Live, Video: Find classical music concert, opera, ballet and dance reviews | MacMillan

Showing 50 of 78 reviews

Colin Currie and Sir James MacMillan round off the SCO digital season in Finnish style

By David Smythe, 20 May 2021

A short, tender MacMillan piece, filmic Sibelius and an astonishing percussion concerto from Rautavaara written for – and performed by – Colin Currie rounds off a successful SCO digital series of concerts.

****1

****1

Perth

21 May 2021

Rounding off the SCO digital season in Finnish style

By David Smythe

London

Vladimir Jurowski leads the LPO in rarely played works

By Edward Sava-Segal, 30 December 2020

Featuring the clear-voiced and assured soprano Mary Bevan, Bliss’ Rout seemed less dated than others in this performance.

****1

****1

London

02 Jan 2021

Vladimir Jurowski leads the LPO in rarely played works

By Edward Sava-Segal

Gothenburg

Peter Mattei's moving Mahler in Gothenburg SO's digital season opener

By Timothy Robson, 10 September 2020

Baritone Peter Mattei brought both musical sensitivity as well as almost Berg-ian drama to Mahler’s Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen, ably supported by Manfred Honeck and the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, in a successful livestream concert.

***11

***11

Gothenburg

10 Sep 2020

Peter Mattei's moving Mahler in Gothenburg season opener

By Timothy Robson

Kansas City

Musical cosmologies in Kansas City

By Hilary Stroh, 28 February 2020

Visiting conductor Matthew Halls in a programme of Haydn, MacMillan and Beethoven.

****1

****1

Kansas City

01 Mar 2020

Musical cosmologies in Kansas City

By Hilary Stroh

Durham

An Enduring Voice: The Sixteen's 40th anniversary choral pilgrimage reaches Durham

By Jane Shuttleworth, 25 October 2019

The Sixteen's 40th anniversary choral pilgrimage mixes Tudor music from the treasure trove of the Eton Choirbook with music that hadn't been written when the group were founded, including a striking new work by James MacMillan.

****1

****1

Durham

26 Oct 2019

An Enduring Voice: The Sixteen's 40th anniversary choral pilgrimage

By Jane Shuttleworth

London

Catherine wheels of fire and energy from Aurora Orchestra and Collon

By Alexander Hall, 28 September 2019

Nicholas Collon decides that Mendelssohn is really a very revolutionary composer, while Amy Dickson's saxophone and Ronald Brautigam in Mozart provide vibrant contrasts.

****1

****1

London

29 Sep 2019

Catherine wheels of fire and energy from Aurora Orchestra and Collon

By Alexander Hall

Edinburgh

World premiere of James MacMillan’s Fifth Symphony at the Edinburgh International Festival

By David Smythe, 17 August 2019

A happy occasion as the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, The Sixteen and Genesis Sixteen with Harry Christophers conducting in the world premiere of James MacMillan’s Fifth Symphony at the Edinburgh International Festival.

*****

*****

Edinburgh

19 Aug 2019

World premiere of James MacMillan’s Fifth Symphony at the EIF

By David Smythe

Edinburgh

Quirky contemporary Scottish compositions at Edinburgh Fringe

By David Smythe, 13 August 2019

Calum Robertson’s clarinet, Anna Michels piano and Sally Carr’s soprano capture the charm of contemporary Scottish compositions, and introduce Lori Laitman’s soulful new work.

****1

****1

Edinburgh

14 Aug 2019

Quirky contemporary Scottish compositions at Edinburgh Fringe

By David Smythe

London

Prom 19: From dawn to death with Thomas Dausgaard and the BBCSSO

By Leighton Jones, 02 August 2019

Strauss’ Also sprach Zarathustra fills the Royal Albert Hall, while Schumann’s piano concerto is followed by MacMillan’s masterpiece The Confession of Isobel Gowdie.

****1

****1

London

04 Aug 2019

Prom 19: From dawn to death with Thomas Dausgaard and the BBCSSO

By Leighton Jones

Cleveland

Vivid colors and ecstatic highs mark Denève’s Cleveland Orchestra program

By Sam Jacobson, 25 April 2019

An orchestral program on the theme of ecstasy, religious and profane, included a piano concerto by James MacMillan along with works by Jennifer Higdon, Debussy, and Scriabin.

