VOCAL HEROES: BARBRA STREISAND
In 1993 I wrote this piece on BARBRA STREISAND to launch a series called Vocal Heroes in THE INDEPENDENT newspaper. ‘I want it technical as hell and a good read’ said the then Arts Editor. Imagine that…
GRAMOPHONE: From Where I Sit – February 2022
I don’t think anyone would dispute that programme building is a real art. The structure, the proportions, the way chosen pieces impact upon each other. You can be creative but you can also be capricious. I’m thinking…
GRAMOPHONE: From Where I Sit – January 2022
It’s 1992 and Sam Mendes’ celebrated staging of Sondheim and Weidman’s Assassins is in rehearsal at the Donmar Warehouse. In the green room Stephen Sondheim sits reading a copy of Gramophone during the lunch break (yes, really),…
GRAMOPHONE: From Where I Sit – December 2021
Sitting down last week to experience the music of Florence Price for the very first time reminded me yet again that there is nothing quite like the thrill of first-encounter – a moment by moment sense of…
GRAMOPHONE: From Where I Sit – November 2021
We all love a drama, most especially one that stems from an unforeseen crisis. During this year’s foreshortened Prom season tenor Simon O’Neill, the eponymous hero of Glyndebourne’s Tristan und Isolde realised after act two that his…
A Night in with NICOLA BENEDETTI
Fane Online presents A Night in with Nicola Benedetti in conversation with Edward Seckerson. The event will initially be broadcast on 28 March 2021. It will be available to view up to a week after the event has ended.…
Michael Ball: Voice of the People
The Independent Monday 14 April 2014 Michael Ball seems to have it all – the finest show voice of his generation, charm, good looks, swooning fans. But? In Edward Seckerson’s opinion, there are no buts. Careers in…
GRAMOPHONE: From Where I Sit – February 2020
After so many years of concert-going – including a time when writing for The Guardian and The Independent newspapers that I was averaging three concerts a week minimum – it’s good to be reminded that I can…
GRAMOPHONE: From Where I Sit – January 2020
As a new year and a new decade beckon we continue to live in uncertain times for print journalism. The digital world has opened up new and exciting frontiers for sure; it has sharpened communication and promoted…
GRAMOPHONE: From Where I Sit – December 2019
What’s in a name? Plenty. The revival of the Sinfonia of London in such spectacular style with John Wilson’s glorious account of the Korngold Symphony is probably even more of a nostalgic occasion for me than it…
