Schubert: Der Einsame CD review – Young tenor Ilker Arcayürek is in a class on his own

It’s been a while since we’ve had a debut disc as engaging as this. Born in Istanbul, raised in Vienna, Ilker Arcayürek has the kind of airy, easily ringing tenor that puts across words beautifully, with power in reserve yet … Continue reading →

Schubertiade festival review – poetry and passion ring out in the Alps

Experimental and cutting-edge it isn’t, but in its quiet way, Austria’s Schubertiade festival and its world-class performers are finding new ways of playing and thinking about music

Richter Plays Schubert CD review – he had a special affinity for introspective music

An essential survey of Schubert’s sonatas, variations and miniatures, recorded between 1948 and 1963

Maxim Rysanov: In Schubert’s Company CD review – rhapsody and force amid elegance

Maxim Rysanov is involved in this many-faceted double-CD homage to Schubert as viola soloist, conductor, commissioner and arranger, often nearly all at once. In between very worthwhile performances of the Arpeggione and Third Violin Sonatas (the latter in Rysanov’s own … Continue reading →

Schubert: Arias & Overtures CD review – stylish and spirited

The idiosyncratic L’Orfeo Barockorchester could benefit from refinement, but tenor Daniel Behle holds his own

Schubert: Fantasie in F Minor, etc CD review – Staier and Melnikov create a warm, intimate vibe

Schubert played piano duets in living rooms, with friends, for friends. To me, it feels a bit weird seeing these pieces on big stages under concert lights, so I love a recording that takes them back to a living-room vibe. … Continue reading →

Schubert: Piano Sonatas D960 & D664 CD review – sensitivity and rapture

Javier Perianes revealed to the Guardian that his most memorable live concert experience was hearing the great Romanian pianist Radu Lupu playing Schubert’s Sonata in B flat major, D960. He said he would “never forget that emotion from the very … Continue reading →

Schubert: String Quartet in G major; String Quartet in C minor CD review – a breathless treat

Doric String Quartet (Chandos)

From Schubert to Sinatra: why the song cycle speaks to the heart

A new English version of Die Schöne Müllerin offers a reminder as to why it’s Sinatra – not his classical contemporaries – that matches Schubert in ambition

Steven Osborne review – colour and texture above drama and display

Schubert, Debussy and Rachmaninov were played with a sense of control that put their works across more effectively than any grandstanding

Mark Padmore/Paul Lewis review – passion and intoxication let rip

This lieder recital of Heine and Goethe set to Schumann and Schubert allowed the tenor and pianist to surge with and cede to the poets’ bliss and longing

Arcadi Volodos review – a masterly delivery of Brahms and Schubert

The pianist brought definition and tonal warmth to complex works by the two composers, showing again what a superb musician he is

Schubert: Impromptus, Piano Pieces and Variations CD review – radiance and lyricism

Steven Osborne turns to Schubert on this intriguing disc

Kiss Me, Kate; Florian Boesch and Graham Johnson; the Tallis Scholars’ 2000th concert – review

Opera North rethinks Cole Porter. Plus, Boesch and Johnson, and the Tallis Scholars give their 2000th concert

Florian Boesch/Graham Johnson review – Schubert song series opens with a brilliant, unsparing evening

Baritone Florian Boesch and pianist Graham Johnson, both exceptional communicators, were on peak form for this Schubert song recital