The Fairy Queen, Queen Elizabeth Hall

Smoke and mirrors fail to conceal some rather ordinary music-making from the New London Consort

by Alexandra CoghlanFriday, 11 February 2011

Traditionalists beware: Philip Pickett offers little by way of wings or diaphanous draperies

Something of a bad boy in the Baroque world, Philip Pickett can generally be relied on to provoke discussion. Whether it’s by teaming up with one of Rolling Stone magazine’s Greatest Guitarists of All Time, or restaging Purcell’s The Fairy Queen with tumblers, jugglers and an excess of hand luggage, there’s always an angle. While collaborators, contexts and repertoire may change, what you can generally set your watch by is the quality of the musicianship – which made last night’s concert all the more of a puzzle.

While the displays of physical virtuosity were dazzling and impressive, their relationship to the music and action remained unclear

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