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The anticipation of an all-French program with Morlot was almost too delicious to contemplate.

Vladimir Jurowski built on the Cleveland Orchestra’s existing mastery of Debussy, along with a virtuosic performance by Jean-Efflam Bavouzet of Ravel’s G major piano concerto, and a recent work by Marc-André Dalbavie.

The four pieces – all U.S. premières – created a portrait of Boulez minus Boulez, reminding me of a middle school art exercise in which we were asked to draw an egg without any white crayons.

Dazzling Dalbavie and Pesson, buoyant Ravel and shaky Beethoven from the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Lionel Bringuier at the Barbican.

On Sunday night Shriver Hall was packed with Baltimore opera fans who had gathered to enjoy a solo recital of the internationally acclaimed opera “anti-diva” Magdalena Kožená. True to her reputation, this Czech mezzo-soprano came on stage dressed in a casual black gown, which (ignoring the dress change tradition established by her stage colleagues) she chose to wear all night long.

A rare sunny afternoon in Cardiff Bay was the ideal setting for this afternoon’s concert: an all-French programme in the intimate surroundings of the Wales Millennium Centre’s Hoddinott Hall.Having long been overshadowed by the Rite of Spring (which received its premiere two weeks later), Debussy’s ballet Jeux has been unjustly neglected.

Due to the snow, I arrived to the Barbican too late to catch Stravinsky’s Dumbarton Oaks. However I made it in time for the premiere of Marc-André Dalbavie’s Oboe Concerto (BBC/Borletti-Buitoni Trust co-commission).The concerto is a highly varied piece which displayed some interesting composition techniques and contained a difficult part for the oboe.

Donné en création mondiale au Palais Garnier, l'opéra de Marc-André Dalbavie d'après la pièce de Paul Claudel est une expérience spectaculaire hors du commun, portée par une excellente distribution.