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Critics for The New York Times name their Top 10 online classical concerts for May

May 3, 2021
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By Jacob Stockinger

Even as we wait to see whether concerts in the next season will be mostly streamed or live, the critics for The New York Times have named their Top 10 classical concerts to stream and hear online in May.

The Times critics have been doing this during the pandemic year. So perhaps if and when they stop, it will be a sign of returning to concert life before the pandemic.

Then again, maybe not, since The Ear suspects that many listeners have liked the online format, at least for some of the times and for certain events. So maybe there will be a hybrid format with both live and online attendance.

As the same critics have done before, they mix an attention to contemporary composers, world premieres and up-and-coming performers, including the Finnish conductor Susanna Maliki (below top) in a photo by Hiroyuki Ito for The New York Times).

In a welcome development, the recommendations for this month also seem to mention more Black composers, performers and pieces than usual, including the rising star bass-baritone Davon Tines (below, in a photo by Vincent Tullo for The New York Times).

But you will also find many of the “usual suspects,” including Haydn, Mozart, Schubert, Bartok, Benjamin Britten, Olivier Messiaen and Shostakovich. (On the play list is Schubert’s last song, “The Shepherd on the Rock,” which you can hear in the YouTube video at the bottom.)

You will also find dates and times (all are Eastern), links to the event and some short commentaries about what makes the concerts, programs and the performers noteworthy.

Here is a link to the story: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/29/arts/music/classical-music-streaming.html

Do you know of local, regional, national or international online concerts that you recommend? Leave word with relevant information in the Comment section.

Happy Listening!

Posted in Classical music
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The New York Times music critics suggest 10 must-hear online classical concerts during December

November 30, 2020
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By Jacob Stockinger

Tomorrow is Dec. 1, 2020.

Lately, at the end of every month the music critics for The New York Times publish a list of 10 virtual and online classical concerts for the following month that they think deserve special attention.

Often – but not always — their choices feature the unusual: new music and world premieres; neglected repertoire; and lesser-known performers that most of us are not likely to hear locally.

The December choices, for example, include an oratorio “Perle Noire” (Black Pearl), by composer Tyshawn Sorey, about the famous African-American, Paris-based expat dancer Josephine Baker – she of the banana skirt (below). But she was more than just a risqué dancer and entertainer. She fought in the French Resistance movement against the Nazis and was a civil rights champion.

But this list also includes seasonal fare such the holiday tradition by which the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center performs in one night all six Brandenburg Concertos by Johann Sebastian Bach (you can hear an excerpt in the YouTube video at the bottom); and other holiday celebrations such as a concert by the early music vocal group Tenet (below, in a photo by Nan Melville.)

But those suggestions do not take away from more local efforts and performances.

The Ear is certain that those same critics would approve of supporting local musicians and music groups during the coronavirus pandemic.

And there are many local offerings. The Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Wisconsin Union Theater, the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music, the Madison Bach Musicians and Just Bach all have virtual online concerts scheduled for December.

You can check out their offerings at their websites and here on this blog as the month unfolds.

But if the Times’ choices interest you – and they should — here is a link: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/25/arts/music/classical-music-stream-december.html

Note that the blurbs show Eastern Time but also include how long the performances are posted for and links to the organizations presenting the concerts.

Happy listening!

And Happy Holidays!

Do you have other online performances – local, regional, national or international — to suggest?

Please leave the necessary information in the Comment section.

The Ear wants to hear.

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #AmericanJazz, #AmericanSymphonyOrchestra, #AntoninDvorak, #AristoSham, #BaroqueMusic, #BlackPearl, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BrandenburgConcerto, #CarlVine, #ChamberMusic, #ChamberMusicSocietyofLIncolnCenter, #CivilRights, #ClaudeDebussy, #ConradTao, #CoronavirusPandemic, #CreaturesofPromethus, #CurtisInstitute, #DoverQuartet, #DukeEllington, #EasternTime, #ElliottCarter, #Esa-PekkaSalonen, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FranzJosephHaydn, #FredericChopin, #FrenchResistance, #GerardMcBurney, #GyorgyLigeti, #HolidayMusic, #HolidayTradition, #HomeWebsite, #IntenrationalContemporaryEnsemble, #JACKQuartet, #JacobStockinger, #JohannesBrahms, #JohannSebastianBach, #JosephineBaker, #JuliaBullock, #JustBach, #LeonBotstein, #LocalMusicians, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MadisonBachMusicians, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MarcusRoberts, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MetropolitanMuseumofArt, #MoonlightSonata, #MusicCritic, #NateWooley, #NeglectedComposers, #NeglectedMusic, #NeglectedRepertoire, #NewMusic, #NewYorkCity, #OnlineConcert, #ParisFrance, #PerleNoire, #PhilharmoniaOrchestra, #PianoMusic, #PianoSonata, #RuthCrawfirdSeeger, #SaadHaddad, #SeasonalMusic, #SopranoSinger, #StephenFry, #StringQuartet, #TakaKigawa, #TheEar, #TheNewYorkTImes, #TheUW, #ToruTakemitsu, #TyshawnSorey, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VirtualConcert, #VocalGroup, #VocalMusic, #WisconsinUnionTheater, #WolfgangAmadeusMozart, #WorldPremiere, #YouTubevideo, African American, African-Amercican, always, American Symphony Orchestra, animation, Antonín Dvořák, approve, Aristo Sham, Arts, audience, Bach, baker, Ballade, ballet, banana, Baroque, Baroque music, Beethoven, black, Black Pearl, blog, blurb, Brahms, Brandenburg Concerto, Carl Vine, celebration, certain, Chamber music, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, champion, choice, Chopin, choral music, civil rights, Classical music, Claude Debussy, composer, composers, Concert, concerto, conductor, Conrad Tao, coronavirus, Creatures of Prometheus, Curtis Institute, dancer, Debussy, December, Dover Quartet, duet, Duke Ellington, duo, Dvorak, Early music, earlymusic, Eastern time, efforts, Elliott Carter, entertainer, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Estampes, ex-pat, excerpt, Facebook, famous, fare, forward, France, Franz Joseph Haydn, Frédéric Chopin, French Resistance, Gerard McBurney, György Ligeti, Happy Holidays, happy', Haydn, hear, Holiday, holiday tradition, home website, images, information, instrumental, international, International Contemporary Ensemble, JACK Quartet, Jacob Stockinger, Jazz, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes Brahms, Josephine Baker, Julia Bullock, Just Bach, lately, Leon Botstein, Ligeti, like, link, listening, local, long, Lstin, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Madison Bach Musicians, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Marcus Roberts, Mead Witter School of Music, Metropolitan Museum of Art, month, Moonlight Sonata, movement, Mozart, MSO, Music, music critic, narration, Nate Wolley, national, Nazi, necessary, neglected, neglected music, New Music, New York City, night, offerings, often, one, online, opera, oratorio, Orchestra, orchestral, pandemic, Paris, performances, Perle Noir, Perle Noire, Philharmonia Orchestra, Pianist, Piano, piano music, Piano sonata, polonaise, post, posting, Prelude, prints, publish, recital, regional, repertoire, repertory, risqué, Ruth Crawford Seeger, Saad Haddad, schedule, script, seasonal, seasonal music, share, six, skirt, Sonata, soprano, Sorey, Sory, Stephen Fry, String quartet, studies, suggest, suggestions, support, Sweden, tag, Taka Kigawa, take away, takeaway, Takemitsu, Tenet, The Ear, The New York Times, Toru Takemitsu, Tyshawn Sorey, Tyshown Sorey, unfold, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, unsual, UW, UW-Madison, vignette, Violin, virtual, vocal group, vocal music, Website, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Union Theater, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, world premiere, WUT, YouTube

