A Tavener première, impassioned Bartók and a surprise cameo from Mozart

By Jack Johnson, 25 July 2014

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Reviewed at Royal Albert Hall, London on 23 July 2014

Tavener, Gnosis (BBC commission: world première)

Bartók, Violin Concerto no. 2, Sz 112

Shostakovich, Symphony no. 10 in E minor, Op.93

Dame Sarah Connolly, Mezzo-soprano

Isabelle Faust, Violin

BBC Symphony Orchestra

Jiří Bělohlávek, Conductor

Sakari Oramo and Yeol Eum Son summon up vivid landscapes

Christopher Woodley, 13th March

Yeol Eum Son's superb performances of Bartók and Finzi are matched by intense and heady readings of Stravinsky and Weir by the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Sakari Oramo.

****1

From snow to sludge: Icelandic music at the Barbican Centre

Marat Ingeldeev, 22nd February

A bewildering evening at the Barbican, where ambitious Icelandic programming collapses under its lofty ambition of defying genres and making music more appealing to a wide variety of audiences.

**111

Fine Lindberg and Stravinsky double bill from the BBC Symphony

Roy Westbrook, 6th February

After a performance of Magnus Lindberg’s First Violin Concerto by Lisa Batiashvili at the Barbican, Stravinsky’s Perséphone stands the test of time.

****1

UK premiere of Julia Wolfe’s unEarth impresses on scale, not substance

Susannah Moody, 23rd January

Wolfe's climate-change oratorio, performed by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, already feels out of date.

**111

Sir James MacMillan delights with his Christmas Oratorio

David Karlin, 19th December

MacMillan's large scale choral work offers a rich variety of texts and musical ideas, the composer conducts the BBC Symphony with unerring precision.

*****

Ermonela Jaho gives a tragic twist to Puccini's La rondine

Peter Quantrill, 5th December

A new edition of Puccini's score springs to life in a meticulously prepared Opera Rara concert performance at the Barbican.

****1

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Jack Johnson

After completing a postgraduate degree in Music at King's College London in 2013, Jack now works in development for an arts charity based in London. Aside from regularly attending concerts, he plays piano and clarinet and enjoys singing with several choirs. Particularly passions include Bach, Prokofiev and the neglected choral works of Hummel