The Well-Tempered Ear
Muti to conduct an opera academy in China
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
Italian maestro Riccardo Muti (below) — the 83-year-old retired music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and longtime music director of the iconic La Scala Opera House in Milan— will take his workshops for young conductors and musicians to China for the first time this coming November and December.
Muti is a devoted advocate and practitioner of music education, and has led similar academies in: Ravenna and Milan, Italy; Tokyo, Japan; and Seoul, South Korea.
In a story published in Chinese media, Muti explains why he chose China this time. There he will work in the city of Suzhou with the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra and with individual applicants from around the world.
“During the past decades, classical music has gained a large fan base in China, with new concert halls and new symphony orchestras appearing in the country,” Muti adds. “There are also many great Chinese musicians performing around the world — pianists, violinists, singers and conductors — who have become like bridges, bringing our countries closer to each other.”
The repertoire he has chosen to work on is the one-act Italian opera “Cavalleria Rusticana” (Rustic Chivalry) by Pietro Mascagni.
It seems a perfect choice to The Ear. It is shorter and easier to stage than most full-length operas. It uses the Roman Catholic Church and religion as well as other aspects of European and Italian society and culture. This includes the famous “Regina Coeli” or Easter Hymn (below):
The opera itself has beautiful parts for the vocal soloists, the chorus and the orchestral instrumentalists — as you can hear above and in the famously melodic Intermezzo (in the YouTube video at the bottom) that was used in the film “The Godfather.”
Here is a link to the full story from the China Daily newspaper:
https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202404/13/WS661a1d39a31082fc043c1c81.html
You might also recall an earlier blog post about the recent successes of Asian classical musicians:
https://welltempered.wordpress.com/?s=Asian+musicians
When it comes to Western classical music in China, it seems that success keeps building on success.
Tags: #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #YouTubevideo, academy, advocate, alto, Android, Apple, applicant, Arts, Asia, asian, audience, Baidu, baritone, base, bass, beautiful, Beijing, Bilibili, blog, Blog post, blog posting, brass, bridge, bridges, Cavalleria Rusticana, Cello, Chicago, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, China, China Daily, Chinese, chivalry, choice, choral music, chorus, Christ, Christian, Christianity, church, city, Classic FM, Classical music, com, composer, Concert, concert hall, conduct, Conducting, conductor, countries, country, culture, December, devoted, duckduckgo, Easter, Easter hymn, Europe, European, Facebook, Facebook post, Facebook posting, famous, fan base, fans, film, Film score, globe, God, Google, Google Alert, Google Alerts, Google Search, icon, iconic, individual, instrumentalists, intermezzo, Italian, Italy, Jacob Stockinger, Japan, Japanese, Jesus, Korea, La Scala, link, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Maestro, Mascagni, media, melodic, mezzosoprano, Milan, movie, Music, Music director, Music education, music students, Musician, Muti, Newspaper, November, one-act, online, opera, Orchestra, orchestral, organ, OS, part, percussion, perfect, perform, performer, performing, Pianist, Piano, Pietro Mascagni, practitioner, QQ, Ravenna, recent, Regina Coeli, Religion, repertoire, repertory, retired, Retirement, Riccardo Muti, rustic, Rustic Chivalry, Seoul, share, short, singer, singers, society, soloist, soprano, soundtrack, South Korea, stage, story, strings, Student, success, Suzhou, Suzhou Symphony Orchestra, symphony, symphony orchestra, tag, tenor, The Ear, The Godfather, The Well-Tempered Ear, Tieba, TikTok, Tokyo, U.S., United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, US, Viola, Violin, violinist, vocal, vocal music, voice, Website, WeChat, Weibo, Well-Tempered, Western, Wisconsin, woodwinds, workshop, world, YouTube
‘Lord of the Rings’ to become an opera
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
Here is something a lot of old — and especially new — opera fans should like.
The globally popular “The Lord of the Rings” — a popular set of epic fantasy books that was turned into a blockbuster movie (below) by Peter Jackson — will become a full-blown opera. Or perhaps, like Wagner’s more famous “Ring of the Nibelung” cycle, several operas.
Just this week, the J.R.R. Tolkien Estate granted permission to the British composer Paul Cofield Godfrey (below) to compose a complete opera based on the best-selling work if fantasy.
https://www.classicfm.com/music-news/lord-of-the-rings-opera-approved-tolkien-estate
Godfrey (below) has already composed some possible excerpts that will likely be used in the opera — and might have helped to persuade the Tolkien Estate to grant him permission. You can hear one — a burial dirge or “Lament for Boromir” — in the YouTube video at the bottom.
Translated into more than 38 languages with sales of more than 150 million copies, the fantasy — which met with mixed critical reaction when it was first published — has been nothing short of a phenomenon. One can justifiably expect guaranteed success of the operatic version.
For more about the history and the plot of “The Lord of the Rings’ see the Wikipedia entry:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lord_of_the_Rings
Does an opera based on “The Lord of the Rings” interest you?
Do you think it will be successful?
