fri 25/07/2025

David Nice

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Bio
The classical music and opera editor of theartsdesk, David writes, lectures and broadcasts on music. A former music critic for The Guardian and The Sunday Correspondent, he has made regular appearances on BBC Radio 3, not least in the long-running series Building a Library. He has written short studies on Elgar, Richard Strauss, Stravinsky, Tchaikovsky and the history of opera, and is currently working on the second volume of his Prokofiev biography for Yale University Press. He runs two Zoom lecture series, Opera in Depth on Mondays and a symphonies course on Thursdays.

Articles By David Nice

Bernheim, Finley, LSO, Pappano, Barbican review - top Italians in second gear

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A Midsummer Night's Dream, Guildhall School review - earthy, energetic Britten

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A Previn treasury

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Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Ádám Fischer, Barbican review - ferocious Mahler 9 without inscape

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Gently Down the Stream, Park Theatre review - gay history sifted for compact drama

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Elīna Garanča, Malcolm Martineau, Wigmore Hall review - towards transcendence

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Ek, CBSO, Gražinytė-Tyla, Symphony Hall, Birmingham review - epics of sea and land

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Schumann Series 3 & 4, LSO, Gardiner, Barbican review - upstanding brilliance

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The Good Person of Szechwan, Pushkin Drama Theatre, Barbican review - slick Russian Brecht

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Rachvelishvili, ROH Orchestra, Pappano, Royal Opera House review - perfect night and day

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Katya Kabanova, Royal Opera review - inner torment incarnate

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Lupu, Philharmonia, Järvi, RFH review - concerto magical in parts, symphony stupendous

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Bach B minor Mass, BBCSO, Butt, Barbican review - large-scale losses and a few gains

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Die Walküre, LPO, Jurowski, RFH review - love shines out

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Bang on a Can All-Stars, Kings Place review - a kaleidoscope of vibrant sound and vision

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The Queen of Spades, Royal Opera review - uneven cast prey to overthought concept

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