prodigy | The Well-Tempered Ear

Ailing superstar maestro and pianist Daniel Barenboim, 80, quits longtime German opera post

January 7, 2023
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

Yesterday — Friday, Jan. 6, 2023 — superstar maestro and pianist Daniel Barenboim, 80, resigned his longtime post of over 30 years as director of the Berlin State Opera.

Barenboim (below) cited ill health — specifically a severe inflammation of blood vessels — as the reason for his resignation.

Local residents might recall his long tenure at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, where many of them probably heard him conduct and perhaps even perform as a concert pianist.

Here is a long biographical entry in Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Barenboim

Below are links to two news articles about Barenboim’s decision.

In them you can read a lot of details about: his philosophy of interpretation; his childhood as a Jewish child prodigy in Argentina; his training and early career as both pianist and conductor; his performances with marriage to British cellist Jacqueline du Pré, who died young; his love of German music and his role in Germany’s reunification; his controversial criticism of how Israel treats Palestinians; and the orchestra and music school he co-founded with the Palestinian activist and world-famous literary scholar Edward Said.

Here is a story from British newspaper The Guardian:

https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fmusic%2F2023%2Fjan%2F06%2Fdaniel-barenboim-step-down-berlin-state-opera-poor-health&data=05%7C01%7C%7C66c77484055c4288326508daf02e850f%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638086379832875661%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=pGEA0TsdHFxtYwzzqeugIDeFUh6zR5FNejjokYL5cZY%3D&reserved=0

And here is the story from the German broadcasting network and media conglomerate Deutsche Welle:

https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dw.com%2Fen%2Fconductor-daniel-barenboim-resigns-as-berlin-state-opera-director-over-ill-health%2Fa-63760683&data=05%7C01%7C%7Ceeb75c8f244542d0496e08daf02ed28b%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0e%7C638086381129033294%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=qmTwyPzkWpJKfAT4ohHJVWWnISE%2BxZS%2FxuM7hrC09zQ%3D&reserved=0

Finally, here is a recent compilation video from the outstanding arts website and streaming service medici.tv to celebrate Barenboim’s recent 80th birthday. It is called “80 Minutes with the Barenboim” and it features many other classical luminaries such as Itzhak Perlman, Pinchas Zukerman and Pierre Boulez who have been vital to his life and global career.

Do you know any of Barenboim’s many recordings?

Do you have a favorite recording to recommend?

Did you ever hear Barenboim in person conduct or play the piano?

What did you think of him? Of his conducting or playing?

The Ear wants to hear.

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #BerlinGermany, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #DanielBarenboim, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #MusicalInterpretation, #TheEar, #Wikipediabiography, #YouTubevideo, activist, Argentina, Argentine, Arts, Bach, Barenboim, Beethoven, Berlin, Berlin State Opera, biography, birthday, blog, career, Cello, Chamber music, Chicago, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Classical music, Concert, concerto, conductor, culture, Daniel Barenboim, Edward Said, Facebook, German, Germany, global, illness, interpretation, Israel, Israeli, Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Jacob Stockinger, Jacqueline du Pré, Jewish, Johann Sebastian Bach, La Scala, life, link, Ludwig van Beethoven, Maestro, Mozart, Music, news, opera, Orchestra, Palestinian, philosophy, Pianist, Piano, Pierre Boulez, Pinchas Zukerman, Politics, poor health, prodigy, recording, share, sick, superstar, symphony, tag, The Ear, Violin, violinist, vocal music, West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, Wikipedia, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, YouTube

Can American film director Ron Howard make a sensitive and accurate biopic of Chinese superstar pianist Lang Lang? Or is it a cultural appropriation that deserves to be condemned?

September 27, 2020
6 Comments

By Jacob Stockinger

The self-appointed PC diversity police have struck again.

This is getting silly and tiresome, insulting and embarrassing.

Some advocates of cultural diversity are crying foul over the latest project of the American and Academy Award-winning Hollywood film director Ron Howard: making a biopic of the superstar Chinese classical pianist Lang Lang (below).

The script will be drawn from the pianist’s bestselling memoir “Journey of a Thousand Miles” — which has also been recast as an inspirational children’s book — and the director and scriptwriters will consult with Lang Lang.

It seems to The Ear a natural collaboration, as well as a surefire box office hit, between two high-achieving entertainers. Check out their bios:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lang_Lang

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Howard

But some people are criticizing the project in the belief that because Ron Howard (below) is white and Western, he cannot do justice to someone who is Chinese or to Asian culture.

Here is an essay, found on the website of Classic FM, by one objector. She is Chinese film director Lulu Wang (below), who says she has no interest in doing the project herself: https://www.classicfm.com/artists/lang-lang/pianist-biopic-ron-howard-faces-criticism-lulu-wang/

Talk about misplaced alarm over “cultural appropriation.”

Don’t you think that Lang Lang will have a lot to say about how he is depicted?

Do you wonder if Wang thinks cultural appropriation works in reverse?

Should we dismiss Lang Lang’s interpretations of Bach, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Schumann, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Prokofiev and Bartok simply because he is non-Western and Chinese rather than German, French or Russian?

Of course not. They should be taken on their own merits, just as the interpretations of any other Asian classical musician, and artists in general including Ai Weiwei, should be.

But however unfairly, cultural appropriation just doesn’t seem to work in reverse.

Mind you, The Ear thinks that cultural appropriation is a valid concept and can indeed sometimes be useful in discussing cross-cultural influences.

But it sure seems that the concept is being applied in an overly broad and even misdirected or ridiculous way, kind of the way that the idea of “micro-aggressions” can be so generously applied that it loses its ability to be truthful and useful.

Take the example of the heterosexual Taiwanese movie director Ang Lee. He certainly proved himself able to depict American culture in “The Ice Storm” and the gay world in “Brokeback Mountain.”

Let’s be clear. The Ear is a piano fan.

But if he objects to the project, it is because he doesn’t like Lang Lang’s flamboyant playing, his Liberace-like performance manners and showmanship, and his exaggerated facial expressions.