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: academic, alto, Android, Apple, Arts, Asia, asian, audience, baritone, bass, best-sellebest, best-selling, blockbuster, blog, Book, Boromir, British, British composer, Choir, choral music, Classic FM, Classical music, composer, Concert, copies, copy, critic, dirge, drama, duckduckgo, Earth, England, epiuc, estate, Facebook, famous, fan, fantasy, film, global, globe, Google Alert, Google Alerts, Google Search, grant, Great Britain, guarantee, History, J.R.R.Tolkien, Jacob Stockinger, lament, language, languages, like, link, Lord of the Rings, Madison, mezzosoprano, Microsoft, Microsoft Bing, million, movie, Music, musical drama, new, New Zealand, old, opera, opera-based, Orchestra, OS, Paul Cofield Godfrey, permission, Peter Jackson, Peter Jacobs, phenomenon, plot, popular, publish, published, reviews, Ring cycle, Ring of the Nibelung, sales, scholastic, sell, share, sing, singer, Singing, sold, soprano, success, successul, symphony, tag, Television, tenor, The Ear, The Lord of the Rings, The Tolkien Estate, The Well-Tempered Ear, theater, theatre, translate, TV, UK, United States, universal, vocal music, Wagner, Well-Tempered, Wisconsin, world, worldwide, YouTube
Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra’s new CD and Friday night concert champion racial diversity
1 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
“Musical Landscapes in Color” is a five-year initiative by the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra with its award-winning, composer-in-residence Dr. William Banfield (below), who has produced a body of work in the past 25 years that includes music, books, teaching and creative work that contributes to contemporary arts leadership.
The cultural undertaking aims to elevate the voices of an array of living, diverse composers of color throughout the United States. The project represents a significant step towards diversifying the classical music landscape through compositions and audiences, according to the WCO.
The first of several installments (below) — “Harmony in Black” — has just been released by Albany Records.
The album is available in a physical format and for digital streaming on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music and YouTube, where you can sample it at the bottom.
Performed and recorded live on Friday, Oct. 13, 2023, it features excerpts from three compositions: one by four-time Grammy nominee Patrice Rushen entitled “Mine Eyes Have Seen The Glory”; and two by renowned composer Banfield entitled “Testimony of Tone, Tune, and Time” and “Symphony No. 8: Here I Stand.”
Their three compositions do not quote spiritual melodies directly, but do embody the spirit of those songs by drawing either on direct quotations of speeches or writings.
Multi-Grammy-nominated artist Patrice Rushen (below) is admired by many for her groundbreaking achievements including serving as Musical Director for the 46th, 47th and 48th Annual Grammy Awards.
CONTENTS:
Patrice Rushen: Movement 1: ”Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory”
Dr. William Banfield: (starting at 8:10): “Testimony of Tone, Tune and Time” — Symphony No. 8
Performers are: retired City of Madison, Dane County and State of Wisconsin Judge Paul Higginbotham (below) as the narrator; saxophonist Matthew Sintchak; and the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra under conductor and music director Andrew Sewell.
For more background, including a release reception, go to a story in Madison 365:
A WORLD PREMIERE THIS FRIDAY NIGHT
The project continues with a concert that takes place this Friday night, March 22, at 7:30 p.m. in the Capitol Theater of the Overture Center features the WORLD PREMIERE of Banfield’s Symphony No. 14 “Revelation.”
Guest artists include the Madison Youth Choirs, the Festival Choir of Madison and the Edgewood College Chamber Singers. Soloists include soprano Angela Brown, tenor Ben Johnson and baritone William Volmar.
Opening the 90-minute concert is Symphony No. 1 in G major, Op. 4 (1901) by British composer Edwin York Bowen, whose music shows influences of Rachmaninov, Chopin and Tchaikovsky.
Tickets are still available and cost $34.50, $75 and $95. For more information and tickets, go to: https://wcoconcerts.org/
Have you heard Banfield’s music?
What do you think of it?
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #Composer-in-Residence, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #YouTubevideo, Abraham Lincoln, achievement, African, African American, African-American music, Albany Records, Album, Amazon, Amazon Music, American, Andrew Sewell, Android, Angela Brown, appellate, Apple Music, Apple Music Classical, Arts, asian, audience, award, baritone, Ben Johnson, black, Black composers, black music, blog, books, box office, British, Capitol Theater, CD, Cello, Chamber music, champion, Chopin, choral music, circuit court, city of Madison, civil rights, Classical music, color, Compact Disc, composer, composers of color, Composition, Concert, contemporary, contemporary composers, contemporary music, cost, court, creative, Dane County, digital, diversity, doctor, Dr., Edgewood College, Edgewood College Chamber Singers, Edwin York Bowen, England, English, enslaved, enslaved people, entitled, Europe, excerpts, Facebook, Festival Choir, format, Friday, Friday night, Google, Google Alert, Google Search, Grammy, groundbreaking, harmony, Harmony in Black, influence, information, initiative, IOS, it, Jacob Stockinger, judge, landscape, Latino, leadership, Lincoln, link, live, live music, Live Recording, living composers, Madison, Madison 365, Madison Youth Choirs, Madison365, Madison365.com, Martin Luther King, Martin Luther King Jr, Matthew Sintchak, melodies, melody, Mine Eyes Have Seen The Glory, MLK, movement, Music, musical, narrator, nominee, online, opera, Orchestra, Overture Center, Patrice Rushen, Paul Higgenbotham, physical, Polish, Polish composer, post, posting, premiere, price, project, quotations, race, Rachmaninoff, Rachmaninov, racism, recording, retired, Revelation, Russia, Russian, sample, Saxophone, saxophonist, share, sing, singer, Singing, slave, slavery, soloist, song, soprano, speech, speeches, spirit, spiritual, Spotify, State of Wisconsin, streamed music, streaming, streaming service, symphony, tag, Tchaikovsky, Teacher, teaching, tenor, testimony, The Ear, think hear, tickets, time, title, tone, tune, Twitter, U.S., UK, United States, Viola, Violin, vocal music, vocalist, WCO, Website, William Banfield, William Volmar, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, work, works, world, world premiere, writings, X, year, York Bowen, you, YouTube
Remembering the classical musicians who died in 2023
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
It remains an end-of-the-year ritual: remembering the dead who brought beauty to us through music.
