The Well-Tempered Ear
Longtime friends organist Greg Zelek and Madison native and award-winning trumpeter Ansel Norris team up for a FREE live-streamed concert this Tuesday night
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
Two longtime friends and fellow musicians will team up this Tuesday night, April 27, to close this season’s organ concert series, sponsored in the Overture Center by the Madison Symphony Orchestra.
It will be live-streamed online because of the pandemic restrictions on attendance.
The concert features the critically acclaimed MSO organist Greg Zelek (below left) and Ansel Norris (below right), an award-winning trumpeter who is a native of Madison.
The program includes works by Bach, Vivaldi, Haydn and Samuel Barber among others.
The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. CDT. It is FREE but you must register. The concert will be available to registered listeners for unlimited access through May 31.
Here is a link to the MSO website where you can register. It also has more information about the program and biographies of the two performers: https://madisonsymphony.org/event/norris-zelek-2021-streamed/
Here is more background. It appeared in the latest issue of the email newsletter of the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras (WYSO), of which Norris was a member for many years:
|
Ansel Norris and Greg Zelek first met in 2010 as high school seniors who had both been selected as finalists in the YoungARTS Awards. The YoungARTS Award is a big competition with just a small percentage of students selected for the $10,000 prize from the thousands of high school applicants. In classical music that year, 12 students became finalists and assembled in Miami for a week of master classes with internationally recognized arts leaders. “You know, there really is a synergy with trumpet and organ. The sounds are produced in a similar way and the way the sounds blend together is really special. Even then, I imagined a concert together.” Ten years later, the two friends were dreaming up this concert when Greg was in Miami in February, 2020. And then the world shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. Norris has distinguished himself as a solo, orchestral and chamber musician. As Greg Zelek (below, in a photo by Peter Rodgers) writes: “Concerti of Bach and Haydn will bookend this program filled with music that is both written and arranged for this electrifying pairing of instruments. Mr. Norris’ remarkable technique and soaring lyricism will be on full display while our Mighty Klais both supports and shimmers in this exhilarating performance you won’t want to miss!” Register here for Tuesday’s concert!
|
Tags: #African-AmericanMusic, #AnselNorris, #AntonioVivaldi, #BaroqueMusic, #BestPerformance, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BolzYoungArtistCompetition, #BrassMusic, #BronzeMedal, #CentralTimes, #ChamberMusic, #CityofMadison, #ClassicalMusician, #ColdWeather, #ConcertoCompetition, #CoralGables, #CoralGablesFlorida, #COVID-19, #CriticallyAcclaimed, #EastHighSchool, #EmailNewsletter, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FirstPrize, #FischoffNationalChamberMusicCompetition, #FranzJosephHaydn, #GregZelek, #GrowingUp, #HighSchool, #HomeWebsite, #InternationalTchaikovskyCompetition, #JacobStockinger, #JohannSebastianBach, #JohnAley, #KeyboardMusic, #KlaisOrgan, #LincolnChamberBrass, #MadisonEastHighSchool, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MadisonWisconsin, #MariinskyOrchestra, #MiamiFlorida, #NaplesFlorida, #NaplesPhilharmonic, #NationalTrumpetCompetition, #NewWorldSchooloftheArts, #NewWorldSymphony, #NorthwesternUniversity, #OnlineConcert, #OrganMusic, #OvertureCenter, #PrizeWinner, #RiceUniversity, #SamuelBarber, #Semi-finals, #SocialDistance, #SouthFlorida, #TheEar, #TrumpetMusic, #VirtualConcert, #WisconsinYouthSymphonyOrchestras, #YouTubevideo, access, acclaimed, accomplished, air, Aley, amazing, American, Ansel Norris, Antonio Vivaldi, applicants, April, Art, Arts, audience, availahle, award-winning, Bach, background, Barber, Baroque, Baroque music, biography, blend, blog, Blog post, blog posting, Bolz Young Artist Competition, bookend, brass, bronze medal, career, CDT, Central Time, Chamber music, Classical music, classicalmusic, cold, cold weather, Competition, composer, Concert, concerto, concerto competition, Coral Gables, crazy, critically acclaimed, cues, depend, display, distinguish, duet, duo, Early music, East High School, eclectic, electifying, email, enjoy, exhilarating, Facebook, Facebook post, Facebook posting, filters, finalist, first prize, Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, Florida, forward, Franz Joseph Haydn, free, friend, full, great, Greg Zelek, growing up, Haydn, HEPA, high school, himself, home website, imagine, indoors, information, Interlochen, international, International Tchaikovsky Competition, issue, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, John Aley, keyboard music, Klais, latest, leaders, legacy, like, Lincoln Chamber Brass, link, listener, live-stream, livestream, living, lojgtime, Love, lyricism, Madison, Madison East High School, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Mariinsky Orchestra, master class, masterclass, May, member, Miami, miss, MSO, Music, Musician, Naples, Naples Philharmonic, National Trumpet Competition, New World School of the Arts, New World Symphony, newsletter, Norris, Northwestern University, online, Orchestra, orchestral, organ, organ music, organist, outside, Overture Center, pairing, perform, performance, performer, pleasure, prize, produce, program, recognize, register, rehearsal, remarkable, Rice University, Samuel Barber, share, shimmers, small, soaring, social distance, solo, Sound, sounds, south Florida, special, stage, story, supports, symphony, synergy, tag, technique, test, The Ear, together, trumpet music, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, unlimited, virtual, Vivaldi, weather, Website, week, winner, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras, WYSO, year, years, YoungARTS, YouTube, Zelek
The acclaimed Meccore String Quartet performs an online concert of works by Mozart, Beethoven and Penderecki this Sunday night as part of the Wisconsin Union Theater season
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.
The Wisconsin Union Theater will stream an online Concert Series performance by the Meccore String Quartet (below, in a photo by Arkadiusz Berbecki) this Sunday night, Feb. 28, at 7:30 p.m. CST.
The program is: String Quartet No. 21 in D major, K. 575, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; String Quartet No. 3 “Leaves from an Unwritten Diary” by 20th-century Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki; and String Quartet in A minor, Op. 132, by Ludwig van Beethoven.
The ensemble includes violinists Wojciech Koprowski and Aleksandra Bryla; violist Michal Bryla; and cellist Marcin Maczynski.
As one of Europe’s most compelling ensembles, the Meccore String Quartet has appeared at many influential music festivals around the globe, such as the Rheingau Musik Festival and the Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
The ensemble was the first-ever Polish string quartet to perform during the Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony at the Bundestag, the national parliament of the Federal Republic of Germany.
The Meccore String Quartet has also received many international awards, including a nomination for the Paszport Polityki award in the classical music category for its “innovative approach to the music and for breaking the musical stereotypes.”
The musicians won the Premio Paolo Borciani International String Quartet Competition and the Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition.
When they are not performing, Meccore’s members lead chamber music and individual instrumental classes at the Frederic Chopin University of Music in Warsaw, Poland.
Praised for their technical accuracy, Meccore is also known for its deep musicality and expressiveness. (In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear the Meccore playing an excerpt from Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 2 n G Major, Op. 18, No. 2.)
