Championing Saint-Saëns with style: Emelyanychev, Isserlis and the OAE

Maxim Emelyanychev conducts the OAE

Steven Isserlis and the OAE

By Mark Pullinger, 27 January 2023

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“fruity French bassoons, merci beaucoup”

Reviewed at Royal Festival Hall, London on 26 January 2023

Saint-Saëns, Phaéton, Op.39

Saint-Saëns, Cello Concerto no. 1 in A minor, Op.33

Saint-Saëns, Carnival of the Animals: The Swan

Saint-Saëns, Danse macabre

Saint-Saëns, Symphony no. 3 in C minor "Organ Symphony", Op.78

Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

Steven Isserlis, Cello

Maxim Emelyanychev, Conductor

James McVinnie, Organ

Matthew Truscott, Violin

Mixed Mozart from the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

Dominic Lowe, 26th February

A Mozart's of symphonies – his last – under conductor Robin Ticciati is capped with a fine Jupiter, but is let down by the performances of its two predecessors.

***11

John Butt and the OAE celebrate Handel's Solomon

Roy Westbrook, 12th October

The Queen of Sheba is clearly in a hurry in this account of Handel's oratorio at the Queen Elizabeth Hall.

*****

Enescu Festival immersion: Bach on the street, Klimt in the forest

Peter Quantrill, 11th September

At the George Enescu International Festival, a pair of new shows crossing genres and reinventing the classics, with mostly enlightening results.

****1

Brandstrup Breaking Bach with the OAE at EIF

Kathy Elgin, 20th August

Kim Brandstrup choreographs Bach favourites based on hip hop and street dance. Lie back on the bean bags at Usher Hall and enjoy...

****1

A strong new Figaro opens at Glyndebourne

Dominic Lowe, 29th June

Mariame Clément is a popular director at Glyndebourne, and her new production of Figaro shows her trademark approach to hardhitting comedy.

****1

Glyndebourne's Saul still packs a punch 10 years on

Nick Boston, 8th June

Returning from the original run, Christopher Purves and Iestyn Davies were joined by a strong cast and chorus for a revival of Barrie Kosky's striking production.

*****

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Mark Pullinger

Mark has been a Bachtrack editor since 2014. He is also an experienced critic, writing hundreds of reviews for the site, as well as a freelancer writing for other magazines and newspapers. He also writes programme notes and blogs on Substack. Mark has a particular passion for the operas of Verdi as well as Russian and French repertoire. Outside the concert hall and opera house, Mark enjoys cooking and travel and is probably at his happiest let loose in a French patisserie or a Viennese coffee house.