The New York Times music critics pick 10 online concerts and operas to watch through the month of November

October 30, 2020
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By Jacob Stockinger

Classical music critics for The New York Times have again listed their picks of virtual and online concerts that will be streamed during the month of November, starting this Sunday, Nov. 1, and running right through Nov. 30. In September, they did the same for the month of October.

The list of 10 highlights includes chamber music, orchestral music and operas as well as lots of new music, world premieres of commissions and even the Cliburn International Piano Competition, now known simply as The Cliburn.

Most of the events are posted and available for quite a while.

Note that all times are Eastern and that on this Sunday, Nov. 1, daylight saving ends.

As the critics point out, the list may be especially helpful and enjoyable now that the weather is turning colder, people are isolating at home during the nationwide spikes in coronavirus cases, and concert halls remain closed to the public.

Well-known institutions such as The Metropolitan Opera (below) and the Los Angeles Opera are featured. (You can sample an earlier Met production of Philip Glass’ “Satyagraha” – about the early life of Gandhi — in the YouTube video at the bottom.)

So are symphony orchestras from Detroit, Seattle, San Francisco and Cincinnati.

And pianist Igor Levit (below top), who this past year released the highly praised, award-winning complete cycle of 32 piano sonatas by Beethoven and who was named Artist of the Year by Gramophone magazine, is also featured, as is the outstanding Chicago-based violinist Jennifer Koh (below bottom, in a photo by the Los Angeles Times).

Here is a link to the story: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/28/arts/music/classical-music-stream.html

What do you think of the choices?

Do you have other concerts or classical music events to add to the list?

The Ear wants to hear.

