United Kingdom Ravel, Fauré/Despax, Despax: Emmanuel Despax (piano). Bechstein Hall, London, 7.3.2025. (CC)
A truly satisfying Bechstein Hall recital by Emmanuel Despax
Newsletter
Oxford Opera Company stage Puccini’s Tosca at Oxford Playhouse – 28 & 29 March
Oxford Opera Company’s TOSCA at the OXFORD PLAYHOUSE
Friday 28 & Saturday 29 March 2025
Oxford Playhouse is excited to announce a brand-new production of Puccini’s iconic opera Tosca, presented by Oxford Opera Company.
Following the success of their 2022 production of The Magic Flute, the company will return to The Playhouse stage on Friday 28 and Saturday 29 March with a fresh take on Puccini’s classic opera. The brand-new production will be sung in English and will feature a new translation commissioned exclusively for the company.
Lise Davidsen triumphs as Beethoven’s Leonore at the Met
United States Beethoven, Fidelio: Soloists, Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Orchestra / Susanna Mälkki (conductor). Metropolitan Opera, New York, 4.3.2025. (RP)
Hamburg State Opera’s 2025-26 season
‘No risk, no fun’
2025/26 season at Hamburgische Staatsoper under new leadership team
For full details and how to book tickets CLICK HERE
A new generation of leaders takes over at Hamburg State Opera, all in their early to mid-forties: artistic director Tobias Kratzer, general music director Omer Meir Wellber, and Demis Volpi, artistic director of the ballet company (appointed in the summer of 2024). Managing director Dr Ralf Klöter praised their ability to achieve balance of continuity and new departure, while Dr Carsten Brosda, the city state of Hamburg’s senator for culture and media, emphasised how much Hamburg’s citizens were looking forward to the developments at their opera house. Indicative of the collaborative spirit of the season, the opera, ballet and concert departments gave a joint press conference, and their season is represented in a single combined brochure.
LPO at the Royal Festival Hall: Fleming’s artistry in Richard Strauss and Guggeis’s propulsive Wagner
United Kingdom Wagner, R. Strauss – Renée Fleming sings Strauss: Renée Fleming (soprano), London Philharmonic Orchestra / Thomas Guggeis (conductor). Royal Festival Hall, London, 5.3.2025. (JPr)
Distinguished Nielsen and barnstorming Rachmaninoff from Daniel Raiskin in Vancouver
Canada Vasks, Rachmaninoff, Nielsen: Alexei Volodin (piano), Vancouver Symphony Orchestra / Daniel Raiskin (conductor). Orpheum Theatre, Vancouver, 21.2.2025. (GN)
Violinist Simone Lamsma’s thrilling Brahms with the NSO in Dublin
Ireland R. Schumann, Brahms: Simone Lamsma (violin), National Symphony Orchestra / Alexander Shelley (conductor). National Concert Hall, Dublin, 28.2.2025. (RB)
An epic Shostakovich Marathon in Southampton, in aid of Cancer Research
United Kingdom Shostakovich: Jinah Shim, Keelan Carew, Paul Ingram (piano), Mark Cox (trumpet), Austin Lam (cello), Orchestra / Craig Lawton and Paul Ingram (conductors). Turner Sims Concert Hall, Southampton, 2.3.2025. (CK)
