Robert Anderson

Robert Anderson was born on 20 August 1927 and educated at Cambridge University, England, where he began reviewing gramophone records and conducting. Later he wrote music criticism for The Times and broadcast for the BBC on radio and television. He was for five years director of music at Gordonstoun School, Scotland and conductor of the Moray Choral Union, appointments followed by a season as assistant to Thomas Schippers at Gian Carlo Menotti's Festival of Two Worlds at Spoleto in Italy.

For eighteen years he was an associate editor of The Musical Times, the oldest music journal in the world with a record of continuous publication. During the last seventeen years of his life he wrote mostly for Music & Vision, a comparatively recent internet daily. He wrote books on ancient Egyptian music, Wagner, and three volumes on Sir Edward Elgar. He was coordinating editor of the Elgar Complete Edition, personally responsible for many of the volumes that appeared during his tenure.

As a lecturer he has been four times in the United States, but more often in Russia, where he has lectured at universities in Moscow, Rostov-on-Don, Tver and Yaroslavl, as well as on waterway cruises of Russia and Ukraine. He was awarded an honorary doctorate in Moscow and an honorary professorship in Rostov.

As conductor he appeared frequently at the Royal Albert Hall, London, directing such major orchestras as the London Philharmonic, the Royal Philharmonic, London Mozart Players and English Chamber Orchestra in a mainly choral repertoire. He was a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, a member of the Worshipful Company of Musicians, and a doctor of music at the City University, London.

Robert Anderson died in London on 24 November 2015, aged eighty-eight.

Articles by Robert Anderson

Hindemith for piano. '... Korevaar emerges triumphant ...'

Richard Strauss's 'Elektra'. '... the whole cast has been exemplary under the masterful direction of Esa-Pekka Salonen.'

Beethoven, Tchaikovsky and Mendelssohn from the Petrof Trio. '... the Tchaikovsky is a rarity, and the more welcome for that.'

David Wilde's Chopin. '... Wilde shows how it can be transformed in the hands of a master.'

Pergolesi Chamber Cantatas. '... episodes of tender pensiveness ...'

Richard Blackford's Great Animal Orchestra. 'I can recommend the CD only to the very young at heart.'

J S Bach's Köthener Trauermusik. '... incomparable music ...'

The complete Sergei Rachmaninov. '... a flow of fine works ...'

Debussy, by Eric Jensen

Performances of Shostakovich violin concertos. 'Christian Tetzlaff manages both works' difficulties effortlessly ...'

Music by Philip Sawyers. '... a very cogent argument.'

Alfredo Catalani's 'La Wally'. 'This Tyrolean team has made fine music ...'

Music by Rameau. '... much sensitive playing from the whole team.'

Handel's 'The Triumph of Time and Truth'. '... admirable performance ...'

Deutsche Grammophon's Strauss opera compilation. '... a hugely enjoyable set ...'

Peter Dickinson's 'The Judas Tree'. '... a notable performance ...'

Khachaturian for violin and piano. '... fine listening when interpreted as idiomatically as here.'

Music by Salgán, Binelli, Piazzolla and Ramíres. 'This is an abundance of riches.'

Musorgsky's Boris Godunov. 'I was surprised how quickly my patience ran out.'

C P E Bach complete solo piano music. '... Ana-Marija Markovina has the technique and sensitivity do it full justice.'

C P E Bach's Spiritual Songs. '... the clavichord, wonderfully sensitive as it is, cannot stand up to a concert singer ...'

Prokofiev's The Fiery Angel. '... forceful and compelling ...'

Hindemith music for clarinet. 'Richard Stoltzman has every opportunity to display his outstanding technique ...'

Britten's 'Death in Venice'. '... Britten conjures weird and wonderful sounds from his orchestra ...'

C P E Bach's Magnificat. 'Soloists, choir and orchestra under Hans-Christoph Rademann ... infectiously impart their delight in the music ...'

Géza Anda plays Bartók and Tchaikovsky. '... splendid unanimity between pianist and conductor.'

Enescu and Bartók. 'Laura Buruiana triumphs in what is ultimately an exacting work.'

Franck's 'Stradella'. '... the staging did its best to eliminate the music altogether ...'

Ballet music from Meyerbeer operas. '... very stylish playing ...'

Poulenc's Organ Concerto. '... marvellous vitality ...'

Rachmaninov's All-Night Vigil. '... tender and powerful ...'

Michelangeli's Beethoven and Debussy. '... a sympathetic medium for Debussy's vision.'

Michala Petri plays Telemann. 'The performance is indeed triumphant.'

Grieg and Finnissy for piano quintet. '... the whole disc is an unexpected serendipity.'

Todd Crow plays Brahms and Dvorák. 'Todd Crow emerges not only unbowed but triumphant.'

Lully's Phaéton. '... brimful of the most varied enchantments.'

Tchaikovsky piano music. 'I am grateful to Nadav Hertzka for much enchantment during this CD.'

Inna Faliks plays Beethoven. '... most memorable music, memorably performed.'