“The Meccore String Quartet brings an unparalleled energy and emotional depth to its performances,” says Wisconsin Union Theater director Elizabeth Snodgrass (below). “This ensemble is admired the world over, and our patrons will experience why the Quartet has earned global praise during its virtual Wisconsin Union Theater performance.”
Information about purchasing tickets can be found here. Tickets for this online event are $10 for UW-Madison students; $17 for Wisconsin Union members, UW-Madison staff and faculty, and students that do not attend UW-Madison; and $20 for all other patrons. Tickets are good for access for a week, through next Sunday, March 7.
The performance by the Meccore String Quartet is sponsored by the David and Kato Perlman Chamber Music Fund. The Wisconsin Union Theater presents this event, in part, with the help of financial support from Wisconsin Arts Board funding from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.
For more information about the Meccore String Quartet’s upcoming performance, visit union.wisc.edu/events-and-activities/event-calendar/event/meccore-quartet.
Tags: #20thCentury, #BerlinGermany, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #DavidandKatoPerlmanChamberMusicSeries, #ElizabethSnodgrass, #Europeanmusic, #EuropeanMusician, #FacebookPage, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FredericChopin, #HolocaustRemembranceDay, #InstrumentalMusic, #JacobStockinger, #KrzysztofPenderecki, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MeccoreStringQuartet, #MusicEducation, #NationalEndowmentfortheArts, #OnlineConcert, #PolishComposer, #StateOfWisconsin, #StringQuartet, #TheEar, #TheHolocaust, #TheUW, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VirtualConcert, #WigmoreHall, #WisconsinArtsBoard, #WisconsinUnionTheater, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, #YouTubevideo, 20th-century, access, accuracy, admire, approach, Arts, audience, award, Beethoven, blog, break, cellist, Cello, ceremony, Chamber music, Chopin, class, Classical music, Competition, composer, Concert, coronavirus, coronavirus pandemic, David and Kato Perlman Chamber Music Series, deep, depth, diary, Elizabeth Snodgrass, emotional, energy, ensemble, Europe, European, expressiveness, Facebook, Facebook post, Facebook posting, faculty, federal, festival, financial, forward, Frédéric Chopin, Germany, global, good, Holocaust, Holocaust Remembrance Day, innovative, instrumental, international, Jacob Stockinger, Krzysztof Penderecki, leaves, like, link, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Meccore String Quartet, member, Mozart, Music, Music education, musicality, National Endowment for the Arts, NEA, night, nomination, online, patron, Penderecki, Poland, Polish, post, posting, praise, purchase, receive, republic, say, share, staff\, State of Wisconsin, stereotype, stream, String quartet, Student, students, Sunday, support, tag, teach, technical, The Ear, tickets, United States, university, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, unwritten, upcoming, UW, UW-Madison, Viola, Violin, violinist, violist, virtual, Warsaw, week, Wigmore Hall, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Arts Board, Wisconsin Union Theater, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, world, YouTube
This Friday night the Verona Quartet performs an online concert of Brahms and Dvorak for the Wisconsin Union Theater. Plus, longtime music critic Jess Anderson has died
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.
ALERT: Jess Anderson (below), a longtime local music critic for Isthmus, an active participant in the local music scene and a veteran radio host of an early music program for WORT-FM 89.9, died this past Sunday. He was 85. When more information is known, The Ear will devote a blog post to Jess, who was also a friend.
By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has received the following announcement to post:
The Wisconsin Union Theater’s Concert Series will continue this season with a performance by the Verona Quartet (below) on this Friday, Jan. 29, at 7:30 p.m. CST. It will be preceded by a question-and-answer session with the Quartet at 7 p.m. CST.
The Quartet will perform two complete works: the String Quartet in A Minor, Op. 51, No. 2, by Johannes Brahms; and the famous String Quartet No. 12 in F Major, Op. 96, the “American,” by Antonin Dvorak. (In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear the Verona Quartet perform the familiar last movement of the string quartet by Dvorak.)
The Verona Quartet rose to international fame by sweeping top prizes at competitions, including the Chamber Music America’s Cleveland Quartet Award in 2020.
Hailing from four different parts of the world, differences unify the Quartet’s members and music. Its music aims to show how diverse experiences can come together in harmony.
“The Verona Quartet brings fresh approaches to classical music masterpieces,” says Wisconsin Union Theater director Elizabeth Snodgrass (below). “The Quartet has risen to become one of the world’s most sought-after string quartets. We are honored to include them in our Concert Series season.”
Ticket purchase information can be found here. Tickets for this virtual online event are $10 for UW-Madison students, $17 for Wisconsin Union members and students who do not attend the UW-Madison, and $20 for all other patrons.
Ticket buyers will receive an email from approximately 2 hours before the event begins that contains the link to view the performance.
Anyone who purchases a ticket within 2 hours of the event’s start time will receive their link in their confirmation email immediately following their purchase. Only 1 ticket per household is needed to view this concert.
The link will remain active until Friday, Feb. 5, at 9:30 p.m. (CST) to view whenever you would like.
This performance will include the Quartet’s regular violinists Jonathan Ong and Dorothy Ro, and violist Abigail Rojansky.
But due to challenges related to the coronavirus pandemic, Quartet member and cellist Jonathan Dormand will not be part of the event. Instead, cellist Dmitry Kouzov (below top) will perform the string quartet by Brahms and cellist Annie Jacobs-Perkins (below bottom, in a photo by C. Tihms Van Velden) will perform the string quartet by Dvorak.
The Verona Quartet’s performance is made possible by the David and Kato Perlman Chamber Music Endowment Fund, with additional support from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.
An additional Concert Series performance will take place on Sunday, Feb. 28, at 7:30 p.m. CDT and features the Meccore Quartet.
For more than 75 years, the Wisconsin Union Theater has served as a cultural center for community members and visitors and provides a variety of performing arts events.
The Theater’s Concert Series began more than a century ago and is one of the oldest uninterrupted series of its kind in the United States.
The Wisconsin Union Theater team presents the Concert Series in collaboration with the student-led Wisconsin Union Directorate (WUD) Performing Arts Committee.
The Theater team strives for all of its spaces to be accessible, and those that need accommodations can reach out by email to the Wisconsin Union Theater team at: wisconsinuniontheater@union.wisc.edu
For more information about the Verona Quartet, including how to purchase tickets, visit union.wisc.edu/events-and-activities/event-calendar/event/verona-quartet.