Yet there is no denying the human appeal of his story. He rose from a young and suicidal piano student (below) who was emotionally abused by his ambitious father – shades of the lives of young Mozart and Beethoven and probably many other prodigies – to become the best known, most frequently booked and highest paid classical pianist in the world.

Yet not for nothing did some critics baptize him with the nickname Bang Bang.

Still, the Curtis Institute graduate does all he can to foster music education, especially among the young and the poor.

And there is simply no denying his virtuosity. (See Lang Lang playing Liszt’s Paganini etude “La Campanella” in the YouTube video at the bottom.)

So there is plenty to object to about Lang Lang the Piano Star besides the ethnicity of Ron Howard, who also did a biopic of opera superstar Luciano Pavarotti, in telling his story.

What do you think?

Is it culturally all right for Ron Howard to direct a film about Lang Lang?

Do you look forward to the movie and seeing it?

What do you think of Lang Lang as a pianist and a celebrity?

The Ear wants to hear.

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #AcademyAward, #AGermanRequiem, #AiWeiwei, #All-Russian, #AmericanCulture, #AngLee, #ArtsandEntertainment, #AsianCulture, #BangBang, #BelaBartok, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BrokebackMountain, #Children'sBook, #ChinesePianist, #ClassicalPianist, #ClassicFM, #ConcertPianist, #CulturalAppropriation, #CulturalDiversity, #CurtisInstitute, #EmotionalAbuse, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FilmDirector, #FranzJosephHaydn, #FranzLiszt, #FranzSchubert, #FredericChopin, #HighAchieving, #HumanAppeal, #IceStorm, #JacobStockinger, #JohannesBrahms, #JohannSebastianBach, #LangLang, #LGBTQrights, #LGBTRights, #LookForward, #LucianoPavarotti, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #LuluWang, #MusicalInterpretation, #MusicCritic, #MusicEducation, #NiccoloPaganini, #PeterIlyichTchaikovsky, #PhysicalAbuse, #PianoConcerto, #PianoStudent, #PoliticallyCorrect, #PopularSuccess, #RobertSchumann, #RonHoward, #SergeiProkofiev, #SergeiRachmaninoff, #SergeiRachmaninov, #SmashHit, #TaipeiTaiwan, #TheEar, #TheIceStorm, #ThePolice, #VirtuosoPianist, #WesternCulture, #Wikipediabiography, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, #YouTubevideo, ability, abuse, abused, Academy Award, accurate, advocate, Ai Weiwei, alarm, ambitious, American, Ang Lee, appeal, applied, artists, Arts, Arts and Entertainment, Asia, asian, Asian culture, audience, autobiographical, autobiography, award, award-winning, Bach, bad, Bang Bang, baptize, Bartok, Béla Bartók, Beethoven, bestselling, bio, biography, biopic, blog, Book, booked, box office, Brahms, broad, Brokeback Mountain, Business, celebrity, children's book, China, Chinese, Chopin, Classic FM, Classical music, classical pianist, collaboration, composer, concept, Concert, concerto, condemn, criticize, criticizing, critics, cross-cultural, Cry, cultural, cultural appropriation, Curtis Institute, Curtis Institute of Music, deny, depicted, depiction, deserve, discuss, diversity, do, draw, embarrassing, emotion, emotional abuse, emotionally, entertain, entertaining, Entertainment, essay, ethnic, etude, exaggerate, exaggerated, example, expression, extreme, Facebook, facial, fan, fanatic, father, film director, flamboyance, flamboyant, forward, foster, foul, France, Franz Joseph Haydn, Franz Liszt, Franz Schubert, Frédéric Chopin, gay, generously, German, Germany, graduate, Haydn, hear, herself, heterosexual, high achieving, highest, Hollywood, homosexual, human, human appeal, ice, ice storm, insulting, interest, interpretation, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes Brahms, journey, justice, Lang Lang, LGBT, LGBTQ, Liberace, life, like, link, Liszt, lives, look forward, Luciano Pavarotti, Ludwig van Beethoven, Lulu Wang, manner, market, memoir, merit, micro-aggression, miles, misdirected, misplaced, movie, Mozart, Music, music critic, Music education, natural, nature, Niccolo Paganini, nickname, non-Western, object, objects, opera, Orchestra, overly, Paganini, paid, Pavarotti, PC, People, performance, Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, physical abuse, Pianist, Piano, piano student, pic, playing, police, politically correct, poor, popular, post, posting, prodigies, prodigy, profit, profitable, project, Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff, Rachmaninov, recast, reverse, ridiculous, rise, Robert Schumann, Ron Howard, Russian, say, Schubert, Schumann, script, scriptwriter, see, seem, self-appointed, sensitive, Sergei Prokofiev, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Sergei Rachmaninov, shades, share, showman, showmanship, silly, smash hit, Sojourner Truth, Sonata, storm, Student, suicidal, superstar, surefire, symphony, tag, Taiwan, Taiwanese, Tchaikovsky, The Ear, The Ice Storm, think, thousand, tiresome, truthful, unfair, United States, use, useful, virtuosity, want, Western, white, Wikipedia, Wisconsin, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, wonder, work, world, young, YouTube

Classical music: Leon Fleisher, the inspirational pianist and teacher who died a week ago, had ties to Madison

August 9, 2020
2 Comments

By Jacob Stockinger

Famed American pianist and teacher Leon Fleisher (below, in a photo by Chris Hartlove), who also conducted, died of cancer at 92 last Sunday, Aug. 2.

Wisconsin Public Radio, like many other media outlets including National Public Radio (NPR) and most major newspapers and television stations, devoted a lot of time to tributes to and remembrances of Fleisher.

That is as it should be. If any musician deserved it, Fleisher did.

Fleisher (1928-2020) was a titan who became, over many years and despite major personal setbacks — stemming from an almost paralyzed right hand — a lot more than a keyboard virtuoso.

But despite lots of air time, less well covered has been his relationship to Madison audiences, who had the pleasure of seeing and hearing him several times in person.

In 2003 and then again in 2016 (below top) — at age 88 — Fleisher performed with the University of Wisconsin’s Pro Arte String Quartet (below bottom).

