Misha Donat

journalist & critic

Having been a senior music producer at BBC Radio 3 for over 25 years, Misha Donat is now a critic and writer for BBC Music Magazine and writes, lectures and produces in the UK and US. He also writes booklet and programme notes for record labels and venues including London's Wigmore Hall.

After a period spent composing music for films and theatre, Misha Donat worked for more than 25 years as a senior music producer at BBC Radio 3, where he collaborated with many of the world’s leading musicians. He now spends his time as a freelance writer, lecturer and translator.  He has written articles for The London Review of Books and The Guardian, and has lectured on music extensively in both England and America.  He  contributes programme notes on a regular basis to the Wigmore Hall, the South Bank, the Edinburgh Festival and the Aldeburgh Festival, among other venues. Misha has written a large number of CD booklets for such labels as Decca, Philips, Hyperion and ECM, and has recently completed the translation of a book by András Schiff.  He is currently working on new editions of the Beethoven piano sonatas and late string quartets for the German publisher Bärenreiter.