The Well-Tempered Ear
Classical music: Salon Piano Series again postpones two final concerts for 2019-20. Programs for Spring 2021 will be announced soon
Leave a Comment
By Jacob Stockinger
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has received the following announcement to post from the directors of the Salon Piano Series:
Although it likely will come as no surprise, we are saddened to announce that Salon Piano Series — like so many of our concert colleagues everywhere — must take a pause in our recital series.
We delayed our last two concerts of the 2019-20 season until late summer. It’s clear now that even late summer is too soon to re-open the doors of our intimate performance hall. The safety of our artists, audience, supporters, and staff is our first concern.
These are uncertain times, but we want to assure you that we are looking ahead to reschedule classical pianist Drew Petersen (below top) and jazz pianist Bill Charlap (below bottom), and we plan to announce the exciting performers we’ve scheduled for spring 2021 events very soon. (Editor’s Note: in the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear Drew Petersen play Chopin’s Ballade No. 4.)
Until then, we hope that you continue to support the mission of the Salon Piano Series as we weather this storm.
We ask you to keep your Petersen and Charlap tickets and we will honor them when we are able to resume the series. If that won’t work please consider donating them (which is tax-deductible) to Salon Piano Series. However, if you need a ticket refund, please check below for instructions on how to proceed.
Salon Piano Series is dedicated to preserving the intimacy and intensity of the recital experience. We bring you world-class artists performing on superbly restored instruments, offering some of the greatest piano repertoire in the world, from timeless classics to lesser-known works.
We eagerly await the day when we can safely gather together and bring back these masterful concerts. Contributions are welcome at any time, and will help ensure the vitality of our organization.
In the meantime, we extend our best wishes for your health and safety, and look forward to seeing you again as soon as it’s possible.
With appreciation,
SPS Board of Directors
Refunds
If you would like a refund immediately, please follow the instructions below and specify which concerts you are requesting a refund for. For refunds issued through Salon Piano Series, please allow several business days for processing.
Paper Tickets
Please take a photo of your ticket and email the photo to cristofori@salonpianoseries.org explaining that you would like a refund.
Online Tickets
If the ticket is not part of a season ticket, email Brown Paper Tickets at refunds@brownpapertickets.com. Please be sure to include your order confirmation number. Brown Paper Tickets’ refund processing is significantly delayed; however, all refunds will be honored in full.
If your ticket is part of a season ticket, contact Salon Piano Series at 608-271-2626. Refunds for season ticket holders will be issued through Salon Piano Series by check, not through Brown Paper Tickets.
Tickets Ordered by Phone
If you purchased a ticket by phone, contact Salon Piano Series at 608-271-2626 to request a refund.
Tags: #AmericanJazz, #BassoonConcerto, #BestWishes, #BillCharlap, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BoardofDirectors, #BrownPaperTickets, #BusinessDays, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #Drew Petersen, #EmailAddress, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #Farley'sHouseofPianos, #FredericChopin, #JacobStockinger, #JazzPianist, #OnlineConcert, #PersonalExperience, #PublicHealth, #SalonPIanoSeries, #SeasonTicket, #TheEar, #UniversityofIndianapolis, #YouTubevideo, 2019, 2020, 2021, allow, announce, appreciation, artist-in-residence, artists, Arts, audience, await, Ballade, be, best wishes, Bill Charlap, blog, Board of Directors, Brown Paper Tickets, Business, business days, Chopin, Classical music, classics, clear, colleague, composer, concern, Concert, confirmation, contact, contributions, coronavirus, covid, day, days, delay, delayed, donate, eager, email, ensure, exciting, experience, explain, Facebook, Farley's House of Pianos, final, first, forward, Frédéric Chopin, full, gather, greatest, hall, Health, honor, honored, Indianapolis, instructions, instrument, intensity, intimacy, intimate, issue, Jacob Stockinger, Jazz, jazz pianist, lesser-known, like, link, Madison, masterful, mission, number, offer, online, organization, pandemic, paper, performance, performer, phone, photo, Pianist, Piano, post, posting, postpone, preserve, proceed, processing, Public health, re-open, recital, refund, repertoire, repertory, request, reschedule, restore, restored, resume, safely, safety, Salon Piano Series, season ticket, series, share, Sonata, soon, specify, Spring, SPS, staff\, storm, summer, superb, supporters, sure, surprise, tag, tax-deductible, The Ear, tickets, timeless, times, together, uncertain, uncetain, United States, university, University of Indianapolis, vitality, wasps, weather, welcome, Wisconsin, works, world, world-class, YouTube
Classical music: COVID-19 pandemic forces more major changes for Concerts on the Square and a cancellation by the Mosaic Chamber Players
Leave a Comment
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
ALERT: The Ear has received the following note from Jess Salek — the founder, director and pianist of the Mosaic Chamber Players: “Just a note to mention that the concert scheduled for this Saturday, June 13, is cancelled due to COVID-19. We are doing our best to stay positive during this difficult time for local arts groups, and we will resume our music-making as soon as is safe. Please be well!”
By Jacob Stockinger
Major changes are in store for the annual Concerts on the Square, which were already postponed with a change of dates, day and time, according to television WKOW-TV Channel 27 (you can hear the TV news report in the YouTube video at the bottom):
Here are details:
MADISON (WKOW) – The Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra (WCO) has unveiled a new plan for its 2020 Concerts on the Square series (below), which involves replacing the four postponed concerts with two drive-in performances.
Additionally, they’re planning for two live concerts at Breese Stevens Field if playing outdoors is deemed safe in late summer.
The revised approach was necessary to keep attendees safe, while adhering to state and county requirements that don’t allow for large gatherings, according to a WCO news release.
The WCO will follow Forward Dane Health Guidelines to determine if the live concerts can occur. A decision will be made in late July.
“We were optimistic in April that if we only delayed the start of Concerts on the Square to late July that we could still hold live performances downtown,” said Joe Loehnis (below), the WCO’s CEO. “But as the pandemic continues to affect us all in ways we never could have foreseen, we’ve decided to take creative steps now that will allow us to still share music with our community.”
The new plan for Concerts on the Square looks like this:
- The first four shows (July 28 – Aug 18) have been postponed until the summer of 2021.
- The WCO, in partnership with the Madison Mallards, will host two “drive-in” concerts on June 24 and July 22 (more information below). Each concert also will be live-streamed on https://wcoconcerts.org and https://pbswisconsin.org for free.
- The final two Concerts on the Square will be live concerts at Breese Stevens Field on Aug. 25 and Sept. 1.
- The WCO’s annual “runout” concert to Portage this summer has been canceled.
Drive-in Concerts on the Square
The two drive-in concerts will feature rebroadcasts of the most popular Concerts on the Square performances, thanks to a partnership with PBS Wisconsin.