Both times he played the Brahms Piano Quintet in F minor, Op. 34, a masterpiece of chamber music. He and his wife, Katherine Jacobson, also performed a joint recital at the Wisconsin Union Theater in 2009.

Fleisher felt at home in Baroque, Classical, Romantic and even modern music. He was renowned as an interpreter of Brahms. Indeed, his early and widely acclaimed recordings of both Brahms piano concertos as well as of the Waltzes and Handel Variations remain landmarks.

Once he was again playing with both hands, Fleisher also recorded the piano quintet for Deutsche Grammophon with the Emerson String Quartet, another frequent and favorite performer in Madison. (You can hear the finale in the YouTube video at the bottom.)

Here is a this blog’s review of his last Madison appearance: https://welltempered.wordpress.com/?s=Leon+Fleisher

Fleisher liked performing with the Pro Arte, and therein lies another historical tale.

His most influential teacher — the famed pianist Artur Schnabel, with whom the San Francisco-born Fleisher went to study in Europe when he was just 9 — also played often with the earlier members of Pro Arte Quartet. Together they recorded Schubert’s “Trout” Quintet by Franz Schubert, and that recording is still in the catalogue and available on Amazon.

Fleisher discusses studying with Schnabel in his entertaining and informative 2010 autobiography “My Nine Lives” (below).

Fleisher was a child prodigy who made his name while still young. Famed French conductor Pierre Monteux – who conducted the world premiere of Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring” in Paris — called Fleisher the “musical find of the century.” Fleisher made his concerto debut at 16 with the New York Philharmonic under Monteux.

Fleisher was just 36 and preparing for a tour with the Cleveland Orchestra and George Szell – a perfect pairing and a conductor with whom he recorded all the Beethoven and Brahms concertos among may others – when he found he could not uncurl the last three fingers of his right hand.

Various diagnoses and causes were offered, and many cures were tried. In the end, it seems like that it was a case of focal dystonia that was caused by over-practicing, especially octaves. “I pounded ivory six or seven hours a day,” Fleisher later said.

After a period of depression and soul-searching, Fleisher then focused on performing music for the left hand; on conducting; and especially on teaching for more than 60 years at the Peabody Institute, located in Baltimore at Johns Hopkins University.

There he helped shaped the career of many other famous pianists, including André Watts, Yefim Bronfman and Jonathan Biss (below, in a photo by Julian Edelstein), who played when Fleisher received the Kennedy Center Honors in 2007. (All three have performed with the Madison Symphony Orchestra.)

Here is an inspiring overview of Fleisher’s life and career from the Peabody Institute: https://peabody.jhu.edu/faculty/leon-fleisher/

And here is another short biography from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leon_Fleisher

Here are three especially noteworthy obituaries:

NPR: https://www.npr.org/sections/deceptivecadence/2020/08/02/702978476/leon-fleisher-the-pianist-who-reinvented-himself-dies-at-92

The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/02/arts/music/leon-fleisher-dead.html

The Washington Post, written by critic Anne Midgette who worked with Fleisher on his memoir: https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/leon-fleisher-sublime-pianist-with-one-hand-or-two-dies-at-92/2020/08/02/c7c98f90-527d-11e6-b7de-dfe509430c39_story.html

The Ear has always found Fleisher’s playing remarkable for its technical fluency combined with the utmost clarity and exacting but flexible sense of rhythm. He always managed to make a piece of music sound just right, as it was intended to sound. His musicality always seemed innate and perfectly natural.

Sample it for yourself. The Ear thinks the performance of all five Beethoven concertos with George Szell still sets a high standard with its exciting, upbeat tempi, its exemplary balance between piano and orchestra, and its exceptional engineering.

The affable Fleisher will long remain an inspiration not only for his playing and teaching, but also for his determination to overcome personal obstacles and go on to serve music — not just the piano.

Did you ever hear Leon Fleisher play live or in recordings? What did you think?

Do you have a comment to leave about the legacy of Fleisher?

