Robert Anderson

Robert Anderson was educated at Cambridge University, England, where he began reviewing gramophone records and conducting. Since then he has written music criticism for The Times and broadcast for the BBC on radio and television. He was for five years director of music at Gordonstoun School, Scotland and conductor of the Moray Choral Union, appointments followed by a season as assistant to Thomas Schippers at Gian Carlo Menotti's Festival of Two Worlds at Spoleto in Italy.

For eighteen years he was an associate editor of The Musical Times, the oldest music journal in the world with a record of continuous publication. He now writes mainly for Music & Vision, a comparatively recent internet daily. He has written books on ancient Egyptian music, Wagner, and three volumes on Sir Edward Elgar. Till recently he was coordinating editor of the Elgar Complete Edition, personally responsible for many of the volumes that have appeared so far.

As a lecturer he has been four times in the United States, but more often in Russia, where he has lectured at universities in Moscow, Rostov-on-Don, Tver and Yaroslavl, as well as on waterway cruises of Russia and Ukraine. He has been awarded an honorary doctorate in Moscow and honorary professorship in Rostov.

As conductor he has appeared frequently at the Royal Albert Hall, London, directing such major orchestras as the London Philharmonic, the Royal Philharmonic, London Mozart Players and English Chamber Orchestra in a mainly choral repertoire. He is a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, member of the Worshipful Company of Musicians, and doctor of music at the City University, London.

M&V articles about Robert Anderson

Scholarship and originality - David Bury explains the merits of Robert Anderson's new book 'Elgar and Chivalry'

Music & Vision articles by Robert Anderson

Music for viols. '... sensitively blended and tonally warm.'

English violin sonatas by Dunhill, Bantock and Stanford. '... affectionate performances by Susanne Stanzeleit and Gusztáv Fenyò ...'

Rachmaninov piano music. 'The uncelebrated John Lill is totally in command throughout ...'

Verdi's 'La forza del destino'. '... the gypsy and her confederates do Verdi proud ...'

Pergolesi's 'Adriano in Siria'. 'The music is as bewitching as the story is dotty.'

Havergal Brian's 'Gothic' Symphony

Peter Katin plays Brahms. '... Katin is in his element, moulding the arching phrases with complete mastery.'

Oliver Rudland's 'The Owl who was Afraid of the Dark' and a six-year-old friend

Cyprien Katsaris plays Mozart. '... imbued with the very spirit of Mozart's Salzburg ...'

Mendelssohn and Franck quartets. '... strenuous and compelling ...'

Handel Works for Italy. 'Lucy Crowe has the range, agility, and subtlety ...'

Tchaikovsky orchestral music. '... a powerful and committed performance ...'

Handel's 'Agrippina'. '... Handel's music survives gloriously, with singers and orchestra at top voltage.'

Choral music by Giaches de Wert. 'The singing is of the standard King's College effortlessly produces.'

Rachmaninov piano music. '... no compromise for the faint-hearted.'

Rubinstein plays Chopin. '... recordings of remarkable consistency ...'

Music for cello and piano by Schumann. '... imaginative gestures of great power and significance.'

Jean-Yves Thibaudet plays Liszt. '... remarkable performance ...'

Piano music by Mussorgsky and Prokofiev. '... good value ...'

Robert Anderson attends two orchestral concerts in London

Music for violin and piano by Ravel and Lekeu. '... the whole recital has rare commitment and power.'

Hugo Wolf's Mörike-Lieder. '... much expressive dexterity ...'

Music for Henry V and the House of Lancaster. 'The six voices of the Binchois Consort are equally happy when heard one by one or as a group.'

J S Bach keyboard concertos. '... a delightful and appropriate lightness.'

Franz Liszt funeral odes. 'Orchestra and conductor have all the requisite diablerie.'

Brahms violin sonatas. 'Zina Schiff has the range of tone colour and subtlety of vibrato to put the music convincingly across.'

Spanish inspirations for two pianists. '[A] joyous recital ...'

Orchestral music by Richard Strauss. '... not quite the whole story.'