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #18thCentury, #African-AmericanComposer, #AnthonyDavis, #AnthonyMcGill, #BangonaCan, #BeethovenPianoSonatas, #BeethovenYear, #BerlinGermany, #BlackComposer, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BostonModernOrchestraProject, #BrettDean, #CarlVine, #CassieWieland, #CelloConcerto, #CelloSonata, #ChamberMusic, #ChamberOpera, #ChevalierdeSaint-Georges, #ChoralMusic, #CincinnatiOhio, #CincinnatiSymphonyOrchetsra, #ClaudeDebussy, #CommissionedMusic, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #DavidRobertson, #DaylightSaving, #DetroitMichigan, #DetroitSymphonyOrchestra, #ElectionDay, #EllenReid, #Esa-PekkaSalonen, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FerruccioBusoni, #FlorencePrice, #folksongs, #FranzSchubert, #FredericRzewski, #GramophoneMagazine, #IgorLevit, #JacobStockinger, #JamesConlon, #JohannSebastianBach, #JohnAdams, #JordanNelson, #JosephBoulogne, #JuliaHagen, #JuliaPerry, #KevChoice, #LiveStreaming, #LosAngelesCalifornia, #LosAngelesOpera, #LouisLangree, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MeredithMonk, #MetropolitanOpera, #MinimalistMusic, #Mirandawarning, #MusicCritic, #MusicDirector, #NewMusic, #NewYorkCity, #NewYorkPhilharmonic, #NewYorkTimes, #NicoMuhly, #OnlineConcert, #OrchestralMusic, #PhilipGlass, #PianoMusic, #PianoSonata, #PulitzerPrize, #RoscoeMitchell, #SanFranciscoSymphony, #SeattleSymphony, #SethParkerWoods, #SocialDistancing, #SouthAfrica, #SouthAsia, #SouthKorea, #StandardTime, #StevenLin, #SteveReich, #StringQuartet, #SymphonyOrchestra, #TheAnonymousLover, #TheCliburn, #TheEar, #TheMet, #ThomasKocheff, #TrackMusic, #TyshawnSorey, #UnfinishedSymphony, #VanCliburn, #VanCliburnInternationalPianoCompetition, #VickyChow, #ViolinConcerto, #ViolinMusic, #VirtualConcert, #VocalMusic, #WigmoreHall, #WorldPremiere, #XianZhang, #YouHavetheRighttoRemainSilent, #YouTubevideo, 18th century, acclaimed, African American, Anthony Davis, Anthony McGill, arrangement, Arts, asian, audience, available, award, Bach, Bang on a Can, Beethoven, Beethoven piano sonatas, Beethoven Year, Berlin, birthday, black, blog, Blog post, blog posting, Boston, Boston Modern Orchestra Project, Brett Dean, Busoni, California, cancel, Carl Vine, Cassie Wieland, cellist, Cello, Cello Concerto, Chamber music, chamber opera, Chevalier de Saint Georges, China, Chinese, choral music, Cincinnati, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, clarinet, clarinetist, clarinettist, Classical music, classicalmusic, Claude Debussy, colder, commissions, company, Competition, composer, Concert, concerto, conductor, coronavirus, counterpoint, David Robertson, Daylight Saving, Debussy, December, Detroit, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, early, Election Day, Ellen Reid, enjoyable, Esa-Pekka Salonen, event, Facebook, Facebook post, Facebook posting, Fantasia, Ferruccio Busoni, Florence Price, forward, Franz Schubert, Frederic Rzewski, Gandhi, Germany, Gramophone (magazine), helpful, highlight, Home, hymn, Igor Levit, improvisatory, India, institution, instrumentalist, insurrection, isolating, Jacob Stockinger, James Conlon, Johann Sebastian Bach, John Adams, Jordan Nelson, Joseph Boulogne, Julia Hagen, Julia Perry, Kev Choice, known, Korea, Korean, Korean musician, life, like, link, list, livestream, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Opera, Louis Langrée, Ludwig van Beethoven, masterpiece, Meredith Monk, Met, Metropolitan Opera, Michigan, minimalist music, Miranda warning, monk, month, music critic, Music director, nationwide, New Music, New York City, New York Philharmonic, Nico Muhly, October, Ohio, online, opera, option, Orchestra, orchestral music, pandemic, People, performer, Philip Glass, Pianist, Piano, piano music, Piano sonata, pick, Politics, postpone, production, program, Pulitzer Prize, resident, Roscoe Mitchell, running, San Francisco, San Francisco Symphony, Satyagraha, Schubert, Seattle, Seattle Symphony, Septemeber, Seth Parker Woods, share, singer, social distance, soloist, Sonata, song, South Africa, South Asia, spike, spriritual, standard time, starting, Steve Reich, Steven Lin, stream, String quartet, subscriber, symphony, symphony orchestra, tag, testament, The Anonymous Lover, The Cliburn, The Ear, the Met, The New York Times, Thomas Kocheff, time, track record, turn, Tyshawn Sorey, Unfinished Symphony, United States, Van Cliburn, Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Vicky Chow, Violin, Violin concerto, violinist, virtual, vocal music, weather, well-known, Wigmore Hall, winner, world premiere, Xian Zhang, YouTube

Will the public pay for online virtual concerts? Will you? Consider the fate of newspapers

August 23, 2020
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By Jacob Stockinger

More and more local classical musicians and music presenters are moving concerts and music-making to virtual online events, at least for the fall and early winter – and quite possibly for the rest of the season. (Below is Shannon Hall in the Wisconsin Union Theater.)

And although we are still waiting for details, it seems all but certain that many of them will be pay-per-view and require tickets.

True, the move from free streaming to pay-for-view might be very useful in helping performers earn a much-needed living.

But it could also be disastrous – or at least extremely disruptive and disappointing.

Anthony Tommasini (below), the senior music critic for The New York Times, recently wrote a long story defending the move from being free to becoming paid for both livestreams and pre-recorded music concerts.

Tommasini — whose profession demands that he follow wherever the music goes — thinks it will, or should, work.

Here is a link to his story that includes concerts at The Metropolitan Opera and elsewhere with international stars such as soprano Renée Fleming (beow top) and pianist Daniil Trifonov (below bottom).

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/11/arts/music/classical-music-livestream.html

But The Ear isn’t so sure.

For one thing, many listeners might find alternatives. They might like watching outstanding performances of the same works by great and even historical performers on YouTube for free.

They might like exploring their own collections of recordings, or listening to the radio and watching TV, or even making more music as amateurs.

The Ear also suspects that now that the habit of going to live concerts has been interrupted, many people will simply find that they miss going to live performances much less than they thought they would – or than various arts groups hoped they would. (Below is the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra in a photo by Mike Gorski.)

In addition, even since the coronavirus pandemic lockdown last March, listeners have become used to the free events that many organizations offered if only to keep a presence in the public’s mind.

The strategy was understandable and made sense at the time.

But The Ear thinks of what happened with newspapers.

In the early days of the internet, newspapers offered online stories for free, as a kind of extra attraction or added benefit to secure subscribers.

But as the newspapers lost both advertisers and subscribers and tried to “monetize” their online editions, they found that the horse was already out of the barn.

Many viewers did indeed subscribe to digital editions, but many others abandoned newspapers and instead turned to free online media for their news.

So what will happen in cases less prestigious than what Tommasini describes?

What do you think?

Will local pay-per-view concerts, perhaps with bigger volume if lower individual ticket prices, be successful?

Will you pay to “attend” such virtual online events?

The Ear wants to hear.

