Classical Notes: November 2026

Wednesday, 11 November 2026

Joyful and exhilarating Mozart and more from Pygmalion at 20

Raphaël Pichon conducts Pygmalion
© Mathilde Assier

Sabine Devieilhe (soprano)

Xenia Puskarz Thomas (mezzo-soprano)

Kieran Carrel (tenor)

Daniel Ochoa (baritone)

Ensemble Pygmalion (choir and orchestra)

Raphaël Pichon (conductor)

8pm, Monday 9 November 2026

Barbican Hall, London

★★★★★

Bruckner, Anton (1824-1896): Christus factus est, WAB11

Mendelssohn, Felix (1809-1847): Miserere (parody of Kyrie, MWVA3)

Schubert, Franz (1797-1828): Lacrimosa son io, D131b

Bruckner, Anton: Ave Maria, WAB6

Mendelssohn, Felix: Da nobis pacem (parody of Verlieh uns Frieden gnädiglich, WoO5)

Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus (1756-1791): Great Mass in C minor, K427: Kyrie, Gloria, Credo

Ave verum corpus, K618

Great Mass in C minor, K427: Sanctus, Benedictus

Sabine Devieilhe, Xenia Puskarz Thomas, Kieran Carrel & Daniel Ochoa
© Mathilde Assier

'Bruckner’s Christus factus est, and .... Ave Maria ... were delivered with impeccable diction and precision, Pichon drawing out the long phrases, requiring impressive sustained control'.

'Mendelssohn’s ... Da nobis pacem, allowed the orchestra to show off their warmest string sounds, with a beautiful baritone cello line'.

Mozart:

'Pichon’s expressive shaping and use of dynamic extremes flowed logically from the sound world of Mendelssohn and Bruckner. Yet this never strayed into operatic excesses, with voices growing on top notes rather than relentlessly belting, as can be the way'.

'... a real highlight was the Et incarnatus est, the quartet of flute, oboe, bassoon and soprano Devieilhe exquisitely balanced'.

'The solo quartet gave us a brief moment of their delicate blend in the Benedictus, before the final Hosanna ended with jubilant celebration'.

Raphaël Pichon conducts Pygmalion
© Mathilde Assier

Read my full review on Bachtrack here.

Monday, 2 November 2026

Gothic Opera impresses once again with the other Queen of Spades

Grace O'Malley (Princess Polowska) & Charlie Epps (André Roskaw)
© Craig Fuller

Gothic Opera

Hannah von Wiehler (Conductor)

Jonny Danciger (Director, Technical Design)

Alina Sorokina (Assistant Conductor & Répétiteur)

Leon Haxby (Arranger)

Céleste Langrée (Set & Costume Designer)

Eli Hunt (Co-Lighting Designer)

Maryann Wright (Producer)

Grace O'Malley (Princess Polowska)

James Hutchings (Constantin Nelidoff)

Sam Utley (Prince Zizianoff)

Charlie Epps (André Roskaw)

Alice Usher (Lisanka)

Alistair Sutherland (Klaremburg)

HoWang Yuen (Sowbakin)

William Costello (Casino Banker)

Persha Darling, Naomi Kilby, Mia Serracino, Rebecca Anderson, Isobel Hughes, Charles Secombe, William Costello (Chorus)

7.30pm, Thursday 29 October 2026

Main Hall, Battersea Arts Centre, London

★★★★

Halévy, Fromental (1799-1862): La Dame de Pique, Opéra comique en 3 actes (libretto by Scribe, Eugéne (1791-1861), adapted dialogue by Danciger, Jonny, music arranged by Haxby, Leon (b.1993))

'Visually, great use has been made of the Battersea Arts Centre Hall, its gothic bare walls adding a ready-made backdrop to the otherwise simple and effective staging, with colourful costumes'.

'Grace O’Malley (Princess Polowska) had impressive stage presence, as well as fine coloratura, the most impressive vocally of the evening'.

'James Hutchings (Constantin) was engagingly bright, lightly secure at the top of his range, and convincing in his role as the troubled suitor'.

'Once again, Leon Haxby has done a great job at reducing what must be a substantial orchestral score for a band of just seven players...Conductor Hannah von Wiehler drove the production with clarity and energy'.

'Hats off to Gothic Opera for bringing this delightfully bonkers confection to our attention'.

Read my full review on Bachtrack here.