The Well-Tempered Ear
The new Apple Music Classical app is now available for Android users
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By Jacob Stockinger
The new Apple Music Classical app (logo is below) — before now available exclusively for Apple Music subscribers and the Apple OS operating system — is now available for Android operating systems and PCs through the Google Play store.
The streaming app, which costs about $10 a month (you need just a subscription to one of the music apps to get both), has been generally praised and highly rated by both professional critics and ordinary consumers. Most point out the wide variety of repertoire, performers and recordings, both current and historic or out-of-print; the quality of the sound; and the use of background documents about the music, the composers and the performers.
Here are links to two stories about Apple Music Classical for Android.
The first one, from TechCrunch, is the more general and comprehensive article.
The second story, briefer and written more for audiophiles, is from The Verge and contains more specific background information and technical specifications.
The Ear uses both Apple Music and Apple Music Classical, and will share his reactions to them in a future posting.
In the meantime, he wants to know:
Do you subscribe to Apple Music or Apple Music Classical?
Do you like it?
Dislike it?
Why?
Would you recommend Apple Music Classical or Apple Music to other listeners?
What do you think of other classical music apps such as Spotify, Amazon Music, Tidal, Idagio, Presto — if you use them?
The Ear wants to hear.
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Why are Asians dominating Western classical music?
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By Jacob Stockinger
The month of May is Asian-American and Pacific Islander Heritage month in the U.S.
And here is a perfect story to provide questions and raise issues that pertain to that theme as it figures in classical music.
We have not seen many of them booked for concerts locally, but perhaps you have noticed how so many Asian musicians, particularly pianists, have been winning major competitions.
Those competitions include the Van Cliburn (Korean Yunchan Lim, below top), the Chopin (Chinese-Canadian Bruce Liu, below bottom), the Tchaikovsky, the Arthur Rubinstein, the Queen Elizabeth of Belgium, the Leeds Competition, the Geneva Competition and many others that are less famous.
Perhaps you have also noticed how we hear more Asian opera singers at the Met and more Asian string players in orchestras around the world.
More Asians also seem to be studying and performing in lower and higher educational institutions and organizations.
And perhaps you, like The Ear, have wondered what is behind that trend?
Here is a terrific first-person story — with research, details, photos and performance videos – written by a Canadian musician of Japanese descent that appeared on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).
But The Ear thinks it could easily apply to the United States, Australia and other non-Asian places and cultures.
Here is a link:
Do you think this story applies to Asians and Asian-Americans in the U.S.?
If you yourself are an Asian or Asian-American musician or music student, do the observations and analysis in the story ring true to you own experience?
Do you have other thoughts to add about the cultural reasons for the surge of Western classical music in Asia and among Asians elsewhere?
Are there important lessons here for non-Asian people and places?
The Ear wants to hear.
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Collaborative pianist Ingrid Haebler has died at 93
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By Jacob Stockinger
The Austrian pianist Ingrid Haebler (below) has died at 93.
I call her a collaborative pianist but, like so many other pianists, she was also a soloist.
That is inherent in learning the piano, especially at the beginning.
Here is an obituary, with links, where you can read more about her and her her music-making:
Truth be told, Haebler made quite a few recording as a soloist, include all the piano concertos and piano sonatas by Mozart, as well as other Austrian and German composers, including Haydn, Schubert and Beethoven. The Viennese school was her forte.
But what stands out to The Ear are her early duets (below) with Henry Szeryng and Arthur Grumiaux in the violin sonatas of Beethoven and Mozart. She knew how to blend rather than to stand out, and clearly was more interested in musicality than virtuosity. In fact, critics often praised her gentleness, clarity and transparency rather than her assertiveness or boldness, especially in Mozart. Not for nothing was a tulip named after her.
In a word, she was an ideal collaborative pianist back in the days when they were still called accompanists and received second billing.
Indeed, along with Gerald Moore she was one of the performers who brought currency and respect as the term “accompanist” as it morphed into the more accurate term “collaborative pianist.”
Of course that is just my opinion. You might disagree.
Decide for yourself. You can listen to and sample many of her solo and collaborative recording on YouTube, including the video below one of my favorite violin sonatas by Mozart, the Violin Sonata in e minor, K. 304, played by Haebler and Henryk Szeryng.
Do you know Ingrid Haebler’s playing?
What do you think of her as a soloist and as a collaborative pianist?
Which side of her career do you think is stronger?
The Ear wants to hear.
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Why isn’t music education in Madison better, ranked higher?
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By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear saw where the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) Foundation recently announced its annual list honoring cities, school districts and individual schools in the U.S. for outstanding music education.