The WCO expects to be able to have 115 vehicles at each concert. The goal is to make it accessible to as many people as possible without risking health and safety.
The basics for each program are:
Location: Warner Park, 2930 N. Sherman Ave., Madison
Cost: $25 per car
Time: 7-8 p.m.; 8:45-9:45 p.m. (two showings each night to allow more people to attend)
Additional information: To purchase tickets, visit:
- 8:45 p.m. concert: https://madison-mallards.nwltickets.com/Tickets/SelectPromoSeats?UserPromoCode=wco8
June 24 – “S Wonderful” with Amanda Huddleston, soprano, and Andrew Clark, tenor. Songs include: “The Sound of Music” Medley, “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes,” “Armed Forces Salute” and “1812 Overture.” (2015 Performance)
July 22 – “Film Night,” featuring concertmaster Suzanne Beia. Songs include: “The Magnificent Seven,” “The Pink Panther,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” “Schindler’s List” and “E.T.” (2019 Performance)
“With two showings each night, we’re trying to make the concerts as accessible as possible,” Loehnis said. “Community partnerships are so important right now, and because of PBS Wisconsin and the Mallards, we’re able to bring this idea to life. We are grateful for these partnerships.”
Breese Stevens concerts are planned for late summer. If Dane County has entered Phase III of its Forward Dane plan by late August, 250 people will be allowed to gather for outdoor events.
For that reason, the WCO is planning to host two live Concerts on the Square at Breese Stevens.
The WCO will provide an update later in July on progress for this opportunity. Those shows currently are scheduled for Aug. 25 and Sept. 1.
The WCO also is considering how it could broadcast the live performances to other venues such as the Alliant Energy Center, Warner Park or Madison parks, where others could view the concerts safely.
“We’re still working through the logistics, and we’re realists – understanding that the situation changes almost daily,” Loehnis said. “But we also want to be forward-thinking and we’re going to keep pushing ahead unless we don’t believe a live show can be held safely.”
To keep up-to-date with performance schedules, community members can sign up for email updates on the WCO website or follow the orchestra on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=wisconsin%20chamber%20orchestra&epa=SEARCH_BOX) and Instagram.
Tags: #AlliantEnergyCenter, #AmandaHuddleston, #AndrewClark, #ArmedForces, #ArmedForcesSalute, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BreeseStevensField, #ChamberMusic, #Channel27, #CityofMadison, #CollaborativePianist, #ConcertsontheSquare, #COVID-19, #DaneCounty, #E.T., #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FilmMusic, #ForwardDane, #HomeWebsite, #InstagramPost, #JacobStockinger, #JessSalek, #JoeLoehnis, #JohnWilliams, #LiveConcert, #MadisonMallards, #MagnificentSeven, #MosaicChamberPlayers, #MovieMusic, #MovieScore, #Music-Making, #NewRelease, #OnlineConcert, #PBSWisconsin, #PeterIlyichTchaikovsky, #PinkPanther, #PortageWisconsin, #PublicHealth, #RaidersoftheLostArk, #Schindler'sList, #September11, #SmokeGetsinYourEyes, #SopranoSinger, #SoundofMusic, #StevenSpielberg, #SuzanneBeia, #TenorSinger, #TheEar, #VirtualConcert, #VocalMusic, #WarnerPark, #WisconsinChamberOrchestra, #WisconsinPublicTelevision, #YouTubevideo, 1812 Overture, 2020, @1812Overture, Alliant Energy Center, Amanda Huddleston, Andrew Clark, annual, approach, armed forces, Armed Forces Salute, Arts, arts groups, attend, audience, August, auto, Baseball, blog, Breese Stevens Field, Broadcast, cancel, car, CEO, Chamber music, change, changes, Channel 27, Classical music, community, composer, Concert, concertmaster, Concerts on the Square, conductor, coronavirus, cost, county, creative, Dane County, day, decision, deem, details, difficult, director, downtown, drive-in, Facebook, film, Film score, Forward Dane, founder, groups, guidelines, Health, Instagram, involve, Jacob Stockinger, Jess Salek, Joe Loehnis, John Williams, July, June, like, link, live, live-stream, local, location, Madison, Madison Mallards, Magnificent Seven, major, Mosaic Chamber Players, movie music, movie score, Music, news, night, online, optimistic, Orchestra, other, outdoors, pandemic, Park, partnership, PBS, PBS Wisconsin, People, performer, Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, phase, Pianist, Piano, Pink Panther, plan, play, playing, popular, popular success, Portage, positive, post, posting, postpone, Public health, purchase, Raiders of the Lost Ark, realist, rebroadcast, release, requirement, resume, runout, safe, safety, Schindler's List, September, series, share, show, showing, singer, Smoke Gets in Your Eyes, song, soon, soprano, Sound of Music, state, stay, steps, Steven Spielberg, summer, Suzanne Beia, symphony, tag, Tchaikovsky, Television, tenor, The Ear, tickets, time, TV, United States, unveil, vehicles, venue, venues, virtual, vocal music, Warner Park, WCO, Website, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Wisconsin Public Television, WKOW TV, WPT, YouTube
Classical music: June is Gay Pride month. How many LGBTQ classical composers and performers do you know about? Which ones are your favorites or most surprise you?
2 Comments
IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
ALERT: This Sunday, the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society’s Virtual Chamber Music Festival begins online. It is called “Bach’s Lunch” and will send out short concerts every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday through Sunday, June 28, when a grand finale is planned. It is FREE. But you have to sign up by emailing crownover@bachdancinganddynamite.org
By Jacob Stockinger
This past week the Rainbow flags (below) have started flying, including at the Wisconsin state Capitol.
Last year was the 50th anniversary of the riot or uprising at the Stonewall Inn in New York City that eventually gave birth to a worldwide movement to insure that queer people deserve and will receive human rights.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Pride, which started with parades and marches to celebrate that initial victory and the start of a global gay liberation movement that continues and widens today.
On this first weekend in June 2020, it seems fitting to recall the many LGBTQ composers and performers in classical music.
The gay rights movement has opened the closet doors not only of individual lives today but also of historical figures. When The Ear was taking piano lessons and started going to concerts and listening to recordings, and learning about classical music, the subject remained shrouded in silence and secrecy.
You could read and hear about Tchaikovsky (below top) and Leonard Bernstein (below bottom, in a photo by Jack Mitchell) – to take a very popular composer and a renowned composer-conductor — but no one mentioned the role of homosexuality in their lives and careers.
So here are several lists that may teach you something new about gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer musicians – both composers and performers.
Some of the calls seem very iffy to The Ear. For example, Beethoven, Schubert and Chopin (below and in the YouTube video at the bottom) lived at a time when a homoerotic friendship did not necessarily mean a queer sexual identity. But one way or the other, historical proof and documentation can be hard to come by. And clearly there is much more to find out about the past.
