Hefty Bruckner eclipsed by Norman's Grammy-nominated Sustain

By Nick Boston, 21 November 2019

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“with perfectly co-ordinated Mexican waves of cascading cluster chords sweeping from front to back”

Reviewed at Barbican Hall, London on 20 November 2019

Norman, Sustain (European première)

Bruckner, Symphony no. 4 in E flat major, "Romantic", WAB 104

Los Angeles Philharmonic

Gustavo Dudamel, Conductor

A cerebral bacchanalia: Young's bold, brainy Messiaen at Disney Hall

Néstor Castiglione, 10th April

Simone Young's take on Messiaen's Turangalîla with the Los Angeles Philharmonic proves a night to remember.

*****

Dudamel and Catalan choirs dazzle in Beethoven’s Missa solemnis

Néstor Castiglione, 20th February

In Los Angeles, Gustavo Dudamel conducts Beethoven's Missa solemnis for the first time... and it proves worth the wait.

*****

Shock, spectacle and endurance: Yuja Wang and Thomas Adès at full tilt

Laurence Vittes, 8th February

If Prokofiev’s original intention in his Second Piano Concerto was shock and awe, Yuja Wang gives exactly the right performance with the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

***11

John Adams leads Americana, past and present, with LA Phil

Néstor Castiglione, 23rd January

Compelling as a composer and conductor, Adams restored Roy Harris' Third Symphony to the Los Angeles repertoire, alongside one of his most recent works.

*****

Salonen and the LA Philharmonic take on the forces of nature

Néstor Castiglione, 9th January

Reflections of nature and humanity's place within it in Salonen's 2026 return

****1

Winter Daydreams and a Jazz Age Nutcracker at Disney Hall

Néstor Castiglione, 18th December

A feast of Tchaikovsky with the Los Angeles Philharmonic under guest conductor Thomas Wilkins.

****1

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Nick Boston

Nick has an MA in Music, specialising in performance and repertoire. His particular passions are choral music, chamber music and opera, with a particular interest in early music. He sings in a number of choirs in the south east of England, plays the piano and occasionally dusts off the violin. He writes about music here.