The Well-Tempered Ear
Should Ukrainian pianist Valentina Lisitsa be boycotted?
5 Comments
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has heard of many Russian musicians who — like major Russian politicians, military figures and business oligarchs — are being boycotted because they support Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Russian war in Ukraine.
But until I read the following story, I hadn’t heard that the banished group of artists — living under artistic sanctions, if you will — included the Ukrainian pianist Valentina Lisitsa (below), who last played a recital in Madison about 10 years ago at the Wisconsin Union Theater.
It’s a fall from grace that is too bad. For a while, Lisitsa seemed like a feminist role model of a self-made female musician who bucked the system and could inspire other women and would-be internet arts influencers and performers.
You may know her more from attending a live performance or because of the many YouTube videos that established her concert career while she lived in the southeast United States.
But after you read the following story, perhaps you will also agree that she deserves to be boycotted.
No concerts.
No recordings — at home or on the radio.
No streaming.
No YouTube videos.
Do you agree with boycotting Valentina Lisitsa?
Did you already know about her support of Putin and the Ukraine war?
Do you know of other Russian artists to boycott besides the well-known names you find the end of the story?
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #SergeiRachmaninoff, #SergeiRachmaninov, #SofiaBulgaria, #ValentinaLisitsa, #ValeryGergiev, #YouTubevideo, Anna Netrebko, artist, Arts, audience, Austria, bad, blog, boycott, Buck, Bulgaria, Business, cancel, Classical music, Concert, concerto, Czech Republic, Denis Matsuev, Facebook, fall, female, feminist, grace, Home, influencer, Italy, Jacob Stockinger, link, live, Madison, Matsuyev, military, Music, oligarch, opera, Orchestra, perform, performance, performer, Pianist, Piano, politician, Politics, President, pro, Putin, queen, Rachmaninoff, Rachmaninov, Radio, recital, role model, Russia, Russian, share, singer, Sofia, Sonata, soprano, symphony, system, tag, Ukraine, Ukrainian, United States, Valentina Lisitsa, Valery Gergiev, Vladimir Putin, vocal music, war, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Union Theater, women, WUT, YouTube
See and hear The Cliburn piano competition for FREE via streaming. It runs through June 18
5 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 16th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition got under way this past Thursday, June 2, and will run through Saturday, June 18, when the winners will be announced.
2022 marks the 60th anniversary year of the competition, which the American pianist Van Cliburn founded at Texas Christian University after his 1958 Cold War victory in the Tchaikovsky International Competition in Moscow,.
You can follow it all online. The complete impressive competition is being broadcast on medici.tv and on YouTube.
But The Ear has used the competition’s own streaming website and finds the videos, sound quality, contestant biographies and background information very professional and helpful. So far, it has been a thoroughly satisfying, enjoyable and engaging experience. I highly recommendation it for students, amateur pianists and all music lovers.
For The Ear, one of the most impressive performances from yesterday was given by the 21-year-old Chinese pianist Yangrui Cai (below), heard in the YouTube video at the bottom. Such beautiful and subtly virtuosic but shaded Liszt and Brahms is not often heard.
Here is a link to the home page (below): https://cliburn.org
From there you can hear live performances, past performances and many facts , including the complete schedule, about The Cliburn, as it is now called. All times are Central Daylight.
Starting at 10 a.m. today — Saturday, June 4 — will see the final 10 performances (3 in the morning and night, four in the afternoon) of the preliminary round, which has featured 30 pianists in 40-minute solo recitals. Except for a specially commissioned “Fanfare Toccata” by Sir Stephen Hough, who is also on the jury, the choice of programs is entirely up to the individual contestants.
The road to the Cliburn is not easy.
It started with 388 applicants. That was trimmed down to 72 by preliminary judges. Out of 72, 30 were chosen by jurors to compete.
After today, it will be on to the quarter-finals with 18 contestants in 40-minute recitals with no repetition from the preliminary round; then the semi-final round with 12 contestants in a combination of 60-minute solo recital along with a Mozart piano concerto accompanied by the Fort Worth Symphony conducted by the Nicholas McGegan, who is famous for his interpretations of Baroque and Classical era music; and the final concerto round with each contestant play two concertos with Fort Worth Symphony under famed conductor Marin Alsop, who is also the head juror.
The Ear will be posting his own thoughts as he experiences the extensive competition, maybe after each round or even each day.
But The Ear also wants to hear from you.
Do you have thoughts about the various contestants?
Who are your favorites and why?
Thoughts about the programs and repertoire being played?
Other thoughts about the competition in general?
The Ear Wants to hear.
