Nick Holmes

The Bach Choir - Bach's St Matthew Passion - Live Review - Nick Holmes Music Sunday 8 March 2026 Royal Festival Hall, London ***** A dramatic and deeply devotional performance, part concert, part religious ritual The Bach Choir’s 150th Anniversary season, which opened last Oct...

Read my review of Bach’s St Matthew Passion at the Royal Festival Hall with The Bach Choir, London Youth Choir, Florilegium, conductor David Hill, and soloists Toby Spence, Neal Davies, Lucy Crowe, Carolyn Dobbin, Benjamin Hulet and Christopher Purves.

The Hallé Orchestra with Jonny Greenwood - Live Review - Nick Holmes Music Thursday 24 February 2026 Bridgewater Hall, Manchester ***** ‘A mature work from a highly accomplished composer’ – Jonny Greenwood’s new violin concerto performed by Daniel Pioro and The Hallé Radiohe...

'A mature work from a highly accomplished composer' - the new violin concerto by Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead performed by Daniel Pioro and The Hallé with conductor Hugh Tieppo-Brunt. Read my review here...
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BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – Romeo and Juliet Saturday 21 February 2026 Bridgewater Hall, Manchester ***** Love is a fragile thing: superb performances of Albarn Berg, Sergey Prokofiev and Cassandra Miller by Lawrence Power and the BBC Philhar…

‘Love is a fragile thing.’ Read my 5-star review of performances of Albarn Berg, Sergey Prokofiev and Cassandra Miller by Lawrence Power and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra under conductor Ludovic Morlot
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The Hallé – The Planets – Live Review Thursday 20 February 2026 The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester **** Exploring the Cosmos: The Hallé’s Stellar Concert The Hallé orchestra, Choir and Youth Choir. Image credit Sharyn Bellemakers/T…

Exploring the Cosmos: The Hallé’s Stellar Concert. Here’s my review of Thursday’s concert by The Hallé Orchestra, Hallé Choir and Youth Choir with conductor Kahchun Wong, and music by Holst, Colin Matthews and Unsuk Chin
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BBC Philharmonic – Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances – Live Review Saturday 7 February 2026 The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester **** French-tinged minimalism, sparkling Ravel and Rachmaninoff’s final orchestral statement Elisabeth Brauß and members of the BBC P…

Here’s my review of Saturday’s concert by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Adam Hickox, with Elisabeth Brauss in a superb performance of Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G, and music by Rachmaninoff and Camille Pépin

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Off the Beaten Track # 17 – This is not America – Sophia Anne Caruso and the Original New York Cast of Lazarus the Musical (written by David Bowie and Enda Walsh) On 14 January 2017, I was staying in the Thistle Hotel, Euston, within striking distance of Euston station in London. That evening, I ordered a copy of the original cast recording of Lazarus the mu…

Here’s the latest in my Off the Beaten Track review series, an unusual version of the David Bowie track This is Not America from the Lazarus musical
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BBC Philharmonic – John Adams, Beethoven and Ives – Live Review Saturday 17 January 2026 Bridgewater Hall, Manchester **** A serene Beethoven piano and two unresolved American orchestral classics from Ives and Adams Alim Beisembayev (at the piano), John Storgår…

Here's my review of Saturday's concert in Manchester by the BBC Philharmonic conducted by John Storgårds, with pianist Alim Beisembayev playing Beethoven, and orchestral music from American masters John Adams and Charles Ives

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The Future Bites by Steven Wilson – Album Review Steven Wilson bites back at the future ***** THE FUTURE BITES™ In the early years Steven Wilson’s band, Porcupine Tree, were often compared to Pink Floyd and Wilson himself admitted the impor…

It's five years this month since the release of The Future Bites by Steven Wilson. Here's my review...

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2025 – The Year in Classical Music in Manchester (and London, Leipzig and Southwell) – Live Review Manchester was the place to be for superb performances in 2025 The Year in Classical Music Sometimes going abroad reminds you how good things are at home. In the spring of 2025, I went to the Shost…

Here’s my review of the year in Classical Music in Manchester (and a few other places) BBC Philharmonic, Manchester Collective, The Hallé, Opera North, English National Opera, Kantos Chamber Choir, The Apex Singers, The Bach Choir and Southwell Music Festival.

