GRAMOPHONE Review: Bernstein Symphonies No. 1 ‘Jeremiah’ & No. 2 ‘The Age of Anxiety’ – Anna Larsson, Roland Pöntinen, Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra/Lindberg
Whenever I listen to the First Symphony I am mindful of how dramatically Bernstein started as he meant to go on – a symphony, a ballet (Fancy Free) and a Broadway musical (On the Town) all feverishly…
GRAMOPHONE Review: Bernstein Mass – Vojtěch Dik, etc., ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra/Russell Davies
It is a truth universally acknowledged that I think this to be a masterpiece – perhaps Bernstein’s most significant, and certainly his most creatively virtuosic, work. But it is also his most challenging stylistically and for a…
GRAMOPHONE: From Where I Sit – June 2020
I want to reopen the debate on Beethoven and the voice. And particularly with regard to Fidelio which I caught at the Royal Opera House in the wake of a lively public encounter with Antonio Pappano at…
NOTES FROM LOCKDOWN: Jason Carr in Conversation
Award-winning composer, arranger and orchestrator Jason Carr talks to Edward Seckerson about shared musical passions, including Bernstein and Rodgers, the secrets of orchestration and his favourite songs and shows. … [Read More]
NOTES FROM LOCKDOWN: Nicola Benedetti in Conversation
A virtual sit-down with one of the sharpest and most searching musical minds in the business. Superstar violinist Nicola Benedetti talks lockdown, education, inclusivity, fearlessness, Elgar, Shostakovich and much more with Edward Seckerson.… [Read More]
NOTES FROM LOCKDOWN: Nigel Lilley in Conversation
West End musical director Nigel Lilley joins Edward Seckerson for another in his series of free-wheeling conversations with musical and theatrical luminaries. Nigel discusses his work on the Olivier Award-winning revival of Follies at the National Theatre,…
GRAMOPHONE Review: Brahms / Schoenberg Violin Concertos – Jack Liebeck, BBC Symphony Orchestra/Gourlay
The beauty of this coupling lies with the way in which two such highly distinctive works impact upon each other. The Brahms feels more radical for the proximity of the Schoenberg; the Schoenberg feels more romantic for…
GRAMOPHONE Review: Korngold Violin Concerto / String Sextet – Andrew Haveron, Sinfonia of London Chamber Ensemble, RTÉ Concert Orchestra/Wilson
Andrew Haveron joins very select, indeed mighty, company – from Heifetz to Mutter and beyond – in the Korngold Concerto. But his collaboration with John Wilson in the nursing and shaping of strings lines from the concert…
GRAMOPHONE: From Where I Sit – May 2020
Of all the singers I have admired but never met over the years my biggest regret was not having broken bread with Mirella Freni. We lost her in January and the waves of admiration and enthusiasm for…
NOTES FROM LOCKDOWN: John Wilson in Conversation
A free-wheeling conversation with conductor John Wilson, taking in his leadership of the newly reformed Sinfonia of London, recordings of music by Korngold and Richard Rodney Bennett, his love of French music, opera and musical theatre.… [Read…
