First Person: Ten Years On - Flamenco guitarist Paco Peña pays tribute to his friend, the late, great Paco de Lucía

10 YEARS ON - PACO PENA A tribute to his friend, the late, great flamenco star Paco de Lucía

On the 10th anniversary of his death, memories of the prodigious musician who broadened the reach of flamenco into jazz and beyond

There are moments that forever remain imprinted in our consciousness, engraved on the general map of our lives. I cannot forget the excitement of seeing snow for the first time in Córdoba, aged three or four, rushing to walk on it only to slip straight away and fall on my behind! Or when I discovered the sea, in Cádiz.

Classical CDs: Infernal dances, hammered dulcimer and musical taxidermy

CLASSICAL CDS: Infernal dances, hammered dulcimer and musical taxidermy

French and Welsh songs, Russian ballet and a musical cactus

 

Boulanger songsNadia & Lili Boulanger: Les Heures Claires - The Complete Songs Lucile Richardot (mezzo), Stéphane Degout (baritone), Raquel Camarinha (soprano), Anne de Fornel (piano), Sarah Nemtanu (violin), Emmanuelle Bertrand (cello) (Harmonia Mundi)

Amy Sackville: Painter to the King review - portrait of the artist in shadow and light

★★★★★ AMY SACKVILLE: PAINTER TO THE KING Portrait of the artist in shadow and light

A novel about Velázquez that does justice to his genius – and his mystery

Inevitably, the story begins and (almost) ends with Las Meninas. Inspired by the art and life of Diego Velázquez, Amy Sackville tops and tails her third novel with his endlessly enigmatic group portrait from 1656. It shows the Spanish royal household, their dwarves, a mastiff, a perplexing reflection of the King and Queen in a mirror – and the court painter himself, trapped forever in this nest of “sometimes impossible frames”. The painting ensnares us in a hall of mirrors, a labyrinth of gazes.

Goya: Visions of Flesh and Blood

GOYA: VISIONS OF FLESH AND BLOOD Behind the artistic life of the great Spanish painter, and the National Gallery exhibition

Behind the artistic life of the great Spanish painter, and the National Gallery exhibition

"Exhibition on Screen" is a logical extension of the recent phenomenon of screenings of live performances of opera and theatre. Initiated with the Leonardo exhibition of 2012 at London’s National Gallery, this is its third season, and the format remains unchanged: a specific show provides the pretext for a bespoke film that goes beyond the gallery walls.

DVD: Around the World with Orson Welles

DVD: AROUND THE WORLD WITH ORSON WELLES TV travelogue from the maverick director

Uneven TV travelogue from the maverick director

Orson Welles was commissioned by ITV in 1955 to make a 26-part series of travelogues. Always in search of money to fund his independent projects, he was initially enthused by the plan - though predictably he didn’t see it through. Only six episodes were broadcast – none of which stray out of Welles’ favourite European destinations.

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, Playhouse Theatre

Almodovar's Madrid mayhem moved from screen to musical stage, breathlessly

It’s true that there is something wildly, garishly, theatrical about Pedro Almodóvar’s films – none more so than this rampant farce – but it’s equally true that their sensibility is far removed from what the English might deem farce, and that their speed of delivery leaves not a millisecond to draw breath, let alone sing a song. So where does that leave Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, the Musical? Lost in translation; twice over.

Yuletide Scenes 2: The Adoration of the Magi

YULETIDE SCENES 2: THE ADORATION OF THE MAGI Peter Paul Rubens's baroque nativity is the second in our series of irresistible seasonal images

Peter Paul Rubens's baroque nativity is the second in our series of irresistible seasonal images

Rubens's gigantic masterpiece loudly contradicts the folkloric silent night. This typically muscular painting is deafening in its depiction of the commotion around the holy family when the Magi arrive to offer gifts to the divine king of Christian belief.