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Laurence Vittes

Laurence Vittes

Laurence was born and grew up in Los Angeles; his father was a writer and his mother a teacher. He trained as a cellist, a librarian and a critic. His company was a major supplier to the music and recordings collections of the Library of Congress, Bibliothèque Nationale, British Library, Stanford, Harvard and Yale. He introduced French Harmonia Mundi, Hyperion, Chandos and Naxos to the North American market. Laurence believes that writing about music unleashes the potential of the classical music industry. He writes for the Huffington Post, Gramophone, Bachtrack, Strings, Audiophile Audition, and the Southern California Early Music Society.

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Amitai Pati (Belmonte) and Jessica Pratt (Konstanze) © Vincent Pontet

Mozart blows a fuse in Paris: Die Entführung aus dem Serail at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées

By Laurence Vittes, 06 June 2026

Jessica Pratt lights up the Parisian skies with her Konstanze in Florent Siaud’s new production of Mozart's Singspiel at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées.

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Amitai Pati (Belmonte) and Jessica Pratt (Konstanze) © Vincent Pontet

Mozart blows a fuse: Entführung at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées

By Laurence Vittes

Tarmo Peltokoski conducts the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse © Romain Alcaraz

Ambition meets the Philharmonie: Peltokoski and Kantorow in Beethoven and Mahler

By Laurence Vittes, 02 June 2026

Two prodigies, with a surplus of imagination and more interest in the moment than in creating long arcs of music, join the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse in Paris.

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Tarmo Peltokoski conducts the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse © Romain Alcaraz

Ambition meets the Philharmonie: Peltokoski and Kantorow in Paris

By Laurence Vittes

Yuja Wang and the Los Angeles Philharmonic © Elizabeth Asher

Shock, spectacle and endurance: Yuja Wang and Thomas Adès at full tilt

By Laurence Vittes, 08 February 2026

If Prokofiev’s original intention in his Second Piano Concerto was shock and awe, Yuja Wang gives exactly the right performance with the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

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Yuja Wang and the Los Angeles Philharmonic © Elizabeth Asher

Shock, spectacle and endurance: Yuja Wang and Thomas Adès at full tilt

By Laurence Vittes

Stéphane Denève © Genevoève Caron

Cadenzas, Cymbals and Continuity: Denève, Lewis and the Netherlands Radio Phil in Utrecht

By Laurence Vittes, 23 January 2026

At TivoliVredenburg’s Grote Zaal: a program of Beethoven, Liszt, and Schumann that, intentionally or not, invited reflection on long-range musical continuity.

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Stéphane Denève © Genevoève Caron

Denève, Lewis and the Netherlands Radio Phil in Utrecht

By Laurence Vittes

Gustavo Gimeno © Marco Borggreve

Ligeti shines at Disney Hall under Gustavo Gimeno's baton

By Laurence Vittes, 14 December 2025

Renaud Capuçon adds a degree of theatricality to his Mozart with the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

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Gustavo Gimeno © Marco Borggreve

Ligeti shines at Disney Hall under Gimeno's baton

By Laurence Vittes

Zubin Mehta conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic © Timothy Norris (2024), courtesy of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association

Coming home to Bruckner: Zubin Mehta’s late-style Eighth Symphony with the LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes, 09 November 2025

At 89, the former Music Director returns to the Los Angeles Philharmonic to conduct Bruckner's Eighth Symphony, revealing the music’s interior world.

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Zubin Mehta conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic © Timothy Norris (2024), courtesy of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association

Coming home to Bruckner: Zubin Mehta’s late-style Eighth in LA

By Laurence Vittes

Gustavo Dudamel conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic © Timothy Norris, courtesy of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association

In his farewell season, Gustavo Dudamel turns inward with Mahler’s Resurrection

By Laurence Vittes, 12 October 2025

Gustavo Dudamel continues his farewell season with a taut, searching Mahler Resurrection at Disney Hall, a performance of clarity and humility that seeks communion with the composer’s restless soul.