Posted in Classical music
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Classical music: Today is the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. Here is disturbing music that sonically depicts the charred remains of the people and the city

August 6, 2020
1 Comment

By Jacob Stockinger

Today is the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima (below) and the dawn of the Atomic Age.

On this Sunday, it will be the same anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki (below).

Whether you agree or disagree with President Harry S Truman’s decision to use nuclear weapons to end World War II between Japan and the United States, the disturbing music at the bottom uses sound to help the listener picture the charred remains of the people and the devastated cities, seen below in a photo from The New York Times.

It is hard to imagine music being used more descriptively than in this disturbing and even terrifying piece that has received more than 2 million views on YouTube.

“Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima” was composed by the celebrated Polish composer Krzysztof Pederecki (1933-2020, below), who died just over four months ago. Here is a link to more information about the composer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krzysztof_Penderecki

And here are some links to historical accounts of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing:

From cable TV channel CNN, here is an account of the two bombings in photos: https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/04/world/gallery/hiroshima-nagasaki-atomic-bomb/index.html

Here, also from CNN, is an account of Tinian Island, the place where the bombings started: https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/hiroshima-atomic-bomb-75th-anniversary-intl-hnk/index.html

Here is a comprehensive history about Hiroshima and its culture, both pre-bombing and post-bombing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiroshima

There will be much more to see, hear and read today and this weekend on National Public Radio (NPR), on many TV news channels including the History Channel and on PBS (especially The Newshour), and in many newspapers as well as on the internet.

If you know of other noteworthy accounts, please leave the name with a link in the Comment section.

What do you think of the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki?

And what do you think about the musical depiction?

The Ear wants to hear.

Posted in Classical music
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Classical music: How can classical music be made less white? Nine Black artists suggest changes. Which ones will work best?

July 19, 2020
3 Comments

By Jacob Stockinger

With all the attention given to and urgency of the Black Lives Matter movement — and other demonstrations and protests against personal and systemic racism as well as white privilege — it comes as no surprise that questions are being raised about the overwhelmingly white world of classical music and how to change it.

Most of the local classical music groups The Ear knows of have posted statements of solidarity.

If he recalls correctly, they include the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Madison Opera, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, the Wisconsin Union Theater, the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras (WYSO), the Middleton Community Orchestra, the Willy Street Chamber Players and many others.

But beyond declarations of solidarity with people of color, the music groups face deeper issues that require action, not just words, and remain more difficult to solve: How to attract more Black classical musicians? How to foster more Black composers? And how to attract more Black audiences?

Diversity and equity are long-term issues, and quite a number of possible solutions loom.

Would performing more pieces, both historical and contemporary, by Black composers (below) work?

Would hiring more Black resident musicians help?

Would booking more Black guest artists and soloists help? (Below is the young and upcoming British cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason.)

Would changing the music curriculum in schools help? (Some important Black composers are explored in the YouTube video at the bottom.)

Would generating more support to and from the Black community help?

Last week The New York Times did a fine piece of work in addressing these issues.

The reporter and music editor asked nine different accomplished Black conductors, instrumentalists, singers, critics and administrators in classical music about how to solve the inequity. The interviews were condensed and edited into very readable statements.

Here is a link to that story: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/16/arts/music/black-classical-music-opera.html

Please read it.

Then let us know which suggestions you think should be attempted first and which solutions are most likely to work.

The Ear wants to hear.

Posted in Classical music
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Classical music: The coronavirus pandemic sparks a surge in piano sales

July 15, 2020
1 Comment

By Jacob Stockinger

Have you or someone in your family used the COVID-19 lockdown and staying at home to practice, play or learn the piano?

You’re not alone.

A year ago, stories in the media tracked how pianos were quickly becoming a thing of the past in American homes. People were giving pianos away for free and for the cost of moving.

But then the coronavirus pandemic arrived, along with lockdowns, online learning and sheltering at home.

National news media discovered some unexpected good news, especially since public concerts have been canceled: The pandemic has brought a renewed interest in playing the piano at home – and in buying them.

The Ear wanted to find out if that same trend holds true in Madison.

“It does,” says Tim Farley, who — with his wife Renee — owns and operates Farley’s House of Pianos on the far west side near West Towne Mall. (The top photo from the store is from the Better Business Bureau. The two owners are seen below bottom in a photo from Isthmus newspaper).

“It’s weird,” he adds. “We had to close. When we re-opened, we cut back on hours and staff. Like many others, we figured there would be an end to business for a while.”

But just the opposite happened.

“Our sales are up about 34 percent compared to a year ago,” Farley adds. “We’re happy how things are going.”

Most of the sales increase has been in digital pianos, Farley says, although a lot of excellent acoustic pianos have also been sold, including a Hamburg Steinway.

Part of what accounts for the increase, he speculates, is that teachers inspire students to want better instruments.

Farley’s sells new and restored pianos (below), and also has an extensive teaching program, with online lessons during the pandemic. (For isolation practicing ideas and advice, see the YouTube video at the bottom.)

The Ear wonders if the same trend is happening in Europe and especially Asia — particularly China, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan — where so many great young pianists are coming from and winning international competitions.

For more about the national picture in the U.S., including background history, information about prices, increases in online sales and the demographics of buyers, you should read this oustanding story by music critic Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim in The New York Times:

Here is a link: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/29/arts/music/piano-sales-coronavirus.html

Have you bought a piano or another instrument during the pandemic?

Are you using the down time to return to practicing and playing a piano or another instrument?

What would you like to say about making music during the pandemic?

Has making music helped you weather this odd period of time?

The Ear wants to hear.

