Live, Video: Find classical music concert, opera, ballet and dance reviews | Symphony no. 3 in F major, Op.90

Returning to the concert platform after recent illness, Argerich demonstrates why she's still the reigning pianist in Lucerne's “Le Piano symphonique” festival. 

A passionate and despairing La Voix humaine from Danielle de Niese make for a special second half, after Jaime Martín conducts a satisfactory Brahms' Third Symphony.

South Korean soprano Sumi Hwang's Mahler, Richard Strauss and Brahms from Hans Graf are musical and geographical synergy in Singapore, heralding the Lunar New Year. 

Hans Abrahamsen makes a powerful statement in his latest orchestral work, while Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Beatrice Rana and the BRSO make a spirited attempt to reawaken interest in Clara Schumann's only concerto.

The Hallé and Sir Mark Elder give heart-warming performances of symphonies by Haydn and Brahms, while The Hallé Choir returns after a long break with Stravinsky's Symphony of Psalms. 

The CBSO explored a plethora of Romantic ideas in a trio of symphonies, including a premiere from Thomas Adès.

The slow movement is gorgeous in an unashamedly romantic fashion and Morrison, some moments of uncertain intonation aside, gave a poetic rendition, at times fining his sound down to the most exquisite filigree of sound. 

An afternoon programme by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra featuring Beethoven's Triple Concerto and Brahms' Third and shorter pieces by Schreker and Harry Sdraulig offers pleasant but somewhat underwhelming impressions.

The ever-spry Blomstedt offers powerful, no-nonsense readings of a pair of contrasting symphonies. 

Yannick Nézet-Séguin made his debut as piano concerto soloist with Montreal's Orchestre Métropolitain.

Frank Peter Zimmermann dazzles in an angelic tribute, while Alan Gilbert and the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester emphasise clarity at the expense of warmth.

Tasmin Little's farewell tour yields memorable Bruch in Singapore, with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra led by Gerard Schwarz.

Under Alan Gilbert’s baton, Kirill Gerstein presented the very recent piano concerto of Thomas Adès on an otherwise conservative program of Bach and Brahms.

Romanticized but highly enjoyable Mozart performances, monumental Brahms, but more gusto than tenderness characterized the program.

Virtuoso makes the case for late Schumann with triumphant performance of the cello concerto

The Chicago Symphony make up for the loss of their city's other team earlier in the week, knocking one out of the ballpark in the heart of Los Angeles.

Bernard Haitink always provides intelligent symphonic readings and in his interpretation of Brahms' Third, he brought a lifetime of experience to the piece. 

Visiting Russian players offer sophisticated Brahms and sensitive Elgar in Istanbul.

Continuing the 'German Romantic' series, Steffens and the Philharmonia gave an indulgent performance, culminating in a thrilling account of Brahms' Third.

The New York Philharmonic, Alan Gilbert and Styephen Hough offer conventional interpretations of two 19th century warhorses.

Bearded Brahms was prolific in the two works in this Boston Symphony program under Andris Nelsons. 

Cristian Mandeal and the RLPO offer an evening of mixed fortunes, with Brahms' Third Symphony not reaching the same level of inspiration as Saint-Saëns' Piano Concerto no. 2.

Juanjo Mena and the Oslo Philharmonic presented a programme of Haydn, Mozart and Brahms, drawing historical parallels, but most importantly showcasing some very fine playing.

Picker's succesfully enigmatic premiere of his Opera without Words

Benjamin Grosvenor reminded us what a magnificent piece of music Grieg's piano showpiece is in this sensational performance with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.

Under the baton of Jan Latham-Koenig, the Flanders Symphony Orchestra rendered a diverse programme in Leeds.

Ludovic Morlot and the Atlanta Symphony start the new year with bland perfromances of the Waltz King and Brahms. 

The BBC Philharmonic brought us a fascinating programme of intriguingly juxtaposed perspectives from the old world and the new, before a heartfelt return to the European tradition.

Imagine the musical love child of Strauss and Bruckner: luscious strings, wind chorales, hints of Austrian Ländler, opulent orchestration. This provides an indication of the sound world of Franz Schmidt, whose Second Symphony finally made its Proms debut. 

