Amadeus: envy, poison and an unfinished Requiem

Will Sharpe as Mozart in the new Amadeus serialisation

Tom Hulce and F Murray Abraham in Miloš Forman’s Amadeus

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri

Paul Bettany as Salieri in the new Amadeus serialisation

By Mark Pullinger, 02 December 2025

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“I am only too conscious… my end will not be long in coming”

Peter Quantrill, 7th April

The Austrian conductor reflects on his seven year tenure with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, work and life, returning to old scores, and why a musical ensemble is like a giant human body.

Cristian Sandrin presents a new view of Mozart’s piano concertos

Bachtrack, 16th March

How to defamiliarize Mozart’s well known piano concertos? This April pianist Cristian Sandrin joins the London Mozart Players for new chamber arrangements of three concertos, for solo piano and string quartet.

Street-smart and subversive: Ailish Tynan talks Così fan tutte

Jessica Duchen, 7th January

The Irish soprano talks about singing Mozart’s Così fan tutte with English National Opera, in London and Manchester – and how the wily Despina is the perfectly subversive character for her.

The magical world of composers’ handwriting

Lawrence Dunn, 17th December

From Buxtehude, Bach and Handel, to contemporary composer Liza Lim, we take a tour of the myriad forms of composers’ handwriting and calligraphy – and how music makes itself on the page.

Sunshine and vitamins: Mozart’s Violin Concerto no. 5

Bachtrack, 10th October

The City of Birmingham Symphony’s leader talks about leading Mozart’s last Violin Concerto – a work full of sunshine, clarity and transparency.

Sarah Willis: Mozart, mambo and life in the Berlin Phil

Mark Pullinger, 3rd April

The British horn player talks about her musical life in Berlin, Kirill Petrenko and her Cuban adventures.

Mark Pullinger

Mark has been a Bachtrack editor since 2014. He is also an experienced critic, writing hundreds of reviews for the site, as well as a freelancer writing for other magazines and newspapers. He also writes programme notes and blogs on Substack. Mark has a particular passion for the operas of Verdi as well as Russian and French repertoire. Outside the concert hall and opera house, Mark enjoys cooking and travel and is probably at his happiest let loose in a French patisserie or a Viennese coffee house.

Amadeus: a tale of envy, poison and an unfinished Requiem