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #AsianPianist, #BetterBusinessBureau, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChineseMusicians, #ChinesePianist, #CityofMadison, #CorinnadaFonseca-Wollheim, #CoronavirusPandemic, #COVID-19, #CutBack, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #Farley'sHouseofPianos, #GiveAway, #GoodNews, #HamburgSteinway, #InstrumentalMusic, #IsthmusNewspaper, #JacobStockinger, #MadisonWisconsin, #MakingMusic, #MusicEducation, #PianoLessons, #PianoMusic, #PluckedInstruments, #ReneeFarley, #Self-Isolation, #shelter-at-home, #SouthKorea, #SouthKorean, #Stayathome, #TheEar, #TheNewYorkTImes, #TheU.S., #TimFarley, #WestSide, #WestTowneMall, #YouTubevideo, account, acoustic, adult learners, advice, ago, alone, America, American, another, Arts, Asia, background, better, Better Business Bureau, blog, bought, Business, buy, buyer, buying, cancel, canceled, China, Chinese, Classical music, close, come, compare, Competition, Concert, Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim, coronavirus, cost, cut back, demographics, digital, digital piano, discover, down, Europe, excellent, explain, Facebook, Family, Farley's House of Pianos, forward, free, give, give away, going, good news, great, Hamburg Steinway, happy', hear, History, Home, hours, idea, ideas, increase, inspire, instrument, instruments, interest, international, isolation, Isthmus, it, Jacob Stockinger, Japan, Japanese, Korean, learning, lessons, like, link, lockdown, Madison, make, making music, mall, media'track, moving, Music, Music education, national, New York City, news, Newspaper, odd, online, open, operate, outstanding, own, pandemic, part, past, People, percent, period, photo, Pianist, Piano, piano lessons, piano music, Picture, play, post, posting, practice, practicing, program, public, quality, re-open, Renee Farley, renewed, restored, sales, share, someone, South Korea, South Korean, speculate, staff\, stay at home, Steinway, stories, story, students, tag, Taiwan, teachers, teaching, The Ear, The New York Times, thing, things, Tim Farley, time, track, transportation, true, unexpected, United States, weather, weird, west side, West Towne Mall, what, win, Wisconsin, year, you, young, YouTube

Classical music: Acclaimed local soprano Sarah Brailey explains why performing artists and presenters need help during the COVID-19 pandemic

March 23, 2020
2 Comments

By Jacob Stockinger

Sarah Brailey (below) is worried.

And with good reason.

Chances are good that you have seen the local soprano or heard her sing.

She is the artistic director of the Handel Aria Competition, which she herself won in 2015. (In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear Brailey sing the aria “Will the Sun Forget to Streak” from Handel’s oratorio “Solomon,” with the Trinity Baroque Orchestra under conductor Julian Wachner, in the St. Paul Chapel in New York City.)

Brailey is a co-founder of and participant in the monthly free Just Bach concerts here. In addition, while pursuing graduate studies at the UW-Madison, she is a concert artist with a budding international career. For more about her, including a rave review from The New York Times and sample videos, go to: https://sarahbrailey.com

But right now the Wisconsin native is especially concerned about the lasting impact that the Coronavirus pandemic will have on her own career as well as on the careers of others like her and on the well-being of arts presenters.

Brailey (below, in photo by Miranda Loud) sent The Ear the following essay:

By Sarah Brailey

This is a scary time for everyone, but particularly for anyone who works as an independent contractor.

I am a freelance classical soprano based in Madison. I maintain a very active performing career, traveling all over the globe, and I am also a doctoral student at the UW-Madison Mead Witter School of Music.

When COVID-19 hit the United States, presenting organizations on the east and west coasts started canceling concerts to comply with social distancing recommendations.

I initially thought I was lucky to be living in the middle of the country where our lesser population density might save us. Plus, I am a Teaching Assistant at the UW right now, so I will still be getting my stipend — although teaching virtual voice lessons will be its own special challenge!

But many of my colleagues are not so lucky and are facing bankruptcy. If the government doesn’t include independent contractors in its relief packages, a lot of people are going to be insolvent.

And I myself am not immune. As the seriousness of the situation became clear, all my concerts in the next two months soon disappeared one by one.

While not being able to perform is emotionally devastating, these cancellations are also financially devastating.

There exists a clause in every standard performance contract called “force majeure” (superior force), which is idiomatically referred to as, “an act of God.” This clause excuses a party from not honoring its contractual obligations that becomes impossible or impracticable, due to an event or effect that the parties could not have anticipated or controlled.

This can come in handy for a presenter if there is, say, a blizzard that necessitates the cancellation of a concert. (This happened to me a few seasons ago with the Boston Symphony.) If the presenter will not make any money on ticket sales, they are not then further injured by having to pay the musicians for the canceled concert. (Below, Brailey sings Samuel Barber’s “Knoxville: Summer of 1915” with the Colorado Symphony.)

The ramifications of this pandemic are unprecedented. Every freelance musician I know is suddenly out of work. The current conventions put all of the upfront financial burden on the artists. We are paid in one lump sum at the end of a project. We do not get a fee for the countless hours of preparation.

We often book travel and lodging on our own dime, and are not reimbursed until the end of the gig. We pay for our own health insurance, and we cannot file for unemployment because our work is paid via IRS Form 1099 and not W2s. The abrupt work stoppage caused by this pandemic means insolvency – or even bankruptcy — for many artists. (Below, Brailey sings Handel’s “Messiah” at the famed Trinity Church on Wall Street in New York City.)

Many institutions — and, unfortunately, many of the bigger players like The Metropolitan Opera — are invoking force majeure without much regard for how their artists are struggling.

My colleague, tenor Zach Finkelstein, is covering this in great detail on his blog The Middle Class Artist, as is Alex Ross, the prize-winning music critic for The New Yorker. Read his piece on force majeure here.

