The Well-Tempered Ear
Here are the Top 10 online concerts to stream in March, according to critics for the New York Times
Leave a Comment
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
ALERT: The online live-streamed concert by the UW-Madison’s Pro Arte Quartet — scheduled for this Friday night, March 5 — in the all-Beethoven cycle of string quartets has been canceled and postponed until next year. The Friday, April 9 installment of the Beethoven cycle will be held as Installment 7 instead of 8.
By Jacob Stockinger
Classical music critics of The New York Times have once again picked their Top 10 online concerts for the month of March.
The Ear has found such lists helpful for watching and hearing, but also informative to read, if you don’t actually “attend” the concert.
If you have read these lists before, you will see that this one is typical.
It offers lots of links with background about the works and performers; concert times (Eastern); and how long the online version is accessible.
Many of the performers will not be familiar to you but others – such as pianist Mitsuko Uchida (below, in a photo by Hiroyuki Ito for the Times), who will perform an all-Schubert recital, will be very familiar.
But the critics once again emphasize new music and even several world premieres – including one by Richard Danielpour — and a path-breaking but only recently recorded live performance of the 1920 opera “Die Tote Stadt” (The Dead City) by long-neglected composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold (below), who is best known for his Hollywood movie scores but who also wrote compelling classical concert hall music. (In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear soprano Renée Fleming sing “Marietta’s Song.’)
But some works that are more familiar by more standard composers – including Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Ravel and Copland – are also included.
The Times critics have also successfully tried to shine a spotlight on Black composers and Black performers, such as the clarinetist and music educator Anthony McGill (below top), who will perform a clarinet quintet by composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (below) and music in the setting of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
No purists, the critics also suggest famous oboe and clarinet works in transcriptions for the saxophone by composer-saxophonist Steven Banks (below).
Also featured is a mixed media performance of words and music coordinated by the award-winning Nigerian-American novelist, essayist and photographer Teju Cole (below), whose writings and photos are irresistible to The Ear.
Here is a link to the story in the Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/25/arts/music/classical-music-streaming-concerts.html
Are there other online concerts in March – local, regional, national or international – that you recommend in addition to the events listed in the Times?
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: #AaronCopland, #AdolphusHailstork, #AmyBeach, #AnthonyMcGill, #AppalachianSpring, #AsianComposer, #BerlinGermany, #BlackComposer, #BlackCulture, #BlackMusic, #Blackperformer, #BlackTraditions, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BluesMusic, #CarolineShaw, #ChamberMusic, #ClaraSchumann, #ClarinetConcerto, #ClarinetQuintet, #ClevelandOrchestra, #ConcertHall, #ConcertTime, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #DavidFung, #DavidHydePierce, #DeutscheOper, #ErichWolfgangKorngold, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FemaleComposer, #FlorencePrice, #FranzSchubert, #GreatBritain, #GreatMigration, #HenryGorecki, #HildgardvonBingen, #JacobStockinger, #JenniferKoh, #JohnDowland, #KurtWeill, #LiveMusic, #LondonEngland, #LouisianaPhilharmonicOrchestra, #LouisvilleOrchestra, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MargaretBonds, #MauriceRavel, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MetropolitanMuseumofArt, #MitsukoUchida, #MixedMedia, #MusicCritic, #NegroSpiritual, #NewMusic, #NewYorkPhilharmonic, #NewYorkTimes, #OboeQuartet, #OnlineConcert, #OperaMusic, #OperaPhiladelphia, #OrchestralMusic, #OrchestraofSt.Luke's, #PhiladelphiaPennsylvania, #PhilipGuston, #PianoConcerto, #PianoSonata, #PolishComposer, #PrincipalClarinet, #ProArteQuartet, #RecordedMusic, #RenéeFleming, #RiccardoChailly, #RichardDanielpour, #RobertSchumann, #SamuelColeridge-Taylor, #SarahCahill, #SopranoSinger, #StevenBanks, #StringQuartet, #TejuCole, #The CoronationofPoppea, #TheBlues, #TheDeadCity, #TheEar, #TheUW, #Top10, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #UnsukChin, #ViolinConcerto, #VirtualConcert, #VocalMusic, #WigmoreHall, #WilliamBolcom, #WorldPremiere, #YouTubeChannel, #YouTubevideo, Aaron Copland, Actor, Adolphus Hailstork, Africa, Americana, Amy Beach, Anthony McGill, Appalachian Spring, Art, Arts, Asi, asian, Asian composer, audience, award, background, bakcground, beach, Beethoven, Berlin, black composer, Black culture, black music, Black performer, Black