2023 in record reviews: 17th century Venice as a gay haven, Dichterliebe Reimagined, Elgar on viola, Ethel Smyth's first operatic success
Updated: 2023-12-31 09:22:00
: : , , , Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Sunday 31 December 2023 2023 in record reviews : 17th century Venice as a gay haven , Dichterliebe Reimagined , Elgar on viola , Ethel Smyth's first operatic success Labels : cd review Richard Boothby's Music to hear . explored Alfonso Ferrabosco's 1609 book of music for solo lyra viol . Jorge Navarro Colorado and Randall Scotting celebrated 17th-century Venice as a place of tolerance for gay artists . We know Bach , but what of the other applicants for his Leipzig post in 1723 Leipzig 1723 gave us cantatas by Bach , Telemann , and Graupner . Whilst for the next generation of the Bach family , nbsp Les Ombres took us back to the elegance of the Bach-Abel.jpg)
: : , , Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Saturday 30 December 2023 2023 in concert reviews : Gavin Higgins x2, Allan Clayton's Samson , Reginald Mobley in Bayreuth , the Pink Singers Brixton Chamber Orchestra both party and Bitches Brew is back Labels : concert review Gavin Higgins : Beano Concerto George Jackson , Colin Currie , BBC Concert Orchestra Royal Festival Hall Photo : BBC Mark Allan Our list begins and ends with community events . The year began with a fragment of my own musical history , the Pink Singers , an ensemble I directed for five years in the 1980s , celebrated their 40th anniversary . Then in December , our local ensemble , the Brixton Chamber Orchestra certainly put us in
: : , , , , , Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Friday 29 December 2023 2023 in Opera and Music Theatre : historically informed Berlioz Wagner , dramatic Handel , a G rarity , RVW , Zandonai in Berlin , new Jonathan Dove Labels : opera review Purcell Pountney : The Masque of Might Andri Björn Róbertsson , Xavier Hetherington , Matthew Brook Opera North Photo : James Glossop One particular highlight this year was Berlioz' Les Troyens at the BBC Proms with Dinis Sousa conducting the Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique . Wagner was something of an ongoing theme for 2023, including Dresden Music Festival's historically informed Das Rheingold and a remarkable performance of Die Walküre from London
: Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Thursday 28 December 2023 Tapping the blues away Labels : spotlight View this post on Instagram One A post shared by James B Whiteside jamesbwhiteside I have always found there to be something evocative about tap dancing , the way that a visual counterpart to the music becomes part of it . One of the sounds that still stays with me is the moment , part of the way through a show by Bloolips the gay cabaret and drag acting troupe when Bette Bourne and the others came on in tap shoes , the noise they made distinctive . And you just knew that whatever they were dressed in , whatever unlikely scenario , it was going to end in a glorious tap number The above wonderful
: Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Sunday 24 December 2023 Season's Greetings from all at Planet Hugill Wishing you a Peaceful Christmas and here's to a Healthy Musical New Year from all at Planet Hugill Our picture shows our mantelpiece with Alison Cross' portrait of us for our Civil Partnership in 2008, and a Santa Claus knitted by Robert's . Mum Posted by Planet Hugill at Sunday , December 24, 2023 Email This BlogThis Share to Twitter Share to Facebook Share to Pinterest No : comments Post a Comment Newer Post Older Post Home Subscribe to : Post Comments Atom Popular Posts this month A lifetime's experience : John Nelson finally records Messiah in a finely engaged performance , with a fantastic
: : . Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Friday 22 December 2023 I saw Eternity : the young singers of Phoenix Consort crowdfunding a new disc exploring the challenges a composer has faced through living with Multiple sclerosis . Labels : spotlight Adam Whitmore Adam Whitmore started the Phoenix Consort alongside his degree in Modern Languages at Durham University , and currently he also conducts the Durham University Chamber Choir . The singers in Phoenix Consort are young artists , currently or formerly students at Durham University , and emphasises the perpetuation of choral music’s influence among young people . today They are now preparing to record their first album , they have a concept and a
: : Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Friday 22 December 2023 A welcome relief from regular Christmas fare : the Tallis Scholars introduce us to the subtle riches of Jacobus Clemens non Papa Labels : concert review SJSS The Tallis Scholars Photo : Hugo Glendinning Jacobus Clemens non Papa : nbsp Missa Pastores quidnam vidistis Victoria , Pedro de Cristo , Giovanni Croce , Obrecht , Peter Philips The Tallis Scholars , Peter Phillips St John's Smith Square Reviewed 21 December 2023 Coming to the end of their 50th anniversary year , the group's Christmas programme focuses on the shepherds with a low-key and beautiful subtle account of Clemens non Papa's mass Peter Phillips and the Tallis Scholars have
: : , Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Thursday 21 December 2023 The Nativity : the American choir , Voce in a sequence of carols from Patrick Hawes Labels : cd review Patrick Hawes : The Nativity Voce , Mark Singleton Signum Classics Reviewed 20 December 2023 Beautifully sung and finely considered , Patrick Hawes carol sequence approaches the Christmas story with reverence and an appealing melodic style When I first interviewed composer Patrick Hawes back in 2017, he described the process of composition as a full on meeting with his Christianity , and also admitted that he found it extraordinary that composer who are not Christians made major settings of sacred texts . So , it should come as
: : Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Wednesday 20 December 2023 On Wings of Song : Leeds Lieder celebrates 20 years of song in Leeds Labels : Leeds preview After a year which included both a potentially catastrophic funding crisis thanks to Arts Council England and a record number of first time concert attendees , Leeds Lieder plans to celebrate its 20th anniversary in style in 2024. Running from 13 to 21 April 2024, the main recital venues will be Opera North’s Howard Assembly Room and Leeds Conservatoire’s The Venue , but there will also be events at Hyde Park Book Club , Leeds Sikh Centre , Kirkstall Abbey , Leeds Minster and , for the culmination concerts of the award-winning education
: : , Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Wednesday 20 December 2023 Like no other : Brixton Chamber Orchestra's Christmas party moved from classical and carols to rap , disco and a Shane MacGowan tribute Labels : Brixton concert review Matthew O'Keeffe Brixton Chamber Orchestra at Upstairs at the Department Store Brixton Chamber Orchestra's Christmas Party at Upstairs at The Department Store , Brixton . Reviewed 18 December 2023 Everything from carols and Johann Strauss to a Shane MacGowan tribute , rap and disco in an evening full of energy , enthusiasm and terrific performances Three quarters of the way through its Christmas Estates tour , which ends at Lambeth Town Hall on Thursday 21 December ,
: . Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Tuesday 19 December 2023 Nevill Holt refocuses as a multi-arts festival for 2024 under guest festival director James Dacre . Labels : Nevill Holt preview Plans have been announced for the 2024 festival at Nevill Holt with Nevill Holt Opera being refocused as the Nevill Holt Festival . Whilst music and the arts have always been a feature of the present incarnation of the Nevill Holt estate bought and restored by David Ross in 2000 following years as a prep school the performance presentation has undergone a number of incarnations . nbsp Initially a temporary theatre was created in the courtyard of the historic 17th century stables and opera seasons presented in
: Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Tuesday 19 December 2023 Jane Austen’s Music a life-long obsession Labels : Guest Posting In Spring 2024, Manchester University Press is publishing She played and sang : Jane Austen and music a new book by Gillian Dooley , nbsp Honorary Senior Research Fellow in English at Flinders University in South . Australia Music occupied a central role in Jane Austen's life , she played the piano from a young age and was encouraged by her Father . nbsp She made brilliant use of music in her books to illuminate characters' personalities and highlight the contrasts between them . nbsp In the new book , Gillian Dooley uses music books from Austen's immediate family circle ,
: : , , , Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Monday 18 December 2023 Pandora's Box : great tunes , a neat moral , energetic performances , London Youth Opera premieres Stuart Hancock Donald Sturrock's new opera Labels : opera review Stuart Hancock : Pandora's Box London Youth Opera at Susie Sainsbury Theatre , Royal Academy of Music Photo : Nina Swann Stuart Hancock : Pandora's Box London Youth Opera , conductor : Alastair Chilvers , director : Valentina Ceschi Susie Sainsbury Theatre Reviewed 16 December 2023 Full of good tunes , with an underlying moral and in a performance full of energy , London Youth Opera premieres Stuart Hancock and Donald Sturrock's new opera For over 50 years , W11 Opera
: : Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Saturday 16 December 2023 A sense of dramatic narrative : Wild Arts in Handel's Messiah at The Art Workers' Guild Labels : concert review Handel : Messiah Wild Arts at The Art Workers' Guild Photo : Lucy Toms Photography Handel : Messiah Wild Arts , Joanna Songi , Sofia Kirwan-Baez , Martha Jones , Catherine Backhouse , Richard Dowling , Harry Jacques , Timothy Nelson , Edward Hawkins , music director Orlando Jopling The Art Workers Guild Reviewed 14 December 2023 With just eight singers and solos performed off the book' , this was performance that made up in a vivid sense of drama what it might have lacked in numbers to create a compelling and wonderfully
: : Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Friday 15 December 2023 A remarkable cultural synthesis : Vache Baroque La Vaghezza bring a lovely sense of dialogue to their celebrations of Salmone Rossi's Hebrew-texted The Songs of Solomon Members of Vache Baroque and lutenist Kristiina Watt rehearsing at St John's Smith Square Photo : The Musicians' Photographer A Baroque Hanukkah Salmone Rossi , Thomas Campion , Heinrich Schütz , John Farmer , Francesco Cavalli , Henry Purcell , Thomas Ravenscroft , Thomas Weelkes Vache Baroque , La Vaghezza St John's Smith Square Reviewed 13 December 2023 The culmination of Vache Baroque's celebrations of Salomone Rossi paired his Hebrew-texted psalm settings with music
: : , Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Thursday 14 December 2023 Arctic saxophone : three imaginative engaging new concertos from Ola Asdahl Rokkones , Arktisk Filharmoni Per Kristian Skalstad Labels : cd review Alexander Aarøen : The Heart , It , Soars Alexander Manotskov : Seven , Portraits Terje Bjørklund : Arctic Lines Ola Asdahl Rokkones , Arktisk Filharmoni , Per Kristian Skalstad LAWO Reviewed 13 December 2023 Three new saxophone concertos with Arctic inspirations from soloist and orchestra based in the region , terrific , engaging , imaginative new music in fine performances Ola Asdahl Rokkones is a saxophonist based in the city of Tromsø in North Norway , about 500 km north of the Arctic
: : , Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Wednesday 13 December 2023 Repair Conway Hall's roof : crowd funder to help support the repairs to the historic structure , home to the Sunday Concerts Labels : Conway Hall music news Conway Hall Conway Hall was completed in 1929 and since then has played host to all manner of events such as influential talks on the establishment of the NHS , the first national conference on AIDS with Gay Lesbian Switchboard in 1983 and musicians such as Muddy Waters , Humphrey Lyttleton and The Cure , not mention the Sunday Concerts which have their origins in the 19th century and make them the longest running such concert series in Europe , presenting affordable classical
: : Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Wednesday 13 December 2023 Surrender to the gentle magic : Benjamin Tassie combines live-performance field recording focusing on water-powered instruments to remarkably poetic effect Labels : cd review Benjamin Tassie A Ladder is Not the Only Kind of Time Benjamin Tassie , Sam Underwood , Rebecca Lee , Rob Bental Birmingham Record Company Reviewed 13 December 2023 Part live-performance , part-field recording , this disc captures the poetic interaction between natural landscape and ancient man-made sounds , featuring three waterpowered instruments The Rivelin Valley in Sheffield was once a thriving hub of water-powered industry , and even today the ruins of
: Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Tuesday 12 December 2023 Youthful engagement Romantic devotion in Claire Ward JongSun Woo's CMF Lunchtime Recital Labels : CMF concert review Claire Ward at the Tallow Chandlers' Hall for the City Music Foundation Devotion Schumann : Frauen-Liebe und Leben R . Strauss , Brahms , Alma Mahler , Schoenberg , Faure , Debussy , Britten , Bridge Claire Ward , JongSun Woo City Music Foundation at Tallow Chandlers' Hall Reviewed 11 December 2023 Schumann's song cycle in a performance full of youthful engagement at the centre of a lovely recital exploring aspects of Romantic devotion Soprano Claire Ward and pianist JongSun Woo gave their lunchtime recital on Monday 11
: Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Monday 11 December 2023 The glories of Roman polychoral music after Palestrina explored by I Fagiolini with Benevoli's Missa Tu es Petrus for four choirs Labels : record review Orazio Benevoli : Missa Tu es Petrus Palestrina Bonifazio Graziani I Fagiolini , the City Musick , Robert Hollingworth Coro Reviewed 11 December 2023 An exploration of the rare splendours of 17th-century 16-part mass based on Palestrina's motet , richly inventive and full of gorgeous textures , a work that is certainly not deserving of its relative obscurity Palestrina died in 1594 and for the following century his music remained a prime example of concerted church music with other
: : Pages Live reviews archive CD reviews archive Interviews archive About Us Contact Us Twitter : RobertHugill Robert's Link Tree Monday 11 December 2023 Opera Democracy : Transatlantic Conversations Concerts celebrating the centenary of the reopening of the Krolloper in Berlin Labels : preview Krolloper in Berlin in 1930 2024 is the centenary of the reopening of the Krolloper in Berlin . It reopened in 1924 with a performance of Richard Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg as an offshoot of the Berlin State Opera , but under Otto Klemperer from 1927-1931 the Krolloper took on independent artistic significance , becoming a gathering space for the avant-garde as well as promoting the idea of inclusive and accessible opera . It was forced to close in 1931 and after the Reichstag fire in