Richard Tognetti and Christopher Moore exhibit excellent partnership in Mozart's Sinfonia Concertante, while a performance of Brahms' Third Symphony by the expanded forces of the Australian Chamber Orchestra provides much excitement and colour, but little sense of architectonic coherence.

A meaty programme of Brahms from the Wiener Philharmoniker and Daniele Gatti.  

  Iván Fischer has distinguished himself as a conductor with inimitable listening skills; he truly has an ear for which sounds should be coming from where and how the sounds of each member of the Budapest Festival Orchestra should be arranged in space. 

The final performance of Yannick Nézet-Séguin's Brahms cycle with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra is decent, but falls short of the excellence of the other three symphonies he performed. 

In the third installment of Rattle's Schumann/Brahms cycle in Berlin, Rattle provided new insights into both, marred by some basic deficiencies in the performance.

Fiery Janáček and Lalo tempered by autumnal Brahms in Sydney in a concert which turned the usual structure on its head. 

Rich textures and sculpted phrases: Iván Fischer presents a unique vision of Brahms' Third and Fourth symphonies. Drama maybe lacking, but the BPO more than compensate with the beauty and elegance of their sound.

After Marios Papadopoulos' propulsive account of Brahms' Third Symphony, Nigel Kennedy joined the Oxford Philomusica to give an unpredictable and inconsistent performance of Beethoven's Violin Concerto.

The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra's visit to Reading featured music by Mozart, Brahms and Elgar, and the crowds of schoolchildren in attendance seemed entranced.

Nelsons impresses in Brahms' Third Symphony with the CBSO, while Isabelle Faust's account of Britten's Violin Concerto may have been a work in progress rather than the finished item.

The second concert of the Philharmonia’s Brahms cycle saw Brahms’ orchestra at its richest and most full-blooded. Alongside the burnished, glowing colours of the Haydn Variations were placed the autumnal glow of the Third Symphony and the Concerto for Violin and Cello, Brahms’ final orchestral work, with sibling soloists Christian and Tanja Tetzlaff.

With a last-minute change of conductor from the excitable Andris Nelsons to the more reserved Jac van Steen, one might have forgiven a not exactly revolutionary performance. Last night’s concert was meant to be the first half of Nelsons’ Brahms cycle with the Philharmonia in the Sheldonian Theatre, part of Music at Oxford’s series, but illness unfortunately prevented him from performing.

Though the visitation of the Moscow State Symphony Orchestra happened just over a week ago, we have a more permanent influence from that part of the world in the person of Alan Buribayev, the Principal Conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, who hails from Kazakhstan.

The day after Valentine’s Day, and Hall One at The Sage Gateshead was filled with love – the love between an orchestra and their conductor, and the love that all the musicians on the stage felt for the composers they were playing, in this their third concert of a Brahms and Schumann double symphony cycle with conductor Thomas Zehetmair.

The Salle Pleyel’s programmatic dichotomy between “memory” and “creation” continually seeks to promote the more established names in classical music, whilst also shedding light on lesser-known repertoires from all musical epochs.

The Staatskapelle Dresden is widely recognised as one of the best orchestras in the world, featuring in tenth place in Gramophone magazine’s 2008 article ranking the world’s 20 finest orchestras. This season the orchestra welcomes Christian Thielemann as its new main conductor, and this concert began his much anticipated Brahms cycle with his new orchestra.

Simon Rattle returned to Birmingham's Symphony Hall, a construction of his own initiation and the home of his successes with the CBSO, to conduct the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in a concert as part of the hall's 21st birthday celebrations.

Riccardo Chailly was much loved as prinicpal conductor of the Concertgebouw Orchestra, a position he held between 1988 and 2004. And even though tonight he played with his own Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzig, he received a hero’s welcome at the Concertgebouw.

For its concert on Sunday afternoon, the Philadelphia Orchestra under Simon Rattle performed symphonic works which, the programme notes claimed, “invite us to think about the possibilities of hidden musical meaning”.Over the years, speculation has been rife on the famous F-A-F motif of the opening chords on woodwinds in the first movement of Brahms’ Symphony no.

The Philadelphia Orchestra may be in the news more often for its financial difficulties than for its music-making, but even a fleeting listen to one of their concerts demonstrates that the ensemble remains one of America’s gems.