The Well-Tempered Ear
Classical music: The Middleton Community Orchestra and cellist Andrew Briggs turn in richly enjoyable performances of works by Mendelssohn and Dvorak.
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By Jacob Stockinger
Here is a special posting, a review written by frequent guest critic and writer for this blog, John W. Barker. Barker (below) is an emeritus professor of Medieval history at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also is a well-known classical music critic who writes for Isthmus and the American Record Guide, and who for 12 years hosted an early music show every other Sunday morning on WORT FM 89.9 FM. He serves on the Board of Advisors for the Madison Early Music Festival and frequently gives pre-concert lectures in Madison.
By John W. Barker
The concert by the Middleton Community Orchestra (below) on Wednesday night was one I might have designed myself: two of my favorite orchestral pieces, both by Felix Mendelssohn, and the world’s greatest cello concerto, by one of my favorite composers, Antonin Dvorak. (You can hear superstar Cellist Yo-Yo Ma play the first movement with the New York Philharmonic in a YouTube video at the bottom.)
For the concerto, the soloist was young Andrew Briggs (below), currently pursuing his doctorate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music. He is clearly an artist with great promise. For so grand a work, he will grow in confidence and tonal richness with time. But he already has the measure of the piece, and I must say that he gave me about the most satisfying experience of it that I have ever heard.
The reason for that is not only his playing skill but also his natural rapport with an audience: He communicates. His facial expressions, especially in orchestral passages, suggested he was in awe of the wonders of the work as he performed, while suggesting as well his joy at sharing this discovery of them with his listeners.
The standing ovation he received was not just perfunctory but a cordial, well-earned response to what he had given the audience.
This concerto is a big piece for the orchestra, too. And on top of that were the demands of the two other works, which framed the concerto.
Mendelssohn’s “Hebrides” Overture and his Third Symphony, the “Scottish,” are extraordinarily evocative compositions, products of the composer’s experiences visiting the British Isles. They demand a lot from their performers.
There were, to be sure, rough spots here and there, especially in the symphony’s scherzo movement. But the playing was robust and committed. Maestro Steve Kurr (below) worked up an unusual degree of excitement in the overture, and differentiated nicely the differing moods of the symphony’s four movements.
Earnest hard work with eminently listenable results makes a Middleton Community Orchestra concert like this one a genuine treat. Those who missed it lost out on a lot of pleasure.
Tags: American Record Guide, Andrew Briggs, Arts, British Isles, Cello, Classical music, concerto, Dvorak, early msuic, Early music, Felix Mendelssohn, Isthmus, Jacob Stockinger, John W. Barker, Madison, Madison Early Music Festival, Medieval history, Mendelssohn, Middleton Community Orchestra, Music, Orchestra, Scherzo, Scotland, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Wisconsin, WORT-FM 89.9, YouTube
Classical music: The Wisconsin Baroque Ensemble will perform music by Vivaldi, Handel, Telemann, Corelli, Couperin and Rameau this Sunday afternoon.
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ALERT: Tomorrow afternoon, Sunday, Feb. 28, at 3:30 pm. in Morphy Recital Hall, the winners of the Woodwind-Piano Competition sponsored by Irving Shain, emeritus chancellor of the UW-Madison and a distinguished chemist, will perform a FREE recital. The program includes music for oboe and bassoon by Francis Poulenc, Robert Schumann, Gabriel Pierne and others. For more information, visit:
http://www.music.wisc.edu/event/irving-shain-woodwind-piano-duo-winners-recital/
By Jacob Stockinger
Friends of The Ear — who wishes that early music groups and others would provide English translations of German, French and Italian titles for the general public — have sent him the following note:
“The Wisconsin Baroque Ensemble invites you to a concert of baroque chamber music on this Sunday, Feb. 28, at 3 p.m. in Saint Andrew’s Episcopal Church (below, exterior and interior), 1833 Regent Street, Madison.
Performers includes: UW-Madison professor Mimmi Fulmer – soprano; Nathan Giglierano – baroque violin; Eric Miller – viola da gamba, baroque cello; Consuelo Sañudo – mezzo-soprano; Monica Steger – traverso, harpsichord; Anton TenWolde – baroque cello; and Max Yount – harpsichord
Tickets at the door are $20, $10 for students.
For more information: call 608 238-5126, or write an email to info@wisconsinbaroque.org, or visit www.wisconsinbaroque.org
The varied program is:
Georg Philipp Telemann – “Ihr Völker, hört” from “Harmonischer Gottes-Dienst” (1725/26)
Jean-Philippe Rameau – “Pièces de Clavecin en Concerts,” “Deuxième Concert”
Georg Friedrich Handel – “Occhi miei, che faceste” HWV 146
Intermission
Arcangelo Corelli – Sonata for Violin and Basso Continuo, Op. 5, No. 11 (heard at bottom in a YouTube video)
Antonio Vivaldi – “Di verde ulivo” from “Tito Manlio” (1719)
Francois Couperin – “Les Nations,” Quatrième Ordre
There will be a reception at our studio at 2422 Kendall Ave (second floor) immediately following the concert.
