Skip to main content
Read page text
page 4
Visit Classical-Music.com for the very latest from the music world Contents FEBRUARY 2025 February Radio 3 highlights See p100 FEATURES 24 Cover: The Four Seasons Now 300 years old, Vivaldi’s much-loved concertos took a while to become popular, as Nicholas Kenyon explains 36 Puppet of the Reich? Derided for his Nazi associations, conductor Wilhelm Furtwängler was not all he seemed, says Andrew Green 40 11 Bed-Hopping Composers Jeremy Pound sneaks a peek at the lustful tunesmiths who simply couldn’t resist sharing their love around 44 A way with words Jessica Duchen celebrates the art of the librettists, whose brilliant texts inspire composers to operatic greatness 48 Kindred spirits Opera composer Gregory Spears and librettist Tracy K Smith explain their collaboration to Charlotte Smith 54 Leading from the front Clare Stevens explores tuition courses for conductors EVERY MONTH 8 Letters 12 The Full Score The latest news and interviews from the music world 23 Richard Morrison 32 The BBC Music Magazine Interview Conductor Masaaki Suzuki talks to Amanda Holloway 60 Musical Destinations Michael Beek enjoys opera in the US city of Atlanta 62 Composer of the Month How Gluck rewrote the opera rulebook, by Paul Riley 66 Building a Library Beethoven’s joyful Symphony No. 4, by Te r r y W i l l i a m s 100 Radio & TV 104 Crossword and Quiz 106 Music that Changed Me Violinist André Rieu 24 Viva ld i ’s Four Seasons B E N H A M O U I E N , J U L B O R G G R E V E , M A R C O LY T T L E T O N I D : G E T T Y, DAV I S PAG E T H : G E T T Y C OV E R Subscriptions £64.87 (UK); £65 (Europe); £74 (Rest of World) ABC Reg No. 3122 EDITORIAL Plus our favourite depiction of the weather in music (see p24) Editor Charlotte Smith Vaughan Williams’s Sinfonia Antartica Deputy editor Jeremy Pound Bax’s November Woods Reviews editor Michael Beek J S t rau s s I I ’s Thunder & Light ning Polka Multi-platform content producer Steve Wr ig ht Tchaikovsky’s The Tempest Cover CD editor Alice Pearson Beethoven’s ‘Pastoral’ Symphony Art editor Dav Ludford Chopin’s ‘Raindrop’ Prelude Thanks to J e n n y P r i c e Hannah Nepilova MARKETING Direct marketing manager Kel l ie La ne Subscriptions marketing coordinator Dennis Awdziejczyk ADVERTISING Advertisement manager Rebecca Janyshiwskyj +44 (0)117 300 8547 Commercial brand leads Rebecca Yirrell +44 (0)117 300 8811 Rebecca O’Connell +44 (0)117 300 8814 Client solutions manager Tom Houlden +44 (0)117 300 8203 4 BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE
page 5
Febr u a r y re v iew s Your guide to the best new recordings and books 32 Masaaki Suzuki 40 Lustful composers Brand sa le s exec ut ive s Willem Curran +44 (0)117 300 8534 Harry Jordan +44 (0)117 300 8224 Inserts Lau rence Rober t son +353 876 902208 SYNDICATION & LICENSING Tim Hudson +44 (0)20 7150 5170 Richard Bentley +44 (0)20 7150 5168 PRODUCTION Production director Sa r a h Powel l Production coordinator Hannah Gazzard Ad coordinator Molly Websdell Ad designers Cee Pike, Andrew Hobson PUBLISHING Managing director Andrew Davies Group managing director Andy Marsha l l Brand lead Robert Brock Editorial development director Daniel Bennett BBC STUDIOS, UK PUBLISHING SVP Global Licensing Stephen Davies Global director, magazines Mandy Thwa i te s Compliance manager Cameron McEwan EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Janet Tuppen Adam Barker Philip Raperport This magazine is published by Our Media Company Bristol Limited under l icence from BBC Studios Théotime Langlois de Swarte shines in Viva ld i ’s Four Seasons 72 Recording of the Month Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons Théotime Langlois de Swarte ‘Particularly admirable is Swarte’s elastic, almost jazzy f lexibility… and the fiery spontaneity of his solo violin narrations’ 74 Orchestral 76 Concerto 78 Opera 82 Choral & Song 86 Chamber 90 Instrumental 93 Screen 94 Brief Notes 96 From the Archive 97 Reviews Index 98 Books 99 Audio Subscribe today to BBC Music Maga zine Save money on newsst a nd pr ices! See p10 for our fantastic of fer BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE 5

Page Text

View plaintext

Visit Classical-Music.com for the very latest from the music world

Contents

FEBRUARY 2025

February Radio 3

highlights

See p100

FEATURES 24 Cover: The Four Seasons

Now 300 years old, Vivaldi’s much-loved concertos took a while to become popular, as Nicholas Kenyon explains 36 Puppet of the Reich? Derided for his Nazi associations, conductor Wilhelm

Furtwängler was not all he seemed, says Andrew Green 40 11 Bed-Hopping Composers Jeremy Pound sneaks a peek at the lustful tunesmiths who simply couldn’t resist sharing their love around 44 A way with words Jessica Duchen celebrates the art of the librettists, whose brilliant texts inspire composers to operatic greatness 48 Kindred spirits Opera composer Gregory Spears and librettist Tracy K

Smith explain their collaboration to Charlotte Smith 54 Leading from the front Clare Stevens explores tuition courses for conductors

EVERY MONTH 8 Letters 12 The Full Score

The latest news and interviews from the music world 23 Richard Morrison 32 The BBC Music Magazine Interview

Conductor Masaaki Suzuki talks to Amanda Holloway 60 Musical Destinations

Michael Beek enjoys opera in the US city of Atlanta 62 Composer of the Month

How Gluck rewrote the opera rulebook, by Paul Riley 66 Building a Library

Beethoven’s joyful Symphony No. 4, by Te r r y W i l l i a m s 100 Radio & TV 104 Crossword and Quiz 106 Music that Changed Me

Violinist André Rieu

24 Viva ld i ’s Four Seasons

B E N H A M O U

I E N

, J U L

B O R G G R E V E

, M A R C O

LY T T L E T O N

I D

: G E T T Y, DAV

I S PAG E

T H

: G E T T Y

C OV E R

Subscriptions £64.87 (UK); £65 (Europe); £74 (Rest of World) ABC Reg No. 3122 EDITORIAL Plus our favourite depiction of the weather in music (see p24) Editor Charlotte Smith Vaughan Williams’s Sinfonia Antartica Deputy editor Jeremy Pound Bax’s November Woods Reviews editor Michael Beek J S t rau s s I I ’s Thunder & Light ning Polka Multi-platform content producer Steve Wr ig ht Tchaikovsky’s The Tempest Cover CD editor Alice Pearson Beethoven’s ‘Pastoral’ Symphony

Art editor Dav Ludford Chopin’s ‘Raindrop’ Prelude Thanks to J e n n y P r i c e Hannah Nepilova MARKETING Direct marketing manager Kel l ie La ne Subscriptions marketing coordinator Dennis Awdziejczyk ADVERTISING Advertisement manager Rebecca Janyshiwskyj +44 (0)117 300 8547 Commercial brand leads Rebecca Yirrell +44 (0)117 300 8811 Rebecca O’Connell +44 (0)117 300 8814 Client solutions manager Tom Houlden +44 (0)117 300 8203

4 BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE

read next page

My Bookmarks

Buy this Book
Skip to main content