Prom 26: An unforgettable B minor Mass with The English Concert

By Jane Shuttleworth, 03 August 2012

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Reviewed at Royal Albert Hall, London on 2 August 2012

Bach, Mass in B minor, BWV232

Joélle Harvey, Soprano

Carolyn Sampson, Soprano

Iestyn Davies, Countertenor

Ed Lyon, Tenor

Matthew Rose, Bass

Choir of the English Concert

The English Concert

Harry Bicket, Conductor

A radically trad Fidelio at Garsington

Peter Quantrill, 27th June

Simple solutions prove the best in Beethoven's "problem" opera as John Cox's staging is revived at Garsington.

****1

Ravishing Rodelinda: Handel al fresco at Garsington Opera

Roy Westbrook, 13th June

Ruth Knight untangles Handel's Rodelinda, directing a new staging at Garsington which features a feast of fine singing.

****1

Rameau meets The Kardashians: Platée at Garsington

David Karlin, 29th May

A superb orchestral performance from Paul Agnew and The English Concert lights up a breezy and fun staging of Rameau's ballet bouffon.

***11

Handel's Brockes Passion resurrected by The English Concert

Roy Westbrook, 27th March

The London Handel Festival offers a chance to hear rarely performed music for Passiontide, with Harry Bicket conducting the English Concert.

****1

Heavenly Bach from Iestyn Davies at the BBC Proms

Leighton Jones, 25th August

With two cantatas for solo alto bookending the Third Brandenburg Concerto, The English Concert bewitches in this late-night all Bach programme.

****1

Top Mozart from Kristian Bezuidenhout and The English Concert

Mark Thomas, 7th June

A scintillating account of an all-Mozart programme at St Martin-in-the-Fields with a mighty concerto, a mightier symphony and one of his more unusual overtures.

*****

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Jane Shuttleworth

Jane Shuttleworth is a choral singer and recorder player, and specialises in Renaissance, baroque and modern music. She lives in Durham and runs a local music listings, news and reviews site Music in Durham