Philharmonia/Maazel at the Festival Hall

The Magic Flute

The Royal College of Music haven’t exactly helped their singers by opting for Mozart in the original German

Leonidas Kavakos/ Nicholas Angelich

The Greek violinist caused jaws to drop with his extreme subtlety and near-impossible technical sheen

Alceste

Not for the first time, Chelsea Opera Group have overreached themselves, going beyond their casting capabilities

Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival

All the big beasts got appropriately big outings at the festival’s final weekend

BBCSO/ Robertson

Robertson’s athletic approach quite squeezed out the work’s spirituality. This was Mozart’s Requiem made dry and hard

City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra/Nelsons

Never before have I heard such warm, veiled, ethereal beauties from these players, or indeed from Symphony Hall

Les Arts Florissants

But in this fine concert Les Arts Florissants returned to home base of the 18th-century masters

SCO/Walker

The full version of Edward Harper’s flawed but moving Second Symphony is finally heard, several months after his death

English Concert/Padmore

This fascinatingly programmed evening of Purcell and Handel maintained a constantly high level of inspiration from start to encore

Electronic avenue

The Huddersfield festival of modern masters has rediscovered its glory days, and found an improved version thereof

Placido's new pitch

Placido Domingo, the world’s most famous tenor, is taking on the baritone title role of Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra

Putting the boot in

The kitsch design and past-it singers in the Royal Opera’s production of Tsarina’s Slippers just don't work

Messiah

English National Opera’s attempt to stage a masterpiece wasn’t Messiah. It wasn’t even shocking. Just embarrassingly lame

Cecilia

Repetition and transformation of motifs, and minimalist patternings give unity and stamina to a finely-spun score

Ryuichi Sakamoto

A chart-topping superstar in his native Japan, the boyish 57-year-old is promoting his two new albums with a solo tour

Leif Ove Andsnes: Pictures at an Exhibition

The climax of a conscious attempt to expand artistic horizons, Andsnes's performance is one of coruscating force

Cecilia Bartoli

A final encore had Bartoli prancing in with scarlet ostrich feathers in her hair, prompting ecstatic ovations

OAE/Ex Cathedra/ Jeffrey Skidmore

The evening’s biggest disappointment lay in Skidmore’s shaping of the score. We needed a firmer pair of hands

Robin Ticciati: lightning conductor

Still only 26 years old, the British star is taking the world of classical music by storm, reports Emma Pomfret

Philharmonia/Maazel at the Festival Hall

The Magic Flute

The Royal College of Music haven’t exactly helped their singers by opting for Mozart in the original German

Leonidas Kavakos/ Nicholas Angelich

The Greek violinist caused jaws to drop with his extreme subtlety and near-impossible technical sheen

Alceste

Not for the first time, Chelsea Opera Group have overreached themselves, going beyond their casting capabilities