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In its 300th anniversary year, Bach's St John Passion returns to the BBC Proms, with Masaaki Suzuki leading the Bach Collegium Japan. 

Sultry Berg and and a lithe, forceful Beethoven Nine herald an exciting new reign in Berlin.

The outstanding trio of Nylund, Stemme and Herlitzius soars above a Vienna State Opera Orchestra in thunderous form, led by Christian Thielemann to celebrate the Staatsoper's 150th birthday in style.

What brought real distinction and authenticity to the evening, as so often in this house, was the outstanding playing of the Staatskapelle conducted by Tomaš Netopil. From the start of the overture with its rapidly scurrying fugato for strings and pointed phrasing from the woodwind one felt the true sense of Smetana’s Czech inflected rhythms and harmonies

C minor and C major are at the centre of Masaaki Suzuki's Haydn and Beethoven programme with the Sydney Symphony. 

The current stage-setting of Arabella at the Wiener Staatsoper proves that “all that’s Glittenberg” is not gold.

The Wiener Staatsoper revives a beautiful production of Daphne that juxtaposes myth, dream and reality, with brilliant vocal performances by the two leads.

In a rare performance of Bach’s Mass in B minor, Andris Nelsons and the BSO brought forward the music’s gravitas.

Baroque purists might prefer a more surefire line-up of brilliantly executed arias, but the theatrical framework of Adrian Noble's Alcina production offers a great deal.

Jürgen Flimm takes so many liberties with Mozart’s La clemenza it should be re-titled “Tito’s Lament”.

Carole Wilson’s Herodias almost upstages Lise Lindstrom’s sexy Salome in a fine revival of Boleslaw Barlog's 1972 production in Vienna.

An updated but otherwise traditional Flying Dutchman directed by Jan Philipp Gloger offers plenty of enjoyment at Bayreuth, although it might not linger in the memory as long as the more controversial fare at the Festival

Within Mozart’s Don Giovanni, the darkest corners of the soul are exposed by music, stirred up by the lying, lecherous exploits of the aristocratic scoundrel, Don Giovanni.

Christian Thielemann and his orchestra were the stars of an excellent performance of Wagner's Der fliegende Holländer. 

Shadow puppet serpents and policemen in tutus: Moshe Leiser and Patrice Caurier's production of Die Zauberflöte is graced with a strong cast. 

Innovative programming from Manfred Honeck mingles readings, music, and chant in memory of Mozart.

Dancing teddy bears, a larger-than-life Sarastro, live birds and numerous airborn characters all make the brand new production of Mozart’s beloved Singspiel at the Staatsoper a very family-friendly event.

Alceste is the short and sombre story of a wife who gives her life to save that of her husband, King Admète of Thessaly, a deed which ultimately convinces the gods to reprieve both of them. Gluck, hoping to avoid the over-decorated vocal style then in vogue, set this plot to unadorned vocal lines to give depth to the underlying emotions.

For any opera lover, a first visit to Bayreuth is something of a pilgrimage to the holy land. Musically, I wasn’t disappointed, as the Dutchman’s leitmotif rose softly from the invisible orchestra, soon to be enveloped by the swirling storm brewed up by Wagner and conductor Christian Thielemann.