The Well-Tempered Ear
Here are the coronation playlists for the very musical King Charles III
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By Jacob Stockinger
Will you watch and follow the coronation of King Charles III (the official royal logo is below)? It takes place this Saturday, May 6, 2023. Live coverage will begin airing at 5 a.m. EDT for most media outlets.
Here is some other information you might want to know to get the most out of the rarely held historic event and even to act as your own music and culture critic.
As Prince of Wales, Charles was an avid listener and a talented amateur musician who played the piano, guitar and cello (below in a photo by Getty Images).
Given that background, it is little wonder that the king has lined up many royal commissions for the coronation by composers and performers of new classical music:
https://www.royal.uk/coronation-music-commissions
And if you want to celebrate the coronation in a more pop music or rock music way — yes to The Beatles and Harry Styles but no to The Rolling Stones and Elton John — here is another playlist on Spotify by “DJ” King Charles (below):
Her is the official coronation website, with photos, bunting designs and even recipes to download:
Toolkit
Finally here is a half-hour preparatory YouTube video, an introduction from NBC:
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A changing Earth demands changing music to mark Earth Day
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By Jacob Stockinger
Today — Saturday, April 22 — is Earth Day 2023.
It is the 53rd annual celebration of the environment that was started on this date in 1970 by the former Wisconsin governor and U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson (below bottom).
As the website “Self-Help Africa” says: “Earth Day is an annual event on April 22 to highlight environmental issues across the planet and demonstrate support for environmental protection.
“First held in the United States on April 22, 1970, it has since become THE BIGGEST SECULAR CELEBRATION OBSERVATION DAY IN THE WORLD, and an opportunity to highlight the issues and environmental challenges affecting our world.”
Here is the official Earth Day website: https://www.earthday.org/
Music has always been part of how the world celebrates the event.
But lately the trend in music seems to parallel the trends in the global warming crisis and species extinctions.
So, for example, in British composer Debbie Wiseman’s “Carnival of the Endangered Animals” in 2022 is meant to parallel but update the famous “Carnival of the Animals” by Camille Saint-Saëns.
Other titles of works by contemporary composers that reflect current realities about the natural world are: “The Lost Birds” by American composer Christopher Tin (below top); “Mass for the Endangered” by American composer Sarah Kirkland Snider (below middle); “The Rising Sea” Symphony by British composer Kieran Brunt; and “Glaciers in Extinction” by Italian flutist and composer Roberto Fabbriciani (below bottom).
You can hear these and other contemporary works plus a more familiar and traditional musical celebration of the Earth and nature by Beethoven. Just go this site for Colorado Public Radio:
Do you have a favorite among the new pieces?
Is there other music you think is appropriate to celebrate Earth Day and the natural world as they exist today?
What composers and pieces do you suggest listening to?
The Ear wants to hear.
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Vivaldi turns 345 today. His irresistable music deserves more live performances
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By Jacob Stockinger
Today The Ear wishes Happy Birthday to composer Antonio Vivaldi (below), who was born on this day — March 4 — in 1678 in Venice. (He became famous but died in poverty at age 63 on July 28, 1741, also in Venice.)
The Ear likes Vivaldi and his music deserves many more live performances. Even local early music and modern music groups seems reluctant to program much Vivaldi besides “The Four Seasons,” despite the popularity of his other works. Vivaldi not only composed a lot but he did so for many instruments — strings, brass, winds — and in other genres than concertos including sonatas, choral works and operas.
Listen to Vivaldi in the morning. Who can resist him? The Italian style with its energetic rhythm, songful lyricism and major-key cheerfulness are caffeine for the ears.
There are so many fine groups and soloists who perform Vivaldi. Yet so much of his prolific output remains relatively unknown or unheard.
That’s too bad. Johann Sebastian Bach recognized a good thing when he heard it, so he “borrowed” and transcribed many of Vivaldi’s works. One imagines the Italian taste for transparency and tunes appealed to Bach and helped him leaven the often dense, even pedantic Germanic counterpoint and smothering religiosity. Vivaldi provided a model influence for Bach’s eclectic fusion of styles.
Here is a link to an extended Wikipedia biography of the “Red Priest” (below) — Vivaldi’s nickname, used during his teaching at an all-girls school in Venice and derived from his bright red hair. It holds some surprises including the political controversy that surrounded Vivaldi in his day:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_Vivaldi
A lot of modern musicians and music historians seem to hold Vivaldi’s popularity and listener-friendly music against him. Opinions seem divided over who made the snide remark — Igor Stravinsky, Luigi Dallapiccola or both — that Vivaldi rewrote the same concerto 500 times.
