Category: Review
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Review – Bob Chilcott’s Mass for Peace and Reconciliation & Richard Blackford’s ‘The Black Lake’ at Three Choirs Festival 2025
Richard Blackford’s The Black Lake left a profound mark with evocative choral writing, while Bob Chilcott’s Mass for Peace and Reconciliation delivered polish and poignancy. Olivier Latry’s organ recital closed with a roof-raising improvisation.
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Review – BBC Proms 2025: The Traitors Prom
Brand tie-ins at the Proms can be clumsy, but The Traitors Prom proved how a crossover event can work. Packed with modest musical nods, inclusive audience engagement, and Claudia Winkleman’s dry delivery, this tightly scripted live event still managed to land on radio and, unexpectedly, win over a sceptic.
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Review – BBC Proms 2025: Randall Goosby at BBC Proms
Randall Goosby’s poised, expressive playing with the Orchestre National de France’s refined, responsive sound made this varied programme unexpectedly rewarding.
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Review – BBC Proms 2025: Beethoven’s 5th Symphony with Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Alexandre Kantorow – Friday 25 July 2025
A Scottish Chamber Orchestra Prom of Rameau, Saint-Saëns and Beethoven revealed an emerging broadcast-led strategy in this year’s season: programming designed to be safe rather than startling. But Maxim Emelyanychev’s gritty, defiant Beethoven 5 proved a reminder of why this work is not just enjoyed, but needed.
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BBC Proms 2025 Presenters on TV and Radio 3
Your guide to people on screen and on-air at the BBC Proms 2025
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Review – BBC Proms 2025: Mark Simpson’s ZEBRA with Sean Shibe & Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique – Tuesday 22 July 2025
Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique as the original fever dream: a wild, orchestrated spiral into obsession, intoxication, and gothic fantasy. Before that, an opportunity to bear witness in the world premiere of Mark Simpson’s ZEBRA written for Sean Shibe.
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The Benedetti Model: Leadership in Practice and Performance
Inside a values-driven programme that stretches across the country and highlights what the state still fails to deliver.
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Review – Santiago Sanchez and Victoria Guerroro at Cheltenham Festival
Poise, elegance, and youthful charm: tenor Santiago Sanchez and pianist Victoria Guerrero shine in their Cheltenham Music Festival debut — Sanchez with tender clarity, Guerrero with delicious precision.
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Review – Guitarist Alexandra Whittingham at Cheltenham Festival
Warmth, wit, and astonishing control from a guitarist who makes silence sing.
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Review – Giorgi Gigashvili at Cheltenham Festival
Georgian pianist Giorgi Gigashvili, who ends his time on the BBC’s New Generation Artists scheme this year, is an exciting performer with flair whose musicianship shines brightest in moments of intimacy and reflection.