James Sherlock - Conductor

Last night we gave our final performance of The R**e of Lucretia at the Norwegian National Opera ✨

Opera is in its element exploring the dark and fragile world of this tale, with Benjamin Britten’s score a masterclass in tension, power and vulnerability.

Our brilliant and brave cast gave Peter Langdal’s raw, military-focused staging a powerful and nuanced telling, pulling apart the complexities of power, shame, memory - supported from the pit by the outstanding

Thank you for these meaningful weeks!! 🇳🇴

Premiere of this beautiful new production of The R**e of Lucretia, last night in Oslo 🙌💫

Director: Peter Langdal
Conductor:
Scenography & costume: Ashley Martin-Davies
Light design: Paul Vidar Sævarang
Mask: Charlotte Matsurika
Assistant director:

Male Chorus:
Female Chorus:
Lucretia:
Tarquinius:
Lucia:
Bianca:
Junius:
Collatinus:

With marvellous playing from fantastic and supported by outstanding music staff Boris Schäfer, David Maiwald, and in particular 🎶✨

Lovely to be featured in Opera Now, discussing music-making and opera-making in the Nordics/Baltics!

https://www.opera-now.com/content/features/valkyries-in-a-viking-hall-the-journey-to-country-house-opera-in-scandinavia

Pre-rehearsal routines here in Oslo - my youthful personal trainer putting me through my paces.

Finland, you beauty. I’ve missed you 💖

And thank you to for a wonderful week of sensitive music making 🙌🎶 A real “eat your greens” programme (!) chosen carefully by the musicians and devoured enthusiastically by the wonderful audience in Kotka: Edgar Varèse, Frank Martin, Jean Françaix, Frank Bridge and Charles Ives

📸✨ Such a photogenic opera house!
🌸💐 Lovely spring weeks here with Britten’s The R**e of Lucretia - fantastic new production, 🎭 great colleagues, ☀️ great weather, and 🙌 good times

Four seasons in one day… and an🚨earthquake!!🚨
🏊‍♀️🌊
!

Hard to believe that MTT and Joshua have both left us in two months. Michael Tilson Thomas had an enormous brain and equally enormous heart. I was first introduced through my teacher Robin Holloway, and spent a summer studying with him Mahler’s 3rd and 8th symphonies in the Swiss Alps… one of the big catalyst moments, to take the plunge and make a new start studying conducting. That summer I slept with the score of those two symphonies under my pillow.
Then even two years ago as he bravely fought against his long disease, he was capable of moments of total clarity, conducting Mahler’s 3rd in my hometown of Copenhagen with a lucidity that belied an increasing confusion of the world. He kept going, and it was almost unimaginable that he would outlive his beloved Joshua, partner of 50 years.
A great thinking, and feeling, musician - he will be much missed. 🙌💫