by Ben Hogwood. Image by Charles Reutlinger, used courtesy of Wikipedia
On this day in 1892, the first performance took place of Tchaikovsky’s popular seasonal ballet The Nutcracker Op.71, a musical and staged interpretation of Alexandre Dumas’s French version of the E.T.A. Hoffmann fairy-tale The Nutcracker and the Mouse-King.
The premiere was staged at the Mariinsky Theatre in St Petersburg, conducted by Riccardo Drigo, and found favour with the Czar, but not so much the public, who preferred the shorter Nutcracker Suite Tchaikovsky fashioned from the ballet.
Here is the full ballet, with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin:
Published post no.2,752 – Thursday 18 December 2025
In the last ten years, we have had much more of an insight into Rick Wakeman’s world as a solo musician. These glimpses are afforded us through the albums Piano Portraits and Piano Odyssey, the start of a trilogy now completed by Melancholia.
Yet there is a greater personal edge to this particular set, started by Wakeman’s wife Rachel who was struck by hearing Rick playing privately and encouraged him to share his musical thoughts. The music she heard would become the track Garo, while the other eleven tracks on the album follow a similar, semi-improvised tread.
The music follows Wakeman’s train of thought, a clear thread running through each piece.
What’s the music like?
Melancholia is easy listening – which is of course both a blessing and a curse. If you listen closely, it is possible to tap into Rick’s mostly reflective moods, and admire the way he develops the source material. Clearly this is a master musician at work, the feeling being that we are eavesdropping on an advanced practice session where Wakeman takes us through his intimate thoughts and feelings.
Yet this does also work as a disadvantage, for the music falls effortlessly into the ‘peaceful piano’ section of any digital playlist. This is great for passive listening of course, but it means some of the deeper meanings within the music can be lost, especially given the similarity between the colours on each track.
Wakeman plays with elegance and attention to detail, with some lovely little ornamentations that have become second nature to him, rather like bringing a Bach invention to the table. Pathos is nicely turned, while Alone is led by an attractive melody. Watching Life has a satisfying balance of light and shade, while the title track fades into the distance, leaving room for thought at the end.
Does it all work?
Yes, providing the caveats above are taken into account.
Is it recommended?
It is – though anyone expecting the physical energy Wakeman brings to most of his keyboard playing will find it channelled for inward thoughts only here. Melancholia does, though, reinforce Rick Wakeman’s status as one of the most versatile British keyboard and piano players around.
Listen / Buy
Published post no.2,751 – Wednesday 16 December 2025
Choir of St. John’s College Cambridge / Christopher Gray
Beamish In the stillness (2007) Rutter There is a flower (1986) Parsons Ave Maria (c1560) Hassler Verbum caro factum est (1591) Britten A Hymn to the Virgin (1930, rev. 1934) Walton All this time (1970) Trad/German arr. Pearsall In dulci jubilo Hieronymus Praetorius Magnificat quinti toni (pub. 1622) Daley Love came down at Christmas (2004) Poston Jesus Christ the Apple Tree (1967) Kirbye Vox in Rama (c.1620) Anon Coventry Carol Dove The Three Kings (2000)
Wigmore Hall, London Monday 15 December 2025
Reviewed by Ben Hogwood
What a lovely idea to bring a concert of Christmas Carols to the last of the BBC Radio 3 Lunchtime Concerts held in the Wigmore Hall in 2025. The Choir of St. John’s College Cambridge, suitably attired, were led in a stirring yet thought-provoking programme by their conductor Christopher Gray, who have just released O Holy Night, an album of Christmas carols, on Signum Classics.
Yet much of the selection here went beyond the album’s component parts, exploring responses old and new to specific parts of the Christmas story. In a curious twist, the oldest music heard proved to be the most adventurous and emotive.
The concert began with an account of Sally Beamish’s In the stillness which was notable for its crystal clear intonation and enunciation, features the choir would display throughout the concert. John Rutter’s There is a flower fared equally well, the anthem he wrote for the choir leading with a touching treble solo, before the complexities of Robert Parsons’ masterful Ave maria were aligned in commendable phrasing. Similar qualities befell the lively exchanges of counterpoint in Hans Leo Hassler’s Verbum caro factum est, before the remarkable invention of the teenage Britten was found in A Hymn to the Virgin, music that looks simultaneously forward and backward.
The choir performed these carols in carefully arranged sequences, ideally programmed for tonality and emotive impact. Walton’s exuberant All this time began the second sequence, the choir enjoying the push-pull rhythms, after which In dulci jubilo switched on its ever-beautiful light in the darkness, casting a spell in spite of a slightly ragged second verse. The clever text setting of Hieronymus Praetorius – not the normally performed Michael! – was especially enjoyable in his Magnificat setting, before the clarity of carols from Canadian composer Eleanor Daley and Brit Elizabeth Poston was beautifully achieved. The latter’s Jesus Christ The Apple Tree was particularly moving in the simplicity with which its paragraphs end.
