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Timmy Fisher

Timmy Fisher

Timmy read musicology at Durham University, studying composition with Richard Rijnvos. He has written for Gramophone and The Spectator, and composes for both film and the concert hall. He has a special interest in contemporary choral music, and co-hosts The Classical Music Pod with Sam Poppleton, available on iTunes and Spotify. Follow him on twitter at @timmy_fisher.

Author:Timmy Fisher

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Roberto González-Monjas: “Being a conductor is like being a psychologist”

By Timmy Fisher, 01 December 2020

The Chief Conductor Designate of the Musikkollegium Winterthur on reading an orchestra, Rothko and playing the long game.

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Roberto González-Monjas: “a conductor is like a psychologist”

By Timmy Fisher

A heartening return to live opera at Highgate's Lauderdale House

By Timmy Fisher, 13 August 2020

HGO's production of Holst's Sāvitri is a smart choice for a socially distant era. But why mess with a winning formula?

***11

A heartening return to live opera at Highgate's Lauderdale House

By Timmy Fisher

Sukanya: close but no sitar

By Timmy Fisher, 15 January 2020

Ravi Shankar's valiant fusion of East and West is no greater than the sum of its parts.

***11

Sukanya: close but no sitar

By Timmy Fisher

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A phoenix from the flames: ten years after the “Palau Case”

By Timmy Fisher, 05 November 2019

In 2009 a series of startling revelations came to light, shaking the Palau de la Música to its core. Ten years on, this unique case is coming to a conclusion.

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A phoenix from the flames: ten years after the “Palau Case”

By Timmy Fisher

Back to basics with the Philip Glass Ensemble

By Timmy Fisher, 30 October 2019

Philip Glass’ Music with Changing Parts returns to London after a 48-year hiatus.

***11

Back to basics with the Philip Glass Ensemble

By Timmy Fisher

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When that shark bites: Brecht, Weill and the Nazis

By Timmy Fisher, 25 October 2019

Weimar-era Germany was fertile ground for radical artists like Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht, but their mutual obsession with control proved too toxic for such a fragile partnership to last.

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When that shark bites: Brecht, Weill and the Nazis

By Timmy Fisher

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Sin City: Mahagonny lives

By Timmy Fisher, 10 October 2019

German conductor Markus Stenz talks Kurt Weill, Bertold Brecht and the potency of their final collaboration in today’s political climate.

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Sin City: Mahagonny lives

By Timmy Fisher

Absurd, unpleasant and wonderfully pertinent: Gerald Barry's The Intelligence Park

By Timmy Fisher, 25 September 2019

Almost 30 years since its last run, Gerald Barry’s The Intelligence Park makes a boisterous return to the stage.

**111

Absurd, unpleasant and wonderfully pertinent:

By Timmy Fisher

An unlikely pair: Argento and Copland in a Grimeborn double bill

By Timmy Fisher, 01 August 2019

Grimeborne's lopsided production of Miss Haversham's Wedding Night and 12 Poems of Emily Dickinson is both trick and treat.

***11

An unlikely pair: Argento and Copland in a Grimeborn double bill

By Timmy Fisher

A cunning little masterpiece from Rattle and the LSO

By Timmy Fisher, 27 June 2019

Messrs Rattle and Sellars bewitch the Barbican audience with a sumptuous rendition of Janáček's magnum opus.

****1

A cunning little masterpiece from Rattle and the LSO

By Timmy Fisher

Flotation tanks and absent kettles: Phelim McDermott on Tao of Glass

By Timmy Fisher, 03 June 2019

The English actor and stage director talks Taoism, Manchester’s Royal Exchange and his latest collaboration with Philip Glass.

Phelim McDermott on Flotation tanks and absent kettles

By Timmy Fisher

What’s the poooints? Atonal explorations “through the forest” in Tallinn

By Timmy Fisher, 05 May 2019

The Tallinn Chamber Orchestra deliver a bold but challenging programme of atonal works.

***11

Atonal explorations “through the forest” in Tallinn

By Timmy Fisher

“Blossomings”: a stunning display of contemporary choral music in Tallinn

By Timmy Fisher, 04 May 2019

The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir deliver the goods on home turf.

*****

“Blossomings”: a stunning display of contemporary choral music

By Timmy Fisher

A Man of Good Hope: powerful and politically charged drama in the Linbury

By Timmy Fisher, 16 April 2019

The Insango Ensemble’s fast-paced production is a poingnant reminder of the damage colonialism has inflicted upon Africa

****1

A Man of Good Hope: powerful and politically charged drama

By Timmy Fisher

Total Immersion: A deep dive into the work of Nadia and Lili Boulanger

By Timmy Fisher, 06 April 2019

James Gaffigan and the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus provide the climax to a worthy day of discovery at the Barbican.

****1

A deep dive into the work of Nadia and Lili Boulanger

By Timmy Fisher

Carl Craig and Chi-chi Nwanoku: “There can be black music within this classical world”

By Timmy Fisher, 22 March 2019

In the run up to Carl Craig’s collaboration with Chineke! at the Royal Albert Hall, we talk to the veteran techno DJ about classical music and his creative process.

“There can be black music within this classical world”

By Timmy Fisher

Fusion at the Cutty Sark

By Timmy Fisher, 08 March 2019

Gimmicks galore in this genre-hopping spectacle from the BBC Singers and world music fusion band Kabantu.

***11

Fusion at the Cutty Sark

By Timmy Fisher

Robin Hood: a satirical new opera in Peckham

By Timmy Fisher, 27 February 2019

Dani Howard’s satirical take on an age-old tale for The Opera Story is a must-see.

****1

Robin Hood: a satirical new opera in Peckham

By Timmy Fisher

SoundState: A bright future for new music at the Southbank

By Timmy Fisher, 16 January 2019

Marin Alsop lead the London Philharmonic in a thrilling showcase for contemporary composition at the Southbank Centre's SoundState festival.

****1

SoundState: A bright future for new music at the Southbank

By Timmy Fisher

Mark Bowden's Sapiens: humanity in music from the London Sinfonietta

By Timmy Fisher, 07 December 2018

Two world premieres from Mark Bowden and Colin Matthews breath life into the Southbank's Queen Elizabeth Hall.

****1

Sapiens: humanity in music

By Timmy Fisher

Seeking new horizons with the Royal Philharmonic

By Timmy Fisher, 27 November 2018

Alexander Shelley conducts a folksong-infused programme of Kodály and Bartók, with Mariam Batsashvili performing Liszt.

***11

Seeking new horizons with the Royal Philharmonic

By Timmy Fisher

An apocalyptic spectacle from Robert Ames and the LCO

By Timmy Fisher, 31 October 2018

Excellent performances of Scelsi's Uaxuctum and John Luther Adams' prescient Become Ocean were by accompanied by an impressive, but ultimately distracting audiovisual display.

***11

An apocalyptic spectacle from Robert Ames and the LCO

By Timmy Fisher

Re-imagining: A showcase for innovation, both old and new at Kings Place

By Timmy Fisher, 20 October 2018

The unlikely pairing of jazz and Baroque makes complete sense under the baton of Sam Poppleton.

*****

Re-imagining: A showcase for innovation at Kings Place

By Timmy Fisher

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Polymath composers and their extra-musical successes

By Timmy Fisher, 12 October 2018

From the anthology of classical music greats there springs a surprising number of multi-faceted composers. We already know all about their musical achievements, but from Rossini to Wagner, many hide also talents as science geniuses, celebrated chefs, sporting prodigies, accomplished artists and even political pioneers.

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Polymath composers and their extra-musical successes

By Timmy Fisher