Take a look. No longer is such information a rarity. From both the quantity and quality of the entries, at least you will see how scholars are taking new looks and undermining the heterosexual assumption that has wrapped so many historical and even contemporary figures in a wrong or mistaken identity.
Freedom, acceptance and respect are not zero-sum games in which one party can win only if another party loses. There is enough of each to go around.
So enjoy the information, whether it is new or not, and the respect it should inspire for the central role of LGBTQ people in the arts both past and present.
Here is a pretty comprehensive alphabetical list from Wikipedia of LGBT composers, both living and dead. It includes Chester Biscardi (below), who did graduate work at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. You don’t have to click on each name. Just hover the cursor arrow over the name and you will see a photo and biographical blurb:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:LGBT_composers
And here is a list, also in alphabetical order and also from Wikipedia, of LGBT musicians and performers, not all of them classical. It works by clicking on sub-categories that include nationality – though one wonders if musicians from extremely homophobic countries and cultures are included:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:LGBT_musicians
Here is a similar list from QueerBio.com that also includes links to similar lists for rock, country, hip-hop, jazz, Christian music and more:
https://queerbio.com/wiki/index.php/LGBTQ_Classical_Music_Composers
Here is a more selective list from The Advocate, an LGBT magazine, of 18 queer composers who made history and you should know about:
And here is a similarly selective list from radio station WFMT in Chicago of 15 LGBT composers — including Corelli, Handel (below) and Lully — you should know about:
https://www.wfmt.com/2015/06/25/15-queer-composers-know/
From Arts Boston, here are 10 contemporary composers who are queer:
http://artsboston.org/2018/06/21/10-contemporary-lgbtq-composers-you-should-know/
Finally, here is a list from the Spotify streaming service that features many samplings of actual pieces by historical and contemporary queer composers:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DX75gMjYMWCsk
Which names most surprised you?
If you have questions, comments or additional names and information to add — The Ear doesn’t see the acclaimed pianist Jeremy Denk listed — please leave word in the Comment section.
The Ear wants to hear.
Happy Pride, everyone!
Tags: #AlphabeticalOrder, #ArcangeloCorelli, #ArtsBoston, #BachDancingandDynamiteSociety, #BaroqueComposers, #BaroqueEra, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CapitolSquare, #ChamberMusic, #ChesterBiscardi, #ChicagoIllinois, #ChristianMusic, #Classicalera, #ClassicalMusician, #ContemporaryComposer, #COVID-19, #EmailAddress, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FranzSchubert, #FredericChopin, #GayHistory, #GayLiberation, #GayPride, #GenderNon-Conforming, #GeorgeFridericHandel, #Hip-hopmusic, #HistoricalFigure, #HumanRights, #JacobStockinger, #Jean-BaptisteLully, #JeremyDenk, #JohannSebastianBach, #LeonardBernstein, #LGBTQrights, #LiveStreaming, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #ModernComposers, #MusicLessons, #NewMusic, #NewYorkCity, #PeterIlyichTchaikovsky, #PianoLessons, #PrideFlag, #PrideMonth, #RadioStation, #RomanticComposers, #RomanticEra, #SexualIdentity, #StateCapitol, #StonewallInn, #StonewallRiot, #StonewallUprising, #TheAdvocate, #TheEar, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VirtualConcert, #VladimirHorowitz, #Wikipediabiography, #Wikipediaentry, #YouTubevideo, 2020, acceptance, alphabetical, anniversary, Arcangelo Corelli, arrow, Arts, Arts Boston, assumption, audience, Audio, Bach, Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society, Baroque, BDDS, Beethoven, Bernstein, biography, birth, Biscardi, bisexual, blog, blurb, Capitol, career, celebrate, Chamber music, Chester Biscardi, Chicago, Chopin, choral music, Christian, Classical, Classical era, Classical music, click, closet, composer, composer-performer, Concert, concerts, conductor, contemporary, Corelli, coronavirus, country, culture, cursor, dead, deserve, documentation, downtown, Early music, email, entry, Facebook, festival, figures, finale, forward, Franz Schubert, Frédéric Chopin, free, freedom, friendship, game, gay, gay liberation, gay Pride, gender, George Frideric Handel, global, globe, graduate, grand, Handel, heterosexual, historical, historical figures, History, homoerotic, homophobic, Homosexuality, Horowitz, human rights, identity, information, Jacob Stockinger, Jazz, Jean-Baptiste Lully, Jeremy Denk, Johann Sebastian Bach, June, Leonard Bernstein, lesbian, lesson, LGBTQ, life, like, link, list, listen, live, lives, living, longer, look, lose, Ludwig van Beethoven, Lully, lunch, Madison, magazine, march, Mead Witter School of Music, mention, mistaken, modern composers, month, movement, Music, nationality, new, New Music, New York City, no longer, non-conforming, online, opera, Orchestra, order, pandemic, parade, party, past, People, performer, Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, photo, Piano, piano lessons, pieces, popular, present, pride, Pride flag, proof, quality, quantity, queer, QueerBio.com, Radio, rap, rarity, receive, Recordings, respect, riot, Rock, role, Romaniticism, Romanticism, sample, sampling, Saturday, scholar, Schubert, secrecy, sex, sexual, sexual identity, share, shrouded, sign-up, silence, Spotify, Spotify.com, state, Stonewall, streaming, subject, Sunday, symphony, tag, Tchaikovsky, teach, The Advocate, The Ear, Thursday, time, today, transexual, transgender, transsexual, Tuesday, undermine, United States, University of Wisconsin School of Music, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, uprising, UW, UW-Madison, vategory, victory, video, Viola, Violin, virtual, Vladimir Horowitz, vocal music, weekend, widen, Wikipedia, win, Wisconsin, WMFT, work, world, worldwide, wrong, YouTube, zero sum
Classical music: A good pandemic project for the Beethoven Year is to follow Boris Giltburg as he learns and posts all 32 piano sonatas in one year
3 Comments
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
There are a lot of ways that musicians are celebrating the Beethoven Year of 2020 – the 250th anniversary of the birth of the composer (below).
One of the most interesting ways also makes for an engaging and ongoing coronavirus pandemic project.
The prize-winning Russian-Israeli pianist Boris Giltburg (below in a photo by Sasha Gusov) is learning all 32 piano sonatas in one year.
It is a formidable challenge, not only because most of the sonatas are technically and musically difficult, but also because the pianist says he has played only nine of the 32 sonatas before.
Giltburg’s videos feature not only fine playing and interpretations, but also a very readable and informative diary he writes that includes notes – also available in German on the website — about the sonatas and about what the process of learning and playing them has been like.
His approach works and makes you a vicarious participant in the major undertaking.
