Sydney’s leading contemporary performance venue seeks residents interested in presenting new Australian work. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in
An attractive collection of largely Neapolitan songs given bracing treatment by the talented Señor Flórez.
Editor’s Choice, Jan/Feb 2016 – Vocal & Choral “Those who find everything beautiful are now in danger of finding nothing beautiful.” So wrote Theodor Adorno in Minima Moralia. And yet according to composer Cary Ratcliff, the great Chilean poet Pablo Neruda “wrote four volumes of odes to ordinary objects”. Of course that’s not all he wrote; Neruda was after all one of the greatest love poets of all time, and the other two composers featured on this recording of choral settings of Neruda’s poetry have availed themselves of some of his most moving love poems. Texas-based vocal ensemble Conspirare’s director Craig Hella Johnson writes in a booklet note that he hopes these settings “can serve as a conduit for an ever deepening experience with this sublime and powerful poetry.” And indeed they may, so convincingly do they translate Neruda’s delicate emotional chiaroscuro into accessible music of great lyrical potency. In Ratcliff’s Ode to Common Things, it is clear that the poet “loves all things” because of their connections with humanity: whether a bed, a guitar, a loaf of bread or a pair of scissors, they are for the… Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already…
The Brisbane Baroque founder speaks out over suggestions the new music festival is unwanted and plagiarised. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in
An afternoon opera sing-along didn’t quite go to plan for one enthusiastic opera fan in Amsterdam. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in
Hobart cements its place on Australia’s cultural map, with Mofo and Dark Mofo festivals winning a major gong. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in
The score of a cantata believed to be a collaboration between the alleged rivals has been rediscovered. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in
Cunning Dutchmen give the usual suspects a run for their money.
The British classical website’s annual analysis of the musical endeavours of 2015 reflects the Aussie love of opera. Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in
Are we failing music students as a result of poor staffing priorities? Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log in
Kentridge and Goerne's gripping Transvaal trek both hypnotises and provokes.
How gratifying it is to enjoy the fruits of this generation’s lively interest in the art song, and in particular, German lieder. Recently, Australian audiences have had the good fortune to soak up the superb artistry of Ian Bostridge and Florian Boesch, two of this era’s greatest singers. Nor should we forget that outstanding singing is only one side of the lieder equation. Splendid accompanists are also indispensable in consummating the marriage between text and music. Whilst current concert-hall performances of lieder undoubtedly bring huge musical rewards, they are obviously scaled to the performance space. With the piano often on full stick, singers are not afraid to calibrate their delivery accordingly. On the other hand, it is a pleasure to be reminded by Padmore and Bezuidenhout of lieder’s more intimate origins. The South African born fortepianist (who began his studies in Australia and is back here this year guest leading the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra) uses a sweet-toned instrument by Rosenberger from about 1820 that is the perfect complement to Padmore’s lyrical tenor. Together they explore the tentative beginnings of lieder through the works of Haydn and Mozart, amongst which… Continue reading Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Already…
Purcell’s Revenge is based on a live gig, and Concerto Caledonia again teams up with folk musicians.
