TRIÓ

A supergroup assembled to mark the centenary of the birth of John Coltrane, the legendary saxophonist and creator of spiritual jazz. In the words of its most senior member, saxophonist Joe Lovano, the group pays tribute to Coltrane’s compositions, while discovering and expressing themselves in his spirit.

Attendind a performance of Messiah is always a thrilling experience, but it is especially so when Handel’s work – which has become a national classic in England – is performed by a dedicated ensemble like the legendary German flagship of the international early-music scene: the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, now with over 44 years of history behind it. The storied chamber orchestra will perform with one of the world’s finest mixed choirs, the RIAS Kammerchor, which also hails from Berlin and was founded in the years immediately following the Second World War.

There can hardly be imagined in our time a work that conveys a more important message to humanity, as it debates the possible fate of the earth, about threats to the natural environment than Götterdämmerung does. Perhaps there is still time for us to return the ring to the Rhinemaidens.