Category Archives: News

News – Bertrand Chamayou residence @ Wigmore Hall, including Ravel’s complete piano music on Sunday 7 December

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published by Ben Hogwood from the original press release

This December, Wigmore Hall focus in on a pianist famed for winning the prestigious Victoires de la Musique Classique award on five separate occasions, most recently in 2022. Described by the Guardian as ‘a remarkable musician, no question’, Chamayou caps off his short residency with an unmissable evening of the complete Ravel pianos works. Before that, the pianist joins forces with the thrilling Belcea Quartet and accompanies soprano Barbara Hannigan for her Wigmore Hall debut.

The programme with the Belcea Quartet on Thursday 4 December is of extra interest, for in addition to Chamayou’s appearance in the rarely-heard Piano Quintet in E major of Erich Korngold, the quartet will mark the 80th anniversary of the world première of Britten’s Second String Quartet at Wigmore Hall.

Chamayou’s programme with soprano Barbara Hannigan is typically adventurous, the pair reaffirming their Messiaen credentials with a performance of the Chants de terre et de ciel, before Chamayou looks at late Scriabin in the form of the Poème-nocturne Op. 61 and Vers la flamme Op. 72, before the two take on John Zorn’s song cycle Jumalattaret, written for Hannigan herself.

Chamayou’s third appearance will see him perform the complete works for solo piano by Maurice Ravel, whose birth in 1875 is being marked with 150th anniversary celebrations this year. The concert begins at 7pm, with the programme as follows:

1875-1937
Prélude
Miroirs
Menuet in C sharp minor
Sonatine
A la manière de Borodine
Gaspard de la nuit

Interval

A la manière de Chabrier
Valses nobles et sentimentales
Menuet sur le nom d’Haydn
Sérénade grotesque
Jeux d’eau
Menuet antique
Pavane pour une infante défunte
Le tombeau de Couperin

For more information on all the Wigmore Hall concerts, click on the links highlighted above.

Published post no.2,730 – Wednesday 26 November 2025

News – Broadcast: On the occasion of the 70th birthday of Jorge E. López, Sunday 30 November

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published by Ben Hogwood and Richard Whitehouse

On the occasion of the 70th birthday of Jorge E. López

The singular tonal language of an Austrian composer of Cuban origin

Sunday 30th November 2025 @ 19:45 [NB: 18:45 UK time] on Austrian Radio Station Ö1

Jorge E. López, one of the most distinctive and original composers currently living in Austria, celebrates his seventieth birthday next Sunday. He has never identified with the conventions of New Music: ‘‘Instead, I was convinced from the beginning that it was more about making the ancient present’’. He does not look for the new but ‘‘rather the repressed’’, as emphasized in an extended interview with the radio journalist and regular Ö1 broadcaster Peter Kislinger.

López was born on 30 November 1955 in Havana. In 1960 he came to the United States with his family, where he lived in New York and Chicago. In 1970 he began to compose – inspired by such figures as Mahler, Berg, Ives, Messiaen, Stockhausen and Xenakis – then studied at California Institute of the Arts during 1971-76. In 1987, after notable orchestral performances in Donaueschingen, the focus of his life shifted to Europe and the German-speaking world.

He draws inspiration for his often timeless works from an intense experience of nature, most especially in Lapland, Iceland and the American North-West. His works defy current trends in contemporary music and demonstrate an affinity for the music at the turn of the 20th century as well as proximity to the aesthetics of Surrealism. In recent years, he has resided alternately between Mölltal in Upper Carinthia and Vienna. This latest edition of the Supernova series (produced by Rainer Elstner) features several large-scale orchestral works by the composer.

The programme can be accessed from the UK by clicking on the link below:

On the occasion of the 70th birthday of Jorge E. López | SUN | 30 11 2025 | 19:45 – oe1.ORF.at

Published post no.2,728 – Monday 24 November 2025

News – Winter Music in City Churches

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published by Ben Hogwood from the original press release

Almost at the mid-way point between the past and future Summer Music in City Churches festivals, we bring news of two winter warming concerts to enjoy in the lead-up to Christmas.