Here are remembrances of the classical musicians we lost in 2023.
From Presto Music comes a list of world-known talents who died this past year — plus those who died in recent past years. It is relatively short and has links to the full obituaries, including the of American mezzo-soprano Grace Bumbry (below, in 2009, in the singing the famous Habanera from Bizet’s “Carmen” in the YouTube video at the bottom). A pioneer, she was the first Black singer to perform at the annual summer Wagner festival in Beyreuth, Germany, and she performed at the Wisconsin Union Theater during the 1978-79 season:
https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/articles/obituary/browse
Here is a longer, less renowned and more international list from The Violin Channel.
It includes many very well known musicians, including Menahem Pressler (below who co-founded and played for more than 50 years with the Beaux Arts Trio, which performed several times at the Wisconsin Union Theater. He also taught at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.
It also includes the jazz and classical bassist Richard Davis (below), who spent decades teaching and performing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Mead Witter School of Music.
The Ear especially likes this list because ordinary “house” musicians — and not just stars — are remembered. After all, the majority of musicians who add so much to our lives are not stars — but usually just mainstream workers in the arts.
Click on the names in red to see the full biographies, many of which are more touching than you might expect — for example, the Ukrainian conductor who died young while defending his country against Russia.
Tags: #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #YouTubevideo, 2023, African American, America, American, André Watts, Android, Apple, aria, Arts, Asia, asian, audience, Austria, Bach, baritone, Baroque, bass, Bayreuth, beauty, Beaux Arts Trio, Beethoven, Belgium, Berlin Philharmonic, biographies, Bizet, black, blog, Britain, Carmen, Cello, Chamber music, Choir, choral music, Classical, Classical music, Colombia, composer, Concert, concerto, conductor, Czech, Czech Republic, dead, death, dying, Early music, end, England, English, Facebook, famous, festival, Finland, Finnish, France, Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra, German, Germany, Google, Grace Bumbry, Greece, Greek, Habanera, Hong Kong, House, Hungary, I Musici, Indiana University, Ingrid Haebler, international, Israel, Italy, Jacob Stockinger, Japan, Japanese, Jazz, Jewish, Johann Sebastian Bach, Kaija Saariaho, know, Korea, Korean, Latvia, life, link, Liszt, lives, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Mead Witter School of Music, meaning, Menahem Pressler, mezzo-sorpano, Mozart, Mozart in the Jungle, Music, Musician, Netherlands, New Year, obituaries, obituary, Oboe, opera, Orchestra, OS, Oscars, Overture Center, passed, passing, perform, performance, performer, performing, Pianist, Piano, Piano Trio, popular, Prague, Presto Music, remember, remembrance, Renata Scotto, Richard Davis, ritual, Romania, Russia, Russian, Sakamoto, Scotland, share, singer, Singing, Sonata, South Korea, South Korean, star, String quartet, strings, summer, symphony, tag, teach, Teacher, tenor, The Ear, Turkey, Turkish, U.S., UK, Ukraine, Ukrainian, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW, Viola, Violin, Violin Channel, vocal music, Wagner, winds, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Union Theater, woodwinds, worker, working, year, YouTube
MSO and FUS community summer choir sings start Monday, July 10
2 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
The Ear has received the following message from the First Unitarian Society of Madison to distribute to the public:
*** PLEASE FORWARD TO MADISON SINGERS ***
Please join us for the second annual “Madison Sings!” community singing events.
A collaboration between the Madison Symphony Chorus and the First Unitarian Society.
• Open to all. Bring a friend!
- 6:30 p.m.–8:30 p.m.
- $10
- Scores available when you arrive or bring your own
- First Unitarian Society of Madison’s Atrium Auditorium (at bottom, in photo by Zane Williams)
- GPS: 900 University Bay Drive, Madison, WI 53711
- Casual environment
- Seating limited to 400 participants
- Piano accompaniment
“MADISON SINGS!” FOR SUMMER 2023
Attend one, two, or all three!