traditions, blog, blues, Bolcom, bovel, cancel, Caroline Shaw, cellist, Cello, Chamber music, Clara Schumann, clarinet, clarinet concerto, Clarinet Quintet, clarinetist, Classical music, Cleveland, Cleveland Orchestra, Cole, composer, Concert, concert hall, concert time, concerto, conductor, Copland, coronavirus, coronavirus pandemic, critic, cycle, Danielpour, David Fung, David Hyde Pierce, Deutsche Oper, Deutsche Opera, Early music, England, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, essay, essayist, event, Facebook, Facebook page, familiar, female, Florence Price, forward, Franz Schubert, Fung, Germany, Gorecki, Great Britain, Great Migration, Hailstork, hear, helful, Henryk Gorecki, Hildegard von Bingen, impromptu, international, Jacob Stockinger, Jazz, jazzy, Jennifer Koh, John Dowland, Kaija Saariaho, Koh, Korngold, Kurt Weill, like, link, list, live music, local, London, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Louisville Orchestra, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, march, Margaret Bonds, Maurice Ravel, McGill, Mead Witter School of Music, media, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Mitsuko Uchida, mixed media, Mozart, Museum, Music, music critic, national, neglect, Negro spirituals, New Music, New York Philharmonic, New York Times, Nigeria, Nigerian, novelist, Oboe, Oboe Quartet, oboist, online, opera, Opera Philadelphia, Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke's, orchestral music, other, pandemic, PAQ, Pennsylvania, performer, Philip Guston, photographer, Pianist, Piano, Piano concerto, Piano sonata, players, Polish composer, post, posting, postpone, price, Principal Clarinet, Pro Arte Quartet, purist, quintet, Ravel, read, recital, recommendation, recorded music, regional, Renée Fleming, Riccardo Chailly, Richard Danielpour, Robert Schumann, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Sarah Cahill, Saxophone, Schubert, Schumann, setting, share, Shaw, Shine, Singing, soloist, Sonata, song, soprano, spirituals, spotlight, Spring, Steven Banks, stream, String quartet, symphony, tag, Teju Cole, The blues, The Dead City, The Ear, time, Top 10, transcription, typical, Uchida, UK, United Kingdom, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Unsuk Chin, UW, UW-Madison, value, version accessible, Viola, Violin, Violin concerto, violinist, violist, virtual, vocal music, watch, Weill, Wigmore Hall, WILLIAM BOLCOM, Wisconsin, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, women, works, world premiere, Writer, writing, YouTube, YouTube video
This Saturday afternoon, the Wisconsin Chamber Choir presents a free online parking lot concert of “Car Carols” with an emphasis on African-American composers
Leave a Comment
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has received the following announcement to post:
Join the Wisconsin Chamber Choir (below) this Saturday afternoon, Dec. 12, at 2 p.m. for Car Carols, a unique holiday concert featuring live, socially-distanced performances of music by African-American composers and seasonal favorites.
Choir members will sing from their individual cars using wireless microphones (below), listening to the sound of the whole choir via their car radios. The audience is invited to join our Facebook event or listen in live on YouTube.
There is no charge to view the live-stream, but donations would be welcome.
You can find the concert on this Saturday, Dec. 12, a 2 p.m. via the following links: live on YouTube at https://youtu.be/ZonVn1cvgb8, or on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/events/1561155960751974/
This unusual concert format was necessitated by the Covid-19 pandemic, but the WCC is grateful for the opportunity to continue singing together in safe ways.
Since September, the choir has been rehearsing as a Parking Lot Choir, generating local media coverage from WKOW-TV at https://wkow.com/2020/10/13/wisconsin-chamber-choir-making-adjustments-to-prepare-for-performance/ and Madison Magazine, whose story was headlined “Forget tailgates, parking lots are for choir practice: https://www.channel3000.com/forget-tailgates-parking-lots-are-for-choir-practice/
This past September and October, smaller groups from the WCC assembled on Saturday mornings at the Warner Park Pavilion to rehearse in widely spaced formations.
They wore specially designed singers masks, and occasionally harmonized with nearby sandhill cranes that seemed unsure what to make of the a cappella music floating through their habitat.
Recordings by five distinct small ensembles — minus the cranes — will be aired during the Dec. 12 Car Carols broadcast, in addition to live singing by the Parking Lot choristers.
The Car Carols repertoire highlights music by African-American composers spanning nearly a century. Idiomatic pieces in the style of spirituals and contemporary gospel alternate with “non-idiomatic” motets and anthems by Nathaniel Dett (below top), William Dawson, Undine Smith Moore (below middle) and Carlos Simon (below bottom, with an oral self-portrait in the YouTube video at the bottom).