****1

****1

Cleveland

29 Apr 2019

Ecstatic highs mark Denève’s Cleveland Orchestra program

By Sam Jacobson

Riga

Exceptional technique brings fervency and passion: the Latvian Radio Choir's Divine quiet

By David Karlin, 15 March 2019

The Latvian Radio Choir's 24 singers display exceptional virtuosity in the service of a varied programme of contemporary spiritual works.

*****

*****

Riga

16 Mar 2019

Technique, fervency and passion: the Latvian Radio Choir

By David Karlin

Sydney

The Sixteen bring British vocal music to Australia

By Zoltán Szabó, 09 March 2019

The Sixteen enchant the audience in Sydney with an intelligently-created programme of British composers.

****1

****1

Sydney

11 Mar 2019

The Sixteen bring British vocal music to Australia

By Zoltán Szabó

Glasgow

Sir James MacMillan’s 60th Astonishing Birthday Concert with SCO and Chorus.

By David Smythe, 22 February 2019

Sir James MacMillan’s 60th Birthday Concert with SCO and Chorus rediscovers two major seminal works: the dramatic Veni, Veni, Emannuel with Colin Currie and the intense Seven Last Words from the Cross.

*****

*****

Glasgow

24 Feb 2019

Sir James MacMillan’s 60th Astonishing Birthday Concert

By David Smythe

London

MacMillan première outgunned by Shostakovich at the Barbican

By David Truslove, 04 November 2018

It’s always a heart-warming sight to see so many young people at the Barbican as members of the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain shared the stage with equal composure as the London Symphony Chorus and string players from the LSO.

****1

****1

London

06 Nov 2018

MacMillan première outgunned by Shostakovich

By David Truslove

London

Passionate Shostakovich from Noseda and the LSO

By Young-Jin Hur, 01 November 2018

There were memorable moments, as Noseda continued his advocacy of Sir James MacMillan and Shostakovich symphony cycle. Yet Noseda’s maximalist approach had its costs, as it was only in the opening Kodály that found Noseda at his best.

***11

***11

London

02 Nov 2018

Passionate Shostakovich from Noseda and the LSO

By Young-Jin Hur

Blandford Forum

Guardian Angel: Rachel Podger and VOCES8

By Jane Shuttleworth, 03 August 2018

Angels abound as Rachel Podger joins with VOCES8 for a collaborative exploration built around music from her Guardian Angel album.

****1

****1

Blandford Forum

04 Aug 2018

Guardian Angel: Rachel Podger and VOCES8

By Jane Shuttleworth

London

Prom 3: An inflated Prom to celebrate BBC Young Musicians

By Olivia Bell, 15 July 2018

With a smaller programme and a humbler premise, the stars of the show – those young, immensely talented performers – could have shone even brighter

***11

***11

London

17 Jul 2018

Prom 3: An inflated Prom to celebrate BBC Young Musicians

By Olivia Bell

Amsterdam

Trouble in Tahiti and Clemency make an intriguing Dutch National double bill

By Nicolas Nguyen, 22 March 2018

What is the link between Bernstein’s criticism of American consumerism and MacMillan's biblical tale?

***11

***11

Amsterdam

24 Mar 2018

An intriguing Dutch National double bill

By Nicolas Nguyen

Gateshead

Macmillan’s St Luke Passion at Sage Gateshead disappoints

By Jane Shuttleworth, 03 March 2018

Royal Northern Sinfonia’s performance of Sir James Macmillan’s St Luke Passion had moments of high drama, but one crucial element of the piece was mostly missing.

**111

**111

Gateshead

05 Mar 2018

Macmillan’s St Luke Passion at Sage Gateshead disappoints

By Jane Shuttleworth

Philadelphia

Scotch Beasts and other forms of Britishness in Philadelphia's Winter Festival

By Hilary Stroh, 11 January 2018

The Philadelphia Orchestra's Winter Festival celebrates the British Isles.

