The Well-Tempered Ear
Classical music: This weekend, the Madison Symphony Orchestra celebrates the legacy and works of Leonard Bernstein
Leave a Comment
IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, PLEASE FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR SHARE IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event.
By Jacob Stockinger
This coming weekend, Leonard Bernstein (below, in a photo by Jack Mitchell) will be remembered, honored and celebrated by his friend and Madison Symphony Orchestra music director John DeMain in a “Remembering Lenny” concert that explores Bernstein’s musical contributions as an American composer and conductor.
Original works by Bernstein will be performed by the MSO on the first half of the concert. The MSO starts with the Overture to Candide, then moves on to On The Town, and, finally, performs his Symphony No. 2 “The Age of Anxiety,” featuring Van Cliburn Competition bronze medal winner and UW-Madison pianist Christopher Taylor.
The second half of the program features Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7, the last work that Bernstein (1918-1990) ever conducted during a concert at the summer Tanglewood Festival of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
Performances will be held in Overture Hall, 201 State Street, on this Friday night, Nov. 9, at 7:30 p.m.; this Saturday night, Nov. 10, at 8 p.m.; and this Sunday afternoon, Nov. 11, at 2:30 p.m. Ticket information is below.
Says DeMain (below, in a photo by Greg Anderson): “To have my 25th anniversary with the MSO coincide with the 100th anniversary of Leonard Bernstein’s birth is special for me personally because of the unique opportunities I had to work with this great American musician.”
DeMain, who premiered Bernstein’s opera “A Quiet Place” in Houston, adds: “The first half of the concert celebrates Lenny the composer, culminating in the first performance by the MSO of his second symphony, The Age of Anxiety, which has a dazzling and at times jazzy part for the piano, and carries with it, still, a timely social statement. Christopher Taylor (below), a Madison favorite with whom I have often enjoyed collaborating, will perform the challenging and exciting piano part.”
DeMain describes the final work in the program: “The second half of the concert pays tribute to Lenny the conductor, and his life-long love of Beethoven. Since the Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92, was the last piece Lenny conducted, I thought it would be the perfect way to celebrate Lenny and his great contribution to American musical life.” (NOTE: You can hear Bernstein conduct the famous second movement of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 during his last public performance, just two months before he died, in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
Here is some more background:
Bernstein’s operetta Candide is based on the 1759 novella by French philosopher Voltaire. The well-known Overture is quick-paced, with a feverish excitement that begins from the first breath of sound. Many of the meters are in seven beats, or of other non-traditional types, and quickly change. Each player of the ensemble is required to perform with simultaneously the utmost virtuosity and togetherness.
On the Town is a dance-centric musical scored by Leonard Bernstein based on Jerome Robbins’ idea for the 1944 ballet “Fancy Free.” The story depicts three American sailors on a 24-hour shore leave in New York City during wartime, where each man meets and quickly connects with the woman of their dreams. The musical is the source of the ubiquitously popular show tune New York, New York.
The Age of Anxiety was composed between 1948 and 1949, and is inspired by a poem of the same name by W.H. Auden (below). The 80-page poem follows four lonely strangers who meet in a wartime New York bar and spend the evening ruminating on their lives and the human condition. Subtitled “a baroque eclogue” (a pastoral poem in dialogue form), the characters speak mostly in long soliloquies of alliterative tetrameter, with little distinction among the individual voices.
Composed from 1811–1812, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 premiered with Beethoven (below) himself conducting in Vienna on December 8, 1813 at a charity concert for soldiers wounded in the Battle of Hanau.
The symphony’s dance elements, vitality and sense of celebration are conveyed principally through rhythm. It is not the melodies that are so striking and memorable as the general sense of forward movement.
The Overture lobby opens 90 minutes prior to each concert. One hour before each performance, Randal Swiggum (below) will lead a 30-minute Prelude Discussion in Overture Hall to enhance concertgoers’ understanding and listening experience. It is free to ticket holders.
The MSO recommends that concert attendees arrive EARLY for each performance to make sure they have time to pass through Overture Center’s security stations, and so they can experience the Prelude Discussion.