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Gustavo Dudamel conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic © Timothy Norris, courtesy of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association

Dudamel turns inward with Mahler’s Resurrection in Los Angeles

By Laurence Vittes

Beatrice Rana © Flavio Ianniello

A gentle opening blaze: Schumann, Ravel and the heat at Beatrice Rana’s ‘Classiche Forme’

By Laurence Vittes, 13 July 2025

On a gracefully warm Lecce evening, radiant Schumann and Ravel’s austere shimmer, anchored by Beatrice Rana’s quiet authority and elegance.

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Beatrice Rana © Flavio Ianniello

Schumann, Ravel and the heat at Beatrice Rana’s ‘Classiche Forme’

By Laurence Vittes

Ryan Bancroft conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic © Elizabeth Asher

From ice to fire with Ryan Bancroft and the Los Angeles Philharmonic

By Laurence Vittes, 26 April 2025

Ryan Bancroft leads the LA Phil through Hillborg’s shimmering Sound Atlas, Mozart’s dramatic C minor concerto with Yeol Eum Son, and a fiery, full-throttle performance of Nielsen’s Fourth Symphony.

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Ryan Bancroft conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic © Elizabeth Asher

From ice to fire with Ryan Bancroft and the LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes

Ana María Martínez (Despina), Rihab Chaieb (Dorabella) and Erica Petrocelli (Fiordiligi) © Cory Weaver

Mozart meets Gatsby in LA Opera’s new Così fan tutte

By Laurence Vittes, 08 March 2025

Michael Cavanagh's sleek new production, designed by Erhard Rom and conducted by James Conlon, transforms the 18th-century opera into a Broadway musical, score by Mozart.

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Ana María Martínez (Despina), Rihab Chaieb (Dorabella) and Erica Petrocelli (Fiordiligi) © Cory Weaver

Mozart meets Gatsby in LA Opera’s new Così fan tutte

By Laurence Vittes

Lang Lang and the Los Angeles Philharmonic © Farah Sosa, courtesy of the LA Phil

Lang Lang's Rachmaninov steals the show at LA Phil's season-opening gala

By Laurence Vittes, 01 October 2024

At Disney Hall, Gustavo Dudamel and Lang Lang open the LA Phil's season with Rachmaninov and Ginastera.

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Lang Lang and the Los Angeles Philharmonic © Farah Sosa, courtesy of the LA Phil

Lang Lang steals the show at LA Phil's season-opening gala

By Laurence Vittes

Julia Fischer (with Yulianna Avdeeva two nights earlier) © Raphael Faux

Julia Fischer's conductor-free Beethoven shines at Gstaad Menuhin Festival

By Laurence Vittes, 16 July 2024

Intimate and powerful, Fischer's performance with Camerata Salzburg feels like a match made in heaven.

****1

Julia Fischer (with Yulianna Avdeeva two nights earlier) © Raphael Faux

Julia Fischer's Beethoven shines at Gstaad Menuhin Festival

By Laurence Vittes

James Ehnes and friends © Luc Lauzière

Brandenburg brilliance: Denis Brott's pièce de résistance at Montreal Chamber Music Festival

By Laurence Vittes, 23 June 2024

With the audience sitting on stage with the performers and in the choir loft, this feels like the kind of communal experience that Bach would have recognized.

*****

James Ehnes and friends © Luc Lauzière

Brandenburg brilliance at the Montreal Chamber Music Festival

By Laurence Vittes

Fidelio in Disney Hall © Timothy Norris

The LA Phil's Fidelio with Deaf West Theatre gives Beethoven a voice

By Laurence Vittes, 17 May 2024

Gustavo Dudamel's concept of a semi-staged Fidelio in collaboration with Deaf West Theatre gives a voice to Beethoven so enormous that those with hearing impairments can surely hear.

