The art of criticism: Christian Merlin

By Tristan Labouret, 07 March 2018

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“The critic's role is threefold: to narrate, to analyse and to judge”

Lawrence Dunn, 20th March

The young Polish harpsichordist with the Cohaere Ensemble talks about the Early music scene in Poland, her investigations into music of 18th-century Danzig, one of Europe’s most cosmopolitan cities.

Rare symphonies: Masaaki Suzuki returns to Singapore

Nahoko Gotoh, 19th March

Renowned Japanese conductor returns to the Singapore Symphony Orchestra to perform unusual music from Johann Wenzel Kalliwoda – an influence on Robert Schumann, who described him as “unique in the world of symphonies”.

Medieval survivors: Irini Bilini Moraiti on Early music in Greece

Lawrence Dunn, 18th March

Medieval music specialists Irini Bilini Moraiti and Dimitris Kountouras talk about their distinctive approaches to Early music in Greece, and the survival of old music through oral traditions.

Opera in the blood: Speranza Scappucci

Mark Pullinger, 17th March

The Royal Opera’s Principal Guest Conductor explains her passion for opera, her journey into the pit and how good conductors share the attributes of football managers.

Pure agilità: Aya Wakizono returns to Tokyo

Nahoko Gotoh, 13th March

The Japanese mezzo soprano is returning to the New National Theatre, Tokyo for her role debut in Massenet’s Werther. We talk about her love for Rossini, and expansions into later Romantic opera.

Rhapsody in Bucharest: Nemanja Radulović on the Enescu Competition

Peter Quantrill, 12th March

The Serbian-French violinist talks about what makes the George Enescu International Competition special, his experiences winning in 2001, and performing Enescu, Beethoven and Prokofiev.

Tristan Labouret

Musicologue diplômé du CNSMD de Paris, Tristan Labouret collabore avec de nombreux artistes et institutions musicales (Printemps des Arts de Monte-Carlo, Orchestre national d'Île-de-France, Opéra Orchestre National Montpellier, festivals de musique de chambre de Deauville, Just Classik Festival…), menant des activités de médiation à destination de tous les publics. Ex-altiste toujours passionné par les répertoires chambristes et symphoniques, il occupe depuis 2018 le poste de rédacteur en chef de la partie francophone de Bachtrack.

Le Figaro’s Christian Merlin: “Who am I to pass judgement?”