The mood darkened appreciably for George Kirbye’s lament Vox in Rama, the inconsolable Rachel weeping for the loss of her children in the massacre ordered by King Herod, while the Coventry Carol too sounded sombre in this company. All the more reason to end with a characterful account of Jonathan Dove’s The Three Kings, brilliantly characterised by the trebles especially.
Two encores followed – a breathless and exciting arrangement of Adam lay ybounden by Laura Sheils, then a close-harmony version of We Wish You A Merry Christmas, channelling Cole Porter to show-stopping effect. It was the musical equivalent of a mince pie with extra brandy, the ideal way to send the Wigmore Hall audience humming into the afternoon!
Ambient music is often about keeping a constant flow of continuity, so that any changes occurring don’t upset the musical applecart.
Few things are as consistent in this area than Kompakt’s own Pop Ambient series, the compilation pushing on beyond a quarter-century as it looks to showcase the best ambient music to come the way of the Cologne label in the preceding year.
This collection offers 19 tracks, that, in the label’s words, are looking forward. “Joining good friends from the early days and reliable confidants are some new additions to the non-hierarchical charts of contemplative rapture culture.”
They describe their principal additions as “Micå, a Japanese electronic musician whose finely chiselled, graceful musical style has made it onto the new collection with two pieces. Also making his debut is Richard Ojijo, a seasoned sound engineer known, among other things, for his long-standing collaboration with the artist Marcel Odenbach and the Cologne-based label Magazine. Oskø aka Max Hytrek, a multi-talented newcomer to Kompakt and the music scene, debuts with his rapturously ecstatic piece Ar Vag. He’s followed by Sebastian Mullaert, appearing for the second time—this time teamed up with Sebastian Lilja aka Hush Forever. After his surprise return last year after a 20 year hiatus, we are delighted that Tetsuo Sakae aka Pass Into Silence is back again this year with one of his distinctive sound gems. As are Dirk Leyers (Closer Musik) and Mikkel Metal.”
What’s the music like?
Seasoned listeners will know exactly what to expect from this sort of compilation – and they won’t be disappointed with the unhurried selection on offer.
There is rich, restful ambience from the off in the shape of the new Micå addition Echoes Of Blue, while among the many highlights are the comforting waves of string sound on Segensklang’s Schauer der Musen, contrasting nicely with the more flighty Pale Blue Dot by Pass Into Silence.
Ümit Han provides a lovely combination of movement and stillness on Eines Tages, while the vast spaces become apparent in the weather-beaten music of Richard Ojijo and Luis Reich. An intriguing, woozy accordion number from Morgan Wurde brings accordion and brass into sonorous opposition, while Dirk Leyers’ Regolith goes stock still with the addition of some nocturnal voices.
Joachim Spieth goes darker with Onset, while the open spaces of the desert can be sensed once again in Blank Gloss’s Hairpin, Mikkel Metal’s Moss is like a sound wave lapping at a soft shore, while the last word goes to the quasi-orchestral Erlösung (translating as ‘Salvation’) from Segensklang, a study akin to watching a rowing boat, with hefty strokes from the strings above a watery drone.
Does it all work?
It does. Kompakt are past masters at this sort of compilation, and everything works in beautiful harmony and structure.
Is it recommended?
It certainly is. In such changeable times the ability of Pop Ambient to remain unaltered is a cause for celebration, providing musical balm for the soul.
Father and daughter Robert and Lyric Hood – aka Floorplan – arrive on Fabric presents with a good deal of history already clocked up with the label.
Robert remembers it well in the press release. “When you walk into Room 2 you feel like you’re walking into a moment. Once the room pulls you in, a connection is formed between a DJ & the atmosphere in that room. It’s purely organic.” His contribution to the Fabric mix series – Fabric 39 – was made back in 2008, but now he has a slightly different modus operandi. “Of the handful of techno clubs that I’ve shared stories about with Lyric, fabric was usually the one I talked about most, especially that sound system, and the crowds were just crazy”, he says.
What’s the music like?
An energy rush. Wasting no time, Floorplan set about their mix with a mission of bringing spiritually infused techno to a higher plain, with suitably euphoric vocals. Their own single You’re A Shining Star is an early highpoint, while the rolling bass underpinning My Desire For You is brilliant.
The highs continue as keyboards lead us skywards, with excellent vocals on Dale Move’s Praise, then Floorplan’s own We Give Thee Honor and Only God. Shiela’s In The Morning – via a Floorplan mix – works really well, while the closing Higher from Andrea Belli and Dave Roy Bland is a suitable plain on which to finish.
Floorplan keep the mix moving, quickly flitting from one track to the other with the minimum of fuss but with a really satisfying flow to the mix.
Does it all work?
It does. Thrills and spills, wrapped up with the minimum of fuss!
Is it recommended?
Very much so. Quickfire music at the house / techno interface, and with a generous helping hand from the spiritual side. The vocals give it a constant high throughout. Highly recommended!
Arcana.fm 