*****

Fidelio in Disney Hall © Timothy Norris

The LA Phil's Fidelio with Deaf West Theatre gives Beethoven a voice

By Laurence Vittes

Gustavo Dudamel and María Dueñas © Timothy Norris

Color and flash at Disney Hall in Gabriela Oritz' Violin Concerto

By Laurence Vittes, 12 May 2024

Gabriela Oritz' Altar de cuerda shows off Maria Dueñas' technical dazzle, her incomparable theatrical timing and her ability to completely commit to the music she is playing.

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Gustavo Dudamel and María Dueñas © Timothy Norris

Color and flash at Disney Hall in Gabriela Oritz' Violin Concerto

By Laurence Vittes

Kristiina Poska conducts the Flanders Symphony Orchestra © Wouter Maeckelberghe

Something not of this earth: Kristiina Poska on conducting Beethoven’s Eighth

By Laurence Vittes, 02 May 2024

The Chief Conductor of the Flanders Symphony Orchestra talks about their upcoming tour of the UK, the orchestra’s distinctively transparent sound, and her lithe and tactile approach to Beethoven.

Kristiina Poska conducts the Flanders Symphony Orchestra © Wouter Maeckelberghe

Not of this earth: Kristiina Poska on conducting Beethoven’s Eighth

By Laurence Vittes

Karina Canellakis © Mathias Bothor

Mozart Lite and standard issue Bartók from Canellakis and Barnatan at Disney Hall

By Laurence Vittes, 27 April 2024

Karina Canellakis comes along at just the right moment to see what a possible contender for the open LA Phil post could bring.

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Karina Canellakis © Mathias Bothor

Mozart-lite and standard issue Bartók from Canellakis and Barnatan

By Laurence Vittes

Michael Tilson Thomas © Timothy Norris

Michael Tilson Thomas returns to his LA roots

By Laurence Vittes, 30 March 2024

Tilson Thomas's Petrushka is refreshingly curious and occasionally magical, recalling Bernstein in his dazzling New York Phil days.

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Michael Tilson Thomas © Timothy Norris

Michael Tilson Thomas returns to his LA roots

By Laurence Vittes

Susanna Mälkki © Chris Lee

Mälkki and Trifonov disappoint in Brahms at Disney Hall

By Laurence Vittes, 25 February 2024

The best moments come at either end of this underwhelming LA Phil concert.

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Susanna Mälkki © Chris Lee

Mälkki and Trifonov disappoint in Brahms at Disney Hall

By Laurence Vittes

Ana María Martínez (Catrina) and Daniela Mack (Frida Kahlo) © Cory Weaver | LA Opera

The Last Dream of Frida and Diego: Gabriela Lena Frank's musical mural opens at LA Opera

By Laurence Vittes, 18 November 2023

Lorena Maza's vibrant production of Gabriela Lena Frank's 2021 opera about Frida Kahlo and her relationship with Diego Rivera reaches Los Angeles.

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Ana María Martínez (Catrina) and Daniela Mack (Frida Kahlo) © Cory Weaver | LA Opera

Frank's musical mural to Frida and Diego opens at LA Opera

By Laurence Vittes

Silvana Estrada and Gustavo Dudamel © Farah Sosa, provided courtesy of the LA Phil

Good intentions but a modest musical menu for the LA Phil's California Festival concert

By Laurence Vittes, 11 November 2023

Gustavo Dudamel's program ends with a nod to musical worlds outside Disney Hall as indie star Sylvan Estrada sings three songs pulsing with hope and energized by activism.

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Silvana Estrada and Gustavo Dudamel © Farah Sosa, provided courtesy of the LA Phil

Good intentions but a modest musical menu from the LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes

Jaime Martín conducts the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra © Brian Feinzimer

Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra relives the glory days with Mozart's “Jupiter” Symphony

By Laurence Vittes, 22 October 2023

Jaime Martín keeps Mozart's Jupiter flowing with the elegant, life-enhancing energy that characterized the LACO under Sir Neville Marriner... just as stylish with perhaps more temperament.