Janácek's 'The Cunning Little Vixen'. '... much bewitching music ...'

Erich Korngold's 'Die Tote Stadt'. '... production and performance are in the safe hands of the Finnish National Opera ...'

Harpsichord music by Handel. '... exciting and eloquent throughout ...'

Choral music by Imogen Holst. '... a notable and much overdue act of piety.'

Berlioz from Covent Garden. '... much orchestral wizardry under Antonio Pappano ...'

J S Bach Motets. 'The Rheinische Kantorei under Hermann Max survives triumphantly ...'

All of Beethoven's piano sonatas played in one day by Julian Jacobson

Isabelle Faust plays Bartók violin concertos. 'The Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra under Daniel Harding has accompanied with alert sensitivity ...'

Massenet's 'Don Quichotte'. 'The Sofia pit has performed throughout with a rationality that appears only fitfully on stage.'

Tchaikovsky's 'Eugene Onegin'. 'The best and worst of this production can be grasped at once ...'

Pergolesi's 'La Salustia'. '... much memorable singing ...'

'La Battaglia di Legnano'. '... Verdi patriotic is not necessarily Verdi at his most subtle.'

Verdi's 'Il Corsaro'. '... a very sensitive staging ...'

Haydn's 'Creation' at Harrow School

A Gluck double bill. 'The musical performance under Marc Minkowski is more convincing than the staging ...'

Gioacchino Rossini's 'Adelaide di Borgogna'. '... the Bologna singers and players ... respond finely to every nuance ...'

The first release on Robert King's new label. '... may lack something in grandeur but nothing in subtlety.'

Beethoven cello sonatas and variations. 'Fournier and Gulda give Handel a rousing send-off ...'

Edvard Grieg's Lyric Pieces. '... Rubinstein clearly relishes the range of opportunities provided ...'

Handel's 'Deidamia'. 'Musically the opera bowls along with both speed and distinction; visually it is vaudeville.'

Verdi's 'I Lombardi alla Prima Crociata'. '... expertly conducted by Daniele Callegari and imaginatively staged by Lamberto Puggelli.'

Rossini's 'Mosè in Egitto'. 'Musically all is well ...'

Puccini's 'Suor Angelica'. '... Nelsons and the WDR Symphony Orchestra of Cologne have done their best for Puccini ...'

English trios. '... Trio Setttecento has adapted skilfully towards whatever idiom was required throughout the disc.'

Piano duos by Hans Gál. '... played with their customary skill by Anthony Goldstone and Caroline Clemmow.'

Vocal music by Christopher Tye. '... sensitively interpreted by the Westminster Abbey Choir and James O'Donnell.'

Cuarteto Casals. '... impeccable ensemble, just intonation, a rich variety of tone colours, and a youthful freshness of approach.'

Piers Adams plays Vivaldi and Handel. '... I would back Mr Adams against any of the elements.'

Felicity Lott sings Poulenc. '... various moods of increasing desperation ...'

Anton Bruckner's Symphony No 7, savoured. 'Celibidache is in no hurry ...'

Music by Kodály and Dohnányi. '... the orchestra captures with apparent ease the seductive idiom of this music.'

Charles Gounod's 'Roméo et Juliette'. 'Musically the performance deserves all the applause it gets.'

Bernstein's Mass. '... the scandal and much of the fun is in the "tropes".'

Songs by Maurice Ravel. '... skilled and dedicated artists ...'

Songs by Sibelius, Brahms, Schubert and Mahler. '... ripe understanding ...'

Wolf-Ferrari wind concertinos. '... soloist and orchestra tease each other in mutual delight.'

Works from the Eton Choirbook. '... vibrant and alive.'

Leonardo Vinci's 'La Partenope'. '... Vinci at his best.'

Vocal music by Richard Strauss. 'Anne Schwanewilms manages a thoughtful and gentle radiance throughout.'

Vilde Frang plays Tchaikovsky and Nielsen. '... exhilarating to the highest degree.'

Schubert from Cuarteto Casals. '... I have enjoyed most the slower movements.'

Music following the career of Joan of Arc. '... a finely presented musical book.'

Orchestral music by Patric Standford. 'All the music on this CD is logical, intelligible, and gripping.'

Music by Christopher Gibbons. '... fine music-making ...'

George Dyson's 'The Canterbury Pilgrims'. '... suitably exciting.'

Etsuko Hirose plays Balakirev. '... electrifying performance ...'

Brahms piano trios. '... an unusual and most welcome expressive range from the strings ...'

Three Mozart piano concertos. '... a magnificent outpouring of melody.'

Trio and keyboard sonatas by Charles Avison. '... a eupeptic sense of well-being ...'

Beethoven cello sonatas. 'Starker's interpretation suggests he has not quite grasped the magnitude of his responsibility.'

Eugene Alcalay plays Liszt. 'Alcalay characterises this music admirably.'

Orchestral music by Alan Hovhaness. '... the whole team under Stewart Robertson gives of their best ...'