Tags: #AbigailRojensky, #AmericanQuartet, #AnnieJacobs-Perkins, #AntoninDvorak, #AspectsofAmerica, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #ChamberMusicAmerica, #ClassicalMusician, #ClevelandQuartet, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #CulturalCenter, #DavidandKatoPerlmanChamberMusicSeries, #DmitryKouzov, #DorothyRo, #ElizabethSnodgrass, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #Fridaynight, #JacobStockinger, #JessAnderson, #JohannesBrahms, #JonathanDormand, #JonathanOng, #KatoPerlman, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MeccoreQuartet, #MusicCritic, #MusicScene, #NationalEndowmentfortheArts, #OnlineConcert, #PerformingArts, #RadioHost, #ReachOut, #StartTime, #StateOfWisconsin, #TheEar, #TheU.S., #UnionTheaterConcertSeries, #UnitedStates, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VeronaQuartet, #VirtualConcert, #WisconsinArtsBoard, #WisconsinDirectorate, #WisconsinUnionTheater, #WORT-FM89.9, #YouTubeChannel, #YouTubevideo, Abigail Rojensky, accessible, accommodation, active, alert, American, American Quartet, Annie Jacobs-Perkins, announcement, Antonín Dvořák, anyone, Arts, audience, blog, Brahms, cellist, Cello, center, Central Time, century, challenge, Chamber music, Chamber Music American, Classical music, classicalmusic, Cleveland Quartet, comlete, community, Competition, composer, Concert, concert series, confirmation, contests, coronavirus, CST, cultural, David and Kato Perlman Chamber Music Series, death, devote, died, difference, director, diverse, Dmitry Kouzov, Dorothy Ro, Dvorak, Early music, earlymusic, Elizabeth Snodgrass, event, events, experience, Facebook, Facebook post, Facebook posting, fame, familiar, famous, feature, February, fresh, Friday, friend, funds, harmony, honor, host, hours, household, hpur, include, information, international, Jacob Stockinger, January, Jess Anderson, Johannes Brahms, Jonathan Dormand, Jonathan Ong, Kato Perlman, last, local, Madison, masterpiece, Mead Witter School of Music, Meccore Quartet, member, movement, Music, music critic, music scene, Musician, National Endowment for the Arts, NEA, night, oldest, online, pandemic, participant, perform, performance, Performing arts, post, posting, precede, prize, program, purchase, question-and-answer, Radio, radio host, reach out, Season, session, space, start time, State of Wisconsin, String quartet, Sunday, support, team, The Ear, ticket, time, U.S., unify, uninterrupted, Union Theater Concert Series, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, US, UW, UW-Madison, variety, Verona Quartet, Veteran, view, Viola, Violin, violinist, violist, virtual, winning, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Arts Board, Wisconsin Union Directorate, Wisconsin Union Theater, works, world, WORT-FM 89.9, YouTube
The New York Times music critics pick 10 online concerts and operas to watch through the month of November
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
Classical music critics for The New York Times have again listed their picks of virtual and online concerts that will be streamed during the month of November, starting this Sunday, Nov. 1, and running right through Nov. 30. In September, they did the same for the month of October.
The list of 10 highlights includes chamber music, orchestral music and operas as well as lots of new music, world premieres of commissions and even the Cliburn International Piano Competition, now known simply as The Cliburn.
Most of the events are posted and available for quite a while.
Note that all times are Eastern and that on this Sunday, Nov. 1, daylight saving ends.
As the critics point out, the list may be especially helpful and enjoyable now that the weather is turning colder, people are isolating at home during the nationwide spikes in coronavirus cases, and concert halls remain closed to the public.
Well-known institutions such as The Metropolitan Opera (below) and the Los Angeles Opera are featured. (You can sample an earlier Met production of Philip Glass’ “Satyagraha” – about the early life of Gandhi — in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
So are symphony orchestras from Detroit, Seattle, San Francisco and Cincinnati.
And pianist Igor Levit (below top), who this past year released the highly praised, award-winning complete cycle of 32 piano sonatas by Beethoven and who was named Artist of the Year by Gramophone magazine, is also featured, as is the outstanding Chicago-based violinist Jennifer Koh (below bottom, in a photo by the Los Angeles Times).
Here is a link to the story: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/28/arts/music/classical-music-stream.html
What do you think of the choices?
Do you have other concerts or classical music events to add to the list?
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: #18thCentury, #African-AmericanComposer, #AnthonyDavis, #AnthonyMcGill, #BangonaCan, #BeethovenPianoSonatas, #BeethovenYear, #BerlinGermany, #BlackComposer, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BostonModernOrchestraProject, #BrettDean, #CarlVine, #CassieWieland, #CelloConcerto, #CelloSonata, #ChamberMusic, #ChamberOpera, #ChevalierdeSaint-Georges, #ChoralMusic, #CincinnatiOhio, #CincinnatiSymphonyOrchetsra, #ClaudeDebussy, #CommissionedMusic, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #DavidRobertson, #DaylightSaving, #DetroitMichigan, #DetroitSymphonyOrchestra, #ElectionDay, #EllenReid, #Esa-PekkaSalonen, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FerruccioBusoni, #FlorencePrice, #folksongs, #FranzSchubert, #FredericRzewski, #GramophoneMagazine, #IgorLevit, #JacobStockinger, #JamesConlon, #JohannSebastianBach, #JohnAdams, #JordanNelson, #JosephBoulogne, #JuliaHagen, #JuliaPerry, #KevChoice, #LiveStreaming, #LosAngelesCalifornia, #LosAngelesOpera, #LouisLangree, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MeredithMonk, #MetropolitanOpera, #MinimalistMusic, #Mirandawarning, #MusicCritic, #MusicDirector, #NewMusic, #NewYorkCity, #NewYorkPhilharmonic, #NewYorkTimes, #NicoMuhly, #OnlineConcert, #OrchestralMusic, #PhilipGlass, #PianoMusic, #PianoSonata, #PulitzerPrize, #RoscoeMitchell, #SanFranciscoSymphony, #SeattleSymphony, #SethParkerWoods, #SocialDistancing, #SouthAfrica, #SouthAsia, #SouthKorea, #StandardTime, #StevenLin, #SteveReich, #StringQuartet, #SymphonyOrchestra, #TheAnonymousLover, #TheCliburn, #TheEar, #TheMet, #ThomasKocheff, #TrackMusic, #TyshawnSorey, #UnfinishedSymphony, #VanCliburn, #VanCliburnInternationalPianoCompetition, #VickyChow, #ViolinConcerto, #ViolinMusic, #VirtualConcert, #VocalMusic, #WigmoreHall, #WorldPremiere, #XianZhang, #YouHavetheRighttoRemainSilent, #YouTubevideo, 18th century, acclaimed, African American, Anthony Davis, Anthony McGill, arrangement, Arts, asian, audience, available, award, Bach, Bang on a Can, Beethoven, Beethoven piano sonatas, Beethoven Year, Berlin, birthday, black, blog, Blog post, blog posting, Boston, Boston Modern Orchestra Project, Brett Dean, Busoni, California, cancel, Carl Vine, Cassie Wieland, cellist, Cello, Cello Concerto, Chamber music, chamber opera, Chevalier de Saint Georges, China, Chinese, choral music, Cincinnati, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, clarinet, clarinetist, clarinettist, Classical music, classicalmusic, Claude Debussy, colder, commissions, company, Competition, composer, Concert, concerto, conductor, coronavirus, counterpoint, David Robertson, Daylight Saving, Debussy, December, Detroit, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, early, Election Day, Ellen Reid, enjoyable, Esa-Pekka Salonen, event, Facebook, Facebook post, Facebook posting, Fantasia, Ferruccio Busoni, Florence Price, forward, Franz Schubert, Frederic Rzewski, Gandhi, Germany, Gramophone (magazine), helpful, highlight, Home, hymn, Igor Levit, improvisatory, India, institution, instrumentalist, insurrection, isolating, Jacob Stockinger, James Conlon, Johann Sebastian Bach, John Adams, Jordan Nelson, Joseph Boulogne, Julia Hagen, Julia Perry, Kev Choice, known, Korea, Korean, Korean musician, life, like, link, list, livestream, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Opera, Louis Langrée, Ludwig van Beethoven, masterpiece, Meredith Monk, Met, Metropolitan Opera, Michigan, minimalist music, Miranda warning, monk, month, music critic, Music director, nationwide, New Music, New York City, New York Philharmonic, Nico Muhly, October, Ohio, online, opera, option, Orchestra, orchestral music, pandemic, People, performer, Philip Glass, Pianist, Piano, piano music, Piano sonata, pick, Politics, postpone, production, program, Pulitzer Prize, resident, Roscoe Mitchell, running, San Francisco, San Francisco Symphony, Satyagraha, Schubert, Seattle, Seattle Symphony, Septemeber, Seth Parker Woods, share, singer, social distance, soloist, Sonata, song, South Africa, South Asia, spike, spriritual, standard time, starting, Steve Reich, Steven Lin, stream, String quartet, subscriber, symphony, symphony orchestra, tag, testament, The Anonymous Lover, The Cliburn, The Ear, the Met, The New York Times, Thomas Kocheff, time, track record, turn, Tyshawn Sorey, Unfinished Symphony, United States, Van Cliburn, Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Vicky Chow, Violin, Violin concerto, violinist, virtual, vocal music, weather, well-known, Wigmore Hall, winner, world premiere, Xian Zhang, YouTube
Classical music: The worldwide virtual and online gala fundraiser for the Handel Aria Competition starts today and runs through Oct. 1. Donations will be matched up to $2,000
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 from Orange and Dean Schroeder, the co-founders of the now well-established Handel Aria Competition.
