Monthly Archives: November 2016

Diamonds and rust: Schlesinger’s Hoffmann bows out at Covent Garden

Offenbach: Les Contes d’Hoffmann The Royal Opera, 28th November 2016 A return visit to John Schlesinger’s vintage production of The Tales of Hoffmann did little to alter my opinion from the first night of this final revival. For good or … Continue reading

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Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker: still casting a Christmas spell

Along with chestnuts, turkey and Carols from King’s, Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without The Nutcracker. It has become a staple part of the festive season and one of the joys of any performance is in watching the excited reactions of children … Continue reading

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Spectacular Tchaikovsky: Alice Sara Ott fires up an old warhorse

Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov: Philharmonia/Vladimir Ashkenazy **** Royal Festival Hall, 17th November 2016 Warhorse (noun): creaky old classic played by orchestras in their sleep at least once a season. Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto no. 1 in B flat minor falls into this category. Everyone … Continue reading

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Mozart with a French accent: Emmanuelle Haïm and Le Concert d’Astrée at Wigmore Hall

Mozart: Le Concert d’Astrée/Haïm **** Wigmore Hall, 15th November 2016 Taking operatic tunes as inspiration for Harmoniemusik was nothing new in Mozart’s time. He even references his own The Marriage of Figaro in the supper scene of Don Giovanni, where … Continue reading

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A final outing for the Royal Opera’s lavish but fusty Tales of Hoffmann

Offenbach: Les Contes d’Hoffmann *** Royal Opera, 7th November 2016 When an enormous black gondola creaks and shudders its way across the stage in the “Giulietta” act of the Royal Opera’s The Tales of Hoffmann, it acts as a metaphor … Continue reading

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