Tags: Arts, Baroque, Baroque music, Cello, Chamber music, Classical music, Competition, Corelli, Couperin, duet, duo, Faure, flute, French, George Frideric Handel, German, harpsichord, Italian, Jacob Stockinger, Jean-Philippe Rameau, Madison, Mezzo-soprano, Music, Piano, Pierne, Rameau, Robert Schumann, Sonata, soprano, Telemann, translation, traverso, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Viola, viola da gamba, Violin, Vivaldi, vocal music, Wisconsin Baroque Ensemble, woodwind, YouTube
Classical music: Cellist Amit Peled will recreate a Pablo Casals concert from a century ago using Casals’ own cello. He performs on Saturday night at Farley’s House of Pianos.
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By Jacob Stockinger
These days, the gifted Israeli-born cellist Amit Peled is touring the country and recreating a concert given by Pablo Casals (below) from a century ago using Casals’ own cello, a 1733 Goffriller cello that was loaned to him by Casals widow Marta Casals Istomin.
Peled teaches at the Peabody Institute at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and has performed several times with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra and at other local venues.
Here is a link to his web site:
Peled (below) will perform the centennial program this Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. in Madison during his third appearance at Farley’s House of Pianos. He will be accompanied by a restored 1914 Mason and Hamlin piano, which was his preference. Farley’s is located at 6522 Seybold Road, on Madison’s far west side not far from the West Towne Mall.
The program includes music by George Frideric Handel, Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, Gabriel Faure and Camille Saint-Saens.
Contrary to the rumor The Ear heard, the concert is NOT sold out, though Farley’s says that tickets are indeed selling briskly.
Advance tickets are $45; $50 at the door. Full-time students get in for $15, but those tickets must be purchased in advance and on-line, and are NOT available at the door. Service fees not included. For reservations, you can call 608 271-2626.
Amit Peled discusses the Casals cello and the story behind it in a YouTube video at the bottom.
For more information including the specific program and background, visit:
http://salonpianoseries.org/concerts.html
Tags: Arts, Bach, Baroque, Beethoven, Camille Saint-Saëns, Casals, Cello, Chamber music, Classical music, Farley's House of Pianos, Gabriel Fauré, George Frideric Handel, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johns Hopkins University, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Marta Casals Istomin, Mason and Hamlin, Music, Orchestra, Pablo Casals, Peabody Conservatory of Music, Piano, Sonata, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, YouTube
Classical music: The Madison Symphony Chorus performs a medley of choral music this Sunday at 2 and 4 p.m. Plus, a FREE harpsichord recital of music by Bach, Handel and Scarlatti is at noon this Friday.
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ALERT: This week’s FREE Friday Noon Musicale, to be held from 12:15 to 1 p.m. at the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Meeting House of the First Unitarian Society of Madison, 900 University Bay Drive, Trevor Stephenson — the founder and director of the Madison Bach Musicians — will play harpsichord music by Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frideric Handel and Domenico Scarlatti.
He will perform on his own four-octave, crow-quilled 17th-century-style Flemish instrument and will talk about the well-tempered tuning of this instrument, the composers’ lives and the concert repertoire. Selections are from Bach’s “Well-Tempered Clavier,” Scarlatti’s Sonatas and Handel’s “Keyboard Suites.”
By Jacob Stockinger
Some groups perform more in tandem or as adjuncts to other groups than by themselves. This seems especially true of choruses.
But this weekend, the Madison Symphony Chorus, which normally performs with the Madison Symphony Orchestra, will have the spotlight to itself. (You can hear the chorus sing as part of the MSO’s Christmas concert in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
Twice on the same day.
Here are the details:
On this Sunday, Feb. 28, at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., director Beverly Taylor and the Madison Symphony Chorus (below, in a photo by Greg Anderson) will present a “Memories” concert in Promenade Hall at the Overture Center for the Arts.
Taylor (below) is the longtime assistant conductor of the Madison Symphony Orchestra and the director of choral activities at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music.
The concerts will feature an array of musical styles, including classical music selections from Johannes Brahms and contemporary American composer John Corigliano, a collection of Swedish, Norwegian, Scottish and Mexican ethnic tunes, traditional spirituals and gospel music, and nostalgic songs from the Tin Pan Alley era by Cole Porter, George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin, and Fats Waller.
Madison Symphony Orchestra (MSO) Principal Pianist Daniel Lyons will accompany much of the music.
Tickets are $20, and are available: at madisonsymphony.org/chorusconcert; at the Overture Box Office (201 State Street); or by calling (608) 258-4141.
Formed in 1927, the Madison Symphony Chorus gave its first public performance in 1928 and has performed regularly with the MSO ever since.
The Chorus was featured at the popular Madison Symphony Christmas concerts in December and will join the MSO April 29 and 30, and May 1 for Carmina Burana, the colossal modern oratorio based on medieval Latin songs by 20th-century German composer Carl Orff.
The Chorus is comprised of more than 125 volunteer and amateur musicians from all walks of life who enjoy combining their artistic talent. New members are always welcome.
Visit madisonsymphony.org/chorus for more information about the chorus and the program for this concert.