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #AndréWatts, #AnneMidgette, #ArturSchnabel, #BaltimoreMaryland, #BaroqueMusic, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #ChamberMusician, #ChildProdigy, #CityofMadison, #Classicalera, #ClevelandOrchestra, #CriticalAcclaim, #CriticallyAcclaimed, #CriticalReview, #DeutscheGrammophon, #EmersonStringQuartet, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FacultyMember, #FocalDystonia, #FranzSchubert, #FrenchConductor, #FrenchMusician, #GeorgeFridericHandel, #GeorgeSzell, #HandelVariations, #HighStandard, #IgorStravinsky, #InPerson, #JacobStockinger, #JohannesBrahms, #JohnsHopkinsUniversity, #JohnW.Barker, #JonathanBiss, #KatherineJacobson, #KennedyCenter, #LeonFleisher, #LiveMusic, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MadisnSymphonyOrchestra, #MadisonWisconsin, #MusicalInterpretation, #Musicfaculty, #MyLi, #MyNineLives, #NationalPublicRadio, #NewYorkPhilharmonic, #ParisFrance, #PeabodyInstitute, #PianoConcerto, #PianoMusic, #PianoQuintet, #PianoVirtuoso, #PierreMonteux, #ProArteQuartet, #RiteofSpring, #RomanticMusic, #SanFrancisco, #StringQuartet, #TheEar, #ThemeAndVariations, #TheNewYorkTImes, #TheU.S., #TheUW, #TheWashingtonPost, #TroutQuintet, #UnitedStates, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #Wikipediabiography, #WisconsinPublicRadio, #WisconsinUnionTheater, #WorldPremiere, #YefimBronfman, #YouTubevideo, acclaim, affable, air, Amazon, amazon.com, America, American, André Watts, Anne Midgette, appearance, Arts, Artur Schnabel, audience, autobiography, available, balance, Baltimore, Baroque, Beethoven, Biss, blog, Book, born, Brahms, Bronfman, California, cancer, career, catalogue, cause, century, Chamber music, channel, child prodigy, clarity, Classical, Classical music, Cleveland Orchestra, comment, concerto, conductor, critic, critical review, day, dead, death, debut, depression, deserve, determination, Deutsche Grammophon, devite, DG, diagnoses, diagnosis, die, early, Emerson String Quartet, engineering, entertaining, Europe, exacting, exceptional, exemplary, Facebook, faculty, famed, famous, favorite, finale, find, Finger, flexible, fluency, focal dystonia, forward, France, Franz Schubert, French conductor, frequent, George Frideric Handel, George Szell, Handel, Handel Variations, hands, hear, high standard, historical, History, Home, honor, hour, husband, Igor Stravinsky, in person, informative, innate, inspirational, inspire, inspired, interpretation, interpreter, ivory, Jacob Stockinger, Johannes Brahms, John W. Barker, Johns Hopkins University, joint, Jonathan Biss, Katherine Jacobson, Kennedy Center, Keyboard, landmarks, left hand, legacy, Leon Fleisher, life, like, link, live music, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, manage, masterpiece, media, member, memoir, modern, Music, musical, musicality, Musician, My Nine Lives, name, National Public Radio, natural, New York Philharmonic, New York Times, Newspaper, noteworthy, NPR, obituaries, obituary, obstacle, octave, Orchestra, outlet, overcome, overview]life, paralysis, paralyzed, Paris, Peabody Institute, perform, performer, personal, photo, Pianist, Piano, Piano concerto, piano music, Piano Quintet, Pierre Monteux, playing, pleasure, post, posting, pound, practice, Pro Arte Quartet, prodigy, Radio, receive, recital, recording, relationship, remarkable, remember, remembering, remembrance, review, rhythm, right hand, Rite of Spring, Romantic, San Francisco, Schubert, see, sense, serve, setback, share, soul, soul-searching, station, Stravinsky, String quartet, study, Sunday, symphony, tag, tale, Teacher, teaher, technical, technique, Television, The Ear, The Rite of Spring, The Washington Post, theme and variations, time, Titan, together, tribute, Trout Quintet, TV, U.S., uncurl, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW, UW-Madison, various, virtuoso, virtuoso pianist, Waltz, Watts, wife, Wikipedia, Wisconsin, wisconsin public radio, Wisconsin Union Theater, work, world premiere, write, writing, years, Yefim Bronfman, young, 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

July 17, 2020
Leave a Comment

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!

Posted in Classical music
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: Legendary American cellist Lynn Harrell, who performed in Madison, is dead at 76

April 29, 2020
1 Comment

By Jacob Stockinger

Legendary American cellist Lynn Harrell (below) died Monday at 76.

If his name sounds familiar, it could be because Harrell performed in Madison at least three times – twice with the Madison Symphony Orchestra (2007 and 2011), in concertos by Lalo and Victor Herbert, and a recital with pianist Yefim Bronfman at the Wisconsin Union Theater (1994).

No cause of death has yet been given, but various sources say it was unrelated to COVID-19 or the coronavirus pandemic.

To know more about his remarkable life and impressive career, go to his biography on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynn_Harrell

Colleagues were quick to praise Harrell not only as a master musician – gifted with beautiful tone and sensitive, expressive interpretations — but also as a great teacher and a congenial man who made friends easily. He also cut promotional ads for National Public Radio (NPR) urging members to donate, as he himself did.

Here is an interview he did in 2011 with host Norman Gilliland for Wisconsin Public Radio:

https://www.wpr.org/shows/lynn-harrell

Here is a link to an obituary from The Violin Channel that features quotes from many musicians who admired Harrell:

https://theviolinchannel.com/cellist-lynn-harrell-has-passed-away-died-obituary-rip/

And here are tributes from many of his colleagues for British critic Norman Lebrecht’s blog “Slipped Disc”:

https://slippedisc.com/2020/04/lynn-harrell-tributes-pour-in/

A prodigy who made his Carnegie Hall debut at 17, Harrell, who studied at Juilliard and the Curtis Institute, was renowned internationally. He later taught at the Royal Academy of Music in London.

In 1994 he played a Papal Concert at the Vatican to mark the first commemoration and remembrance of the Holocaust. His performance there of Max Bruch’s “Kol Nidrei” for cello and orchestra can be seen and heard at the bottom in the most popular of Harrell’s many YouTube videos.

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CarnegieHall, #CelloConcerto, #ChamberMusic, #COVID-19, #CurtisInstitute, #EdouardLalo, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #GreatBritain, #JacobStockinger, #JuilliardSchool, #KolNidre, #KolNidrei, #LondonEngland, #LynnHarrell, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MaxBruch, #MusicalInterpretation, #MusicCritic, #NationalPublicRadio, #NormanGilliland, #NormanLebrecht, #OrchestralMusic, #PianoAccompaniment, #PianoAccompanist, #RadioHost, #RoyalAcademyofMusic, #SlippedDisc, #TheEar, #TheHolocausr, #TheHolocaust, #ThePope, #TheVatican, #TheViolinChannel, #VictorHerbert, #Wikipediabiography, #WisconsinUnionTheater, #YefimBronfman, #YouTubevideo, ad, admire, American, Arts, Bach, beautiful, biography, blog, British, Bruch, career, Carnegie Hall, cellist, Cello, Chamber music, channel, Classical music, colleague, Concert, concerto, congenial, coronavirus, critic, Curtis Institute, dead, death, die, donate, Edouard Lalo, England, expressive, Facebook, familiar, friend, friends, great, Great Britain, himself, Holocaust, impressive, interview, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, Juilliard School, Kol Nidre, Kol Nidrei, legendary, life, London, Lynn Harrell, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, man, many, Max Bruch, members, Music, Musician, name, National Public Radio, Norman Gilliland, Norman Lebrecht, obituary, Orchestra, orchestral, Overture Center, pandemic, Papal, perform, Pianist, Piano, play, Pope, popular, post, posting, prodigy, promotion, Radio, recital, remarkable, remembrance, Remembrance Day, royal, Royal Academy of Music, sensitive, Slipped Disc, sounds, source, study, symphony, Teacher, The Ear, The Vatican, The Violin Channel, tone, tribute, UK, United States, Victor Herbert, Violin, virus, Wikipedia, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Union Theater, Yefim Bronfman, YouTube

Classical music: Here are many more FREE online and streamed concerts to follow and listen to as you quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic

April 25, 2020
Leave a Comment

By Jacob Stockinger

During the COVID-19 public health crisis and coronavirus pandemic, live streaming of concerts has taken off. It started with daily broadcasts of past productions by the Metropolitan Opera and the Berlin Philharmonic.

