Music
In praise of the viola
Cantabile: Anthems for viola (Delphian)
Finding the middle ground
Where do the acts too big for pubs but too small for arenas play?
God save The Kinks
How did four ornery lads rearing up from the post-war English underclass become national treasures?
Musical no man’s lands
Two violin concertos fail to inspire
Against the relegation of Record Review
Why is Radio 3 mistreating one of its greatest assets?
Save St John’s Voices
The glorious tradition of British choral singing should be defended
Playfulness and tedium
Stravinsky, Petrushka; Debussy, Jeux and Prelude (Decca)
A talented pianist and a battered piano
Bezhod Abduraimov: Shadows of my ancestors (Alpha-Classics)
The elusive Seiji Ozawa was Japan’s greatest peacemaker
Farewell not just to a conductor but to a generous man
The light and the insubstantial
Poulenc and others: Chamber music (Calliope/DG)
A sharp satire perfect for Critic readers
We should be giving copies of this magazine away at every screening
Who’s ready for the Equality Levy?
Birmingham’s bankruptcy is a portrait of Britain’s future
The best of The Rest Is …
Sequel podcasts are emerging with the inevitability of sprouts from an old potato
Budgets are overrated
Taxation and spending make little difference while Britain is unable to build
The stench of Chanel No 5
Set mainly in Nazi-occupied Paris, The New Look tells the story of Coco Chanel and Christian Dior
Dissent is not hatred
We must resist the idea that disagreement with modish beliefs is reducible to ill-feeling
Something in the Bath water
Liberal Democrats are ruining a beautiful city with pointless regulations and Remainer spite
Plagiarism: a racist weapon
It has been genuinely disturbing to see Claudine Gay ousted simply for being an empowered black woman
Chinese whispers
Oliver Dowden’s tough talk on Chinese hacking is less than wholly convincing
Motorway-mania
Britain in the age of the automobile
A night of spectacle and special effects
Stranger Things: The First Shadow designers aren’t afraid to raid the treasure trove
