Brazilian brilliance in Birmingham with Ex Cathedra

Bradley Smith, as Evangelist, and a fine cast of soloists drove this Good Friday account of Bach’s St Matthew Passion from Ex Cathedra in Birmingham.

Any venue, cathedral or concert hall, that advertises a Good Friday performance of J.S. Bach’s epic St Matthew Passion is likely to sell out; even Birmingham’s vast Symphony Hall is no exception, today being full to bursting with eager parishioners making their annual pilgrimage to wallow in Bach’s all-consuming musical ministry.

Enhanced by bells, Ex Cathedra Jeffrey Skidmore give a low-key but highly dramatic performance of Rachmaninov’s Vespers in Birmingham Town Hall

Bradley Smith, as Evangelist, and a fine cast of soloists drove this Good Friday account of Bach’s St Matthew Passion from Ex Cathedra in Birmingham.

In performing the Vespers in the acoustically wonderful Milton Court, Jeffrey Skidmore took the imaginative decision to interleaving its movements with solo piano works, played by Steven Osborne. It proved inspirational programming.

Celebrating 20 years as Artistic Director of Birmingham Royal Ballet, David Bintley brings the company to London, where Balanchine’s Serenade acts as a delicate sorbet before the excesses of Bintley’s own Carmina burana.