As you may already know, the in-person competition has been postponed until 2021.
The Schroeders say that a virtual online competition for this year was considered, but then dismissed. It would have been too risky to the health of the singers, many of whom have to travel nationally and internationally to compete, and to the accompanying players from the Madison Bach Musicians.
The sound quality also did not meet the standards that the organizers say is necessary to do justice to competitors. Some of the performances are from past competitions But others are new and were done at home during lockdowns.
Perhaps most important of all, the Schroeders wanted to raise money to help the young competitors, whose careers have suffered from concert cancellations during the coronavirus pandemic.
Here is the message:
“Today – Thursday, Sept. 10 — is the start of the Handel Aria Competition’s Virtual Gala to raise funds for our past finalists. It will start at 7:30 p.m. CDT.
“The program includes performances by Morgan Balfour, Elisa Sutherland, Chelsea Shephard, Sarah Coit, Andrew Rader, Nola Richardson, Amanda Achen, Jonathan Woody (singing an aria from “Messiah” in the YouTube video at the bottom), Sarah Moyer, Corrine Byrne, Margaret Fox, Gene Stenger, Emily Yocum Black, Sarah Hayashi, Daniel Moody, Christina Kay, Jacob Scharfman, Brian Giebler and Kristin Knutson.
A performance by the Handel Aria Competition’s director and UW-Madison graduate student soprano Sarah Brailey (below) with Luthien Brackett and the musicians from the Trinity Wall Street Baroque Orchestra in New York City is the finale.
“People around the world can watch it on our Facebook page Handel Aria Competition; on YouTube; or on our website at https://handelariacompetition.org.
“It will be available for viewing from 7:30 p.m. CDT today, Sept. 10, through Thursday, Oct. 1 — NOT Oct. 10 as mistakenly stated above.
“It is FREE but donations are encouraged to support the singers during Covid-19.
“Viewers can donate via Facebook or through our website. All funds will go to the singers, including a challenge grant of $2,000 that Dean and I have pledged in order to encourage others to support these talented young artists.
“The Handel Aria Competition Virtual Gala is supported by funds from Dane Arts and the Madison Arts Commission with additional funds from the Wisconsin Arts Board.”
Tags: #AltoSinger, #BaroqueContinuo, #BaroqueMusic, #BaroqueOpera, #BaroqueOratorio, #BaroqueOrchestra, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChallengeGrant, #ContraltoSinger, #CoronavirusPandemic, #CountertenorSinger, #COVID-19, #DaneArts, #DeanSchroeder, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #GraduateStudent, #Handel'sMessiah, #HandelAriaCompetition, #HarpsichordContinuo, #HomeWebpage, #HomeWebsite, #JacobStockinger, #JohannSebastianBach, #LuthienBrackett, #MadisonArtsCommission, #MadisonBachMusicians, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MessiahOratorio, #NewYorkCity, #OperaMusic, #OrangeSchroeder, #PastoralSonata, #SarahBrailey, #SopranoSinger, #TenorSinger, #TheEar, #TheUW, #TrevorStephenson, #TrinityWallStreetChurch, #VocalMusic, #WisconsinArtsBoard, #YoungArtists, #YouTubeChannel, #YouTubevideo, additional, alto, announcement, aria, Arts, audience, available, Bach, Baroque, Baroque opera, Baroque orchestra, blog, cancel, canceled, challenge, challenge grant, Classical music, co-founders, commission, Competition, composer, Concert, consider, continuo, contralto, coronavirus, Dane Arts, Dean Schroeder, director, dismiss, donations, Early music, encourage, encouraged, established, event, Facebook, finale, finalist, finalists, forward, founder, fundraiser, funds, gala, graduate student, grant, Handel Aria Competition, harpsichord, Health, home website, international, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, like, link, lockdown, Luthien Brackett, Madison, Madison Arts Commission, Madison Bach Musicians, Mead Witter School of Music, Messiah, Music, Musician, national, new, New York City, news, October, online, opera, Orange Schroeder, oratorio, Orchestra, pandemic, past, performer, pledge, post, posting, postponed, quality, raise, rusky, Sarah Brailey, September, share, singers, sonic, soprano, Sound, Student, support, tag, talent, talented, tenor, The Ear, travel, Trinity, Trinity Wall Street Church, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW, UW-Madison, view, viewer, Viola, Violin, virtual, vocal music, Website, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Arts Board, world, worldwide, year, young artists, YouTube
Classical music: The amateur, acclaimed and affordable Middleton Community Orchestra suspends its new season until further notice
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
At a time when many concert schedules are getting complicated due to virtual online concerts and other alternatives because of the coronavirus pandemic and Covid-19, the message couldn’t be simpler.
The Middleton Community Orchestra (below) has suspended its new season until further notice.
You can check for additional information by going to the website: https://middletoncommunityorchestra.org
There it says: “Concerts are postponed until further notice. Check back here and join our email list for updates to the season.”
It’s too bad.
The season took a lot of organizing. It was going to take place in alternative venues because the Middleton Performing Arts Center, attached to Middleton High School, is undergoing renovations. (In the YouTube at the bottom, you can hear the MCO performing the Overture to Wagner’s opera “Die Meistersinger.”
It was also to feature new soloists including violinist David Perry of the UW-Madison Pro Arte String Quartet, and two guest conductors from Edgewood College and the UW-Whitewater.
