Music

The Scots, Welsh and Irish have an authentic tradition of folk songs. England demonstrably does not

The London staging of Hänsel und Gretel was far superior to Berlin’s ludicrously bad production

Scottish music and culture is playing second fiddle to an increasingly nationalist and socialist agenda

The chansons of Reynaldo Hahn are haunting and evocative. They deserve to be better known

My attempt to emulate Tallis was initially terrifying, but now that the work is finished I am quite bereft

This year’s rural festivals provided a feast of productions of works outside the main repertoire

Scottish nationalists seem out to destroy a precious musical heritage built up over many generations

To hear my Stabat Mater sung in Michelangelo’s chapel was the high point of my musical life

Religion plays an integral role in modern music even when it is composed by non-believers

Ernest Newman’s towering biography of Wagner helped to shape my own view of the composer