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A crowd-pleaser is joined by a Szymanowski rarity to close the TSO's season. 

The gambling tables and neon lights of Las Vegas might not be the images which immediately enter your head when you think of Verdi’s Rigoletto, but bold art is often created and progressed by the pushing of boundaries and by challenging audiences to reimagine the familiar.

Don Giovanni is an opera which has as its title character a man who is an unrepentant womaniser, who ultimately receives his just reward in one of the most famous scenes in opera where he is consumed into the fires of hell.

Spine-tingling moments in the Toronto Symphony's Mahler Three under Peter Oundjian. 

The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra's prom brought to a fitting close a magical weekend of music from musicians north of the border.

Finnish violinist Pekka Kuusisto is anything other than ordinary in a concert that shows off the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra at their best.

The beginning of Prom 23 was utterly surreal. I found myself confronted by sounds I had never heard before in a concert hall.

Bernard Haitink doesn't disappoint in a mature, considered reading of Mahler's epic Third Symphony. 

An exhilarating journey through three Russian suites with LaVerdi in Milan. 

A revival of a verismo rarity: Umberto Giordano's La cene delle beffe at La Scala. 

Schumann, Goldmark and Malipiero feature in a seasonal programme in Milan. 

In Milan, a timely reminder of the contemporary appeal of Bach's music. 

For the second of his two concerts conducting the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Charles Dutoit presented a program consisting of highly contrasting works by Stravinsky and Mendelssohn, including Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring, celebrating the 100th anniversary of work’s first performance in 1913.

The title of the latest Sydney Symphony Orchestra concert was simply “Organ Symphony”, referring to the work which was to form the second half of the evening’s concert – Saint-Saëns’ “Organ Symphony” in C minor.

A concert entitled “Askenazy’s Favourites” is always going to be intriguing, but perhaps more intriguing are his choices. If asked to pick what symphony Ashkenazy would choose to go in this concert, I would have thought that most people would have chosen a large-scale Romantic symphony, maybe Brahms, Rachmaninov or Mahler.

There are only a handful of composers whose music can provide enough variety to last a whole program. Beethoven is one of those composers. Not only that, but even today, some 200 years after his lifetime, his music continues to inspire, delight and challenge modern audiences. That is part of Beethoven’s enduring genius and legacy.The opening piece of the concert, the Grosse Fugue Op.

There can be fewer more idyllic places in the world to see an opera. Behind the floating stage was Sydney’s harbour bridge and opera house; to the left, the lights of the central business district; and to the right, the glittering lights of the Northern Shore and the occasional ferry making its way to Circular Quay.

I could not have asked for a more magical setting in which to watch Verdi's La Traviata. In front of me was the floating stage, surrounded by gently rippling water glistening in the evening moonlight. On the left rose the buildings of Sydney's central business district, while on my right was the beautiful harbour bridge and opera house.

Fate and Festivals was the rather bold title given to the latest Sydney Symphony Orchestra concert at Sydney Opera House in an evening which provided a great showcase for the full orchestra, demonstrating their great virtuosity, versatility and sensitivity as an ensemble.

For a composer who embraces the “popular” in music, using the subtitle High Art for his trumpet concerto is clearly a provocative but bold statement. Australian composer Graham Koehne has quoted Noël Coward’s play Private Lives, commenting: “Extraordinary how potent cheap music is”.

In his director’s note, Jonathan Biggins writes, ‘All I can hope for is that you go out of the theatre feeling a bit more cheerful than when you came in’. If that was the opera’s aim, then few could claim that it was not successful in achieving it. The ABC’s Limelight magazine describes the production as ‘a razor sharp, satirical romp that’s camper than a row of tents and twice as funny’.

Continuing with Sibelius, the Sydney Symphony presented another Finnish epic in their latest concert, this time Sibelius’ Kullervo Symphony. However, first of all we were treated to a Ravel masterpiece, his Piano Concerto in D for the left hand.This concerto was commissioned by the pianist Paul Wittgenstein, who had lost his right arm in World War I.

The latest Sydney Symphony Orchestra concert, entitled Legends by the Sea, was an intriguing mix of contrasting works by Sibelius, Fauré and Debussy.Sibelius’ Lemminkäinen suite was an entirely new discovery for me. If Ashkenazy himself describes it as containing “some of Sibelius’ best music”, it is definitely a discovery worth making.

The Sydney Symphony concluded their mini Russian series with an all-Tchaikovsky concert featuring one of his lesser-known concertos and a most beloved symphony.The first half was devoted to his Piano Concert no. 2 in G major, less recognisable than his first with its opening crashing chords, but every bit as endearing and lyrical.

I have always been skeptical of concert performances of operas. Operas are written to be acted, and the staging is needed to complement the music. This is what I thought before I saw this performance of Ashkenazy conducting the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Philharmonia Choirs and Sydney Children’s Choir in Tchaikovsky’s The Queen of Spades.

All things Russian are the flavour of the month in Sydney at the moment. Last night, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra under chief conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy embarked upon a mini-series of three Russian concerts to end the year. Recently returned from their highly successful tour of China, the orchestra was in sparkling form and played with freshness and vitality all evening.

A feast of Russian chamber music was what was on offer for the Australian Chamber Orchestra’s latest concert. Featuring music by Prokofiev, Shostakovich and Tchaikovsky in a program entitled Russian Visions, the ACO with guest soloists Steven Osborne and David Elton provided an evening of music which was visionary, electrifying and intense in equal measures.

There is nowhere to hide in Madama Butterfly. It is a well-known opera, contains very little in terms of stage action and changing scenery, is intensely lyrical in its vocal writing, and its orchestral writing is exposed. None of these factors bothered Opera Australia in their latest production, which was superb from beginning to end in every respect.