- July 10 — Mozart “Requiem”
- July 17 — Beethoven “Mass in C”
- July 24 — Fauré “Requiem”
If you are interested in singing one of the solo movements, please contact drewc@fusmadison.org.
Drew Collins, D.M.A. (he/him/his … what is this?)
Music Director
First Unitarian Society of Madison
900 University Bay Drive, Madison, WI 53705
drewc@fusmadison.org • 608.233.9774, x121 (I check email and voicemail Tues.–Fri. 9-5)
Tags: #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, accompaniment, alto, amateur, Arts, Atrium Auditorium, audience, baritone, bass, Beethoven, blog, Casual, Choir, choral music, Classical music, community, composer, contact, Drew Collins, email, environment, Facebook, Faure, Faure Requiem, First Unitarian Society of Madison, friend, FUS, Jacob Stockinger, July, link, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Madison Symphony Chorus, Madison Symphony Orchestra, mass, Mozart, MSO, Music, open, Piano, Requiem, score, share, sheet music, sing, soprano, summer, tag, tenor, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, vocal music, voicemail, Wisconsin, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
This Saturday afternoon, the Wisconsin Chamber Choir presents a free online parking lot concert of “Car Carols” with an emphasis on African-American composers
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:
Join the Wisconsin Chamber Choir (below) this Saturday afternoon, Dec. 12, at 2 p.m. for Car Carols, a unique holiday concert featuring live, socially-distanced performances of music by African-American composers and seasonal favorites.
Choir members will sing from their individual cars using wireless microphones (below), listening to the sound of the whole choir via their car radios. The audience is invited to join our Facebook event or listen in live on YouTube.
There is no charge to view the live-stream, but donations would be welcome.
You can find the concert on this Saturday, Dec. 12, a 2 p.m. via the following links: live on YouTube at https://youtu.be/ZonVn1cvgb8, or on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/events/1561155960751974/
This unusual concert format was necessitated by the Covid-19 pandemic, but the WCC is grateful for the opportunity to continue singing together in safe ways.
Since September, the choir has been rehearsing as a Parking Lot Choir, generating local media coverage from WKOW-TV at https://wkow.com/2020/10/13/wisconsin-chamber-choir-making-adjustments-to-prepare-for-performance/ and Madison Magazine, whose story was headlined “Forget tailgates, parking lots are for choir practice: https://www.channel3000.com/forget-tailgates-parking-lots-are-for-choir-practice/
This past September and October, smaller groups from the WCC assembled on Saturday mornings at the Warner Park Pavilion to rehearse in widely spaced formations.
They wore specially designed singers masks, and occasionally harmonized with nearby sandhill cranes that seemed unsure what to make of the a cappella music floating through their habitat.
Recordings by five distinct small ensembles — minus the cranes — will be aired during the Dec. 12 Car Carols broadcast, in addition to live singing by the Parking Lot choristers.
The Car Carols repertoire highlights music by African-American composers spanning nearly a century. Idiomatic pieces in the style of spirituals and contemporary gospel alternate with “non-idiomatic” motets and anthems by Nathaniel Dett (below top), William Dawson, Undine Smith Moore (below middle) and Carlos Simon (below bottom, with an oral self-portrait in the YouTube video at the bottom).
The remainder of the Parking Lot Choir selections consists of carol arrangements by WCC favorites — the late Stephen Paulus (below) and Peter Blotch — and feature virtual harp and violin accompaniment.
Live and virtual performers will also unite to sing Craig Hella Johnson’s moving arrangement of the songs I Love You and What a Wonderful World.
Interspersed between the live Car Carols will be a wide variety of pre-recorded selections, including the world premiere of WCC member Linda Palmer’s arrangement of Sussex Carol, plus music by Johannes Brahms, John Rutter, 17th-century female composer Chiara Cozzolani (below), and Tleycantimo choquilia, a carol from colonial-era Mexico, sung in Spanish and Nahuatl.
Founded in 1998, the Wisconsin Chamber Choir has established a reputation for excellence in the performance of oratorios by Bach, Handel, Mozart and Brahms; a cappella works from various centuries; and world-premieres.
Artistic director Robert Gehrenbeck (below), who heads the choral program at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, has been hailed by critics for his vibrant and emotionally compelling interpretations of a wide variety of choral masterworks. WCC members have acknowledged Gehrenbeck for his intrepid conducting in freezing temperatures during Parking Lot Choir rehearsals.