Tags: #AmateurMusician, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CentralDaylightTime, #ChinesePianist, #ClassicalMusician, #ColdWar, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FortWorthSymphony, #FranzLiszt, #FranzSchubert, #IgorStravinsky, #InGeneral, #JacobStockinger, #JohannesBrahms, #JohannSebastianBach, #LiveStreaming, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MarinAlsop, #MoscowConservatory, #MusicalInterpretation, #NicholasMcGegan, #PeterIlyichTchaikovsky, #PianoMusic, #PianoStudent, #RobertSchumann, #Semi-finals, #SergeiProkofiev, #SoloRecital, #SouthKorea, #SouthKorean, #StephenHough, #TexasChristianUniversity, #TheCliburn, #TheEar, #TheInternet, #TheU.S., #UnitedStates, #VanCliburn, #VanCliburnInternationalPianoCompetition, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, #YouTubevideo, accompaniment, accompany, afternoon, amateur, America, American, anniversary, announce, Arts, Asia, asian, audience, Bach, background, Baroque, beautiful, Beethoven, Belarus, Belarusian, biography, blog, Brahms, Central Daylight Time, China, Chinese, Christian, Classical, Classical music, classicalmusic, Cold War, commission, Competition, composer, Concert, concerto, contest, Dallas, Europe, European, experience, Facebook, Facebook post, fact, fame, Fanfare, final, Fort Worth, Fort Worth Symphony, found, founded, Franz Liszt, Franz Schubert, general, great, Handel, hear, home ]poage, idea, Igor Stravinsky, impressive, in general, individual, information, Internet, interpretation, Italian, Italy, Jacob Stockinger, Japan, Japanese, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes Brahms, juror, jury, Korea, Korean, like, link, Liszt, live, lover, Ludwig van Beethoven, Marin Alsop, medici.tv, minute, morning, Moscow, Mozart, Music, Nicholas McGegan, night, online, Orchestra, past, performance, Pianist, Piano, Piano concerto, piano music, post, professional, program, programming, Prokofiev, quality, quarter-finals, recital, repertoire, repertory, Robert Schumann, Russia, Russian, satisfying, Saturday, schedule, Schubert, Schumann, Sergei Prokofiev, shade, share, solo recital, Sonata, Sound, South Korea, South Korean, start, Stephen Hough, Stravinsky, stream, streaming, Student, subtle, symphony, tag, Tchaikovsky, TCU, Texas, Texas Christian University, The Cliburn, The Ear, thought, Thursday, time, toccata, today, U.S., Ukraine, Ukrainian, United States, university, Van Cliburn, Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, victory, video, virtuosic, virtuosity, web, winner, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, yesterday, you, YouTube
Should the 1812 Overture be played this Fourth of July?
9 Comments
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear recently noticed that the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra has once again scheduled the 1812 Overture by Tchaikovsky (below) as part of the finale of its Fourth of July concert on the evening of July 6, 2022.
The performance is part of this summer’s FREE Concerts on the Square (COS) by the WCO that run on six consecutive Wednesday nights from June 29 through Aug. 3. Concerts start at 7 p.m. on the King Street corner of the Capitol Square in downtown Madison, and will be conducted by Andrew Sewell.
For more information about the series and individual performers and programs, go to: https://wcoconcerts.org/concerts-tickets/concerts-on-the-square
An asterisk says programs are subject to change.
Which got The Ear to thinking: Should Tchaikovsky’s perennial favorite, the flashy and loud 1812 Overture, be played again this year?
It is a tradition that was started on Independence Day in 1974 by Arthur Fielder and the Boston Pops, according to reputable sources.
But this year might be a very different case because of a quandary that might cause organizers, including PBS’ “A Capitol Fourth,” to rethink the program.
It is a choice that will confront many musical groups across the U.S., given the current unprovoked brutality and and war crimes being committed by Russia against Ukraine.
After all, many music groups, including the Metropolitan Opera, have already banned Russian performers who support Russian President Vladimir Putin and his unjustified war in Ukraine (below).
So here’s the question: Is it appropriate to play a favorite work celebrating a Russian military victory while Ukraine, the United States and Western allies, including NATO, are desperately trying to defeat Russian forces?
As you may recall, the overture was inspired by Russia’s victory over the invading forces of Napoleon who was attempting go conquer Russia. Like Hitler and the Nazis, Napoleon failed and the Russians prevailed. That is why, in the work, you hear the French national anthem “La Marseillaise” overcome by the chimes and cannons of the Russian victory hymn. (There was no Russian national anthem until 1815.)
Here is a link to more background in Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1812_Overture
Will the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra or other orchestras as well as radio and TV stations around the U.S. find a substitute piece? Perhaps it could be the Ukrainian national anthem that is performed (as in the BBC Proms concert in the YouTube video at the bottom and as many other orchestras around the world, including the Madison Symphony Orchestra and John DeMain, have done).
What else could the WCO and other groups play — especially since Sousa marches are already usually featured on The Fourth?
Do you have a suggestion?
The Ear will be interested to see how the quandary is solved — with explanations and excuses, or with alternative music?
Meanwhile, as comedian Stephen Colbert likes to say: What do you think?
Should the “1812 Overture” be played on this Fourth of July?
Why?
Or why not?