He posts performances of the sonatas every few weeks. He is learning and posting them in chronological order so you get a sense of the evolution. Giltburg is now up to Sonata No. 9 in E Major, Op. 14, No. 1.
Here is some background about Giltburg from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Giltburg
And here is a link to more background at his personal website where you can also find information about his other recordings for Naxos (he is known for his Liszt, Rachmaninoff, Scriabin and Prokofiev) and concerts: https://borisgiltburg.com
But the heart of the project is at Beethoven32.com where you can find the sonatas starting from the first.
The Ear likes hearing them this way.
Listening to them one at a time and reading about them seems a less overwhelming way to become familiar with what is called “The New Testament” – as compared to the Old Testament of the 48 preludes and fugues in Bach’s “The Well-Tempered Clavier.”
The Ear finds the playing first-rate and the sound quality excellent with great close-up videos of the keyboard and Giltberg’s playing.
Here is a link to the main website, which is easier than hunting for individual sonatas on YouTube: https://beethoven32.com
The Ear suggests starting at the bottom with Giltberg’s introduction and then working your way up one at a time, allowing time to appreciate both the music and his diary notes.
To get you started, here his introduction to the project:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeBrn_kwvfg
And below is his performance the Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 2, No. 1.
Let us know what you think of Giltberg as a Beethoven interpreter and what you think of his sonata project.
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: #AlexanderScriabin, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BorisGiltburg, #ChronologicalOrder, #COVID-19, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FranzLiszt, #HomeWebsite, #IsraeliMusician, #JacobStockinger, #JohannSebastianBach, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #NaxosRecords, #NewTestament, #OldTestament, #PianoSonata, #Prize-Winning, #ProgramNotes, #SergeiProkofiev, #SergeiRachmaninoff, #SergeiRachmaninov, #TheEar, #Well-TemperedClavier, #Wikipediabiography, #Wikipediaentry, #YouTubevideo, 2020, Alexander Scriabin, anniversary, approach, Arts, audience, available, Bach, background, Beethoven, birth, blog, Boris Giltburg, challenge, challenging, chronological, Classical music, close-up, composer, Concert, coronavirus, covid, diary, difficult, excellent, Facebook, familiar, few, fine, first-rate, formidable, forward, Franz Liszt, fugue, German, Germany, Giltburg, hear, heart, home website, hunt, individual, informative, interesting, interpretation, interpreter, introduction, Israel, Israeli, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, learn, learning, like, link, listen, Liszt, Ludwig van Beethoven, make, Music, musical, Musician, Naxos, Naxos Records, New Testament, notes, Old Testament, order, overwhelming, pandemic, participant, performance, performer, personal, Pianist, Piano, playing, post, posting, Prelude, process, project, Prokofiev, quality, Rachmaninoff, Rachmaninov, readable, recording, Russia, Russian, Scrabin, Sergei Prokofiev, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Sergei Rachmaninov, share, Sonata, Sound, start, tag, technical, The Ear, The Well-Tempered Clavier, time, undertaking, vicarious, video, way, Website, week, Well-Tempered Clavier, Wikipedia, year, YouTube
Classical music: The Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra uses a new website and a new brochure to announce its new Masterworks season plus other innovations
Leave a Comment
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
In many ways, there is much that is familiar or tried-and-true about the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra (below, in a photo by Mike Gorski) and its new Masterworks season for 2020-21.
But in other ways it seems as if the WCO is reinventing and rebranding itself – perhaps under the direction of its new CEO Joe Loehnis – as the ensemble starts a double anniversary: its 60th season of existence and its 20th year under the baton of music director Andrew Sewell (below in a photo by Alex Cruz).
As in past years, the WCO programs feature a mix of familiar composers and works with new and neglected ones. It also features both new and returning guest soloists.
Start with what’s new.
The new WCO home website – like the new brochure that has been mailed out — has been redesigned, with more visuals and more information about the 34-member orchestra. The Ear finds both the new brochure and the new home page to be more attractive, better organized and easier to use. Take a look for yourself: https://wcoconcerts.org
There also seems to be a heightened emphasis on donations and raising money, including a new organization called “Friends” that brings special benefits for $30 or even more perks at $8 a month.
And the website seems more customer-friendly. There is a section on the website about “What to Expect,” which includes how to choose seats, how to dress, when to applaud and so forth. There is also a portal for streaming events and concerts.
There is more, much more, including the pre-concert dinners for the Masterworks concerts and the culturally diverse programs for the postponed Concerts on the Square (below), to run this summer on Tuesday nights at 6 p.m. (NOT the usual Wednesdays at 7 p.m.) from July 28 to Sept. 1.
There seems to be more emphasis on Sewell, who this year provides extensive first-person notes about each program and the guest artists. (In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear Sewell discuss the new Masterworks season with Wisconsin Public Radio host and WCO announcer Norman Gilliland.)
This season will see two performances of Handel’s “Messiah”: one on Saturday, Dec. 19, at the Blackhawk Church in Middleton; and another downtown on Sunday, Dec. 20, at the UW-Madison’s Hamel Music Center.
The Masterworks series of concerts – held on Friday nights at 7:30 p.m. in the Capitol Theater of the Overture Center – will begin in late November rather than in late January. The six concerts include five new ones and the postponed appearance of harpist Yolanda Kondonassis, whose appearance this season was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, on May 14.
Two of the concerts – on two Saturdays, Feb. 20 and April 10 – will also be performed in the Milwaukee suburb of Brookfield at the Sharon Lynn Wilson Center for the Arts (below).
You can read more about the community outreach and music education programs, especially the Youth and Education programs. They include the free Family Series and “Side by Side” concerts (below, in a photo by Mike DeVries for The Capital Times, WCO concertmaster Suzanne Beia, right, tutors a WYSO student); the Super Strings educational program; and the Young Artists Concerto Competition for grades 9-12.
Here are the Masterworks series:
NOV. 20 – Pianist John O’Conor (below) returns in a program of the Piano Concerto No. 5 “Emperor” by Beethoven; the Septet by Igor Stravinsky; and the Symphony No. 1 in D Major by Luigi Cherubini.
JAN. 15 – Cellist Amid Peled (below, in a photo by Lisa Mazzucco) returns in a program of Cello Concerto No. 1 by Dmitry Kabalevsky and the Andante by Jacques Offenbach; plus the Wind Serenade in D minor by Antonin Dvorak; and the Symphony No. 34 by Mozart.
FEB. 19 – Violinist Alexander Sitkovetsky (below) in returns in Antonio Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons” and Astor Piazzolla’s “Four Seasons in Buenos Aires”; plus the Suite for Strings by Leos Janacek.