'Cavalleria rusticana' and 'Pagliacci'. '... not always marooned in frozen wastes.'

'Die Entführung aus dem Serail'. 'The applause of the Amsterdam audience is notably muted.'

Rossini's 'Il Turco in Italia'. 'The orchestra under Antonello Allemandi seem to have relished the evening as much as I did.'

'Alfonso und Estrella'. '... splendidly sung and played ...'

Beethoven Sonatas and Symphonies. '... stunning performance ...'

Reconstructed Gershwin piano music. '... Alicia Zizzo ... can tackle whatever bravura demands Gershwin may make on her ...'

'Die schöne Müllerin'. '... a memorable performance.'

Shostakovich's Symphony No 11. '... total conviction.'

Walton and Barber Violin Concertos. 'Bowes is wonderfully convincing on all counts.'

Brahms piano music. '... Atzinger is at his best ...'

Mozart and Michael Haydn for violin and viola. '... Maya Magub makes a very effective protagonist ...'

Mendelssohn Trio and Sonatas. '... ready skill and deft handling ...'

Jane Glover accompanies Felicity Lott's Mozart. '... joyous music-making.'

Britten song cycles. 'Nothing can detract from the magic ...'

J S Bach transcribed for guitar. '... consummate skill ...'

The Icicle Creek Piano Trio. '... admirably captured ...'

Arensky Piano Trios. 'The Rachmaninov Trio Moscow plays with obvious affection for the music and enviable skill.'

Music for string quartet by Janácek and Dvorák . '... an outstanding disc ...'

Orchestral music by Glazunov. '... dashingly done ...'

Three Rodrigo guitar concertos. 'Alfonso Moreno is a superb protagonist, technically impeccable ...'

Orchestral tone poems by Boughton and Bainton impress Robert Anderson. '... performed with conviction and sensitivity ...'

Robert Anderson examines the latest score from Acuta Music

Alfred Brendel plays Liszt. 'Michael Gielen backs Brendel's eloquence with unobtrusive skill.'

Elmar Oliveira plays J S Bach. '... full and vibrant ...'

Matthew Cameron plays Liszt. '... dignity and eloquence.'

Schubert for piano four hands. '... delicious passagework.'

Choral and orchestral music by Camille Saint-Saëns. 'The London Philharmonic under Geoffrey Simon gives of its best ...'

Rutland Boughton's 'The Queen of Cornwall'. '... a brave attempt ...'

Vivaldi oboe concertos. '... faultlessly delivered ...'

Ronald Stevenson's writings on Grainger

The first performance of Oliver Rudland's 'The Conquests of Zeus'

Johannes Goritzki and Julian Jacobson at London's Royal College of Music

Orchestral music by Lodewijk Mortelmans. 'The performances ... are a delight ...'

A centenary performance of Elgar's Violin Concerto

Bart's Choir's Verdi Requiem

A London recital by Julian Jacobson

J S Bach gamba sonatas. '... sensitive and very musical.'

Simon Keenlyside sings Schubert, Wolf, Fauré and Ravel. '... a wondrous variety ...'

Choral music by Sibelius. '... much here to surprise and fascinate ...'

Music for piano by Sibelius. 'Folke Gräsbeck is a splendid advocate ...'

Piano music by Chopin and Liszt. '... Dominic Piers Smith survives not only intact but triumphant ...'

Mykola Suk plays Liszt. '... a mastery and range of expression ...'

The story of 'La Traviata'. '... fun for the experienced observer ...'

Accompanied harpsichord sonatas by Charles Avison. '... both brilliant and sensitive ...'

Blomstedt conducts Richard Strauss. '... a composer of infinite promise ...'

Joshua Pierce plays Schubert. '... sensitive pianism ...'

Music by Beethoven?, reviewed favourably. '... the pleasure of unfamiliar music and fine performances.'

Piano music by Moscheles, Mendelssohn and Schumann. '...Todd Crow deserves unstinted gratitude.'

The first edition of two Elgar movements for oboe quartet

Irena Portenko plays Chopin. '... easy fluidity of touch and tone ...'