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: #ACapitolFourth, #AdolfHitler, #AndrewSewell, #ArthurFiedler, #AudienceFavorite, #BBCProms, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BostonPops, #CapitolSquare, #ChamberOrchestra, #ConcertsontheSquare, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FourthofJuly, #FreeConcert, #IndependenceDay, #JacobStockinger, #JohnDeMain, #July4, #LaMarseillaise, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MadisonWisconsin, #MetropolitanOpera, #NapoleonicWars, #NationalAnthem, #NaziGermany, #NorthAtlanticTreatyOrganization, #PeterIlyichTchaikovsky, #RadioStation, #SocialMedia, #StephenColbert, #TheEar, #TheInternet, #TheMet, #TheU.S., #TVstation, #UnitedStates, #VladimirPutin, #WarCrimes, #WebPage, #Wikipediaentry, #WisconsinChamberOrchestra, #WorldWarII, #YouTubevideo, 1812 Overture, @1812Overture, A Capitol Fourth, Allies, alternative, America, American, Andrew Sewell, Arthur Fiedler, Arts, asterisk, audience, ban, BBC, BBC Proms, blog, Blog post, Boston Pops, brutal, brutality, cannons, Capitol, Capitol Square, celebrate, chamber orchestra, chimes, choice, Classical music, comedian, commit, composer, Concert, Concerts on the Square, conductor, confront, COS, downtown, evening, excuse, explanation, Facebook, Facebook post, favorite, finale, flashy, force, Fourth of July, France, free concert, French, Germany, group, help, Hitler, home website, hymn, Independence Day, individual, information, inspire, invasion, Jacob Stockinger, John DeMain, John Philip Sousa, July 4, justice, La Marseillaise, link, loud, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, march, Metropolitan Opera, military, Music, Napoleon, Napoleonic Wars, national anthem, NATO, Nazi, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Orchestra, organizer, PBS, perennial, performance, performer, performers, piece, play, President, program, Putin, quandary, Radio, radio station, reputable, reputation, rethink, Russia, Russian, say, schedule, series, share, singer, social media, solve, source, Sousa, Stephen Colbert, suggestion, support, symphony, tag, Tchaikovsky, Television, The Ear, the Internet, the Met, think, tradition, TV, TV station, U, U.S., Ukraine, Ukrainian, United States, unjust, unjustifiable, victory, video, war, war crimes, WCO, web, Website, Western, why, why not, Wikipedia, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, world, World War II, YouTube
The famed International Tchaikovsky Competition has been expelled from the World Federation of International Music Competitions
9 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
One of the granddaddies of all international music competitions — probably the best known and most prestigious — has been disowned.
The International Tchaikovsky Competition — the one that catapulted the young American pianist and first winner Van Cliburn (below, during the competition) to worldwide fame during the height of the Cold War, for which he received the only ticker tape parade in New York City ever given to a musician — has been expelled from the World Federation of International Music Competitions, which was founded in 1957 and represents 110 music competitions and programs to help young musicians build a career.
The move comes in response to recent events in Ukraine — including alleged Russian war crimes during its brutal, deadly and unprovoked invasion.
The famed Tchaikovsky Competition — which started in 1958 and is now for pianists, violinists, cellists, vocalists as well as woodwind and brass players — is held in Moscow and St. Petersburg and is financed and organized by the Russian government. It has launched the careers on many great musicians.
It is co-chaired by the discredited Russian conductor Valery Gergiev (below right, in 2014), a close friend and avid supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin (below left) and of the conflict in Ukraine.
The expulsion came about because the Tchaikovsky Competition refused to condemn the Russian invasion, as the federation requested.
Here is a link to the story that was published on the website Classical Music, an online publication of the BBC Music Magazine. It contains background on both the competition and the current state of affairs regarding Russian musicians and the Russian conflict in Ukraine. It has a lot of noteworthy links:
And here is the response from the organizers of the Russian competition, which takes place every four years. The 16th competition was held in 2019, and the 17th is still scheduled for 2023. (The announcement of the 2019 piano winners — by the Russian former piano winner Denis Matsuev, who has been boycotted because of Ukraine — is in the YouTube-Medici.TV video at the bottom.)
The response — which accuses the federation of “persecuting” Russian musicians and promises that it will be held as usual and remain open to contestants worldwide — is posted on the competition’s website:
https://tchaikovskycompetition.com/en/news/415.htm
It makes one wonder what the effects on the next Tchaikovsky competition will be.
Will potential jurors outside Russia boycott the competition?
Will non-Russian contestants — with the exception perhaps on Chinese and Belarusian performers — avoid participating?
And what will be the effect on the inaugural Rachmaninoff Competition for pianists, composers and conductors that is scheduled to take place this June in Moscow?
What do you think?
Is it the right call by the international federation?
Or the wrong call?
Why do you think so?
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: #AnnaNetrebko, #ArmedConflict, #BBCMusicMagazine, #BestKnown, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BrassMusic, #ChineseMusicians, #ColdWar, #DaniilTrifonov, #DenisMatsuev, #DublinIreland, #DublinPianoCompetition, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #GidonKremer, #InternationalTchaikovskyCompetition, #JacobStockinger, #NewYorkCity, #PeterIlyichTchaikovsky, #PianoConcerto, #RussianFederation, #SergeiRachmaninoff, #SergeiRachmaninov, #StringMusic, #TheEar, #UniversalMusic, #ValeryGergiev, #VanCliburn, #VictoriaMullova, #ViolinConcerto, #VladimirAshkenazy, #VladimirPutin, #VocalMusic, #WarCime, #WoodwindMusic, #WorldFederationofInternationalMusicCompeititions, #YouTubevideo, accuse, Anna Netrebko, announcement, armed conflict, Arts, audience, authoritarian, background, BBC, BBC Music Magazine, Belarus, Belarusian, best-known, blog, Blog post, blog posting, boycott, brass, brutal, build, career, cellist, Cello, China, Chinese, Classical music, classicalmusic, close, Cold War, composer, Concert, concerto, condemn, conductor, conflict, contestant, Daniil Trifonov, deadly, deffect, democracy, Democratic, Denis Matsuev, discredited, Dublin, Dublin Piano Competition, exception, expel, expulsion, Facebook, fame, federation, founded, friend, funance, Gidon Kremer, government, grandaddy, great, hear, International Tchai, International Tchaikovsky Competition, invasion, Jacob Stockinger, June, juror, jury, launch, link, medici.tv, Moscow, move, Music, Musician, New York City, next, now, online, Orchestra, parade, participate, persecute, pianists, Piano, Piano concerto, President, prize, program, publication, publish, Putin, Rachmaninoff, Rachmaninoff Competition, Rachmaninov, represent, response, right, Russia, Russian, Russian Federation, schedule, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Sergei Rachmaninov, share, sing, singer, Singing, St. Petersburg, story, string music, supporter, symphony, tag, Tchaikovsky, The Ear, think, Ukraine, Ukrainian, United States, Universal Music, Valery Gergiev, Victoria Mullova, video, Violin, Violin concerto, violin music, violinist, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Vladimir Putin, vocal music, war, war crime, Website, why, win, winner, Wisconsin, wonder, woodwind, world, World Federation of International Music Competitions, worldwide, wrong, year, young, YouTube
Ukraine’s most famous living composer is now a war refugee in Germany
5 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
He fights and defends his native country with beautiful sounds.
