Latest news
Andrew Mellor on ‘Albert Herring’
In this centenary year of Benjamin Britten’s birth, Opera Australia is presenting his satirical gem Albert Herring in the Joan Sutherland Opera Theatre in August. Conducted by Anthony Legge, Kanen Breen as Herring and Jacqueline Dark as Lady Billows head a superb ensemble which includes Sian Pendry, Dominica Matthews, Elvira Fatykhova, Michael Lewis, John Longmuir, Conal Coad, Roxane Hislop…
Daniel Harding to conduct LSO in Sir Colin Davis Proms tribute.
Recently the music world mourned the death of conductor Sir Colin Davis, a world figure in his field and the longest serving conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra. At 85, he was due to conducted a BBC Proms concert this year. Taking over the baton for this concert by the LSO will be Daniel Harding whom we will see in…
Opera in Australia – headed where?
The Australian reports that singers on 12 month contracts with Opera Australia will be rested for upto 12 weeks without pay in 2013. A representative of Actors’ Equity claims that this is to make way for the musical The King and I; OA artistic director Lyndon Terracini says it is due to “casting and financial considerations.”…
The Goldner String Quartet: ‘one of the finest around’
The Goldner String Quartet is spending this week as Ensemble-in-Residence at the Oxford May Music festival. Their opening performance at the festival earned a glowing review from Andrew Clements of The Guardian who said “(their) appearances confirm them as one of the finest string quartets around today.” You can hear them perform in Sydney in late…
James Rhodes: On being a concert pianist
“My life involves endless hours of repetitive and frustrating practising, lonely hotel rooms, dodgy pianos, aggressively bitchy reviews, isolation, confusing airline reward programmes, physiotherapy, stretches of nervous boredom (counting ceiling tiles backstage as the house slowly fills up) punctuated by short moments of extreme pressure” says pianist James Rhodes. He still believes “without a shadow of…
The passion in wagner
Wagner-mania continues this month with this feature from Paul Mason in The Guardian.
Latest reviews
CD Review: ‘Smile’ The Idea of North
Celebrating 20 years of stylish music making, ARIA Award winning a capella quartet The Idea of North have released Smile, their 10th album on the ABC Classics label. The blend of voice, harmony and crystalline delivery is nothing less than listeners have come to expect from this ensemble. Soprano Sally Cameron, alto Naomi Crellin, tenor Nick Begbie and bass…
CD Review: Leonard Grigoryan’s ‘Solo’
Guitarist Leonard Grigoryan has made an emphatic statement with the release of his first solo CD, not surprisingly called Solo. Part of a brilliant music family, Leonard has appeared with his brother Slava as an extremely successful and highly regarded duo, The Grigoryan Brothers. With this CD, he demonstrates that he is as accomplished a solo artist…