Festivals

A gripping, inspiring Three Choirs Festival performance of a major work by Francis Pott

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Three Choirs Festival 2023 [5] – Svane, Bax, Holst, Pott: April Fredrick (soprano), Clare Presland (mezzo-soprano), Marcus Farnsworth (baritone), Three Choirs Festival Chorus, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra / Adrian Partington (conductor). Gloucester Cathedral, 25.7.2023. (JQ)

April Fredrick, Clare Presland and Marcus Farnsworth © James O’Driscoll

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International Chamber Music Academy returns to Ochsenhausen’s idyllic paths and gardens

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GermanyGermany Second International Chamber Music Academy at the Landesakademie in Ochsenhausen [2]: in partnership with the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. Faculty members Matthias Buchholz (viola), Hillel Zori (cello), François Benda (clarinet), Elina Gotsouliak and Sun Hee Kim (pianos), and students. Kloster Bibliothekssaal, Ochsenhausen, 15.7.2023. (LV)

Oboist Leonid Surkov, bassoonist Luca Dovalina and pianist Jascha Silverstein play Poulenc © Saxton Rose

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Freshly conceived, brilliant reading of Beethoven’s Ninth performed at the Proms to the highest standard

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Prom 12 – Helen Grime, Beethoven: Eleanor Dennis (soprano), Karen Cargill (mezzo-soprano), Nicky Spence (tenor), Michael Mofidian (bass-baritone), BBC Symphony Chorus, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra / Ryan Wigglesworth (conductor). Royal Albert Hall, London, 23.7.2023. (CC)

Ryan Wigglesworth conducts the BBC SSO © BBC/Sisi Burn

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Tanglewood’s superb production brings Handel’s masque Acis and Galatea to life

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United StatesUnited States Tanglewood 2023 [2] – Handel, Acis and Galatea, a Masque: Soloists, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra / Richard Egarr (conductor and harpsichord). Seiji Ozawa Hall, Tanglewood, Massachusetts, 20.7.2023. (CSa)

Nicholas Mulroy (Acis), Dashon Burton (Polyphemus), and Hera Hyesang Park (Galatea) © Hilary Scott

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Riveting performances crowned the last day of the Vattnäs Chamber Music Festival

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SwedenSweden Vattnäs Chamber Music Festival 2023 [3] – From Here to Eternity – Music That Survives Everything: Anna Sjögren (recitation), Lovisa Huledal (mezzo-soprano), Karin Mobacke (soprano), Amelia Jakobsson (soprano), Anna Larsson (contralto), Göran Eliasson (tenor), Kristoffer Töyrä (bass-baritone), Johannes Marmén (violin), Amalie Stalheim (cello), Eelis Malmivirta (French horn), Octavian Leyva Dragomir (piano), Martin Sturfält (piano), Michael Engström (piano), Marmén Quartet, Vattnäs Strings, Earendel Quintet / Fredrik Burstedt (conductor). Vattnäs Concert Barn, 15.7.2023. (GF)

Johannes Marmén, Martin Sturfält, Amelia Jakobsson and Amalie Stalheim performing Shostakovich © Göran Forsling

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A varied, stimulating and very long Vattnäs Chamber Music Festival day

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SwedenSweden Vattnäs Chamber Music Festival [2] – From Stenhammar to Bernstein – Old and New Music Carved on Stone for the Future: Vattnäs Strings, Agnes Auer (soprano), Tobias Westman (tenor), Anna Baek Christensen (soprano), Martin Sturfält (piano), Michael Engström (piano), Octavian Leyva Dragomir (piano), Jacob Kellermann (guitar), Anders Paulsson (soprano saxophone). Vattnäs Concert Barn, 14.7.2023. (GF)

Anders Paulsson playing Piazzolla © Göran Forsling

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The Pilgrim’s Progress is a fine achievement by British Youth Opera at the Three Choirs Festival

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United KingdomUnited Kingdom Three Choirs Festival 2023 [4] – Vaughan Williams, The Pilgrim’s Progress: Soloists, British Youth Opera, Three Choirs Festival Youth Choir, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra / Charlotte Corderoy (conductor). Gloucester Cathedral, 24.7.2023. (JQ)

The Pilgrim’s Progress (Vanity Fair scene) © James O’Driscoll

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