Ukraine’s most famous living composer has had to flee his war-torn country and — like some 3 million fellow Ukrainians in various other countries — is now living as a a war refugee in Germany.
He is Valentin Sylvestrov (below), 84, and has survived both World War II and the Nazi occupation as well as the Soviet rule experiencing democracy and freedom after the fall of the USSR and now the devastating Russian invasion five weeks ago.
The irony is that his music, which The Ear can’t recall ever hearing performed live in Madison — although Wisconsin Public Radio recently featured a beautiful choral work — seems calming and peaceful, even consoling.(Please correct me if I am mistaken.) Many people compare him to the style of Arvo Pärt, his Eastern European contemporary and colleague in Estonia.
Little wonder that his works have found a new popularity in worldwide concerts as the world hopes for the survival and victory of Ukraine — below is Ukraine’s flag — over Vladimir’s Putin’s army and war crimes.
His works have been particularly popular at fundraisers and memorials. They underscore the long history and importance of Ukraine’s tradition of making music, which has been recounted in the news features you find in the press, on TV, on radio and elsewhere in the media including live streams and recorded videos other media, especially the Internet.
As far as The Ear can tell, his most popular work in the concert hall these days is his hauntingly beautiful 1937 “Prayer for Ukraine.” You can hear it, in an orchestra version, in a YouTube video at the bottom.
As background here are two different interviews with the distressed and saddened Sylvestrov in exile.
The first interview, from The New York Times, is by a professor at Arizona State University who has published a book on postwar Eastern European composers and offers links to more works: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/30/arts/music/valentin-silvestrov-ukraine-war.html
The other interview is from the German media outlet Deutsche Welle, translated into English and featuring current photos: https://www.dw.com/en/ukrainian-composer-valentin-silvestrov-what-are-you-kremlin-devils-doing/a-61158308
The tragic occasion of the war in Ukraine could be the event that brings the soul-stirring music of Sylvestrov to a larger global public.
He certainly deserves it — along with some live performances here — and The Ear certainly plans on posting more of his music.
Have you heard the music of Valentin Sylvestrov?
Do you have favorite works from his piano music, chamber music, choral music and many symphonies?
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: #ArizonaStateUniversity, #ArvoPärt, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #ChoralMusic, #ClassicalMusician, #DeutscheWelle, #EasternEurope, #EasternEuropean, #EuropeanRefugee, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #JacobStockinger, #LivePerformance, #LiveStreaming, #LivingComposer, #MadisonSymhonyOrchestra, #PianoMusic, #PrayerforUkraine, #SovietUnion, #SymphonicMusic, #TheEar, #TheMedia, #ThePublic, #UkrainianComposer, #UnionofSovietSocialistRepublics, #UniversityofArizona, #ValentinSilvestrov, #VladimirPutin, #WarRefugee, #WisconsinPublicRadio, #WorldWarII, #YouTubevideo, academic, Arizona, Arizona State University, Army, arrangement, Arts, Arvo Part, audience, background, beautiful, blog, Blog post, Book, Cello, Chamber music, choral music, Classical music, classicalmusic, colleague, Communism, Communist, compare, composer, Concert, concerto, contemporary, correct, country, deserve, Deutsche Welle, devastating, different, distress, Eastern Europe, English, Estonia, event, exile, experience, Facebook, Facebook posting, fall, famous, Fellow, feratures, fight, flee, forward, fundraiser, German, Germany, global, hear, History, hope, Internet, interviews, invasion, Jacob Stockinger, link, live, live performance, live streaming, live-stream, Living composer, lving, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, media, memorial, million, mistake, Music, native, Nazi, new, news, occasion, occupation, Orchestra, other, photos, Piano, plan, posting, postwar, pray, prayer, Prayer for Ukraine, press, professor, public, publish, Putin, Radio, reader, recounted, refugee, rule, Russian, sad, soul, soul-stirring, Sound, Soviet, Soviet Union, Stalion, subscriber, survive, symphony, The Ear, tradition, Tragic, transcription, TV, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Ukrainian composer, underscore, United States, University of Arizona, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, USSR, Valentin Silvestrov, version, victory, video, Vladimir Putin, vocal music, war, war refugee, war-torn, Wisconsin, wisconsin public radio, work, World War II, WPR, write, WWII, YouTube
This weekend, starting Friday night, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra finishes up its winter season of online chamber music
Leave a Comment
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
This is the time of the year when music groups generally announce their next season while finishing up the current one.
But of course the pandemic continues to shroud plans for the new upcoming season in uncertainty and whether it will be online or in-person.
Meanwhile, groups are in the final stretch of finishing up this season.