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Jaime Martín conducts the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra © Brian Feinzimer

LACO relives the glory days with Mozart's “Jupiter” Symphony

By Laurence Vittes

Hilary Hahn © OJ Slaughter

Saad Haddad premiere shines alongside Hilary Hahn at Walt Disney Concert Hall

By Laurence Vittes, 20 October 2023

Alpesh Chauhan conducts the LA Phil in the world premiere of Saad Haddad's cinematic Aysheen.

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Hilary Hahn © OJ Slaughter

Saad Haddad premiere shines alongside Hilary Hahn at LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes

Sheku Kanneh-Mason © Ollie Ali

Introspective Shostakovich from Sheku Kanneh-Mason and the LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes, 08 October 2023

Gustavo Dudamel pairs Stravinsky's Firebird with Villa-Lobos' rarely heard avian symphonic poem, Uirapurú.

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Sheku Kanneh-Mason © Ollie Ali

Introspective Shostakovich from Sheku Kanneh-Mason and the LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes

Lucas Meachem (Don Giovanni) © Craig T Mathew | LA Opera

Kasper Holten’s powerful, hi-tech Don Giovanni arrives at LA Opera

By Laurence Vittes, 23 September 2023

Lucas Meachem’s portrayal suggests a paraphrase of what another Hollywood Don Juan, Errol Flynn in 1949, said to his Leporello in excusing his escapades. “My dear friend, there’s a little bit of Don Giovanni in every man, and since I am Don Giovanni, there must be more of it in me!”

*****

Lucas Meachem (Don Giovanni) © Craig T Mathew | LA Opera

Kasper Holten’s powerful, hi-tech Don Giovanni arrives at LA Opera

By Laurence Vittes

Omer Meir Wellber © Oliver Killig

Dresden in love: Jan Vogler, Omer Meir Wellber and the Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini

By Laurence Vittes, 08 June 2023

The Dresden Music Festival public renew their love for Jan Vogler, who is joined by festival debutants from Parma.

*****

Omer Meir Wellber © Oliver Killig

Dresden in love: Vogler, Wellber and the Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini

By Laurence Vittes

Grigory Sokolov © Mary Slepkova | DG

Grigory Sokolov probes Purcell at the Concertgebouw

By Laurence Vittes, 04 June 2023

Purcell, Mozart... then a half hour of encores. Grigory Sokolov holds the Concertgebouw spellbound.

*****

Grigory Sokolov © Mary Slepkova | DG

Grigory Sokolov probes Purcell at the Concertgebouw

By Laurence Vittes

Hannu Lintu conducts the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra © Melle Meivogel

Hannu Lintu and the Netherlands Philharmonic wrestle for the soul of Shostakovich

By Laurence Vittes, 04 June 2023

“If you enjoy it... we are doing something horribly wrong”... ominous words to launch the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra's season finale at the Concertgebouw.

****1

Hannu Lintu conducts the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra © Melle Meivogel

Lintu and the Netherlands Phil wrestle for the soul of Shostakovich

By Laurence Vittes

The Elias Quartet: from left, Donald Grant, Sara Bitlloch, Marie Bitlloch, Simone van der Giessen. © Kaupo Kikkas

From early to late: the Elias Quartet presents a complete Beethoven cycle at Suntory Hall

By Laurence Vittes, 05 May 2023

The celebrated Elias String Quartet’s violinist Donald Grant and new violist Simone van der Giessen talk about performing Beethoven’s string quartet cycle in Japan for the first time.

The Elias Quartet: from left, Donald Grant, Sara Bitlloch, Marie Bitlloch, Simone van der Giessen. © Kaupo Kikkas

From early to late: the Elias Quartet’s complete Beethoven cycle

By Laurence Vittes

Osmo Vänskä © Lisa-Marie Mazzucco

Sonic glory in Osmo Vänskä's Sibelius with the Los Angeles Philharmonic

By Laurence Vittes, 08 April 2023

The pure and clean sound universe of Sibelius shines as Osmo Vänskä visits Disney Hall for the weekend.