Here is an informative takedown of that putdown:
https://notanothermusichistorycliche.blogspot.com/2018/10/did-stravinsky-say-vivaldi-wrote-same.html
In the YouTube video at the bottom is a favorite Vivaldi movement of mine. It helped give me a lifelong unforgettable moment as an accompaniment to viewing NASA’s recently taken moon footage at 37,000 feet in a plane on my way to Hawaii. It is the slow movement of the lute concerto played on the guitar by Julian Bream — and it was perfect for expressing weightlessness and space flight.
That was long ago.
These days for period-instrument performances, I tend to favor The English Concert under Trevor Pinnock , The Academy of Ancient Music under Christopher Hogwood, and the Academy of Ancient Music Berlin — although there are others terrific ensembles including the modern instrument groups I Musici and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields.
For period string soloists — try the double concertos — look to Simon Standage, Monica Huggett, Andrew Manze and Rachel Podger. For modern instrumentalists, check out Victoria Mullova and especially the Israeli violinist Shlomo Mintz, who uses his own ordering and groupings of concertos. I also like the period cellist Christophe Coin and the modern cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras.
Do you have an opinion about Vivaldi — a like or dislike of his music?
Do you have a favorite Vivaldi work?
Do you have favorite performers of Vivaldi?
The Ear wants to hear.
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Gramophone Magazine names the Best Classical Recordings of 2022 by each month
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By Jacob Stockinger
Maybe you have a holiday gift card to use.
Or maybe you have some leisure time to explore new recordings for your pleasure.
You’re in luck.
Various media have recently named the Best Classical Recordings of 2022. Whether you stream them or use compact discs or listen to vinyl, over the next week or two The Ear will feature some of them.
One of the most prestigious and well respected lists is provided by the British publication and website, Gramophone Magazine (below).
The link below is just to the December 2022 choices. But in it you can find links by the month to other outstanding selections.
Like many other links now, you can also find links to complete reviews of individual albums, and can even listen to excerpts from the named performances.
Also like many international lists, this one often reflects a not-so-subtle bias — usual towards the artists in the home nation where the organization is based. So look for a lot of British performers and composers.
Still, you can find many outstanding choices to spend those gift cards on. Or just to explore for pleasure whenever you have the time and desire.
Here is one example.
When he first heard it, The Ear was fascinated by Paul Wee’s outstanding and astounding performance of the virtuosic solo piano transcription by the 19th-century French composer Charles-Valentin Alkan of Mozart’s famously sublime and dramatic Piano Concerto No. 22 in D minor, K. 466 (below in a photo of the album cover and in a YouTube video).
Very handy if you don’t have access to an orchestra! Plus you hear the composition in a new and insightful way — as often happens with transcriptions.
What do you think?
Do you have a favorite new recording from 2022?
The Ear wants to hear.
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How will you celebrate World Piano Day today?
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By Jacob Stockinger
Today — Tuesday, March 29, 2022 — is World Piano Day.
(Below is a restored vintage concert grand piano at Farley’s House of Pianos used for recitals in the Salon Piano Series.)
How will you mark it? Celebrate it?
It’s a fine occasion to revisit your favorite pianist and favorite piano pieces.
Who is your favorite pianist, and what piano piece would you like to hear today?
If you yourself took piano lessons or continue to play, what piece would you play to mark the occasion? Fo the Ear, it will be either a mazurka by Chopin or a movement from either a French Suite or a Partita by Johann Sebastian Bach. Maybe both!
What piano piece do you wish you could play, but never were able to? For The Ear, it would be the Ballade No. 4 in F minor by Chopin.
One of the best ways to mark the day is to learn about a new younger pianist you might not have heard of.
For The Ear, one outstanding candidate would be the Icelandic pianist Vikingur Olafsson ( below), who has won critical acclaim and who records for Deutsche Grammophon (DG).
Olafsson has a particular knack for innovative and creative programming, like his CD that alternates works by Claude Debussy and Jean-Philippe Rameau.
He also seems at home at in many different stylistic periods. His records every thing from Baroque masters, to Mozart and his contemporaries in the Classical period — including Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach — to Impressionists to the contemporary composer Philip Glass.
