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The curtain may be drawing on the final act of 2018, but we’re up for an encore.
From practically perfect Proms performances to truly majestic operas, the air has been filled with the sound of sweet music in London all throughout the last 12 months.
Can’t decide on your favourite musical moment? Our critics Barry Millington and Nick Kimberley have picked out the best opera and classical music shows to grace London in 2018.
Barry Millington's top 5 of 2018
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra at the Proms, Royal Albert Hall
“In Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony Petrenko proved a mesmerising conductor to watch.”
LSO/Rattle, Barbican
“The inebriated swaying of the chorus in the final movement looked dangerously like a Last Night of the Proms audience, but such are the joys of spring.”
Der Ring des Nibelungen, Royal Opera House
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“This is a production that has been developed, line by line, phrase by phrase, with a largely new cast and the result is gripping.”
Read the reviews of Das Rheingold and Siegfried/Götterdämmerung
Porgy and Bess, London Coliseum
“The opera’s feelgood portrayal of an impoverished, dispossessed black community continues to disturb but its power is triumphantly confirmed here.”
Serse/Emelyanychev, Barbican
“It seemed early in the evening for a showstopper, but so ravishing was the singing that it could hardly go unacknowledged.”
Nick Kimberley's top 5 of 2018
Mahler Resurrection Symphony, Barbican
“This was a performance of energy and power, yet Bychkov also maintained focus on tiny details: a single plucked harp string, the tiny tinkle of a triangle carried as much weight as the mighty clash of cymbals or the pounding of two sets of timpani.”
Chineke!, Queen Elizabeth Hall
“To finish, Parnther delivered a finely sculpted performance of Beethoven’s Fourth Symphony, mixing mischief and mystery in equal measure.”
The Turn of the Screw, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
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“Sheader doesn’t overplay the ghost story aspects of the plot; he gives us a psychological drama, in which the corruption of innocence is all too real.”
Greek, Arcola Theatre
“Turnage’s music for his compact orchestra – here, Kantanti Ensemble conducted by Tim Anderson – is acerbic but also conjures moments of spiky tenderness. The vocal writing is strident, sometimes spoken rather than sung, but always bracingly communicative.”
La Traviata, King’s Head Theatre
“Emma Walsh’s voice is powerful, occasionally taut, while her acting embodies every nuance of the character’s shifting emotions. What this production offers is not a miniaturised version of the opera house experience, nor is it primarily about making opera more 'accessible'.”