Brahms and Schumann piano quartets. 'This is music-making both sensitive and relaxed.'

A new score of Elgar's 'Arthur', perused

Ronan Magill's recital at London's Wigmore Hall

Mastersingers at the BBC Proms

Purcell's 'The Fairy Queen'. '... tender expression and all requisite vim.'

Blomstedt conducts Bruckner. '... opulence and splendour ...'

Donald Tovey's cello concerto. '... satisfyingly masterful.'

Piano trios by Donald Tovey. '... diatonic convictions ...'

Handel's 'Judas Maccabaeus'. '... the choral mood is everything.'

Mozart Symphonies 39 and 40. '... vitality and alertness ...'

Purcell's 'Dido and Aeneas'. '... the playing is stylish and alert throughout.'

Geoffrey Lancaster plays Haydn. '... a very auspicious start.'

Music by Oliver Rudland

Orchestral music by Louis Spohr. 'Howard Shelley and the Swiss orchestra clearly relish this unusual assignment.'

'Symphonie fantastique' and 'Le Carnaval romain'. '... much to admire ...'

Haydn's 'Creation'. 'Haydn is on top form throughout ...'

Handel's 'Tamerlano'. 'The simplicity of the production is welcome ...'

Piano music by Prokofiev. '... enviable simplicity and beauty of tone.'

Donizetti's 'Maria Stuarda'. '... wonderfully alert ...'

Puccini's 'La rondine'. '... exciting acrobatics ...'

Haydn's late piano trios delight Robert Anderson. '... stylish and impeccable.'

Alessandro Scarlatti's 'Davidis pugna et victoria'

Thomas Arne's 'Artaxerxes'. 'Roy Goodman and his team give their all ...'

A new score of Elgar's 'Mina', appraised

Schumann and Beethoven songs. '... he is undoubtedly more comfortable in his baritone register.'

Victoria's 'Missa Gaudeaumus', welcomed. '... a joyous celebration ...'

Sibelius orchestral music. '... in the safest of hands.'

Beethoven's middle string quartets. 'The outer movements induce some grinding of teeth.'

Barenboim conducts Gershwin, Bernstein, Ravel and Wagner. '... the oddest assortment of music.'

Beethoven's early string quartets. '... no excuse for the near-supersonic velocity ...'

Beethoven arranged by Liszt

Beethoven's late string quartets impress Robert Anderson. '... full marks to these players ...'

Major piano works by Schubert. '... Lipkin understands well how to respect the silences ...'

'Cardus - Celebrant of Beauty' by Robin Daniels

Hindemith viola sonatas. '... a committed and convincing performance throughout.'

Mozart's 'Don Giovanni'. '... the flames are formidable ...'

Sibelius songs

Khachaturian's 'Spartacus' at the Cairo Opera House

Music by Vincent d'Indy. 'The eloquent solo viola of Lawrence Power is crucial ...'

Haydn from the Florestan Trio

Seung-Un Ha plays Bach's Goldberg Variations

A new study score of Elgar's 'Empire March'

Music by Sibelius for voice and orchestra. 'Throughout the set BIS has maintained the high standards ...'

Donizetti's 'l'Elisir d'amore'. '... beguiling candour.'

Chamber music by Sibelius. '... fresh and unfamiliar music, put across with such conviction ...'

Caroline Clemmow and Anthony Goldstone play Chopin and entertain Robert Anderson

Marc-André Hamelin's Chopin delights Robert Anderson

Vivaldi recorder concertos

Vaughan Williams from Japan

Charles Avison's reworkings of Scarlatti. 'Avison's deployment of massed strings is wonderfully effective ...'

String Quartets by Brahms never cease to surprise Robert Anderson

Stokowski conducts Wagner, Enescu, Debussy and Stravinsky

Music by Ives, orchestrated by Brant

Choral music by Karol Szymanowski

Tony Britten's 'new version' of Verdi's Falstaff. 'Shame on him ...'

Mark Dexter plays Peter Warlock. '... a triumphant success ...'