The remainder of the Parking Lot Choir selections consists of carol arrangements by WCC favorites — the late Stephen Paulus (below) and Peter Blotch — and feature virtual harp and violin accompaniment.
Live and virtual performers will also unite to sing Craig Hella Johnson’s moving arrangement of the songs I Love You and What a Wonderful World.
Interspersed between the live Car Carols will be a wide variety of pre-recorded selections, including the world premiere of WCC member Linda Palmer’s arrangement of Sussex Carol, plus music by Johannes Brahms, John Rutter, 17th-century female composer Chiara Cozzolani (below), and Tleycantimo choquilia, a carol from colonial-era Mexico, sung in Spanish and Nahuatl.
Founded in 1998, the Wisconsin Chamber Choir has established a reputation for excellence in the performance of oratorios by Bach, Handel, Mozart and Brahms; a cappella works from various centuries; and world-premieres.
Artistic director Robert Gehrenbeck (below), who heads the choral program at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, has been hailed by critics for his vibrant and emotionally compelling interpretations of a wide variety of choral masterworks. WCC members have acknowledged Gehrenbeck for his intrepid conducting in freezing temperatures during Parking Lot Choir rehearsals.
Tags: #ACappella, #African-AmericanComposer, #AltoSinger, #ArtisticDirector, #BaroqueOratorio, #BassSinger, #BlackComposer, #Blackcomposers, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CarCarols, #CarlosSimon, #ChamberChoir, #ChiaraCozzolani, #ChoralMusic, #ChristianReligion, #ChristmasCarol, #ContemporaryComposer, #COVID-19, #CraigHellaJohnson, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FemaleComposer, #GeorgeFridericHandel, #GospelMusic, #HolidayConcert, #HolidayMusic, #ILoveYou, #JacobStockinger, #JohannesBrahms, #JohannSebastianBach, #JohnRutter, #LindaPalmer, #LiveStreaming, #MadisonMagazine, #MexicanComposer, #MusicalInterpretation, #MusicalStyle, #MusicCritic, #NahuatlLanguage, #NathanielDett, #NegroSpiritual, #NewMusic, #OnlineConcert, #ParkingLot, #PeterBloesch, #RecordedMusic, #RobertGehrenbeck, #SandhillCranes, #SaturdayAfternoon, #SaturdayMorning, #SeasonalMusic, #SingAlong, #SocialDistance, #SociallyDistanced, #SopranoSinger, #StephenPaulus, #SussexCarol, #TenorSinger, #TheEar, #UndineSmithMoore, #UniversityofWisconsin, #VirtualConcert, #WarnerPark, #WhataWonderfulWorld, #WilliamDawson, #WisconsinChamberChoir, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, #WorldPremiere, #YouTubevideo, 17th century, a cappella, accompaniment, African American, African-American music, afternoon, air, aired, alternate, alto, announcement, anthem, arrangement, Artistic director, Arts, assemble, audience, auto, automobile, Bach, baritone, Baroque, bass singer, black, blog, Blog post, blog posting, Brahms, Broadcast, car, Car Carols, Carlos Simon, Carol, century, Chamber choir, Chiara Cozzolani, Choir, choral, choral music, choristers, Christian, Christmas, Classical music, colonial, compelling, composer, Concert, Conducting, conductor, contemporary, continue, coverage', Craig Hella Johnson, critic, Dawson, design, Dett, director, distinct, donation, Early music, earlymusic, emotional, enemble, Facebook, Facebook post, Facebook posting, favorites, female, female composer, floating, formation, forward, freezing, George Frideric Handel, gospel, habitat, hail, Handel, harmonize, harp, highlight, holiday concert, holiday music, I Love You, idiomatic, individual, interpretation, intrepid, ivited, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes Brahms, John Rutter, join, like, Linda Palmer, link, listen, live, live-stream, livestream, local, Love, Madison, Madison Magazine, masks, Masterworks, media, members, Mexican, Mexico, microphone, mixed, Moore, morning, motet, moving, Mozart, Music, music critic, musical style, Nahuatl, Nathaniel Dett, Negro spiritual, New Music, non-idiomatic, October, online, oral, oratorio, parking lot, Paulus, pavilion, Peter Bloesch, portrait, post, practice, pre-recorded, premiere, program, recorded music, recording, rehearsal, rehearse, reminder, repertoire, repertory, reputation, Robert Gehrenbeck, rsdio, Rutter, sage, sandhill cranes, Saturday, seasonal, seasonal music, selections, self-portrait, September, share, Simon, sing, sing-along, singers, Singing, small, social distance, socially distanced, soprano, space, spaced, span, Spanish, spceially, spiritual, spirituals, Stephen Paulus, style, sung, Sussex Carol, tag, televison, temperature, tenor, The Ear, TV, unique, unite, United States, University of Wisconsin, unsure, Uridine Smith Moore, UW-Whitewater, variety, vibrant, Violin, violinist, virtual, vocal music, Warner Park, welcome, What a Wonderful World, wide, William Dawson, wireless, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Choir, WKOW TV, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, wonderful, work, world, world premiere, YouTube
Classical music: Saturday brings percussion music, chamber music and choral music, much of it free
3 Comments
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
As you can tell from earlier posts this week, this weekend will be very busy with music.