Tags: #ACappella, #African-AmericanComposer, #AltoSinger, #ArtisticDirector, #BaroqueOratorio, #BassSinger, #BlackComposer, #Blackcomposers, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CarCarols, #CarlosSimon, #ChamberChoir, #ChiaraCozzolani, #ChoralMusic, #ChristianReligion, #ChristmasCarol, #ContemporaryComposer, #COVID-19, #CraigHellaJohnson, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FemaleComposer, #GeorgeFridericHandel, #GospelMusic, #HolidayConcert, #HolidayMusic, #ILoveYou, #JacobStockinger, #JohannesBrahms, #JohannSebastianBach, #JohnRutter, #LindaPalmer, #LiveStreaming, #MadisonMagazine, #MexicanComposer, #MusicalInterpretation, #MusicalStyle, #MusicCritic, #NahuatlLanguage, #NathanielDett, #NegroSpiritual, #NewMusic, #OnlineConcert, #ParkingLot, #PeterBloesch, #RecordedMusic, #RobertGehrenbeck, #SandhillCranes, #SaturdayAfternoon, #SaturdayMorning, #SeasonalMusic, #SingAlong, #SocialDistance, #SociallyDistanced, #SopranoSinger, #StephenPaulus, #SussexCarol, #TenorSinger, #TheEar, #UndineSmithMoore, #UniversityofWisconsin, #VirtualConcert, #WarnerPark, #WhataWonderfulWorld, #WilliamDawson, #WisconsinChamberChoir, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, #WorldPremiere, #YouTubevideo, 17th century, a cappella, accompaniment, African American, African-American music, afternoon, air, aired, alternate, alto, announcement, anthem, arrangement, Artistic director, Arts, assemble, audience, auto, automobile, Bach, baritone, Baroque, bass singer, black, blog, Blog post, blog posting, Brahms, Broadcast, car, Car Carols, Carlos Simon, Carol, century, Chamber choir, Chiara Cozzolani, Choir, choral, choral music, choristers, Christian, Christmas, Classical music, colonial, compelling, composer, Concert, Conducting, conductor, contemporary, continue, coverage', Craig Hella Johnson, critic, Dawson, design, Dett, director, distinct, donation, Early music, earlymusic, emotional, enemble, Facebook, Facebook post, Facebook posting, favorites, female, female composer, floating, formation, forward, freezing, George Frideric Handel, gospel, habitat, hail, Handel, harmonize, harp, highlight, holiday concert, holiday music, I Love You, idiomatic, individual, interpretation, intrepid, ivited, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes Brahms, John Rutter, join, like, Linda Palmer, link, listen, live, live-stream, livestream, local, Love, Madison, Madison Magazine, masks, Masterworks, media, members, Mexican, Mexico, microphone, mixed, Moore, morning, motet, moving, Mozart, Music, music critic, musical style, Nahuatl, Nathaniel Dett, Negro spiritual, New Music, non-idiomatic, October, online, oral, oratorio, parking lot, Paulus, pavilion, Peter Bloesch, portrait, post, practice, pre-recorded, premiere, program, recorded music, recording, rehearsal, rehearse, reminder, repertoire, repertory, reputation, Robert Gehrenbeck, rsdio, Rutter, sage, sandhill cranes, Saturday, seasonal, seasonal music, selections, self-portrait, September, share, Simon, sing, sing-along, singers, Singing, small, social distance, socially distanced, soprano, space, spaced, span, Spanish, spceially, spiritual, spirituals, Stephen Paulus, style, sung, Sussex Carol, tag, televison, temperature, tenor, The Ear, TV, unique, unite, United States, University of Wisconsin, unsure, Uridine Smith Moore, UW-Whitewater, variety, vibrant, Violin, violinist, virtual, vocal music, Warner Park, welcome, What a Wonderful World, wide, William Dawson, wireless, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Choir, WKOW TV, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, wonderful, work, world, world premiere, YouTube
The Madison New Music Festival launches the Wisconsin Composers Project with a virtual online concert this Friday night, Sept. 25
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:
The Madison New Music Festival is pleased to announce the launch of the Wisconsin Composers Project.
Both a community resource and annual series, the project consists of a database and a virtual concert meant to increase composers’ visibility and encourage local curators and performers to collaborate with their neighbors.
We invite all Wisconsin-affiliated composers to sign up to be included in the database on our website: https://madisonnewmusic.org/aboutwcp
Please join us for the live streaming event of the Wisconsin Composers Project Concert on this Friday night, Sept. 25, at 7:30 p.m. CDT on our website at https://madisonnewmusic.org and enjoy new music from all over Wisconsin from the comfort and safety of your home.
The pre-recorded concert will profile five Wisconsin-based composers (below) and performances of their works, one of which refers to the pandemic quarantine.
Audience members will hear directly from the composers about their music and influences, and enjoy the diversity of the Wisconsin musical community.
Featured composers and their works include:
Brent Michael Davids (above, top left): In Wisconsin Woods, performed by the composer. (In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear the UW-Whitewater Chamber Singers and the Medicine Bear Singers perform “Sanctus: Singing for Power” from Davids’ Requiem for America.)
Jerry Hui (above, top right), a UW-Madison graduate who now teaches at UW-Stout: Quarantine Canzonets, performed by soprano Jennifer D’Agostino and baritone Michael Roemer.
Laura Schwendinger (above, bottom left), an internationally recognized and prize-winning composer and UW-Madison professor: All the Pretty Little Horses, performed by cellist Trace Johnson.
Asha Srinivasan (above, top center): Dyadic Affinities, performed by tubist Tom Curry.
Lawren Brianna Ware (above, bottom right): Borealis, performed by the composer.
The suggested donation to stream this concert is $15 per person.
For more information, please visit our website at madisonnewmusic.org or find us on Facebook (@Madison New Music Festival) or Instagram (@madisonnewmusic).