This Friday night, April 16, at 7:30 p.m., the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra (WCO, below in photo by Mike Gorski) will debut the fourth and last online chamber music concert of its curtailed and substituted winter season.
The varied program includes works, both well-known and neglected, by four composers — from Italy, Russia, France and Austria — who come from the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries.
The concert begins with the complete Concerto for Four Violins in B minor, RV 580, by Antonio Vivaldi (below). The string accompaniment will be scaled down.
Then comes the complete Septet for Winds, Strings and Piano by Russian composer Igor Stravinsky (below).
The first and third movements of the Nonet by the rediscovered 19th-century French composer Louise Ferenc come next. (Here is the Wikipedia link to Ferenc (below):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louise_Farrenc
The final music will be the first, fourth and fifth movements – including the famous theme-and-variations – of the famously tuneful “Trout” Piano Quintet by Franz Schubert (below).
In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear the namesake theme-and-variations movement — based on one of Schubert’s songs — played by Itzhak Perlman, Pinchas Zukerman, Daniel Barenboim, Jacqueline du Pre and Zubin Mehta, with a graphical depiction of the score.
The concert lasts 60-75 minutes.
Tickets are $30.
Here is a link to program notes by WCO music director and conductor Andrew Sewell (below, in a photo by Alex Cruz) and to purchasing a ticket through the Overture Center box office.
The ticket is good for one viewing between Friday night and Monday night, April 19, at 7:30 p.m.
https://wcoconcerts.org/events/winter-chamber-series-no-iv
Tags: #18thCentury, #19thCentury, #20thCentury, #AndrewSewell, #AntonioVivaldi, #AustrianComposer, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #ChamberOrchestra, #CoronavirusPandemic, #DanielBarenboim, #DoubleBassist, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FemaleComposer, #FranzSchubert, #Frenchcomposer, #IgorStravinsky, #ItalianBaroque, #ItzhakPerlman, #JacquelineduPré, #LouiseFerrenc, #OnlineConcert, #OrchestralAccompaniment, #PianoQuintet, #PinchasZukerman, #ProgramNotes, #RussianComposer, #StringMusic, #TroutQuintet, #ViolinConcerto, #VirtualConcert, #VocalMusic, #Wikipediabiography, #Wikipediaentry, #WindMusic, #WisconsinChamberOrchestra, #YouTubevideo, #ZubinMehta, 18th century, 19th century, 20th-century, accompaniment, Andrew Sewell, Antonio Vivaldi, Arts, audience, Austria, Austrian, Barenboim, Baroque, bass, bassist, begin, blog, Blog post, blog posting, cellist, Cello, Chamber music, chamber orchestra, Classical music, composer, Concert, concerto, coronavirus, cost, curtail, Daniel Barenboim, depiction, digital, double bass, double bassist, down, du Pre, Early music, Facebook, Facebook post, Facebook posting, famous, female, Ferrenc, forward, France, Franz Schubert, French, graphic, groups, help, Igor Stravinsky, in person, Italian, Italy, Itzhak Perlman, Jacob Stockinger, Jacqueline du Pré, like, link, Louise Ferrenc, Madison, Mehta, minutes, movement, Music, namesake, new, nonet, on-demand, online, Orchestra, Overture Center, pandemic, Perlman, photo, Pianist, Piano, Piano Quintet, Pinchas Zukerman, plan, program, program notes, quintet, rediscover, representation, Russia, Russian, scale, Schubert, score, Season, septet, Sewell, share, shroud, Singing, song, Spring, Stravinsky, string music, strings, substitute, tag, theme and variations, ticket, Trout, tuneful, uncertainty, United States, upcoming, varied, Viola, Violin, violinist, virtual, Vivaldi, vocal music, WCO, well-known, Wikipedia, wind music, winter, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, women, YouTube, Zubin Mehta, Zukerman
The UW Symphony Orchestra performs a FREE online concert Thursday night and Friday night the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra debuts its second chamber music concert. But in-person micro-concerts on Sunday by the the Willy Street Chamber Players are sold-out
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 second half of the music season is well under way, with just about every major group performing online – or in one case even in person.
Here are three selections this week:
THURSDAY
Two of the most musically and technically impressive concerts The Ear heard last semester took place at the UW-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music. They were by the UW-Madison Symphony Orchestra under the direction of conductor Oriol Sans (below).
First, Sans conducted a socially distanced and virtual all-strings concert (below).
Then, for the second concert, the conductor had the winds and brass – which spray dangerous aerosol droplets – record their parts individually. Then for the live performance, Sans donned earphones and masterfully combined all the forces into a full orchestra performance (below).
You can see similar results – with percussion joining for the strings for the last piece — this Thursday night, Feb. 25, at 7:30 p.m. on YouTube when the UW Symphony Orchestra live-streams a 90-muinute concert from the Mead Witter Foundation Concert Hall in the Hamel Music Center. No in-person attendance is allowed.
Here is the program:
I Crisantemi (Chyrsanthemums) by Italian opera composer Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924), with Michael Dolan, guest conductor
“Leyendas: An Andean Walkabout” by contemporary American composer Gabriela Lena Frank (b. 1972) Coqueteos (Flirtations)
“Carmen” Suite (after the opera by Georges Bizet) by Russian composer Rodion Shchedrin (b.1932): Introduction; Dance; Carmen’s entrance and Habanera Torero; Adagio; Fortune-telling; and Finale.
