) Erda 

A ‘not-for-profit organization’ the London Opera Company (LOC), founded in 2020 to give opportunities to performers who lost work through the pandemic, goes from strength to strength. Therefore, in October of the same year of the company’s formation, LOC presented its inaugural performance: a sold-out and rapturously received chamber performance of Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde at The Warehouse in south-west London. Gaining confidence, momentum and strength, they carried on and performed a chamber version of Die Walküre in July 2021 to another delighted audience of Wagner aficionados who filled St John’s, Waterloo, for the performance.  

Success breeds success, of course, and come 2022, LOC moved onward and upwards delivering a critically-acclaimed account of Tristan und Isolde at Sinfonia Smith Square (the coming together of two much-loved London-based organizations: Southbank Sinfonia and St John’s Smith Square) featuring Neil Cooper (Tristan) and Cara McHardy (Isolde).  

And returning to the same venue in 2023, LOC produced a well-received semi-staged performance of Die Walküre featuring the much-celebrated mezzo-soprano, Sarah Pring (Roßweiße), vocal coach for Sky Arts’ ‘Anyone Can Sing’. She was joined by Ben Thapa as Siegmund and rising soprano, Philippa Boyle, as Sieglinde, conducted by LOC’s extremely talented and trusted music director, Peter Selwyn, who has a strong background in classical music and opera especially when it comes to Wagner.  [see Robert's review]

Monday 4 November 2024

A broad & eclectic range of calming classical music: BBC Radio 3 Unwind launched on BBC Sounds.

A broad & eclectic range of calming classical music: BBC Radio 3 Unwind launched on BBC Sounds.
This morning, BBC Radio 3 Unwind launched on BBC Sounds. Billed as a new 24/7 stream showcasing a broad and eclectic range of calming classical music, at first you wonder whether it might be entirely forgettable 'calming' background music. 

But we are promised a schedule that champions music by living composers, with a particular focus on those from the UK, with emerging artist-composers, as well as showcasing BBC Introducing artists, bringing their music to a wider audience. We are also promised music of under-represented composers, and as well as live and specially recorded repertoire from the BBC Orchestras and Choirs and Radio 3’s New Generation Artists. 

The stream will also include content promoting focus and relaxation, and contributions from guest experts and academics in fields such as psychology, neuroscience, and mental health. The presenter line-up is, at least, intriguing with Edith Bowman, Dr Sian Williams, Niall Breslin and AFRODEUTSCHE, joining more familiar Radio 3 names such as Ólafur Arnalds, Sara Mohr-Pietsch, Hannah Peel and Izzy Judd. 

Alongside new shows, BBC Radio 3 Unwind includes popular programmes such as Ultimate Calm with Ólafur Arnalds and The Music & Meditation Podcast with NAO and Izzy Judd, as well as simulcasting Radio 3’s Night Tracks with Sara Mohr-Pietsch and Hannah Peel. Its schedule also includes some of BBC Sounds’ most listened to and relaxing music mixes, such as the Mindful Mix, Piano Focus and The Sleeping Forecast.

BBC Radio 3 Unwind is on BBC Sounds.


Shining a light on the work of women composers & performers: Illuminate Women's Music's debut Scottish tour

Illuminate Women's Music - 2024/25

Established in 2017 by Dr Angela Elizabeth Slater, Illuminate Women’s Music is a touring concert series aim to shine light on the work and creativity of women composers and performers. During December 2024, January and February 2025, Illuminate will be in Scotland for the first time, presenting events in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Dundee, Paisley and Kinlochard. There will be concerts, talks, workshops and family friendly events, with free-to-attend events as well as online resources.

The series will feature works by composers-in-residence, Ruta Vitkauskaite and Angela Elizabeth Slater who have organised the series, along with newly commissioned works by Scottish composers Simone Searles, Sonia Allori, Kate Sagovsky which will be performed alongside historical and established works by women including little performed works by Scottish composers Alicia Ann Spottiswoode (19th century), Marie Dare, Geraldine Mucha (20th century), Emily Doolittle, Lisa Robertson, and Gemma McGregor (contemporary).

For the series in Scotland, performers in residence are soprano Stephanie Lamprea and cellist Jessica Kerr.

Things begin on 11 December with a Livestreamed workshop at Scottish Music Centre, Glasgow followed on 12 December by a concert at Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Glasgow. Full details from the Illuminate website.

 

Sunday 3 November 2024

A terrific achievement: professionals & amateurs come together at Sheffield's Crucible Theatre performing Jonathan Dove's The Monster in the Maze in celebration of Music in the Round at 40

Jonathan Dove: The Monster in the Maze - Anthony Flaum & youth chorus - Music in the Round (Photo: Andy Brown)
Jonathan Dove: The Monster in the Maze - Anthony Flaum & youth chorus - Music in the Round (Photo: Andy Brown)

Jonathan Dove: The Monster in the Maze; Anthony Flaum Camille Maalawy, Robert Gildon, Paul Hawkyard, Music in the Round, Sheffield Music Hub, director: Rosie Kat, music director: John Lyon; Crucible Theatre, Sheffield
Reviewed 1 November 2024

The first UK performance of Dove's community opera since its UK premiere in 2015 in a magnificent achievement celebrating Music in the Round's 40th birthday with 'an epic opera for the people of Sheffield and with the people of Sheffield'

Music in the Round has been producing chamber music concerts for 40 years with the Sheffield Chamber Music Festival at Sheffield's Crucible Theatre as its flagship. As part of the 40th birthday celebrations Music in the Round joined forces with Sheffield Music Hub to present Jonathan Dove's The Monster in the Maze at the Crucible Theatre with four performances over two days (1 & 2 November) and I caught the evening performance on 1 November 2024. 

The featured adult, youth and children's choruses drawn from Sheffield Youth Choirs (Junior Voices, Youth Voice & Concordia) along with singers from Sheffield. The orchestra featured the Consone Quartet (Music in the Round's artists in residence), Ensemble 360 (Music in the Round's resident ensemble) and the Bridge Ensemble (musicians from Music in the Round's scheme which supports emerging artists underrepresented in chamber music), along with Sheffield Music Hub Senior Strings and amateur musicians from Sheffield.