****1

****1

Philadelphia

12 Jan 2018

Scotch Beasts and other forms of Britishness in Philadelphia's Winter Festival

By Hilary Stroh

Perth

Ancient and Modern: a beautiful Winter Chorale from The Scottish Ensemble and I Fagiolini

By David Smythe, 09 December 2017

The Scottish Ensemble is joined by I Fagiolini in a Winter Chorale linking ancient and modern music for Advent and Christmas.

****1

****1

Perth

11 Dec 2017

Ancient and Modern: a beautiful Winter Chorale

By David Smythe

Bucharest

RNO and Andreescu impress with MacMillan and Tchaikovsky at Enescu Festival

By Aksel Tollåli, 05 September 2017

Following some rhythmically challenged Ginastera, Horia Andreescu and the Russian National Orchestra impress with confidently played MacMillan and Tchaikovsky.

***11

***11

Bucharest

08 Sep 2017

RNO and Andreescu impress at Enescu Festival

By Aksel Tollåli

London

Prom 21: An underwhelming performance of MacMillan and Beethoven

By Aaron Davies, 30 July 2017

An underwhelming performance that fell prey to poor interpretive judgements.

**111

**111

London

01 Aug 2017

An underwhelming performance of MacMillan & Beethoven

By Aaron Davies

London

Cello unwrapped: from Baroque'n'roll to contemporary at Kings Place

By Marthe Lisson, 17 June 2017

Leonard Elschenbroich joined with the 12 ensemble for an evening dedicated to the Suite italienne, a stroll through time though with a focus on contemporary composers.

***11

***11

London

19 Jun 2017

From Baroque'n'roll to contemporary at Kings Place

By Marthe Lisson

Glasgow

A modern masterpiece: Scottish première of MacMillan’s Stabat Mater

By David Smythe, 24 March 2017

MacMillan’s Stabat Mater receives its Scottish première with The Sixteen and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra under Harry Christophers.

*****

*****

Glasgow

27 Mar 2017

A modern masterpiece: MacMillan’s Stabat Mater

By David Smythe

Perth

Thoughtful, inspiring and noble: British music from the BBCSSO and Richard Farnes

By David Smythe, 10 March 2017

BBCSSO and Richard Farnes’s special chemistry in a night of British music. Thoughtful Butterworth and noble Elgar and Lawrence Power joined the forces for a wonderfully spirited performance of Macmillan’s Viola Concerto.

****1

****1

Perth

12 Mar 2017

British music from BBCSSO and Farnes

By David Smythe

Edinburgh

Ancient and Modern Christmas icons from the SCO Chorus in Edinburgh

By David Smythe, 15 December 2016

Britten’s Ceremony of Carols with pieces by Tavener, MacMillan and Lauridsen contrast with Byrd and Dowland in a thoughtful and moving performance of Christmas musical icons from the Scottish Chamber Orchestra Chorus.

****1

****1

Edinburgh

17 Dec 2016

Ancient and Modern Christmas icons

By David Smythe

Birmingham

Staring into the void: bravery and beauty from Britten Sinfonia and Voices

By Simon Cummings, 20 March 2016

Britten Sinfonia and Voices directed by Eamonn Dougan courageously plumb the depths of humanity’s despair in music ancient and modern

*****

*****

Birmingham

21 Mar 2016

Bravery and beauty from Britten Sinfonia and Voices

By Simon Cummings

Edinburgh

Benedetti, MacMillan and Berlioz: a feast of treats from the RSNO

By David Smythe, 18 March 2016

The heady combination of the Scottish première of James MacMillan’s Little Mass, Nicola Benedetti playing Szymanowski 2 and the drama of Berlioz Symphonie fantistique was an evening to remember.

*****

*****

Edinburgh

20 Mar 2016

Benedetti, MacMillan and Berlioz: a feast of treats from the RSNO

By David Smythe

Pembridge

Choir of Royal Holloway stir the emotions at the Presteigne Festival

By David Truslove, 29 August 2015

Love and Passion provide a vibrant theme for an enterprising choral concert given by the Choir of Royal Holloway.

****1

****1

Pembridge

31 Aug 2015

Choir of Royal Holloway stir the emotions

By David Truslove

London

Prom 24: MacMillan's birthday gift for Runnicles shines next to fitful Mahler

By Penny Homer, 03 August 2015

Première of MacMillan’s Fourth Symphony is the highlight of BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra’s second Proms outing.

