21st century
Lichfield Festival 2016Saturday, 09 July 2016
You know, of course, why you should always choose the left leg of a roast partridge? Because that’s the leg the bird stands on when resting: it’s plumper, tastier and altogether more succulent. These things matter, and in Jean Francaix’s... Read more... |
Les Rencontres d'Arles 2016Friday, 08 July 2016
Nous avons Brexité but we are still welcome at the 47th Rencontres d'Arles. Each summer this beautiful French town gives itself over to an international photography festival which this year features around 40 exhibitions of varying sizes with... Read more... |
CD: Elza Soares – The Woman at the End of the WorldThursday, 02 June 2016
When producer Guilherme Kastrup asked this 78-year-old Brazilian icon what she wanted this album to be about she replied, “Sex and blackness.” Listening to the end result makes one wonder if she was referring to blackness as the colour of her skin... Read more... |
4.48 Psychosis, Royal Opera, Lyric HammersmithWednesday, 25 May 2016
New operas are a risky business, or so the Royal Opera’s past experience teaches us. For years, visiting the company’s Linbury Studio Theatre was like rolling the dice while on a losing streak: vain, desperate hope followed inevitably by... Read more... |
BCMG, Galbreath, Adrian Boult Hall BirminghamSunday, 22 May 2016
So this is the end of the Adrian Boult Hall, due to be demolished in a matter of weeks. And to be honest, all but the most nostalgic of Birmingham concertgoers will find it hard to mourn. It’s no architectural masterpiece – nothing like John Madin’s... Read more... |
Lill, Moscow State Symphony Orchestra, Kogan, Symphony Hall BirminghamTuesday, 17 May 2016
Behemoth Dances. Who dances? You know, Behemoth, the huge demonic black cat who cakewalks through Stalin’s Moscow in Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita spreading mayhem and magic; the spirit – as quoted by Bulgakov, and taken by Stephen Johnson as... Read more... |
CD: Brian Eno - The ShipWednesday, 27 April 2016
Brian Eno has consistently explored the frontiers of music, bravely charting new territories of sound in a way that’s never left his audience behind. He can bring his finely attuned ears and inspiration to the likes of Coldplay or U2 while, with a... Read more... |
Zaha Hadid: 'The most extraordinarily gifted architect of her generation'Monday, 04 April 2016
A lot of colour has drained out of world architecture with the unexpected death last week of Dame Zaha Hadid, aged 65. She was a vivid personality who made astonishing buildings, succeeding as an Iraqi-born woman in gaining worldwide renown from her... Read more... |
LSO Futures, Roth, BarbicanMonday, 14 March 2016
How can an orchestra perform the music of the future? This was the question posed by Francois-Xavier Roth, congenial maestro and charming educator, as the standard concerto for platform arrangers played out behind him on the floor of LSO St Luke’s.... Read more... |
Akhnaten, English National OperaSaturday, 05 March 2016
What a load of balls. No, seriously. Globes, orbs, moons, suns, juggling balls, beach balls, er balls balls: if it’s spherical and pregnant with symbolism then you’re bound to find it somewhere on the props table for English National Opera’s... Read more... |
100 Works of Art That Will Define Our AgeSunday, 24 January 2016
The back cover of my book makes a big claim. “This book dares”, it says, “to predict the 100 most significant works of art made since the 1990s.” Although the tagline is an entirely accurate description of what I attempt to accomplish in my study of... Read more... |
Sherlock: The Abominable Bride, BBC OneSaturday, 02 January 2016
Since Benedict Cumberbatch is now one of the world's most in-demand actors, and his sidekick Martin Freeman isn't doing too badly either, getting them on a set together is like trying to get Simon & Garfunkel to do a reunion. Hence Sherlock... Read more... |