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Osmo Vänskä © Lisa-Marie Mazzucco

Sonic glory in Osmo Vänskä's Sibelius with the LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes

Jan Vogler © Marco Grob

Connections between continents: Dresden Festival’s Jan Vogler

By Laurence Vittes, 04 April 2023

Cellist and Intendant of the Dresden Music Festival tells us about the festival’s new commissions, performing on stage, and connecting together musicians from around the world.

Jan Vogler © Marco Grob

Connections between continents: Dresden Festival’s Jan Vogler

By Laurence Vittes

John Adams © Riccardo Musacchio

Julia Bullock leads the cast with zest and spirit in John Adams' Girls of the Golden West

By Laurence Vittes, 27 January 2023

John Adams' opera, in its third revision since its 2017, receives an outstanding concert performance in Walt Disney Concert Hall under the composer's baton.

****1

John Adams © Riccardo Musacchio

Zest and spirit in Adams' Girls of the Golden West in Los Angeles

By Laurence Vittes

Filming in progress at the Utrecht Early Music Festival © Utrecht Early Music Festival

From Utrecht to your home: early music on demand on the new EMTV video platform

By Laurence Vittes, 12 May 2022

We spoke to Juliette Dufornee, EMTV's Deputy Director, about this new platform for early music lovers.

Filming in progress at the Utrecht Early Music Festival © Utrecht Early Music Festival

Early music on demand: new EMTV video platform

By Laurence Vittes

Berg overshadows Brahms and Mahler with Michael Tilson Thomas and the LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes, 14 January 2022

The Marsch in Berg's Three Orchestra Pieces was engulfed in the same chaos that devastated the composer's world a century ago and is now threatening to devastate ours.

****1

Berg overshadows Brahms and Mahler with Tilson Thomas and the LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes

World premiere of Julia Adolphe's new violin concerto with the LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes, 04 December 2021

Julia Adolphe's new violin concerto, Woven Loom, Silver Spindle built impact and structure out of the instability between the brightly spinning realm of the violin and the darker, all-encompassing framework of the orchestra.

****1

World premiere of Julia Adolphe's new violin concerto with the LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes

Książek Piano Duo, Agnieszka Zahaczewska-Książek and Krzysztof Książek © Wojciech Grzędziński

On a path of rediscovery: Książek Piano Duo at the Polish Music Competition

By Laurence Vittes, 13 October 2021

We spoke to the Polish duo, partners in life and on the piano bench, about their win in the chamber music division, their time on the competition's stage and what's important to them when performing together.

Książek Piano Duo, Agnieszka Zahaczewska-Książek and Krzysztof Książek © Wojciech Grzędziński

Path of rediscovery: Książek Piano Duo at the Polish Music Competition

By Laurence Vittes

Grafenegg Festival ends with bittersweet Strauss from Renée Fleming

By Laurence Vittes, 05 September 2021

The soprano is lifted to lyrical heights by the Filarmonia della Scala and Andrés Orozco-Estrada at the open air Wolkenturm on the final night of the festival.

*****

Grafenegg Festival ends with bittersweet Strauss from Renée Fleming

By Laurence Vittes

Technicolor Shostakovich and Brahms from the Munich Philharmonic at Grafenegg

By Laurence Vittes, 03 September 2021

A full frontal assault by Valery Gergiev on Brahms' First Symphony and Shostakovich's First Cello Concerto in explosive performances.

****1

Technicolor Shostakovich and Brahms from the Munich Philharmonic

By Laurence Vittes

Blomstedt and the Vienna Philharmonic hold steady in Schubert and Bruckner at Grafenegg

By Laurence Vittes, 02 September 2021

It was a pleasure to hear the Vienna Philharmonic in Herbert Blomstedt's deeply-invested nonagenarian's view of music he has been performing for nearly seven decades.

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Blomstedt and the Vienna Philharmonic hold steady in Grafenegg

By Laurence Vittes

Kirill Petrenko and the Berlin Philharmonic shine in glory at the Salzburg Festival

By Laurence Vittes, 29 August 2021

There was a knowing inevitability in the Berliners' athletic performance of Schubert's “Great” C major Symphony.