It could also mean another cancellation of the new teenage concerto competition and concert as well as the cancellation of conductor Kyle Knox’s inaugural season as the MCO’s new music director (below).
Here is the largely amateur, well planned, unquestionably ambitious and very affordable season that was scheduled: https://welltempered.wordpress.com/2020/03/30/classical-music-the-middleton-community-orchestra-announces-an-ambitious-2020-21-season-with-new-soloists-and-conductors-but-with-no-middleton-venue-for-the-season/
Do you have comments for the MCO?
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #ChoralMusic, #ConcertoCompetition, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #CriticalAcclaim, #CriticallyAcclaimed, #DieMeistersinger, #EdgewoodCollege, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FestivalChoirofMadison, #HamelMusicCenter, #HomeWebsite, #JacobStockinger, #JohannesBrahms, #KyleKnox, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #McFarlandPerformingArtsCenter, #MiddletonCommunityOrchestra, #MiddletonHighSchool, #MiddletonPerformingArtsCenter, #MusicDirector, #MusicEducation, #OperaMusic, #OrchestralMusic, #PeterTchaikovsky, #PianoConcerto, #ProArteQuartet, #SergeiPavlov, #SergeiRachmaninoff, #SergeiRachmaninov, #StringQuartet, #TheEar, #TheMCO, #TheUW, #ThomasKasdorf, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VocalMusic, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, #YoungPeople, #YouTubevideo, 2020, 2020-21, acclaim, additional, affordable, alternative, amateur, ambitious, Arts, audience, Beethoven, blog, Brahms, cancel\cancellation, Chamber music, choral music, Classical music, classicalmusic, comment, community, Competition, complicated, composer, Concert, concerto, conductor, coronavirus, Die Meistersinger, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Edgewood College, email, event, Facebook, Festival Choir of Madison, forward, further, Hamel Music Center, home website, inaugural, information, Jacob Stockinger, Johannes Brahms, Kyle Knox, like, link, list, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, McFarland Performing Arts Center, MCO, Mead Witter School of Music, message, Middleton Community Orchestra, Middleton High School, Middleton Performing Arts Center, Mozart, Music, Music director, Music education, new, news, notice, opera, Orchestra, orchestral music, organize, organizing, Overture, pandemic, performer, Peter Tchaikovsky, Pianist, Piano, Piano concerto, plan, planned, post, posting, postpone, Pro Arte Quartet, Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff, Rachmaninov, Renovation, schedule, Season, Sergei Pavlov, Sergei Prokofiev, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Sergei Rachmaninov, share, simple, simpler, soloist, String quartet, suspend, suspended, symphony, tag, Tchaikovsky, teenage, The Ear, Thomas Kasdorf, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, update, UW, UW-Madison, UW-Whitewater, Violin, Violin concerto, violinist, vocal music, Website, Wisconsin, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, young people, Youth, YouTube
Classical music: Meet Conor Nelson, the new flute professor at the UW-Madison
8 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 UW-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music has a new flute professor who follows Timothy Hagen in taking the place of retired longtime predecessor Stephanie Jutt, who continues to perform locally with the Madison Symphony Orchestra and the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society..
He is Conor Nelson (below) and he starts later this month at the UW-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music.
Here is the biography — impressive for both his performing and his teaching –that the university released:
“Praised for his “long-breathed phrases and luscious tone” by the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Canadian flutist Conor Nelson is established as a leading flutist and pedagogue of his generation.
“Since his New York recital debut at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, he has frequently appeared as soloist and recitalist throughout the United States and abroad.
“Solo engagements include concertos with the Minnesota Orchestra, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Flint Symphony, and numerous other orchestras.
“In addition to being the only wind player to win the Grand Prize at the WAMSO (Minnesota Orchestra) Young Artist Competition, he won first prize at the William C. Byrd Young Artist Competition. He also received top prizes at the New York Flute Club Young Artist Competition, the Haynes International Flute Competition as well as the Fischoff, Coleman and Yellow Springs chamber music competitions. (Editor’s note: In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear Conor Nelson perform the second and third movements of the Flute Sonata by French composer Francis Poulenc.)
“With percussionist Ayano Kataoka (below left, with Nelson), he performed at Merkin Concert Hall, Tokyo Bunka Kaikan Hall and Izumi Hall. A recital at the Tokyo Opera City Hall received numerous broadcasts on NHK Television. Their CD entitled, “Breaking Training” was released on New Focus Recordings (NYC). His second CD, “Nataraja,” with pianist Thomas Rosenkranz, is also available on New Focus.
“He has collaborated with pianist Claude Frank on the Schneider concert series in New York City and appeared at numerous chamber music festivals across the country including the OK Mozart, Bennington, Skaneateles, Yellow Barn, Cooperstown, Salt Bay, Look and Listen (NYC), Norfolk (Yale), Green Mountain, Chesapeake, and the Chamber Music Quad Cities series.
“He is the Principal Flutist of the New Orchestra of Washington in Washington, D.C., and has performed with the Detroit, Toledo and Tulsa Symphony Orchestras. He also performed as guest principal with A Far Cry, Orquesta Filarmónica de Jalisco, and the Conceirtos de la Villa de Santo Domingo.
“A respected pedagogue, Dr. Nelson has given master classes at over 100 colleges, universities and conservatories.
“Prior to his appointment at UW-Madison, he served as the flute professor at Bowling Green State University for nine years and as the Assistant Professor of Flute at Oklahoma State University from 2007-2011.
“His recent residencies include Yonsei University in Seoul, Korea; the Sichuan Conservatory in Chengdu, China; the Conservatorio de Musica de Puerto Rico; and the Associacao Brasileira de Flautistas in Sao Paulo.
“He is also a regular guest of the Texas Summer Flute Symposium and has been the featured guest artist for 11 flute associations across the country. His former students can be found performing in orchestras, as well as teaching at colleges, universities and public schools nationwide. They have also amassed over 60 prizes in young artist competitions, concerto competitions and flute association competitions.
“Nelson received degrees from the Manhattan School of Music, Yale University and Stony Brook University where he was the winner of the school-wide concerto competitions at all three institutions. He is also a recipient of the Thomas Nyfenger Prize, the Samuel Baron Prize and the Presser Award.
“His principal teachers include Carol Wincenc, Ransom Wilson, Linda Chesis, Susan Hoeppner and Amy Hamilton. Nelson is a Powell Flutes artist and is the Assistant Professor of Flute at UW-Madison where he performs with the Wingra Wind Quintet.”