Local organizations have followed suit. They include the Madison Symphony Orchestra; the “couchertos” of the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra; the twice weekly “tiny desk concerts” by the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society sent to email newsletter subscribers and other recorded audiovisual performances; and local recordings made by Rich Samuels and aired on WORT-FM 89.9.

Here is a compilation, from the British radio station Classic FM with many other FREE listings that also get updated: https://www.classicfm.com/music-news/live-streamed-classical-music-concerts-coronavirus/

Here is another listing of FREE live streams and archived performances from Minnesota Public Radio (MPR): https://www.classicalmpr.org/story/2020/03/16/free-online-classical-concerts

And below are several more that The Ear has checked out and recommends:

CARNEGIE HALL LIVE

Carnegie Hall (below), America’s premier concert venue, has started a series of live streams that include world music, jazz and of course classical music.

The format includes conversation and remarks from homes as well as first-rate live performances from the past. (You can also hear many of the concerts on radio station WQXR in New York City: https://www.wqxr.org)

This past week, The Ear heard an outstanding concert with three pianists, all of whom appeared in Madison last season: Emanuel Ax, who performed an all-Beethoven recital at the Wisconsin Union Theater, played the piano and acted as host; Orion Weiss, who performed a Mozart concerto with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra; and Shai Wosner, who gave a terrific master class and a memorable recital on the Salon Piano Series at Farley’s House of Pianos. If you missed it, it is still archived and accessible.

On this Thursday, April 30, at 1 p.m. CDT you can hear violinist Joshua Bell with pianist Jeremy Denk and cellist Steven Isserlis.

Here is a link: https://www.carnegiehall.org/Explore/Watch-and-Listen/Live-with-Carnegie-Hall?sourceCode=31887&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIsYigzumB6QIVjIbACh061Qz2EAAYASABEgJE3fD_BwE

DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON

Deutsche Grammophon, the world oldest record label, which was established in 1898, has several online series of live streams and archived concerts.

They include “Moment Musical” (Musical Moment) by Daniel Barenboim and guest artists, broadcast from the Pierre Boulez Saal (concert hall) in Berlin.

Barenboim, who started as a child prodigy pianist and ended up being a world-class conductor who once headed the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, has done solo piano and chamber music concerts with the Piano Quintet and two solo pieces by Robert Schumann; the epic Diabelli Variations by Beethoven; and an all-Chopin program of encores. You can also find individual ones on YouTube.

Along more promotional lines, DG also offers a “Best of” series that features movements and excerpts from their newer recordings by some of the best known artists – including pianists Lang Lang, Danill Trifonov, Yuja Wang, Vikingur Olafsson, Jan Lisiecki and Seong-Jin Cho; conductors Gustavo Dudamel, Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Andris Nelsons; opera singers Anna Netrebko and Elina Garanca.

Here is a link to DG’s homepage from where you can get to the various series: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC34DbNyD_0t8tnOc5V38Big

MILWAUKEE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

Closer to home, every Friday you can listen to weekly concerts by the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra called “Musical Journeys.”

Performers include the MSO’s new music director Ken-David Masur as well as guest conductors like Jeffrey Kahane and the past conductor Edo de Waart.

You can hear the past five episodes, and join new ones. You can also hear past concerts by the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (below) on Wisconsin Public Radio. Broadcast time is Sunday at 2 p.m.

Here is a link to Musical Journeys: https://www.mso.org/about/music/mso-musical-journeys-5/

VIOLINIST DANIEL HOPE AT HOME

British violinist Daniel Hope – who has performed with the Madison Symphony Orchestra — has been streaming chamber music concerts from the living room of his home in Berlin.

A prolific concert artist and 25 recordings and four Grammy Award nominations to his credit, Hope (below) has many invited guests and offers a wide range of repertoire.

Here is a link with past episodes. You can also click in upcoming episodes: https://www.arte.tv/en/videos/RC-019356/hope-home/

Are there other sites and streamed performances that you recommend?

Please leave the name and a link in the Comment section.

The Ear wants to hear.