Singers Anthony Flaum, Camille Maalawy and Robert Gildon played Theseus, Mother and Daedalus, with actor Paul Hawkyard as King Minos. The music director was John Lyon, a music leader for Sheffield Music Hub. The original opera had no upper string parts so Lyon worked with Jonathan Dove to create these so that the whole of Sheffield Music Hub Senior Strings could take part.

Jonathan Dove: The Monster in the Maze - Robert Gildon, Anthony Flaum & youth chorus - Music in the Round (Photo: Andy Brown)
Jonathan Dove: The Monster in the Maze - Robert Gildon, Anthony Flaum & youth chorus - Music in the Round (Photo: Andy Brown)

The director was Rosie Kat with designs by Fenna de Jonge and lighting by Kati Hind. Fashion students from Sheffield College created the chorus costumes and the minotaur, whilst production arts students were part of the production team.

Saturday 2 November 2024

Fauré and Friends: I chat to violinist Irène Duval about her explorations during the composer's centenary celebrations

Irène Duval recording Fauré and Friends with Angus Webster
Irène Duval recording Fauré and Friends with Angus Webster

Violinist Irène Duval has been spending quite a bit of time with Fauré recently, 2024 being the centenary of his death. Her disc Fauré and Friends with pianist Angus Webster was released on Capriccio in September, and the disc puts Fauré's music for violin and piano alongside that of his friends and contemporaries, Reynaldo Hahn, Georges Enescu and Camille Saint-Saëns. In November she will join violinist Joshua Bell, cellist Steven Isserlis, and pianist Jeremy Denk for Wigmore Hall's Gabriel Fauré Centenary Celebrations.

Irène explains that she has played Fauré's chamber music a lot and has come to love it, finding so much hope and light in the music. She feels that it is music that takes you to an ideal world. Having played the music so much and developed a deep understanding of it, she was in the right place to present the music on disc for the centenary.

Irène Duval (Photo: Kaupo Kikkas)
Irène Duval (Photo: Kaupo Kikkas)

Having already recorded Fauré's Violin Sonata No. 1 on her disc, Poèmes, the new disc included all of the composer's remaining music for violin and piano. The disc includes Fauré's Violin Sonata No. 2 which is a late work and is far less known than the composer's first sonata. It was a piece that the more Irène got to know it, the more she came to love it. She describes this process as akin to tasting a new disc, coming to understand its subtleties and then loving it for its particularity. Whilst she loves Fauré's first sonata, she has come to prefer the second, finding something deeper in it, particularly in the second movement. She enjoyed the challenge of making so complex a piece understandable for the audience. She worked on the programme for two years before the recording took place, a process that was long but which she describes as amazing.

Friday 1 November 2024

The Heart of the Matter: rare Britten and a new James MacMillan work in an imaginative programme for tenor, horn and piano

Richard Watkins, Julius Drake and Sir James MacMillan take a bow in Middle Temple Hall, after the world premiere of MacMillan's new work for horn & piano
Richard Watkins, Julius Drake and Sir James MacMillan take a bow in Middle Temple Hall, after the world premiere of MacMillan's new work for horn & piano
(Photo: Temple Music Foundation)

Schumann: Adagio and Allegro, Liederkreis Op. 24, James MacMillan: Duet for Horn & Piano, Britten: The Heart of the Matter, Poulenc: Elegie, Tel jour telle nuit, Schubert: Auf dem Strom; Nicholas Mulroy, Richard Watkins, Julius Drake; Temple Music at Middle Temple Hall
Reviewed 30 October 2024

A rare outing for Britten's expansion of his Canticle III and the premiere of a new work by James MacMillan at the centre of this wonderfully intelligent programme, featuring a terrific performance from Nicholas Mulroy

Britten's The Heart of the Matter was a musical sequence setting Edith Sitwell's poetry created for the Aldeburgh Festival in 1956 with his third canticle, Still Falls the Rain at its centre. The canticle had premiered at the 1955 festival to great acclaim and Sitwell was invited to the 1956 festival and created The Heart of the Matter with Britten. It received no further performances till Peter Pears revived it in 1983 and the additional material was published in 1994. It remains undeservedly far less known than Still Falls the Rain.

Britten's The Heart of the Matter formed the centrepiece of a concert presented by Temple Music at Middle Temple Hall on 30 October 2024 when pianist Julius Drake was joined by horn player Richard Watkins and tenor Nicholas Mulroy (a last-minute replacement for tenor James Way, who was ill). Alongside Britten there was music by his great contemporary, Francis Poulenc with his Elegie for horn and piano written in memory of horn-player Dennis Brain, who gave the premiere of The Heart of the Matter, plus Poulenc's cycle Tel jour telle nuit. The final work in the programme was Schubert's great piece d'occasion, Auf dem Strom from tenor, horn and piano.

Schumann was a composer dear to Britten and Pears and in the first half of the concert we heard Schumann's Liederkreis, Op. 24 and his Adagio and Allegro, Op. 70 for horn and piano. The first half of the concert concluded with another centrepiece, the world premiere of James MacMillan's Duet for Horn and Piano, a work commissioned by Lord Justice Stuart-Smith, himself a horn player, specifically for this occasion.  Another name weaving itself around the concert was the late Paul Darling KC, Treasurer of Middle Temple. He was a sponsor of the concert but died suddenly this year before seeing the concert to fruition and the evening was dedicated to his memory.

Wednesday 30 October 2024

Mark Wigglesworth's debut concerts as chief conductor of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra

Mark Wigglesworth and Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
Mark Wigglesworth and Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (Photo: BSO)

Mark Wigglesworth is the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra's new chief conductor and his first season in the role with the orchestra will feature five programmes in eleven concerts across four venues, Lighthouse in Poole, Bristol Beacon, Guildhall in Portsmouth and the Anvil in Basingstoke.

