| Date and venue | Title |
|---|---|
| 17-May-2013 Usher Hall | Sir Andrew Davis and RSNO in Mendelssohn's oratorio Elijah |
 RSNO concerts begin, for me and around 100 others, with the pre-concert talk. I'm especially glad of these when new to a work, such as Mendelssohn’s 1846 Elijah. A talk by those who have prepared the music for us adds something to even the most extensive “presearch”. Sir Andrew Davis, in conversation with RSNO principal trombonist Dávur Juul Magnussen, came across as extremely witty and erudite. One topic of interest was the decision to sing in German a work whose Birmingham première was sung in English.Read full review... | |
| 19-Aug-2012 Royal Albert Hall | Prom 49: Gilbert and Sullivan's The Yeomen of the Guard |
 When choosing a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta to be performed at the Proms in a year firmly branded as "London 2012", The Yeomen of the Guard had obvious appeal, being set in one of the capital's most famous landmarks, and giving the opportunity, even in semi-staged form, to deck the hall with Beefeater uniforms. And indeed, if you include excerpts, this Sullivan operetta has had 62 outings at the Proms, more than any other Gilbert and Sullivan operetta.
Read full review... | |
| 26-May-2012 St John's Smith Square | Early Opera Company: Handel's Rival Queens |
 It is no surprise that in this Olympic year, various cultural goings-on have taken on, or alluded to, a sporting theme. This year's Lufthansa Festival of Baroque Music made no exception, taking as its theme the ethos of the Olympic Games – Contests, Competitions and the Harmony of Nations – and cunningly applying it to incidents in musical history, as well as to music itself. The Festival's opening ceremony took the form of a concert given by the noted viola da gamba player Jordi Savall and his handpicked orchestra, with a colourful programme of European Baroque music.Read full review... | |
| 19-May-2012 Birmingham Symphony Hall | Best of British: Elgar, Britten and Vaughan Williams with the CBSO |
 In advance of a nationwide spate of celebration concerts, here was an all-British programme that didn’t so much as mention the Jubilee or the Olympics. And a great job the CBSO made of it, under guest conductor Andrew Manze. His expressive hands not only encouraged beautiful music, but they were a joy to watch too.
Read full review... | |