But Saturday is especially, offering percussion music, chamber music and vocal music, much of it FREE.
PERCUSSION MUSIC
At 1:30 p.m. in Mills Hall, the Percussion Ensemble of the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras will perform its 18th annual Percussion Extravaganza.
It features the world premiere of “Common Mind” by composer and WYSO alumnus Jon D. Nelson (below). For more a bout Nelson and his music, go to: http://jondnelson.com
More than 150 performers – instrumentalists, singers and dancers – will be featured.
Here is a link to details about the event, including ticket prices:
https://www.wysomusic.org/wyso-percussion-ensemble-to-present-the-2019-percussion-extravaganza/
CHAMBER MUSIC
At 3:30 p.m. in Morphy Hall, the Perlman Piano Trio plus two guest artists will give a FREE concert.
The program is the “Kakadu”Variations in G major, Op. 121a, by Ludwig van Beethoven; the Piano Trio No. 1 in D minor, Op. 49, by Felix Mendelssohn; and the Piano Quintet in F minor by Cesar Franck. (You can her the first movement of the Mendelssohn Trio performed in the YouTube vide at the bottom, by pianist Emanuel Ax, violinist Itzhak Perlman and cellist Yo-Yo Ma.)
Members of the quintet, based on an annual student piano trio supported by Kato Perlman (below), are: Kangwoo Jin, piano; Mercedes Cullen, violin; Micah Cheng, cello; Maynie Bradley, violin; and Luke Valmadrid, viola.
A reception will follow the concert.
CHORAL MUSIC
At 8 p.m. in Mills Hall, the UW-Madison Concert Choir (below top) will perform a FREE concert under conductor Beverly Taylor (below bottom), who is the director of choral activities at the university.
AN UPDATE: Conductor Beverly Taylor has sent the following update about the program:
“I’m happy to update our Saturday, April 6, free concert at 8 p.m. in Mills Hall:
“The Concert Choir is singing a program called “Half a Bach and other good things.”
“We’re singing just half of the B Minor Mass: the Kyrie and Gloria (12 movements), which were what Bach originally wrote and sent off for his job interview!
We have a small orchestra and a mixture of student and professional soloists: Julia Rottmayer, Matthew Chastain, Wesley Dunnagan, Miranda Kettlewell, Kathleen Otterson, Elisheva Pront and Madeleine Trewin.
The remaining third of the concert is an eclectic mix of modern composers (Petr Eben’s “De circuitu eternal,” Gerald Finzi’s “My Spirit Sang All Day”), Renaissance music (Orlando Gibbons’ “O Clap your Hands”), spirituals and gospel.
Tags: #BeverlyTaylor, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CesarFranck, #ChamberMusic, #ChoralMusic, #ConcertChoir, #EmanuelAx, #FacebookPosting, #FelixMendelssohn, #GeraldFinzi, #GospelMusic, #GuestArtist, #ItzhakPerlman, #JohannSebastianBach, #JonD.Nelson, #KakaduVariations, #KatoPerlman, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MassinBMinor, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MillsHall, #ModernComposers, #MorphyHall, #OrlandoGibbons, #PercussionEnsemble, #PercussionMusic, #PetrEben, #PianoQuintet, #PianoTrio, #RenaissanceMusic, #SpiritualMusic, #ThemeAndVariations, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VocalMusic, #WisconsinYouthSymphonyOrchestras, #WorldPremiere, #Yo-YoMa, #YouTubevideo, activities, alumnus, audience, B Minor Mass, Beverly Taylor, blog, cellist, Cello, Cesar Franck, Chamber music, choral music, common, composer, Concert Choir, conductor, dancer, director, eclectic, Emanuel Ax, extravaganza, Facebook, Facebook post, Felix Mendelssohn, forward, free, Gerald Finzi, Gloria, gospel, guest artist, instrumentalist, Itzhak Perlman, Johann Sebastian Bach, Jon D. Nelson, Kakadu Variations, Kato Perlman, Kyrie, like, link, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Mass in B Minor, Mead Witter School of Music, Mills Hall, mind, mix, modern, Morphy Hall, movement, movements, Music, Orchestra, Orlando Gibbons, percussion, performer, Petr Eben, Pianist, Piano, Piano Quintet, Piano Trio, price, professional, program, Renaissance, Saturday, share, singer, small, soloist, spiritual, spirituals, tag, theme, theme and variations, ticket, University of Wisconsin, variations, Viola, Violin, violinist, violist, vocal music, Website, week, weekend, Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras, world premiere, WYSO, Yo-Yo Ma, YouTube
Classical music: Today is the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. The murdered civil rights leader has become a character in opera, oratorios and musicals as well as popular songs
3 Comments
By Jacob Stockinger
Today is the holiday to celebrate the 89th birthday of Martin Luther King (below), the American civil rights pioneer who was born on this day in 1929, won the Nobel Peace Prize and was assassinated in 1968, when he was 39.