Tags: amateur, Arts, Bach, Carl Orff, Carmina Burana, choral music, chorus, Christmas, Classical music, Cole Porter, conductor, Early music, ethnic music, Fats Waller, Flemish, Folk music, Frank Lloyd Wright, George Gershwin, Gershwin, gospel, Handel, harpsichord, Ira Gershwin, Jacob Stockinger, Johannes Brahms, John Corigliano, Latin, Madison, Madison Bach Musicians, Madison Symphony Chorus, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Medieval, Mexico, Music, Norway, nostalgia, Orchestra, Overture Center, Piano, Scarlatti, Scotland, Sonata, spirituals, Suite, Sweden, Tin Pan Alley, Tn Pan Alley, Trevor Stephenson, tuning, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, vocal music, volunteer, Well-Tempered Clavier, Wisconsin, YouTube
Classical music: Red Priest aims to revive the excitement of Baroque classics. It performs music by Handel, Bach and Telemann this Saturday night at the Wisconsin Union Theater.
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By Jacob Stockinger
The group is called Red Priest – the nickname given to the red-haired violinist and popular Baroque composer Antonio Vivaldi, who taught music at a girls’ school in Venice.
But during its Madison debut appearance, the group will not be playing music by Vivaldi. The focus will shift to Handel, with some Bach and Telemann thrown in.
Red Priest (below) performs this Saturday at 8 p.m. in Shannon Hall of the Wisconsin Union Theater. Tickets are $27.50 to $42.50.
Compared to various rock groups such as the Rolling Stones and the Cirque de Soleil for its flamboyant presentation of centuries-old classics, the group’s program is called “Handel in the Wind” – recalling the famous song “Candle in the Wind” by chart-topping rocker Elton John.
But that seemingly unorthodox approach, according to Red Priest, fits right in with the true underlying aesthetic of Baroque music, which is too often treated as rigid and codified, predictable and boring.
For more information and background, including the full program, critics’ reviews and how to get tickets, visit:
http://uniontheater.wisc.edu/Season15-16/red-priest.html
Red Priest member and recorder player Piers Adams (below) — whom you can also hear talking about “Handel in the Wind” in a YouTube video at the bottom — recently took time from his very busy schedule to give a Q&A to The Ear:
What makes your approach to Baroque music unique and different from standard playing or from the early music approach that features the period instruments and historically informed performance practices?
Actually we do use period instruments and historically informed performance practices, albeit mixed in with some more modern aesthetics. The instruments are a mixture of originals (the cello dates from 1725, in original baroque set-up), close copies (violin and harpsichord) and modern instruments (most of my recorders, which are heavily “souped up” versions of baroque originals).
We differ from the mainstream baroque groups by doing everything we can to bring the music to life — not just in a “Here’s how they used to do it” sense, but rather by “This is how we’re going to do it!”
As musicians who like to live (or at least, to play) on the edge, that means we’re naturally drawn to some of the more extreme and colorful characters and performance practices from the Baroque era, mixed in with our own ideas drawn from interest in other musical genres, such as folk, world and rock music.
How and why did you come up with that approach? Why do you focus on Baroque music? Is there something special to say about Baroque music?
After years of bowing down to the authority of the early music movement — which has a habit of policing anyone who disagrees with its creed or who wants to show a bit of individuality — it was a wonderful realization that in fact it’s OK to do one’s own thing!
As soon as we made that break, we found ourselves on the edges of that rather safe (but dull) world of historically accurate re-creation and in a genre of our own, where anything goes as long as it’s musically satisfying to us and to the audience.
In fact, much of the most satisfying playing does come from “following the rules,” where the rules tell us to perform with wild abandon and heartfelt expression in every note!
Baroque music is a wonderful place for experimentation and co-creation -– perhaps more so than any other area of classical music, because so much is already left to the performer to decide, and because arrangement and transcription were such important aspects too.
Baroque music also has a harmonic and rhythmic structure that many people can relate to, perhaps closer to modern-day pop and rock than the more harmonically complex music of the later Classical and Romantic periods.
Why are you emphasizing George Frideric Handel in your Madison program? In your view, is his music underrated or underperformed? How important or great is Handel?
We have toured the US close to 40 times, and try to bring something new with us where possible. The latest creation is a transcription of music from Handel’s “Messiah,” which we’ve converted into a colorful instrumental journey, bringing out the drama in a very different way from the normal choral performance.
Handel is regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, but this is the first time we have created a project around his music. I don’t know why we waited so long, as he wrote some amazing tunes!
How would you compare Handel to Johann Sebastian Bach and Georg Philipp Telemann, whose music you will also be performing?
Handel’s music is in some ways simpler than Bach’s, which tends to be very dense and complex, but both can produce moments of high drama and great beauty.
Telemann was above all a great craftsman, and in his day was considered the greatest composer of all, but now is held in rather lower esteem than Bach and Handel – maybe partly because of his frequent reliance upon gypsy folk melodies in his works.
The pieces we have chosen bring out the characters of these three great Baroque masters.
Is there anything else you would like to say?
We’re greatly looking forward to this, our first visit to Madison!
Tags: arrangement, Arts, Bach, Baroque, Candle in the Wind, Cello, Chamber music, choral music, Cirque de soleil, Classical, Classical music, concerto, Early music, Elton John, folk, Folk music, Georg Philipp Telemann, George Frideric Handel, gypsy, Handel, harmony, harpsichord, historically informed performance practices, Jacob Stockinger, Jazz, Johann Sebastian Bach, Madison, melody, Messiah, Music, period instruments, Piers Adams, pop, recorder, Red Priest, rhythm, Rock, rock and roll, rock music, Rolling Stones, Romantic, transcription, tune, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Venice, Violin, Vivaldi, vocal music, Wisconsin Union Theater, YouTube
Classical music: The big events at the UW-Madison this week are a piano recital on Friday by pianist Christopher Taylor of music by Bach, Brahms and Scriabin, and a FREE concert on Saturday by the Wisconsin Brass Quintet.