Tags: #AFarCry, #AmyHamilton, #AyanoKataoka, #BachDancingandDynamiteSociety, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BowlingGreenStateUniversity, #CanadianMusician, #CarnegieHall, #CarolWincenc, #ChamberMusic, #ChamberMusicQuadCitites, #ChengduChina, #ClaudeFrank, #ConorNelson, #DetroitMichigan, #DetroitSymphonyOrchestra, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FirstPrize, #FischoffNationalChamberMusicCompetition, #Flint, #FlintSymphony, #FluteConcerto, #FluteMusic, #FluteSonata, #GrandPrize, #GreenMountain, #GuestArtist, #HaynesInternationalFluteCompetition, #IzumiHall, #JacobStockinger, #LindaChesis, #LookandListen, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #ManhattanSchoolofMusic, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MerkinConcertHall, #MinneapolisMinnesota, #MinneapolisStarTribune, #MinnesotaOrchestra, #MusicEducation, #Musicfaculty, #NewFocusRecordings, #NewOrchestraofWashington, #NewYork, #NewYorkCity, #NewYorkFluteClub, #NHKTelevision, #OklahomaStateUniversity, #OKMozart, #PianoAccompaniment, #PianoAccompanist, #PowellFlutes, #PrincipalFlute, #PrincipalFlutist, #PublicSchool, #PuertoRico, #QuadCities, #RansomWilson, #SaltBay, #SantoDomingo, #SaoPaulo, #SchneiderConcertSeries, #SeoulSouthKorea, #SichuanConservatory, #SouthKorea, #StephanieJutt, #StonyBrookUniversity, #SusanHoeppner, #TexasSummerFluteSymposium, #TheEar, #TheU.S., #ThomasRosenkarnz, #TimothyHagen, #TokyoBunkaKaikanHall, #TokyoJapan, #TokyoOperaCityHall, #ToledoSymphonyOrchestra, #TopPrize, #TorontoCanada, #TorontoSymphonyOrchestra, #TulsaOklahoma, #TulsaSymphonyOrchestra, #UnitedStates, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #WeillHall, #WeillRecitalHall, #WindMusic, #WingraWindQuintet, #YaleSchoolofMusic, #YaleUniversity, #YellowBarn, #YellowSprings, #YonseiUniversity, #YoungArtist, #YouTubevideo, A Far Cry, abroad, Amy Hamilton, artist, Arts, Asia, association, audience, Ayano Kataoka, Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society, Bennington, biography, blog, Blowing Green State University, Brazil, Broadcast, Canada, Canadian, Carnegie Hall, Carol Wincenc, CD, Chamber music, Chamber Music Quad Cities, Chengdu, Chesapeake, China, Chinese, Classical music, Claude Frank, club, Coleman, college, Competition, Concert, concerto, Conor Nelson, conservatory, Cooperstown, country, D.C., degrees, Detroit, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, duties, Facebook, first prize, Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, flautist, Flint Symphony, flute, flute club, flute concerto, flute music, flute sonata, flutist, forward, France, French, frequently appear, generation, grand prize, Green Mountain, guest artist, guest principal, Haynes International Flute Competition, his, Iowa, Izumi Hall, Jacob Stockinger, Jalisco, Japan, Japanese, Korea, leading, lijke, Linda Chesis, link, Look and Listen, luscious, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Manhattan School of Music, master class, masterclass, Mead Witter School of Music, Merkin Concert Hall, Mexico, Michigan, Minneapolis, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Minnesota, Minnesota Orchestra, month, Music, Music education, nationwide, new, New Focus Recordings, New Orchestra of Washington, New York, New York City, New York Flute Club, NHK, Norfolk, Ohio, OK Mozart, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State University, Orchestra, pedagogue, percussion, percussionist, perform, performer, performing, phrases, Pianist, Piano, poat, posting, Powell, Powell Flutes, predecessor, principal, principal flute, principal flutist, prizes, professor, public school, Puerto Rico, Quad Cities, quintet, Ransom Wilson, recital, recitalist, release, residency, respected, retired, Salt Bay, Santo Domingo, Sao Paulo, Schneider, Schneider Concert Series, Seoul, series, serve, share, Sichuan, Sichuan Conservatory, Skaneateles, soloist, Sonata, South Korea, start, Stephanie Jutt, Stony Brook University, students, summer, Susan Hoeppner, symphony, Symposium, tag, Teacher, teaching, Texas, Texas Summer Flute Symposium, The Ear, Thomas Rosenkranz, Timothy Hagen, Tokyo, Tokyo Bunka Kaikan Hall, Tokyo Opera City Hall, Toledo, Toledo Symphony Orchestra, tone, toop prie, Toronto, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Tulsa, Tulsa Symphony Orchestra, U.S., United States, university, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW, UW-Madison, Washington, Washington D.C., Weill Hall, Weill Recital Hall, win, wind music, Wingra Wind Quintet, Wisconsin, Yale, years, Yellow Barn, Yellow Springs, Yonsei University, young artist, YouTube
Classical music: This summer’s Token Creek Festival is CANCELED. Plus, a teenager’s piano “practice journal” on Instagram is instructive, entertaining and encouraging
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.
NEWS ALERT: This summer’s Token Creek Festival (TCF) — with the chamber music theme of Legacy to run from Aug. 21-Sept. 6 –has been CANCELED. Organizers say they hope to launch a virtual online season of archived performances at the end of the summer. Also, once modestly sized gatherings are safe again, the TCF hopes to hold an off-season event. For more information and an official statement from TCF, go to: https://tokencreekfestival.org
By Jacob Stockinger
Somewhere in New York City is a young Chinese piano prodigy who can help you get through what is often the most challenging and discouraging part of piano lessons: practicing.
His name is Auston (below) – no last name is given – and you can find him, in T-shirts and shorts, on Instagram at Auston.piano.
Auston is quite the prodigy. A 13, he plays difficult and dramatic repertoire: the Nocturne in C minor, the Scherzo No. 1 in B minor and the Ballade No. 1 in G minor, all by Chopin.
You can also hear him play the Prelude and Fugue No. 3 in C-sharp minor from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I, by Johann Sebastian Bach; the fiendish Toccata by Sergei Prokofiev; and the Piano Concerto No. 2 by Sergei Rachmaninoff.
One day, The Ear expects, Auston might well be among the impressive amateurs and, later, professionals who compete in international competitions.
But more than listening to him playing, his frequent social media entries – sometimes he posts two or three times a day — allow us to hear him practice. We even hear him practicing scales – so-called Russian scales that combine scales in parallel and contrary motion.
This week, he hit 100 video posts. Just yesterday Auston started sight-reading the “Winter Wind” Etude of Chopin, Op. 25, No. 11, which many consider to be the most technically difficult of all Chopin’s etudes. (You can hear the etude – played by Maurizio Pollini – and see the note-filled score in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
Starting out, he often plays hands separately (below) and sight-reads the score very, very slowly, making mistakes and working out fingering. He also uses a metronome at a very slow tempo. He gets frustrated but he never gives up. He just starts over again and provides an excellent role model for aspiring piano students.
But this young man is also fun to read. In his one-minute or less entries of his “practice journal” – which he also calls his “practice journey” — he is witty and self-deprecating in his commentaries about the music and especially about himself when he makes mistakes. As seriously as he takes the piano and practicing, he doesn’t take himself too seriously.
All in all he can even encourage others – including The Ear –to persevere and go through the same frustrations of practicing and learning a new piece.
In this case, it is the piano, but the postings could easily apply to practicing any other instrument or even to singing.
Check it out.
You will be impressed.
You will admire him.
You will laugh along with him.
And you just might practice more.
If this practice journal is a pandemic project, it succeeds way beyond what you — and probably Auston himself — might expect.
Happy listening!
And patient, productive practicing!