His debut concert with the orchestra is 20 November 2024 at the Lighthouse in Poole (repeated 21 November at Bristol Beacon). Pianist Nicholas McCarthy joins the orchestra for Ravel's Piano Concerto for Left Hand, plus Walton's Symphony No 1 and the prelude to Wagner's Die Meistersinger.

Chloé van Soeterstède also became principal guest conductor and together, she and Wigglesworth share a Brahms cycle this season, with Wigglesworth conducting symphonies 2, 3, and 4. Other highlights of his season include Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 3 with Boris Giltburg, Berg's Violin Concerto with BSO artist in residence, violinist Alena Baeva, Stephen Hough's Piano Concerto ‘The World of Yesterday’ with the composer as soloist, Elgar's Enigma Variations,  and Britten's Violin Concerto with Clara-Jumi Kang 

Full detail from the BSO's website.

The Mouth of the Gods: Music theatre celebrating London’s Latin American communities

Edith Ramos Guerra
Edith Ramos Guerra

Border Crossings is bringing The Mouth of the Gods, an immersive theatrical celebration of Latin America’s Indigenous peoples to Hoxton Hall from 27 November to 1 December 2024. At the show's core lies the recently rediscovered short 18th century opera San Francisco Xavier, with music in a mix of baroque and Indigenous styles, written in the Chiquitano language, a work never performed in the UK. This 18th century pieces is blended with ancestral dances and drama with extraordinary baroque music to create a music theatre piece featuring soprano Edith Ramos Guerra from Peru alongside tenor Rafael Montero.

Here Michael Wallings, artistic director of Border Crossings, introduces the project.

It was back in 2021, in the thick of the pandemic, that Border Crossings first got to know Rafael
Montero. He’d sought us out, knowing that we ran the Origins Festival of Indigenous cultures, and
that I’d also directed quite a bit of opera. It’s a pretty unusual combination, I suppose, but Rafael is
even more so: a Quechua and Aymara man from Argentina, who is also an operatic tenor… And
what he shared with us was richer still - a short opera from the 18th century, with music in a blend of
baroque and Indigenous styles, written in the Chiquitano language. It had never been performed in
England - of course it hadn’t! But my curiosity was aroused….

Three years later, we’re getting ready to present this beautiful and uplifting piece as part of a
performance we’re calling The Mouth of the Gods. The original opera is a vision of Paradise, full
of dances to celebrate a Latin Utopia. It’s also only 25 minutes long. We realised that in order to
make sense of this piece in a London show, we had to put it into context, so that it became an offer
for a better future after the challenges faced by Indigenous people in the past and present. We
started to explore the histories of the continent, its astonishingly rich and colourful Indigenous
cultures, the stories of their interactions with Europe, the huge variety of textiles, ceramics and
musical instruments held in London’s museums. Slowly we put together a show that combines
traditional and modern dances from the region, puppets modelled on figures found in burials, an
embroidered mantle from the remote region of Paracas, shamanic practices and children’s choirs.
We looked into other music from the region, and were astonished by the beauty and vitality of what
we found. The combination of all these different art forms is allowing us to relate stories and
histories from across the continent.

This isn’t something we could have done alone. What we have been able to do is to offer an open
and creative space where the artistic work of London’s Latinx communities can be combined to make
music theatre. Some of the people involved are community artists, like the incredibly dedicated team
of embroiderers who have been working on the Paracas mantle since March; or the insightful and
energetic core dance team, who embody an Indigenous community onstage. Others are established
professionals: puppeteers, actors, musicians, choreographers…..

At the heart of any operatic performance are the singers, so this was where we felt the need to reach
out beyond the local, and to bring in an international artist from Peru itself. Joining Rafael will be
Edith Ramos Guerra, making her first appearance in the UK. Edith is a truly great performer and a
cultural ambassador for her people, who combines a deep knowledge of Indigenous Andean music
with the operatic skills of baroque performance. 

The Mouth of the Gods - Border Crossings at Hoxton Hall, further details from the website.

The Turn of the Screw: Charlotte Corderoy makes a notable conducting debut at ENO in a production anchored by Ailish Tynan's compelling performance

Britten: The Turn of the Screw - Ailish Tynan - English National Opera, 2024 (Photo: Manuel Harlan)
Britten: The Turn of the Screw - Ailish Tynan - English National Opera, 2024 (Photo: Manuel Harlan)

Britten: The Turn of the Screw; Ailish Tynan, Nicolai Flutter, Holly Hylton, Gweneth Ann Rand, Robert Murray, Eleanor Dennis, director: Isabella Bywater, conductor: Charlotte Corderoy; English National Opera at the London Coliseum
29 October 2024

Conductor Charlotte Corderoy makes her ENO debut with a poised and engaged performance in Isabella Bywater's intriguing take on the opera, anchored by Ailish Tynan's compelling Governess

English National Opera (ENO) opened Isabella Bywater's new production of Britten's The Turn of the Screw at the London Coliseum on 11 October 2024, conducted by Duncan Ward who was making his ENO debut. For the final two performances of the run, the conductor was Charlotte Corderoy, also making her ENO debut. 

On Tuesday 30 October 2024, we caught Charlotte Corderoy's first performance conducting The Turn of the Screw, with Alan Oke as the Prologue, Ailish Tynan as the Governess, Nicolai Flutter as Miles, Holly Hylton as Flora, Gweneth Ann Rand as Mrs Grose, Robert Murray as Peter Quint and Eleanor Dennis as Miss Jessel. Designs were also by Isabella Bywater, with lighting by Paul Anderson and projections designed by Jon Driscoll.

