The undeniable zing of last Saturday’s performance gave to it a freshness and spontaneity that was breathtaking. Opera North music director Richard Farnes secured from his massed forces crystalline clarity of orchestral and vocal textures. Every word of the text was delivered with directness and immediacy. The whole thing was infused with tremendous, unrestrained theatrical energy and rythmic vitality… With advocacy such as this, Belshazzar’s Feast seems destined to retain its status as one of the twentieth century’s great choral masterpieces.