Tags: #BaroqueMusic, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #GiveUp, #HomeWebsite, #InstagramPost, #InstagramVideo, #JacobStockinger, #JohannSebastianBach, #JohnHarbison, #LastName, #MassGathering, #MaurizioPollini, #MusicEducation, #NewsAlert, #NewYorkCity, #PianoConcerto, #PianoLessons, #PianoMusic, #PianoVirtuoso, #PracticingMusic, #PublicHealth, #RoleModel, #RoseMaryHarbison, #SergeiProkofiev, #SergeiRachmaninov, #SocialMedia, #TheEar, #TheWell-TemperedClavier, #TokenCreekChamberMusicFestival, #TokenCreekFestival, #WinterWind, #YouTubevideo, 100, admire, alert, all, amateur, archive, Arts, Asia, asian, aspiring, audience, auston.piano, available, Bach, Ballade, Baroque, blog, canceled, challenge, challenging, Chamber music, China, Chinese, Chopin, Classical music, commentary, Competition, composer, concerto, coronavirus, correct, discouraging, Early music, encourage, end, entry, etude, event, Facebook, festival, fiendish, fingering, frequent, frustrated, frustration, fugue, fun, gathering, give up, hand, hands, happy', Harbison, himself, home website, impress, impressive, information, Instagram, ironic, Jacob Stockinger, Jazz, Johann Sebastian Bach, John Harbison, journal, journey, last, last name, launch, lessons, like, link, listening, mass gathering, Maurizio Pollini, metronome, mistake, mistakes, modest, Music, music educaiton, name, never, New York City, news, nocturne, notes, off-season, one hundred, online, organizer, pandemic, patient, performance, persevere, Pianist, Piano, Piano concerto, Piano Concerto No. 2 (Rachmaninoff), piano lessons, Pollini, post, posting, practice, practicing, Prelude, prodigy, productive, professional, project, Prokofiev, provide, Public health, Rachmaninov, role model, Rose Mary Harbison, safe, Scherzo, score, Season, self-deprecating, separately, Sergei Prokofiev, Sergei Rachmaninov, seriously, share, shorts, sight-reading, social media, start, statement, Student, succeed, summer, T-shirt, tag, teenage, Tempo, The Ear, The Well-Tempered Clavier, theme, toccata, Token Creek Chamber Music Festival, Token Creek Festival, United States, virtual, virtuoso, Website, Winter Wind, Wisconsin, witty, working, young, YouTube
Classical music: The coronavirus pandemic sparks a surge in piano sales
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
Have you or someone in your family used the COVID-19 lockdown and staying at home to practice, play or learn the piano?
You’re not alone.
A year ago, stories in the media tracked how pianos were quickly becoming a thing of the past in American homes. People were giving pianos away for free and for the cost of moving.
But then the coronavirus pandemic arrived, along with lockdowns, online learning and sheltering at home.
National news media discovered some unexpected good news, especially since public concerts have been canceled: The pandemic has brought a renewed interest in playing the piano at home – and in buying them.
The Ear wanted to find out if that same trend holds true in Madison.
“It does,” says Tim Farley, who — with his wife Renee — owns and operates Farley’s House of Pianos on the far west side near West Towne Mall. (The top photo from the store is from the Better Business Bureau. The two owners are seen below bottom in a photo from Isthmus newspaper).
“It’s weird,” he adds. “We had to close. When we re-opened, we cut back on hours and staff. Like many others, we figured there would be an end to business for a while.”
But just the opposite happened.
“Our sales are up about 34 percent compared to a year ago,” Farley adds. “We’re happy how things are going.”
Most of the sales increase has been in digital pianos, Farley says, although a lot of excellent acoustic pianos have also been sold, including a Hamburg Steinway.
Part of what accounts for the increase, he speculates, is that teachers inspire students to want better instruments.
Farley’s sells new and restored pianos (below), and also has an extensive teaching program, with online lessons during the pandemic. (For isolation practicing ideas and advice, see the YouTube video at the bottom.)
The Ear wonders if the same trend is happening in Europe and especially Asia — particularly China, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan — where so many great young pianists are coming from and winning international competitions.
For more about the national picture in the U.S., including background history, information about prices, increases in online sales and the demographics of buyers, you should read this oustanding story by music critic Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim in The New York Times:
Here is a link: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/29/arts/music/piano-sales-coronavirus.html
Have you bought a piano or another instrument during the pandemic?
Are you using the down time to return to practicing and playing a piano or another instrument?
What would you like to say about making music during the pandemic?
Has making music helped you weather this odd period of time?
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: #AsianPianist, #BetterBusinessBureau, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChineseMusicians, #ChinesePianist, #CityofMadison, #CorinnadaFonseca-Wollheim, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #CutBack, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #Farley'sHouseofPianos, #GiveAway, #GoodNews, #HamburgSteinway, #InstrumentalMusic, #IsthmusNewspaper, #JacobStockinger, #MadisonWisconsin, #MakingMusic, #MusicEducation, #PianoLessons, #PianoMusic, #PluckedInstruments, #ReneeFarley, #Self-Isolation, #shelter-at-home, #SouthKorea, #SouthKorean, #Stayathome, #TheEar, #TheNewYorkTImes, #TheU.S., #TimFarley, #WestSide, #WestTowneMall, #YouTubevideo, account, acoustic, adult learners, advice, ago, alone, America, American, another, Arts, Asia, background, better, Better Business Bureau, blog, bought, Business, buy, buyer, buying, cancel, canceled, China, Chinese, Classical music, close, come, compare, Competition, Concert, Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim, coronavirus, cost, cut back, demographics, digital, digital piano, discover, down, Europe, excellent, explain, Facebook, Family, Farley's House of Pianos, forward, free, give, give away, going, good news, great, Hamburg Steinway, happy', hear, History, Home, hours, idea, ideas, increase, inspire, instrument, instruments, interest, international, isolation, Isthmus, it, Jacob Stockinger, Japan, Japanese, Korean, learning, lessons, like, link, lockdown, Madison, make, making music, mall, media'track, moving, Music, Music education, national, New York City, news, Newspaper, odd, online, open, operate, outstanding, own, pandemic, part, past, People, percent, period, photo, Pianist, Piano, piano lessons, piano music, Picture, play, post, posting, practice, practicing, program, public, quality, re-open, Renee Farley, renewed, restored, sales, share, someone, South Korea, South Korean, speculate, staff\, stay at home, Steinway, stories, story, students, tag, Taiwan, teachers, teaching, The Ear, The New York Times, thing, things, Tim Farley, time, track, transportation, true, unexpected, United States, weather, weird, west side, West Towne Mall, what, win, Wisconsin, year, you, young, YouTube
Recent Comments
The Well-Tempered Ear 
Songs by Black composers trace their cultural realities in a free online UW performance TONIGHT of “Verisimilitudes.” Plus, the five winners of this year’s Beethoven Competition perform Sunday.
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: This Sunday, April 25, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. the five winners of this year’s Beethoven Competition at the UW-Madison will perform in a winners’ concert. Included in the program are the popular and dramatic “Appassionata” Sonata, Op. 57, and the famous and innovative last piano sonata, No. 32 in C minor, Op 111. Here is a link to the YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMF0Hd1MJwMg. Click on “Show More” and you can see the full programs and biographical profiles of the winners.