Mozart piano concertos and a sonata. 'That these recordings are more than fifty years old only adds to their lustre.'

Diabelli variations by Beethoven and others. '... deft conjuring tricks ...'

Music by Gershwin. 'Eugene List is a brilliant and idiomatic keyboard soloist ...'

Schumann's Piano Quartet and Piano Quintet. '... all the requisite drive and poise.'

Handel's 'Atalanta'. '... acclamation from the jubilant Philharmonia Chorale ...'

Cavalli's 'Il Giasone'. '... the sense of fun detracts somewhat from the high drama ...'

Music by Béla Bartók. '... a joy to hear.'

Debussy songs. '... very accomplished ...'

Shostakovich concertos. '... high-powered music-making ...'

Choral music by Herbert Howells. '... Howells at his finest.'

Clarinet music by Brahms, Mendelssohn and Schumann. 'Emma Johnson and John Lenehan make a fine partnership ...'

Daniel Norman and Christopher Gould sing Britten. '... the surest of touches ...'

Schubert piano works for four hands. '... played with a sensitivity worthy of the music ...'

'Lamentation' and other settings by Morales

Elgar's 'Dream of Gerontius' at Harrow School moves Robert Anderson

Britten concertos. '... worth rescuing ...'

Couperin's 'Apothéoses'. '... a stylish account of the music ...'

Granados' 'Goyescas'. 'Garrick Ohlsson emerges with flying colours ...'

Italian multi-voiced music. 'Niquet's team ... has done Striggio and his companions proud.'

Piano concertos and a violin sonata. 'The performances do full justice to Shostakovich's demands ...'

Poulenc's unaccompanied choral music. 'There is much here to savour.'

Handel's 'Germanico'. '... always exhilarating though less often idiomatic.'

Mendelssohn string symphonies and concertos. '... scintillating brilliance ...'

Telemann cantatas. '... delicious music-making from the whole team ...'

Giuseppe Verdi's 'Simon Boccanegra'. '... Boccanegra is sung by Tito Gobbi, notable in any context ...'

Music for viols. '... sensitively blended and tonally warm.'

English violin sonatas by Dunhill, Bantock and Stanford. '... affectionate performances by Susanne Stanzeleit and Gusztáv Fenyò ...'

Verdi's 'La forza del destino'. '... the gypsy and her confederates do Verdi proud ...'

Rachmaninov piano music. 'The uncelebrated John Lill is totally in command throughout ...'

Pergolesi's 'Adriano in Siria'. 'The music is as bewitching as the story is dotty.'

Havergal Brian's 'Gothic' Symphony

Peter Katin plays Brahms. '... Katin is in his element, moulding the arching phrases with complete mastery.'

Oliver Rudland's 'The Owl who was Afraid of the Dark' and a six-year-old friend

Cyprien Katsaris plays Mozart. '... imbued with the very spirit of Mozart's Salzburg ...'

Mendelssohn and Franck quartets. '... strenuous and compelling ...'

Handel Works for Italy. 'Lucy Crowe has the range, agility, and subtlety ...'

Tchaikovsky orchestral music. '... a powerful and committed performance ...'

Handel's 'Agrippina'. '... Handel's music survives gloriously, with singers and orchestra at top voltage.'

Choral music by Giaches de Wert. 'The singing is of the standard King's College effortlessly produces.'

Rachmaninov piano music. '... no compromise for the faint-hearted.'

Rubinstein plays Chopin. '... recordings of remarkable consistency ...'

Music for cello and piano by Schumann. '... imaginative gestures of great power and significance.'

Jean-Yves Thibaudet plays Liszt. '... remarkable performance ...'

Piano music by Mussorgsky and Prokofiev. '... good value ...'

Robert Anderson attends two orchestral concerts in London

Music for violin and piano by Ravel and Lekeu. '... the whole recital has rare commitment and power.'

Hugo Wolf's Mörike-Lieder. '... much expressive dexterity ...'

Music for Henry V and the House of Lancaster. 'The six voices of the Binchois Consort are equally happy when heard one by one or as a group.'

J S Bach keyboard concertos. '... a delightful and appropriate lightness.'

Franz Liszt funeral odes. 'Orchestra and conductor have all the requisite diablerie.'

Brahms violin sonatas. 'Zina Schiff has the range of tone colour and subtlety of vibrato to put the music convincingly across.'

Spanish inspirations for two pianists. '[A] joyous recital ...'

Orchestral music by Richard Strauss. '... not quite the whole story.'

'Cavalleria rusticana' and 'Pagliacci'. '... not always marooned in frozen wastes.'

'Die Entführung aus dem Serail'. 'The applause of the Amsterdam audience is notably muted.'

Rossini's 'Il Turco in Italia'. 'The orchestra under Antonello Allemandi seem to have relished the evening as much as I did.'

'Alfonso und Estrella'. '... splendidly sung and played ...'

Beethoven Sonatas and Symphonies. '... stunning performance ...'

Reconstructed Gershwin piano music. '... Alicia Zizzo ... can tackle whatever bravura demands Gershwin may make on her ...'