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By Jacob Stockinger
Two concerts at the UW-Madison this week are especially noteworthy:
FRIDAY
One of the indisputable stars at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music faculty is pianist Christopher Taylor.
A winner of the bronze medal at the 1993 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Taylor (below, in a photo by Michael R. Anderson) concertizes around the world to rave reviews, especially for his performances of modern or contemporary music.
Christopher Taylor Recital
This Friday night at 8 p.m. in Mills Hall, Taylor will perform a more tradition recital, but with a still noteworthy program made up of Baroque and Romantic music.
He is known as an interpreter of that music too since he has performed all 32 piano sonatas by Ludwig van Beethoven and the Franz Liszt transcriptions of the nine symphonies by Beethoven. (You can hear Taylor play the opening of the Famous Fifth Symphony at a festival in Russia in a YouTube video at the bottom.)
Plus, Taylor is known for playing the “Goldberg” Variations, by Johann Sebastian Bach, on a special double keyboard piano that he has tinkered with and refined or improved upon, and which is now being built.
In the upcoming recital Taylor will perform the French Suite No. 1 in D Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach; the rarely played Piano Sonata No. 1 by Johannes Brahms; and the even more rarely played compete Twelve Etudes, Op. 8, of Russian composer Alexander Scriabin. (The etudes include the last one in D-sharp minor that was a favorite of pianist Vladimir Horowitz.)
Tickets are $15. Students get admitted free.
For more information, visit:
http://www.music.wisc.edu/event/christopher-taylor-piano-faculty-concert/
SATURDAY
Then on Saturday night, at 8 p.m. in Mills Hall, the critically acclaimed Wisconsin Brass Quintet will perform a FREE concert of music by a variety of older composers and works as well as living composers and new music.
Members of the Wisconsin Brass Quintet (WBQ, below, in a photography by Michael R. Anderson) are, from left: Mark Hetzler, trombone; Matthew Onstad, trumpet; Tom Curry, tuba; John Aley, trumpet; Daniel Grabois, horn.
The program is: Sonatine by Eugène Bozza (1905-1981); Allegretto Pizzicato by Béla Bartók (1881-1945); Madrigaux Slaves by Ivan Jevtić (1947- ); Morning Music by David Sampson (1951-); Contrapunctus IX from “The Art of Fugue” by Johann Sebastian Bach (1695-1750); Elegy by Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975, arranged by UW-Madison emeritus professor of tuba and euphonium and a nationally recognized composer John Stevens); and Music for Brass Instruments by Ingolf Dahl (1912-1970) with special guest Tom Kelley, bass trombone.
A native of Appleton, Wisconsin, Tom Kelley is a junior at UW-Madison studying trombone performance under Professor Mark Hetzler. At the UW_Madison, Kelley has performed with the Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra, Wind Ensemble, Jazz Orchestra, Blue Note Ensemble, Low Brass Ensemble and a number of chamber groups.
He has also played outside the university in groups such as the Rock River Philharmonic and the Darren Sterud Jazz Orchestra. In the summer of 2015, Kelley attended the Sewanee Summer Music Festival where he won the Jacqueline Avent Concerto Competition. He enjoys biking, cooking and binge-watching TV and movies.
For general background on the Wisconsin Brass Quintet:
http://www.music.wisc.edu/wisconsin-brass-quintet/
Tags: "Goldberg" Variations, Art of Fugue, Arts, Bach, Baroque, Bartok, bass, bass trombone, Beethoven, brass, Cello, Chamber music, Classical music, concerto, contemprorary, Contrapunctus, Elegy, etude, French horn, Horn, Ingolf Dahl, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes Brahms, John Aley, John Stevens, Liszt, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Mark Hetzler, New Music, Orchestra, Piano, quintet, Romantic, Russia, Russian, Scriabin, Shostakovich, Sonata, Student, symphonies, symphony orchestra, Trombone, Trumpet, Tuba, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Van Cliburn, Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Vladimir Horowitz, Wisconsin Brass Quintet, YouTube
Classical music: The amateur and accomplished Middleton Community Orchestra and guest cellist Andrew Briggs perform music by Dvorak and Mendelssohn this Wednesday night.
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By Jacob Stockinger
On this Wednesday night, Feb. 24, the mostly amateur and very accomplished Middleton Community Orchestra (below top) will present the Winter Concert of its fifth anniversary season.
The concert will feature cellist Andrew Briggs (below) as soloist in the famously tuneful and dramatic Cello Concerto by Antonin Dvorak. (You can hear the opening that hooks you at once, played by superstar cellist Yo-Yo Ma, in a YouTube video at the bottom.)
Also on the program, to be conducted by Steve Kurr (below) are two works by Felix Mendelssohn: the Hebrides Overture and the Symphony No. 3 “Scottish.”
The concert is at 7:30 p.m. in the Middleton Performing Arts Center (below) that is attached to Middleton High School, 2100 Bristol Street. General admission is $10. All students are admitted free of charge. The box office and doors open at 7 p.m. For information call 608 212-8690.
A meet-and-greet informal reception (below) for the public and the musicians takes place after the concert.