Music for the theatre fascinates Robert Anderson. 'Again BIS has done the great master proud.'

The Sibelius tone poems. '... so sparely wrought and of such integrity ...'

Music for piano and orchestra by Benjamin Britten

Shostakovich's Fourth Symphony

Andrew Barnett's 'Sibelius'

The Play of Daniel intrigues and delights Robert Anderson

Orchestral music by Glazunov

Valentina Igoshina plays Chopin

Vadim Gluzman plays Tchaikovsky and Glazunov. 'Vadim Gluzman is a violinist of remarkable gifts.'

Nick Strimple's 'Choral Music in the Nineteenth Century'

Zeynep Ucbasaran plays Mozart. '... an art of crystalline clarity.'

Peter Sutton's play 'Elgar and Alice'

Music for viola and piano by York Bowen. '... above praise.'

Stokowski conducts Bizet and Debussy. '... a rhythmic élan and masterly sense of line ...'

Ivan Ilic plays Debussy. '... superbly managed ...'

Hérold's 'La fille mal gardée'. '... Covent Garden at its best.'

'La vedova scaltra' by Wolf-Ferrari. '... a captivating performance.'

Mozart's 'Mitridate'. '... marvellous singing throughout ...'

'The Pearl' by Douglas Smith

Masaaki Suzuki directs J S Bach cantatas. 'If the Japanese tempo is faster than mine, so be it ...'

'Opera and the Morbidity of Music'

Orchestral music by Albert Roussel

The violin concertos of Ernö von Dohnányi. '... a very impressive performance.'

Bach church cantatas. '... robust and sensitive as required ...'

Musorgsky's 'Khovanshchina'. '... the admirable Barcelona chorus and orchestra ...'

Matthias Goerne sings Schubert

Rossini's 'La pietra del paragone'. 'The Madrid cast has proved itself exemplary ...'

Die Zauberflöte from Covent Garden. '... this admirable DVD is a double first ...'

Rossini's 'La Cambiale di matrimonio'. '... seductively lyrical where the young Rossini demands.'

Poulenc's 'Dialogues des Carmélites'. '... finely expressed ...'

Verdi's 'Oberto'. 'Vocally they are in full command ...'

Rossini's 'La Cenerentola'. '... irresistible throughout ...'

'Don Pasquale' enjoyed. 'The cast is admirable ...'

Rossini's 'Il Viaggio a Reims' entertains Robert Anderson. '... an evening of pure champagne.'

'Simon Boccanegra' from the Vienna State Opera. 'The Work is in the safest possible hands ...'

A historical production of Beethoven's 'Fidelio'. '... Beethoven is free to tell an unvarnished tale ...'

'Die Frau ohne Schatten' from the Bavarian State Opera. 'It is evident that Sawallisch loves the work.'

Offenbach's 'The Tales of Hoffmann' [listen]. '... a cast, orchestra, conductor and stage team fully up to tackling a very demanding project.'

Verdi's 'Otello'. '... this Desdemona can float a line with utmost tenderness ...'

Gilbert and Sullivan's 'The Mikado'. 'Chorus and orchestra under Andrew Greene rollick their way through ...'

Wagner's 'Lohengrin'. '... a delight to watch.'

The making of an American opera. '... a searching work that spares no punches ...'

Wagner's 'Tannhäuser'. '... a subtlety no other house can match.'

'Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk'. '... fully appropriate disorder ...'

'Fedora'. 'Giordano's wishes were admirably followed ...'

Richard Strauss's 'Der Rosenkavalier' [listen]. 'The Viennese chorus and orchestra know this opera inside out ...'

Stravinsky's 'Le Rossignol'. '... both wondrous and distracting.'

'The Love of Three Oranges'. '... much applause for Prokofiev's imagination ...'

Mozart's 'Così fan tutte'. '... a disappointing monument ...'

La petite musique de Marie-Antoinette. '... supreme vocal skill ...'

Daniel Barenboim and the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra in Ramallah. '... an orchestra of first-class accomplishment.'

