LSO/Gergiev Mahler Symphony Cycle continues with the Sixth

Una-Frances evidently enjoyed the latest installment, coupled with Tishchenko's Cello Concerto played by Tim Hugh:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/lso-gergiev-mahler-1107.shtml

Tomorrow: Chelsea Opera Group's Maria Stuarda, Scottish Opera's Il Seraglio, plus several CD reviews.

D.

An interview with Ian Bostridge; Korngold's Das Wunder der Heliane; Croesus at Opera North; Masur in Leeds

An interview with Ian Bostridge on his forthcoming 'Homeward Bound' series:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/interviews/bostridge-1107.shtml

The UK Premiere of Korngold's Das Wunder der Heliane:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/lpo-heliane-1107.shtml

The Fortunes of King Croesus at Opera North:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/on-croesus-1107.shtml

Kurt Masur and the Orchestre National de France in Leeds:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/onf-masur-1107.shtml

A strong cast for Maria Stuarda at Chelsea Opera Group:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/news/cog-1107.shtml

A reminder of Ann Murray's interview on ENO's new Turn of the Screw:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/interviews/murray-1107.shtml

Ann Murray on ENO's new production of The Turn of the Screw; reviews of CDs and DVDs; Scottish Chamber Orchestra

Read an interview with Ann Murray DBE on playing Mrs Grose in ENO's new production of The Turn of the Screw: http://www.musicalcriticism.com/interviews/murray-1107.shtml

An alternative short extra review of the Royal Opera's new production of L'elisir d'amore, this time with Dmitri Korchak as Nemorino: http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/roh-elisir-2-1107.shtml

Catch up on CD and DVD reviews, including Anna Moffo in Madama Butterfly, Genia Kuhmeier in The Creation (EMI), and Colin Currie's new CD, here: http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/index.htm

New L'elisir d'amore opens at Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; CDs of Dmitri Hvorostovsky and Max Emanuel Cencic; Opera North's Butterfly/Falstaff

A number of new articles, including the ROH's new production of L'elisir d'amore:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/roh-elisir.shtml

Dmitri Hvorostovsky's new CD:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-dmitri-heroes.shtml

Itzhak Perlman at the Barbican:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/barbican-perlman.shtml

Opera North:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/on-butterfly.shtml
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/on-falstaff.shtml

Pavarotti in Luisa Miller CD:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-luisa-miller.shtml

ENO's new Aida; Sibelius chez Salonen and Elder; Paolo Gavanelli interview on L'elisir d'amore; interview with Claire Rutter and John Hudson; CDs

It's massive update time again:

ENO's new Aida:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/eno-aida.htm

Interview with Claire Rutter and John Hudson on ENO's new Aida:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/interviews/rutter-hudson.htm

Interview with the great Paolo Gavanelli on Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/interviews/gavanelli.htm

Hugo's reviews of all four of Salonen's Sibelius concerts at the Barbican:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/salonen-sibelius2.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/salonen-sibelius1.htm

Mark Elder and the Halle doing Sibelius: The Origin of Fire in Manchester:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/halle-sibelius.shtml

Hugo on the completion of Schubert's 'Unfinished':
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/rfh-oae-jurowski.htm

Agnes on Mark Elder's celebration of the Elgar anniversary with the LPO:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/rfh-lpo-elder.htm

Una-Frances' feature on the Sibelius anniversary:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/news/sibelius.htm

Patrizia Ciofi in Bellini's La straniera at the RFH for Opera Rara:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/or-straniera.htm

ENO's new production of The Coronation of Poppea with Kate Royal:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/eno-poppea.htm

Cardiff Singer of the world Rosenblatt Song Prize winner Elizabeth Watts in Handel's Semele:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/eoc-semele.htm

Alex Reedijk, director of Scottish Opera, on the Five:15 project:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/news/scottish-opera-5-15.htm

The Barbican announces details of their 2008-09 season, including several Handel operas and oratorios, a residency with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra and Riccardo Chailly, Simon Keenlyside, Angelika Kirchschlager and much more:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/news/barbican-2008.htm

John Eliot Gardiner embarks on his Brahms cycle with the ORR:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/rfh-jeg-brahms.htm

Mary reviews two concerts in Edinburgh:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/rsno-clein
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/sco-brahms.htm


CDs
Vivaldi's Atenaide on Naive:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-atenaide.shtml

Amanda Roocroft's sensational new CD on Onyx, including Tchaikovsky songs:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-roocroft.htm

DVD review of The Callas Conversations Vol II on EMI:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/dvd-callas-conversations.htm

Lang Lang plays Beethoven's First and Fourth Piano Concertoson Deutsche Grammophon:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-langlang-beethoven.htm

Boulez's new recording of Mahler's Eighth:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-boulez-mahler-8.htm


All these and many more can be found on MusicalCriticism.com:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/
Concerts:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/index.htm
Opera:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/index.htm
Interviews:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/interviews/index.htm
Recordings:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/index.htm
News:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/news/index.htm

September-October 2007: The ROH Ring, ENO's Carmen, Interviews with Rosalind Plowright, Andrew Kennedy and Laurence Cummings