For more information about the Middleton Community Orchestra and its remaining concerts this season as well as how to join it – there are openings now in the string section — and support it, visit:
http://middletoncommunityorchestra.org
Here is some biographical information about the talented local soloist:
Cellist Andrew Briggs performs on an international scale, from giving recitals in his native Colorado to performing concerts in Italy and the UK. His travels have taken him to a growing list of prestigious music festivals, including the International Holland Music Sessions (NL), the Abbey Fontfroide Masterclasses (FR), and as a Fellow of the Aspen Music Festival (US).
Recently moving to Madison from New York City, Andrew has performed in venues such as Alice Tully Hall (NY), the Guggenheim Museum, and Macky Auditorium (CO).
Briggs’ 2015-2016 season includes both solo and chamber engagements. Recent recitals include solo programs at the Remonstranse Kerke in Alkmaar, Netherlands; the Abbey Fontfroide in Narbonne, France; Morphy Hall at the University of Wisconsin, Madison; and on the Sunday Recital Series at West Middleton Lutheran Church in Wisconsin.
Briggs is also a part of UW-Madison’s Hunt Quartet, a graduate string quartet that will give a recital in early March.
A dedicated performer of all eras of music, Briggs plays music from Baroque to contemporary. Studying Baroque cello with Phoebe Carrai at the Juilliard School, Andrew most recently performed with the Madison Bach Musicians and as a continuo cellist for University of Wisconsin-Madison’s opera production of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro).
Briggs also enjoys playing music of contemporary composers, most recently playing with New Muse Ensemble and Domaine Musicale of Madison, Wisconsin. At Juilliard, he performed chamber music works of contemporary composers in the FOCUS! Contemporary Music Festival, ChamberFest, and with Axiom Ensemble.
You can learn more by visiting:
Tags: Alice Tully Hall, amateur, Andrew Briggs, Arts, Aspen Music Festival, Axiom Ensemble, Baroque, Beethoven, Cello, Chamber music, Classical music, Colorado, concerto, Contemporary classical music, Dvorak, England, France, Great Britain, Guggenheim Museum, Hebrides, Holland, Italy, Jacob Stockinger, Juilliard School, Los Angeles, Madison, Madison Bach Musicians, Marriage of Figaro, Mendelssohn, Middleton Community Orchestra, Mozart, Netherlands, New Music, New York City, opera, Orchestra, Overture, Scotland, Sonata, String quartet, UK, United Kingdom, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, University Opera, Viola, Violin, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Yo-Yo Ma, YouTube
Classical music: Is it piano neglect? The University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music should take better care of the piano used for student concerts. Plus, Madison Symphony Orchestra maestro John DeMain gets raves for conducting an opera in Washington, D.C.
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ALERT: Did you wonder what Madison Symphony Orchestra maestro John DeMain was up to since the MSO concerts last weekend used a guest conductor?
Well, the hometown maestro was guest conducting a week-long production of Kurt Weill‘s opera “Lost in the Stars” for the Washington National Opera at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.
A number of critics didn’t particularly like the opera itself, which is based on the famous anti-apartheid novel “Cry, the Beloved County” by Alan Paton, and some criticized the theatrical aspects of the production.
But music director and conductor DeMain received praise for his part.
Here are links to various reviews:
http://dcmetrotheaterarts.com/2016/02/15/review-lost-in-the-stars-at-wno-2/
http://dctheatrescene.com/2016/02/15/lost-in-the-stars-from-washington-national-opera-review/
There is more praise in a mention on Page 2:
By Jacob Stockinger
Calling it piano abuse it would be a stretch. That sounds too accusatory and too sensational.
But calling it piano neglect certainly seems justified and fair.
When The Ear attended some recent student recitals, he noticed the unfortunate treatment of a concert grand piano in Morphy Recital Hall, on which many students perform their degree recitals.
From a distance, and under the glare of stage lighting, the piano (below) seemed more or less OK.
But when he went up close, The Ear saw just how chewed up the wood was in so many places.
Now some wear-and-tear seems normal, especially for a piano that gets so much use for solo recitals and chamber music. And truth be told, it probably plays pretty well and is maintained in good shape internally.
But the outer condition of this piano nonetheless seemed as if it had indeed been neglected over the years — though maybe there are other reasons.
There were eye-catching scrapes and gouges that just look junky.
Now The Ear knows that the talented piano technician at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music is very busy. After all, there are a lot of pianos to tune and regulate.
And The Ear also knows that budget cuts are presenting challenges to the School of Music and its staff.
But that seems all the more reason to take care of the pianos the school has. The likelihood of replacing it with a new one seems little to none.
After all, these days a Steinway concert grand Model D sells for pretty close to $125,000.
If you had a car worth that much, you would surely not neglect its maintenance and upkeep. So why would you do it to a piano, especially one that gets so much use and is in the public eye so frequently?
So on the eve of more student degree recitals, which will only increase as the end of the spring semester draws closer, here is The Ear’s plea:
Please use the padded covering that can protect the piano when it gets moved, and try to be careful about bumping or scraping into things that can cause permanent damage.
Also, if there are times that the piano’s finish gets marred, please use that specially made piano dye to restore the ebony finish and please repair any chipped keys, which are plastic not ivory, by the way.