MARCH 19 – Grammy-winning Spanish guitarist Mabel Millán (below) making her U.S, debut in an all-Spanish program that features the Concierto del Sur (Concerto of the South) by Manuel Ponce; the Sinfonietta in D major by Ernesto Halffter; and the overture “Los Esclavos Felices” (The Happy Slaves) by Juan Crisóstomo Arriaga.
APRIL 9 – Pianist Michael Mizrahi (below), who teaches at the Lawrence University Conservatory of Music in Appleton, Wis., on the Piano Concerto No. 1 by Beethoven plus the Serenade No. 1 by Johannes Brahms.
MAY 14 — Harpist Yolanda Kondonassis (below) in the Harp Concerto by Alberto Ginastera; plus the Sinfonietta by Sergei Prokofiev and the Symphony no. 88 by Franz Joseph Haydn.
Single tickets, which go on sale in July, are $15 to $80. Season subscriptions are available now with seat preference through July 1, bring a discounted price with an extra 10 percent off for first-time subscribers.
For more information, go to the website at https://wcoconcerts.org; call 608 257-0638; or mail a subscription form to the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Attn: Subscriptions; PO Box171, Madison, WI 53701-0171.
Tags: #AlexanderSitkovetsky, #AmitPeled, #AndrewSewell, #AntoninDvorak, #AntonioVivaldi, #AppletonWisconsin, #AstorPiazzolla, #BaroqueMusic, #BBCYoungMusicianoftheYear, #BlackhawkChurch, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CapitolTheater, #CelloConcerto, #ChamberMusic, #ChiefExecutiveOfficer, #ChoralMusic, #ChristianChurch, #ClassicalGuitar, #ClassicalGuitarist, #CommunityOutreach, #ConcertsontheSquare, #COVID-19, #customer-friendly, #DmitriKabalevsky, #DmitryKabalevsky, #EmperorConcerto, #ErnestoHalffter, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FamilyEvent, #FourSeasons, #FourSeasonsofBuenosAires, #GeorgeFridericHandel, #GrammyAward, #GuestArtist, #GuestSoloist, #GuitarConcerto, #HamelMusicCenter, #Handel'sMessiah, #HarpConcerto, #HarpMusic, #HighSchool, #HighTechnology, #HomeWebsite, #IgorStravinsky, #JacobStockinger, #JacquesOffenbach, #JoeLoehnis, #JohannesBrahms, #JohnO'Conor, #JuanCrisóstomoArriaga, #LawrenceUniversity, #LawrenceUniversityConservatoryofMusic, #LeosJanacek, #LiveStreaming, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #LuigiCherubini, #MabelMillán, #MasterworksSeason, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MexicanComposer, #MichaelMizrahi, #MilwaukeeWisconsin, #ModernMusic, #MusicDirector, #MusicEducation, #NewMusic, #NormanGilliland, #OvertureCenter, #PianoConcerto, #RadioHost, #Russianviolinist, #SharonLynneWilsonCenterfortheArts, #SidebySide, #SpanishComposer, #SpecialGuest, #StringMusic, #SuperStrings, #SuzanneBeia, #TheCapitalTimes, #TheEar, #TheHappySlaves, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VisualArt, #WindSerenade, #WisconsinChamberOrchestra, #WisconsinPublicRadio, #WisconsinYouthSymphonyOrchestras, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, #WYSOconcerts, #YolandaKondonassis, #YoungArtistConcertoCompetition, #YouTubevideo, 2020, 2021, Alexander Sitkovetsky, Amit Peled, Andante, Andrew Sewell, anniversary, announcer, Antonín Dvořák, Antonio Vivaldi, appearance, applaud, Appleton, April, Arriaga, Art, artist, Arts, attractive, audience, Ástor Piazzolla, Baroque, baton, Beethoven, benefits, better, Blackhawk Church, blog, Brahms, brand, brochure, Brookfield, Capitol Theater, cellist, Cello, CEO, Chamber music, Cherubini, choral music, Christian, church, Classical music, community outreach, Compact Disc, Competition, composer, Concert, concertmaster, concerto, concerts, Concerts on the Square, conductor, conservatory, coronavirus, covid, donate, donation, double, dress, Dvorak, Early music, easier, Education, Emperor Concerto, emphasis, ensemble, Ernesto Halffter, event, existence, expect, expectations, extensive, Facebook, familiar, Family, February, first-person, forgiveness, forward, Four Seasons, Four Seasons of Buenos Aires, free, friend, friends, George Frideric Handel, gift, give, grade, Grammy, Grammy Award, Graphics, guest artist, guest soloist, guitar, guitar concerto, Halffter, Hamel Music Center, Handel, happy', harp, harpist, heightened, hi tech, high school, home website, host, Igor Stravinsky, information, Jacob Stockinger, Jacques Offenbach, Janacek, January, Joe Loehnis, Johannes Brahms, John O'Conor, Juan Crisóstomo Arriaga, July, Kabalevsky, Lawrence University, Lawrence University Conservatory of Music, Leos Janacek, like, link, live streaming, look, Ludwig van Beethoven, Luigi Cherubini, Mabel Millán, Madison, march, masterwork, May, Mead Witter School of Music, member, Messiah, Mexican composer, Michael Mizrahi, Millán, Milwaukee, Mizrahi, modern, money, more, Mozart, Music, Music director, Music education, neglected, new, New Music, Norman Gilliland, notes, November, O'Conor, Offenbach, Orchestra, organization, organized, outreach, Overture, Overture Center, Overture Center for the Arts, pandemic, past, Peled, performance, performer, perk, photo, Pianist, Piano, Piano concerto, Piazzolla, portal, post, posting, postpone, program, Radio, raise, rebrand, redesign, reinvent, return, Season, section, September, septet, Serenade, series, share, Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts, Side by Side, Sinfonietta, single, Sitkovetsky, slave, south, Spain, Spanish, special, Stravinsky, stream, streaming, strings, subscription, suburb, Suite, summer, Super Strings, Suzanne Beia, symphony, tag, technology, The Capital Times, The Ear, The Happy Slaves, ticket, tutor, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, use, UW, UW-Madison, Violin, violinist, visual, Vivaldi, WCO, Website, Wind Serenade, winds, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, wisconsin public radio, Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, woodwinds, works, WPR, WYSO, year, Yolanda Kondonassis, young, Young Artist Concerto Competition, yourself, YouTube
Classical music: This summer’s Handel Aria Competition is postponed again — until next summer. But a Virtual Gala with new performances will be held online on Sept. 10
Leave a Comment
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has received the following announcement to post:
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 8th Annual Handel Aria Competition (below) has been postponed for a second time — until 2021 — for the safety of our singers, musicians and audience members.
The upper age limit for the competition will be extended when the competition resumes, so that all singers eligible this year can still participate.
We are introducing a new initiative to support the finalists from the past seasons of the competition – all of whom have had their opportunities to perform severely curtailed by the coronavirus pandemic. Your assistance in spreading the word would be much appreciated!