Here is a link to the live-streamed video: https://youtu.be/GSrMLKrjlVg
And here is a link to more information, including program notes and the names of members of the orchestra: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/uw-madison-symphony-orchestra-2/
FRIDAY NIGHT
On Friday night at 7:30 p.m. the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra (below, in a photo by Mike Gorski) will offer the second of its Winter Chamber Series. It will run between 60 and 75 minutes.
There will be string, brass and percussion music by Mozart, Beethoven, Rossini, Steve Reich, Craig H. Russell and Thomas Siwe. Be aware that three of the works – string quartets by Mozart and Beethoven and a string sonata by Rossini — are presented in excerpts. That is not listed on the webpage.
The cost for one-time access between Friday night and Monday night is $30.
Here is a link to more information, including a link to ticket sales from the Overture Center box office and program notes by WCO music director and conductor Andrew Sewell (below, in a photo by Alex Cruz): https://wcoconcerts.org/events/winter-chamber-series-no-ii
SOLD-OUT
The Micro-concerts scheduled for this coming Sunday, Feb. 28, by the esteemed Willy Street Chamber Players (below), are SOLD-OUT.
The 10-minute private concerts for two, which require masks and social distancing for all, are perhaps the most innovative move by any local music group during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Ear, who expects concert habits to change after the pandemic, thinks such micro-concerts have a very bright future even after the pandemic is under control and audiences can return safely to mass events.
The concert are pay-what-you can but a $20 donation for two was suggested.
For more information about the micro-concerts, listen to the YouTube video at the bottom and go to: http://www.willystreetchamberplayers.org/micro-concerts.html
Tags: #AndesMountains, #AndrewSewell, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BoxOffice, #BrassMusic, #ChamberMusic, #Chrysanthemums, #CoronavirusPandemic, #CraigH.Russell, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #GabrielaLenaFrank, #GeorgesBizet, #GiacomoPuccini, #GioachinoRossini, #HamelMusicCenter, #HomeWebsite, #italianComposer, #JacobStockinger, #LiveStreaming, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MusicDirector, #OnlineConcert, #OperaMusic, #OriolSans, #OvertureCenter, #ProgramNotes, #PublicSafety, #RecordedMusic, #RodionShchedrin, #RussianComposer, #SocialDistance, #SocialDistancing, #SteveReich, #StringMusic, #StringQuartet, #SundayAfternoonLifeFromtheChazen, #TheEar, #TheUW, #TheWillys, #ThomasSiwe, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #UWSymphonyOrchestra, #VirtualConcert, #WebPage, #WillyStreetChamberPlayers, #WindMusic, #WinterChamberMusicSeries, #WinterChamberSeries, #WisconsinChamberOrchestra, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, #YouTubeChannel, #YouTubevideo, access, aerosol, allow, American, Andes, Andrew Sewell, Arts, attendance, audience, Beethoven, Bizet, blog, Blog post, blog posting, bog, box office, brass, brass music, bright, buy, Carmen, cellist, Cello, Chamber music, change, Classical music, classicalmusic, combine, composer, Concert, conductor, control, coronavirus, Craig H. Russell, dance, dangerous, direction, donation, droplet, earphones, excerpts, expect, Facebook, Facebook post, Facebook posting, force, fortune-teller, forward, free, Friday, future, Gabriela Lena Frank, Georges Bizet, Giacomo Puccini, Gioachino Rossini, group, habits, Hamel Music Center, home website, impressive, in person, individual, information, innovative, instrumental, introduction, Italian, Italy, Jacob Stockinger, like, link, livestream, Livestreamed, local, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, masks, masterful, masterfully, Mead Witter Foundation Concert Hall, Mead Witter School of Music, member, micro-concert, Monday, Mozart, Music, Music director, musical, name, night, notes, online, opera, Orchestra, orchestral music, Oriol Sans, Overture Center, pandemic, part, percussion, performer, perhaps, post, posting, private, program, program notes, public safety, Puccini, record, recorded music, Reich, Rodion Shchedrin, Rossini, run, Russell, Russia, Russian, safe, safely, sales, schedule, scheduled, Season, semester, Sewell, share, Siwe, social distance, sold-out, Sonata, spray, Steve Reich, string music, String quartet, strings, Suite, Sunday, symphony, tag, technical, The Ear, The Willys, Thomas Siwe, Thursday, ticket, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW, UW Symphony Orchestra, UW-Madison, video, Viola, Violin, violinist, violist, virtual, WCO, web page, Willy Street Chamber Players, wind music, winds, winter, Winter Chamber Music Series, Winter Chamber Series, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, YouTube, YouTube video
The UW-Madison’s Pro Arte Quartet performs the fifth installment of its complete Beethoven cycle this Friday night at 7:30 in a FREE live-streamed concert
4 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
As we draw close to Dec. 16 and the 250th birthday celebrations for Ludwig van Beethoven (below, in 1803), one of the joys and highlights of the Beethoven Year continues to impress.
The UW-Madison’s acclaimed Pro Arte Quartet will give the fifth installment of their complete cycle of the 16 string quartets by Beethoven this Friday night, Nov. 20, at 7:30 p.m.
Here is a direct link: https://youtu.be/nZN7tRu8N_k
Members of the quartet (below, from left) are: violinists David Perry and Suzanne Beia; violist Sally Chisholm; and cellist Parry Karp.
The FREE online virtual concert is a livestream from the Mead Witter Foundation Concert Hall, where the quartet will once again play with masks and social distancing (below).
No in-person attendance is allowed.