In Henry James' original story, it is possible to be uncertain whether the ghosts are a real presence or a figment of the Governess' imagination, but by giving Peter Quint and Miss Jessel corporeal (and musical) presence in the opera, Britten and his librettist Myfanwy Piper, to a certain extent skew the drama towards the Governess being of sound mind and not imagining things. Productions often tend to be about influence and the nature of evil, and some explore different aspects of sexualised behaviour too. Whilst it is possible for Peter Quint to have sexual influence on both Miss Jessel and Miles [such as current ENO artistic director Annilese Miskimmon's 2014 production for Opera Holland Park, see my review], in David McVicar's production from the Maryinsky Theatre in St Petersburg which ENO borrowed in 2007 [see my review], Miles' relationship to the Governess was highly sexualised too.

Britten: The Turn of the Screw - Eleanor Dennis, Robert Murray, Ailish Tynan - English National Opera, 2024 (Photo: Manuel Harlan)
Britten: The Turn of the Screw - Eleanor Dennis, Robert Murray, Ailish Tynan - English National Opera, 2024 (Photo: Manuel Harlan)

Tuesday 29 October 2024

I Can Play with Brass Roots: Shepherd Brass Band and National Centre for Early Music win award for project enabling D/deaf young musicians to develop their musical talent

Charlie Coulson (Shepherd Brass Band), Audrey Brown, (Shepherd Brass Band), Cherry Fricker, (Executive Director, National Centre for Early Music)
L to R: Charlie Coulson (Shepherd Brass Band), Audrey Brown, (Shepherd Brass Band)
Cherry Fricker, (Executive Director, National Centre for Early Music) 

I Can Play with Brass Roots gained the National Award for Band Project of the Year at the Brass Bands England Conference in October 2024, the annual conference, held at the City of London School, London was attended by over 150 delegates representing brass bands from all over the UK. Five different bands, who all operate under the umbrella of Shepherd Bands, are extremely proud of gaining the Award for I Can Play with Brass Roots, an important initiative that enables D/deaf young musicians to develop their musical talent and gives them the valuable opportunity to perform with fellow brass musicians.

Based in York, I Can Play with Brass Roots began in September 2023, inspired by the National Centre for Early Music’s long-running I Can Play, an innovative project which creates music-making opportunities for D/deaf young people. Led by Sean Chandler, DeaF musician, professional trumpeter and qualified teacher of the Deaf, these sessions take place each month at York Music Centre.  

Brass Roots is Shepherd Brass Band's ensemble for absolute beginner. Sean Chandler, who is Principal Cornet in Shepherd Brass Band, had the idea for I Can Play with Brass Roots and works closely with Brass Roots leader Audrey Brown to deliver the project. Together they ensure that the young D/deaf musicians receive additional support before and throughout rehearsals to help them become fully integrated into the band. Audrey Brown has been teaching families to play brass instruments for many years in the York area, most of whom continue to play today. At the age of 80, she took on the challenge of learning BSL in preparation for welcoming D/deaf musicians to Brass Roots and the Shepherd Band family.

Meet the class of 2025: National Youth Orchestra's Illuminate tour with Ravel, Nielsen and Anna Thorvaldsdottir

National Youth Orchestra
National Youth Orchestra

The National Youth Orchestra (NYO) opens 2025 with its Illuminate tour, when Jaime Martin will conduct the teenage musicians in Ravel's Bolero, Anna Thorvaldsdottir's Catamorphosis and Nielsen's Symphony No. 4 'Inextinguishable', with concerts at the Barbican (4 January 2025), Warwick Arts Centre (5 January) and Nottingham Royal Concert Hall (6 January). Tickets are free for teenagers, as part of NYO's mission to ensure there are no barriers to young people experiencing the power of live orchestral music.

48% of the Orchestra of 2025, including NYO Associates, came through NYO Inspire, a free programme for young people who want music to be a bigger part of their lives but face barriers and lack of opportunity to progress. NYO Associates are identified during the audition process, as musicians who would thrive from the opportunity to broaden their musical experience with the Orchestra.

52% of Orchestra and NYO Associate musicians come from state schools and 35% are Black, Asian and  ethnically diverse, making the Orchestra is a reflection of the diversity and potential of young people across the UK. For the 2025 season, 50% of leadership roles within the Orchestra are held by female musicians. In a historic achievement, half of the leadership positions in the Brass section are also now held by female musicians, marking a significant step toward gender parity in a traditionally male-dominated area.

Through collaborations with local music hubs and schools, NYO continues to create new opportunities for young musicians, bringing orchestral music into every region and community. This year, NYO musicians will take their role as changemakers to their local communities, with each of them leading a workshop in their local primary school. Each musician will conduct a workshop, sharing the transformative power of orchestral music with the primary school pupils in their communities. Alongside the NYO Inspire programme, NYO provides free performances and workshops in schools, youth spaces and music hubs across the country.

More about the 2025 Orchestra at the NYO website, along with full details of the NYO's performances.

Monday 28 October 2024

Royal Throne of Kings: Vaughan Williams' forgotten incidental music for Shakespeare in Stratford receives a new lease of life

Royal Throne of Kings: Vaughan Williams and Shakespeare
Vaughan Williams had a great fondness for Shakespeare and settings of Shakespeare's texts thread their way through the composer's life, from the songs The Willow Song (1897), and Orpheus With His Lute (1903), to the larger scale Serenade to Music (1938) and the choral masterpiece, Three Shakespeare Songs (1951), not to mention his opera, Sir John in Love (1928).

From 1886 to 1919, the actor manager Frank Benson presented Shakespeare at the Memorial Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon. For the most part, the music used by the company was a hotch-potch of existing material rather than anything specially written. As something of an experiment, Vaughan Williams came to compose and conduct at Stratford-upon-Avon for a summer season in August 1912, and again from 21 April to 14 May 1913. By then, Vaughan Williams had already written incidental music for Ben Jonson masque, Pan’s Anniversary (1905), a play based on John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress (1906) and Aristophanes The Wasps (1909) and he arrived in Stratford expecting to be able to match music to the specific history plays.

Not a bit, the actors were wedded to their conventional incidental music and only for Henry V and Richard II was the composer allowed a free hand. A number of manuscript scores and parts survive in the library of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, and from these various hands have reconstructed the music and created concert sequences. 