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #AndrisNelsons, #AnnaNetrebko, #BachDancingandDynamiteSociety, #BaroqueMusic, #BerlinGermany, #BerlinPhilharmonic, #Bestof, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CarnegieHall, #ChamberMusic, #ChicagoSymphonyOrchestra, #ChineseMusicians, #ChoralMusic, #ClassicalMusician, #ClassicFM, #COVID-19, #DanielBarenboim, #DanielHope, #DaniilTrifonov, #DeutscheGrammophon, #DiabelliVariations, #EdodeWaart, #ElinaGaranca, #EmailNewsletter, #EmanuelAx, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #Farley'sHouseofPianos, #FredericChopin, #GrammyAward, #GuestArtist, #GustavoDudamel, #HomePage, #JacobStockinger, #JanLisiecki, #JeffreyKahane, #JeremyDenk, #JohannSebastianBach, #JoshuaBell, #Ken-DavidMasur, #KoreanMusician, #LangLang, #LiveFromtheMetinHD, #LiveStreaming, #LivingRoom, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MetropolitanOpera, #MilwaukeeWisconsin, #MInnesotaPublicRadio, #MomentMusical, #MusicalJourneys, #MusicalMoment, #NationalPublicRadio, #NewMusic, #NewYorkCity, #OperaSinger, #OrionWeiss, #PianoConcerto, #PianoQuintet, #PierreBoulez, #PierreBoulezSaal, #PolishComposer, #PublicHealth, #RadioStation, #RichSamuels, #RobertSchumann, #RomanticMusic, #SalonPIanoSeries, #Seong-JinCho, #ShaiWosner, #shelter-at-home, #SouthKorea, #SouthKorean, #StevenIsserlis, #TheEar, #TheMet, #TinyDeskConcert, #VikingurOlafsson, #VocalMusic, #WisconsinChamberOrchestra, #WisconsinPublicRadio, #WisconsinUnionTheater, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, #WorldMusic, #WORT-FM89.9, #WQXRradio, #YannickNezet-Seguin, #YouTubevideo, #YujaWang, accessible, America, Andris Nelsons, Anna Netrebko, archive, Arts, at home, audience, Bach, Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society, Baroque, BDDS, Beethoven, Berlin, Berlin Philharmonic, best, blog, British, Broadcast, Carnegie Hall, cellist, Cello, Chamber music, Chicago, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Child, China, Chinese, Cho, Chopin, choral music, Classic FM, Classical music, classicalmusic, comment, compilation, composer, Concert, concerto, conductor, conversation, coronavirus, coucherto, credit, crisis, Daniel Barenboim, Daniel Hope, Daniil Trifonov, Deutsche Grammophon, DG, Diabelli Variations, Dudamel, Early music, Edo de Waart, Elina Garanca, email, Emanuel Ax, encore, encores, episode, Facebook, Farley's House of Pianos, format, forward, Frédéric Chopin, free, Grammy, Grammy Award, guest artist, Gustavo Dudamel, HD, hear, hope, host, Jacob Stockinger, Jan Lisiecki, Jazz, Jeffrey Kahane, Jeremy Denk, Johann Sebastian Bach, Joshua Bell, Ken-David Masur, Korea, Korean musician, label, Lang Lang, like, link, listing, live, Live From The Met in HD, live streaming, live-stream, livestream, living room, local, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, master class, masterclass, memorable, Metropolitan Opera, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Minnesota Public Radio, Moment Musical, Mozart, MPR, MSO, Music, Musical Journeys, musical moment, National Public Radio, New Music, New York City, newsletter, nomination, NPR, oldest, online, opera, Orchestra, organizations, Orion Weiss, pandemic, past, performance, performer, Pianist, Piano, Piano concerto, Piano Quintet, pieces, Pierre Boulez, Pierre Boulez Saal, Polish, post, posting, premier, prodigy, program, prolific, Public health, public radio, Radio, radio station, range, recital, recording, remarks, repertoire, Rich Samuels, Robert Schumann, Romantic, Romantic music, Salon Piano Series, Seong-Jin Cho, series, Shai Wosner, share, singer, solo, Sonata, South Korea, South Korean, stay at home, Steven Isserlis, stream, streaming, subscriber, Sunday, symphony, tag, The Ear, the Met, time, Tiny Desk Concert, United States, upcoming, update, venue, Vikingur Olafsson, Violin, violinist, vocal music, Wang, WCO, Website, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, wisconsin public radio, Wisconsin Union Theater, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, world, World music, world-class, WORT-FM 89.9, WPR, WQXR, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, YouTube, Yuja Wang

Classical music: Award-winning prodigy pianist Maxim Lando performs a recital at Farley’s on Sunday afternoon and gives a free public master class on Saturday afternoon

November 15, 2019
4 Comments

ALERT: At noon this Saturday, Nov. 16, Grace Presents offers a FREE one-hour concert by Lawren Brianna Ware and friends. The concert is at Grace Episcopal Church, 116 West Washington Avenue, downtown on the Capitol Square.

Pianist and composer Ware, the 2017 Grand Prize Winner of the Overture Rising Stars Competition, will perform a program of original, contemporary and classical solo and chamber works entitled “These Are a Few of My Favorite Things.” Featured are works by Aram Khachaturian, Fazil Say, Frederic Chopin, Ludwig van Beethoven, Robert W. Smith, Martin Ellerby and Eric Ewazen.

By Jacob Stockinger

You have to hand it to Farley’s House of Pianos and its Salon Piano Series: They sure know how to book young up-and-coming performers to stay ahead of the curve.

Last season, they presented Kenneth Broberg, a silver medalist at the last Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, before he was accepted into the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, where he won a bronze medal.

This weekend, the Salon Piano Series presents another timely choice.

This Sunday afternoon, Nov. 17, at 4 p.m., the 17-year-old American piano prodigy Maxim Lando (below, in a photo by Matt Dine) will perform a solo recital at Farley’s showroom, 6522 Seybold Road, on Madison’s far west side near West Towne Mall.

Once again, Lando was booked just before winning a big award and honor.

In addition, at his Salon Piano Series premiere, Lando will have grandparents in the audience, as well as an aunt, uncle and cousins, all from the Madison area.

The son of pianist Pippa Borisy, who grew up in Madison, and clarinetist Vadim Lando, Maxim was raised in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, and has a full-time career as a touring pianist while still finishing high school.

Lando first received national attention in 2017 when he performed with superstar Chinese pianist Lang Lang and jazz great Chick Corea with the Philadelphia Orchestra at Carnegie Hall’s Gala Opening Night.

He won the 2018 Young Concert Artists auditions at the age of 16 and Susan Hall of Berkshire Fine Arts has described him as having “a very old musical soul.”

This fall he received a Gilmore 2020 Young Artist Award, which recognizes the most promising of the new generation of U.S.-based pianists, age 22 or younger. He will perform a series of concerts this season at the Gilmore Keyboard Festival as part of the recognition.

For this Salon Piano Series concert, Lando will perform the same program he performed for recent sold-out performances at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and Carnegie Hall in New York City.

Lando’s program includes: Nikolai Kapustin’s Concert Etude “Toccatina”; Ludwig van Beethoven’s Sonata No. 30 in E Major, Op. 109 (you can hear the opening movement in the YouTube video at the bottom); Alexander Scriabin’s Prelude in B major and Etude in D-sharp minor; and Franz Liszt’s “Transcendental Etudes.”

Tickets are $45 in advance (full-time students are $10) or $50 at the door (if any remain). Service fees may apply. Student tickets can only be purchased online and are not available the day of the concert.

