Live, Video: Find classical music concert, opera, ballet and dance reviews | English | Pascal Charbonneau

The Polish director comes to Italy for the first time to direct Janáček's last opera, with the young Belarusian Dmitry Matvienko  conducting.

Johan Reuter is gripping in Krzysztof Warlikowski's powerful vision of the universal, timeless horrors of prison, but visual clutter distracts from Janáček’s music.

The Nederlandse Reisopera celebrates Ariadne auf Naxos’centennial with a superb new production directed by Laurence Dale which looks as laving as it is pleasing to the ear.

Vancouver Opera's updated Sweeney Todd is an incisive and disconcerting theatrical experience, backed by a musically excellent cast

The OSM chorus and a well-matched quartet of Canadian soloists dominate the OSM’s Messiah conducted by Andrew Megill. 

New York is again lucky to host William Christie and Les Arts Florissants at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Their visits are always special, and it’s not just because the unique nature of their repertory – Baroque opera, usually French, which is neglected by most of New York’s major companies – nor the virtuosic ease with which they embody this otherwise-foreign idiom.

Christmastime comes with its musical traditions, from sing-along Messiahs to Christmas carols to Mariah Carey singing “All I Want for Christmas is You”. And there’s no denying that shouting any of the above at the top of your lungs will immediately get you into the Christmas spirit.

One of the most sophisticated offerings in the 2012 Festival d’Aix-en-Provence is a new production of Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s David et Jonathas.