The Ear doubts other instruments — strings, brass, woodwinds — would be allowed by their owners to fall into such a state.
If you doubt all this or think it is overstating the case, here are some close-up photos that The Ear took.
It hurts The Ear to see such a fine instrument neglected and deteriorate. He assumes that the students who use it feel the same way – and he hopes the public does too. Owning such a fine musical instrument imposes a certain responsibility on the owner, and it should be repaired.
Is The Ear being too hard or fussy?
He would like to know what students who play the piano and what other audience members think.
Use the COMMENT section to let him know.
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: abuse, Alan Paton, Arts, Chamber music, Classical music, conductor, Cry, Jacob Stockinger, John DeMain, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Kennedy Center, Keyboard instrument, Kurt Weill, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Music, neglect, opera, Orchestra, Piano, Steinway & Sons, symphony, the Beloved Country, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Washington D.C., Washington National Opera, Washington Post, Wisconsin
Classical music: Here are the Grammy winners for 2016 in classical music along with the nominations. Some have ties to Madison.
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By Jacob Stockinger
You might remember that at holiday time, The Ear offered a series of roundups of the best recordings and classical music gifts of the past year. The idea is to use them as holiday gift guides.
One of those days was Grammy Day.
This past Monday night, the winners of the 58th annual Grammy were announced.
The Ear notes that there were a few items of special local and regional interest.
The late Twin Cities composer Stephen Paulus, whose works were often commissioned and premiered in Madison by the Festival Choir of Madison, the Wisconsin Chamber Choir and groups at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, was nominated for several works. And he won in two categories.
In addition, producer Judith Sherman, who already has several Grammys to her credit, was nominated again and won again. She is also the producer to the two recordings of the six centennial commissions by the Pro Arte Quartet at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The last one – with the String Quartet No. 3 by Belgian composer Benoit Mernier and a Clarinet Quintet by Canadian composer Pierre Jalbert – will be released this spring.
In addition, violinist Augustin Hadelich (below), who has turned in outstanding and memorable performances with the Madison Symphony Orchestra, received his first Grammy for a recording of the late French composer Henri Dutilleux.
Plus, the critically acclaimed Chicago-based record company Çedille (below top), which has celebrated its 25th anniversary and which specializes in Midwest artists as well as unusual repertoire of both old and new music, had several nominations and won a Grammy for a recording of the new music group Eighth Blackbird. Two other superb artists who record for Çedille and have performed in Madison with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra are violinists Rachel Barton Pine and Jennifer Koh.
Here are all the winners in classical music for the 2016 Grammys. All the nominees are listed and the winners are noted with three asterisks (***):
***Ask Your Mama (below): Leslie Ann Jones, John Kilgore, Nora Kroll-Rosenbaum & Justin Merrill, engineers; Patricia Sullivan, mastering engineer (George Manahan & San Francisco Ballet Orchestra) Label: Avie Records
Dutilleux: Métaboles; L’Arbre Des Songes (Tree of Dreams); Symphony No. 2, ‘Le Double’: Dmitriy Lipay, engineer; Alexander Lipay, mastering engineer (Ludovic Morlot, Augustin Hadelich & Seattle Symphony) Label: Seattle Symphony Media
Monteverdi: Il Ritorno D’Ulisse In Patria: Robert Friedrich, engineer; Michael Bishop, mastering engineer (Martin Pearlman, Jennifer Rivera, Fernando Guimarães & Boston Baroque) Label: Linn Records
Rachmaninoff: All-Night Vigil: Beyong Joon Hwang & John Newton, engineers; Mark Donahue, mastering engineer (Charles Bruffy, Phoenix Chorale and Kansas City Chorale) Label: Chandos
Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3, ‘Organ’: Keith O. Johnson and Sean Royce Martin, engineers; Keith O. Johnson, mastering engineer (Michael Stern and Kansas City Symphony) Label: Reference Recordings
73. PRODUCER OF THE YEAR, CLASSICAL
Blanton Alspaugh: • Hill: Symphony No. 4; Concertino Nos. 1 & 2; Divertimento (Peter Bay, Anton Nel & Austin Symphony Orchestra) • Rachmaninoff: All-Night Vigil (Charles Bruffy, Phoenix Chorale & Kansas City Chorale) • Sacred Songs Of Life & Love (Brian A. Schmidt & South Dakota Chorale) • Spirit Of The American Range (Carlos Kalmar & The Oregon Symphony) • Tower: Violin Concerto; Stroke; Chamber Dance (Giancarlo Guerrero, Cho-Liang Lin & Nashville Symphony)
