A beautifully presented programme radiating professionalism and polish.

Russian conductor Semyon Bychkov is a life-long Tchaikovsky devotee, and the Tchaikovsky Project is a personal homage to the composer with whom he first fell in love. The Project consists of performances in London and New York (initially), plus recordings with the Czech Philharmonic for Decca. The first of these is the monumental “Pathetique”, a musical autobiography of Tchaikovsky’s short life of 53 years. Its devastating final movement has been the source of much speculation, but for Bychkov, “it’s obvious to me the whole piece is a protest against death… the last movement tells us that the triumph [of the previous movement] is just an illusion. Death can’t be avoided, but the anger in the music tells us Tchaikovsky refuses to accept it.” It’s paired with another slice of doom-laden anguish, the instantly recognisable and gorgeously lyrical Fantasy Overture, inspired by art’s most famous lovers, Romeo and Juliet. Bychkov immersed himself in Tchaikovsky’s letters and other archival material and insisted on “unusually luxurious” recording conditions in order to “invest everything” in these sessions. The result is a robust, lush reading, deeply Romantic with well-paced climaxes… Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log…

Shostakovich wrote his First Violin Concerto in 1947-48 while persecuted and bullied by Andrei Zhdanov. The Soviet Central Committee secretary announced his decree on music, condemning formalism and naming Shostakovich specifically, while the composer was writing the Scherzo, imprinted with the jagged musical motif based on his initials, DSCH, used here for the first time. The concerto – written, like the second, for David Oistrakh – wasn’t performed until 1955, once Zhdanov and Stalin were dead. It is these tensions, fears and anxieties that German violinist Peter Frank Zimmermann brings to the fore in his agonised performances of Shostakovich’s Violin Concertos with the NDR Elbphilharmonie – the renamed NDR Sinfonieorchester – led by Alan Gilbert and recorded live at the Laeiszhalle, Hamburg in 2012 and 2015 respectively. In the First Concerto Zimmermann bases his performance of the solo part of the autograph manuscript – which includes Shostakovich’s own metronome marks and bowing instructions – rather than the often heard version edited by Oistrakh. He also uses the composer’s preferred opus number – 77 – in keeping with the work’s date of composition rather than publication. Above the restive strings of the opening Nocturne, Zimmermann’s sound has a rich,… Continue reading…

The British conductor talks about the importance of mystery in his new Elgar disc, Limelight’s Recording of the Month. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in

A dignified performance, but does it come close to Bernstein's Enigma?

Trifonov storms the heavens in an evening of young men's masterpieces.

Kicked out of the seminary, the Willoughby Symphony's Composer-in-Residence channels the folk music of his Latin heritage.

Robertson’s wild, dancing programme is a fascinating study in orchestral colours and textures.

Indonesian and Western music intermingle in a haunting accompaniment to Garin Nugroho’s horror film Satan Jawa. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in

The composer and his wife Marta have been awarded the Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award on his 91st birthday and their 70th anniversary. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in

Alondra de la Parra delivers provocative, persuasive Mahler in her first official outing as MD.

Vengerov launches Robertson's fourth season with a touch of Russian fire.