Tags: #AllthePrettyLittleHorses, #AshaSrinivasan, #BaritoneSinger, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BrentMichaelDavids, #CelloMusic, #ChamberMusic, #ChoralMusic, #CityofMadison, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FacultyMember, #Fridaynight, #HomeWebsite, #InstagramPost, #JacobStockinger, #JenniferD'Agostino, #JerryHui, #LauraSchwendinger, #LawrenBriannaWare, #LiveStreaming, #LivingComposer, #MadisonNewMusicFestival, #MadisonWisconsin, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MedicineBearSingers, #MichaelRoemer, #Musicfaculty, #NativeAmerican, #NativeAmericanmusic, #NewMusic, #Prize-Winning, #RequiemforAmerica, #Self-Isolation, #SignUp, #SopranoSinger, #StateOfWisconsin, #TheEar, #TheUW, #TomCurry, #TraceJohnson, #TubaMusic, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #UW-WhitewaterChamberSingers, #VirtualConcert, #VocalMusic, #WisconsinComposersProject, #YouTubevideo, affiliation, affinity, all, America, announcement, annual, Arts, Asha Srinivasan, audience, baritone, blog, Borealis, Brent Michael Davids, canzonet, canzonetta, cellist, Cello, cello music, celo, Chamber music, choral music, Classical music, collaborate, community, composer, Composition, Concert, coronavirus, curators, databse, diverse, diversity, donation, dyad, encourage, enjoy, Facebook, faculty, faculty member, featured, forward, Friday, graduate, home website, horse, includ, include, increase, information, Instagram, international, invite, isolation, Jacob Stockinger, Jennifer D'Agostino, Jerry Hui, launch, Laura Schwendinger, Lawren Brianna Ware, like, link, little, live streaming, live-stream, livestream, Living composer, local, Madison, Madison New Music Festival, Mead Witter School of Music, medicine, Medicine Bear Singers, Michael Roemer, more, Music, music faculty, musical, Native American, Native American music, neighbors, New Music, night, online, Orchestra, pandemic, performer, performers, post, posting, power, pre-recorded, pretty, professor, profile, recognized, Requiem, Requiem for America, resource, Sanctus, series, share, sign-up, singers, Singing, soprano, stream, subscriber, suggested, tag, The Ear, Tom Curry, Trace Johnson, Tuba, tubist, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW, UW-Madison, UW-Stout, UW-Whitewater, UW-Whitewater Chamber Singers, virtual, visibility, vocal music, Website, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Composers Project, Woods, works, YouTube
Classical music: Here is the complete concert program for the Madison Opera’s Digital Opera in the Park. It premieres online TONIGHT at 8 and stays up until Aug. 25
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 2020 edition of the Madison Opera’s annual summer event Opera in the Park (below, a photo from the past) will be virtual and online due the coronavirus pandemic and the COVID-19 public health crisis.
The concert – which can be viewed indoors or outdoors, anywhere in the country or the world — begins at 8 p.m. CDT TONIGHT, Saturday, July 25. It will remain available online until Aug. 25.
Here are links to the portals where you can watch and listen to the opera program and also join the post-concert Q&A with performers: https://www.madisonopera.org and https://vimeo.com/437164679
For more information about the 90-minute concert, and related events, as well as the performers and the donors, go to: https://welltempered.wordpress.com/2020/07/23/classical-music-madison-operas-virtual-opera-in-the-park-goes-online-for-free-this-saturday-night-and-stay-up-until-aug-25-listen-to-it-indoors-or-outdoors-to-enhance-the-experience/
HERE IS THE COMPLETE PROGRAM FOR THE EVENING
Overture | The Marriage of Figaro (W.A. Mozart; 1786)
Suzanne Beia, violin; John DeMain (below) and Scott Gendel, piano
“Quel guardo, il cavaliere” | Don Pasquale (Gaetano Donizetti; 1843)
Jasmine Habersham, soprano (below); Rolando Salazar, piano
“Un’aura amorosa” | Così fan tutte (W.A. Mozart; 1789)
Andres Acosta, tenor (below); Marika Yasuda, piano
“Ernani, involami” | Ernani (Giuseppe Verdi; 1844)
Karen Slack, soprano (below); Laura Ward, piano
“Vision fugitive” | Hérodiade (Jules Massenet; 1881)
Weston Hurt, baritone (below); Bethany Self, piano
“Aber der Richtige” | Arabella (Richard Strauss; 1933)
Jasmine Habersham, soprano; Karen Slack, soprano; Scott Gendel, piano (below)
“Au fond du temple saint” | The Pearl Fishers (Georges Bizet; 1863)
Andres Acosta, tenor; Weston Hurt, baritone; Scott Gendel, piano
“Deh vieni, non tardar” | The Marriage of Figaro (W.A. Mozart; 1786)
Jasmine Habersham, soprano; Rolando Salazar, piano
“Il balen del suo sorriso” | Il Trovatore (Giuseppe Verdi; 1853)
Weston Hurt, baritone; Bethany Self, piano
“Anvil Chorus” | Il Trovatore (Giuseppe Verdi; 1853)