I've just got back from an extraordinary week at the Royal Opera House, where Keith Warner's amazing production saw through some musical dips:

http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/roh-rheingold.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/roh-walkure.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/roh-siegfried.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/roh-twilight.htm

Meanwhile, my review of ENO's new production of Carmen by Sally Potter has caused undue controversy:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/eno-carmen.htm

Hugo enjoyed The Magic Flute at ENO, the last revival of the Hytner production, as well as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra with Riccardo Muti:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/eno-flute.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/cso-muti.htm

A dull start to the ROH season with Iphigenie en Tauride:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/roh-iphigenie.htm

Fantastic interviews with Sally Potter, Rosalind Plowright, Andrew Kennedy, Krzystof Szumanski and Laurence Cummings:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/interviews/kennedy.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/interviews/plowright.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/interviews/cummings.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/interviews/potter.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/interviews/szumanski.htm

We've had some excellent and not so excellent CDs to review lately, including albums by Gheorghiu, Florez and Royal, Rene Jacobs' recording of Don Giovanni and Ariane et Barbe-Bleue by Dukas:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-gheorghiu-scala.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-royal.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-florez-rubini.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/jacobs-don-giovanni.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/dukas-ariane.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-bach-3.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-offenbach.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-dinnerstein-bach.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/Kancheli_Styx.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/Tomter_Mozart.htm

Finally, we enjoyed concerts celebrating Sir Colin Davis' 80th birthday and the start of the LPO's 75th anniversary season:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/lso-requiem.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/lpo-klagende.htm
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/lso-kissin-beethoven.htm

Don't forget to keep checking back soon for reviews of Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Donizetti's Rita, Dido and Aeneas, the student Rheingold performance, and much more!

Dominic

BBC Proms 2007 Retrospective

Check out the website for our BBC Proms 2007 Retrospective
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/news/proms-review-2007.htm

What are your views on the 2007 season? Did Nicholas Kenyon leave on a high? And how will Roger Wright Fare next year? Post your comments here!

Susan Graham interview on Iphigenie en Tauride at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden

I've just posted my interview with the lovely Susan Graham, who's appearing in Gluck's Iphigenie en Tauride at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, from 10 September 2007. It's full of insights about her approach to the role and Robert Carsen's production.

You can read the article by clicking here.

New-look MusicalCriticism.com!

Hello everyone,

Check out the new-look MusicalCriticism.com for all the latest news, reviews, interviews and features on classical music and opera in the UK and beyond.

Current reviews include most of the final three weeks of the Proms; recordings of Mozart operas, Koessler chamber music and Verdi's Il trovatore from Bregenz;
 and an interview with Sicilian tenor Marcello Giordani on 
singing Berlioz's La damnation de Faust.

Join us at www.musicalcriticism.com

and join our new Facebook account to enter the debate.
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=3360267477

Dominic McHugh
Editor
MusicalCriticism.com

Viktoria Mullova plays Bach

Not an overwhelming success in Hugo's opinion, Mullova's Bach CD nevertheless gained a 5 star review and was record of the month for the BBC Music Magazine:

http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-mullova-bach.htm

Prom 14: The Seasons

Hugo's inaugural live review for us was an outstanding performance of Haydn's lesser known oratorio by Roger Norrington:

http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/prom-14-0707.htm

Prom 13: Brett Dean

A world premiere by Brett Dean overshadows Beethoven 7:

http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/prom-13-0707.htm

Prom 15: Verdi's Macbeth

I realise that for many this was a wonderful evening, but I sat through it with the critical edition of the score in my hands and wondered many times where certain gestures, tempi and note lengths were coming from:

http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/prom-15-0707.htm

La traviata at Opera Holland Park

I rather liked Holland Park's production of Traviata. Unlike Richard Eyre's heavy ROH production, it has a light touch that is in keeping with the opera itself:

http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/ohp-traviata.htm

American Jubilee: CD review

Erich Kunzel conducts the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra - sometimes ponderously - in American music:

http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-jubilee.htm

Prom 19: Halle/Elder - Strauss, Britten and Nielsen

Evidently a mixed affair, not helped by the late indisposition of Lisa Milne:

http://www.musicalcriticism.com/concerts/prom-19-0707.htm

L'amore dei tre Re opens at Opera Holland Park

One of the highlights of the year: Opera Holland Park have uncovered a lost masterpiece:

http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/ohp-re.htm

The Making of Music review

Hugo waded through all six hours of James Naughtie's new history of music:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-making-of-music.htm

Lucio Silla DVD and Madama Butterfly CD

The sensational latest release from ROH Heritage: Victoria de los Angeles in Madama Butterfly:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-roh-butterfly.htm

Not a captivating production, but a musically riveting DVD of Mozart's early opera seria Lucio Silla from Salzburg:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/dvd-silla.htm

Rigoletto: Royal Opera House, Patrizia Ciofi

A very mixed affair, the opening night of the current revival of Rigoletto at Covent Garden:
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/opera/roh-rigoletto.htm