But The Ear especially loves his anthology of Bach pieces (below) that include original works and transcriptions, including some arranged by himself. His playing is always precise and convincing, and has the kind of cool water-clear sound that many will identify with Andras Schiff.
You can hear a sample of his beautiful playing for yourself in the YouTube video at the bottom. It is an live-performance encore from his inaugural appearance last August at The Proms in London, where he also played Mozart’s dramatically gorgeous Piano Concerto No. 24 in C minor (also available on YouTube.)
Final word: You might find some terrific pianists and performances on the Internet. Record labels, performing venues and other organizations are marking the day with special FREE recitals that you can reach through Google and Instagram.
Happy playing!
Happy listening!
Please leave a comment and let The Ear and other readers know what you think of the piano — which seems to be falling out of favor these days — and which pianists and piano pieces you will identify this year with World Piano Day.
The Ear wants to hear.
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The Madison Bach Musicians host a virtual online Baroque Tour starting this Saturday, April 24, and lasting through May 8
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By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has received the following notice from Trevor Stephenson, the founder and artistic director of the Madison Bach Musicians (MBM), who will debut their season-closing concert live and online this coming Saturday night, April 24:
Stephenson (below) writes:
Since travel has been so very limited during the pandemic, Madison Bach Musicians is elated to conclude its 2020-21 season with a musical journey through both space and time, and invites you to join us from the intimacy and safety of your own home.
A Baroque Tour is a musical travelogue of instrumental masterworks from 17th- and 18th-century Europe. Luminaries like Handel, Vivaldi, Purcell and Buxtehude are in the mix on this program with their brilliant though lesser-known contemporaries such as Louis-Gabriel Guillemain (below top), Marc-Antoine Charpentier, Andrea Falconieri (below bottom) and Francisco Jose de Castro.
A Baroque Tour will explore the glorious sonic landscapes of Italy, Spain, France, England and Germany.
Our ensemble for this program consists of five strings plus harpsichord, and we are thrilled that baroque bassoon virtuoso Marc Vallon (below, in a photo by James Gill), who teaches at the UW-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music, will join us for Vivaldi’s exuberant Bassoon Concerto in B-Flat Major. (You can hear the opening movement in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
A Baroque Tour will be broadcast via live-streaming from the acoustically spectacular sanctuary of Grace Episcopal Church on this Saturday evening, April 24. (Rebroadcasts will be available on demand through May 8.)
Tickets are $15 and available online at: https://madison-bach-musicians.square.site/product/a-baroque-tour-april-24-2021-livestream-on-demand-until-may-8/57?cs=true&cst=custom
If you wish to purchase tickets through the mail, use this downloadable form: https://madisonbachmusicians.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/MBM-2020-21-Live-Stream-Ticket-Form-A-Baroque-Tour.pdf
Here is the schedule for the concert and related events:
From 7:30-8 p.m., in a pre-concert lecture, MBM artistic director Trevor Stephenson will discuss the composers, the repertoire and the historical instruments.
The performance will run from 8 p.m. until approximately 9:15 p.m.
The evening will then conclude with a live Question-and-Answer session with the musicians who will be socially distanced on the concert platform.
Listeners should submit their questions—in advance or during the broadcast—via email to Karen Rebholz at madisonbachmusicians.manager@gmail.com.
THE MUSICIANS are:
Marc Vallon – baroque bassoon soloist
Kangwon Kim (below) – baroque violin
Emily Dupere – baroque violin
Micah Behr – baroque viola and baroque guitar
Martha Vallon – baroque cello and viola da gamba
James Waldo – baroque cello (and tambourine)
Trevor Stephenson – harpsichord
THE PROGRAM is:
HANDEL – Sonata in A major for Violin and Continuo, HWV 361
CHARPENTIER – Concerto for Four Viols, H 545
PURCELL – Trio Sonata in C major, Z 795
VIVALDI – Bassoon Concerto in B-flat major, RV 503
GUILLEMAIN – Sonata in A minor for Two Violins, Op. 5, No.1
BUXTEHUDE – Trio Sonata in G major, BuxWV 271
DE CASTRO – Trio Sonata in C major, Op. 1, No. 6
FALCONIERI – La Folia (Folías de España)
Here is a link to some brief biographies and interesting facts about these remarkable composers: https://madisonbachmusicians.org/april-24-a-baroque-tour-a-livestream-event/
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A busy weekend of online concerts features the UW Symphony, Edgewood College, Madison Opera, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Bach Around the Clock and more
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By Jacob Stockinger
With only a little over a month left before the academic year ends at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, it’s not surprising that the last weekend in March is very busy with noteworthy – and competing – online concerts.
