A trio of great Bs: Beethoven, Bruckner and Blomstedt

By Alexander Hall, 23 October 2017

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“a masterclass in how to conduct a Bruckner symphony”

Reviewed at Barbican Hall, London on 22 October 2017

Beethoven, Triple Concerto for Violin, Cello, and Piano in C major, Op.56

Beethoven, Trio for Clarinet (or Violin), Cello and Piano, “Gassenhauer”, Op.11 (Adagio)

Bruckner, Symphony no. 7 in E major, WAB 107

Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra

Herbert Blomstedt, Conductor

Leonidas Kavakos, Violin

Gautier Capuçon, Cello

Kirill Gerstein, Piano

Isabelle Faust shines, Nelsons and the Gewandhaus disappoint

David Karlin, 26th August

The German violinist gives us plenty of Czech brio in Dvořák; conductor and orchestra display many good qualities but fail to thrill.

**111

Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk at Oper Leipzig

Mark Pullinger, 25th May

Two notable debuts dominate Oper Leipzig's notable Lady Macbeth revival: Kristine Opolais as Katerina and Andris Nelsons in the pit.

****1

Total Shostakovich in Leipzig

Mark Pullinger, 24th May

The combined forces of the Gewandhaus and Boston Symphony unite under Andris Nelsons for a searing Leningrad Symphony, while the Quatuor Danel tackles the string quartets.

*****

Star conductor: Blomstedt returns to the Leipzig Gewandhaus

Zenaida des Aubris, 13th November

Herbert Blomstedt conducts Schubert and Berwald... and picks up a medal on his return to the Leipzig Gewandhaus.

*****

Spellbinding Parsifal caps Oper Leipzig's massive Wagner 22 Festival

Ako Imamura, 14th July

Ulf Schirmer bows out as General Music Director as the last of Wagner's 13 operas completes a successful Festival Wagner 22 in Leipzig.

****1

Sublime Strauss from Nelsons and the Gewandhausorchester

Dominic Lowe, 9th May

A visit to London from Nelsons is always an occasion. The first of two programmes dedicated to Strauss demonstrated why the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig is among the best in the world.

****1

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Alexander Hall

Alexander Hall divides his time between London and Hamburg, where he had a career in academic administration and teaching. He reviews for Bachtrack and Opera Today, and has also reviewed for Classical Source. A connoisseur of the great orchestras of the world, his musical memories stretch back to Karajan/Berlin Phil, Mravinsky/Leningrad Phil, Bernstein/Vienna Phil, and he has seen most of the great conductors from the past, including Böhm, Klemperer, Kubelik, Ormandy and Szell.