'Die schöne Müllerin'. '... a memorable performance.'

Shostakovich's Symphony No 11. '... total conviction.'

Walton and Barber Violin Concertos. 'Bowes is wonderfully convincing on all counts.'

Brahms piano music. '... Atzinger is at his best ...'

Mozart and Michael Haydn for violin and viola. '... Maya Magub makes a very effective protagonist ...'

Mendelssohn Trio and Sonatas. '... ready skill and deft handling ...'

Jane Glover accompanies Felicity Lott's Mozart. '... joyous music-making.'

Britten song cycles. 'Nothing can detract from the magic ...'

J S Bach transcribed for guitar. '... consummate skill ...'

The Icicle Creek Piano Trio. '... admirably captured ...'

Arensky Piano Trios. 'The Rachmaninov Trio Moscow plays with obvious affection for the music and enviable skill.'

Music for string quartet by Janácek and Dvorák . '... an outstanding disc ...'

Orchestral music by Glazunov. '... dashingly done ...'

Three Rodrigo guitar concertos. 'Alfonso Moreno is a superb protagonist, technically impeccable ...'

Orchestral tone poems by Boughton and Bainton impress Robert Anderson. '... performed with conviction and sensitivity ...'

Robert Anderson examines the latest score from Acuta Music

Alfred Brendel plays Liszt. 'Michael Gielen backs Brendel's eloquence with unobtrusive skill.'

Elmar Oliveira plays J S Bach. '... full and vibrant ...'

Matthew Cameron plays Liszt. '... dignity and eloquence.'

Schubert for piano four hands. '... delicious passagework.'

Choral and orchestral music by Camille Saint-Saëns. 'The London Philharmonic under Geoffrey Simon gives of its best ...'

Rutland Boughton's 'The Queen of Cornwall'. '... a brave attempt ...'

Vivaldi oboe concertos. '... faultlessly delivered ...'

Ronald Stevenson's writings on Grainger

A promotional recording of Oliver Rudland's 'The Conquests of Zeus'

Johannes Goritzki and Julian Jacobson at London's Royal College of Music

Orchestral music by Lodewijk Mortelmans. 'The performances ... are a delight ...'

A centenary performance of Elgar's Violin Concerto

Bart's Choir's Verdi Requiem

A London recital by Julian Jacobson

J S Bach gamba sonatas. '... sensitive and very musical.'

Simon Keenlyside sings Schubert, Wolf, Fauré and Ravel. '... a wondrous variety ...'

Choral music by Sibelius. '... much here to surprise and fascinate ...'

Music for piano by Sibelius. 'Folke Gräsbeck is a splendid advocate ...'

Piano music by Chopin and Liszt. '... Dominic Piers Smith survives not only intact but triumphant ...'

Mykola Suk plays Liszt. '... a mastery and range of expression ...'

The story of 'La Traviata'. '... fun for the experienced observer ...'

Accompanied harpsichord sonatas by Charles Avison. '... both brilliant and sensitive ...'

Blomstedt conducts Richard Strauss. '... a composer of infinite promise ...'

Joshua Pierce plays Schubert. '... sensitive pianism ...'

Music by Beethoven?, reviewed favourably. '... the pleasure of unfamiliar music and fine performances.'

Piano music by Moscheles, Mendelssohn and Schumann. '...Todd Crow deserves unstinted gratitude.'

The first edition of two Elgar movements for oboe quartet

Irena Portenko plays Chopin. '... easy fluidity of touch and tone ...'

Brahms and Schumann piano quartets. 'This is music-making both sensitive and relaxed.'

A new score of Elgar's 'Arthur', perused

Ronan Magill's recital at London's Wigmore Hall

Mastersingers at the BBC Proms

Purcell's 'The Fairy Queen'. '... tender expression and all requisite vim.'

Blomstedt conducts Bruckner. '... opulence and splendour ...'

Donald Tovey's cello concerto. '... satisfyingly masterful.'

Piano trios by Donald Tovey. '... diatonic convictions ...'

Handel's 'Judas Maccabaeus'. '... the choral mood is everything.'

Mozart Symphonies 39 and 40. '... vitality and alertness ...'

Purcell's 'Dido and Aeneas'. '... the playing is stylish and alert throughout.'

Geoffrey Lancaster plays Haydn. '... a very auspicious start.'

Music by Oliver Rudland

Orchestral music by Louis Spohr. 'Howard Shelley and the Swiss orchestra clearly relish this unusual assignment.'

'Symphonie fantastique' and 'Le Carnaval romain'. '... much to admire ...'

Haydn's 'Creation'. 'Haydn is on top form throughout ...'

Handel's 'Tamerlano'. 'The simplicity of the production is welcome ...'

Piano music by Prokofiev. '... enviable simplicity and beauty of tone.'

Donizetti's 'Maria Stuarda'. '... wonderfully alert ...'

Puccini's 'La rondine'. '... exciting acrobatics ...'

Haydn's late piano trios. '... stylish and impeccable.'

