Performer: David Butt Philip

Giving their 27th performance of the oratorio, the London Symphony Chorus excel as angelic angels and demonic demons. 

Presented without staging, Seattle Opera’s concert Daphne places Strauss’ extreme vocal demands and saturated orchestral writing in sharp relief, offering a high-risk encounter with a rarely heard late opera.

Under the baton of Semyon Bychkov, the Czech Philharmonic and a sprawling supporting cast lead listeners up a stairway to heaven. 

Exceptional singing enlivens a flawed production, which takes liberties with the tone and tenor of Beethoven's sole opera.

The composer's magnum opus, unjustly neglected in English-speaking countries, receives magnificent treatment from Andris Nelsons and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, anchored by David Butt Philip and Christine Goerke.

Nelsons stresses refined dynamics, rhythmic drive, balance and contrast as he closes the Beethoven Festival in style. 

The British tenor reflects on his time as a Jette Parker Young Artist and the swerve in direction his career has taken since.