Manfred Eicher: • Franz Schubert (András Schiff) • Galina Ustvolskaya (Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Markus Hinterhäuser & Reto Bieri) • Moore: Dances & Canons (Saskia Lankhoorn) • Rihm: Et Lux (Paul Van Nevel, Minguet Quartet & Huelgas Ensemble) • Visions Fugitives (Anna Gourari)
Marina A. Ledin, Victor Ledin: • Dances For Piano & Orchestra (Joel Fan, Christophe Chagnard & Northwest Sinfonietta) • Tempo Do Brasil (Marc Regnier) • Woman At The New Piano (Nadia Shpachenko)
Dan Merceruio: • Chapí: String Quartets 1 & 2 (Cuarteto Latinoamericano) • From Whence We Came (Ensemble Galilei) • Gregson: Touch (Peter Gregson) • In The Light Of Air – ICE Performs Anna Thorvaldsdottir (International Contemporary Ensemble) • Schumann (Ying Quartet) • Scrapyard Exotica (Del Sol String Quartet) • Stravinsky: Petrushka (Richard Scerbo & Inscape Chamber Orchestra) • What Artemisia Heard (El Mundo) • ZOFO Plays Terry Riley (ZOFO)
***Judith Sherman: • Ask Your Mama (George Manahan & San Francisco Ballet Orchestra) • Fields: Double Cluster; Space Sciences (Jan Kučera, Gloria Chuang & Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra) • Liaisons – Re-Imagining Sondheim From The Piano (Anthony de Mare) • Montage – Great Film Composers & The Piano (Gloria Cheng) • Multitude, Solitude (Momenta Quartet) • Of Color Braided All Desire – Music Of Eric Moe (Christine Brandes, Brentano String Quartet, Dominic Donato, Jessica Meyer, Karen Ouzounian, Manhattan String Quartet & Talujon) • Rzewski: The People United Will Never Be Defeated! (Ursula Oppens) • Sirota: Parting The Veil – Works For Violin & Piano (David Friend, Hyeyung Julie Yoon, Laurie Carney & Soyeon Kate Lee) • Turina: Chamber Music For Strings & Piano (Lincoln Trio)
- BEST ORCHESTRAL PERFORMANCE
Bruckner: Symphony No. 4: Manfred Honeck, conductor (Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra) Label: Reference Recordings
Dutilleux: Métaboles; L’Arbre Des Songes; Symphony No. 2, ‘Le Double’: Ludovic Morlot, conductor (Seattle Symphony) Label: Seattle Symphony Media
***Shostakovich: Under Stalin’s Shadow – Symphony No. 10 (below): Andris Nelsons, conductor (Boston Symphony Orchestra) Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Spirit Of The American Range: Carlos Kalmar, conductor (The Oregon Symphony) Label: Pentatone
Zhou Long and Chen Yi: Symphony ‘Humen 1839’: Darrell Ang, conductor (New Zealand Symphony Orchestra) Label: Naxos
- BEST OPERA RECORDING
Janáček: Jenůfa: Donald Runnicles, conductor; Will Hartmann, Michaela Kaune & Jennifer Larmore; Magdalena Herbst, producer (Orchestra Of The Deutsche Oper Berlin; Chorus Of The Deutsche Oper Berlin) Label: Arthaus
Monteverdi: Il Ritorno D’Ulisse In Patria: Martin Pearlman, conductor; Fernando Guimarães & Jennifer Rivera; Thomas C. Moore, producer (Boston Baroque) Label: Linn Records
Mozart: Die Entführung Aus Dem Serail: Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor; Diana Damrau, Paul Schweinester & Rolando Villazón; Sid McLauchlan, producer (Chamber Orchestra Of Europe) Label: Deutsche Grammophon
***Ravel: L’Enfant Et Les Sortilèges; Shéhérazade (belw): Seiji Ozawa, conductor; Isabel Leonard; Dominic Fyfe, producer (Saito Kinen Orchestra; SKF Matsumoto Chorus & SKF Matsumoto Children’s Chorus) Label: Decca
Steffani: Niobe, Regina Di Tebe: Paul O’Dette & Stephen Stubbs, conductors; Karina Gauvin & Philippe Jaroussky; Renate Wolter-Seevers, producer (Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra) Label: Erato
- BEST CHORAL PERFORMANCE
Beethoven: Missa Solemnis: Bernard Haitink, conductor; Peter Dijkstra, chorus master (Anton Barachovsky, Genia Kühmeier, Elisabeth Kulman, Hanno Müller-Brachmann & Mark Padmore; Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks; Chor Des Bayerischen Rundfunks) Label: BR Klassik
Monteverdi: Vespers Of 1610: Harry Christophers, conductor (Jeremy Budd, Grace Davidson, Ben Davies, Mark Dobell, Eamonn Dougan & Charlotte Mobbs; The Sixteen) Label: Coro
Pablo Neruda – The Poet Sings: Craig Hella Johnson, conductor (James K. Bass, Laura Mercado-Wright, Eric Neuville & Lauren Snouffer; Faith DeBow & Stephen Redfield; Conspirare) Label: Harmonia Mundi
Paulus: Far In The Heavens: Eric Holtan, conductor (Sara Fraker, Matthew Goinz, Thea Lobo, Owen McIntosh, Kathryn Mueller & Christine Vivona; True Concord Orchestra; True Concord Voices) Label: Reference Recordings
***Rachmaninoff: All-Night Vigil (below): Charles Bruffy, conductor (Paul Davidson, Frank Fleschner, Toby Vaughn Kidd, Bryan Pinkall, Julia Scozzafava, Bryan Taylor & Joseph Warner; Kansas City Chorale & Phoenix Chorale) Label: Chandos
- BEST CHAMBER MUSIC/SMALL ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE
Brahms: The Piano Trios: Tanja Tetzlaff, Christian Tetzlaff & Lars Vogt. Label: Ondine