Program notes for the concerts are available online. Go to: http://bit.ly/nov2018programnotes
Tickets can be purchased in the following ways:
- Single Tickets are $18-$93 each and are on sale now at: https://madisonsymphony.org/bernstein\through the Overture Center Box Office at 201 State Street, or by calling the Box Office at (608) 258-4141. Fees apply to online/phone sales.
- Groups of 10 or more can save 25% by calling the MSO office at (608) 257-3734. For more information, visit, https://www.madisonsymphony.org/groups.
- Student rush tickets can be purchased in person on the day of the concert at the Overture Center Box Office at 201 State Street. Students must show a valid student ID and can receive up to two $15 or $20 tickets. More information is at: https://www.madisonsymphony.org/studentrush
- Seniors age 62 and up receive 20% savings on advance and day-of-concert ticket purchases in select areas of the hall.
- Subscribers to 5 or more symphony subscription concerts can save up to 50% off single ticket prices. More information is available about the season at: https://madisonsymphony.org/18-19
- Flex-Ticket booklets of 10 vouchers for 2018-19 symphony subscription concerts are available. Learn more at: https://madisonsymphony.org/flex
Discounted seats are subject to availability, and discounts may not be combined.
Find more information at madisonsymphony.org
The Presenting Sponsor for the November concerts is Steinhauer Charitable Trust. Underwriting for Christopher Taylor is provided by Sharon Stark, “to Peter Livingston with love.” Major funding is provided by: Stephen D. Morton, The Gialamas Company, Inc., Myrna Larson, Madison Symphony Orchestra League, and Nancy Mohs. Additional funding is provided by Robert Benjamin and John Fields, Godfrey & Kahn, S.C., and Wisconsin Arts Board, with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Tags: #AgeofAnxiety, #AmericanComposer, #Americanconductor, #AmericanMusician, #AQuietPlace, #BattleofHanau, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BostonSymphony, #BoxOffice, #BrassSection, #CandideOpera, #CharityConcert, #ChristopherTaylor, #FacebookPost, #FirstPerformance, #GialamasCompany, #Godfrey&Kahn, #HoustonTexas, #JazzMusic, #JeromeRobbins, #JohnDeMain, #LastPerformance, #LeonardBernstein, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #NationalEndowmentfortheArts, #NewYorkCity, #NewYorkNewYork, #OntheTown, #OriginalWork, #OvertureCenter, #OvertureHall, #OverturetoCandide, #PastoralPoem, #PercussionSection, #PreludeDiscussion, #ProgramNotes, #RandalSwiggum, #SeasonSubscriber, #SeniorCitizen, #ShowTune, #SociallyRelevant, #SocialRelevance, #SocialStatement, #StateOfWisconsin, #StringSection, #StudentID, #StudentRush, #SubscriptionConcert, #TanglewoodFestival, #TheCliburn, #UniversityofWisconsin, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VanCliburn, #VanCliburnInternationalPianoCompetition, #ViennaAustria, #W.H.Auden, #WarTime, #WindSection, #WisconsinArtsBoard, #WithLove, #WorldPremiere, #WorldWarII, #YouTubevideo, A Quiet Place, admission, Age of Anxiety, American, American musician, anniversary, Arts, Ausria, Austria, ballet, Baroque, Battle of Hanau, Beethoven, birth, blog, Boston, box office, brass section, breath, bronze medal, Candide, celebration, centennial, charity, Christopher Taylor, Classical music, composer, Concert, dance, death, dialog, dialogue, died, discount, dream, Eclogue, explore, Facebook, first performance, France, French, Gialamas Company, hear, honor, Houston, ID, Jacob Stockinger, Jazz, jazzy, Jerome Robbins, John DeMain, last, Lenny, Leonard Bernstein, life, live, lives, lobby, lonely, Love, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, meger, melody, Mohs, Music, musical, National Endowment for the Arts, NEA, New York, New York City, novella, On the Town, online, opera, Operetta, Orchestra, original, Overture, Overture Center, Overture Center for the Arts, Overture Hall, pastoral, percussion section, performance, philosopher, Pianist, Piano, poem, poet, Poetry, post, posting, Prelude Discussion, premiere, professor, program notes, Randal Swiggum, remember, rhythm, sailor, season subscriber, security, see, senior, senior citizen, share, show tune, social relevance, socially relevant, soldiers, soliloquy, Sound, sponsor, stranger, string section, Student, student rush, subscriber, subscription concert, symphony, Tanglewood Festival, Texas, The Cliburn, ticket, togetherness, underwriting, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Van Cliburn, Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Veteran, veterans, Vienna, Viola, Violin, virtuosity, vitality, voice, Voltaire, wartme, wind section, winner, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Arts Board, woman, work, world premiere, World War II, wounded, YouTube
Classical music: Tonight brings an all-Bach organ recital at Overture Hall. At the UW-Madison, this week brings music for band, brass and strings
Leave a Comment
IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, PLEASE FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR SHARE IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event.
