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Despite the big Spanish beasts like Rodrigo and de Falla, it is a small work by contemporary Mexican composer Gabriela Ortiz that packs the biggest punch in this programme.

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

There’s something decidedly odd about pitching up at Glyndebourne sans picnic hamper, wrapped up in heavy layers, the aroma of mulled wine wafting through the foyer... 

Philip Pullman's exotic adventure about a girl determined to follow her father's footsteps gets a gently magical outing with Sri-Lankan inspired shadow puppetry and a strong cast. 

Formed under the artistic direction of Yo-Yo Ma, the Silk Road Ensemble, a collective of distinguished performers and composers from more than 20 countries in Asia, Europe and the Americas, took to the stage at Carnegie Hall Wednesday evening. Looking up at Perelman stage, you'd never guess the group was no more than a small ensemble.

This week the Linbury Studio Theatre attracted an audience of the more minute variety with its dazzling production of The Firework-Maker’s Daughter. Based on Philip Pullman’s novel, the two-act opera transported its listeners into the realms of the Far East with papery costumes, Indonesian shadow puppetry and hand-crafted pyrotechnics.