****1

Berlin Philharmonic shines in glory at the Salzburg Festival

By Laurence Vittes

Jessie Montgomery's Five Freedom Songs premieres in Sun Valley

By Laurence Vittes, 07 August 2021

With its spare instrumentation and brilliant last songb, Montgomery's Five Freedom Songs could become a regular on the circuit.

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Jessie Montgomery's Five Freedom Songs premieres in Sun Valley

By Laurence Vittes

Gemma New explores Gibson, Beethoven and Schumann with the LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes, 05 August 2021

The crossed warning searchlights were out and aircraft mostly stayed away, as Gemma New and the Los Angeles Philharmonic got to know each better in Beethoven and Schumann.

****1

Gemma New explores Gibson, Beethoven and Schumann with the LA Phil

By Laurence Vittes

Joan Tower's new Cello Concerto defies the heavens at the Colorado Music Festival

By Laurence Vittes, 25 July 2021

When Alisa Weilerstein stepped on stage to play Joan Tower's new cello concerto during a Colorado thunderstorm, it was a case of three elemental powers conspiring to create.

*****

Joan Tower's new Cello Concerto defies the heavens in Colorado

By Laurence Vittes

Lash, Puts – and Beethoven – in “Music of Today” at Colorado Music Festival

By Laurence Vittes, 22 July 2021

The world premiere of Hannah Lash's Forestallings, rooted in her childhood love of Beethoven's Second Symphony, links to Peter Oundjian's arrangement of the Op.131 string quartet later in the program.

*****

“Music of Today” – and yesterday – at Colorado Music Festival

By Laurence Vittes

Haydn, Sor and Mozart return live in Barcelona

By Laurence Vittes, 08 July 2021

Mozart's Clarinet Concerto started out naively impetuous, quick, breathless as if on the way to an assignation

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Haydn, Sor and Mozart return live in Barcelona

By Laurence Vittes

In love with Stravinsky, Offenbach and Barbara Hannigan in Paris

By Laurence Vittes, 28 May 2021

Audiences return to the Maison de la Radio for Barbara Hannigan and l'Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France.

*****

In love with Stravinsky, Offenbach and Barbara Hannigan in Paris

By Laurence Vittes

HIP Mozart is mainstream Mozart at Budapest's Bartók Spring Festival

By Laurence Vittes, 18 May 2021

György Vashegyi and the period instrument Orfeo Orchestra impress in an all-Mozart programme in Budapest.

*****

HIP Mozart is mainstream Mozart at Budapest's Bartók Spring Festival

By Laurence Vittes

Thomas Larcher © Richard Haughton

Thomas Larcher: a new piano concerto for NTR Saturday Matinee

By Laurence Vittes, 20 May 2021

We spoke to the Austrian composer about the new piece he wrote for Kirill Gerstein and Semyon Bychkov.

Thomas Larcher © Richard Haughton

Thomas Larcher: a new piano concerto for NTR Saturday Matinee

By Laurence Vittes

“Up the oboes” in Concerto Copenhagen's Bach in Essen

By Laurence Vittes, 16 May 2021

CoCo's players used a minimum of overt embellishment, always effective and appropriate, as if they felt that nothing more was needed than the printed notes.

****1

“Up the oboes” in Concerto Copenhagen's Bach in Essen

By Laurence Vittes

Kelemen Quartet © Andrea Felvégi

The new Kelemen Quartet: new births with Bartók

By Laurence Vittes, 17 May 2021

We take a glimpse into the lives of Barnabás Kelemen and Katalin Kokas, to whom lockdown has brought a newborn son, a newly reformed string quartet and the challenge of a full Bartók cycle for Bartók Spring International Arts Weeks.

Kelemen Quartet © Andrea Felvégi

The new Kelemen Quartet: new births with Bartók

By Laurence Vittes