For more biographical information, here is the Wikipedia entry:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther_King_Jr.
There will be many celebrations, including the 38th annual one at noon in the State Capitol of Wisconsin in Madison, which will be broadcast live and recorded by Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR) and Wisconsin Public Television (WPT).
Music is always an important art of honoring King. There will be spirituals and gospel choirs.
But King himself has become a musical, and dramatic, figure.
Maybe you knew that.
The Ear didn’t.
So here are some links to sample from YouTube, which has many of King’s speeches and much of the music done to honor King over the years.
MLK is a character is the opera by Philip Glass called “Appomattox,” which deals with civil rights from The Civil War onwards and was commissioned and performed by the Washington National Opera.
Here is part of it in rehearsal:
And in performance:
And here is the one-hour video called “I Have a Dream”:
Do you know of any other musical works in which Martin Luther King Jr. actually figures and plays a role?
What piece of classical music would you choose to honor King?- Perhaps the poignant aria “Give Me Freedom” from Handel’s opera “Rinaldo” (performed in the YouTube video at the bottom) or Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with its “Ode to Joy” finale about universal brotherhood.
Let us know in the COMMENT section.
The Ear wants to hear.
Tags: America, American, Appomattox, Arts, assassination, Bach, Baroque, Beethoven, biographical, biography, birth, birthday, brotherhood, Capitol, celebration, Choir, choral music, civil rights, Classical music, drama, dream, figure, finale, Franz Schubert, freedom, George Frideric Handel, gospel, gospel choir, Handel, Holiday, honor, I Have a Dream, information, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes Brahms, Ludwig van Beethoven, Martin Luther King Jr, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Mozart, Music, musical, Ninth Symphony, nobel, Nobel Peace Prize, Ode to Joy, opera, Orchestra, peace, performance, Philip Glass, Piano, pioneer, prize, rehearsal, Rinaldo, role, Sonata, speech, speeches, spiritual, spirituals, state, symphony, the Civil War, United States, universal, universe, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, video, vocal music, Washington National Opera, Wikipedia, wisconsin public radio, Wisconsin Public Television, WPR, WPT, YouTube
Classical music: String quartets, African-American spirituals and a farewell faculty flute recital plus many graduate student recitals are FREE highlights this week at the UW-Madison
Leave a Comment
By Jacob Stockinger
Only about a month of classes remains in the academic year, so concerts by faculty members, guest artists and students are backing up at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music.
But quantity does NOT preclude quality — or variety.
Just take a look at the highlights this week:
TUESDAY
At 8:30 p.m. in Morphy Recital Hall, the Hunt Quartet will perform its spring concert.
Members of the graduate student ensemble are (below, from left, in a photo by Katrin Talbot): Kyle Price, cello; Vinicius “Vinny” Sant’Ana, violin; Blakeley Menghini, viola; and Chang-En Lu, violin.
The program is: String Quartet in G Major, Op. 77, No. 1 by Franz Joseph Haydn; String Quartet in F minor “Serioso,” Op. 95, by Ludwig van Beethoven; and the String Quartet No. 2, Op. 90, by Sergei Prokofiev. (You can hear the riveting Prokofiev quartet in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
The Hunt Quartet is sponsored by Dr. Kato Perlman and the Madison Symphony Orchestra.
For more information about the quartet and its individual members, as well as a SoundCloud audio sample of the Hunt Quartet playing a 1924 piece by Joaquin Turina, go to:
http://www.music.wisc.edu/event/the-hunt-quartet-spring-concert/
WEDNESDAY
At 7:30 p.m. in Morphy Recital Hall, guest artist Emery Stephens (below), faculty collaborative pianist Martha Fischer and UW students will perform African-American spirituals, songs and instrumental works.