Alessandro Scarlatti's 'Davidis pugna et victoria'

Thomas Arne's 'Artaxerxes'. 'Roy Goodman and his team give their all ...'

A new score of Elgar's 'Mina', appraised

Schumann and Beethoven songs. '... he is undoubtedly more comfortable in his baritone register.'

Victoria's 'Missa Gaudeaumus'. '... a joyous celebration ...'

Sibelius orchestral music. '... in the safest of hands.'

Beethoven's middle string quartets. 'The outer movements induce some grinding of teeth.'

Barenboim conducts Gershwin, Bernstein, Ravel and Wagner. '... the oddest assortment of music.'

Beethoven's early string quartets. '... no excuse for the near-supersonic velocity ...'

Beethoven arranged by Liszt

Beethoven's late string quartets impress Robert Anderson. '... full marks to these players ...'

Major piano works by Schubert. '... Lipkin understands well how to respect the silences ...'

'Cardus - Celebrant of Beauty' by Robin Daniels

Hindemith viola sonatas. '... a committed and convincing performance throughout.'

Mozart's 'Don Giovanni'. '... the flames are formidable ...'

Sibelius songs

Khachaturian's 'Spartacus' at the Cairo Opera House

Music by Vincent d'Indy. 'The eloquent solo viola of Lawrence Power is crucial ...'

Haydn from the Florestan Trio

Seung-Un Ha plays Bach's Goldberg Variations

A new study score of Elgar's 'Empire March'

Music by Sibelius for voice and orchestra. 'Throughout the set BIS has maintained the high standards ...'

Donizetti's 'l'Elisir d'amore'. '... beguiling candour.'

Chamber music by Sibelius. '... fresh and unfamiliar music, put across with such conviction ...'

Caroline Clemmow and Anthony Goldstone play Chopin and entertain Robert Anderson

Marc-André Hamelin's Chopin delights Robert Anderson

Vivaldi recorder concertos

Vaughan Williams from Japan

Charles Avison's reworkings of Scarlatti. 'Avison's deployment of massed strings is wonderfully effective ...'

String Quartets by Brahms never cease to surprise Robert Anderson

Stokowski conducts Wagner, Enescu, Debussy and Stravinsky

Music by Ives, orchestrated by Brant

Choral music by Karol Szymanowski

Tony Britten's 'new version' of Verdi's Falstaff. 'Shame on him ...'

Mark Dexter plays Peter Warlock. '... a triumphant success ...'

Music for the theatre. 'Again BIS has done the great master proud.'

The Sibelius tone poems. '... so sparely wrought and of such integrity ...'

Music for piano and orchestra by Benjamin Britten

Shostakovich's Fourth Symphony

Andrew Barnett's 'Sibelius'

The Play of Daniel intrigues and delights Robert Anderson

Orchestral music by Glazunov

Valentina Igoshina plays Chopin

Vadim Gluzman plays Tchaikovsky and Glazunov. 'Vadim Gluzman is a violinist of remarkable gifts.'

Nick Strimple's 'Choral Music in the Nineteenth Century'

Zeynep Ucbasaran plays Mozart. '... an art of crystalline clarity.'

Peter Sutton's play 'Elgar and Alice'

Music for viola and piano by York Bowen. '... above praise.'

Stokowski conducts Bizet and Debussy. '... a rhythmic élan and masterly sense of line ...'

Ivan Ilic plays Debussy. '... superbly managed ...'

Hérold's 'La fille mal gardée'. '... Covent Garden at its best.'

'La vedova scaltra' by Wolf-Ferrari. '... a captivating performance.'

Mozart's 'Mitridate'. '... marvellous singing throughout ...'

'The Pearl' by Douglas Smith

Masaaki Suzuki directs J S Bach cantatas. 'If the Japanese tempo is faster than mine, so be it ...'

'Opera and the Morbidity of Music'

Orchestral music by Albert Roussel

The violin concertos of Ernö von Dohnányi. '... a very impressive performance.'

Bach church cantatas. '... robust and sensitive as required ...'

Musorgsky's 'Khovanshchina'. '... the admirable Barcelona chorus and orchestra ...'

Matthias Goerne sings Schubert

Rossini's 'La pietra del paragone'. 'The Madrid cast has proved itself exemplary ...'

Die Zauberflöte from Covent Garden. '... this admirable DVD is a double first ...'

Rossini's 'La Cambiale di matrimonio'. '... seductively lyrical where the young Rossini demands.'

Poulenc's 'Dialogues des Carmélites'. '... finely expressed ...'

Verdi's 'Oberto'. 'Vocally they are in full command ...'

Rossini's 'La Cenerentola'. '... irresistible throughout ...'

'Don Pasquale' enjoyed. 'The cast is admirable ...'

Rossini's 'Il Viaggio a Reims' entertains Robert Anderson. '... an evening of pure champagne.'

'Simon Boccanegra' from the Vienna State Opera. 'The Work is in the safest possible hands ...'

A historical production of Beethoven's 'Fidelio'. '... Beethoven is free to tell an unvarnished tale ...'