However, there are also thankfully some good stories to tell. The Bach Society of Minnesota reimbursed all my travel expenses and is paying 75 percent of my fee, as is the Lyra Baroque Orchestra.

I am helping Zach keep track of the organizations that are helping their artists in this time of need. (Read about them here. Madison Opera is on the list.)

The arts are not just cultural enrichment; they are an essential part of our economy. In 2017, the industry contributed $877.8 billion, or 4.5 percent, to U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and employed over 5 million workers. We cannot afford to let this industry disappear. I fear that many individual artists and arts organizations will not recover from this. (Below, Brailey sings Johann Sebastian Bach’s “Magnificat” at the Bucknell Bach Festival.)

While we wait out this storm, I implore you to donate to a Madison arts organization. Here is a short list of recommendations along with some national relief funds for artists.

Local Arts Organizations

Madison Bach Musicians

Handel Aria Competition

Madison Early Music Festival

Madison Opera

Madison Youth Choirs

List of National Relief Funds

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #ActofGod, #AlexRoss, #ArtisticDirector, #artsorganization, #ArtsPresenters, #BachFestival, #BachSocietyofMinnesota, #BaroqueMusic, #BaroqueOratorio, #BigPlayer, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BostonSymphony, #BucknellUniversity, #ChoralMusic, #ChristianChurch, #ClassicalMusician, #ColoradoSymphony, #ConcertArtist, #COVID-19, #CriticalAcclaim, #CulturalEnrichment, #DoctoralDegree, #EastCoast, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FederalGovernment, #ForceMajeure", #ForceW2, #Form1099, #GeorgeFridericHandel, #GoodReason, #GraduateStudent, #GrossDomesticProduct, #Handel'sMessiah, #Handel'sSolomon, #HandelAriaCompetition, #HomeWebsite, #IndependentContractor, #InternalRevenueService, #JacobStockinger, #JohannSebastianBach, #JulianWachner, #JustBach, #Knoxville:Summerof1915, #LumpSum, #LyraBaroqueOrchestra, #MadisonBachMusicians, #MadisonEarlyMusicFestival, #MadisonOpera, #MadisonYouthChoirs, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MetropolitanOpera, #MusicCritic, #MusicLessons, #MusicReview, #NativeAmerican, #NewYork, #NewYorkCity, #OutofWork, #PopulationDensity, #Prize-Winning, #RaveReview, #SamuelBarber, #SarahBrailey, #SocialDistance, #SocialDistancing, #SopranoSinger, #TeachingAssistant, #TenorSinger, #TheEar, #TheMagnificat, #TheMet, #TheMiddleClassArtist, #TheNewYorker, #TheNewYorkTImes, #TheU.S., #TicketSales, #timeofneed, #TravelExpenses, #TrinityChurch, #U.S.Government, #UnitedStates, #VocalMusic, #VoiceLessons, #WallSt., #WallStreet, #WestCoast, #ZachFinkelstein, abrupt, acclaim, act, Act of God, active, afford, Alex Ross, anticipate, aria, artist, Artistic director, Arts, arts organization, arts presenter, arts presenters, audience, Bach, Bach Society of Minnesota, bankrupt, bankruptcy, Barber, Baroque, Baroque music, big player, blizzard, blog, Book, booking, Boston Symphony, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Bucknell, Bucknell University, budding, burden, cancellation, career, challenge, Chamber music, chances, chapel, choral music, Christian, church, Classical, Classical music, classicalmusic, clause, colleagues, Colorado, Colorado Symphony, comply, composer, Concert, concert artist, conductor, contract, contractor, contractual, control, conventions, coronavirus, country, coutnless, covering, cultural, cultural enrichment, detail, devastating, dime, disappear, doctoral, donate, donation, Early music, East Coast, economic, economy, effect, emotion, employ, emtoionally, end, enrichment, essay, essential, event, expenses, face, Facebook, famed, fear, federal government, fee, file, financial, force, force majeure, form, Form 1099, Form W2, forward, founder, free, freelance, freelancer, fund, GDP, George Frideric Handel, gig, globe, God, good, good reason, governent, graduate student, great, greater, gross domestic product, Handel, Handel Aria Competition, handy, help, home website, honor, hours, idiom, immune, impact, implore, impossible, impractical, independent, industry, injure, insolvency, insolvent, institution, Internal Revenue Service, international, IRS, Jacob Stockinger, Johann Sebastian Bach, Julian Wachner, Just Bach, Knoxville, Knoxville: Summer of 1915, lasting, like, link, list, living, local, lodging, lucky, lump sum, Lyra Baroque Orchestra, Madison, Madison Bach Musicians, Madison Early Music Festival, Madison Opera, Madison Youth Choirs, Magnificat, Mead Witter School of Music, MEMF, Messiah, Metropolitan Opera, Minnesota, money, month, Music, music critic, music lessons, music review, Musician, myself, national, native, necessitate, need, New York, New York City, obligation, opera, oratorio, Orchestra, organization, out of work, own, package, pandemic, participant, parties, party, pay, performer, performing, piece, population, population density, post, posting, preparation, presenter, project, ramifications, rave, rave review, reader, recommendation, recover, reimburse, relief, review, sales, sample, Samuel Barber, Sarah Brailey, scary, seriousness, share, sing, singer, Singing, situation, social distance, social distancing, Solomon, song, soprano, special, St. Paul, stipend, stoppage, storm, struggling, subscriber, suddenly, summer, sun, Superior, symphony, TA, tag, tax, teaching assistant, tenor, The Boston Globe, The Ear, the Met, The Middle Class Artist, The New York Times, The New Yorker, ticket, ticket sales, time, time of need, travel, travel expenses, Trinity Church, U.S., unemployment, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, unprecedented, UW, UW-Madison, video, virtual, virus, vocal music, voice, voice lessons, wait, Wall St., Wall Street, Website, well-being, west coast, winner, Wisconsin, work, workers, worried, worry, YouTube, Zach Finkelstein

Classical music: With live concerts cancelled, what will you do for music? The Ear has some suggestions but wants to hear your ideas

March 16, 2020
6 Comments

ALERT 1: It’s official. The Madison Symphony Orchestra has cancelled its performances of Dvorak’s Requiem on April 3, 4 and 5. Sometime this week, according to the MSO website, the administration will inform ticket holders about what they can do.

