Music and ethnicity are both more complex than nationalism allows

Carmen still shocks and seduces

This is singing as mildly polemical conversation, from her to us

One would never imagine Stalinist oppression was raging all around her

In troubled times for Russia, this album hints at the future of the country’s music

Three sonatas by Brahms? The clarinet adaptation, to no surprise, doesn’t work

The Czechs always have talent to spare on the bench

The chance introduction that led to some extraordinary evenings with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra

2021 has yielded more memorable albums than you can count on the fingers of two hands

I was completely absorbed by this opera as a sound production — maybe one day I’ll get to see the whole show