Madison Opera Chorus via Zoom (below); Anthony Cao, conductor and piano
“Vissi d’arte” | Tosca (Giacomo Puccini; 1900)
Karen Slack, soprano; Laura Ward, piano
“Asile héréditaire” | William Tell (Gioachino Rossini; 1829)
Andres Acosta, tenor; Marika Yasuda, piano
“Meditation” | Thaïs (Jules Massenet; 1894)
Suzanne Beia, violin (below); John DeMain, piano
Spiritual “Scandalize My Name” | arranged by Johnnie Dean
Jasmine Habersham, soprano; Karen Slack, soprano; Scott Gendel, piano
“No puede ser” | La Tabernera del Puerto (Pablo Sorozabal; 1936)
Andres Acosta, tenor; Marika Yasuda, piano
“Vanilla Ice Cream” | She Loves Me (Jerry Bock; 1963)
Jasmine Habersham, soprano; Rolando Salazar, piano
“Some Enchanted Evening” | South Pacific (Richard Rodgers; 1949)
Weston Hurt, baritone; Bethany Self, piano
“He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands” | arranged by Margaret Bonds
Karen Slack, soprano; Laura Ward, piano
SING-ALONG FINALE: It’s a Grand Night for Singing | State Fair (Richard Rodgers; 1945)
Tags: #AfircanAmerican, #African-AmericanMusic, #AfricanAmerican, #AndresAcosta, #AnthonyCao, #AnvilChorus, #BaritoneSinger, #BethanySelf, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BroadwayMusical, #CentralDaylightTime, #ChoralMusic, #CoronavirusPandemic, #CosifanTutte, #COVID-19, #DigitalMedia, #DigitalOperainthePark, #DonPasquale, #DuetMusic, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #GaetanoDonizetti, #GeorgesBizet, #GiacomoPuccini, #GioachinoRossini, #GiuseppeVerdi, #HesGottheWholeWorldinHisHands, #IceCream, #IlTrovatore, #It'saGrandNightforSinging, #JasmineHabersham, #JerryBock, #JohnDeMain, #JulesMassenet, #KarenSlack, #LaTaberneradelPuerto, #LauraWard, #MadisonOpera, #MadisonOperaChorus, #MarikaYasuda, #MarriageofFigaro, #NegroSpiritual, #OperaAria, #OperaArias, #OperaInThePark, #OperaMusic, #PabloSarozabal, #PianoAccompaniment, #PianoAccompanist, #PublicHealth, #RelatedEvent, #RichardRodgers, #RodgersandHammerstein, #RolandoSalazar, #ScottGendel, #SheLoveMe, #SomeEnchantedEvening, #SopranoSinger, #SouthPacific, #StateFair, #SuzanneBeia, #TenorSinger, #TheEar, #ThePearlFishers, #VanillaIceCream, #VisionFugitive, #VocalMusic, #WestonHurt, #WilliamTell, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, accompanist, accompany, accompanying, African American, Andres Acosta, annual, Anthony Cao, Anvil Chorus, aria, audience, available, baritone, begin, Bethany Self, Bizet, black, blog, Broadway, Broadway musical, CDT, Central Daylight Time, choral music, Concert, conductor, coronavirus, Cosi fan tutte, crisis, cuntry, Digital Opera in the Park, Don Pasquale, Donizetti, donor, duet, edition, Ernani, evening, event, Facebook, finale, forward, fugitive, Gaetano Donizetti, Georges Bizet, Giacomo Puccini, Gioachino Rossini, Giuseppe Verdi, He's Got the Whole World in His Hands, ice cream, Il Trovatore, indoors, information, It's a Grand Night for Singing, Jasmine Habersham, Jerry Bock, John DeMain, Jules Massenet, Karen Slack, La Tabernera del Puerto, Laura Ward, like, link, Love, Madison Opera, Madison Opera Chorus, Marika Yasuda, Marriage of Figaro, Massenet, me, Meditation, minute, Mozart, musical, night, online, opera, Opera in the Park, opera music, outdoors, Overture, Pablo Sarozabal, pandemic, Pianist, Piano, portal, post, post-concert, posting, premiere, program, Public health, Puccini, Q&A, related event, Richard Rodgers, Rodgers, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Rolando Salazar, Rossini, scandalize, Scott Gendel, share, she, She Loves Me, sing-along, singer, Some Enchanted Evening, soprano, South Pacific, spiritual, State Fair, summer, Suzanne Beia, tag, tenor, Thaïs, The Ear, The Marriage of Figaro, The Pearl Fishers, tonight, Tosca, vanilla, Verdi, view, Violin, violinist, virtual, vision, vision fugitive, vocal music, Website, Weston Hurt, William Tell, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, world, Zoom
Recent Comments
 | Brian Jefferies on Classical music: A major reass… |
 | welltemperedear on What made Beethoven sick and… |
 | rlhess5d5b7e5dff on What made Beethoven sick and… |
| welltemperedear on Beethoven’s Ninth turns 200… |
 | Robert Graebner on Beethoven’s Ninth turns 200… |
The Well-Tempered Ear 
The Madison Early Music Festival joins the UW-Madison School of Music’s regular program and undergoes a major revamping. There will be no more separate summer events, and the two directors will retire next spring
2 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
After refining the format over the past 20 years, the Madison Early Music Festival (below) has grown into a popular event that is recognized regionally, nationally and internationally. It usually takes place for about 10 days in July.