For more about the visit by scholar-performer Stephens, see this blog posting done just before he cancelled the last date, which fell on a Tuesday rather than a Wednesday:
THURSDAY
At 7:30 p.m. in Mills Hall, retiring professor of flute Stephanie Jutt (below) will perform her farewell faculty recital.
Jutt will be joined by faculty colleagues violist Sally Chisholm, clarinetist Amy McCann and pianist Christopher Taylor.
Sorry, no word about the program.
Jutt (below), who has been teaching and performing at the UW-Madison for 28 years, is also the principal flutist of the Madison Symphony Orchestra and the co-founder and co-artistic director of the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society. Jutt says she will continue with MSO and BDDS after she retires.
This week also features a plethora of degree recitals by students, most held in Morphy Recital Hall (below). The Ear counts 11 in fields from voice to percussion. For more information, check out these links:
http://www.music.wisc.edu/events/
And for the full lineup for April, visit:
https://uwmadisonschoolofmusic.wordpress.com
Tags: academic, African American, Arts, Audio, Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society, BDDS, Beethoven, Cello, Chamber music, Christopher Taylor, clarinet, Classical music, collaborative, collaborative piano, dancing, dynamite, Emery Stephens, faculty, guest artist, Haydn, Hunt Quartet, instrumental, Jacob Stockinger, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Madison Opera, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Music, Orchestra, percussion, Piano, Prokofiev, retire, Retirement, Sally Chisholm, sample, Serioso, society, Sonata, song, SoundCloud, spirituals, Stephanie Jutt, String quartet, Student, Turina, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, variety, Viola, Violin, vocal music, voice, Wisconsin, YouTube
Classical music: Singer-scholar Emery Stephens HAS CANCELLED his return to coach students about and to perform a FREE recital of African-American songs and spirituals on Tuesday night at UW
1 Comment
ALERT: Please IGNORE the posted dates and times below. Professor Emery Stephens has CANCELLED his appearances this week at the UW-Madison due to illness. According to the UW-Madison, Stephens will try to reschedule his master classes and recital layer this spring. The Ear apologies for any misunderstanding or inconvenience, but he just heard about the cancellation.
By Jacob Stockinger
The last time Professor Emery Stephens (below) visited the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, it was in 2015 and he lectured about “African-American Voices in Classical Music.”
(You can hear Emery Stephens narrate “The Passion of John Brown” in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
Now this week – today and Tuesday – the acclaimed scholar and baritone singer returns to the UW.
This time he will spend Monday coaching UW voice and piano students.
Then on Tuesday night at 6:30 p.m. in Morphy Recital Hall, Stephens plus the voice and piano students and UW collaborative pianist Martha Fischer will perform a FREE recital of African-American songs and spirituals. Also included are some solo piano works by African-American composer Harry T. Burleigh (1866-1949, below).
Here is a link not only to more information about Stephens’ recital, including the program, but also to information about his last visit and about a performance on Wednesday from 1:20 to 3 p.m. in the Memorial Union by the Black Music Ensemble.
Tags: African American, African Americans, African-American music, Arts, baritone, Classical music, coach, coaching, composer, Emery Stephens, Harry T. Burleigh, Jacob Stockinger, John Brown, Madison, Martha Fischer, Music, narrate, narrator, Passion, Passion of John Brown, Piano, professor, recital, scholar, singer, solo, song, spirituals, Student, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, vocal music, voice, YouTube
Classical music: The Edgewood College Chamber Singers will make history when it performs by invitation at a sacred music festival in Quito, Ecuador later this month.
2 Comments
A REQUEST: The Well-Tempered Ear blog is within 10 subscriptions of breaking 1,000. That would be so encouraging! The Ear wonders if either you or friends of yours who read the blog regularly might subscribe and help him meet the goal?
By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has just a small — yet big — news item to pass along today:
The Edgewood College Chamber Singers (below) will perform by invitation later this month at the International Sacred Music Festival in Quito, Ecuador.
The choir will perform under the direction of Sergei Pavlov (below), who writes:
“The Festival Internacional de Música Sacra in Quito is a long-standing tradition and one of the most prestigious Easter music festivals in South America.
“It is organized by the National Theater (Teatro Nacional Sucre) and the Municipality of the City of Quito.
“In previous years, it has featured groups from about 15 countries, and all the performances — around 20 concerts — are completely free for the audience and are presented in numerous historic churches in Quito.
“The Edgewood Chamber Singers is the first American youth choir to be invited (last year the group from the U.S. was the professional American Spiritual Ensemble). We will be performing together with the youth choir of Teatro Sucre and the National Chamber Choir of Ecuador.