***11

***11

London

04 Aug 2015

MacMillan's birthday gift for Runnicles

By Penny Homer

Sydney

Make-over for Allegri’s Miserere from The Sixteen in Sydney

By David Larkin, 10 March 2015

Is Allegri's Miserere really the most famous choral work of all time? Harry Christophers and the Sixteen offer a significantly altered version of this work, in a programme otherwise devoted to the religious music of Palestrina and Macmillan.

***11

***11

Sydney

12 Mar 2015

Make-over for Allegri’s Miserere in Sydney

By David Larkin

Dublin

Delectable entertainment: The King's Singers charm Dublin

By Andrew Larkin, 05 February 2015

Madrigals and Folksongs: the King's Singers entertain and delight in a progromme spanning 400 years with glorious singing.

****1

****1

Dublin

07 Feb 2015

The King's Singers charm Dublin

By Andrew Larkin

Glasgow

Scottish Opera's Inés de Castro: shocking and unmissable

By David Smythe, 24 January 2015

James MacMillan has honed his first opera Inés de Castro into an unmissable evening: unspeakably gory but utterly thrilling.

****1

****1

Glasgow

25 Jan 2015

Inés de Castro: shocking and unmissable

By David Smythe

London

MacMillan’s Second Percussion Concerto a pale imitation of his First

By Gavin Dixon, 11 December 2014

Colin Currie played with passion and verve, but James MacMillan's new Percussion Concerto was a disappointment.

**111

**111

London

11 Dec 2014

MacMillan’s new Percussion Concerto: a pale imitation

By Gavin Dixon

Amsterdam

The Queen of Heaven: The Sixteen at the Muziekgebouw, Amsterdam

By Rosemary Carlton-Willis, 21 May 2014

As part of the Muziekgebouw’s 2014 Choral Series, renowned chamber choir The Sixteen gave a passionate, committed performance of music by Palestrina, Allegri, and modern composer James MacMillan.

****1

****1

Amsterdam

27 May 2014

The Queen of Heaven: The Sixteen at the Muziekgebouw, Amsterdam

By Rosemary Carlton-Willis

New York City

Faith, Death, and Mozart: the Pittsburgh Symphony at Spring For Music

By David Allen, 10 May 2014

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

****1

****1

New York City

12 May 2014

Faith, Death, and Mozart: the Pittsburgh Symphony at Spring For Music

By David Allen

Edinburgh

Edinburgh Quartet: Late Sessions

By Alan Coady, 06 May 2014

The Edinburgh Quartet conclude their excellent mini-series of Late Session concerts at Edinburgh's 'Summerhall' featuring the music of James MacMillan.

****1

****1

Edinburgh

07 May 2014

Edinburgh Quartet: Late Sessions

By Alan Coady

Seattle

A familiar-sounding new commission and an unusual approach to Beethoven

By Thomas May, 17 April 2014

James MacMillan’s The Death of Oscar receives its American première under Stéphane Denève, while Paul Lewis is the soloist in a thought-provoking account of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto no. 3.

***11

***11

Seattle

18 Apr 2014

A familiar-sounding new commission and an unusual approach to Beethoven

By Thomas May

Glasgow

BBCSSO and James MacMillan Celebrate Commonwealth Day with a Blast.

By David Smythe, 10 March 2014

There is always something special when a piece is performed in the presence of a composer, and even more so when the composer conducts a famous and popular work. James MacMillan conducted the BBCSSO in The Confession of Isobel Gowdie to help celebrate Commonwealth Day in Glasgow.

****1

****1

Glasgow

11 Mar 2014

BBCSSO and James MacMillan Celebrate Commonwealth Day with a Blast.

By David Smythe

Edinburgh

Why Is This Night Different? Edinburgh Quartet play James MacMillan

By Alan Coady, 12 February 2014

The Edinburgh Quartet in the second of a series of three explorations of James MacMillan's string quartet writing at Edinburgh's Summerhall.

****1

****1

Edinburgh

13 Feb 2014

Edinburgh Quartet play James MacMillan

By Alan Coady

London

MacMillan's Viola Concerto and Mahler 6 with Jurowski and the LPO

By Jonathan Russell, 15 January 2014

An astonishing performance of Mahler's Sixth Symphony followed the world première of James MacMillan's Viola Concerto, a haunting mixture of the old and the new. Soloist Lawrence Power joined the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Vladimir Jurowski.

