Classical Interviews
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Debbie Wiseman on The Mirror and the Light
11th Dec 2024
With Peter Kosminsky's dramatisation of Hilary Mantel's towering Tudor trilogy set to draw to a harrowing close on Sunday evening, the composer of the soundtrack discusses finding the delicate balance between past and present - and bringing the inner workings of the inscrutable Thomas Cromwell's mind to life in music...
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The Piatti Quartet on the string quartets of Joseph Phibbs
10th Dec 2024
The acclaimed quartet consider the works of contemporary composer Joseph Phibbs, with whom they share a close connection - having commissioned two of his four quartets and now recorded them all.
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François-Xavier Poizat on Ravel
9th Dec 2024
François-Xavier Poizat offers an insight into his love for Ravel, and his recordings of the composer's Complete Works with Piano (released earlier in November on Aparté). He also shares his admiration for Henle's painstaking work on their edition of Ravel's music.
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Jeremy Huw Williams and Wendy Hiscocks on the songs of Grace Williams
3rd Dec 2024
The baritone and pianist talk about their new album showcasing the solo songs of Grace Williams, released recently on Naxos.
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Claire Booth on Pierrot Portraits
26th Nov 2024
Ahead of her Wigmore Hall recital this Friday, the intrepid soprano discusses her second recording-contribution to Schoenberg's 150th anniversary year - an album which sets his Pierrot lunaire alongside other works inspired by the commedia dell'arte figure.
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Pierrot Portraits
Claire Booth (soprano), Ensemble 360
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Alec Frank-Gemmill on Mozart's horn concertos
23rd Nov 2024
The horn player discusses his new album, featuring Mozart's famous four horn concertos plus some other tantalising fragments and additions.
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Zoltán Daragó on Bach
20th Nov 2024
The young Hungarian countertenor introduces himself and his debut album of Bach cantata arias with Christophe Rousset and Les Talens Lyriques (released at the end of September on Aparté).
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Marina Rebeka on Norma
18th Nov 2024
The Latvian soprano discusses recording the title-role in Bellini's masterpiece for her own label Prima Classic - using a new critical edition of the score by Roger Parker, which requires her to sing 'Casta diva' a tone higher than usual!
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Roxanna Panufnik reflects on her career as a composer
13th Nov 2024
The composer talks about her compositions and work, in the light of being recognised with the Ivors' special award for Outstanding Works Collection.
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Charles Owen on Schumann and the piano
11th Nov 2024
Charles Owen, described by Gramophone magazine as 'one of the finest pianists of his generation', has recorded a new album dedicated to the music of The Young Schumann, on Avie Records. Matthew Ash enjoyed a chat with Charles ahead of the album release on 15th November, about the new recordings, his development as a musician, the two-way nature of teaching, and pianos.
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Errollyn Wallen reflects on her career
7th Nov 2024
In the wake of receiving the Ivors Academy Fellowship, the Belize-born British composer discusses growing up in a musical family in Tottenham, how relocating to a lighthouse off the coast of Scotland transformed her creative life, and her new role as Master of the King's Music.
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Colin Matthews on NMC
5th Nov 2024
As the contemporary music label celebrates its 35th birthday with an album of works by Imogen Holst, its founder Colin Matthews reflects on their friendship, NMC's legacy and ongoing work, and the challenges and rewards involved in promoting new voices today.
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Sir Mark Elder and Roderick Williams on Delius's A Mass of Life
31st Oct 2024
The conductor and baritone reflect on their recording of Delius's Nietzsche-inspired Mass (made in Bergen following two live performances and released on LAWO last year), which was a finalist at this year's Gramophone Awards.
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Gregory Kunde on Then and Now
28th Oct 2024
As he makes his role-debut as Britten's Captain Vere in Vienna, the indomitable American tenor discusses returning to the music which formed the soundtrack to his childhood on his new album Then And Now - a collection of jazz standards, released on Delos earlier this month.
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Then And Now
Gregory Kunde (tenor)
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Hannah Ely on The Excellence of Women
27th Oct 2024
The manager of Fieri Consort talks about the group's new album of madrigals by Maddalena Casulana and Barbara Strozzi.
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The Excellence of Women: Casulana & Strozzi
Fieri Consort
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Adrian Sutton on his Violin Concerto
24th Oct 2024
The British composer discusses the inspirations behind his new concerto for Fenella Humphreys, his work for the theatre (including the score for the play War Horse), and how receiving a terminal diagnosis led him to channel his creative energies in new directions.
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Kathryn Stott - Five For The Road
22nd Oct 2024
Kathryn Stott is bringing her long performing career to an end this year, and releases her final recording with cellist Yo-Yo Ma on Sony Classical, this week. Matthew asked her to pick five highlights from her huge catalogue of recordings, and to offer a glimpse into what makes each so special to her.
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Alison Balsom talks about Baroque Concertos
21st Oct 2024
The trumpeter gives us the lowdown on her newly-released Baroque album - the inspirations behind it and the technical challenges it entails.
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Roberto Alagna at 60
16th Oct 2024
The French-Sicilian tenor discusses his sixtieth-birthday album on Aparté, learning his craft in Paris cabaret clubs, being Michael Jackson's warm-up act, and why he regrets not getting started on Wagner earlier in his career...
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Lawrence Brownlee on Donizetti's songs
9th Oct 2024
The American tenor introduces the inaugural volume of Opera Rara's mammoth Donizetti Song Project, which sees him joining forces with Carlo Rizzi to revive unpublished and previously-unrecorded songs - several of them written for the composer's friends to sing at parties...