Each morning at 8 through Friday, Bach Around the Clock will release the last concerts of its 10-day online festival. You can find the programs – including the finale Friday night at 7 with Brandenburg Concerto No. 6 — and link for streaming here: https://bachclock.com/concert-schedule
The weekend starts tonight with one of The Ear’s favorite groups during the Pandemic Year: the UW-Madison Symphony Orchestra
Here is a day-by-day lineup. All times are Central Daylight Time:
TONIGHT, MARCH 25
The UW-Madison Symphony Orchestra (below) performs a FREE virtual online concert TONIGHT starting at 7:30 p.m.
The concert will be preceded by a 7 p.m. talk about Igor Stravinsky with modern musicologist and Penn State Professor Maureen Carr as well as conductor Oriol Sans and Susan Cook, UW musicologist and director of the Mead Witter School of Music.
The program is: Suite from the opera “Dido and Aeneas” by Henry Purcell, with student conductor Alison Norris; Duet for Two Violins and String Orchestra by the contemporary American composer Steve Reich; and the Neo-Classical “Apollon musagète” (Apollo, Leader of the Muses) by Stravinsky. (In the YouTube video at the bottom, you can hear an excerpt of the Stravinsky played by the Berlin Philharmonic with Simon Rattle conducting.)
Here is the link to the talk and concert. Click on more and you can also see the members of the orchestra and the two violin soloists: https://youtu.be/2rgHQ4lWTV8
For more information about the program, including notes, go to: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/uw-madison-symphony-orchestra/
FRIDAY, MARCH 26
At 7:30 p.m. the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra will post for three days the third of its four online chamber music concerts (below). There will be excerpts of music by Beethoven and Brahms as well as complete works by Jessie Montgomery and Alyssa Morris.
Tickets to the online on-demand event are $30, with some discounts available, and are good through Monday evening.
Here is a link to more about this concert, including program notes by conductor and music director Andrew Sewell, and how to purchase tickets: https://wcoconcerts.org/events/winter-chamber-series-no-iii
At 8 p.m., the music department at Edgewood College will give a FREE online Spring Celebration concert. It will be livestreamed via music.edgewood.edu
The performers include: the Chamber Orchestra, under the direction of Sergei Pavlov (below); the Guitar Ensemble, under the direction of Nathan Wysock; and the Chamber Winds, directed by Carrie Backman.
Highlights include the Guitar Ensemble’s performance of Wish You Were Here, by David Gilmour and Rogers Waters, and the Chamber Winds epic Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The Chamber Orchestra, which will perform live, will feature Musical moment No. 3, by Franz Schubert and Peer Gynt Suite by Edvard Grieg.
SATURDAY, MARCH 27
At noon, in Grace Episcopal Church on the Capitol Square downtown, there will be a FREE online concert. Grace Presents: “A Patient Enduring”: This early music program of medieval conductus (a musical setting of metrical Latin texts) and ballade, English lute song, and duets from the early Italian Baroque features two sopranos, Grammy-winnner Sarah Brailey (below) and Kristina Boerger, with Brandon Acker on lute and theorbo.
Here is a link: YouTube.com/GracePresentsConcerts
You can also go to this webpage for a link: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/grace-presents-a-patient-enduring/
At 3 p.m. the Perlman Trio, a piano trio that is made up of UW-Madison graduate students, will give a FREE online concert. The program includes piano trios by Haydn, Beethoven and Schubert.
Here is a link to the YouTube video: https://youtu.be/EAjK0DfWB3A
Here is a link to the complete program plus background, names and photos of the performers as well as to the performance: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/perlman-piano-trio/
At 7 p.m. the UW-Madison’s Wingra Wind Quntet (below) will perform a FREE pre-recorded online concert. Here is a link to the video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bn7eobSnfr8
And here is a link to the page with more background information about the faculty members – including bassoonist Marc Vallon (below top) and flutist Conor Nelson (below bottom) – and to the complete program: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/wingra-wind-quintet/
SUNDAY, MARCH 28
From 4 to 5:30 p.m., guest mezzo-soprano Julia Ubank (below) will give a free online recital with pianist Thomas Kasdorf.