'Die Frau ohne Schatten' from the Bavarian State Opera. 'It is evident that Sawallisch loves the work.'

Offenbach's 'The Tales of Hoffmann'. '... a cast, orchestra, conductor and stage team fully up to tackling a very demanding project.'

Verdi's 'Otello'. '... this Desdemona can float a line with utmost tenderness ...'

Gilbert and Sullivan's 'The Mikado'. 'Chorus and orchestra under Andrew Greene rollick their way through ...'

Wagner's 'Lohengrin'. '... a delight to watch.'

The making of an American opera. '... a searching work that spares no punches ...'

Wagner's 'Tannhäuser'. '... a subtlety no other house can match.'

'Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk'. '... fully appropriate disorder ...'

'Fedora'. 'Giordano's wishes were admirably followed ...'

Richard Strauss's 'Der Rosenkavalier'. 'The Viennese chorus and orchestra know this opera inside out ...'

Stravinsky's 'Le Rossignol'. '... both wondrous and distracting.'

'The Love of Three Oranges'. '... much applause for Prokofiev's imagination ...'

Mozart's 'Così fan tutte'. '... a disappointing monument ...'

La petite musique de Marie-Antoinette. '... supreme vocal skill ...'

Daniel Barenboim and the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra in Ramallah. '... an orchestra of first-class accomplishment.'

Rossini's 'La Gazzetta'. '... a mismatch of music and action ...'

'The Nightingale and the Rose' by Oliver Rudland

Adolphe Adam's 'Giselle'. '... irresistible appeal'

Prokofiev's 'Romeo and Juliet'. '... suggests Tristan and Isolde ...'

Béjart's 'Nutcracker'. '... bears little relation to Tchaikovsky's music ...'

Berg's 'Wozzeck'. '... quite convincing enough ...'

Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande. 'Franz Welser-Möst conducts admirably ...'

Rossini's 'L'occasione fa il ladro'. '... a performance of bubbling vitality ...'

Die Entführung aus dem Serail. '... a final curtain meriting maximum applause.'

Verdi's 'La Traviata'. '... result of admirable cooperation between the Zürich stage and pit.'

Gershwin's 'Porgy and Bess'. 'The work is in the safest possible hands ...'

Puccini's 'Turandot'. '... brimful of imagination ...'

'Adriana Lecouvreur'. '... a chorus and orchestra beautifully responsive to the lyrical nuances of Cilea's score.'

'Madama Butterfly'. '... a strong yet tender account of Puccini's cunning score.'

'La clemenza di Tito'. '... Sylvain Cambreling in sensitive command ...'

Verdi's 'Macbeth'. '... much excitement ...'

Massenet's 'Werther'. '... much is ravishingly beautiful ...'

Rameau's 'Les Paladins'. '... a wealth of fine singing.'

Monteverdi's 'Orfeo'. '... Stephen Stubbs is to be congratulated on an imaginative realisation ...'

Prokofiev's 'Ivan the Terrible'. 'Vello Pähn and the orchestra make a marvellous thing of Prokofiev's score ...'

Strauss's 'Capriccio'. '... Renée Fleming ... (sang) like an angel throughout ...'

Wagner's 'Tristan und Isolde'. '... the climaxes are prepared with meticulous cunning.'

Monteverdi's 'L'incoronazione di Poppaea'. '... highly gifted soloists ...'

Monteverdi's 'Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria'. '... moving drama and notable accomplishment.'

'Hamlet' by Ambroise Thomas. '... much sensitivity.'

Verdi's 'Don Carlo'. 'The chief glory ... is Zeffirelli's staging.'

Rameau's 'Les Indes galantes'. '... Les Arts Florissants would triumph in any location.'

Wagner's 'Götterdämmerung'. '... a crowning glory from Bertrand de Billy and his superb team ...'

Rued Langgaard's opera 'Antikrist'. '... interpreted with total commitment ...'

Music by Debussy, Prokofiev, Britten and Ravel. '... admirably encompassed ...'

Wagner's 'Siegfried'. '... when it is sung as beautifully as here, one is humbly grateful.'

Die Walküre. '... live performances that rightly earn due applause act by act ...'

Music for Alfonso the Wise, and by Victoria. '... clear and expressive ...'

Wagner's 'Parsifal' from Baden-Baden. 'The singing is generally superb, with the Gurnemanz of Matti Salminen quite outstanding.'

Handel's 'Giulio Cesare'. 'Graham Pushee sings with utmost bravura, fire and clarity ...'

Gillian Weir plays Bach at St Thomas's, Leipzig. '... skilfully explored ...'

Piano music by Beethoven, Schubert and Schumann. '... as varied as the works themselves.'

'Das Rheingold'. '... a joyous experience ...'

'The Turn of the Screw'. '... splendidly captured musically and visually ...'

Schubert and Schumann song cycles, who also pays tribute to the late Eric Sams

Cello and violin CDs. '... silken, silvery tone ...'