'Hero / Antihero' was how the Sydney Symphony Orchestra entitled their latest musical offering at Sydney Opera House. The title, of course, was referring to the anti-hero in Tchaikovsky's Voyevoda and the musical hero of Beethoven in his Eroica Symphony, which needs no introduction. However, 'Hero' might also have referred to solo cellist Alisa Weilerstein and guest conductor Osmo Vänskä.

Beethoven, Mozart, Angela Hewitt are all much loved names in the world of classical music. The promise of a Mozart piano concerto played by Angela Hewitt and a Beethoven symphony is enough to whet any music lover’s appetite. However, as in so many Sydney Symphony concerts, there was another work thrown in, which one could have been forgiven for glossing over in the evening’s publicity.

Upon entering the concert hall of Sydney Opera House, I was greeted by a plethora of percussion instruments positioned in all corners of the stage, along with multi-coloured ribbons, which were hanging down from the ceiling. They were in place for a performance of Toru Takemitsu’s From me flows what you call Time, for five percussionists and orchestra.

The latest Sydney Symphony Orchestra concert had everything from French impressionism to a world premiere, to a performance of a much-loved Romantic Symphony. The evening opened with two movements from Debussy’s Images for orchestra. Written originally as a set of three movements, they stand equally well on their own.

On 29th September 1973, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra performed an all-Wagner program in Sydney’s Opera House. This was the first concert ever heard in this most iconic of concert halls.

Any performance of Beethoven’s Symphony no. 9 is always eagerly awaited, but this one was especially, featuring the Australian Chamber Orchestra performing on period instruments, directed from the lead violin by their artistic director Richard Tognetti, with one of the best English collegiate choirs, the choir of Clare College, Cambridge.

Last night’s program with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra was one of those to really get your teeth into, with substantial, complex works by Brahms and Rachmaninov, and only a short amount of respite provided by Dvořák. This was serious music in the form of the heavyweight Brahms Piano Concerto no. 1, which contains almost too much music to comprehend in one sitting.

Korngold’s Die tote Stadt is an extraordinary opera, an often underrated masterpiece of the 20th century. On the face of it, it has a simple plot – the protagonist Paul, unable to overcome the death of his wife, falls in love with another woman, Marietta, similar to his dead wife in many ways.

Pairing together Schubert and Messiaen at first glance may appear slightly far-fetched. However, there are more similarities between the two composers, and indeed the two pieces in this evening’s program, than one might at first realise. Schubert and Messiaen were in many ways both experimental composers, especially the latter.

Georges Bizet's The Pearl Fishers, written some ten years before Carmen, does not enjoy as much recognition as the latter opera. Composed at the age of 25, the opera received harsh criticism from many contemporary critics, although not from Hector Berlioz, who clearly recognised something of Bizet's genius in the work.

At this concert we were treated to three completely different works which showcased the orchestra in a variety of styles and colours.

Friday night's concert, entitled Majestic Brahms, was a concert of two very different halves, with Brahms' Second Piano Concerto comprising the first half and Shostakovich's Sixth Symphony the second. The Brahms is a Herculean piece with one of the most challenging solo parts in the repertoire. Lasting approximately fifty minutes, it is a concerto on a symphonic scale.

Friday evening’s concert in Sydney was one of the most entertaining concerts I have been to in a long time. The concert was entitled A Gershwin Tribute, but might just as well have been called A Gershwin Celebration, or perhaps evening A Gershwin Party. The Sydney Symphony Orchestra was on sparkling form under British guest conductor and pianist Bramwell Tovey.

It was an evening of contrasts in the Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s latest concert. The program was subtitled Tchaikovsky at the Ballet, referring to the second half of the concert, which comprised highlights from the Nutcracker and Swan Lake; however, the first half was every bit as intriguing.

Friday's concert from the Sydney Symphony, "Fireworks and Fantasy", most certainly lived up to its title.

Another Mozart opera and another intriguing modern production from Opera Australia. The whole opera was presented as entertainment for a wedding reception, with a bride and bridegroom sitting at two corners of the stage, their sole purpose for the production to observe the unfolding comedy on stage.

Saturday evening’s concert saw the coming together of two world-class ensembles from opposite ends of the world: Australia’s national orchestra, the Australian Chamber Orchestra, and the world-renowned British vocal group the Hilliard Ensemble.

From the opening bars of the Overture of Opera Australia’s production of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro it was clear that this was going to be a production with a difference. As the orchestra began, the curtain raised to reveal a room, painted in brilliant white, with clothes rails at either end containing maids’ costumes.

The Sydney Symphony Orchestra continued their pairing of Beethoven and Strauss with two works based on different types of heros – the tragic hero of Beethoven’s Coriolan Overture and the more Romantic, all-conquering hero of Strauss’ Thus Spake Zarathustra, based on Nietzsche’s book.

Beethoven was certainly not afraid of breaking traditions. He broke several long-held Classical traditions in his Piano Concerto no. 4, and no break was more revolutionary than beginning a concerto with the solo instrument. It was in this way that the Sydney Symphony Orchestra under Vladimir Ashkenazy opened their latest musical offering at Sydney Opera House.

Opera Australia pulled out all the stops for their latest production of Puccini’s Turandot: an excellent cast, fabulous choreography, amazing costumes and a great sense of drama all combined to make it a wonderful production at Sydney Opera House. The Opera Theatre is comparatively small by modern standards and is a very intimate venue in which to see an opera.

The concert to open the Sydney Symphony Orchestra's 80th Anniversary Series was very much one of contrasts. With the promise of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, the season seemed to be opening in celebratory style. However, the entire first half was devoted to Richard Strauss' Metamorphosen, a piece which is a far cry from the triumphant finale of the Beethoven.