Speeding gondola

SIR – Why do recent recordings of so many pieces of classical music seem to be performed at a tempo appreciably faster than older recordings?

One such accelerated performance was in Classic FM’S The Full Works Concert, on Tuesday. A barcarolle, I always understood, is a song to accompany a gondola’s leisurely progress along the canals of Venice. This performance of Offenbach’s ever popular example of the genre would better suit a speedboat. Mike Joseph

Ashford, Middlesex