Marin Alsop & LSO
Barbican, 5th & 8th November
The LSO marks the centenary of America’s great composer-conductor Leonard Bernstein by unpacking this musical chameleon. Marin Alsop, above, conducts two concerts exploring Bernstein’s three symphonies, which make a profound statement about national identity. Prize-winning American mezzo Jamie Barton joins Alsop and the LSO for Bernstein’s Symphony No 1 “Jeremiah,” paired here with Mahler’s First Symphony, while the mighty Second Symphony for chorus, soloists and orchestra—an impassioned plea for peace—is set against the lovely lamenting adagio from Mahler’s unfinished Tenth.
Brighton Early Music Festival: Musica Secreta/Celestial Sirens
St Paul’s Church Brighton, 3rd November
Ferrara’s convent choirs were celebrated across Renaissance Europe. For the women involved they were crucibles not just for outstanding performances but also for compositions charged with suppressed emotions. No ensemble has done more to champion this repertoire than Brighton-based Musica Secreta, an all-female group whose performances included works attributed to Leonora d’Este, Lucrezia Borgia’s daughter.
English Touring Opera: Bach’s B Minor Mass
Touring inc Blackburn, Exeter, Sheffield, 5th to 18th November
Before the Christmas Oratorio season, there’s a chance to hear Bach’s other great statement of Christian faith—the generous, world-encompassing B Minor Mass. Following on from the success of their St John Passion, English Touring Opera brings theatrical scope to this sacred work. Period ensemble the Old Street Band accompany a cast of rising young soloists and ETO regulars, including tenor Anthony Gregory and soprano Galina Averina.
Barbican, 5th & 8th November
The LSO marks the centenary of America’s great composer-conductor Leonard Bernstein by unpacking this musical chameleon. Marin Alsop, above, conducts two concerts exploring Bernstein’s three symphonies, which make a profound statement about national identity. Prize-winning American mezzo Jamie Barton joins Alsop and the LSO for Bernstein’s Symphony No 1 “Jeremiah,” paired here with Mahler’s First Symphony, while the mighty Second Symphony for chorus, soloists and orchestra—an impassioned plea for peace—is set against the lovely lamenting adagio from Mahler’s unfinished Tenth.
Brighton Early Music Festival: Musica Secreta/Celestial Sirens
St Paul’s Church Brighton, 3rd November
Ferrara’s convent choirs were celebrated across Renaissance Europe. For the women involved they were crucibles not just for outstanding performances but also for compositions charged with suppressed emotions. No ensemble has done more to champion this repertoire than Brighton-based Musica Secreta, an all-female group whose performances included works attributed to Leonora d’Este, Lucrezia Borgia’s daughter.
English Touring Opera: Bach’s B Minor Mass
Touring inc Blackburn, Exeter, Sheffield, 5th to 18th November
Before the Christmas Oratorio season, there’s a chance to hear Bach’s other great statement of Christian faith—the generous, world-encompassing B Minor Mass. Following on from the success of their St John Passion, English Touring Opera brings theatrical scope to this sacred work. Period ensemble the Old Street Band accompany a cast of rising young soloists and ETO regulars, including tenor Anthony Gregory and soprano Galina Averina.
