Saturday, November 4, 2017
Preveiw of this weekend's Vancouver Symphony concert with Alexander Toradze
The Columbian newspaper published my preview of the Vancouver Symphony concert with pianist Alexander Toradze. He will play Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 3, which is one of his specialties. Salvador Brotons will conduct
Today's Birthdays
Carl Tausig (1841-1871)
Arnold Cooke (1906-2005)
Elgar Howarth (1935)
Joan Rodgers (1956)
Elena Kats-Chernin (1957)
Daron Hagen (1961)
and
Will Rogers (1879-1935)
C. K. Williams (1936-2015)
Charles Frazier (1950)
Arnold Cooke (1906-2005)
Elgar Howarth (1935)
Joan Rodgers (1956)
Elena Kats-Chernin (1957)
Daron Hagen (1961)
and
Will Rogers (1879-1935)
C. K. Williams (1936-2015)
Charles Frazier (1950)
Friday, November 3, 2017
Today's Birthdays
Samuel Scheidt (1587-1654)
Vincenzio Bellini (1801-1835)
Vladimir Ussachevsky (1911-1990)
and
Benvenuto Cellini (1500-1571)
William Cullen Bryant (1794–1878)
Ignatius Donnelly (1831-1901)
Vilhjalmur Stefansson (1879-1962)
Walker Evans (1903-1975)
Terrence McNally (1939)
Martin Cruz Smith (1942)
Joe Queenan (1950)
Vincenzio Bellini (1801-1835)
Vladimir Ussachevsky (1911-1990)
and
Benvenuto Cellini (1500-1571)
William Cullen Bryant (1794–1878)
Ignatius Donnelly (1831-1901)
Vilhjalmur Stefansson (1879-1962)
Walker Evans (1903-1975)
Terrence McNally (1939)
Martin Cruz Smith (1942)
Joe Queenan (1950)
Thursday, November 2, 2017
Today's Birthdays
Unico Wilhelm van Wassenaer (1692-1766)
Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf (1739-1799)
Count Andrey Razumovsky (1752-1836)
John Foulds (1880-1939)
Luchino Visconti (1906-1976)
Douglas Lilburn (1915-2001)
Harold Farberman (1929)
Guiseppe Sinopoli (1946-2001)
Jeremy Menuhin (1951)
Marie McLaughlin (1954)
Paul Moravec (1957)
and
George Boole (1815-1864)
C.K. Williams (1936-2015)
Thomas Mallon (1951)
and
From the Composers Datebook:
On this day in 1979, Peter Shaffer's drama "Amadeus" premieres at the National Theatre in London, directed by Peter Hall, starring Simon Callow as Mozart and Paul Scofield as Salieri. The British composer Harrison Birtwistle acted as Music Director for this production.
Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf (1739-1799)
Count Andrey Razumovsky (1752-1836)
John Foulds (1880-1939)
Luchino Visconti (1906-1976)
Douglas Lilburn (1915-2001)
Harold Farberman (1929)
Guiseppe Sinopoli (1946-2001)
Jeremy Menuhin (1951)
Marie McLaughlin (1954)
Paul Moravec (1957)
and
George Boole (1815-1864)
C.K. Williams (1936-2015)
Thomas Mallon (1951)
and
From the Composers Datebook:
On this day in 1979, Peter Shaffer's drama "Amadeus" premieres at the National Theatre in London, directed by Peter Hall, starring Simon Callow as Mozart and Paul Scofield as Salieri. The British composer Harrison Birtwistle acted as Music Director for this production.
Wednesday, November 1, 2017
Eclectic Turnage piece - scintilating Barber and Mozart highlight Oregon Symphony concert
Mark-Anthony Turnage’s newest work had a lot of snap, crackle, and pop, but to what end? I couldn’t figure it out after listening to the world premiere of his “Symphonic Movements”, which was played with vigor and precision as far as I could tell, by the Oregon Symphony at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall on October 28. The 57-year old English composer already has written over 50 works for orchestra, chamber ensembles, choral ensembles, and solo vocalists, and is well known for his witty and sometimes jazz-inflected pieces. The piece that he wrote on commission for the Oregon Symphony, titled “Symphonic Movements,” was dedicated to the memory of English composer and pianist Richard Rodney Bennett, who died in 2012. But Turnage’s music had the barest of elegiac sentiment and was fairly celebratory in spirit.