“The concert will feature music by the Baroque composer Domenico Zipoli – who was an 18th-century missionary in South America; traditional African Christian music; music by Karl Jenkins and Aaron Copland; and spirituals. (You can hear a beautiful non-choral work — an Air — by Domenico Zipoli, performed by the Jean-Francois Paillard Chamber Orchestra in a YouTube video at the bottom.)
“The festival runs for two weeks before Holy Week. We will be there March 17-24 and our concerts are March 21 and March 22.
“Unfortunately, in South America people still rely on TV and newspaper advertising and the on-line info appears only a few weeks before the festival.”
For more information, visit:
http://www.edgewood.edu/News/chamber-singers-prepare-for-performances-in-ecuador
Tags: Aaron Copland, Africa, America, American Spiritual Ensemble, Arts, Baroque, chamber orchestra, choral music, Christian music, Christianity, church, Classical music, Domenico Zipoli, Early music, Easter, Ecuador, Edgewood College, Edgewood College Chamber Singers, Holy Week, Jacob Stockinger, Jean-Francois Paillard, Karl Jenkins, missionary, Music, National Theater, Newspaper, on-line, Orchestra, Quito, scared music, South America, spirituals, Television, TV, U.S., United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, vocal music, Wisconsin, youth choir, YouTube
Classical music: The Madison Symphony Chorus performs a medley of choral music this Sunday at 2 and 4 p.m. Plus, a FREE harpsichord recital of music by Bach, Handel and Scarlatti is at noon this Friday.
2 Comments
ALERT: This week’s FREE Friday Noon Musicale, to be held from 12:15 to 1 p.m. at the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Meeting House of the First Unitarian Society of Madison, 900 University Bay Drive, Trevor Stephenson — the founder and director of the Madison Bach Musicians — will play harpsichord music by Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frideric Handel and Domenico Scarlatti.
He will perform on his own four-octave, crow-quilled 17th-century-style Flemish instrument and will talk about the well-tempered tuning of this instrument, the composers’ lives and the concert repertoire. Selections are from Bach’s “Well-Tempered Clavier,” Scarlatti’s Sonatas and Handel’s “Keyboard Suites.”
By Jacob Stockinger
Some groups perform more in tandem or as adjuncts to other groups than by themselves. This seems especially true of choruses.
But this weekend, the Madison Symphony Chorus, which normally performs with the Madison Symphony Orchestra, will have the spotlight to itself. (You can hear the chorus sing as part of the MSO’s Christmas concert in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
Twice on the same day.
Here are the details:
On this Sunday, Feb. 28, at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., director Beverly Taylor and the Madison Symphony Chorus (below, in a photo by Greg Anderson) will present a “Memories” concert in Promenade Hall at the Overture Center for the Arts.
Taylor (below) is the longtime assistant conductor of the Madison Symphony Orchestra and the director of choral activities at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music.
The concerts will feature an array of musical styles, including classical music selections from Johannes Brahms and contemporary American composer John Corigliano, a collection of Swedish, Norwegian, Scottish and Mexican ethnic tunes, traditional spirituals and gospel music, and nostalgic songs from the Tin Pan Alley era by Cole Porter, George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin, and Fats Waller.
Madison Symphony Orchestra (MSO) Principal Pianist Daniel Lyons will accompany much of the music.
Tickets are $20, and are available: at madisonsymphony.org/chorusconcert; at the Overture Box Office (201 State Street); or by calling (608) 258-4141.
Formed in 1927, the Madison Symphony Chorus gave its first public performance in 1928 and has performed regularly with the MSO ever since.
The Chorus was featured at the popular Madison Symphony Christmas concerts in December and will join the MSO April 29 and 30, and May 1 for Carmina Burana, the colossal modern oratorio based on medieval Latin songs by 20th-century German composer Carl Orff.
The Chorus is comprised of more than 125 volunteer and amateur musicians from all walks of life who enjoy combining their artistic talent. New members are always welcome.
Visit madisonsymphony.org/chorus for more information about the chorus and the program for this concert.
Tags: amateur, Arts, Bach, Carl Orff, Carmina Burana, choral music, chorus, Christmas, Classical music, Cole Porter, conductor, Early music, ethnic music, Fats Waller, Flemish, Folk music, Frank Lloyd Wright, George Gershwin, Gershwin, gospel, Handel, harpsichord, Ira Gershwin, Jacob Stockinger, Johannes Brahms, John Corigliano, Latin, Madison, Madison Bach Musicians, Madison Symphony Chorus, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Medieval, Mexico, Music, Norway, nostalgia, Orchestra, Overture Center, Piano, Scarlatti, Scotland, Sonata, spirituals, Suite, Sweden, Tin Pan Alley, Tn Pan Alley, Trevor Stephenson, tuning, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, vocal music, volunteer, Well-Tempered Clavier, Wisconsin, YouTube
Classical music: The Isthmus Vocal Ensemble will use its 13th annual summer concerts to explore expressions of LOSS on this Friday night and Sunday afternoon. Plus, you can check Day 6 of WYSO’s tour to Argentina.