By Jacob Stockinger
The concert could hardly be more timely or the subject more relevant.
Think of the events in and near Minneapolis, Chicago and elsewhere in the U.S.; of the Black Lives Matter movement and social protest; of the political fight for D.C. statehood and voting rights – all provide a perfect context for an impressive student project that will debut online TONIGHT, Saturday, April 24, at 7 p.m.
The one-hour free concert “Verisimilitudes: A Journey Through Art Song in Black, Brown and Tan” originated at the UW-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music. It seems an ideal way for listeners to turn to music and art for social and political commentary, and to understand the racial subtexts of art.
Soprano Quanda Dawnyell Johnson (below) created, chose and performs the cycle of songs by Black composers with other Black students at the UW-Madison.
Here is a link to the YouTube video: https://youtu.be/-g5hjeuSumw
Click on “Show More” to see the complete program and more information.
Here is the artist’s statement:
“Within the content of this concert are 17 art songs that depict the reality of the souls of a diasporic people. Most of the lyricists and all of the composers are of African descent. In large part they come from the U.S. but also extend to Great Britain, Guadeloupe by way of France, and Sierra Leone.
“They speak to the veracity of Black life and Black feeling. A diasporic African reality in a Classical mode that challenges while it embraces a Western European vernacular. It is using “culture” as an agent of resistance.
“I refer to verisimilitude in the plural. While syntactically incorrect, as it relates to the multiple veils of reality Black people must negotiate, it is very correct.
“To be packaged in Blackness, or should I say “non-whiteness” is to ever live in a world of spiraling modalities and twirling realities. To paraphrase the great artist, Romare Bearden, in “calling and recalling” — we turn and return, then turn again to find the place that is our self.
“I welcome you to… Verisimilitudes: A Journey Through Art Song in Black, Brown, and Tan”
Here, by sections, is the complete program and a list of performers:
I. Nascence
Clear Water — Nadine Shanti
A Child’s Grace — Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson
Night — Florence Price (below)
Big Lady Moon — Samuel Coleridge-Taylor
II. Awareness
Lovely, Dark, and Lonely — Harry T. Burleigh
Grief –William Grant Still (below)
Prayer — Leslie Adams
Interlude, The Creole Love Call — Duke Ellington
III. The Sophomore
Mae’s Rent Party, We Met By Chance –Jeraldine Saunders Herbison
The Barrier — Charles Brown
IV. Maturity
Three Dream Portraits: Minstrel Man, Dream Variation; I, Too — Margaret Bonds (below)
Dreams — Lawren Brianna Ware
Song Without Words — Charles Brown
Legacy
L’autre jour à l’ombrage (The Other Day in the Shade) — Joseph Boulogne (Chevalier de Saint-Georges, below)
The Verisimilitudes Team
Quanda Dawnyell Johnson — Soprano and Project Creator
Lawren Brianna Ware – -Pianist and Music Director
Rini Tarafder — Stage Manager
Akiwele Burayidi – Dancer
Jackson Neal – Dancer
Nathaniel Schmidt – Trumpet
Matthew Rodriguez – Clarinet
Craig Peaslee – Guitar
Aden Stier –Bass
Henry Ptacek – Drums
Dave Alcorn — Videographer
Here is a link to the complete program notes with lyrics and composer bios. And a preview audio sample is in the YouTube video at the bottom: https://simplebooklet.com/verisimilitudesprogramnotes#page=1
Share this:
Like this:
Tags: #Americanhistory, #AppassionataSonata, #ArtSong, #BeethovenCompetition, #BeethovenPianoSonatas, #Blackcomposers, #BlackCulture, #BlackHistory, #Blacklife, #BlackLivesMatter, #BlackMusic, #BlackMusician, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CentralTime, #ChamberMusic, #CharlesBrown, #ChevalierdeSaint-Georges, #ChicagoIllinois, #Coleridge-TaylorPerkinson, #CoronavirusPandemic, #DukeElington, #DukeEllington, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FlorencePrice, #GreatBritain, #HarryT.Burleigh, #IrvingShain, #JacobStockinger, #JeraldineSaundersHerbison, #JosephBoulogne, #LawrenBriannaWare, #LeslieAdams, #LosAngelesGuitarQuartet, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MargaretBonds, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MinneapolisMinnesota, #MusicDirector, #NadineShanti, #OnlineConcert, #PoliticalProtest, #ProgreamNotes, #QuandaJohnson, #RomareBearden, #SamuelColeridge-Taylor, #SierreLeone, #SingWithoutWords, #SocialProtest, #SongCycle, #SopranoSinger, #StageDirector, #TheEar, #TheU.S., #TheUK, #TheUW, #UnitedStates, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VirtualConcert, #VocalMusic, #VotingRights, #WashingtonD.C., #WesternEuropean, #WilliamGrantStill, #YouTubeChannel, #YouTubevideo, African, agent, America, Appassionata Sonata, Art, art song, Arts, audience, barrier, bass, bassist, Beethoven, Beethoven Competition, big, biography, black, Black composers, Black culture, Black life, Black Lives Matter, black music, Blackness, blog, bonds, brown, call, Central Daylight Time, Central Time, Chamber music, chance, Charles Brown, Chevalier de Saint Georges, Chicago, Child, choose, clarinet, clarinetist, Classical music, Coleridge-Taylor, Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, commentary, Competition, complete, composer, Concert, content, context, coronavirus, correct, Creole, culture, cycle, D.C., dance, dancer, dark, day, debut, depict, descent, diaspora, dramatic, dream, Dreams, drummer, drums, Ellington, Europe, Facebook, Facebook post, Facebook posting, famous, feeling, Florence Price, forward, France, free, grace, Great Britain, Guadeloupe, guitarist, Harry T. Burleigh, History, hour, ideal, impressive, information, interlude, Irving Shain, Jacob Stockinger, Jeraldine Saunders Herbison, Joseph Boulogne, journey, journeyt, lady, Lauren Brianna Ware, legacy, Leslie Adams, life, like, link, live, Love, lovely, Ludwig van Beethoven, lyricist, lyrics, Madison, man, Margaret Bonds, maturity, Mead Witter School of Music, Minneapolis, minstrel, modality, mode, moon, multiple, Music, Music director, Musician, Nadine Shanti, nascence, night, online, originate, other, package, pandemic, party, People, percussion, perfect, perform, performer, Pianist, Piano, Piano sonata, plural, political protest, popular, portrait, post, posting, prayer, preview, price, program, program notes, project, Quanda Johnson, racial, read, reality, recall, recital, Rent, resistance, right, Romare Bearden, sample, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, shade, share, show, Sierra Leone, singer, Singing, social protest, Sonata, song, song cycle, Song Without Words, sophomore, soprano, soul, speak, spiral, stage director, statehood, statement, Still, students, subtext, syntax, tag, Tan, team, The Ear, tonight, Trumpet, trumpeter, U.S., UK, understand, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW, UW-Madison, veil, veracity, verisimilitude, vernacular, videographer, virtual, vocal music, voting, voting rights, Washington, water, way, Western European, whiteness, William Grant Still, winner, Wisconsin, year, YouTube, YouTube video