Bittersweet symphonies: UK classical music 2023 in review
Amid the funding woes there were still bright spots this year, from Bach to Byrd, and the Rite to Rachmaninov, while the streaming world continued to evolve and expand
September 2023
‘A more hopeful kind of patriotism’: a first-timer goes to the Last Night of the Proms
Prom 70: RLPO/Hindoyan/Tsujii review – eclectic stylish programme of snaps and sparks
Brexiters outraged after crowds wave EU flag at Last Night of the Proms
The week in classical: Prom 64: Les Troyens; Prom 65: Bruckner’s Eighth Symphony; Proms 62 & 63: The Rite by Heart– review
Prom 69: Pygmalion/Pichon review – fascinating and moving take on Mozart’s Requiem
Rufus Wainwright: Want One and Want Two review – double-Prom epic is magnificently opulent
Prom 64: Les Troyens review – trouble-hit concert-staging rises to the occasion magnificently
Prom 62: The Rite by Heart review – fresh insight into Stravinsky’s complex classic
Prom 60: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin/Jurowski/Gerstein review – elegance, dash and flair
Observer New Review Q&A
Rufus Wainwright: ‘I call Yorkshire Gold the crystal meth of teas’
The week in classical: LSO/ Rattle; Boston Symphony Orchestra/ Nelsons – review
Home listening
Classical home listening: Bernard Herrmann meets Emily Brontë; Keith Jarrett plays CPE Bach
August 2023
‘People used to joke, What next from memory? The Rite of Spring?’: Nicholas Collon on his orchestra’s ultimate challenge
Prom 56: LSO/Rattle review – a packed Albert Hall hung on every note in utter silence
Prom 52: Boston SO/ Nelsons review – weighty lyricism and ravishing reflection
Prom 51: BBCSO/Oramo review – Tetzlaff’s Elgar is as good as one could wish
Prom 50: Samson review – humour, chewy harmonies and Handel at his best
John Eliot Gardiner pulls out of BBC Proms after punching bass soloist
Proms 45 & 46: BBCSO/Oramo; Manchester Collective review – Mahler with martial zeal and shimmering electronic works