Until recently, gay characters in plays, motion pictures, novels, and even operas generally did not fare well. They were often the first to perish or to suffer unrequited love in more serious works—e.g., the plays of Tennessee Williams. … » Read

LONDON—English National Opera’s conceptualization of Górecki’s Symphony No. 3 was dreamily beautiful to behold. In a work that deals in pain and anguish, that may not necessarily have been a good thing. And yet… … » Read

Puccini’s La bohème is a staple of the opera world, and it takes a very bold director to tinker around with it. Enter Yuval Sharon, a 2017 MacArthur Genius Grant awardee and current artistic director of the Detroit Opera who in  … » Read

If Julius Eastman’s music seems to re-invent itself with every hearing, it’s partly because the late composer encouraged performers to make his music their own, sometimes in highly interventionist ways. At the three-concert event … » Read

Michael van der Aa’s 70-minute chamber opera Blank Out is a case study in form trumping content. Presented by Cal Performances in its West Coast premiere April 28-29 at Berkeley’s Zellerbach Hall, the Dutch auteur’s work employs … » Read

LONDON—For a program steeped in executions and funeral marches, the London Philharmonic Orchestra’s April 26 concert at Southbank Centre was surprisingly colorful. It was also full of drama, opening with a 30-minute tryout of a new … » Read

At home, this group performs as the National Symphony Orchestra. Abroad, it tours as the Taiwan Philharmonic—mostly because the words “Taiwan” and “National” appearing in the same sentence is guaranteed to drive … » Read

SAN FRANCISCO—Ambling onstage in jeans and work shirts, the four members of So Percussion resembled a pick-up crew headed to a construction site. Indeed some of the equipment pressed into endlessly resourceful service by the group on April … » Read

AIX-EN-PROVENCE—Like Easter itself, the Festival de Pâques is a moveable feast. Every year its two-and-a-half week program of events is timed to straddle Holy Week, with one of Bach’s Passions given during Easter weekend as the … » Read

Italian pianist Beatrice Rana turned 30 in January and is honoring the occasion with a string of concerts in Europe and the U.S. that have included Beethoven’s Sonata in B flat, Op. 106, Hammerklavier, a coming-of-age piece if there ever … » Read