The Excursions of Mr Brouček review – Simon Rattle embraces Janáček’s baffling but beautiful opera
Die Walküre review – Kosky’s formidable staging is full of magic and menace
April 2025
Hallelujah Junction album review – two-piano journey through 20th-century Americana
The duo’s debut album is a finely balanced and imaginative combination, with John Adams’ eclectic title work the standout
Nicola Benedetti: Beethoven’s Violin Concerto album review – warm and deliciously playful throughout
Benedetti and the Aurora, who play from memory, have fun and freedom here, augmenting the role of the drum in an ebullient recording
Yunchan Lim review – young pianist’s Bach dazzles and intrigues
In the Korean musician’s first UK performance of the Goldberg Variations his playing felt simultaneously spontaneous and impeccably thought throug
March 2025
Errollyn Wallen: Orchestral Works album review – momentum and drive from the Master of the King’s Music
Dating from 2000 to 2023, referencing folk dance, spirituals and house music and including works for voices, there’s real of variety and quality here
Dvořák and Price String Quintets album review – a pairing of passion and sparkle
Dvořák’s Quintet No 2 in A major is full of charm, while Florence Price’s Piano Quintet in A minor is fleet of foot; this dream-team of chamber music makes them an excellent match
Alexandros Kapelis/Berliner Barock Solisten review – ravishing period immersion in Bach’s keyboard concertos
Nash Ensemble at 60 review – world premieres and evocative old favourites
Levit/Budapest Festival Orchestra/Fischer review – edgy Prokofiev baffles and compels
February 2025
Sibelius and Barber: Violin Concertos album review – Renaud Capuçon’s golden-toned glamour
The violinist’s golden-toned playing and meaty interpretations are matched by an orchestra that packs plenty of punch under Daniel Harding
Abel Selaocoe: Hymns of Bantu album review – a joyous and indivisible blend of styles
Cellist and vocalist Selaocoe’s new album is easy to enjoy with its seamless mix of throat singing, Bach, a southern African hymn and elements of jazz
Commemorating Shostakovich review – vivid and nervy chamber music with Kissin a sensitive voice
The Marriage of Figaro review – Mozart as hotel farce is sparky but scrappy
BBCSO/Biss/Hrůša review – radiance, juggernaut power and soulfulness
January 2025
Khachaturian: Piano Concerto album review – giant Technicolor works given the big-screen treatment
Jean-Yves Thibaudet, with Gustavo Dudamel and the LA Phil, are good fits for this theatrical piano concerto
Brahms: Ein Deutsches Requiem album review – humanist masterpiece remains earthbound
Baritone Brian Mulligan impresses in Edward Gardner’s recording that is stronger on the work’s consolation than its celebration
RPO/Giltburg/Petrenko review – intimate Beethoven and exhilarating Stravinsky from an orchestra on top form
Leif Ove Andsnes review – an insightful champion returns Tveitt to the Wigmore stage
Ruth Gipps: Orchestral Works vol 3 album review – an ambitious symphony and a bittersweet miniature
