Canticum and Southbank Sinfonia light up St Martin-in-the-Fields

The version of Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice sung last night at the Cadogan Hall was based on the original Italian version (1762) but included elements of a later French version. The various parts of nymphs, shepherds, Furies etc. were all sung by the ~150 strong London Concert Choir who produced a rich and well balanced sound which supported the main action very well.

In his first New York appearance since the termination of his contract as BSO Music Director, Nelsons courts public sympathy and makes some thrilling music.

The sparkle of Max Bruch's Fecond Violin Concerto and the drama of Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony overcome the gloom of Anna Thorvaldsdottir’s dark forebodings. 

Beethoven's Christus am Ölberge is paired with Haydn's Die sieben letzten Worte, a journey from agony to transcendence in which the agony proves the more honest companion.

From Three Screaming Popes to Pictures at an Exhibition, a pair of works inspired by paintings frame a violin concerto by Béla Bartók at London's Southbank Centre.