But no longer.
The Ear has received the following updates from the two co-founders and co-directors, singers Cheryl-Bensman Rowe and UW-Madison Professor Paul Rowe.
Curiously, no reasons or causes are given for the major changes and revamping, or for the cancellation of the event this summer.
The Ear suspects it has something to do with the lack of funding and the reorganizations and consolidations being carried out because of the budgetary effects of the coronavirus pandemic on the UW-Madison, the whole UW System and the performing arts scene in general.
But that could be completely wrong. We will probably find out more details in the near future.
For more information and background, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/2021/02/01/memf-school-of-music-announce-administrative-partnership/
And to sound off, please leave your reactions to the news in the comment section.
Here is the letter from the Rowes (below, in a photo by Katrin Talbot):
Dear MEMF Supporters,
It is difficult to believe that February is over and spring is on its way. We hope everyone is having luck scheduling coronavirus vaccines, and that you have all stayed healthy throughout this past year.
We are writing to give you advance notice of the latest MEMF news before you read it in an upcoming press release.
Due to programming realignment in the UW-Madison Division of the Arts, the Madison Early Music Festival will become a program of the Mead Witter School of Music, which will be our new administrative home.
After much discussion with the Director of the School of Music and the Interim Director of the Division of the Arts, the details of the move have been finalized.
The School of Music is excited to bring MEMF into its programming, and would like MEMF to be an integral part of the academic year so more students can have an opportunity to work with professionals in the field of early music.
At this point, in order to focus on this goal, the decision has been made to discontinue the summer festival in its current (pre-pandemic) format.(You can hear a sample of that in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
We know this is disappointing news, but at the same time we are excited that MEMF concerts, lectures and classes will now be offered in some capacity throughout the year.
Although MEMF will be taking a different direction than the one we have all known and loved over the past 20 years, we are thrilled that it will continue to provide early music learning and presentation opportunities through this new collaboration.
We also want to announce that the two of us will be retiring from MEMF in the spring of 2022 and new leadership will take the helm.
Current plans are to present a celebratory MEMF concert and workshop next spring with School of Music students and faculty and former MEMF participants and faculty.
We want all of you to know that we appreciate everything you have done for MEMF. Some of you have been involved for 21 years!
We are grateful for your support, the friendships we have made, and all the beautiful music we have heard and made together. The success of the festival would not have been possible without each and every one of you.
This is an exciting new journey for MEMF, although different from what we have known and experienced. We hope that you will continue to be involved in MEMF in its new format, and we hope to see you in the spring of 2022!
Thank you for all your generosity in so many ways,
Cheryl Bensman-Rowe and Paul Rowe, co-founders and co-artistic directors of the Madison Early Music Festival
Share this:
Tags: #AcademicYear, #ArtisticDirector, #Beautifulmusic, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #CherylBensman-Rowe, #ChoralMusic, #CityofMadison, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FacultyMember, #HistoricallyInformedPerformancePractices, #IntegralPart, #MadisonEarlyMusicFestival, #MadisonWisconsin, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MEMFOnline, #MusicEducation, #Musicfaculty, #NewsUpdate, #PaulRowe, #PerformingArts, #PeriodInstruments, #SoundOff, #TheEar, #TheUW, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #UWSystem, #VocalMusic, #YouTubevideo, 2021, 2022, academic, academic year, administration, administrative, advance, Arts, audience, Bach, background, baritone, Baroque, beautiful, blog, budget, budgetary, cancel, cancellation, capacity, cause, celebratory, Cello, Chamber music, Cheryl Bensman Rowe, choral music, class, classes, Classical music, co-artistic directors, co-founders, collaboration, comment, composer, Concert, concerto, conductor, consolidate, consolidation, coronavirus, coronavirus pandemic, current, details, disappoint, disappointment, discontinue, Early music, earlymusic, event, excite, excited, experience, Facebook, faculty, Feburary, festival, field, finalize, finalized, financial, fiscal, Focus, format, forward, friendship, funding, future, grateful, grow, healthy, helm, historically informed performance practices, Home, information, instrument, integral, international, involve, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, journey, know, leadership, lecture, like, link, Love, luck, Madison, Madison Early Music Festival, Mead Witter School of Music, MEMF, move, Music, Music education, music faculty, national, new, news, notice, offer, opera, opportunity, Orchestra, paerticpant, pandemic, part, past, Paul Rowe, performer, Performing arts, period instruments, plans, popular, possible, post, posting, presentation, professionals, program, progrramming, provide, reactions, realign, realignment, reason, recognized, refine, regional, reorganization, reorganize, retire, Retirement, revamp, sample, scene, schedule, share, sing, Singing, Sonata, sound off, Spring, Student, summer, support, tag, The Ear, thrill, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, update, UW, UW System, UW-Madison, vaccine, Viola, Violin, vocal music, way, Wisconsin, work, workshop, wring, year, you, YouTube