Orchestral music by Tchaikovsky. '... sumptuous and highly disciplined playing ...

Music by Elgar. '... yet more immediacy than the original LPs ...'

Jacob Heringman plays music from the Siena Lute Book. '... an infectious zest for the music ...'

Puccini's 'La Bohème'. '... never a dull visual moment ...'

Karajan's 'Il Trovatore'. '... wonderfully and indeed relentlessly captured ...'

EMI's golden years of the gramophone. '... total fascination ...'

June de Toth plays Bartók piano music. '... a magisterial achievement.'

'The Beethoven Violin Sonatas: History, Criticism, Performance' from the University of Illinois Press

Piano music by Debussy. '... skilful presentation ...'

An award-winning Grieg disc. '... an enchanting lightness of touch ...'

Symphonic music by Villa-Lobos. '... skill and commitment ...'

Elgar's 'Starlight Express'. '... accomplished and imbued with the sort of affection the work desperately needs.'

Viennese music played by the Bruckner Orchester Linz. '... enchanting freedom and flexibility ...'

Music for clarinet by Brahms. 'These CD performances are wholly admirable ...'

A compilation of recordings from the 1970s. '... a technical mastery that any world soloist might envy.'

Berg and Britten violin concertos. '... a violinist of superb accomplishment ...'

The violin concerto by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. '... a clean-cut precision throughout the work ...'

Choral works by Walton and Elgar. 'Sargent's vitality matches Walton's ...'

The Italian Girl in Algiers. 'Its enchantments are as fresh as ever ...'

John Lill plays Schumann, and Robert Anderson listens. '... manifold subtleties of touch ...'

Volume two of the Metier 'Beethoven Explored' series. '... nice rhythmic sense and technical assurance.'

Music by Heinrich Schütz. '... expressively at one with the music.'

Khachaturian's Violin Concerto. '... above praise.'

Fritz Reiner conducts Bartók. '... agonised intensity of utmost eloquence.'

Schumann string quartets. 'I could wish indeed that the music had puzzled them more.'

Charles Munch conducts Symphonie Fantastique. 'The Boston players revel among the cavorting witches with gleeful efficiency.'

Aida on Naxos Historical. '... playing that is supple but capable also of maximum excitement.'

Martin Berkofsky plays Liszt. '... playing often as sensitive as one is likely to hear.'

Martin Torp's oratorio 'Siehe, Ich mache Alles neu'

Fritz Reiner's Tchaikovsky. '... Reiner's no-nonsense approach avoids any hint of emotional excess.'

The first in a new series of Vivaldi bassoon concertos. 'The virtuosity of Tamás Benkócs is a constant wonder ...'

The keyboard music of Matthew Locke. '... crisp and lively ...'

Hsia-Jung Chang plays Chopin. '... dazzling technique ...'

Beethoven and the Habsburgs. '... infectious zest ...'

Respighi's Pines and Fountains. 'Fritz Reiner has the right qualities for this music.'

Chamber music by Rimsky-Korsakov. '... idiomatic writing that is a constant delight.'

Boccherini symphonies. '... maximum virtuosity and elan.'

Music by Hummel and Schubert. '... virtuoso display.'

Russian cello sonatas. '... alert and accomplished.'

Music by Thomas Tomkins. '... an unqualified delight ...'

The playing of Marina Milic-Apostolovic

Dvorák quartets on Praga Digitals. '...beautifully captured by the Kocian team.'

A new recording of Handel's 'Rinaldo'. '... a performance of vitality and appropriate style ...'

Ilona von Dohnányi's 'Ernst von Dohnányi - A Song of Life'

Arrangement with a vengeance from Red Priest. '... never a dull moment and entertainment value paramount.'

A Richard Strauss melodrama. '... a fine performance from an actor of wide experience ...'

Organ music by Vierne and Alain. '... James Lancelot shows throughout how effectively he can command the grand Romantic gesture.'

The political statements of Hans Werner Henze. '... sensuous richness ...'

The keyboard music of Orlando Gibbons. '... technique and panache ...'

The inspired Sir Thomas Beecham. '... no better than expected ...'

Johann Ludwig Krebs on Priory. '... a performance at once robust and sensitive.'

Gillian Weir plays Messiaen, and Robert Anderson is thrilled. '... exciting fidelity ...'

Luiza Borac plays Schumann and Robert Anderson listens

Charles Wood's anthems. '... vibrant in tone and firm as a rock ...'

Listening to Dvorák arrangements. '... effective and highly accomplished.'

Frederic Chiu plays Liszt, and Robert Anderson listens. '... magical sonorities and supersonic speeds ...'

McGuire's new book about Elgar's oratorios is investigated

Walton's orchestral music

Two Mozart keyboard CDs

'La clemenza di Tito' at Covent Garden

Haydn at Esterhazy. '... a relaxed warmth entirely suited to the music and its period.'

The symphonies of Kurt Atterberg encountered. '... a towering Pelion with which to storm the heavens ...'

The music of César Franck. 'Thiollier is capable of the loveliest sonorities from the outset ...'