By Jacob Stockinger
TONIGHT, Tuesday, Oct. 23
At 7:30 p.m. in Overture Hall, Paul Jacobs (below) will perform an all-Bach program. Jacobs, who is the only organist to have won a Grammy Award, is the chair of the organ department at the Juilliard school in New York City and was the teacher and mentor of Greg Zelek, who is the new organist for the Madison Symphony Orchestra.
Heralded as “one of the major musicians of our time” by Alex Ross of The New Yorker and as “America’s leading organ performer” by The Economist, the internationally celebrated Jacobs combines a probing intellect and extraordinary technical mastery with an unusually large repertoire, both old and new. He has performed to great critical acclaim on five continents and in each of the 50 United States.
Jacobs made musical history at age 23 when he played Bach’s complete organ works in an 18-hour marathon performance on the 250th anniversary of the composer’s death. (You can hear Jacobs play Bach in the YouTube video at the bottom.) Jacobs has premiered works by Samuel Adler, Mason Bates, Michael Daugherty, Wayne Oquin, Stephen Paulus, Christopher Theofanidis and Christopher Rouse, among others.
During the 2018-19 season, Jacobs will perform the world premiere of John Harbison’s “What Do We Make of Bach?” for organ and orchestra with the Minnesota Orchestra under conductor Osmo Vanska; with the Cleveland Orchestra he will give the American premiere of Austrian composer Bernd Richard Deutsch’s “Okeanos” for organ and orchestra.
For more details about Jacobs, his complete all-Bach program and tickets ($20), go to: https://madisonsymphony.org/event/paul-jacobs/
WEDNESDAY, Oct. 24
At 7:30 p.m. in Mills Hall, the UW Concert Band will perform a FREE concert of music by Leonard Bernstein (excerpts from “Candide”), Vincent Persichetti, Percy Grainger, Mark Markowski and Steven Bryant.
For more information about the performance and the program, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/uw-concert-band-fall-concert-2/
THURSDAY, Oct. 25
At 7:30 p.m. in Mills Hall, the Wisconsin Brass Quintet and special guest UW percussionist Anthony DiSanza (below, in a photo by Katherine Esposito) will perform a ticketed concert of genre-bending music by Michael Tilson Thomas, Pat Metheny, Modest Mussorgsky, Alan Ferber, James Parker and David Sanford.
Admission is $17 for adults, $7 for students and children.
For more information about the performers, the program and how to purchase tickets, go to:
Members of the Wisconsin Brass Quintet (below, from left, in a photo by Michael R. Anderson) are: Daniel Grabois, horn; Mark Hetzler, trombone; Matthew Onstad, trumpet; Tom Curry, tuba; and Alex Noppe, trumpet.
SATURDAY, Oct. 27
At 8 p.m. in Mills Hall, the Pro Arte Quartet will perform a FREE concert.
The program features: the String Quartet in C Major, D. 46 (1813), by the young Franz Schubert; Three Rags for String Quartet (“Poltergeist” from 1971, “Graceful Ghost” from 1970, and “Incinteratorag” from 1967) by William Bolcom; and the String Quartet in E minor, Op. 44, No. 2 (1837), by Felix Mendelssohn.
For more information about the Pro Arte Quartet and its long, historic and fascinating background, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/pro-arte-quartet-3/
Members of the Pro Arte Quartet (below, from left, in a photo by Rick Langer, are: David Perry and Suzanne Beia, violins; Sally Chisholm, viola; and Parry Karp, cello.)