1 Comment
ALERT: For the latest news from the 10-day tour to Argentina by the Youth Orchestra (below) of the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras (WYSO), here is a link to Day 6:
By Jacob Stockinger
One of the many summer musical events that have become institutions to look forward to are the two concerts by the Isthmus Vocal Ensemble.
Here are the details, from a press release, for this weekend’s sets of two concerts:
ISTHMUS VOCAL ENSEMBLE RETURNS FOR ITS LUCKY 13TH SEASON
MADISON – When conductor Scott MacPherson –- a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music — convened some of Madison’s top singers in 2002, he had no way of knowing that the newly formed Isthmus Vocal Ensemble (below) would begin one of Madison’s most anticipated summer musical traditions. (You can hear a stirring sample at the bottom in a YouTube video of a live performance by the Isthmus Vocal Ensemble.)
Now in its 13th year, the ensemble -– a professional-level choir of approximately 60 singers –- brings new life to over 500 years of choral music. Amazingly, the choir continues to do it all within a brief two-week rehearsal period.
This intense spirit of camaraderie produces a singular and remarkable experience, year after year.
Madison-area audiences have two opportunities to hear the 2014 program.
The traditional Friday night concert will take place at 7:30 p.m. on this Friday, August 1, at Christ Presbyterian Church, 944 East Gorham Street. Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for students and seniors; children 12 or under get in for free. Tickets can be bought at the door or on-line at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/802712
The program will be repeated at 3 p.m. on Sunday afternoon, August 3, at Covenant Presbyterian Church, 326 South Segoe Road. General admission tickets are $15 for adults; $10 for students and seniors. Children under 13 get in free. Tickets can be bought at the door or on-line at: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/802714
This year, the singers will tackle texts in Latin, French (medieval and modern), Russian, German, English and even a form of nonsense language, notated loosely in Finnish, inspired by both Scandinavian folk dance and the Muppets’ Swedish Chef (below).
This year’s performance includes introspective choral masterworks by Henry Purcell, Johannes Brahms, Anton Bruckner and others, exploring the labyrinth of emotions begat by LOSS.
Also featured are contemporary works by Andrew Rindfleisch and Lionel Daunais, and a rousing conclusion with spirituals arranged by Moses Hogan.
The French chanson “Mille regretz” by the 15th century composer Josquin des Prez (below top) is matched by a modern setting by Andrew Rindfleisch (below bottom). Here is a link top the home website for the Prix de Rome-winning composer Andrew Rindfliesch, who did his bachelor’s degree at UW-Madison:
The choir’s renowned low basses will be on display in Russian works including Sergei Rachmaninoff’s “Tebé poyém (We Hymn Thee)” and Alexander Gretchaninoff’s stunning “Ñe rïdáy Meñé, Máti (Do not lament me, O Mother).”
From the German tradition, Johannes Brahms’ Two Motets, Op. 74 (beginning with “Warum ist das Licht gegeben”), join Anton Bruckner’s classic “Virga Jesse.”
Other composers represented include Jaako Mäntyjärvi, Lionel Daunais, Henry Purcell (below), Imant Raminsh and the great spiritual arranger Moses Hogan.
The Isthmus Vocal Ensemble is led by Scott MacPherson (below), director of choral activities at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio, who trained at the UW-Madison.
The IVE’s members include professional singers and choral directors, professors, lawyers, students and passionate advocates for the arts. The choir has performed by invitation at the North Central Conference of the American Choral Directors Association, commissioned several world premieres and released two albums.
For more information, visit www.isthmusvocalensemble.org or the choir’s page on Facebook.
Tags: American Choral Directors Association, Andrew Rindfleisch, Anton Bruckner, Argentina, Arts, Brahms, Bruckner, Choir, choral music, Classical music, Early music, Gretchaninoff, Isthmus Vocal Ensemble, Jacob Stockinger, Johannes Brahms, Josquin Des Prez, Kent State University, Lionel Daunais, Madison, Moses Hogan, Muppets, Music, Negro spirituals, North Central Conference, Prix de Rome, Rachmaninoff, Rachmaninov, Romantic music, Rome Prize, Sergei Rachmaninoff, spirituals, Swedish Chef, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Wisconsin, WYSO, YouTube
Recent Comments
The Well-Tempered Ear 