Capriccio

The London Philharmonic Orchestra and Vladimir Jurowski presented two highly dramatic works at the Royal Festival Hall on Wednesday night. Extracts from Strauss' Die Frau Ohne Schatten were followed by Alexander von Zemlinsky's A Florentine Tragedy in a performance with few contrasts but much commitment.

This Barbican concert featured extracts from Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, Berg's Three Fragments from Wozzeck and Beethoven's Fifth, played by the London Symphony Orchestra with conductor Gianandrea Noseda and soprano Angela Denoke. Some bold interpretative decisions characterised the Beethoven performance especially.

Lawrence Dart reviews Alasdair Beatson playing Mozart, Fauré, Ravel and Schubert at the Wigmore Hall.

While Weber is widely acknowledged as being of historic importance as the link in the German operatic tradition between Beethoven and Wagner, his operas are rarely staged in England, and even in concert remain a relative novelty. Despite my quibbles I have to confess I was absolutely enraptured throughout, watching in a state of gleeful wonder at the beauties unfolding before me.

At the Barbican on Thursday, Robin Ticciati conducted the London Symphony Orchestra through Strauss' Tod und Verklärung, Mahler's Kindertotenlieder and Brahms' Second Symphony, joined in the Mahler by baritone Christopher Maltman. There were moments of quiet beauty, but at times something wasn't connecting musically.

Eugene Onegin is one of the greatest of all operas, both musically and dramatically. James Conway's 2007 production for English Touring Opera, here revived for the first time, is very economic with stage materials – all we have is a mirror that bisects the stage, a few apple tree branches, a bed, and a couple of chairs. Catch it if you can – this is an extraordinary bargain. You will not regret it.