Tags: #AlanFerber, #AlexNoppe, #AlexRoss, #All-Bach, #AnthonyDiSanza, #AustrianComposer, #BandMusic, #BaroqueMusic, #BerndRichardDeutsch, #CandideOpera, #ChamberMusic, #ChristopherRouse, #ChristopherTheofanidis, #ClevelandOrchestra, #ConcertBand, #DanielGrabois, #DavidPerry, #DavidSanford, #FelixMendelssohn, #FranzSchubert, #GracefulGhost, #GrammyAward, #GregZelek, #HornMusic, #JamesParker, #JohannSebastianBach, #JohnHarbison, #JuilliardSchool, #LeonardBernstein, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MarkHetzler, #MarkMarkowski, #MasonBates, #MatthewOnstad, #MichaelDaugherty, #MichaelTilsonThomas, #MinnesotaOrchestra, #ModestMussorgsky, #NewYorkCity, #OsmoVanska, #OvertureHall, #ParryKarp, #PatMetheny, #PaulJacobs, #PercyGrainger, #ProArteQuartet, #SallyChisholm, #SamuelAdler, #StephenPaulus, #StevenBryant, #StringQuartet, #SuzanneBeia, #TheNewYorker, #TheNewYorkerMagazine, #TomCurry, #TromboneMusic, #TrumpetMusic, #TubaMusic, #UnitedStates, #UniversityofWisconsin, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #UWConcertBand, #VincentPersichetti, #WayneOquin, #WilliamBolcom, #WisconsinBrassQuintet, #YouTubevideo, acclaim, adult, Alan Ferber, Alex Noppe, Alex Ross, American, anniversary, Anthony DiSanza, Arts, Austria, Bach, background, band music, Baroque, Baroque music, Bernd Richard Deutsch, Candide, Cello, Chamber music, children, Christopher Rouse, Christopher Theofanidis, Classical music, Cleveland Orchestra, complete, Concert Band, conductor, Daniel Grabois, David Perry, David Sanford, death, Early music, Felix Mendelssohn, Franz Schubert, free, Graceful Ghost, Grammy Award, Greg Zelek, History, Horn, Incineratorag, intellect, international, Jacob Stockinger, James Parker, Johann Sebastian Bach, John Harbison, Juilliard School, Leonard Bernstein, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, magazine, marathon, Mark Hetzler, Mark Markowski, Mason Bates, mastery, Matthew Onstad, mentor, Michael Daugherty, Michael Tilson Thomas, Minnesota Orchestra, Modest Mussorgsky, Music, new, New York City, New Yorker, opera, Osmo Vanska, Overture Center, Overture Hall, Parry Karp, Pat Metheny, Paul Jacobs, percussion, percussionist, Percy Grainger, Poltergeist, premiere, Pro Arte Quartet, program, rag, Ragtime, Sally Chisholm, Samuel Adler, Stephen Paulus, Steven Bryant, String quartet, Student, Suzanne Beia, Teacher, technical, technique, Tom Curry, Trombone, Trumpet, Tuba, tuba music, U.S., United States, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW Concert Band, Vincent Persichetti, Viola, Violin, Wayne Oquin, WILLIAM BOLCOM, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Brass Quintet, young, YouTube
Classical music: The Madison Symphony Orchestra concerts this weekend feature three local debuts — by a woman conductor, a Grammy-winning cellist and an immigrant composer
2 Comments
IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, PLEASE FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR SHARE IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event.
By Jacob Stockinger
Three local debuts will take place this weekend in the three “Epic Romance” concerts by the Madison Symphony Orchestra (below).
Renowned Canadian guest conductor Tania Miller will lead the MSO while music director John DeMain makes his debut at the Liceu Theater in Barcelona, conducting the opera Candide in celebration of the 100th anniversary of Leonard Bernstein’s birth.
Grammy Award-winning American cellist Zuill Bailey will make his Madison Symphony Orchestra (MSO) solo debut in Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto.
And Canadian composer Michael Oesterle will be performed for the first time in Madison when his work “Home” opens each concert.
The second half of the program is Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5.
Performances will be held in Overture Hall of the Overture Center, 2912 State Street, on Friday, Oct. 19, at 7:30 p.m.; on Saturday, Oct. 20 at 8 p.m.; and on Sunday, Oct. 21, at 2:30 p.m.