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ROCK and ROLE – The Visionary Songs of Peter Hammill and Van der Graaf Generator by Joe Banks – Book Review How a magnificent new book helped me rediscover the maverick’s music ***** The Cover of ROCK and ROLE by Joe Banks published by Kingmaker Publishing. Often, the route to discovering new music…

Here’s my review of the superb new book ROCK and ROLE - The Visionary Songs of Peter Hammill and Van der Graaf Generator by @joebankswriter.bsky.social and how it helped me rediscover Hammill’s music
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The Apex Singers – Christmas with the Apex Singers – Live Review The Yard, Manchester Tuesday 9 December 2025 ***** Christmas magic comes early to Manchester with joyful singing and a party atmosphere The Apex Singers. Photo Harry Proctor On another unseasonably…

‘…another delightful evening with The Apex Singers. It would not be easy to find another ensemble as happy to perform together.’
Read my five-star review of the Christmas concert by TheApex Singers.
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Steven Wilson – The Overview – Album Review The Cover of The Overview by Steven Wilson, designed by Hajo Müller His Eighth Solo Album The Overview is Steven Wilson’s eighth solo album, released on 14 March 2025. It charted at number thr…

Classic Rock Magazine has just named The Overview by Steven Wilson as the Number One Album of the year. Here’s my COMPLETE detailed analysis of the album (previously published in three separate sections).

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BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – Serenade for Strings – Live Review Friday 5 December 2025 RNCM, Manchester ***** The strings of the BBC Philharmonic shine in music by Bartók and Tchaikovsky The Strings of the BBC Philharmonic directed by Zoë Beyers. Image © Chris …

Read my five-star review of the strings of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra playing Bartók and Tchaikovsky, directed by Zoë Beyers at the RNCM in Manchester
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The Hallé – Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto – Live Review Sunday 30 November 2025 Bridgewater Hall, Manchester ***** Manchester’s oldest orchestra become the city/region’s newest cultural ambassadors Akiko Suwanai, Kahchun Wong and members of …

“We have a new mission: to represent Manchester and this region as cultural ambassadors, with your support”
Kahchun Wong, Conductor of the Hallé, speaking at the orchestra’s superb concert on Sunday afternoon at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester. Review here:
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Manchester Collective x The Marian Consort: Wintering – Live Review Thursday 27 November 2025 Stoller Hall, Manchester **** Samantha Fernando’s new piece Wintering celebrates winter’s withdrawal from daily life Wintering with Samantha Fernando © Mike Sk…

Read my review of the latest concert by Manchester Collective and the Marian Consort, with the premiere of a new piece by Samantha Fernando, inspired by the book Wintering by Katherine May
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Off the Beaten Track # 16 – Mr X (Gets Tense)/Faculty X from pH7 by Peter Hammill The Cover of pH7 (1979) by Peter Hammill With typical sarcastic humour, Peter Hammill named his eighth solo album pH7, when it would have been more logical to name it PH (Peter Hammill) 8. He wrote…

Here’s the latest in my Off the Beaten Track series – a review of Peter Hammill’s extraordinary Mr X (Gets Tense)/Faculty X from his 1979 album ph7, in a superb new mix by Stephen W Tayler

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Kantos Chamber Choir – The Witch Trials – Live Review Friday 14 November 2025 RNCM, Manchester ***** A spellbinding and emotional journey through a historical travesty of justice The Pendle Witch trials of 1612 have left a deep scar in our collective …

‘A spellbinding and emotional journey through a historical travesty of justice’

Read my five-star review of The Witch Trials by Kantos Chamber Choir conducted by Ellie Slorach at the RNCM in Manchester

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BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – Mahler’s ‘Titan’ – Symphony No. 1 – Live Review Saturday 8 November 2025 Bridgewater Hall, Manchester **** Elena Schwarz conducts nature-themed Debussy and Mahler, with the Manchester premiere of Dani Howard’s trombone concerto The BBC Phi…

Read my thoughts about an excellent concert by the BBC Philharmonic conducted by Elena Schwarz on Saturday in Manchester, featuring nature-themed Mahler and Debussy, and the Trombone Concerto by Dani Howard, with soloist Peter Moore
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Steven Wilson – The Overview – Album Review Part Three: ‘The Overview’ This is an analysis of the second half, and title track, of Steven Wilson’s eighth solo album, The Overview. For an introduction to the album, click here. For an analysis of the first half of…

Here’s the third and final part of my in-depth analysis of The Overview, the latest album by @stevenwilsonhq.bsky.social