Originating in Madison, the Handel Aria Competition Virtual Gala will take place online and worldwide on Thursday, Sept. 10, at 7:30 p.m.
While the gala will not actually be live, since it requires editing together many separate elements of video, it will be shared via Facebook Live and also be available on YouTube and our website (see below).
It is our plan to feature professionally recorded Baroque arias specially performed for the occasion by past finalists and winners, as well as some of the videos recorded during the competition itself. (In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear bass-baritone Jonathan Woody singing an aria from the oratorio “Belshazzar” in 2019.)
We are also going to ask the finalists to record short video quotes about how the Handel Aria Competition has helped their careers, and why they love singing Handel.
Our host will be the Handel Aria Competition’s artistic director — and first prize-winner in 2015 — Sarah Brailey (below), who is also pursuing her doctorate at the UW-Madison.
Thanks to individual donations and foundation grants, all of the funds raised during the gala will be shared among the participating singers.
We hope you will join us in showing that we value their talent, and want to help them get through this difficult time.
For news updates and details, go to: https://handelariacompetition.com
Tags: #ArtisticDirector, #AudienceMember, #AudienceMembers, #BaroqueMusic, #BaroqueOpera, #BaroqueOratorio, #Baroquesinging, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CityofMadison, #COVID-19, #DifficultTime, #FacebookLive, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #GeorgeFridericHandel, #HandelAriaCompetition, #HomeWebsite, #JacobStockinger, #JonathanWoody, #LiveConcert, #MadisonBachMusicians, #MainstreamMedia, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #OnlineConcert, #OperaAria, #OrchestralMusic, #PerformingArts, #PublicHealth, #RecordedMusic, #SarahBrailey, #TheEar, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VocalMusic, #YouTubevideo, 2020, 2021, age, announcement, appreciate, appreciated, aria, Artistic director, Arts, assistance, audience member, available, Baroque, Baroque music, bass-baritone, Belshazzar, blog, cancel, career, Chamber music, Classical music, Competition, Concert, conductor, coronavirus, curtail, details, difficult, difficult time, doctorate, donation, Early music, editing, eligible, extend, Facebook, Facebook LIve, finalists, forward, foundation, funds, gala, George Frideric Handel, gift, grant, Handel, Handel Aria Competition, home website, host, individual, initiative, Jacob Stockinger, Jonathan Woody, like, limit, link, live, Love, Madison, Madison Bach Musicians, Mead Witter School of Music, Music, Musician, new, news, occasion, online, opera, oratorio, orchestral music, originate, pandemic, participate, past, perform, Performing arts, post, posting, postpone, profession, professionally, Public health, pursue, quote, quotes, record, recorded, resume, safety, Sarah Brailey, Season, severe, share, short, show, singer, Singing, spread, stream, support, tag, talent, The Ear, time, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, update, UW-Madison, value, virtual, vocal music, Website, winner, Wisconsin, word, worldwide, year, YouTube
Classical music: Trevor Stephenson announces the new season of the Madison Bach Musicians on YouTube. It features smaller concerts and familiar comfort music
Leave a Comment
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
At a time when so many concerts are being canceled, it is especially welcome when a local ensemble announces plans for the 2020-21 season.
To announce the 17th season of the Madison Bach Musicians — a period-instrument group that uses historically informed performance practices — the founder and artistic director Trevor Stephenson (below), who also plays the harpsichord, fortepiano and piano, has made and posted a 13-1/2 minute YouTube video.
The season will also be posted on the MBM website in early June, and will also be announced with more details about times and ticket prices via email and postal mailings.
In the video, Stephenson plays the harpsichord. He opens the video with the familiar Aria from the “Goldberg” Variations and closes with two contrasting Gavottes from the English Suite in G minor.
As usual, Stephenson offers insights in the programs that feature some very well-known and appealing works that are sure to attract audiences anxious to once again experience the comfort of hearing familiar music performed live.
One thing Stephenson does not say is that there seems to be fewer ambitious programs and fewer imported guest artists. It’s only a guess, but The Ear suspects that that is because it is less expensive to stage smaller concerts and it also allows for easier cancellation, should that be required by a continuing COVID-19 pandemic.
If the speculation proves true, such an adaptive move is smart and makes great sense artistically, financially and socially given the coronavirus public health crisis.
After all, this past spring the MBM had to cancel a much anticipated, expensive and very ambitious production, with many out-of-town guests artists, of the “Vespers of 1610” by Claudio Monteverdi. Nonetheless, MBM tried to pay as much as it could afford to the musicians, who are unsalaried “gig” workers who usually don’t qualify for unemployment payments.
“Hope and Joy” is a timely, welcome and much-needed theme of the new season.
The new season starts on Saturday night, Oct. 3, at Grace Episcopal Church downtown on the Capitol Square, and then Sunday afternoon, Oct. 4, at Holy Wisdom Monastery in Middleton.
The program is Haydn and Mozart: songs composed in English and German by Haydn plus songs by Mozart; the great violin sonata in E minor by Mozart; and two keyboard trios, one in C major by Haydn and one in G major by Mozart.
Only four players will be required. They include: Stephenson on the fortepiano; concertmaster Kangwon Kim on baroque violin; James Waldo on a Classical-era cello; and soprano Morgan Balfour (below), who won the 2019 Handel Aria Competition in Madison.
On Saturday night, Dec. 12, in the First Congregational United Church of Christ, near Camp Randall Stadium, MBM will perform its 10th annual holiday concert of seasonal music.
The program includes several selections from the “Christmas Oratorio” by Johann Sebastian Bach; a Vivaldi concerto for bassoon with UW-Madison professor Marc Vallon (below, in a photo by James Gill) as soloist; and the popular “Christmas Concerto” by Arcangelo Corelli.
On Saturday night, April 24, at Grace Episcopal Church and Sunday afternoon, April 25, at Holy Wisdom Monastery, the MBM will perform a concert of German Baroque masterworks with the internationally renowned baroque violinist Marc Destrubé (below).
The program features Handel and Bach but also composers who are not often played today but who were well known to and respected by Bach and his contemporaries.
Specifically, there will be a suite by Christoph Graupner (below top) and a work by Carl Heinrich Graun (below bottom).
There will also be a concerto grosso by George Frideric Handel and two very well-known concertos by Bach – the Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 and the Concerto for Two Violins.
Here is the complete video:
What do you think of the Madison Bach Musicians’ new season?