Here are more details:
Canadian Conductor Tania Miller has distinguished herself as a dynamic interpreter, musician and innovator, on the podium and off. She has been praised for “energy, grace, precision and restraint.” She has appeared as a guest conductor in Canada, the United States and Europe with such orchestras as the Bern Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, Oregon Symphony and the Vancouver Symphony, among others.
Over a 14-year tenure as the Music Director of the Victoria Symphony in Canada, Miller (below) gained national acclaim for her passion and commitment to the orchestra and community. Recipient of the 2017 Friends of Canadian Music award from the Canadian League of Composers for her acclaimed commitment to contemporary music in Canada, Miller has been an example of the impact of commitment and dedication to an orchestra and to the future of orchestral music through creative innovation and vision.
You can hear Tania Miller discuss women conductors in the informative YouTube video at the bottom.(But please be forewarned: YouTube was having major technical issues and glitches last night that affected all their videos on this blog, not just this one. If it doesn’t load when you try, wait and then try again.)
Zuill Bailey (below), described by Classical Net as “easily one of the finest cellists today,” has been featured with symphony orchestras worldwide, including Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Toronto, Israel, Cape Town, and the Bruckner Orchestra in Linz, Austria. Bailey has also appeared at Disney Hall, the Kennedy Center, the United Nations, Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall.
In 2017, Bailey won a best solo performance Grammy Award for his live recording of “Tales of Hemingway,” by composer Michael Daugherty. His celebrated “Bach Cello Suites” and recently released Britten Cello Symphony and Sonata CD with pianist Natasha Paremski immediately rose to the No. 1 spot on the Billboard magazine Classical Chart.
His Cello Concerto was the last notable work by Sir Edward Elgar (below), composed in 1919 in the aftermath of World Ear I. Upon regaining consciousness following a 1918 tonsillectomy, Elgar immediately asked for pencil and paper and wrote down the melody that would become the first theme in this concerto.
Despite today’s renown as a crowd favorite, the piece did not achieve wide popularity until the 1960s, when a recording by Jacqueline du Pré caught the public’s attention, and it became a classical favorite.
Michael Oesterle’s “Home” had its world premiere in November 2017 with the Royal Conservatory Orchestra and conductor Tania Miller.
The piece is an homage to the great geographical ebb and flow of humanity, also known as the immigrant experience. Oesterle (below) notes, “I wrote it through the filter of my personal impressions as an immigrant, and with the realization that this subject is humbling in its breadth.”
Composed between May and August 1888, Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 was first performed in St. Petersburg at the Mariinsky Theatre with Tchaikovsky below) conducting.
Unlike its two predecessors, there is no known program for the Fifth Symphony, save for a recurring main theme heard throughout all four movements. Over the years this theme has become known as the “fate” motive; its original ominous character undergoes various metamorphoses, emerging triumphant in the score’s concluding pages.
ABOUT ATTENDING
The lobby opens 90 minutes prior to each concert. One hour before each performance, Madison Symphony Chorus Director and UW-Madison director of choral activities Beverly Taylor (below) will lead a 30-minute Prelude Discussion in Overture Hall to enhance concertgoers’ understanding and listening experience. It is free to ticket holders.
The MSO recommends concert attendees arrive early for each performance to make sure they have time to pass through Overture Center’s security stations, and so they can experience the Prelude Discussion.
Program notes for the concerts are available online: http://bitly.com/oct2018programnotes
Tickets can be purchased in the following ways:
- Single Tickets are $18-$93 each and are on sale now at: https://madisonsymphony.org/ax through the Overture Center Box Office at 201 State Street, or by calling the Box Office at (608) 258-4141. Fees apply to online/phone sales.
- Groups of 10 or more can save 25% by calling the MSO office at (608) 257-3734. For more information, visit, https://www.madisonsymphony.org/groups.
- Student rush tickets can be purchased in person on the day of the concert at the Overture Center Box Office at 201 State Street. Students must show a valid student ID and can receive up to two $15 or $20 tickets. More information is at: https://www.madisonsymphony.org/studentrush
- Seniors age 62 and up receive 20% savings on advance and day-of-concert ticket purchases in select areas of the hall.
