Gweneth Ann Rand, Simon Lepper, Wigmore Hall review - a richly hued collection of songs

★★★★ GWENETH ANN RAND, SIMON LEPPER, WIGMORE HALL A richly hued collection of songs in an exploration of black voices

An exploration of black voices through music

In the final concert marking the Wigmore Hall’s 120-year anniversary, soprano Gweneth Ann Rand and pianist Simon Lepper gave a programme of songs curated by Rand, titled "An Imperfect Tapestry".

Wigmore Hall at Portman Square / Wang, LSO, Tilson Thomas, LSO St Luke's review - al fresco chamber, full orchestra indoors

★★★★ WIGMORE HALL AT PORTMAN SQUARE / WANG, LSO, TILSON THOMAS, LSO ST LUKE'S  Al fresco chamber, full orchestra indoors

An exhilarating Sunday moving from percussionists to strings and on to a big symphony

Sometimes the big musical institutions follow off-piste trailblazers. John Gilhooly of the Wigmore Hall has been a hero in lockdown year, keeping musicians paid up and performing to audiences live or via livestream (or both); but it was clarinettist Anthony Friend who pointed another way forward in the new environment late last summer with his series of chamber music concerts in Battersea Park Bandstand.

András Schiff, Wigmore Hall review - mystery marvels mesmerise

★★★★ANDRÁS SCHIFF, WIGMORE HALL A surprise programme casts a spell

A surprise programme of less obvious works casts a spell all its own

As András Schiff remarked from the stage early in this fairly remarkable evening, his usual audience knows he’s not about to play Rachmaninov. The idea for this concert last night and his return visit today, is that we turn up not knowing exactly what we will hear, beyond the name of a composer or two. He has a point. Why should pianists have to decide on every detail of their programmes two years in advance, sometimes more? It’s not an orchestra that needs to hire music and book a conductor.

Sean Shibe, Wigmore Hall review - a bewitching hour

★★★★ SEAN SHIBE, WIGMORE HALL Pavanes and elegies hold a live audience in hushed thrall

Pavanes and elegies hold a live audience in hushed, intense thrall

Last time I was in a Wigmore audience for a Sean Shibe recital, his electric-guitar second half had many regulars fleeing the hall (he later said that the amplification had been meddled with – it was too loud, though the work in question, Georges Lentz’s Ingwe, was always going to be a stunner).

Booth, Nash Ensemble, Wigmore Hall online review - contemporary music programme lacks diversity

★★★ BOOTH, NASH ENSEMBLE, WIGMORE HALL ONLINE Contemporary music programme lacks diversity

Excellent playing and singing can’t disguise the absence of variety

Wigmore Hall does not dish up a great deal of contemporary music, preferring a menu of mainstream chamber music. But this programme by the Nash Ensemble offered a different kind of mainstream: within the world of contemporary music this was a middle-of-the-road offering.

Brian Elias Focus Day, Concert 1, Wigmore Hall online review - portrait of the artist in miniature

★★★★ BRIAN ELIAS FOCUS DAY, WIGMORE HALL Portrait of the artist in miniature

Young artists deliver a compelling composer showcase

What comes to mind when you think of Brian Elias? The violence and humming, background threat of The Judas Tree, his score for Kenneth MacMillan’s brutal final ballet?

Ibragimova, Davies, Sampson, Arcangelo, Wigmore Hall online review – baroque masterpieces played with verve

★★★★ IBRAGIMOVA, DAVIES, SAMPSON, ARCANGELO, WIGMORE HALL Baroque masterpieces played with verve

Violin concertos that bustle contrast with a dark and moving Stabat Mater

The baroque music ensemble Arcangelo have been around since 2010 but I hadn’t heard them before this pair of concerts streamed from Wigmore Hall in the last week. But what I heard has certainly encouraged me to seek out more – and they have quickly built up a large discography ready to be tucked into.

Tenebrae, Short, Wigmore Hall online review - reflections for Holy Week

★★★★ TENEBRAE, SHORT, WIGMORE HALL ONLINE Reflections for Holy Week

Rich and clear singing in a programme of Schütz, Bach and Reger

A year into the pandemic, it is hard to imagine anybody relishing the prosect of Lenten austerity. But the liturgical calendar trundles on, and here we are in Holy Week. The aptly named Tenebrae Choir, under conductor Nigel Short here offer a traditional Lent programme, mostly solemn but with a few lighter numbers.

Steven Osborne 50th Birthday Concert, Wigmore Hall online – perfect symmetries

★★★★ STEVEN OSBORNE 50TH BIRTHDAY CONCERT, WIGMORE HALL Perfect symmetries

Teething sound problems transcended in an out-of-body Ravel Piano Trio

Some pianists would take the chance of a birthday celebration to pioneer a solitary epic. Not the ever-collegial, unshowy, some would even say visionary Steven Osborne.