The program features songs by Mahler, Debussy, deFalla, Jake Heggie and Ellen Cogen.
Here is the complete program plus a link to the recital: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/julia-urbank-voice-recital/
From 4 to 5:30 p.m. the Madison Opera will host a Opera Up Close cocktail hour discussion with four general directors of opera companies. Here is the website’s description:
“Four opera general directors walk into a chat room…. Stepping outside the Madison Opera family, Kathryn Smith (below, in a photo by James Gill) is joined by three colleagues: Michael Egel of Des Moines Metro Opera, Ashley Magnus of Chicago Opera Theater, and Lee Anne Myslewski of Wolf Trap Opera.
“From how they got into opera, to the ups and downs of running an opera company, their favorite productions, funniest moments, and more, it will be a unique and entertaining afternoon.
Here is a link with more information including the cost of a subscription: https://www.madisonopera.org/class/general-directors/?wcs_timestamp=1616947200
At 6 p.m., Rachel Reese, a UW-Madison doctoral student in violin, will give a lecture-concert about the Violin Concerto No. 2 by the rediscovered African-American composer Florence Price (below). She will be accompanied by pianist Aubrie Jacobson.
Here is a link to the concert plus background about Rachel Reese: https://www.music.wisc.edu/event/rachel-reese-lecture-recital/
Tags: #African-AmericanComposer, #AlyssaMorris, #AndrewSewell, #BachAroundtheClock, #BaroqueMusic, #BerlinGermany, #BerlinPhilharmonic, #BlackComposer, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #BrandenburgConcerto, #CapitolSquare, #CarrieBackman, #CentralDaylightTime, #CentralTime, #ChamberMusic, #ChamberOrchestra, #ChamberWinds, #ChicagoIllinois, #ChicagoOperaTheater, #ChristianChurch, #ClassicalGuitar, #ClaudeDebussy, #CocktailHour, #ConorNelson, #CoronavirusPandemic, #DesMoines, #DesmoinesIowa, #DesMoinesMetroOpera, #EdgewoodCollege, #EdvardGrieg, #EllenCogen, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FemaleComposer, #FlorencePrice, #FranzJosephHaydn, #FranzSchubert, #GeneralDirector, #GracePresents, #GraduateStudent, #Grammy-winning, #GrammyAward, #GustavMahler, #HenryPurcell, #HomeWebsite, #IgorStravinsky, #ItalianBaroque, #JacobStockinger, #JakeHeggie, #JessieMontgomery, #JohannesBrahms, #JohannSebastianBach, #JuliaUrbank, #LatinLanguage, #LiveStreaming, #LivingComposer, #LudwigVanBeethoven, #MadisonOpera, #ManuelDeFalla, #MarcVallon, #MaureenCarr, #MedievalMusic, #Mezzo-sopranoSinger, #MusicDirector, #MusicEducation, #Musicfaculty, #NathanWysock, #OnlineConcert, #OnlineFestival, #OriolSans, #PanelDiscussion, #PeerGynt, #PeerGyntSuite, #PennState, #PerlmanTrio, #PianoAccompanist, #Pre-concertTalk, #ProgramNotes, #SarahBrailey, #SimonRattle, #SopranoSinger, #StarWars, #SteveReich, #StringMusic, #SusanCook, #TheEar, #TheForceAwakens, #TheUK, #TheUW, #TicketPrice, #UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, #UW-MadisonSymphonyOrchestra, #UWSymphonyOrchestra, #ViolinConcerto, #VirtualConcert, #VocalMusic, #WebPage, #WindQuintet, #WingraWindQuintet, #WisconsinChamberOrchestra, #WolftrapOpera, #WomenComposer, #YouTubeChannel, #YouTubevideo, academic, African American, Alyssa Morris, America, American, Andrew Sewell, Apollo, Arts, audience, Bach, Bach Around the Clock, background, Ballade, Baroque, Bassoon, bassoonist, BATC, Beethoven, Berlin, Berlin Philharmonic, black composer, blog, Blog post, blog posting, Brahms, Brailey, Brandenburg Concerto, British, busy, Capitol, Capitol Square, Carrie Backman, CDT, celebration, Cello, central, Central Daylight Time, Central Time, Chamber music, chamber orchestra, Chamber Winds, channel, Chicago, Chicago Opera Theater, Christian, church, classical guitar, Classical music, Claude Debussy, click, cocktail, cocktail hour, Cogen, companies, competing, complete, composer, Concert, concerto, conductor, conductus, Conor Nelson, coronavirus, coronavirus pandemic, de Falla, Debussy, Des Moines Metro Opera, discount, discussion, downtown, duet, Early music, Edgewood College, Edvard Grieg, Ellen Cogen, end, England, English, excerpts, Facebook, faculty, female, festival, Florence Price, flute, flutist, Franz Joseph Haydn, Franz Schubert, free, Friday, General director, Germany, Grace Episcopal, Grace