- Subscribers to 5 or more symphony subscription concerts can save up to 50% off single ticket prices. More information is available about the season at: https://madisonsymphony.org/18-19
- Flex-ticket booklets of 10 vouchers for 18-19 symphony subscription concerts are available. Learn more at: https://madisonsymphony.org/flex
Discounted seats are subject to availability, and discounts may not be combined.
Find more information, go to madisonsymphony.org
Major funding for the October concert is provided by: Mirror 34 Productions and National Guardian Life Insurance Company. Additional funding is provided by John A. Johnson Foundation, a component fund of the Madison Community Foundation, Barbara J. Merz, Selma Van Eyck, and the Wisconsin Arts Board, with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Tags: #AmericanImmigration, #AntonBruckner, #AsianImmigration, #BarcelonaSpain, #BenjaminBritten, #BillboardMagazine, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BoxOffice, #CanadianComposer, #CanadianConductor, #CanadianLeagueofComposers, #CanadianMusic, #CandideOpera, #CapeTown, #CarnegieHall, #CelloConcerto, #ChoralMusic, #ClassicalChart, #ClassicalNet, #CompactDisc, #ContemporaryComposers, #ContemporaryMusic, #DisneyHall, #EbbandFlow, #EdwardElgar, #ErnestHemingway, #EuropeanImmigration, #FacebookPost, #FemaleConductor, #GrammyAward, #GuestConductor, #HomeWebsite, #InsuranceCompany, #JacquelineduPré, #JohannSebastianBach, #JohnDeMain, #KennedyCenter, #LeonardBernstein, #LincolnCenter, #LinzAustria, #LiveRecording, #MadisonCommunityFoundation, #MadisonSymphonyChorus, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MariinskyTheatre, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MichaelOesterle, #MusicalInterpretation, #MusicDirector, #NatashaParemski, #NationalEndowmentfortheArts, #NationalGuardianLife, #NewMusic, #OperaMusic, #OrchestralMusic, #OregonSymphony, #OvertureCenter, #OvertureHall, #PeterIlyichTchaikovsky, #PublicAttention, #RoyalConservatory, #RussianComposer, #SeattleSymphony, #SeattleWashington, #SoloCelloSuites, #SoloDebut, #SouthAfrica, #StateOfWisconsin, #TalesofHemingway, #TaniaMiller, #TechnicalGlitch, #TechnicalIssue, #The1960s, #The60s, #TorontoCanada, #UnitedNations, #UnitedStates, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VancouverCanada, #VancouverSymphony, #VictoriaSymphony, #WisconsinArtsBoard, #WomanConductor, #WorldPremiere, #WorldWarI, #YouTubevideo, #ZuillBailey, 1960s, acclaim, anniversary, Anton Bruckner, Arts, Austria, award, Bach, Barcelona, Benjamin Britten, Bern, BernSwitzerland, Billboard magazine, birth, Canadian, Candide, Cape Town, Carnegie Hall, cellist, Cello, centennial, character, Chicago, choral music, Classical chart, Classical music, Classical Net, commitment, community, Compact Disc, composer, concerto, conductor, debut, dedication, discount, discussion, Disney Hall, Edward Elgar, epic, Ernest Hemingway, Europe, example, Facebook, favorite, female, funding, geographical, geography, glitch, Grammy, Grammy Award, group, homage, Home, immigrant, immigration, impact, impression, innovation, innovator, insurance, interpretation, interpreter, Israel, issue, Jacob Stockinger, Jacqueline du Pré, Johann Sebastian Bach, John DeMain, Kennedy Center, Leonard Bernstein, Lincoln, LIncoln Center, Linz, Live Recording, Los Angeles, Madison, Madison Community Foundation, Madison Symphony Chorus, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Mariinsky Theatre, Mead Witter School of Music, melody, metamorphoses, Michael Oesterle, Music, Natasha Paremski, National Endowment for the Arts, NEA, New York City, ominous, online, opera, Oregon, Passion, personal, Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Pianist, Piano, podium, popular, popularity, Prelude, public attention, Romance, Royal Conservatory, Russia, San Francisco, Seattle, security, senior, solo, Sonata, South Africa, Spain, St. Petersburg, State of Wisconsin, Student, subscriber, Switzerland, symphony, Tales of Hemingway, Tania Miller, technical, theme, ticket, Toronto, United Nations, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Victoria, Viola, Violin, vision, web site, Website, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Arts Board, women, YouTube, Zuill Bailey
Classical music: This Saturday night, the Leonard Bernstein centennial will be marked at the UW-Madison with a faculty vocal concert and a sing-along
1 Comment
By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has received the following announcement about this weekend’s celebration of the centennial of Leonard Bernstein’s birth:
Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990, below in a photo by Jack Mitchell) — the legendary composer, conductor and pianist — will be celebrated in a concert of his music on this coming Saturday night, Sept. 15, at 8 p.m. in Mills Hall at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music.
