Music Reviews
Not a dull phrase
Ethel Smyth: 2nd sonata &c (Delphian)
Having a bad Bey
If you’re going to jettison the essence of the song, why even bother?
Too light by half
Bernard Herrmann: Wuthering Heights (Chandos)
Pain and glory
Roger Waters’ last stand in Madrid
Just do the bloody show
Rusalka, Royal Opera House
The jackpot of opera
The Rhinegold, English National Opera, Coliseum
Passion and percussion
Two tastes of Chinese culture in London
Pity and terror
A powerful, moving adaptation of Puccini
Alban Berg: Violin concerto &c. (Chandos)
A stunning marriage of the tragic and the erotic
John Cage: Four Walls (Fuga Libera)
More than a little bit mad
Embrace your inner exile
How can we appreciate art in alienating times?
The 300 Years’ War
How conflict over land ownership shaped conflict over Ireland
Two-tier immigration?
Britain has its border priorities out of whack
The hollowness of postliberalism
Its vagueness and sentimentality encourage political opportunism
The death of modern Britishness?
Attempts to construct a dehistoricised national identity have failed
Over the line
No one should discipline children for asking honest questions or telling the truth
How Roman women were victimised twice
The victims of abuse could also be degraded by historians
Passing the baton to the offspring
Does maestro talent run in the genes?
The esoterica trap
We should not pollute good causes with unreliable information
The perversity of the Oasis reunion
The cultural optimism of the nineties has been lost
The day of the DfIDs
The real problem with foreign aid