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The Hallé – John Adams Conducts the Chairman Dances – Live Review Saturday 1 November 2025 Bridgewater Hall, Manchester ***** Exploring Powerful Women in the Music of John Adams, with Astonishing Playing from Violinist Leila Josefowicz Leila Josefowicz and The Ha…

Read my five-star review of American composer John Adams conducting @thehalle.bsky.social in a concert of his own music at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester, featuring a stunning performance by the violinist Leila Josefowicz and a UK premiere

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The Divine Comedy (@divinecomedyhq.bsky.social) The Official Bluesky Account Run By The Nice Folks At DCHQ. Website: https://thedivinecomedy.com/ New Album 'Rainy Sunday Afternoon' Out Now ☂️ Live 2025/26: https://thedivinecomedy.com/live #thedivin...

Read my five-star review of the fantastic concert by divinecomedyhq.bsky.social at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester. Click on the link below

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Britten – Albert Herring – English National Opera – Live Review Tuesday 21 October 2025 Lowry Theatre, Salford **** Minimalist Design Meets Comedy and Psychological Realism in ENO’s first production in the North The Cast of Albert Herring © Genevieve Girl…

‘Superbly directed and acted, with fine singing and marvellous orchestral playing. A large and enthusiastic audience welcomed English National Opera to the North. We have much to anticipate if future ENO productions here are of this quality.’
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Steven Wilson – The Overview – Album Review Part Two: ‘Objects Outlive us’ The Cover of The Overview by Steven Wilson, designed by Hajo Müller This is an analysis of the first half of Steven Wilson’s eighth solo album, The Overview. For an introduction to the album,…

Here's the second part of my detailed analysis of The Overview by @stevenwilsonhq.bsky.social, the first side of the album - 'Objects outlive Us'

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Steven Wilson – The Overview – Album Review – Part One – Introduction Steven Wilson. Image credit: Kevin Westerberg His Eighth Solo Album The Overview is Steven Wilson’s eighth solo album, released on 14 March 2025. It charted at number three in the UK, the four…

Here’s the first part of my detailed review of The Overview, the latest album by Steven Wilson. More to follow in due course!
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Mahler Symphony No. 8 – Live Review Thursday 9 October 2025 St Paul’s Cathedral, London ***** A stunning opening to the Bach Choir’s 150th anniversary season in the most dramatic of settings How do you open the 150th anniversar…

Read my five-star review of Mahler's Eighth Symphony at St Paul's Cathedral in London, with The Bach Choir and conductor David Hill, celebrating the Choir's 150th anniversary.
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Manchester Collective – Shaker Loops – Live Review Sunday 5 October 2025 RNCM, Manchester **** A tribute to the variety of sounds that strings make, and the human connections that music brings Manchester Collective Some concerts are about the music…

'A tribute to the variety of sounds that strings make, and the human connections that music brings’

Here's my review of Manchester Collective's concert at the RNCM in Manchester on Sunday

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Peter Hammill – Live Review Tuesday 1 October 2025 RNCM, Manchester Nearly 60 years since first playing in Manchester, Hammill is still a supreme communicator and a powerful performer **** ‘The hits just keep on coming&…

‘Nearly 60 years since first playing in Manchester, Hammill is still a supreme communicator and a powerful performer’

Read my review of the concert by Peter Hammill of Van der Graaf Generator at the RNCM in Manchester this evening

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BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – Fountain of Youth – Live Review Saturday 20 September 2025 Bridgewater Hall, Manchester **** A triumphant opening to the BBC Philharmonic’s new season Violinist Augustin Hadelich with members of the BBC Philharmonic. Image …

Here's my review of the opening concert by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester, featuring music by the new Composer in Residence, Julia Wolfe and Augustin Hadelich playing Prokofiev's 2nd violin concerto

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Shez Raja – Live Review Friday 18 July 2025 Future Yard Birkenhead ***** Guthrie Govan Joins Shez Raja for Triumphant Birkenhead Show Shez Raja (and Chris Jerome, back left) This was a triumphant homecoming gig for bass p…

Read my review of the wonderful, life-affirming gig by @shezraja.bsky.social in Birkenhead last Friday

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Off the Beaten Track # 15: Spellbound by Shez Raja – Album Review The Cover of Spellbound by Shez Raja British-Asian bass player Shez Raja has been voted one of the ‘Hottest Bass Players in the World’ by readers of Bass Player magazine. His mother is Asian, and h…

Read my review of the Spellbound by British-Asian bass player
@shezraja.bsky.social, an eclectic and invigorating mix of musical styles from East and West

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