Tickets are $17 for adults; $7 for students and children; and free to music majors, music faculty and music staff. To avoid long lines you are asked to purchase tickets early. If you do purchase tickets at the door, you are asked to arrive 30 minutes before the concert begins. For details about tickets, see below.
This Faculty Concert Series event is one of the many world-wide observances of the 100th anniversary of Bernstein’s birth. They will include a special program by the Madison Symphony Orchestra under its music director and conductor John DeMain, who worked with Bernstein and who discussed Bernstein on Wisconsin Public Radio, which you can hear here:
https://www.wpr.org/madison-symphonys-john-demain-remembers-bernstein-during-centennial-birth-year
From Broadway to the concert stage, Bernstein embodied the eclectic nature of America’s music. As a composer, conductor and teacher he embraced all kinds of music, and in his own work created enduring masterpieces in both popular and classical styles.
Saturday’s concert will feature a number of lesser-known works that come from all periods of Bernstein’s career, as well as favorite selections from his classic Broadway scores On the Town, Wonderful Town, Candide and West Side Story, and songs from his exquisite incidental music for Peter Pan.
Cellist Alison Rowe (below top) will join her parents, baritone Paul Rowe and soprano Cheryl Bensman-Rowe (below bottom, in a photo by Katrin Talbot) in selections from Mass, Songfest and the beautiful song Dream With Me (heard in the YouTube video at the bottom).
Pianists Martha Fischer and Bill Lutes (below) will join the Rowes in a performance of one of Bernstein’s last major works for two singers and two pianists, Arias and Barcarolles. It is a song cycle in which “Lenny” fully explored the range of styles and subject matter that represent his unique achievement in American music.
There will be a short SING-ALONG at the end of the concert featuring some favorite and familiar Bernstein hits.
For more information, including how to obtain tickets, a video and a link to a Bernstein tribute in The New York Times, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/music-of-leonard-bernstein-a-100th-birthday-tribute/
Tags: #AlisonRowe, #AmericanComposer, #Americanconductor, #AmericanMusic, #AriasandBarcarolles, #BernsteinCentennial, #BillLutes, #BroadwayMusical, #CandideOpera, #CherylBensman-Rowe, #ClassicalStyle, #DreamWithMe, #IncidentalMusic, #JohnDeMain, #LeonardBernstein, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MarthaFischer, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #OntheTown, #PaulRowe, #PeterPan, #PianoAccompaniment, #PianoAccompanist, #PopularMusic, #SaturdayNight, #SingAlong, #TheNewYorkTImes, #UniversityofWisconsin, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VocalMusic, #WestSideStory, #WisconsinPublic Radio, #WonderfulTown, #World-wide, #YouTubevideo, Alison Rowe, aria, Arts, barcarolle, baritone, beautiful, Bill Lutes, birth, Candide, career, cellist, Cello, Chamber music, Cheryl Bensman Rowe, children, Classical music, composer, Concert, conductor, daughter, Dream With Me, faculty, hit, hit song, Jacob Stockinger, John DeMain, Leonard Bernstein, link, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Martha Fischer, mass, masterpiece, Music, night, opera, Orchestra, Parent, parents, Paul Rowe, Pianist, Piano, program, Saturday, score, selection, singer, Songfest, soprano, Student, symphony, Teacher, tickets, tribute, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, video, vocal music, Website, West Side Story, Wisconsin, wisconsin public radio, work, worldwide, YouTube
Recent Comments
The Well-Tempered Ear 