A new disc from Albion Records, Royal Throne of Kings: Vaughan Williams and Shakespeare,  is enabling us to hear this music, with James Ross conducting the Kent Sinfonia, an ensemble more closely approximating in size the sort of band that Benson's troupe might have used.

The disc enables us to hear the composer's varied responses to these dramatic stimuli, but of as much interest is the knowledge that the mine of unrecorded, unplayed Vaughan Williams is running out and this may well be one of the last major discs of his undiscovered orchestral music.

The disc includes a short cue from Richard III, a suite from Henry IV, arranged by Malcolm Riley and the overture to Henry V . The composer Nathaniel Lew also put together a Stratford Suite, reusing music from various dramatic sources. In 1944, Vaughan Williams was asked to provide incidental music for a planned BBC radio production of Richard II. The plan was abandoned and the music forgotten. The cues are all rather too short to make satisfactory listening on their own, so Nathaniel Lew has arranged them into a concert fantasy. The disc is completed by two movements that Vaughan Williams wrote for the 1955 film, The England of Elizabeth, as well as a selection of the composer's solo Shakespeare settings.

James Ross and Kent Sinfonia in France in 2022
James Ross and Kent Sinfonia in France in 2022

Further information on the recording, see link tree (released 1 November 2024) and RVW Society's website.

Sunday 27 October 2024

An engaging evening of fun demonstrating the very real virtues of Gilbert & Sullivan at its best: Ruddigore at Opera North

Gilbert & Sullivan: Ruddigore - Dominic Sedgwick - Opera North, 2024 (Photo: © Richard H Smith)
Gilbert & Sullivan: Ruddigore - Dominic Sedgwick - Opera North, 2024 (Photo: © Richard H Smith)

Gilbert & Sullivan: Ruddigore: Amy Freston, Claire Pascoe, Dominic Sedgwick, Henry Waddington, Xavier Hetherington, Helen Evora, John Savournin, Steven Page, director: Jo Davies/James Hurley, conductor: Anthony Kraus; Opera North at Grand Theatre, Leeds
Reviewed 26 October 2024

Sheer delight from start to finish as a first-rate cast brings out the musical delights and comic potential of one of G&S' finest opera, ensuring we all left the theatre with a smile on our faces 

Gilbert & Sullivan's Ruddigore presents several challenges, notably the technical one of bringing the ghosts of the ancestors out of their portraits and the more philosophical one that Victorian melodrama, one of the main buts of Gilbert's humour in the opera, is rather a forgotten genre. Jo Davies' 2010 production of the opera for Opera North successfully surmounted these challenges, so it was heartening that the production made a welcome return for the company's Autumn 2024 season, with three of the principal roles taken by members of the Opera North chorus.

Gilbert & Sullivan's Ruddigore opened at the Grand Theatre, Leeds on Saturday 27 October 2024 as part of Opera North's Autumn season. The director was Jo Davies with James Hurley as revival director and the conductor was Anthony Kraus. Sets were by Richard Hudson, costumes by Gabrielle Dalton, lighting by Anna Watson, choreography by Kay Shepherd. Amy Freston was Rose Maybud, Gillene Butterfield was Zorah, Claire Pascoe was Dame Hannah, Dominic Sedgwick was Robin Oakapple (aka Sir Ruthven Murgatroyd), Henry Waddington was Old Adam, Xavier Hetherington was Richard Dauntless, Helen Evora was Mad Margaret, John Savournin was Sir Despard and Steven Page was Sir Roderic.

The action was reset to the 1920s and the production really leaned into this with a silent film during the overture that explained Dame Hannah and Sir Roderic's back story, with their love foiled by the curse. The dialogue had been adjusted somewhat, with additional lyrics by Richard Stilgoe, but the result felt like sympathetic tweaks rather than a wholesale reinvention. Act One moved from Rose Maybud's bedroom, to the coast, to the church, whilst Act Two was in the gallery at Ruddigore Castle. We never saw the twee Cornish village, and the use of a very traditional act drop (of a flower garden) enabled smooth transitions between the scenes. 

Gilbert & Sullivan: Ruddigore - Xavier Hetherington - Opera North, 2024 (Photo: © Richard H Smith)
Gilbert & Sullivan: Ruddigore - Xavier Hetherington - Opera North, 2024 (Photo: © Richard H Smith)

Saturday 26 October 2024

Beyond the idea of just four guys & their trombones: Slide-Action on their mission to create a new voice for the trombone

Slide Action (Photo: Matt Jolly)
Slide Action (Photo: Matt Jolly)

Formed in 2018, the trombone quartet Slide Action (Huw Evans, Jamie Tweed, Benny Vernon and Josh Cirtina) has just released its first major album, their debut recital disc. On NMC Recordings the album, RE:BUILD ­features music by contemporary composers Ryan Latimer, Laura Jurd, Emily Hall, Alex Paxton and Joanna Ward. The quartet is passionate about creating a new voice for the trombone and they regularly commission new music from composers, collaborate with other musicians and create their own arrangements. 

In 2021-22 Slide Action were Britten Pears Young Artists, where they collaborated with numerous emerging and established composers. Highlights included the premiere of Robin Haigh’s concerto for four trombones and orchestra - THE DREAMERS, written for Slide Action and the Britten Pears Contemporary Ensemble, and Slide Action's own show Rebuilding the Trombone featuring eight new works.

I recently met up, by Zoom, with Josh and Jamie from the ensemble to find out more about the new disc and about their approach to creating music for trombone quartet. They regard new music as the ensemble's USP, commenting that when they started in 2018 there was not a huge amount of new music for trombone quartet, much of it was not that interesting and a lot of the new music came out of the Paris Conservatoire in the 1950s and 1960s. They wanted to grow the repertoire by commissioning new pieces and creating their own material (the new disc includes Josh's arrangements of music by Purcell and Matthew Locke, and pieces by Jamie and Benny). They are also interested in discovering new sounds for the instrument.