Here is a brief explanation:
“Now in its 24th year, the 2023 Best Communities for Music Education program recognizes 830 school districts and 78 schools across 43 states for the outstanding efforts by teachers, administrators, parents, students, and community leaders and their support for music education as part of a well-rounded education for all children.”
Here is link to the overview of the award program:
I figured with its active music life, Madison should be, even must bet, on the list.
And I did find Madison.
But it was Madison New Jersey — not Wisconsin.
I found no mention of Madison, Wisconsin.
It disappointed me, since study after study shows the importance of music education in academic achievement.
It also perplexed me.
How could music education not be noteworthy in a city that is home to nationally famous Mead Witter School of Music at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (below is UW’s Hamel Music Center)?
In a city with Edgewood College’s music department?
With the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Madison Opera and the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra — all of which have educational outreach programs?
With the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society, the Willy Street Chamber Players, the Madison Bach Musicians, the Oakwood Chamber Players and so many other chamber music and early music groups?
Where the statewide, nationally recognized Wisconsin School Music Association is located in nearby Waunakee
In the same city where the pioneering Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras (below) has been located for 57 years and is building an impressive new headquarters with teaching facilities and a concert hall on East Washington Avenue?
Take a look for yourself.
Here is a link to the list which can be filtered and narrowed down alphabetically by state, city, school district, school and past history: https://www.nammfoundation.org/articles/bcme-2023-schools
In Wisconsin you will find Dousman, Richland Center and Salem listed. But not Milwaukee or Green Bay or LaCrosse or Eau Claire or Appleton.
And no Madison.
What explains it?
What do school boards and administrators have to say about it?
What role do budget cuts, curriculum and staffing priorities play?
Is the list somehow biased?
Does not being named to list jibe with the reality of music education in public schools in Madison and nearby communities?
Why isn’t music education in Madison better and more noteworthy?
What do teachers, parents and students themselves have to say about the problem — and the solution?
The Ear wants to hear.
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Real-time online playlists return to Wisconsin Public Radio
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By Jacob Stockinger
Good news!
Really good news!
Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR) has finally returned to posting real-time playlists on both its online website and its mobile app.
Now you can see and identify what has been played and what is being played (below, displayed in yellow) — AS it is being played as well as after it has been played.
The only recent exception was Saturday when there was nothing posted until later in the day when all-day programming was listed at the same time. No reason has been given for the suspension or tardiness.
The playlists are especially good given the many unknown composers and compositions that are increasingly being aired.
The Ear also finds the playlists helpful to see what is playing and who is performing — along with the record label and catalogue number when you click “More” — when he hears part of a piece and is interested but didn’t hear the introductory information or can’t complete listening to it.
Please leave kudos and congratulate WPR for serving its listeners and supporters.
Try it and see.
Will you find the online real-time playlists helpful and use them?
The Ear wants to hear.
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Online playlists return to Wisconsin Public Radio
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By Jacob Stockinger
Good news!
News that deserve a big shout-out!
Online playlists for classical music programming have returned to Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR).
The user-friendly move comes after more than a year of absent playlists and, fortuitously, as WPR is conducting a spring membership drive seeking financial support from the public.
There is one major drawback: You still can’t check on pieces and performances in real time — that is, on the same day or even the same moment as you are listening. Now you have to wait until the next day to see the posting.
That is an unfortunate change from the past. And one hopes it will be fixed soon. Maybe WPR will even let listeners know if and when real-time postings will return.
The current one-day delay seems especially odd, given that the pieces played overnight on WPR — from Minnesota Public Radio, I believe — are posted right as they begin to air.
But at least now we don’t have to wait weeks or months to find out information about something you have probably already forgotten about.
The new format seems less straightforward and less user-friendly than the old one, which put the information right in front of you when you went to the home website and clicked on playlists for News and Music Network.
But now you just go to the date bar and choose the day you are looking for. Once you find the piece, you will notice the name of the show on which it aired such as “Morning Classics” or “The Midday.” You also find the time with the composer, title and performer.
If you also click on “More,” you will see additional details such as the record label and catalogue number. Here a link to try it out:
The return of the playlists is especially useful now that WPR is programming so many neglected composers and so much unfamiliar music — something the current pledge drive seems to be explaining and emphasizing.
So let’s offer hearty congratulations and sincere thanks to WPR and its engineers for the move.
What do you think of the return of WPR playlists?
Have you used the new playlists?
What do you think about their usefulness and online display?
Should WPR playlists be posted in real time?
The Ear wants to hear.
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Music builds brain health. Which composers and pieces would you recommend?
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By Jacob Stockinger
If you think music education and music lessons are only for young people who are still growing and maturing, you couldn’t be more wrong.