Rossini's 'La Gazzetta'. '... a mismatch of music and action ...'

'The Nightingale and the Rose' by Oliver Rudland

Adolphe Adam's 'Giselle'. '... irresistible appeal'

Prokofiev's 'Romeo and Juliet'. '... suggests Tristan and Isolde ...'

Béjart's 'Nutcracker'. '... bears little relation to Tchaikovsky's music ...'

Berg's 'Wozzeck'. '... quite convincing enough ...'

Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande. 'Franz Welser-Möst conducts admirably ...'

Rossini's 'L'occasione fa il ladro'. '... a performance of bubbling vitality ...'

Die Entführung aus dem Serail. '... a final curtain meriting maximum applause.'

Verdi's 'La Traviata'. '... result of admirable cooperation between the Zürich stage and pit.'

Gershwin's 'Porgy and Bess'. 'The work is in the safest possible hands ...'

Puccini's 'Turandot'. '... brimful of imagination ...'

'Adriana Lecouvreur'. '... a chorus and orchestra beautifully responsive to the lyrical nuances of Cilea's score.'

'Madama Butterfly'. '... a strong yet tender account of Puccini's cunning score.'

'La clemenza di Tito'. '... Sylvain Cambreling in sensitive command ...'

Verdi's 'Macbeth'. '... much excitement ...'

Massenet's 'Werther'. '... much is ravishingly beautiful ...'

Rameau's 'Les Paladins'. '... a wealth of fine singing.'

Monteverdi's 'Orfeo'. '... Stephen Stubbs is to be congratulated on an imaginative realisation ...'

Prokofiev's 'Ivan the Terrible'. 'Vello Pähn and the orchestra make a marvellous thing of Prokofiev's score ...'

Strauss's 'Capriccio'. '... Renée Fleming ... (sang) like an angel throughout ...'

Wagner's 'Tristan und Isolde'. '... the climaxes are prepared with meticulous cunning.'

Monteverdi's 'L'incoronazione di Poppaea'. '... highly gifted soloists ...'

Monteverdi's 'Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria'. '... moving drama and notable accomplishment.'

'Hamlet' by Ambroise Thomas. '... much sensitivity.'

Verdi's 'Don Carlo'. 'The chief glory ... is Zeffirelli's staging.'

Rameau's 'Les Indes galantes'. '... Les Arts Florissants would triumph in any location.'

Wagner's 'Götterdämmerung'. '... a crowning glory from Bertrand de Billy and his superb team ...'

Rued Langgaard's opera 'Antikrist'. '... interpreted with total commitment ...'

Music by Debussy, Prokofiev, Britten and Ravel. '... admirably encompassed ...'

Wagner's 'Siegfried'. '... when it is sung as beautifully as here, one is humbly grateful.'

Die Walküre. '... live performances that rightly earn due applause act by act ...'

Music for Alfonso the Wise, and by Victoria. '... clear and expressive ...'

Wagner's 'Parsifal' from Baden-Baden. 'The singing is generally superb, with the Gurnemanz of Matti Salminen quite outstanding.'

Handel's 'Giulio Cesare'. 'Graham Pushee sings with utmost bravura, fire and clarity ...'

Gillian Weir plays Bach at St Thomas's, Leipzig. '... skilfully explored ...'

Piano music by Beethoven, Schubert and Schumann. '... as varied as the works themselves.'

'Das Rheingold'. '... a joyous experience ...'

'The Turn of the Screw'. '... splendidly captured musically and visually ...'

Schubert and Schumann song cycles, who also pays tribute to the late Eric Sams

Cello and violin CDs. '... silken, silvery tone ...'

Orchestral music by Tchaikovsky. '... sumptuous and highly disciplined playing ...

Music by Elgar. '... yet more immediacy than the original LPs ...'

Jacob Heringman plays music from the Siena Lute Book. '... an infectious zest for the music ...'

Puccini's 'La Bohème'. '... never a dull visual moment ...'

Karajan's 'Il Trovatore'. '... wonderfully and indeed relentlessly captured ...'