***Filament (below and in a YouTube video at the bottom): Eighth Blackbird. Label: Cedille Records
Flaherty: Airdancing For Toy Piano, Piano & Electronics: Nadia Shpachenko & Genevieve Feiwen Lee. Track from: Woman At The New Piano. Label: Reference Recordings
Render: Brad Wells & Roomful Of Teeth. Label: New Amsterdam Records
Shostakovich: Piano Quintet & String Quartet No. 2: Takács Quartet & Marc-André Hamelin. Label: Hyperion
- BEST CLASSICAL INSTRUMENTAL SOLO
***Dutilleux: Violin Concerto, L’Arbre Des Songes (below): Augustin Hadelich; Ludovic Morlot, conductor (Seattle Symphony) Track from: Dutilleux: Métaboles; L’Arbre Des Songes; Symphony No. 2, ‘Le Double’ Label: Seattle Symphony Media
Grieg & Moszkowski: Piano Concertos: Joseph Moog; Nicholas Milton, conductor (Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern) Label: Onyx Classics
Mozart: Keyboard Music, Vol. 7: Kristian Bezuidenhout. Label: Harmonia Mundi
Rachmaninov Variations: Daniil Trifonov (The Philadelphia Orchestra) Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Rzewski: The People United Will Never Be Defeated! Ursula Oppens (Jerome Lowenthal). Label: Cedille Records
photo
- BEST CLASSICAL SOLO VOCAL ALBUM
Beethoven: An Die Ferne Geliebte; Haydn: English Songs; Mozart: Masonic Cantata: Mark Padmore; Kristian Bezuidenhout, accompanist. Label: Harmonia Mundi
***Joyce & Tony – Live From Wigmore Hall: Joyce DiDonato; Antonio Pappano, accompanist. Label: Erato
Nessun Dorma – The Puccini Album. Jonas Kaufmann; Antonio Pappano, conductor (Kristīne Opolais, Antonio Pirozzi & Massimo Simeoli; Coro Dell’Accademia Nazionale Di Santa Cecilia; Orchestra Dell’Accademia Nazionale Di Santa Cecilia) Label: Sony Classical
Rouse: Seeing; Kabir Padavali: Talise Trevigne; David Alan Miller, conductor (Orion Weiss; Albany Symphony) Label: Naxos
St. Petersburg: Cecilia Bartoli; Diego Fasolis, conductor (I Barocchisti) Label: Decca
- BEST CLASSICAL COMPENDIUM
As Dreams Fall Apart – The Golden Age Of Jewish Stage And Film Music (1925-1955): New Budapest Orpheum Society; Jim Ginsburg, producer. Label: Cedille Records
Ask Your Mama: George Manahan, conductor; Judith Sherman, producer. Label: Avie Records
Handel: L’Allegro, Il Penseroso Ed Il Moderato, 1740: Paul McCreesh, conductor; Nicholas Parker, producer. Label: Signum Classics
***Paulus: Three Places Of Enlightenment; Veil Of Tears & Grand Concerto (below): Giancarlo Guerrero, conductor; Tim Handley, producer. Label: Naxos
Woman At The New Piano: Nadia Shpachenko; Marina A. Ledin & Victor Ledin, producers. Label: Reference Recordings
- BEST CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL COMPOSITION
Barry: The Importance Of Being Earnest: Gerald Barry, composer (Thomas Adès, Barbara Hannigan, Katalin Károlyi, Hilary Summers, Peter Tantsits & Birmingham Contemporary Music Group) Label: NMC Recordings
Norman: Play: Andrew Norman, composer (Gil Rose & Boston Modern Orchestra Project) Track from: Norman: Play. Label: BMOP/Sound
***Paulus: Prayers & Remembrances (below): Stephen Paulus, composer (Eric Holtan, True Concord Voices & Orchestra). Track from: Paulus: Far In The Heavens. Label: Reference Recordings
Tower: Stroke: Joan Tower, composer (Giancarlo Guerrero, Cho-Liang Lin & Nashville Symphony). Track from: Tower: Violin Concerto; Stroke; Chamber Dance. Label: Naxos
Wolfe: Anthracite Fields: Julia Wolfe, composer (Julian Wachner, The Choir Of Trinity Wall Street & Bang On A Can All-Stars) Label: Cantaloupe Music
Tags: Arts, Augustin Hadelich, Baroque, Beethoven, Belgium, Berlin, Bernard Haitink, Boston, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Brahms, Bruckner, Canada, Cecila Bartoli, Cedille, Cello, Chamber music, Chandos, China, Chinese composers, Chinese music, choral music, Chorale, Classical music, Compact Disc, concerto, Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, divertimento, Dutilleux, Early music, eighth blackbird, English, French-Canadian, Grammy, Grieg, Handel, Harmonia Mundi, Haydn, Hyperion, Jacob Stockinger, Janacek, Joan Tower, Johann Sebastian Bach, Joyce DiDonato, Kansas City, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Marc-André Hamelin, Mark Padmore, Monteverdi, Mozart, Music, Nashville, Naxos, opera, Orchestra, organ, Ozawa, Phoenix, Piano, Piano Quintet, Piano Trio, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Pro Arte Quartet, Puccini, quintet, Rachmaninoff, Rachmaninov, Ravel, Rm, Rolando Villazon, Saint-Saens, Schubert, Schumann, Seattle, Shostakovich, Sonata, songs, Stephen Paulus, Stravinsky, String quartet, symphony, Takacs Quartet, Terry Riley, trio, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Violin, vocal music, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Choir, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, YouTube
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