Friday 25 October 2024

Character, charm & 60s vibe: Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream at Opera North

Britten: A Midsummer Night's Dream - James Newby, Peter Kirk, Siân Griffiths, Camilla Harris - Opera North, 2024 (Photo: © Richard Hubert Smith)
Britten: A Midsummer Night's Dream - James Newby, Peter Kirk, Siân Griffiths, Camilla Harris - Opera North, 2024 (Photo: © Richard Hubert Smith)

Britten: A Midsummer Night's Dream; James Laing, Daisy Brown, Daniel Abelson, Camilla Harris, Siân Griffiths, Peter Kirk, James Newby, Andri Björn Róbertsson, Molly Barker, Henry Waddington, Dean Robinson, Nicholas Watts, Frazer Scott, Colin Judson, Nicholas Butterfield, director: Martin Duncan/Matthew Eberhardt, conductor: Garry Walker; Opera North at Grand Theatre, Leeds
Reviewed 24 October 2024

A cool 1960s vibe in this revival of Martin Duncan's wonderfully imaginative production, support by a fine ensemble cast strong on character and charm, with some delightfully disturbing fairies

As part of its Autumn season, Opera North has revived Martin Duncan's 2008 production of Britten's Midsummer Night's Dream, revival director Matthew Eberhardt, with three of the cast, Henry Waddington, James Laing and Daniel Abelson returning the production.

We caught the 24 October 2024 performance at the Grand Theatre, Leeds, conducted by Garry Walker. With sets by Johan Engels and costumes by Ashley Martin-Davis, the production really leans into a 1960s vibe. Oberon and Tytania (James Laing and Daisy Brown) in glittery yet slightly scary full length outfits, and the lovers, Helena, Hermia, Lysander and Demetrius (Camilla Harris, Siân Griffiths, Peter Kirk and James Newby) all vibrant swirly colours and floaty fabrics. The mechanicals, Bottom (Henry Waddington), Quince (Dean Robinson), Flute (Nicholas Watts), Snug (Frazer Scott), Snout (Colin Judson) and Starveling (Nicholas Butterfield) were the only ordinary looking mortals on stage, with Andri Björn Róbertsson, Molly Barker as glittering Theseus and Hippolyta. Daniel Abelson's Puck was most definitely a close relation of Pan with his hairy legs, whilst the fairies, some 18 boys and girls, wore uniform outfits and blond wigs that made them seem something out of The Village of the Damned (released in 1960).

Britten: A Midsummer Night's Dream - Henry Waddington, Daisy Brown, James Laing - Opera North, 2024 (Photo: © Richard Hubert Smith)
Britten: A Midsummer Night's Dream - Henry Waddington, Daisy Brown, James Laing - Opera North, 2024 (Photo: © Richard Hubert Smith)

Wednesday 23 October 2024

Attention to detail & sheer energy: Haydndyah from Lars Ulrik Mortensen & Concerto Copenhagen on Berlin Classics

Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 43 in E flat major 'Mercury', Symphony No. 44 in E minor, 'Trauer', Symphony no. 47 in G major, 'Palindrome'; Concerto Copenhagen, Lars Ulrik Mortensen; Berlin Classics
Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 43 in E flat major 'Mercury', Symphony No. 44 in E minor, 'Trauer', Symphony no. 47 in G major, 'Palindrome'; Concerto Copenhagen, Lars Ulrik Mortensen; Berlin Classics
Reviewed 22 October 2024

Small forces, big effects in these compelling performances of three Haydn symphonies from the early 1770s where the attention to detail and sheer energy really count

This disc Haydndyah from Lars Ulrik Mortensen and Concerto Copenhagen on Berlin Classics transports us to Esterhaza in the early 1770s and Haydn's long Summers marooned at Prince Nikolaus Esterházy's Summer palace. From 1766 onwards, the Prince and his court migrated from Eisenstadt to Eszterháza each Summer to inhabit the huge palace he had built. The prince loved it, but though sunny it was in the middle of damp, windswept marsh, and conditions for the rank and file musicians, marooned away from their families, were not ideal.

This is the period of Haydn's Farewell Symphony (no. 45) with its highly civilised yet pointed hint to the Prince about length of stay (and living conditions). By the end of the decade, the length of Summers in Eszterháza were reduced, and with a renegotiated contract meaning he could sell his music, Haydn discovered a whole musical world outside of the Prince's domain, all eager for his music. This means that Haydn's symphonies from this period, the late 1760s and early 1770s, have a particular feel to them. Effectively written for an audience of one, the conditions of Haydn's employment meant that he was free to experiment. Interestingly, he rarely revisited this music in later life.

Tuesday 22 October 2024

Sinfonia Smith Square’s Fellowship programme welcomes 34 talented new graduate musicians for 2024/25

Sinfonia Smith Square (Photo: Camila Pastorelli)
Sinfonia Smith Square (Photo: Camila Pastorelli)

Every year, Sinfonia Smith Square’s Fellowship programme welcomes 34 talented graduate musicians to form an orchestra. Through world-class collaborations, bold programming, and educational leadership projects, the programme intensifies their professional development and advances their musical careers. Since its formation (as Southbank Sinfonia) in 2002, it now has over 650 alumni, who have gone on to become leaders in the classical music world.

Every Fellowship place is free, and every player receives a bursary. More than just an orchestra, it is a community where promising young talents can find their own voice and develop their creative strengths, fulfil personal goals, make lasting contacts to take their musicianship to new frontiers.

Sinfonia Smith Square has just welcomed the latest members of the Fellowship programme. For 2024/25 these 34 players will perform together. For the first time, the group includes an organ scholar, Ben Collyer, whilst bassoon player Vladyslav Demianov, recently fled the war in Ukraine to complete his studies in the UK.