“It’s different playing without a live audience,” says cellist Parry Karp. “But we’re getting used to it. Not having to play other live concerts or to go on tour around the state also allows us to focus more. And the upside of playing online is that we saw quite a number of viewers from Brazil and Argentina listening to our last concert.”
Before each of the two quartets, Professor Charles Dill (below in a photo by Katrin Talbot), who teaches musicology at the UW-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music, will give a short introductory lecture.
The program features one early quartet and one middle “Razumovsky” quartet: String Quartet No. 3 in D Major, Op. 18 No. 3 (1798-1800); and String Quartet No. 8 in E Minor, “Razumovsky,” Op. 59, No. 2 (1806).
You can hear the Ebène Quartet play the hymn-like slow movement of the Razumovsky quartet, with its use of a Russian theme, in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
Here is more background from Wikipedia about both quartets:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/String_Quartet_No._3_(Beethoven)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/String_Quartet_No._8_(Beethoven)
For more information about the program, the names of the orchestra’s players and impressive historical background about the Pro Arte Quartet, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/pro-arte-quartet-beethoven-string-quartet-cycle-program-v/
Tags: #BeethovenYear, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #CharlesDill, #CompleteCycle, #ConcertHall, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #DavidPerry, #EbeneQaurtet, #EbeneQuartet, #FacebookPage, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #Fridaynight, #HamelMusicCenter, #InPerson, #JacobStockinger, #LiveAudience, #LiveConcert, #LiveMusic, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MeadWitterFoundationConcertHall, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MusicProfessor, #OnlineConcert, #ParryKarp, #ProArteQuartet, #RazumovskyQuartet, #SallyChisholm, #SlowMovement, #SocialDistance, #StringQuartet, #SuzanneBeia, #TheEar, #TheUW, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VirtualConcert, #WisconsinChamberOrchestra, #YouTubeChannel, #YouTubevideo, anniversary, Argentina, Argentine, Argentinean, Arts, audience, background, Beethoven, Beethoven Year, birthday, blog, Brazil, Brazilian, celebration, cellist, Cello, celo, Chamber music, Charles Dill, Classical music, complete, composer, Concert, concert hall, continue, coronavirus, cycle, David Perry, December, early, Ebene Quartet, Facebook, fifth, Focus, foreign, forward, free, Friday, Hamel Music Center, highlight, hymn, impress, in person, installment, international, introductory, Jacob Stockinger, Joy, lecture, like, link, live, live audience, live music, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, mask, Mead Witter Foundation Concert Hall, Mead Witter School of Music, middle, Music, musicology, names, night, November, online, opus, Opus number, Orchestra, pandemic, PAQ, Parry Karp, performer, play, player, players, post, posting, Pro Arte Quartet, professor, program, Razumovsky, Russia, Russian, Sally Chisholm, share, short, show movement, social distance, String quartet, Suzanne Beia, tag, The Ear, theme, tour, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, upside, UW, Viola, Violin, violinist, violist, virtual, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, 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?
6 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 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.
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
Recent Comments
 | samanthacrownoversbc… on How do post-pandemic concert a… |
 | Ronnie on How do post-pandemic concert a… |
 | welltemperedear on How do post-pandemic concert a… |
 | Polly Kuelbs on How do post-pandemic concert a… |
| welltemperedear on How do post-pandemic concert a… |
The Well-Tempered Ear 
Here is a collaborative obituary for music critic, radio host, performer and gay pioneer Jess Anderson, who died in January at 85
3 Comments
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
In late January of this year, Jess Anderson (below) — a longtime friend, devoted musician and respected music critic – died at 85.
The Ear promised then that when more was known or written, it would be posted on this blog.
That time has come.
Jess was a polymath, a Renaissance Man, as the comments below attest to time and again.
For the past several years, he suffered from advancing dementia and moved from his home of 56 years to an assisted living facility. He had contracted COVID-19, but died from a severe fall from which he never regained consciousness.
Jess did not write his own obituary and he had no family member to do it. So a close friend – Ed Wegert (below) – invited several of the people who knew Jess and worked with him, to co-author a collaborative obituary. We are all grateful to Ed for the effort the obituary took and for his caring for Jess in his final years.
In addition, the obituary has some wonderful, not-to-be-overlooked photos of Jess young and old, at home, with friends, sitting at the piano and at his custom-built harpsichord.
It appears in the March issue of Our Lives, a free statewide LGBTQ magazine that is distributed through grocery stores and other retail outlets as well as free subscriptions. Here is a link to the magazine’s home webpage for details about it: https://ourliveswisconsin.com.
That Jess was an exceptional and multi-talented person is obvious even from the distinguished names of the accomplished people who contributed to the obituary:
They include:
Chester Biscardi (below), who is an acclaimed prize-winning composer, UW-Madison graduate, composer and teacher of composition at Sarah Lawrence College.
John Harbison (below), the MacArthur “genius grant” recipient and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer who teaches at MIT and co-directs the nearby Token Creek Chamber Music Festival in the summer.
Rose Mary Harbison (below), who attended the UW-Madison with Jess and became a professional performing and teaching violinist who co-directs the Token Creek Chamber Music Festival.
Steve Miller (below), a close friend who became a bookmaker and is now a professor at the University of Alabama.
The Ear, who knew Jess over many decades, was also invited to contribute.