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: "Goldberg" Variations, #AntonioVivaldi, #ArcangeloCorelli, #ArtisticDirector, #BaroqueMusic, #BaroqueViolin, #BassoonConcerto, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BrandenburgConcerto, #CampRandall, #CampRandallStadium, #CapitolSquare, #CarlHeinrichGraun, #ChamberMusic, #ChristianChurch, #ChristmasConcerto, #ChristmasOratorio, #ChristophGraupner, #CityofMadison, #Classicalera, #ClaudioMonteverdi, #ConcertoGrosso, #COVID-19, #EnglishLanguage, #EnglishSuite, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FacultyMember, #FirstCongregationalUnitedChurchofChrist, #FranzJosephHaydn, #GeorgeFridericHandel, #GermanLanguage, #Goldberg"Variations, #GraceEpiscopalChurch, #GuestArtist, #HandelAriaCompetition, #HealthCrisis, #HistoricallyInformedPerformancePractices, #HolyWisdomMonastery, #HomeWebsite, #JacobStockinger, #James Waldo, #JamesWaldo, #JohannSebastianBach, #KangwonKim, #KeyboardMusic, #LiveMusic, #MadisonBachMusicians, #MarcDestrubé, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MiddletonWisconsin, #Musicfaculty, #MusicProfessors, #OrchestralMusic, #PandemicPlaylist, #PeriodInstrument, #PeriodInstruments, #PianoTrio, #PublicHealth, #SaturdayNight, #SeasonalMusic, #SopranoSinger, #Sundayafternoon, #TheEar, #TheFortepiano, #TicketPrice, #TrevorStephenson, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #Vespersof1610, #ViolinConcerto, #ViolinMusic, #ViolinSonata, #VocalMusic, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, #World-Renowned, #YouTubevideo, 2019, 2020, 2021, 21, adaptive, afford, afternoon, ambition, ambitious, announcement, annual, Antonio Vivaldi, anxious, appealing, Arcangelo Corelli, aria, artist, artistic, Artistic director, Arts, attract \anxious, audience, Bach, Baroque, blog, Brandenburg Concerto, Camp Randall, Camp Randall Stadium, cancel, cancellation, Capitol Square, Carl Heinrich Graun, cellist, Cello, Chamber music, Christmas, Christmas Concerto, Christmas Oratorio, Christoph Graupner, church, Classical era, Classical music, Claudio Monteverdi, close, comfort, composer, Concert, concertmaster, concerto, Concerto Grosso, contemporaries, contrast, Corelli, coronavirus, crisis, dance, December, detail, downtown, draw, Early music, easier, email, English, English language, English Suite, ensemble, expensive, Facebook, faculty, familiar, fewer, financial, First Congregational United Church of Christ, fortepiano, forward, founder, Franz Joseph Haydn, Gavotte, George Frideric Handel, German, Germany, gig, Grace Episcopal Church, great, guest, Handel, Handel Aria Competition, harpsichord, Haydn, hear, hearing, historically informed performance practices, Holiday, Holy Wisdom Monastery, home website, hope, import, inisght, international, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, Joy, June, Kangwoo Kim, Keyboard, like, link, live music, local, long-distance, Madison, Madison Bach Musicians, mail, mailing, Marc Destrubé, masterpiece, masterwork, MBM, Mead Witter School of Music, Middleton, Monteverdi, Morgan Balfour, MorganBalfour, move, Mozart, Music, Musician, new, night, offer, open, orchestral music, out-of-town, pandemic, pay, payment, performer, period instruments, period-instrument, Piano, Piano Trio, plans, play, popular, post, postal, posting, price, professor, program, public, Public health, renown, respect, salary, Saturday night, Season, seasonal, seasonal music, sense, share, singer, Singing, smart, social, Sonata, song, soprano, specific, speculation, Spring, stadium, start, Suite, Sunday afternoon, suspect, tag, The Ear, theme, ticket, time, timely, today, Trevor Stephenson, trio, unemployment, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, unsalaried, usual, UW, UW-Madison, vesper, video, Violin, Violin Sonata, violinist, Vivaldi, vocal music, Website, welcome, well-known, winner, Wisconsin, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, worker, YouTube
Classical music: The Madison Area Youth Chamber Orchestra cancels this summer’s season due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Leave a Comment
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has received the following announcement about the Madison Area Youth Chamber Orchestra (MAYCO, below in a photo by Steve Rankin):
“We regret that due to the coronavirus pandemic, we will be canceling the 2020 MAYCO season. Every year, we look forward to working with the talented young musicians who perform with us, and we can’t wait to see you all again next summer!”
For more information about the ensemble, including how to join it and how to support it as well as finding concert programs performed since 2011 and finding news updates about future concerts and educational events, go to: https://www.mayco.org. (In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear a piece MAYCO commissioned from composer Lawren Brianna Ware and premiered last year.)
Tags: #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberOrchestra, #CommissionedMusic, #COVID-19, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #JacobStockinger, #LawrenBriannaWare, #MadisonAreaYouthChamberOrchestra, #MikkoRankinUtevsky, #MusicEducation, #PublicHealth, #SteveRankin, #ThaliaCoombs, #TheEar, #WorldPremiere, #YouTubevideo, 2020, 2021, announcement, Arts, blog, cancel, Cello, chamber orchestra, Classical music, commission, composer, Concert, concerto, conductor, coronavirus, crisis, educational, event, Facebook, forward, future, hear, Jacob Stockinger, join, Lawren Brianna Ware, like, link, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Madison Area Youth Chamber Orchestra, MAYCO, Mikko Rankin Utevsky, Music, Music education, Musician, news, Orchestra, pandemic, Performing arts, Piano, piece, post, posting, postpone, premiere, program, Public health, reader, regret, seaosn, share, Steve Rankin, subscriber, summer, support, symphony, tag, talent, talented, Thalia Coombs, The Ear, United States, updates, Viola, Violin, Wisconsin, working, young, Youth, YouTube
Classical music: The Willy Street Chamber Players postpone their sixth season from this summer to next summer because of the coronavirus pandemic
Leave a Comment
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has received the following announcement from the Willy Street Chamber Players, one of his favorite classical music groups, summer or winter. Their programming and performing are first-rate. Indeed, in December of 2016, The Ear named the Willys “Musicians of the Year.” For an overview of the ensemble, see the YouTube video at the bottom.
For more information and links, go to: http://www.willystreetchamberplayers.org
| Dear WSCP Family,
It is with heavy hearts that we announce the postponement of this July concert series to summer 2021.
Just a few weeks ago, we were hard at work putting the finishing touches on an amazing 2020 summer season. We had no idea the COVID-19 pandemic would soon bring everything to a screeching halt.
As we have continued to monitor the situation, we have become increasingly convinced that postponement is the best path forward. The health and safety of our audience, musicians and community remain paramount.
We are eager to find ways to serve our community during this extremely difficult time and will begin by highlighting some of our wonderful Willy Street neighbors, friends and past partnerships on our Facebook page.
As a subscriber to our mailing list, you’ll also have access to some very special video memories and unique surprises in the coming months to thank you for for your support.