You can find out more about the current musicians from the Sinfonia Smith Square website, whilst they will be in action at Smith Square Hall on 24 October with The Orchestral Forest featuring music by Dobrinka Tabakova, Mendelssohn, Vagn Holmboe, Nadia Boulanger and Michael Nyman conducted by Maxime Tortelier. The concert is unseated and the audience is encouraged to move amongst the musicians. Full details from the website.

Over-arching themes and influences: Andrew Ford's The Shortest History of Music

Andrew Ford: The Shortest History of Music: Old Street Publishing

Andrew Ford: The Shortest History of Music
Old Street Publishing
234 pages, 45 images
Reviewed 21 October 2024

Global musical history digested into just over 200 pages; Ford's book deftly manages the compression whilst bringing out a wide variety of over-arching themes and influences, well beyond the conventional Western classical history

Creating a coherent history of music has always been a tricky business and in the last fifty years, as classical music expands in various directions, it has become trickier. The historical view of musical development in classical music has had to be replaced by intersections, influences and just plain oddities. But more recently, the sheer notion of a history of classical music has changed.

Contemporary composers draw influences from a range of musics, and those accustomed to living in non-European countries reflect a whole range of other classical musics. How do you refer to contemporary composers and their influences without drawing in a history of the other musics in the globe?

This is a challenge, different countries have different conventions and Western classical music's heavily rule-based, written language is only one way of defining things. It is relatively easy to talk about 16th century European classical music if you have the manuscripts and treatises, but it is far harder to do justice to the music of another culture where the entire musical structure is based on oral tradition.

The Australian composer, writer and broadcaster Andrew Ford has decided to have a go and in his The Shortest History of Music he attempts to cram a coherent history of music into just 210 pages. The book is published by Old Street Publishing as part of its 'The Shortest History of...' series with subjects ranging from China, to Democracy to Sex to Economics.

Myths and Legends: Wexford Festival Opera to perform Verdi's Le trouvère at 2025 Festival

Verdi: Le trouvère
When the Paris Opera planned to give the first performance at the theatre of Verdi's Otello the maestro was extremely puzzled when it was announced that they would be performing the opera in Italian. Hitherto the Paris Opera had presented Verdi's operas in French, with the Italian versions being given at the Théâtre-Italien. Following the death of Donizetti, Verdi became the Paris Opera's go  to foreign composer. His operas for the theatre included such specifically written grand operas as Les vêpres siciliennes and Don Carlos, but also other works in translation. 

This process would also allow Italian works to be reworked for the French audience, so I Lombardi became Jérusalem. This was a radical revision, effectively a new opera and Verdi had Jérusalem back-translated into Italian, as Gerusalemme but the revision failed to establish itself in either the French or Italian repertory.

Both Luisa Miller and Il trovatore were transformed into French versions for Paris, though the changes here were fewer. They became Louise Miller (a failure) and Le trouvère (a great success).

This latter has every right to be considered a version separate from the original. Not only did Verdi add an extended ballet sequence, writing some of his finest ballet music and even going so far as to weave themes from the opera into the ballet, but the role of Azucena was adjusted including an extended version of the finale of Act Four, to accommodate the role's singer Adelaide Borghi-Mamo. In fact, the French version premiered at the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels in January1857, before being performed in Paris later that year.

This version only gets very rare outings and it is welcome news that Wexford Festival Opera will be performing Verdi's Le trouvère as part of the 2025 festival, including the ballet music. The production will be conducted by Markus Bosch and directed by Ben Barnes. Bosch is the artistic director of the Opernfestpiele Heidenheim where they have been investigating early and rare Verdi [we saw I Lombardi there in 2018 and Un giorno di regno in 2017]

The 2025 Wexford Festival runs from 17 October to 1 November 2025 and takes its theme as Myths & Legends. There are two further main stage productions. 

Handel's Deidamia in a co-production with Göttingen International Handel Festival who will present the work in 2026. Deidamia will be conducted and directed by George Petrou. Written in 1741, Deidamia was Handel's final Italian opera. Not a success at the time, after this Handel turned his back on Italian opera to concentrate on English oratorio.

Frederick Delius' The Magic Fountain, conducted by Francesco Cilluffo and directed by Christopher Luscombe. Delius' opera was unperformed in his lifetime and only received its premiere, in concert, in 1977 and finally reached the stage in 1997. It was his third opera, coming between Irmelin and Koanga.

In addition, the WFO Factory artists will perform Rossini's Il viaggio a Reims to mark the 200th anniversary of the opera, in a production conducted by Manuel Hartinger and directed by Rosetta Cucchi. There will also be a competition for young directors in Ireland to direct two Pocket Operas, Peter Brook/Georges Bizet's La tragedie de Carmen and Zemlinsky's Der Zwerg.

The Artist-in-Residence for 2025 and 2026 will be composer and writer Ailís Ní Ríain [Pronounced A-leesh Knee Ree-in].

Full details from Wexford Festival Opera's website.


Monday 21 October 2024

Music and movement: new musicians in Liverpool, new artistic directors in Brighton & George Jackson continues in Amarillo

Domingo Hindoyan and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic in 2022
Domingo Hindoyan and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic in 2022

The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra has welcomed six new musicians into its ranks, whilst the Brighton Early Music Festival has announced the appointment of new co-artistic directors, and the young British conductor, George Jackson has had his contract renewed as music director of Amarillo Symphony Orchestra for a further three years.

On 17 October 2024 Domingo Hindoyan conducted the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra in Mahler’s First Symphony, Juan Bautista Plaza’s Vigilia and Strauss’ Four Last Songs with soprano Sarah Wegener. The opening concert in the orchestra's 2024/25 season, it also represented the first concert with the orchestra for six musicians being welcomed into the ranks - Fábio Brum, who joins as section leader trumpet, Miquel Ramos Salvadó as section leader clarinet, Nadia Debono as associate principal viola, Peter Liang as No.4 1st violin and Anna Crawford and Angus McCall joining the cello section. 

