Rising Stars at Tromsø's Northern Lights Festival

By Gavin Dixon, 29 January 2015

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Reviewed at Sparebankens festsal, Tromsø on 29 January 2015

Messiaen, Quatuor pour la fin du temps (Quartet for the End of Time): Louange à l'Éternité de Jésus

Schubert, Introduction and variations on "Trockne Blumen" in E minor, D.802

Marais, Pièce de viole (Les Folies d’Espagne)

Chaminade, Concertino in D major for flute and orchestra, Op.107

Tanja Helen Kvitnes, Flute

Korngold and Mahler from Ray Chen, Vasily Petrenko and the RPO

Roy Westbrook, 12th May

Few violin concertos soar from the first bar as Erich Korngold’s does, especially as in Ray Chen's high-wire account at the Royal Albert Hall.

****1

Petr Popelka delivers a thrilling opening for Prague Spring

Frank Kuznik, 12th May

With Petr Popelka on the podium, the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra brings a native feel and colorful exuberance to a cultural icon.

****1

Energetic Currentzis and Utopia at the Elbphilharmonie

Mengguang Huang, 12th May

From Berg’s crystalline intimacy to Dionysian Mahler, Teodor Currentzis and Utopia defy orchestral tradition with standing musicians, spatial acoustics and an emotional intensity that breathes new life into the concert life.

****1

Alexander Malofeev conjures sophistication at the Concertgebouw

Clare Varney, 10th May

Sitting low on the piano stool and with his head gently bobbing from side to side, this is music to listen to on repeat.

****1

Redemption and musical caffeine: Nelsons conducts Mahler 8 in Vienna

Mark Pullinger, 10th May

Sunday morning Mahler at the Wiener Konzerthaus sees Andris Nelsons concluding his symphony cycle with the Vienna Philharmonic in shattering fashion.

****1

Era-defining string sound in the Liverpool Phil’s Mahler 9

Rohan Shotton, 10th May

Domingo Hindoyan nears his five-year anniversary at the RLPO with Mahler's Ninth Symphony.

****1

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Gavin Dixon

Gavin Dixon is a writer, journalist and editor specialising in classical music. He writes for publications such as Gramophone, Classical Music and BBC Music Magazine. Gavin has a PhD on the symphonies of Alfred Schnittke and is a member of the editorial team for the “Alfred Schnittke Collected Works” edition. His website is here.