Because the night belonged to her
Patti Smith performed at a new exhibition of Mapplethorpe photographs and Peter Aspden says she has mastered the delicate dilemma of how a posturing rock star should handle the autumnal years
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Der Rosenkavalier, Stuttgart State Opera, Germany
This outstanding production resists the urge to dissect to excess, falling back again and again on opulent images and simple, clear storytelling, writes Shirley Apthorp
Xi Shi, National Centre for the Performing Arts, Beijing
This operatic version of an ancient Chinese story lacks memorable melodies and thrust, writes Ken Smith
Dominique Pifarély, Vortex Jazz Club, London
The jazz violinist’s compositions stir the melodic outlines of modern jazz and the chromatic cadences of 20th-century classical music into a jagged rhythmic stew, writes Mike Hobart
The Italian Girl in Algiers/The Elixir of Love, Theatre Royal, Glasgow
This double bill – which translates Rossini to the world of soap opera but invests Donizetti with more traditional virtues – could hardly be better contrasted, writes Andrew Clark
Fleetwood Mac, Wembley Arena, London
The rock survivors notorious for their excesses are in implausibly good form, writes Ludovic Hunter-Tilney
Portico Quartet/Sweet Billy Pilgrim, Anvil, Basingstoke, UK
David Honigmann is impressed by a double bill of two unlikely Mercury Prize nominees
Lang Lang/Tilson Thomas, Carnegie Hall, New York
Martin Bernheimer enjoys a stellar, zigzagging east-meets-west mishmash
Abram Wilson, Purcell Room, London
The jazz trumpeter and composer showed he was prepared to bare his soul, writes Mike Hobart
Porgy and Bess, Royal Festival Hall, London
With past efforts to get opera to work in the confines of this venue having had limited success, it is a measure of the strength of Cape Town Opera’s cast that they made such a good fist of it, writes Richard Fairman
Steve Gadd, Ronnie Scott’s, London
The jazz drummer of choice in 1970s New York has lost none of his power or precision, writes Mike Hobart
Related content and features
Music features
When Africa rocks
From Ethiopian jazz to Nigerian funk, western music has taken root in Africa with newcomers blending genres, says Ludovic Hunter-Tilney
Exploring improvisation in early music
Lute player Paula Chateauneuf will aim to give the art of extemporisation wider public exposure together with Division Lobby, her newly formed group, writes Laura Battle
More live reviews
Une éducation manquée/La cambiale di matrimonio, Wexford Opera House, Ireland
Two feeble stagings didn’t give these operatic rarities a chance, writes Andrew Clark
Sonic Youth, HMV Forum, London
Age hasn’t withered these experimental rock veterans, but nor has it encouraged them to shake up their unchanging brand, writes Ludovic Hunter-Tilney
Carousel: The Songs of Jacques Brel, Barbican, London
Aficionados say the nuances of Brel’s lyrics are untranslatable, yet the six singers in this intriguing and involving tribute to the chansonnier-poet vividly demonstrated Brel’s stylistic sweep, writes Richard Clayton
Otello, Dallas Opera
George Loomis witnesses the inaugural performance of a spectacular new opera house designed by Foster and Partners
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