The Well-Tempered Ear
Classical music: Acclaimed conductor Charles Dutoit cancels concerts and loses orchestra affiliations amid allegations of sexual assault
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By Jacob Stockinger
The scandal of sexual misconduct — ranging from discomfort and harassment to abuse and rape – keeps mushrooming.
Now Swiss-born conductor Charles Dutoit (below), who won multiple Grammy awards and led the Montreal Symphony Orchestra and Philadelphia Orchestra for many years, has been accused of sexual assault by three opera singers and one musician.
One of the accusers is soprano Sylvia McNair (below), who has performed in Madison with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra. The other three have remained anonymous.
So far, Dutoit has not responded to the allegations. But as a result, the 81-year-old has seen the cancellation of concerts later this winter and spring with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Cleveland Symphony Orchestra.
In addition, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, where he is artistic director and principal conductor, have also severed ties with Dutoit.
Here is a link to the story from the BBC:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-42452715
And here is a story from The New York Times:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/21/arts/music/charles-dutoit-sexual-misconduct.html
And here is a link to the original story by the Associated Press:
https://apnews.com/278275ccc09442d98a794487a78a67d4
In classical music, longtime Metropolitan Opera conductor James Levine was the first big name to be caught up in the current sexual misconduct allegations. Levine was accused of sexually abusing teenage boys who were apprentices.
And here is a link to the story in The New York Times about Metropolitan Opera artistic director and conductor James Levine:
Given the egotistical reputation of so many conductors and the patriarchal, authoritarian nature of the “maestro culture” of many performers and teachers, The Ear is sure that other names of important figures will soon emerge.
Who will be next?
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Classical music: The Madison Symphony Orchestra performs its usually sold-out Christmas concerts this weekend
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By Jacob Stockinger
The Madison Symphony Orchestra (MSO) and music director John DeMain will kick off the holiday season with the much-loved tradition — A Madison Symphony Christmas — with three concerts this coming weekend in Overture Hall.
The holidays will be celebrated with a variety of music from the Hallelujah Chorus by George Frideric Handel (at the bottom in a YouTube video) to exciting Gospel selections. Highlights will also include Panis Angelicus by Cesar Franck, selections from Magnificat by John Rutter and holiday classics including Baby, It’s Cold Outside and The First Noel.
Performing with the MSO will be soprano Sylvia McNair (below), star of Broadway and the Metropolitan Opera, along with the Madison Symphony Chorus, directed by Beverly Taylor.
In addition, Madison Youth Choirs (below top), directed by Michael Ross and the Mt. Zion Gospel Choir (below bottom, in a photo by Bob Rashid), directed by Tamera and Leotha Stanley, will be featured during the program.
No Christmas concert would be complete without a sing-along. To conclude the concert, audience members will be invited to join with the MSO and guest artists to sing beloved holiday carols.
The concerts are in Overture Hall of the Overture Center, 201 State Street, on Friday night, Dec. 2, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday night, Dec. 3, at 8 p.m.; and Sunday afternoon, Dec. 4 at 2:30 p.m.
Concertgoers are encouraged to arrive 45 minutes before the concert begins to join the Madison Symphony Chorus (below) as they lead a selection of Christmas carols in the festively lit lobby at Overture Hall.
NOTE: These concerts typically sell out, so early ticket purchases are encouraged.
Single Tickets are $16 to $87 each, available at madisonsymphony.org/christmas, through the Overture Center Box Office at 201 State Street, or call the Box Office at (608) 258-4141.
Groups of 15 or more can save 25% by calling the MSO office at (608) 257-3734. For more information visit, madisonsymphony.org/groups.
Club 201, MSO’s organization for young professionals, has continued to fulfill its mission for the past 11 years as the premiere organization promoting classical music and networking opportunities to the young professionals’ community in Madison. Tickets are $35 each and include world-class seating in Overture Hall, an exclusive after-party to be held at Fresco, one drink ticket, and a cash bar. Conductor John DeMain, as well as musicians from the symphony, may also be in attendance to mingle with Madison’s young professionals during the after-party.
The deadline to purchase tickets is Thurs., Dec. 1, pending availability. Tickets can be purchased for this event, as well as the other events throughout the 2016-17 season by visiting the Club 201 page on the MSO’s website at http://www.madisonsymphony.org/club201.
Student rush tickets can be purchased in person on the day of the concert at the Overture Box Office at 201 State Street. Students must show a valid student ID and can receive up to two $12 or $15 tickets. More information is at: madisonsymphony.org/studentrush. Students can receive 20% savings on seats in select areas of the hall on advance ticket purchases.
Seniors age 62 and up receive 20% savings on advance and day-of-concert ticket purchases in select areas of the hall.
Discounted seats are subject to availability, and discounts may not be combined.