Tickets can be purchased at: https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/4275212

An artist’s reception will follow the concert.

For more information, go to: https://salonpianoseries.org/concerts.html

MASTER CLASS

Also, on this Saturday, Nov. 16, at 4 p.m., Maxim Lando will teach a master class at Farley’s House of Pianos, where he will instruct four local students.

This is a free event that the public is invited to observe.

For a complete list of the music by Beethoven, Prokofiev and Clementi to be performed as well as the names of the local students and their teachers, go to: https://salonpianoseries.org/concerts.html

The master classes for the 2019-20 season are supported by the law firm of Boardman and Clark LLP.

This concert is supported in part by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #AlexanderScriabin, #AramKhachaturian, #BerkshireFineArts, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BoardmanandClark, #BrownPaperTickets, #CapitolSquare, #CarnegieHall, #ChamberMusic, #ChickCorea, #ChineseMusicians, #ChinesePianist, #ClarinetMusic, #ContemporaryComposer, #ContemporaryMusic, #EricEwazen, #FacebookPosting, #Farley'sHouseofPianos, #FazilSay, #FineArts, #FranzLiszt, #GermanComposer, #GilmoreCompetition, #GraceEpiscopalChurch, #GracePresents, #GrandPrize, #GreatNeck, #HighSchool, #HomeWebsite, #KennedyCenter, #KennethBroberg, #LangLang, #LawFirm, #LawrenBriannaWare, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MartinEllerby, #MaximLando, #MuzioClementi, #NationalEndowmentfortheArts, #NewMusic, #NewYork, #NewYorkCity, #NikolaiKapustin, #OpeningNight, #OvertureCenter, #PhiladelphiaOrchestra, #PianoSonata, #RobertW.Smith, #RussianComposer, #SalonPIanoSeries, #SergeiProkofiev, #SoldOut, #StateOfWisconsin, #SuperstarPianist, #TchaikovskyCompetition, #TchaikovskyInternationalCompetition, #TheEar, #TranscendentalEtudes, #UnitedStates, #Up-and-Coming, #VanCliburnInternationalPianoCompetition, #WashingtonD.C., #WestTowneMall, #WisconsinArtsBoard, #YoungArtist, #YoungConcertArtists, #YouTubevideo, ahead, Alexander Scriabin, American, Aram Khachaturian, artist, Arts, attention, audience, award, Beethoven, Berkshire, blog, Boardman and Clark, bronze, Brown Paper Tickets, Capitol Square, career, Carnegie Hall, Chamber music, Chick Corea, Chinese, choice, Chopin, Christian, Christianity, Chunese, church, clarinet, Classical music, Competition, composer, Concert, concerts, cousin, cousins, curve, D.C., donor, downtown, Eric Ewazen, etude, Facebook, Facebook post, Farley's House of Pianos, Fazıl Say, fee, festival, fine arts, forward, Franz Liszt, free, friends, fund, funds, gala, generation, German, Germany, Gilmore Compeititon, Gilmore Keyboard Festival, Grace Episcopal Church, Grace Presents, grand prize, grandparents, grant, great, Great Neck, haunting, help, high school, home website, honor, information, International Tchaikovsky Competition, Italian, Italy, Jacob Stockinger, Jazz, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Kennedy Center, Kenneth Broberg, Keyboard, Lang Lang, Lauren Brianna Ware, law firm, like, link, local, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Martin Ellerby, master class, masterclass, Maxim Lando, medal, Moscow, Music, Muzio Clementi, name, national, National Endowment for the Arts, NEA, new, New York City, Nikolai Kapustin, NPR, online, opening night, original, Overture Center, Pennsylvania, performer, Philadelphia, Philadelphia Orchestra, Pianist, Piano, Piano sonata, Prelude, premiere, prize, prodigy, program, promising, public, purchase, reception, recital, recognition, Robert W. Smith, Russia, Russian, Salon Piano Series, Scriabin, Season, Sergei Prokofiev, series, service, share, showroom, silver, sold-out, solo, Sonata, soul, star, State of Wisconsin, Student, superstar, support, tag, Teacher, The Ear, ticket, time, timely, toccata, tour, touring, Transcendental Etudes, U.S., uncle, United States, Van Cliburn, Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Washington, Washington D.C., Website, West Towne Mall, winner, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Arts Board, works, young, young artist, Young Concert Artists, YouTube

Classical music: Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra offers FREE concert tickets to furloughed federal workers

January 17, 2019
1 Comment

IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event.

By Jacob Stockinger

Restaurants, food banks, retail stores and other organizations have responded with compassion and generosity to victims of the ongoing partial shutdown of the U.S. government.

Here is an announcement of a timely move that The Ear thinks is terrific news for budget-strapped workers who have to cut back on entertainment or discretionary expenses. It should be a model for other local groups as well as statewide, regional and national arts presenters.

The Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra (below) is offering free tickets to furloughed federal workers for the Masterworks performance on Friday, Jan. 25, featuring the young cello prodigy and sensation, Miriam K. Smith.

Fresh from performances with the Cincinnati and Louisville symphonies, Smith (below) will perform the Cello Concerto No. 1 in A minor by Camille Saint-Saëns. (You can hear her perform a violin and cello duet by George Frideric Handel and Johan Halvorsen in the YouTube video at the bottom.)

If you want to know more about Smith, go to her website: https://miriamksmith.com

A forgotten gem by Domenico Cimarosa, Overture to The Secret Marriage, will open the concert, and the performance concludes with Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 8, the sunniest of his even-numbered symphonies.

The concert, under the baton of WCO music director Andrew Sewell, will be held at 7:30 p.m. in the Capitol Theater at the Overture Center for the Arts, 201 State St.

If you are a furloughed federal employee, you can call the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra offices at (608) 257-0638, and mention your place of employment. Best available tickets are on a first-come, first-served basis. Tickets are limited to two per person.