ALERT 2: The Mosaic Chamber Players have cancelled their performance of Beethoven Piano Trios on March 21 at the First Unitarian Society of Madison.

By Jacob Stockinger

Now that live concerts and performances have been cancelled for the near future – thanks to the threat of the pandemic of the coronavirus and COVID-19 — music-lovers are faced with a problem:

What will we – especially those of us who are isolated at home for long periods of time — do to continue to listen to music?

Perhaps you have a large CD collection you can turn to. Or perhaps you subscribe to a streaming service such as Apple Music, SoundCloud, Amazon Music or another one.

Don’t forget local sources such as Wisconsin Public Radio and WORT-FM 89.9, both of which generously broadcast classical music, from the Renaissance to contemporary music, and often feature local performers.

Here is a link to Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR): https://www.wpr.org

Here is a link to WORT 88.9 FM: https://www.wortfm.org

There are also many other choices.

Happily, there is YouTube with its mammoth collection of free musical performances and videos. You can surf YouTube for new music and classic music, contemporary performers and historic performers, excerpts and complete works.

Here is a link: https://www.youtube.com

Those who are students or amateurs might use the time to sing – like those marvelous, uplifting Italians making music from their balconies during the crisis – or practice and play an instrument at home.

But other organizations – solo performers, chamber music ensembles, symphony orchestras, opera houses – are also trying to meet the challenge by providing FREE public access to their archives.

And it’s a good time for that.

Music can bring us together in this crisis.

Music can help us relax, and fight against the current panic and anxiety.

It’s also a good time to have a music project. Maybe you want to explore all the many symphonies or string quartets of Haydn, or perhaps the 550 keyboard sonatas by Scarlatti, or perhaps the many, many songs of Franz Schubert.

Here are some suggestions offered as possible guidance:

Here is what critics for The New York Times, including senior critic Anthony Tommasini (below) who likes Van Cliburn playing a Rachmaninoff concerto, will do: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/13/arts/music/coronavirus-classical-music.html

If you are an opera lover, you might want to know that, starting today, the Metropolitan Opera (below) in New York City will be streaming for FREE a different opera every day or night.

The productions are video recordings of operas that have been broadcast over past years in the “Live in HD” program. The titles are listed by the week and here is a link:

https://operawire.com/metropolitan-opera-to-offer-up-nightly-met-opera-streams/

If you like orchestral music, it is hard to beat the Berlin Philharmonic – considered by many critics to be the best symphony orchestra in the world — which is also opening up its archives for FREE.

Here is a background story with a link: https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/coronavirus-concerts-the-music-world-contends-with-the-pandemic

Here is another link, from Norman Lebrecht’s blog “Slipped Disc,” to the Berlin Philharmonic along with some other suggestions, including the Vienna State Opera: https://slippedisc.com/2020/03/your-guide-to-the-new-world-of-free-streaming/

And if you like chamber music, you can’t beat the FREE performances being offered by the acclaimed Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, some of whom recently performed in Madison at the Wisconsin Union Theater and with the UW-Madison Symphony Orchestra: https://www.chambermusicsociety.org/watch-and-listen/

But what about you?

What will you listen to?

Where will you go to find classical music to listen to?

Do you have certain projects, perhaps even one to recommend?

How will you cope with the absence of live concerts?

The Ear wants to hear.