Mozart's String Quintets. 'The playing demonstrates the lovely range of tone colours the team can so readily deploy.'

John Field's Piano Concertos. '... accomplished performances ...'

The Gilgamesh epic, recounted. '... Zdenek Kosler admirably explores the depth of meaning Martinu revealed in the ancient tale ...'

Bernard Haitink's Farewell Concert at London's Royal Opera

Reacting to Chopin and Schumann. '... some moments might well have caused Chopin to block his ears and flee across the Channel ...'

Schubert arranged by Andreas Tarkmann

Constant enchantment. The 'Cantiones Sacrae' of Sweelinck. 'The Clare College Choir under Timothy Brown has both the intensity and agility to encompass the varied moods of the music.'

The journeyman miller. Schubert's 'Die Schöne Müllerin'. 'It will be clear enough by now with what tenderness and sensitivity Werner Güra performs these songs.'

Sea-change. 'Penelope Lynex is a cellist of formidable gifts.' The complete music for cello and piano of Frank Bridge, whetting the appetite of Robert Anderson

Surpassing 'Thornbury'? '... Partington and organ are thrillingly at one and in devoted service of the composer ...' The organ music of Basil Harwood

Varied moods. '... a fine account of the music ...' Risto Lauriala plays the piano music of Josef Suk

Passion and gloom. '... Gwyneth George ... riding the technical difficulties with enviable ease ...' Rachmaninov and Shostakovich cello sonatas, an appraisal

Much to enchant. '... here he has found worthy interpreters.' Strauss songs

Day of judgement. '... Saint-Saëns is at his best, and the LPO under Geoffrey Simon enjoys chasing his every nuance.' Saint-Saëns Requiem, faced

Unquestioning faith. 'If Tavener can sometimes seem a victim of his own mannerisms, the performers under Paul Goodwin have done him proud.' A CD of John Tavener's choral music

Tootling in Accrington. '... a stimulating introduction to Sir Harrison's tonal explorations.' A sound picture of Birtwistle on CD

Profiles of the mountains. 'The Stuttgart team plays with the necessary conviction and power ...' Symphonies by Villa-Lobos

Profound beauty. '... a commendable account ...' Ernest Bloch's music

Celtic twilight. '... there is a welcome simplicity and integrity about the playing.' Listening to Arnold Bax

Symphonic matters. 'There is delicious writing along the way for woodwind and horns.' Attending to the symphony in 18th-century England

Spectral Sounds. 'Dora De Marinis is at once mistress of the suituation ...' Ginastera on Naxos

Robert Anderson listens to music by Poul Ruders, Lutoslawski and Sibelius in London's Royal Albert Hall

Impeccable ensemble. 'Christopher Robinson demonstrates that his team is at the forefront of our church choirs ...' Rubbra's church music

Musical eloquence. 'The playing under Alexander Anissimov is as accomplished as the music.' Glazunov symphonies

Robert Anderson pays a visit

Merry or sad. '... New College ... can produce English chapel singing at its best, both sensitive and robust.' The 'worthy' William Boyce

Rich and rare sonorities. '... a pleasure beyond expectation.' Robert Anderson listens to quartets from Catalonia

An ingenious person. '... the Apollo Consort is wonderfully alert and sensitive.' John Jenkins admired

The essential acorn. 'The Armenian orchestra under Tjeknavorian gives a competent performance throughout ...' The music of Glinka

Passion and integrity. 'Peter Bruns and Roglit Ishay prove convincing advocates for this singleminded and almost obsessive music.' Remembering Ernest Bloch

Popular esteem. 'Chorus and orchestra under Christoph Spering respond splendidly, as do the soloists, to all Haydn's demands.' 'Seven Last Words'

Classical allusions. '... all the solo voices are marvellously alert and sensitive. The choral singing and orchestral playing under Robert King is robust and stylish ...' Handel and Milton

Showing paces. '... the oratorio performances can only give pleasure.' Charpentier's dramatic strengths

'Snippets of tune are bandied teasingly between the instruments ...' - A Lithuanian composer

Flemish Exploration - Robert Anderson listens to a little-known 'family'

Inspiring admiration - Robert Anderson examines Cherubini's quartets

Flights of imagination - Robert Anderson listens to Raff symphonies

A Folk-Oratorio - Robert Anderson listens to a new CD of neglected Schumann

Fever of excitement - Robert Anderson examines Berlioz' Requiem in a new recording

Players coming and going - Dvorák rarities on record considered

Robert Anderson on The Eroica Quartet playing Mendelssohn

Articles about Robert Anderson

Classical music news. November 2023 Newsletter - Our November 2023 PDF newsletter, 'Beautiful, Powerful Music', has just been published

Profile. Highlighting Absurdity - Keith Bramich remembers his friend, the M&V contributor Robert Anderson

Musical Prowess - Robert Anderson's 'Opera Nights and Nightmares', read by Gerald Fenech

Scholarship and originality - David Bury explains the merits of Robert Anderson's new book 'Elgar and Chivalry'