classical music & opera
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'Thinking only in music sends the imagination on a different quest'Ahead of the world premiere of The Crimson Bird, a concertante about war and parenthood, the composer writes about how her new work took shape -
Le Vin herbé: It's Tristan and Isolde, but not as you know itFrank Martin’s chamber opera about the tragic lovers is the polar opposite of Wagner’s opulent extravaganza. The director of a new production explains how less is becoming more
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Overtures, Preludes and Intermezzi – fine renditions of operatic raritiesA fascinating forage through 100 years of Italian music, mostly premiered at La Scala, Milan, shows Riccardo Chailly at his best -
'If it’s a disaster, I apologise'He’s played Macheath, an M16 chief and Mr Thatcher, but can he breathe life into a brand new opera? Rory Kinnear explains why he agreed to direct The Winter’s Tale – a 400-year-old text that suddenly feels horribly contemporary
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Watch act one of Die Walküre from Opera North's Ring CycleOpera North’s new approach to Wagner was praised for its dramatic power, musical integrity and accessibility. You can watch the first act of Die Walküre here
facing the music
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Pianist Benjamin Grosvenor: I have always regretted giving up the celloThe pianist talks about striving for excellence in performance, playing in a barn to sparrows and why music education in schools is so important
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Baritone Roderick Williams: I used to be in an a cappella boy band. We were on Opportunity KnocksThe British baritone discusses the musicians who inspire him, entering a talent show as part of a boy band – and serenading commuters on the Paris Métro
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weekly from the archive
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David Munrow profile - 'not even Mick Jagger has such versatile lips'9 March 1971: Meirion Bowen on the scholar, virtuosic musician and crumhorn whizzkid at the forefront of the period-instrument movement, who died tragically young 40 years ago
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Beethoven: 'Even among his oldest friends, he must be humoured like a wayward child'From the archive, 23 April 1827: Following the death of Beethoven, the Observer publishes a personal account of the eccentric and prodigiously talented composer
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Wagner wines, collars and cravats, and the man himself in a velvet cap: our report from the first Bayreuth festivalFrom the archive, 11 August 1876: The Guardian reports from the very first Bayreuth Wagner festival, presided over by the composer himself.
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Hamburg’s new world-class public venue trumpets its host city to the world. London is already a beacon, and doesn’t need Simon Rattle’s dream hall in quite the same way
A new concert hall for London? The artistic case is clear, the political one less so -
Beethoven in dreadlocks … the exhibition that celebrates great myths about the composerDid deafness liberate him? Was his African ancestry suppressed? Did he write a musical communist manifesto? A new show in Paris celebrates – and debunks – the many myths surrounding Beethoven
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you may have missed
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Classical stars pick their favourite Wolfgang Amadeus wonderIt’s 225 years since Mozart’s death, and there’s a giant CD collection to mark it featuring many of the biggest names in classical music. We asked some of them to reveal which of his works they love best
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English National Opera names Martyn Brabbins as music directorRespected conductor takes over from Mark Wigglesworth as company seeks stability after two years of cuts and crises
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Can independent music shops survive on today's high street?Small retailers everywhere are struggling to compete with online competition. But one classical music store in north London is surviving - and even thriving
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Teodor Currentzis - he is classical music breaking the four-minute mileThis young Greek conductor’s recordings of Mozart operas have redefined music and changed my life with their profound vision, energy and face-punching force
guides
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A guide to contemporary classical musicTom Service introduces 50 composers from the contemporary classical music scene
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Stephen Moss's guide to the music of Europe's great cities: BerlinOur series ends in Berlin, the classical music lover’s dream destination, with Berg, Busoni, Bowie and Bernstein.
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Tom Service's survey of the 50 symphonies that changed musical historyTom Service's survey of the 50 symphonies that changed classical music
Interview John Adams: ‘Trump is a sociopath – there’s no empathy, he’s a manipulator'