Brazilian trumpeter Fábio Brum is a former member of the Canadian Brass and Principal Trumpet for both the Royal Seville Symphony Orchestra and the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra. Miquel Ramos Salvadó has regularly performed in orchestras such the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Tonhalle Zürich, Liceu Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sinfonieorchester Basel, and Festival Strings Luzern. Maltese viola player Nadia Debono's experience spans multiple genres and styles, including baroque and non-classical. She was co-leader of the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra, and Solo Principal Viola with the Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra, in Norway.

Full details from the orchestra's website.

As many people will know, Deborah Roberts the co-founder and artistic director of Brighton Early Music Festival (BREMF) sadly passed away earlier this year. BREMF has announced the appointment of two new co-artistic directors, soprano Hannah Ely and recorder-player Olwen Foulkes. Both were previously part of the BREMF Live young artists scheme,they have both performed at the Festival in musical ensembles and opera productions, and have mentored other artists.;

Hannah Ely is a soprano specialising in Renaissance and Baroque music. In 2012 she founded the Fieri Consort, where she explores innovative performances of Italian madrigals, which has led her to her current venture on ornamentation in madrigals in the duo Accenti, as well as with the Monteverdi String Band, and she was recently appointed music director of Purbeck Arts Week Festival. Olwen Foulkes is a recorder player, curator and educator with a love of eighteenth-century chamber music, and a research focus of the early eighteenth-century London music scene. In 2019 she founded her chamber music group Ensemble Augelletti who are current BBC New Generation Baroque Ensemble and City Music Foundation Artists. She is Assistant Curator at Handel Hendrix House where she curates exhibition content, and she is an academic lecturer at the Royal Academy of Music.

Full details from the BREMF website.

Over in the USA, in Amarillo, Texas, George Jackson began his tenure as music director of the Amarillo Symphony Orchestra in September 2022, leading the orchestra into its centenary season of 2023/24. He has now had his tenure renewed for a further three years. Under Jackson's artistic direction, the Symphony has experienced a surge in audience engagement, thanks to captivating programs that showcase the diverse cultural landscape of the Texas Panhandle. The orchestra has developed from relatively humble beginnings in 1924 to become a vital cultural force in the Texas Panhandle, serving a vast region spanning 25,000 square miles and beyond.

George Jackson leads the orchestra at the Amarillo Symphony's 100th season opener at Hodgetown in Amarillo, August 2023 (Photo: Michael Cuviello/Amarillo Globe-News)
George Jackson leads the Amarillo Symphony Orchestra's 100th season opener at Hodgetown in Amarillo, August 2023 (Photo: Michael Cuviello/Amarillo Globe-News from Amarillo Globe-News)

George Jackson's performances in the UK that we have caught include La Boheme at Opera Holland Park [see my review], celebrating the 85th anniversary of The Beano with the BBC Concert Orchestra including the premiere of Gavin Higgins' new percussion concerto [see my review], Janacek's The Excursions of Mr Broucek at Grange Park Opera [see my review], Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro at Opera Holland Park [see my review]. In 2021, I sat down for a chat with George Jackson, read more in my interview, 'The balance between a perfect art form & giving people what they want'. 

Full details from the Amarillo Symphony Orchestra's website.

Inventive and imaginative: Olivia Fuchs' successfully reinvents Rimsky Korsakov's The Snowmaiden for English Touring Opera

Rimsky Korsakov: The Snowmaiden - English Touring Opera (Photo: © Richard Hubert Smith)
Rimsky Korsakov: The Snowmaiden - English Touring Opera (Photo: © Richard Hubert Smith)

Rimsky Korsakov: The Snowmaiden; Ffion Edwards, Kitty Whately Katherine McIndoe, Edmund Danon, Hannah Sandison, Joseph Doody, Jack Dolan, Amy J Payne, Edward Hawkins/Phil Wilcox, director: Olivia Fuchs, conductor Hannah Quinn; English Touring Opera at Saffron Hall
Reviewed 19 October 2024

A welcome outing for Rimsky Korsakov's favourite opera with engaging performances from a strong ensemble cast in an inventive production

Rimsky Korsakov's opera The Snowmaiden always remained one of his favourites but has not been on UK stages that much. We caught up with English Touring Opera's welcome new production in Saffron Hall on Saturday 19 October 2024. The production was directed by Olivia Fuchs and conducted by Hannah Quinn with designs by Eleanor Bull and was sung in Alistair Middleton's English translation.

Ffion Edwards was the Snowmaiden (though referred to as Snow Princess in Middleton's text), with Kitty Whately as Lel, Katherine McIndoe as Kupava, Edmund Danon as Mizgir, Hannah Sandison as Spring Beauty, Joseph Doody as the Tsar, Jack Dolan as Bobyl, Amy J Payne as Boblikha, David Horton as spirit of the wood, Neil Balfour as Maslenitsa and Alexandre Meier as the Tsar's Page. Edward Hawkins was unable to sing and walked the roles of Grandfather Frost and Bermyata whilst Phil Wilcox the ensemble sang, whilst also doing his ensemble duties and playing the accordion for one of Kitty Whately's solos.

Like many of Rimsky Korsakov's operas, The Snowmaiden is quite discursive with focus shifting between characters. It is also long, the fullest version on record lasting around three and a half hours of music. Here, trimmed to around 2 hours 40 minutes of music, the result did full justice to Rimsky Korsakov's discursive mix of solos, choruses and dances, whilst ensuring a pace that kept the attention of an audience unfamiliar with the work.

Rimsky Korsakov: The Snowmaiden  - Hannah Sandison, Ffion Edwards - English Touring Opera (Photo: © Richard Hubert Smith)
Rimsky Korsakov: The Snowmaiden  - Hannah Sandison, Ffion Edwards - English Touring Opera (Photo: © Richard Hubert Smith)

Alistair Middleton's rhyming English version was a complete delight and under Hannah Quinn's expert direction the orchestra made the orchestral reduction seem richly expansive. This was a production that successfully reinvented a work premiered by the lavish forces of the Imperial Theatres in St Petersburg without losing ita essence.

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