Tag Archives: London Philharmonic Orchestra

Wrath, hellfire and Soviet shadows from Orozco-Estrada and the LPO

Posted on October 26, 2017 by Mark Pullinger

LPO/ Andrés Orozco-Estrada *** Royal Festival Hall, 25th October 2017 Here’s a lethal Rachmaninov drinking game: down a finger of vodka at each quotation of the Dies irae. By the end of his Symphonic Dances, you’d be under the table. Rachmaninov had a strange … Continue reading →

Posted in Concert | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Tears before bedtime: El-Khoury transcends Cairns’ chilly Glyndebourne Traviata

Posted on August 2, 2017 by Mark Pullinger

Verdi: La traviata **** Glyndebourne, 1st August 2017 Glyndebourne’s production of operatic weepy La traviata left me dry-eyed when I saw it on tour back in 2014. I found the abstract setting cold and austere, the performances bland. Thankfully, I employed a caveat … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Black Angels: Kopatchinskaja and Jurowski brush with death

Posted on February 23, 2017 by Mark Pullinger

Denisov, Berg, Shostakovich: LPO/Jurowski **** Royal Festival Hall, 22nd February 2017 Heavily shrouded, Death loomed large over Vladimir Jurowski’s latest programme in the Southbank Centre’s “Belief and Beyond Belief” series which explores faith and spirituality. The Grim Reaper swept the … Continue reading →

Posted in Concert | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Enchanted Wood: dream of a Dream at Glyndebourne

Posted on August 12, 2016 by Mark Pullinger

Britten: A Midsummer Night’s Dream ***** Glyndebourne, 11th August 2016 “Out of this wood do not desire to go!” Tytania orders Bottom. Glyndebourne’s revival of Peter Hall’s classic production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is eerily enchanting, weaving its spell right … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Enchanted Wood: dream of a Dream at Glyndebourne

Boxed in: Pelly serves up a grey Béatrice et Bénédict at Glyndebourne

Posted on July 24, 2016 by Mark Pullinger

Berlioz: Béatrice et Bénédict *** Glyndebourne, 23rd July 2016 It’s a delicious irony that Shakespeare is celebrated at this most English of opera festivals by a Frenchman directing a French comedy. Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream follows in August, but first … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Boxed in: Pelly serves up a grey Béatrice et Bénédict at Glyndebourne