EMI's golden years of the gramophone. '... total fascination ...'

June de Toth plays Bartók piano music. '... a magisterial achievement.'

'The Beethoven Violin Sonatas: History, Criticism, Performance' from the University of Illinois Press

Piano music by Debussy. '... skilful presentation ...'

An award-winning Grieg disc. '... an enchanting lightness of touch ...'

Symphonic music by Villa-Lobos. '... skill and commitment ...'

Elgar's 'Starlight Express'. '... accomplished and imbued with the sort of affection the work desperately needs.'

Viennese music played by the Bruckner Orchester Linz. '... enchanting freedom and flexibility ...'

Music for clarinet by Brahms. 'These CD performances are wholly admirable ...'

A compilation of recordings from the 1970s. '... a technical mastery that any world soloist might envy.'

Berg and Britten violin concertos. '... a violinist of superb accomplishment ...'

The violin concerto by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. '... a clean-cut precision throughout the work ...'

Choral works by Walton and Elgar. 'Sargent's vitality matches Walton's ...'

The Italian Girl in Algiers. 'Its enchantments are as fresh as ever ...'

John Lill plays Schumann, and Robert Anderson listens. '... manifold subtleties of touch ...'

Volume two of the Metier 'Beethoven Explored' series. '... nice rhythmic sense and technical assurance.'

Music by Heinrich Schütz. '... expressively at one with the music.'

Khachaturian's Violin Concerto. '... above praise.'

Fritz Reiner conducts Bartók. '... agonised intensity of utmost eloquence.'

Schumann string quartets. 'I could wish indeed that the music had puzzled them more.'

Charles Munch conducts Symphonie Fantastique. 'The Boston players revel among the cavorting witches with gleeful efficiency.'

Aida on Naxos Historical. '... playing that is supple but capable also of maximum excitement.'

Martin Berkofsky plays Liszt. '... playing often as sensitive as one is likely to hear.'

Martin Torp's oratorio 'Siehe, ich mache alles neu'

Fritz Reiner's Tchaikovsky. '... Reiner's no-nonsense approach avoids any hint of emotional excess.'

The first in a new series of Vivaldi bassoon concertos. 'The virtuosity of Tamás Benkócs is a constant wonder ...'

The keyboard music of Matthew Locke. '... crisp and lively ...'

Hsia-Jung Chang plays Chopin. '... dazzling technique ...'

Beethoven and the Habsburgs. '... infectious zest ...'

Respighi's Pines and Fountains. 'Fritz Reiner has the right qualities for this music.'

Chamber music by Rimsky-Korsakov. '... idiomatic writing that is a constant delight.'

Boccherini symphonies. '... maximum virtuosity and élan.'

Music by Hummel and Schubert. '... virtuoso display.'

Russian cello sonatas. '... alert and accomplished.'

Music by Thomas Tomkins. '... an unqualified delight ...'

The playing of Marina Milic-Apostolovic

Dvorák quartets on Praga Digitals. '... beautifully captured by the Kocian team.'

A new recording of Handel's 'Rinaldo'. '... a performance of vitality and appropriate style ...'

Ilona von Dohnányi's 'Ernst von Dohnányi - A Song of Life'

Arrangement with a vengeance from Red Priest. '... never a dull moment and entertainment value paramount.'

A Richard Strauss melodrama. '... a fine performance from an actor of wide experience ...'

Organ music by Vierne and Alain. '... James Lancelot shows throughout how effectively he can command the grand Romantic gesture.'

The political statements of Hans Werner Henze. '... sensuous richness ...'

The keyboard music of Orlando Gibbons. '... technique and panache ...'

The inspired Sir Thomas Beecham. '... no better than expected ...'

Johann Ludwig Krebs on Priory. '... a performance at once robust and sensitive.'

Gillian Weir plays Messiaen, and Robert Anderson is thrilled. '... exciting fidelity ...'

Luiza Borac plays Schumann and Robert Anderson listens

Charles Wood's anthems. '... vibrant in tone and firm as a rock ...'