Find more information at madisonsymphony.org
Major funding for the December concerts is provided by: American Printing, Nedrebo’s Formalwear, BMO Wealth Management, Hooper Foundation/General Heating & Air Conditioning, Maurice and Arlene Reese Family Foundation, National Guardian Life Insurance Company, and An Anonymous Friend. Additional funding is provided by: Colony Brands, Inc., J.H. Findorff & Son Inc., Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c., Hans and Mary Lang Sollinger, and Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Tags: Arts, Baby It's Cold Outside, Baroque, Beverly Taylor, BMO, Broadway, Carol, Cesar Franck, choral music, Christmas, Christmas Carol, Classical music, conductor, fresco, gospel, gospel music, Hallelujah Chorus, Handel, Holiday, holiday season, hymn, Jacob Stockinger, John DeMain, John Rutter, Madison, Madison Symphony Chorus, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Madison Youth Choirs, Magnificat, Met, Metropolitan Opera, Mt. Zion Gospel Choir, Music, Music director, National Endowment for the Arts, NEA, opera, Orchestra, Overture Center, Paris Angelicus, professional, sing-along, soprano, State of Wisconsin, Sylvia McNair, symphony, The First Noel, tradition, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Viola, Violin, vocal music, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Arts Board, youth choir, YouTube
Classical music: SUNDAY afternoon Edgewood College mezzo-soprano Kathleen Otterson will perform a recital of songs by Schubert, Gustav and Alma Mahler, Berlioz, Rossini, Gershwin, Alec Wilder, Andre Previn and others. Plus, Ilona Kombrink memorial is set for Oct. 20.
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ALERT: Edgewood College teacher and mezzo-soprano Kathleen Otterson, a loyal reader and friend of The Ear, writes: “There will be a memorial concert for the UW-Madison soprano and voice professor Ilona Kombrink (below), who died last month and with whom I was privileged to study, on Sunday, October 20, at 3 p.m., at the Capitol Lakes Retirement Community’s Grand Hall. We are very early in the planning stages, but we hope that former students and colleagues will perform or speak on the program. More information will follow soon.”
By Jacob Stockinger
Edgewood College mezzo-soprano and voice professor Kathleen Otterson will perform a song recital this coming Sunday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. in the St. Joseph Chapel, 1000 Edgewood College Drive. Admission is $7 to benefit the music scholarship fund at Edgewood.
Otterson writes:
“I am dedicating this concert to my former teacher, the UW-Madison soprano Ilona Kombrink who died last month. But the program is a collage of things I performed on two concerts in Bayfield this summer — hence its title: “What I Did With My Summer Vacation.”
The pianist is Edgewood College coach and accompanist Susan Goeres (below top, on the right with Otterson on the left) . Flutist Elizabeth Marshall (below bottom), who performs in the Black Marigold wind quintet, teaches at Edgewood College, UW-Platteville and Madison Area Technical College and who is the second flute of the Madison Symphony Orchestra and the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, will also participate.
Describing the major works to be performed, Otterson continues: “Of particular interest, I think, is the Andre Previn piece: “Two Remembrances,” written for Sylvia McNair and first performed by her at the Tanglewood Festival in 1995. The intermingling of the alto flute and the voice is really remarkable, with the flute providing the second voice in the evocative dialogue.
“Ilona had a special fondness for the “Rueckert-lieder” of Gustav Mahler (below top), and I was fortunate to work on these wonderful songs with her for my graduate recital.
“The poems of Friedrich Rueckert held deep personal meaning for Mahler, and these songs are very much more intimate than the better-known “Wunderhorn Songs.””Ich atmet einen Lindenduft” is included in the program, paired with a song by Alma Schindler Mahler (below bottom) composed at around the same time: “Laue Sommernacht” (performed in a YouTube video at the bottom with some good listener comments.)
“Rossini’s song cycle “La Regatta Veneziana” tells the story of the historical Venetian Regatta, which takes place each year on the waters of the Grand Canal (below) at the beginning of September (this year it was on Sunday, September 1).
“Along with a spectacular procession of elaborately carved boats and costumed participants, there is a race – the subject of the song cycle, as the young girl Anzoletta watches anxiously for her lover Momolo, offering scorn if he fails to win and kisses if he succeeds.
“Three songs from the beautiful “Nuits d’été” (Summer Nights) by Hector Berlioz (below) round out the program. They are not specifically about “summer” but instead seem to be summertime musings, both sweet and bitter, settings of texts by Théophile Gautier. Musically, they are everything from playful to melancholy in character.
“Parking at Edgewood is free and the Chapel is accessible to all.”
Tags: Alec Wilder, Alma Mahler, Andre Previn, Edgewood College, Franz Schubert, George Gershwin, Grand Canal, Gustav Mahler, Hector Berlioz, Madison, Madison Area Technical College, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Rückert-Lieder, Rossini, Sunday, Sylvia McNair, Tanglewood Festival, Théophile Gautier, University of Wisconsin-Platteville, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Venice, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, YouTube
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