Beethoven: Cello Sonatas Steven Isserlis (cello), Robert Levin (fortepiano) Hyperion CDA 67981/2 (2 CDs)Fri Jan 31 2014 - 00:00
Bach cut with Mendelssohn: a bit like painting over early artworksAdulterating Bach with Mendelssohn at a concert at the NCH was dreadfully misguidedWed Jan 29 2014 - 01:00
The strange figures and empty chairs of the Arts CouncilThe Arts Council insists that transparency is important, but it’s sadly lacking in its funding decisionsWed Jan 22 2014 - 01:00
Curtain call for Cork, a city proud of its operatic leaningsCork had the first production of 2014, and features in two successful Arts Council funding applicationsWed Jan 15 2014 - 01:00
Bartók: Miraculous Mandarin suite; Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta; Four Pieces Op 12Fri Jan 10 2014 - 00:00
Room at the top: another departure from RTÉ’s performing groupsSeveral key vacancies persist at the top of RTÉ’s performing groups, and one man is currently covering three rolesWed Jan 08 2014 - 01:00
Les Amis: Elizabeth Hainen (harp), Jeffrey Khaner (flute), Robert Diaz (viola), IRIS OrchestraFri Jan 03 2014 - 00:00
Bach: Christmas Oratorio Choir of Trinity College Cambridge, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment/Stephen Layton Hyperion CDA 68031/2 (2 CDs)Fri Dec 27 2013 - 10:36
Grieg: Piano Concerto; Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No 3 Nikolai Lugansky, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin/Kent Nagano Naïve AM 210Fri Dec 27 2013 - 10:34
Beethoven: Cantata on the Death of Emperor Joseph II; Symphony No 2 San Francisco Symphony Chorus, San Francisco Symphony/Michael Tilson Thomas SFS Media SFS 0058Fri Dec 27 2013 - 10:32
An opera about bankers – the timing could not have been betterThe ‘AntiMidas’ cast of four double as a Greek chorus and the media, presented as a wild line-up of TV punditsWed Dec 18 2013 - 01:00
The Irish Canon: mad ambition, madder promotional strategyThe stated aim of a new concert series is to create a new canon of Irish works and make them repertoire standards. Good luck with thatWed Dec 11 2013 - 01:00
Leonard Bernstein: behind the batonThe Leonard Bernstein Letters, edited by Nigel SimeoneSat Dec 07 2013 - 01:00
Tricky handover as ConTempo Quartet take RTÉ Cork spot from VanbrughPerhaps it is time to revisit Music Network’s idea of a series of quartet residencies around the countryWed Dec 04 2013 - 01:00
How Elwes met Britten: ‘I was a bit of a thug, but I could sing’The tenor John Elwes met Benjamin Britten as a young chorister at Westminster Cathedral, the two sharing a penchant for schoolboy humourThu Nov 28 2013 - 01:00
Key players: a feast for piano fans in Lucerne and DublinIn a single week, it was possible to hear two Dublin International Piano Competition winners playing Chopin’s ‘Études’Wed Nov 27 2013 - 01:00
Bloch: Violin Sonata No 2; Janacek: Violin Sonata; Shostakovich: Violin SonataFri Nov 22 2013 - 00:00
John Adams: Doctor Atomic Symphony; Short Ride in a Fast Machine; HarmonielehreFri Nov 22 2013 - 00:00
Leif Ove Andsnes: ‘the greatest pianist in the world’ gets to know BeethovenThe great Norwegian pianist is focusing on Beethoven rather belatedly. ‘I haven’t been avoiding him,’ he saysThu Nov 21 2013 - 01:00
Fill the vacuum: concerts without context leave listeners none the wiserProgramme notes – or the lack thereof – at recent concerts have me lamenting sins of omissionWed Nov 20 2013 - 01:00
No excuses for Music Network grants debacleWhy has Music Network allowed applicants for grants it is overseeing to sit on its judging panel?Tue Nov 12 2013 - 18:48
Kaija Saariaho: the Finnish composer who lets others play with her workThe composer’s attitude to combining her ballet, which is coming to Dublin, with a video she hasn’t seen was ‘why not?’Fri Nov 08 2013 - 01:00