Here is a link to the joint obituary in Our Lives magazine, a free LGBTQ periodical that you can find in local grocery store and other retail outlets: https://ourliveswisconsin.com/article/remembering-jess-anderson/?fbclid=IwAR027dzv2YqRUNlYF1cF6JyXnEcQxAwcprPYbtBQCs3rYt0Nu847W_xbjpk
Feel free to leave your own thoughts about and memories of Jess in the comment section.
It also seems a fitting tribute to play the final chorus from The St. John Passion of Johann Sebastian Bach. You can hear it in the YouTube video below. It is, if memory serves me well, the same piece of sublime music that Jess played when he signed off from hosting his Sunday morning early music show for many years on WORT-FM 89.9.
Share this:
Like this:
Tags: #AssistedLiving, #BachDancingandDynamiteSociety, #BaroqueMusic, #BaroqueRecorder, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #ChoralMusic, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #CriticallyAcclaimed, #EarlyMusicMovement, #EdWegert, #ElliottCarter, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #Farley'sHouseofPianos, #FerruccioBusoni, #FrancoisCouperin, #FranzLiszt, #FranzSchubert, #FredericChopin, #GayLiberationFront, #GeniusGrant, #GroceryStore, #GunnarJohansen, #Hard Work, #HardWork, #HomeWebpage, #HornSection, #IgorKipnis, #IgorStravinsky, #IsthmusNewspaper, #JacobStockinger, #JessAnderson, #JohannesBrahms, #JohannSebastianBach, #LGBTQrights, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MacArthurFellow, #MacArthurFoundation, #MadisonOpera, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MassachusettsInstituteofTechnology, #MetropolitanOpera, #MusicCritic, #MusicCriticism, #MusicEducation, #NewYorkCity, #OrchestralMusic, #OurLives, #PerformingArts, #PianoSonata, #Prize-Winning, #ProArteQuartet, #PulitzerPrize, #RadioHost, #RenaissanceMan, #RetailStore, #RonMcCrea, #RoseMaryHarbison, #RudolfKolisch, #SalonPIanoSeries, #SarahLawrenceCollege, #SignOff, #St.JohnPassion, #SteinwayPiano, #SteveMiller, #SundayMorning, #TheEar, #TheGreatGatsby, #TheMet, #TheUW, #TokenCreekChamberMusicFestival, #UniversityofAlabama, #UniversityofIllinois-Champaign-Urbana, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VocalMusic, #WisconsinUnionTheater, #WorldPremiere, #WORT-FM89.9, #YouTubevideo, acclaimed, advance, aesthete, Africa, African, airplanes, Arts, assisted living, attend, audience, Bach, Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society, Baroque, beauty, Beethoven, birthday, blog, Book, bookmaker, Brahms, Broadcast, Buscardi, Busoni, camping, Carter, CDs, Chamber music, Chinatown, Chopin, choral music, citizen, Classical music, co-direct, co-director, collaborate, collaborative, comment, Compact Disc, composer, Composition, computer, Concert, conductor, contract, contractor, contribute, coronavirus, coronavirus pandemic, counterpoint, Couperin, criticism, death, decade, dementia, details, devoted, died, Early music, earlymusic, Ed Wegert, effort, Elliott Carter, exceptional, exuberance, Facebook, Facebook post, Facebook posting, facility, fall, Family, Farley's House of Pianos, Ferruccio Busoni, final, fitting, forward, François Couperin, Franz Liszt, Franz Schubert, Frédéric Chopin, free, French, friend, gay, Gay Liberation Front, generosity, genius grant, grateful, graudate, graudate student, grocery store, Gunnar Johansen, Harbison, harpsichord, History, hobby, Home, home webpage, host, Igor Kipnis, Igor Stravinsky, ILLINOIS, imitate, inspiration, invite, Isthmus, it, Jacob Stockinger, January, Jess Anderson, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes Brahms, John Harbison, joint, Kipnis, knew, know, knowledge, language, late, LGBT, LGBTQ, lifeblood, like, link, Liszt, literature, Love, Ludwig van Beethoven, MacArthur Fellow, MacArthur Foundation, Madison, Madison Opera, Madison Symphony Orchestra, magazine, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, McCrea, memories, memory, men, mentor, Met, Metropolitan Opera, Midwest, miller, MIT, model, morning, Music, music critic, Music education, Musician, nearby, New York City, obituary, opera, opinionated, Orchestra, orchestral music, Our LIves, outlet, outspoken, overlooked, pandemic, Passion, perform, Performing arts, periodical, photography, photos, Pianist, Piano, Piano sonata, piece, pioneer, play, poet, Poetry, polymath, post, posting, Pro Arte Quartet, professional, professor, programmer, Pulitzer Prize, rdio, recital, recorder, Renaissance, Renaissance man, repertoire, repertory, Retail, Ron McCrea, Rose Mary Harbison, Rudolf Kolisch, Russian, Salon Piano Series, Sarah Lawrence College, school, Schubert, Seattle, section, sign-off, Slavic, Sonata, Soulima Stravinsky, spirit, St. John Passion, statewide, Steinway, Steve Miller, store, Stravinsky, Student, sublime, submarine, subscription, success, suffer, suffering, summer, Sunday, tag, talent, talented, taste, Teacher, technology, The Ear, The Great Gatsby, thought, time, Token Creek, Token Creek Chamber Music Festival, train, tribute, United States, universal, University of Alabama, University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW, UW-Madison, Violin, violinist, virtuoso, vocal music, Wegert, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Union Theater, wonderful, world premiere, World War II, WORT-FM 89.9, WWII, year, young, YouTube