Others who want to attend this concert can find information about the soloist, the program and tickets at: https://wisconsinchamberorchestra.org/performances/masterworks-i-4/

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #AndrewSewell, #ArtsPresenters, #BaroqueComposer, #BaroqueMusic, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CamilleSaint-Saens, #CapitolTheater, #CelloConcerto, #CelloMusic, #ChamberMusic, #CincinnatiOhio, #DomenicoCimarosa, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FederalWorker, #GovernmentShutdown, #JohanHalvorsen, #LouisvilleKentucky, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MiriamK.Smith, #MusicDirector, #RetailStore, #TheEar, #UnitedStates, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #ViolinMusic, #YouTubevideo, Andrew Sewell, announcement, Arts, Arts and Entertainment, arts presenters, audience, available, bank, Baroque, basis, baton, Beethoven, best, blog, budget, Camille Saint-Saëns, Capitol Theater, Cello, Cello Concerto, Chamber music, Cincinnati, Classical music, compassion, composer, concerto, conductor, discretionary, Domenico Cimarosa, duet, Early music, employee, Entertainment, expense, expenses, Facebook, federal, federal worker, food, food bank, foodbank, forgotten, forward, free, furlough, gem, generosity, George Frideric Handel, government, government shutdown, Jacob Stockinger, Johan Halvorsen, Kentucky, like, link, Louisville, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, masterwork, Miriam K. Smith, model, Music, Music director, national, news, Ohio, organization, Overture, Overture Center, performer, presenter, prodigy, regional, restaurant, retail store, Saint-Saens, sensation, share, shutdown, statewide, sunny, symphonies, symphony, tag, The Ear, ticket, timely, U.S., United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, victim, Violin, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, worker, young, YouTube

Classical music: Tonight’s Concert on the Square features an 11-year-old cello prodigy and the Middleton High School Choir in an all-Russian program. It will be repeated on Wisconsin Public Television this Saturday night at 6 p.m.

July 11, 2018
Leave a Comment

By Jacob Stockinger

Tonight’s Concert on the Square promises to be a special event on several scores.

The “Slavic Dances” concert starts at 7 p.m. on the King Street corner of the Capitol Square.

The Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, under the baton of music director Andrew Sewell, will perform an appealing all-Russian program.

It features a Concert Waltz by Alexander Glazunov; the beautifully melodic and very accessible “Variations on a Rococo Theme” for cello and orchestra by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (heard with Yo-Yo Ma in the YouTube video at the bottom); and the Intermezzo and Women’s Dance by Sergei Rachmaninoff.

Adding to the appeal is the appearance of Miriam K. Smith (below) in the Tchaikovsky. Smith, who played and was interviewed on Tuesday’s edition of “The Midday” on Wisconsin Public Radio, is an 11-year-old prodigy on the cello who already has an impressive history of concert appearances.

As a kind of preface or program note to read if you are at the concert, here is a link to Smith’s interview and appearance on “The Midday”: https://www.wpr.org/programs/midday

For more biographical information about Smith and about the concert, in general including rules (blankets can go down starting at 3 p.m.), etiquette and food vendors, go to: https://wisconsinchamberorchestra.org/performances/concerts-on-the-square-3-3/

Also joining the WCO is the Middleton High School Choir (below).

NOTE: If you can’t make the concert tonight in person, you can take consolation in the fact that the concert will be videotaped and then broadcast on Wisconsin Public Television on this coming Saturday night at from 6 to 7 p.m. on Channel 21 (Cable Channel 600).

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #AlexanderGlazunov, #All-Russian, #AndrewSewell, #CapitolSquare, #ChoralMusic, #ConcertsontheSquare, #ConcertWaltz, #MiddletonHighSchoolChoir, #MiriamK.Smith, #PeterIlyichTchaikovsky, #SergeiRachmaninoff, #SergeiRachmaninov, #StateCapitol, #ThemeAndVariations, #TheMidday, #WisconsinChamberOrchestra, #WisconsinPublicRadio, #WisconsinPublicTelevision, #Women'sDance, #YouTubevideo, Andrew Sewell, Arts, biographical, biography, blanket, Broadcast, Cello, choral music, Classical music, composer, concerto, Concerts on the Square, dance, etiquette, food, Glazunov, History, information, intermezzo, interview, Jacob Stockinger, Madison, melodic, melody, Music, Orchestra, prodigy, program, Rococo, rules, Russian, Slavic, symphony, Tchaikovsky, The Midday, theme and variations, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Viola, Violin, vocal music, Waltz, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, women, YouTube

Classical music: NPR explores Opus 1 works to mark Jan. 1 and New Year’s Day

January 3, 2018
2 Comments

By Jacob Stockinger

Each year, the media look for new ways to mark the holidays and especially New Year’s Day.

One of the best and most original The Ear has seen and heard in a long time came from National Public Radio (NPR).

On Morning Edition, the radio network consulted Miles Hoffman (below), a violist, conductor and educator, about the first works – the Opus 1 works – that various composers published.

Hoffman’s remarks touch on quite a few young composers and prodigies, including Ludwig van Beethoven (below top), Felix Mendelssohn (below middle) and Ernst von Dohnanyi (below bottom).

Here is a link to the story, which should be listened to, and not just read, for the sake of the music and sound samples:

https://www.npr.org/2018/01/01/574932138/on-the-first-day-of-the-new-year-celebrating-composers-opus-one

And from YouTube here are two more Opus 1 works that The Ear would add.

The first is the Rondo in C Minor, Op. 1, by a young Frédéric Chopin (below, in a drawing from Getty Images) and performed by Vladimir Ashkenazy. It shows just how early Chopin had found his own style and his own distinctive voice:

And here are the “Abegg” Variations by critic-turned-composer Robert Schumann (below), played by Lang Lang:

Can you think of other Opus 1 works to add to the list?

Please leave the composer’s name, the work’s title and a YouTube link to a performance, if possible, in the COMMENT section.

The Ear wants to hear.

	Bill Lane on The new Apple Music Classical…
	welltemperedear on The new Apple Music Classical…
	welltemperedear on The new Apple Music Classical…
	Bill Lane on The new Apple Music Classical…
	Augustine on The new Apple Music Classical…

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this: