19th century
Victoria, Series Finale, ITVMonday, 10 October 2016
One down, eight childbirths to go. The young Queen Victoria was delivered of her first child at the climax of this moreish opening series, and the bells of Windsor tolled for joy. ITV, debutant scriptwriter Daisy Goodwin and biographical consultant... Read more... |
Beethoven Ninth, RLPO, Petrenko, Philharmonic Hall, LiverpoolWednesday, 28 September 2016
The new season at the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic is focusing on revolutionaries. Bach, Beethoven and Berlioz all feature strongly over the next few months, as will Stravinsky and – where else but Liverpool? – The Beatles.The RLPO has another... Read more... |
Free State of JonesWednesday, 28 September 2016
Given the fractious state of American politics, perhaps it's a suitable moment for a movie taking a look back at the American Civil War. However, despite heaving at the seams with good intentions and noble sentiments, Gary Ross's Free State of Jones... Read more... |
Kew's Forgotten Queen, BBC FourTuesday, 27 September 2016
The indefatigable Victorian spinster Marianne North (1830-1890) is the most interesting artist you've never heard of. The upper-middle-class Ms North thought marriage a terrible experiment, and with her single state allowing her control of her... Read more... |
First Person: Steven Isserlis on Schumann's advice to the youngSunday, 25 September 2016
All musicians have particular musical passions, composers, styles or genres to which they are irresistibly drawn. I have many – almost too many at times; but among the most enduring is my love for the music, writing and personality of Robert... Read more... |
Norma, Royal OperaTuesday, 13 September 2016
You wait ages for a Norma, and then three come along at once. English National Opera saw something nasty in the woodshed back in February with their 19th-century American take on Bellini, while up at the Edinburgh Festival this summer the opera’s... Read more... |
Prom 68: Semiramide, OAE, ElderMonday, 05 September 2016
Between the Berlin Philharmonic, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra and Simón Bolivar Symphony Orchestra it has been a big week at the Proms, in every sense. Scope and scale have been the watchwords for the orchestral tectonics that have taken place, the... Read more... |
Prom 62: Skride, BBCSO, YoungThursday, 01 September 2016
Branding, as any marketing manager will tell you, is everything when it comes to selling, and when it comes to selling, classical music is no different from cars, cornflakes or shampoo. It explains why a Mahler orchestral song-cycle would fill the... Read more... |
Victoria, ITVMonday, 29 August 2016
From the schoolroom straight to the throne: it was a rapid rise for 18-year-old Victoria, and managing as monarch wasn’t helped when everyone around you had their own agenda and was raring to act on your behalf. Moving nicely from TARDIS to palace... Read more... |
Prom 55: Hannigan, CBSO, Gražinytė-TylaSunday, 28 August 2016
If ever there was a Prom to put London’s classical crowd in their place, to remind us (as those outside the capital so frequently and justifiably do) that the city isn’t the be-all and end-all of concert-going, then this was it. It featured three... Read more... |
theartsdesk at the Rosendal Festival: Schubert above a fjordWednesday, 24 August 2016
More than just a great and serious pianist, Leif Ove Andsnes is a Mensch. His special gift in recent years has been to bring young musicians just establishing their careers together with star players like himself in beautiful and/or interesting... Read more... |
Ripper Street, Series 4, BBC TwoTuesday, 23 August 2016
H Division has a new home in Whitechapel that basks in the white heat of the technological revolution. The police station not only has a telephone but a “microreader” that allows the user to check thousands of miniaturised card indexes. Alas, a wry... Read more... |