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #AmazonMusic, #AnthonyTommasini, #AntoninDvorak, #AppleMusic, #BaroqueMusic, #BerlinGermany, #BerlinPhilharmonic, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #ChamberMusicSocietyofLIncolnCenter, #ChoralMusic, #ClassicMusic, #CompactDisc, #ContemporaryMusic, #COVID-19, #DomenicoScarlatti, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FirstUnitarianSocietyofMadison, #FranzJosephHaydn, #FranzSchubert, #HistoricRecording, #HomeWebsite, #JacobStockinger, #KeyboardSonata, #LincolnCenter, #LiveConcert, #LiveinHD, #LiveMusic, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MadisonWisconsin, #MeadWitterSchoolofMusic, #MetropolitanOpera, #MosaicChamberPlayers, #MusicCritic, #NewMusic, #NewYorkCity, #NormanLebrecht, #OperaAria, #OperaHouse, #OperaLover, #OperaWire, #OrchestralMusic, #PianoTrio, #SergeiRachmaninoff, #SergeiRachmaninov, #SlippedDisc, #StreamingService, #StringQuartet, #SymphonyOrchestra, #TheEar, #TheMet, #TheNewYorker, #TheNewYorkTImes, #TicketHolder, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #UWSymphonyOrchestra, #VanCliburn, #ViennaAustria, #ViennaStateOpera, #VocalMusic, #WisconsinPublicRadio, #WisconsinUnionTheater, #WORT-FM89.9, #YouTubeChannel, #YouTubevideo, absence, access, administration, amateur, Amazon Music, amazon.com, Anthony Tommasini, Antonín Dvořák, anxiety, Apple, Apple Music, archive, Arts, audience, balcony, Baroque, Baroque music, Beethoven, Berlin, Berlin Philharmonic, blog, Broadcast, cancel, CD, cellist, Cello, challenge, Chamber music, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, choral music, classic, Classical, Classical music, classicalmusic, Cliburn, collection, comment, Compact Disc, complete, composer, Concert, concerto, conductor, contemporary, cope, coronavirus, crisis, critic, day, Domenico Scarlatti, Dvorak, Early music, ensemble, excerpt, Facebook, fear, First Unitarian Society of Madison, Franz Joseph Haydn, Franz Schubert, free, future, generous, Haydn, HD, hear, historic, Home, home website, idea, instruments, isolation, Italians, Italy, Jacob Stockinger, Keyboard, keyboard sonata, like, LIncoln Center, link, listen, live concert, Live in HD, live music, long, lover, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Madison Baroque Musicians, Madison Symphony Orchestra, marvelous, Mead Witter School of Music, Metropolitan Opera, Mosaic Chamber Players, Mozart, MSO, Music, music critic, music lover, New Music, New York City, night, Norman Lebrecht, official, opera, Opera house, Orchestra, orchestral music, Overture Center, pandemic, panic, perform, performer, period, Pianist, Piano, Piano Trio, play, post, posting, practice, problem, production, project, provide, public, Rachmaninoff, Rachmaninov, Radio, recommend, recording, Recordings, relx, Renaissance, Requiem, Scarlatti, Schubert, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Sergei Rachmaninov, share, sing, Singing, Slipped Disc, solo, Sonata, song, SoundCloud, state, streaming, Streaming media, String quartet, Student, subscribers, surf, symphony, symphony orchestra, tag, The Ear, the Met, The New York Times, The New Yorker, threat, ticket holder, time, title, today, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, uplifting, UW Symphony Orchestra, UW-Madison, Van Cliburn, video, Vienna, Vienna State Opera, Violin, violinist, vocal music, Website, week, Wisconsin, wisconsin public radio, Wisconsin Union Theater, works, world, worry, WORT-FM 89.9, year, you, your, YouTube

Classical music: Home or concert hall? Will older listeners follow new CDC guidelines about the coronavirus to stay home and avoid attending concerts? What will performers and presenters do in response?

March 7, 2020
17 Comments

By Jacob Stockinger

Late yesterday the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) issued new guidelines for behavior during the outbreak of the coronavirus and COVID-19.

The CDC is asking all adults over 60, especially those with compromised immune systems and serious underlying illnesses and conditions, to “stay home as much as possible” and avoid attending events with big crowds. (Below is a sample of a full house at the Madison Symphony Orchestra in Overture Hall.)

Here is the full story — which also mentions other kinds of mass events such as movie theaters, mall shopping, sports events and religious services — from CNN: https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/06/health/coronavirus-older-people-social-distancing/index.html

Moreover, the new guidelines apply nationwide — including here in Wisconsin where only one case has been confirmed and is now healthy– during the increasingly widespread, worldwide outbreak of confirmed cases and deaths.

The Ear wonders if the new advice will hit classical music especially hard because so much of the audience for it is made up of older people who are more vulnerable.

Will the guidelines affect your own attendance at concerts, even tonight and this weekend at the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Wisconsin Union Theater?

Will a lack of attendance and a more severe outbreak lead to empty concert halls and the cancellation of concerts? Refunds for seniors?

Will the guidelines lead to alternative ways of “attending” and hearing, such as live-streaming and other virtual attendance?

Pretty soon we should start hearing from music presenters and performers about their reactions, solutions and advice.

Meanwhile, here is a news story from The New York Times about what one string quartet did in Venice, Italy: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/04/arts/music/arts-coronavirus.html

Are you an older or vulnerable person?

Will you go to concerts or stay home?

What do you think presenters and performers should do to deal with the situation?

Please leave word about your plans and your thoughts.

The Ear wants to hear.

Posted in Classical music
Tags: #BigCrowd, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #CentersforDiseaseControl, #ChamberMusic, #CNNNews, #ConcertHall, #COVID-19, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FullHouse, #HomeWebsite, #ImmuneSystem, #JacobStockinger, #MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #MallShopping, #MovieTheaters, #NewsUpdate, #ReligiousServices, #SeniorCitizen, #SocialDistance, #SportsEvents, #StringQuartet, #TheEar, #TheNewYorkTImes, #TheU.S., #UnitedStates, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #VeniceItaly, #WisconsinUnionTheater, 60, adult, advice, advisory, alert, alternative, America, American, Arts, ask, audience, Beethoven, behavior, blog, cancel, cancellation, case, cases, CDC, Centers for Disease Control, Chamber music, church, Classical music, classicalmusic, CNN, compromised, Concert, concert hall, condition, confirm, confirmed, coronavirus, crowd, death, distance, empty, Facebook, forward, full house, games, guidelines, hearing, hit, Home, home website, idea, ill, illness, immune, immune system, isolate, isolation, Italy, Jacob Stockinger, Johannes Brahms, know, large, like, live-stream, Ludwig van Beethoven, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, mall, mall shopping, mass, movie theaters, Music, nationwide, new, New York City, news, online, opera, Orchestra, outbreak, Overture Center, performer, performers, plans, post, posting, presenter, prevention, quarantine, reaction, refund, Religion, religious services, senior, senior citizen, share, Shopping, sick, social, social distance, solution, Sports, spread, stay, story, String quartet, symphony, tag, The Ear, The New York Times, The U.S., theater, theatre, think, tonight, underlying, United States, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW-Madison, Venice, virtual, virus, vulnerable, way, Website, weekend, widespread, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Union Theater, word, worldwide, yesterday

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