Episcopal Church, Grace Presents, graduate student, Grammy, Grammy Award, Grave Presents, Grieg, guitar, Gustav Mahler, Haydn, Heggie, Henry Purcell, Igor Stravinsky, information, Iowa, Italian, Italy, Jacob Stockinger, Jake Heggie, Jessie Montgomery, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes Brahms, Julia Urbank, Latin, lecture, like, lineup, link, Living composer, Ludwig van Beethoven, lute, Madison, Madison Opera, Mahler, Manuel DeFall, Marc Vallon, march, Maureen Carr, Medieval, member, metrical, Mezzo-soprano, minimalism, minimalist, Monday, Montgomery, morning, Morris, Music, Music director, Music education, music faculty, musicology, name, names, Nathan Wysock, Nelson, neo-Classical, noteworthy, oiano, on-demand, online, online festival, opera, Orchestra, Oriol Sans, Overture Center, pandemic, Peer Gynt, Penn State, perform, performer, Perlman Trio, photo, Pianist, Piano, Piano accompanist, Piano Trio, post, pre-concert, price, program, program notes, Purcell, purchase, recital, Reich, releaseconcert, Sarah Brailey, Saturday, Schubert, series, setting, Sewell, share, Simon Rattle, sing, Singing, soloist, song, soprano, Spring, Star Wars, Steve Reich, Stravinsky, stream, streaming, string music, strings, Suite, Sunday, surprising, Susan Cook, symphony, tag, talk, text, The Ear, The Force Awakens, theater, theorbo, third, Thursday, tickets, tonight, trio, UK, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, UW, UW Symphony Orchestra, UW-Madison, UW-Madison Symphony Orchestra, Vallon, video, Viola, Violin, Violin concerto, violinist, virtual, vocal music, web, Website, weekend, wind music, Wind quintet, winds, Wingra Wind Quintet, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Wolf Trap Opera, women, women composer, works, year, YouTube
Soprano and UW-Madison graduate student Sarah Brailey wins a Grammy Award
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By Jacob Stockinger
Soprano Sarah Brailey (below), a native of Wisconsin — who now lives, works and studies in Madison — won a Grammy Award last night.
Brailey received the prestigious award (below) in the category “Best Classical Solo Album” category. It was for her role in the long-neglected, opera-like choral symphony “The Prison” by English composer Dame Ethel Smyth on the Chandos label. (You can hear an excerpt from the Brailey recording in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
Brailey’s win is especially noteworthy because it comes early in her career.
Although she has toured nationally and internationally, and has established herself as a professional singer of note, Brailey is a busy graduate student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music, where she is finishing her doctoral degree.
Here is a link to her website: https://sarahbrailey.com
Brailey is also one of the city’s busiest and most respected musicians.
During the pandemic year, she explained and help spark benefit concerts and fundraising for musicians whose livelihoods suffered due to cancelled performances. Here is a link: https://welltempered.wordpress.com/?s=sarah+brailey
She also hosts the Sunday morning radio show “Musica Antiqua” – which features early music — on WORT-FM 89.9.
Recently, Brailey became the artistic director of “Grace Presents,” a series of free concerts at the downtown Grace Episcopal Church across from the state Capitol.
An avid early music performer, Brailey — who won and now directs the annual Handel Aria Competition — also co-founded and co-directs the free monthly series of Just Bach concerts (below, second from right), the lastest of which takes place this Wednesday, March 17. She sings solos, greets listeners and viewers, and often leads the final sing-along chorale from a Bach cantata.
You can hear many of her performances duing the Just Bach concerts on the Just Bach channel on YouTube.
Leave your own congratulations and thoughts about her performances in the Coment section.
The Ear will post a complete list of the classical music Grammy Award nominees and winners later this week.
PS: Another native of the Madison area was nominated for a non-classical Grammy is Bill Rahko, who co-produced the album “Everyday Life” for the rock band Coldplay. The album was nominated for Album of the Year, but lost to Taylor Swift’s “Folklore.”