****1

****1

London

17 Jan 2014

LPO: Mahler & MacMillan

By Jonathan Russell

Glasgow

MacMillan conducts new and revisited MacMillan with the BBC SSO

By David Smythe, 11 January 2014

James MacMillan conducted two rediscovered early orchestral works for the first time with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra at City Hall, Glasgow.

****1

****1

Glasgow

13 Jan 2014

MacMillan conducts MacMillan in Glasgow

By David Smythe

London

The LPO and Jurowski perform British composers of the 1990s

By Renée Reitsma, 07 December 2013

As part of the last full weekend of Southbank Centre's The Rest is Noise festival, Vladimir Jurowski and the London Philharmonic Orchestra presented a programme of British orchestral music from the 1990s.

***11

***11

London

10 Dec 2013

LPO plays British music at The Rest is Noise

By Renée Reitsma

Edinburgh

Edinburgh Quartet play music by James MacMillan

By Alan Coady, 27 November 2013

With composer James MacMillan in attendance, this Edinburgh Quartet concert confirmed that the group has audience attraction and engagement at its core.

****1

****1

Edinburgh

28 Nov 2013

Edinburgh Quartet: James MacMillan

By Alan Coady

Toronto

Classic Britten and Beethoven from Ehnes and Denève with the TSO

By Stanley Fefferman, 12 October 2013

If there were a Nobel Prize for violin, I would nominate James Ehnes. His playing of Britten’s Violin Concerto with the Toronto Symphony was drenched with emotions – pathos, irony, lamentation, sarcasm, tenderness and bliss – displayed and at the same time bounded by the discipline of his virtuosity, that like a diamond, radiated brilliance without attracting attention to itself.

****1

****1

Toronto

10 Nov 2013

Classic Britten and Beethoven from Ehnes and Denève with the TSO

By Stanley Fefferman

Boston

José Mateo's Shadows Fleeting at the Sanctuary Theatre, Boston

By Kathryn Maus, 11 October 2013

José Mateo Ballet Theatre opens its 28th season with Shadows Fleeting. Performed in the company’s Sanctuary Theatre, the stunningly converted Old Cambridge Baptist Church in Harvard Square, the program showcases selections of founder and artistic director José Mateo’s last decade of work, including two company classics and the première of his newest ballet, Vanished Verses.

***11

***11

Boston

14 Oct 2013

José Mateo's Shadows Fleeting at the Sanctuary Theatre, Boston

By Kathryn Maus

Edinburgh

RSNO and Oudnjian play The Planets and James MacMillan's Third Piano Concerto

By Alan Coady, 04 October 2013

The adjective in the title of Britten’s 1934 Simple Symphony could refer to the ease with which listeners can spot each movement’s two contrasting themes. Attentive, lively use of tempo, dynamics, phrasing, colour enabled Peter Oundjian and the RSNO to make the most of young Britten’s diversity within impressive compositional unity.

****1

****1

Edinburgh

07 Oct 2013

RSNO and Oudnjian play The Planets and James MacMillan's Third Piano Concerto

By Alan Coady

London

Prom 28: James MacMillan's Violin Concerto with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra

By Katy S. Austin, 03 August 2013

The BBC Proms 2013 began with some of the best of English composers. Tonight for Prom 28 it was the turn of some of Scotland’s finest, as Donald Runnicles conducted the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in a performance of James MacMillan’s Violin Concerto. There were plenty of old favourites from Beethoven and Strauss Jr.

***11

***11

London

06 Aug 2013

Prom 28: James MacMillan's Violin Concerto with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra

By Katy S. Austin

Gateshead

Agony and ecstasy from Northern Sinfonia

By Jane Shuttleworth, 17 May 2013

It’s a slightly topsy-turvy world when a Shostakovich symphony lightens the mood and sends you home grinning, and when a work by Mahler is a filler rather than the main event.

****1

****1

Gateshead

20 May 2013

Agony and ecstasy from Northern Sinfonia

By Jane Shuttleworth