Long Lines and Lasting Echoes
7 – 13 February 2026
Saturday 7 February
Koninklijk Theater Carré, Amsterdam • A new Dutch production of West Side Story did away with Robbins’s direction and choreography but still engaged emotionally through clever, fluid staging ideas. I’m not sure how the adapted libretto managed to justify the absence of mannequins in the wedding shop, though. The amplification was a little strong to my liking and tended to distort the strings; the original orchestrations, however, appeared to be mostly intact. The director made a strange choice in the last scene, but I was surprised that the ending floored me so strongly — even though I didn’t understand a word.
Concertgebouw, Amsterdam • Dima Slobodeniouk led the Nederlands Philharmonisch in an interesting coupling of Returning into Darkness, a recent work for cello and orchestra by Austrian composer Thomas Larcher and Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 8. Cellist Ivan Karizna and the orchestra infused colour and a lot of rhythmic energy into the Larcher, which appeared far more approachable than Slobodeniouk’s little pre-concert speech had led us to expect. The symphony was exquisitely detailed, the orchestra ebbing and flowing powerfully as Shostakovich’s score unfurled with grandeur and determination.
Sunday 8 February
Dutch National Opera and Ballet, Amsterdam • The late Pierre Audi’s staging of Tristan und Isolde premiered at Paris’s Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in May 2016, with Daniele Gatti leading the Orchestre National de France. In typical Audi fashion, it mixed abstract, metaphysical imagery and — in Act III — a more prosaic tableau, creating a slightly dated aesthetic. There was nothing dated about Tarmo Peltokoski’s musical direction of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, which drew depth and drama from the score. Sadly, Michael Weinius’s Tristan gradually lost steam, unlike Malin Byström’s Isolde, who brought the afternoon to a triumphant close.
Back to Paris by train
Monday 9 February
Paris, Philharmonie • I was lucky to witness another performance of Bruckner’s Symphony No. 8 by the Concertgebouworkest under Klaus Mäkelä three days after the Amsterdam concert, this time in Paris. Same piece, same performers, different locale. The tempo was still slow and deliberate, but the hall’s acoustics produced a strikingly analytical clarity, unlike the sonic waves that enveloped me in Amsterdam. There must be something in the last movement’s motifs that reminds me of Don Giovanni’s Commendatore scene, because for the second time in four days Mozart’s furiously ascending and descending scales echoed in my mind long after I left the hall.
Wednesday 11 February
Paris, Philharmonie • András Schiff assembled one of his typical programmes, consisting entirely of Beethoven piano pieces — mostly sonatas. At this stage of his career, Schiff offers no explanations or apologies for his personal take on repertoire staples he has frequented for years. That is precisely what appeals to me — this evening was no exception, illuminated by a crystal-clear sense of musical discourse — though I can understand other listeners feeling excluded by what may strike them as an egotistical stance. The audience, at any rate, seemed reluctant to let Schiff go at the end.
Friday 13 February
To Tokyo by plane
On the flight, I watched Tron: Ares (2025) out of nostalgia for the original Tron (1982), which had made a strong impression on me as a teenager. I should have abstained. This third instalment’s plot is thin as air, marred by unconvincing attempts at technological humour, and it drifts perilously close to the Marvel/DC playbook, which feels at odds with the Tron universe. One can only admire Jared Leto’s evident dramatic commitment to such an unconvincing project. Unexpectedly, the soundtrack by Nine Inch Nails, far removed from my customary musical world, helped pass the time.
And so, for now, the lights dim… until the next act.