McCrystal’s too merry Glyndebourne Merry Widow lacks the depth it deserves despite a fine ensemble

United KingdomUnited Kingdom Franz Lehár’s The Merry Widow: Soloists, The Glyndebourne Chorus, London Philharmonic Orchestra / John Wilson (conductor). Filmed (directed by Rhodri Huw) at the Glyndebourne Opera House and broadcast on BBC Four on 25.12.2024 and available on iPlayer. (JPr)

The entrance of Hanna Glawari (Danielle de Niese) in The Merry Widow Act I © Tristram Kenton

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Masterly twentieth-century Czech string quartets by the Janáček Quartet closes Festival Janáček Brno 2024

Czech RepublicCzech Republic Festival Janáček Brno 2024 [7] – Kaprálová, Janáček, Novák: Janáček Quartet [Miloš Vacek, Richard Kružík [violins], Jan Řezníček [viola], Lukáš Polák [cello]). Villa Löw-Beer, 24.11.2024. (GT)

Janáček Quartet © Marek Olbrzymek

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Wonderful Brno recital of Moravian poetry set to music by Janáček and his musical friends

Czech RepublicCzech Republic Festival Janáček Brno 2024 [6]Martinů, Janáček, Dvořák: Feng-yűn Song (soprano), Lenka Navrátilová (piano). Leoš Janáček Memorial, Brno, 24.11.2024. (GT)

Soprano Feng-yűn Song and pianist Lenka Navrátilová © Marek Olbrzymek

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Brno’s Children’s Choir’s uplifting and vivid singing of Petr Eben’s song cycle

Czech RepublicCzech Republic Festival Janáček Brno 2024 [5] – Eben: Brno Children’s Choir (choirmaster: Valeria Maťašova), Jitka Houfova (piano) Pavel Čenĕk Vaculík (narrator). Reduta Theatre (Mozart Hall), 23.11.2024. (GT)

Choirmaster Valeria Maťašova and the Brno Children’s Choir © Jakub Jíra

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Festival Janáček Brno 2024 closes with a terrific staging of The Cunning Little Vixen

Czech RepublicCzech Republic Festival Janáček Brno 2024 [4] – Janáček, The Cunning Little Vixen: Soloists, Brno Children’s Chorus, Chorus and Orchestra of Janáček Opera / Marko Ivanović (conductor). Janáček Theatre, Brno, 24.11.2024. (GT)

Adam Plachetka (Forester) © Marek Olbrzymek

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