Pavel Sporcl, English Chamber Orchestra, Holy Sepulchre EC1A 2DQ Sunday 30 November, 7pm

The 29th Made in Prague Festival concludes in grand style with a gala celebrating Czech violin virtuoso Pavel Šporcl, whose expressive artistry and dazzling technique have enthralled audiences worldwide.

The programme features Mendelssohn’s Octet in E-flat major, bursting with youthful brilliance, alongside Dvořák’s lyrical Romance and spirited Mazurek. Šporcl’s virtuosity will shine in a solo by Paganini, ensuring a thrilling and unforgettable finale to this year’s festival.

City of London Choir: Carols in the City – St Giles Cripplegate EC2Y 8DA Friday 19 December, 6.30pm

Just ahead of a sell-out carol concert in the Barbican with the King’s College Cambridge choir, the City of London Choir and conductor Daniel Hyde return to St Giles Cripplegate with a wonderful selection of carols and Christmas music, in the company of organist Andrew Lumsden.

Beloved carols by contemporary composers including John Rutter, Morten Lauridsen and Cecilia McDowall sit alongside traditional favourites – with plenty of audience participation. The perfect start to your family festivities.

For links to the concerts, click here for the English Chamber Orchestra and here for the Carols in the City.

Published post no.2,721 – Monday 17 November 2025

In Appreciation – Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield

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by Ben Hogwood Photo of Mani in 2009 by Katherine Barton, edited by Gaz Davidson. Used courtesy of Wikipedia

Yesterday we learned the sad news of the unexpected death of Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield. Mani was best known as bassist for Stone Roses, where he was a founding member, and Primal Scream, who he joined in 1996. An obituary can be found on the BBC website, but I wanted to acknowledge his contribution to some of the late 1980s and 1990s most notable albums.

One of the first musical sounds you can hear on the Stone Roses debut is the lumbering bass line with which Mani introduces I Wanna Be Adored, one the band’s calling cards:

Meanwhile Fools Gold steps up the tempo, with a funkier but equally brilliant contribution from the bassist:

Many people see the second Stone Roses album as a drop in quality…but when you hear the bass groove driving the superb Begging You those opinions are called into question!

For Primal Scream, you can watch Mani driving one of the band’s excellent mid-90s cuts, If They Move, Kill ‘Em, on live footage from Later…with Jools Holland:

Meanwhile here is one of his final contributions to Primal Scream, driving the energetic Can’t Go Back:

Published post no.2,675 – Thursday 2 October 2025

News – Australian Chamber Orchestra celebrate 50 years with new recording

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published by Ben Hogwood from the original press release

The Australian Chamber Orchestra (ACO) continues its 50th anniversary celebrations with the release of a landmark new album, Beethoven & Brahms: Concertos for Violin and Orchestra, featuring Artistic Director Richard Tognetti as soloist. Timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Orchestra’s very first concert, on 21 November 1975 at the Sydney Opera House, this release pays tribute to the ACO’s remarkable legacy while also honouring Artistic Director Richard Tognetti’s extraordinary 35 years of leadership.

Recorded live, the album showcases Tognetti and the ACO at their most vital and alive. Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 61 was recorded in 2018 and Brahms’s Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 77 earlier this year. These cornerstones of the violin repertoire are reframed with the clarity, intimacy, and daring that have become hallmarks of the ACO’s sound.

It is the first time that Richard Tognetti has recorded the Brahms Concerto and his first full recording of the Beethoven for over 25 years.

Over the last five decades the ACO has become one of the world’s most dynamic ensembles, renowned for fearless programming, boundary-pushing collaborations and a singular, expressive sound. Tognetti has been at the centre of this transformation, reshaping the Orchestra into a globally recognised force through relentless curiosity and risk-taking artistry. More than a celebration, this album is a statement of intent: an affirmation that, at 50, the ACO remains as fearless, passionate, and forward-looking as ever.

Beethoven & Brahms: Concertos for Violin and Orchestra will be available as a special limited-edition vinyl release, with each copy signed by Richard Tognetti, as well as being released as a CD and in digital streaming and download formats.

Full details can be found on the Australian Chamber Orchestra website

Published post no.2,724 – Thursday 20 November 2025