Here is a link to a story on NBC 15 about Rahko, who attended Middleton High School: https://www.nbc15.com/2021/03/14/madison-area-native-up-for-grammy-award-for-album-of-the-year/
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Here are the Top 10 online concerts to stream in March, according to critics for the New York Times
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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
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The Well-Tempered Ear 
Songs by Black composers trace their cultural realities in a free online UW performance TONIGHT of “Verisimilitudes.” Plus, the five winners of this year’s Beethoven Competition perform Sunday.
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ALERT: This Sunday, April 25, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. the five winners of this year’s Beethoven Competition at the UW-Madison will perform in a winners’ concert. Included in the program are the popular and dramatic “Appassionata” Sonata, Op. 57, and the famous and innovative last piano sonata, No. 32 in C minor, Op 111. Here is a link to the YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMF0Hd1MJwMg. Click on “Show More” and you can see the full programs and biographical profiles of the winners.
By Jacob Stockinger
The concert could hardly be more timely or the subject more relevant.
Think of the events in and near Minneapolis, Chicago and elsewhere in the U.S.; of the Black Lives Matter movement and social protest; of the political fight for D.C. statehood and voting rights – all provide a perfect context for an impressive student project that will debut online TONIGHT, Saturday, April 24, at 7 p.m.
The one-hour free concert “Verisimilitudes: A Journey Through Art Song in Black, Brown and Tan” originated at the UW-Madison’s Mead Witter School of Music. It seems an ideal way for listeners to turn to music and art for social and political commentary, and to understand the racial subtexts of art.
Soprano Quanda Dawnyell Johnson (below) created, chose and performs the cycle of songs by Black composers with other Black students at the UW-Madison.
Here is a link to the YouTube video: https://youtu.be/-g5hjeuSumw
Click on “Show More” to see the complete program and more information.
Here is the artist’s statement:
“Within the content of this concert are 17 art songs that depict the reality of the souls of a diasporic people. Most of the lyricists and all of the composers are of African descent. In large part they come from the U.S. but also extend to Great Britain, Guadeloupe by way of France, and Sierra Leone.
“They speak to the veracity of Black life and Black feeling. A diasporic African reality in a Classical mode that challenges while it embraces a Western European vernacular. It is using “culture” as an agent of resistance.
“I refer to verisimilitude in the plural. While syntactically incorrect, as it relates to the multiple veils of reality Black people must negotiate, it is very correct.
“To be packaged in Blackness, or should I say “non-whiteness” is to ever live in a world of spiraling modalities and twirling realities. To paraphrase the great artist, Romare Bearden, in “calling and recalling” — we turn and return, then turn again to find the place that is our self.
“I welcome you to… Verisimilitudes: A Journey Through Art Song in Black, Brown, and Tan”
Here, by sections, is the complete program and a list of performers:
I. Nascence
Clear Water — Nadine Shanti
A Child’s Grace — Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson
Night — Florence Price (below)
Big Lady Moon — Samuel Coleridge-Taylor
II. Awareness
Lovely, Dark, and Lonely — Harry T. Burleigh
Grief –William Grant Still (below)
Prayer — Leslie Adams
Interlude, The Creole Love Call — Duke Ellington
III. The Sophomore
Mae’s Rent Party, We Met By Chance –Jeraldine Saunders Herbison
The Barrier — Charles Brown
IV. Maturity
Three Dream Portraits: Minstrel Man, Dream Variation; I, Too — Margaret Bonds (below)
Dreams — Lawren Brianna Ware
Song Without Words — Charles Brown
Legacy
L’autre jour à l’ombrage (The Other Day in the Shade) — Joseph Boulogne (Chevalier de Saint-Georges, below)
The Verisimilitudes Team
Quanda Dawnyell Johnson — Soprano and Project Creator
Lawren Brianna Ware – -Pianist and Music Director
Rini Tarafder — Stage Manager
Akiwele Burayidi – Dancer
Jackson Neal – Dancer
Nathaniel Schmidt – Trumpet
Matthew Rodriguez – Clarinet
Craig Peaslee – Guitar
Aden Stier –Bass
Henry Ptacek – Drums
Dave Alcorn — Videographer
Here is a link to the complete program notes with lyrics and composer bios. And a preview audio sample is in the YouTube video at the bottom: https://simplebooklet.com/verisimilitudesprogramnotes#page=1
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