We are devastated we won’t be able to share our music with you this July, and our hearts go out to everyone affected by COVID-19. We will get through this together.
We know that we have created something truly special together over the past five years and look forward to continuing our beautiful east side tradition for years to come.
Stay safe, keep in touch and see you soon, WSCP
|
Tags: #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #COVID-19, #EastSide, #FacebookPage, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #JacobStockinger, #MailingList, #MusicianoftheYear, #TheEar, #WilliamsonStreet, #WillyStreetChamberPlayers, #YouTubevideo, 2020, 2021, ago, amazing, annouce, Arts, audience, Bach, blog, Chamber music, communty, Concert, convinced, coronavirus, devastated, difficult, ear, east side, ensemble, Facebook, favorite, finishing, first-rate, forward, friends, halt, hard, healthy, heart, heavy, highlight, idea, Jacob Stockinger, July, like, link, list, Madison, mailing, memories, monitor, Music, Musician of the Year, musicians, overview, page, pandemic, paramount, partnership, path, performance, performer, performing, Piano, post, posting, postponement, program, programming, safe, Season, series, serve, share, situation, tag, The Ear, time, together, touches, tradition, United States, University of Wisconsin–Madison, video, Viola, Violin, week, weeks, Williamson Street, Willy Street Chamber Players, winter, Wisconsin, wonderful, work, year, years, YouTube
Recent Comments
 | Mary Friedel-Hunt on What do you think of the… |
 | music88 on Yunchan Lim’s Chopin etudes ar… |
 | diacon2 on Who was the better pianist? Ma… |
 | welltemperedear on Classical music: Madison Opera… |
| welltemperedear on Classical music: Was Bernard H… |
The Well-Tempered Ear 
Classical music: It’s clear to The Ear: It will be at least another full year before audiences in the U.S. can safely attend live concerts. What do you think?
7 Comments
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
All the signs point to the same conclusion: It will be at least the fall of 2021 before we can safely attend concerts again – if we are lucky.
These past two weeks, The Ear answered questionnaires sent out by the Madison Symphony Orchestra (below top), which has already canceled the season through January, and the Wisconsin Union Theater (below bottom is Shannon Hall).
If you read between the lines, both questionnaires seemed to suggest the same two things: that the entire 2020-21 concert season will be canceled or postponed; or else that it will feature virtual online performances — for ticket prices (perhaps called a “donation”) that have not yet been announced and may not be acceptable to a lot of any group’s core audience.
Perhaps you disagree. If so, The Ear would like to hear in the comment section what you think and why you think it.
Here is what The Ear, who has talked with other season subscribers and various musicians, has seen and heard.
The United States has now surpassed 5 million coronavirus infections and 163,000 Covid-19 deaths with no sign of slowing down and many signs of accelerating. One widely cited model now predicts 300,000 deaths by this Dec. 1.
Plus, too many Americans refuse to wear masks or to maintain social distancing or to shelter at home to help prevent the spread of the virus.
Add in that we will be fortunate if enough vaccines are found to be safe, efficient and approved for use by Jan 1.
Then – despite federal government’s “Warp Speed” development or fast-tracking of the search for vaccines — there is the time needed to manufacture enough of them.
Then it will take considerable time to distribute them equitably, which other countries and public health agencies around the world demand.
Then, if we hope to reach herd immunity, it will take time to convince enough people to get the vaccine, especially with the growing number of anti-vaxxers.
Then those who do get vaccinated will have to wait a month for the second shot that will be required.
Then we wait a few weeks to see if and how much the vaccine really works – if it is safe and prevents infection or at least lessens the damage of the disease if you do get infected.
Plus, it sees unreasonable to think all of these steps will go without a hitch. So maybe a few more weeks or even months should be added.
Add up the math, and the conclusion seems clear: Performing arts events, like sports and other large in-person gatherings, seem increasingly likely to be canceled or reconfigured for a full year.
Concerts are already taking place in China, and other countries in Asia and Europe seem likely to catch up soon. But music lovers in the U.S. will be lucky if they get to attend a live concert with 100 or 500 or 1,000 or 2,500 other people before the fall of 2021 – at least a full year away. Maybe more.
The Ear could well be wrong. Maybe you see a different conclusion, which we would all love to hear. Perhaps international readers will share estimates about when concerts will begin in their country.
One way or another, we will learn a lot more about how the new music season is being planned and changed in the next three weeks.
Share this:
Tags: #AtLeast, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #ChoralMusic, #ClassicalMusician, #ConcertSeason, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #EdgewoodCollege, #Europeanmusic, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FederalGovernment, #JacobStockinger, #LiveMusic, #MadisonOpera, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MiddletonCommunityOrchestra, #MusicLover, #OakwoodChamberPlayers, #OldPeople, #OperaMusic, #OrchestralMusic, #PerformingArts, #PublicHealth, #ShannonHall, #SlowDown, #SocialDistance, #Stayathome, #TheEar, #TheU.S., #TicketPrice, #UnitedStates, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #WarpSpeed, #WisconsinChamberOrchestra, #WisconsinUnionTheater, #WisconsinYouthSymphonyOrchestras, #YouTubevideo, 2020, 2020-21, 2021, accelerating, acceptable, add, agency, American, Americans, announced, anti-vaxxer, Arts, Asia, at least, attend, audience, blog, cancel, canceled, Centers for Disease Control, Chamber music, China, Chinese, choral music, Classical music, classicalmusic, clear, comment, commentary, Concert, conclusion, continent, core, coronavirus, countries, country, damage, dead, death, December, demand, development, die, disagree, Disease, disguise, distance, distribute, donation, Early music, Edgewood College, efficient, enough, estimate, Europe, event, Facebook, fall, fast-track, federal government, fee, fortunate, forward, group, growing, hear, hitch, Home, infection, international, Jacob Stockinger, January, lessen, like, lines, link, live music, Love, luck, lucky, Madison, Madison Opera, Madison Symphony Orchestra, manufacture, mask, math, Mead Witter School of Music, Middleton Community Orchestra, month, more, mused, Music, music lover, Musician, number, Oakwood Chamber Players, opera, Orchestra, orchestral music, other, Overture Center, pandemic, People, performances, performer, Performing arts, Point, post, posting, postpone, postponed, predict, prevent, price, Public health, questionnaire, reader, refuse, required, safe, same, search, Season, second, Shannon Hall, share, shelter, shot, signs, slow, slow down, social, social distance, spread, stay at home, step, subscriber, suggest, surpassed, symphony, tag, take, talk, The Ear, things, think, ticket, time, trial, U.S., United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, unreasonable, used, UW-Madison, vaccine, virus, vocal music, warp speed, we, wear, weeks, what, why, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Wisconsin Union Theater, Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras, work, world, you