More and more research studies show that in adults and older people, even in Alzheimer’s patients, music has force and can break through.
Music is — like many other kinds of art including poetry, dance and paintings — a key that unlocks the plasticity of the human brain (below is an image from Shutterstock) and the brain’s ability to grow and endure in a healthy manner.
Here is one of the most recent studies that was covered in a story by NPR (National Public Radio), which you can read or listen to:
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/04/03/1167494088/your-brain-on-art-music-dance-poetry
The Ear finds it convincing food for thought.
Certain genres of music, for example, come to mind as brain-healthy. Think Schubert. Art songs which combine music and words, even poetry, seem an especially likely candidate.
String quartets and theme-and-variations also come to mind as artistic and brain-developing genres. So does the sonata form that is used to develop and establish harmonic and thematic logic in symphonies and concertos as well as sonatas.
As for specific composers, The Ear thinks Johann Sebastian Bach (below) stands out as a one whose music requires active listening and critical thinking.
Preludes and fugues by Johann Sebastian Bach (below and in the YouTube video at the bottom where Friedrich Gulda plays the Prelude and Fugue No. 1 of the WTC) in The Well-Tempered Clavier and his many suites and Beethoven’s string quartets, especially the late ones, are individual challenging works that do the same.
Are there musical genres that you think are good for the brain and would recommend?
Are there certain composers you think are especially helpful in building brain health?
Are there any particular pieces that you think also work toward brain health and plasticity?
The Ear wants to hear.
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Should Ukrainian pianist Valentina Lisitsa be boycotted?
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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.
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Meet Kevin Chen, who just won the 17th Arthur Rubinstein Piano Competition
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By Jacob Stockinger
The Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition is one of the most prestigious keyboard competitions in the world.
It ranks right up there with the Tchaikovsky, Chopin, Leeds and Van Cliburn competitions.
It takes place every three years in Tel Aviv, Israel. And this year, it started on March 14 and wrapped up just a week ago, on April 1.
This was the 17th Rubinstein Competition.
And it was won by an 18-year-old Chinese-Canadian pianist from Calgary.
He is Kevin Chen (below). He also composes and seems well on his way to a major career, especially since last year he also won the Geneva piano competition and was the youngest winner ever of the Franz Liszt Piano Competition in Budapest.
Winning the Rubinstein has launched many major career from Emanuel Ax, the first winner in 1974, to Daniil Trifnov in 2011.
At the bottom is a YouTube video with a recital by Chen along with a recital by the Georgian pianist who placed second: Giorgi Gigashvili. Chen’s performance of Chopin’s 12 Etudes, Op. 10, for example, begins at 2 hours, 6 minutes and 40 seconds.
You can also find a YouTube video of Chen’s prize-winning performance of Mozart’s last piano concerto, No. 27 in B-flat major, K. 595; and a wonderful recital from the Geneva competition. And more solo videos from the Rubinstein are sure to be posted soon.
Here is a fine story, with lots of personal details, from Chen’s hometown newspaper:
https://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/kevin-chen-piano-arthur-rubinstein-competition
Here is a story about all the winners:
Israel’s Rubinstein Piano Competition Announces 2023 Winners
And for much more background about the competition’s history, the jury members for this year’s contestants, the past winners, repertoire requirements, mandatory stages, rules and so forth, go to:
https://arims.org.il/competition-2023-homepage/jury-2023/
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The Well-Tempered Ear 
How do post-pandemic concert attendance and programming in Madison compare to the rest of the U.S.?
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By Jacob Stockinger
How has concert attendance rebounded from the covid pandemic?
What kind of programming seems to help orchestras recover the most?
Earlier this week The New York Times published a well-researched story that explored those trends and questions in other major cities, including Cleveland, Detroit and St. Louis in the Midwest.
It includes statistics about attendance figures rising after the pandemic and links the results to certain trends in programming, including scheduling more of the core repertoire that draws people in.
Overall it paints an optimistic and hopeful picture of recovery for symphony orchestras.
It got The Ear to thinking: How are local groups such as the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra and the Madison Opera doing in comparison?
Lessons from other organizations might help to explain why next season’s concerts include an all-film score concert celebrating Pixar and Disney, and a live mariachi band.
Perhaps I missed it, but I can’t recall any local media doing a similar story with hard box office statistics about ticket sales and attendance numbers. But it would certainly be enlightening to see specific data and commentary about how well local groups have rebounded from the pandemic.
Here is a link to The New York Times story. You should be able to read it if you scroll down past the ad that says you need to set up a free account:
Do you have some idea or sense about attendance trends from personal experience?
How do you think orchestras and other groups, including chamber music, have fared as covid fears have eased?
The Ear wants to hear.
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