Your live performance highlight of the year.

[teamsaint]

As its that time of the year,I thought that people might like to pick out their highlight of the year, either of something they attended, or heard on the radio.

I've been fortunate to see plenty of wonderful live music this year. Most dramatic was probably the Ligeti VC /San Fransisco Polyphony at the RFH recently.

However, the performance that will live longest in the memory I suspect was Isabelle Faust playing the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with the OAE at Basingstoke. Truly a mesmerising and quite beautiful performance.

[Mahler's3rd]

Hi Teamsaint, for me it would be The Ring Cycle at the Proms in a word........"Spellbinding"
It seemed eveyone around me was holding their breath at the end of Gotterdammerung, getting goosebumps just thinking back to it now!!

[pastoralguy]

However, the performance that will live longest in the memory I suspect was Isabelle Faust playing the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with the OAE at Basingstoke. Truly a mesmerising and quite beautiful performance.

I'm so pleased, teamsaint!

For me, finally hearing the Berlin Philharmonic in the Philharmonie was one of the great concerts of my life. (Mrs. PG and I are already planning a Return visit!). The Dud conducted Stravinsky, Schubert and Beethoven.

The concert we attended was recorded for the digital concert hall and it was odd to see ourselves on screen applauding furiously! The quality of that orchestra was truly staggering.

[rauschwerk]

At the Sheffield Crucible Studio I heard Ensemble 360 play the Mendelssohn D minor trio. Tim Horton, playing a lidless Steinway, played with tremendous panache but did not once embarrass the string players. I have not heard a finer account of this piece, live or recorded. Surely Mr Horton will one day inherit the mantle of Ian Brown.

[Barbirollians]

Grimes on the beach - never to be forgotten .

[makropulos]

For me, Jurowski et al doing Peter Grimes at the Royal Festival Hall was pretty special, preceded by Noye's Fludde in the Ballroom. A great day.

[amateur51]

Surely Mr Horton will one day inherit the mantle of Ian Brown.

High praise indeed

[EdgeleyRob]

As its that time of the year,I thought that people might like to pick out their highlight of the year, either of something they attended, or heard on the radio.

You've got me there ts (coz I don't get out much).

I was at the Halle/DSCH Leningrad Symphony,it was so moving,never to be forgotten.

Radio highlight was the Britten (A Boy Was Born) and Lloyd (Requiem) late night Prom.

[AjAjAjH]

3 stand out:

Stanislaw Skrowaczewski (aged 89) conducting The Halle in Lutoslawski's Concerto for Orchestra & Shostakovich's 5th Symphony. Unopened score on the desk in front of him and conducting 2 magnificent performances with a vigour many 30 years younger would envy. (March)

Shostakovich 'Leningrad' Symphony with Mark Elder conducting The Halle. (September)

Opera North's Peter Grimes. (November)

Also delighted that the The Halle / Elder recording of Sibelius 2 - recorded live at what was IMHO their best concert of the 2012/2013 season - came out on disc this year. I've heard this symphony many times in various venues with many different orchestras and conductors but this was the best I have heard and it has transferred well to disc.

[Zucchini]

A short 11am Chopin recital in July by Maria Pires in the church at Salle, Norfolk, for an audience of about 120, presented by Music in Country Churches. Exquisite in every possible way. Felt so lucky to be there. But a 350 mile round trip for us.

[Petrushka]

Hi Teamsaint, for me it would be The Ring Cycle at the Proms in a word........"Spellbinding"
It seemed eveyone around me was holding their breath at the end of Gotterdammerung, getting goosebumps just thinking back to it now!!

It has to be the Proms Ring for me too and the Götterdämmerung on July 28, which I attended, was one of the great concert experiences of my life, simply magnificent. I also have goosebumps just thinking about it and rarely have I heard such applause after any performance as on that night, For those not there the thunderous applause lasted over half an hour and no-one would have minded if we were there still...

Not just a highlight of 2013 but of all time.

[Flay]

Opera North's Peter Grimes .

Absolutely for me too!

[verismissimo]

Falstaff with OAE at Glyndebourne
Ring Cycle at Longborough
Singing in Vivaldi Gloria
Peter Grimes/Jurowski in Birmingham
Alissa Firsova playing/composing/conducting with ECO
Pregardien and Vignoles in Schubert/Mahler/Brahms/Mendelssohn at Oxford
Mikhail Jurowski conducting Schnittke
Dominic Walsh and Geoffrey Saba in Winterreise

[amateur51]

Mahagonnay Opera's Curlew River at Southwark Cathedral

Haintink/LSO in Shostakovich symphony no 4 at Barbican

Askkenazy/Philharmonia in Tchaikovsky Manfred symphony at RFH

Vladimir Jurowski/LPO Shostakovich symphony no 6 at RFH

Esa-Pekka Salonen/Philharmonia Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique at RFH

[Simon B]

Technically there's one to go (having taken the day off to go to the ROH Parsifal this evening) but of the 67 concerts/operas I seem to have somehow gone to this year, those that really stood out were:

Shostakovich 4 - RLPO/Petrenko, Liverpool, Jan
Rite of Spring - RLPO/Petrenko, Liverpool, May
Lohengrin - WNO/Koenigs et al, Cardiff, June
Wagner night incl Tristan Act III - RLPO/Petrenko/Berkely-Steele/De-Young et al, Liverpool, June
Shostakovich 11 - BBCNOW/Søndergård, Proms, July
Peter Grimes - LPO/Jurowski/Skelton et al, RFH, September
Shostakovich 13 - LPO/LPC/Nezet-Seguin/Mikhail Petrenko, RFH, October
Shostakovich Vln Conc 1 - BBCSSO/Runnicles/James Ehnes, Glasgow, December

If I had to pick just one it's not as easy as usual but would probably, just, be the RLPO Rite of Spring. Clearly it is still possible to be left reeling by this piece despite severe overfamiliarity - including other live performances this year alone by BBCPO/Mena, CBSO/Nelsons, LPO/Agrest and possibly others I can't remember.

While I went to the entire Proms Ring Cycle, I'm probably in a minority of one in that despite consistently astonishing playing and some astonishing singing, overall it doesn't quite make it into my personal (and thus irrational!) top 10%. Barenboim's conducting often doesn't seem to quite connect with me to the last degree - I'm sure he'll get over it very quickly... Quite the experience nevertheless.

Just for the sake of ending on a negative note - personal dud of the year 2013 is a doddle. The BRSO/Jansons Mahler 2 at the Proms. 90 minutes of beautifully played notes to no discernible effect at all.