Divided into five movements designated by beats per minute (quarter note = 69, 76, 96, 72, and 120), “Symphonic Movements” used the orchestra primarily as a percussion instrument. The music was sophisticated, often rhythmically propulsive, and frequently accented by slaps, whaps, and blats even during its few restive moments. In the fourth movement, one of the percussionists played an odd device called the lion’s roar harp. It created a sound that was ostensibly like a roar of a big cat, but if I hadn’t read the program notes for the instrumentation, it sounded for the world to me as if someone had a terrible case of flatulence.
Much more elegiac, at least in the traditional sense, was the “Andante” from Schubert’s Symphony No. 10 in the arrangement by Peter Gülke, the music director of the Brandenburg Symphony. The music was slightly sad, gentle, and noble at the same time. One can only wonder what Schubert would have done with that fragmentary work had he lived longer.
Pianist Garrick Ohlsson has been a frequent guest with the Oregon Symphony over the past 40 years. When his large frame settles in behind the keyboard, I am almost tempted to feel sorry for the piano, yet this bear of a man has one of the gentlest touches that any pianist could wish for. His playing of Samuel Barber’s Piano Concerto was finely chiseled with impeccable technique from beginning to end. He articulated the opening phrases with verve, but they were never overstated. He captured the lyrical second movement, “Canzone,” deftly, giving it a sense of longing and elegance. The final movement veered wonderfully in the opposite direction with a wildly pulsating, spikey, and scattershot array of pyrotechnics.
The audience called Ohlsson to the stage several times and he obliged them with an encore, Alexander Scriabin’s “Poem” Opus 32, No. 1. The sound was lush and lovely, as if sculpting a poem of flowers.
The orchestra under the baton of music director Carlos Kalmar gave Mozart’s Symphony No. 41 (“Jupiter”) a crisp and energetic performance that was filled with dynamic contrast and nuance. Switching his baton to his left hand and guiding the musicians with his right, the orchestra created a delicious sense of weightlessness in the third movement. The fugue statement in the fourth with its five interwoven motifs wrapped up the piece gloriously.
P.S. The actual world premiere of the Turnage piece took place the night before in Salem. However, Turnage asked for a slight change afterwords; so the audience in Portland heard a revision of the world premiere.
Divided into five movements designated by beats per minute (quarter note = 69, 76, 96, 72, and 120), “Symphonic Movements” used the orchestra primarily as a percussion instrument. The music was sophisticated, often rhythmically propulsive, and frequently accented by slaps, whaps, and blats even during its few restive moments. In the fourth movement, one of the percussionists played an odd device called the lion’s roar harp. It created a sound that was ostensibly like a roar of a big cat, but if I hadn’t read the program notes for the instrumentation, it sounded for the world to me as if someone had a terrible case of flatulence.
Much more elegiac, at least in the traditional sense, was the “Andante” from Schubert’s Symphony No. 10 in the arrangement by Peter Gülke, the music director of the Brandenburg Symphony. The music was slightly sad, gentle, and noble at the same time. One can only wonder what Schubert would have done with that fragmentary work had he lived longer.
Pianist Garrick Ohlsson has been a frequent guest with the Oregon Symphony over the past 40 years. When his large frame settles in behind the keyboard, I am almost tempted to feel sorry for the piano, yet this bear of a man has one of the gentlest touches that any pianist could wish for. His playing of Samuel Barber’s Piano Concerto was finely chiseled with impeccable technique from beginning to end. He articulated the opening phrases with verve, but they were never overstated. He captured the lyrical second movement, “Canzone,” deftly, giving it a sense of longing and elegance. The final movement veered wonderfully in the opposite direction with a wildly pulsating, spikey, and scattershot array of pyrotechnics.
The audience called Ohlsson to the stage several times and he obliged them with an encore, Alexander Scriabin’s “Poem” Opus 32, No. 1. The sound was lush and lovely, as if sculpting a poem of flowers.
The orchestra under the baton of music director Carlos Kalmar gave Mozart’s Symphony No. 41 (“Jupiter”) a crisp and energetic performance that was filled with dynamic contrast and nuance. Switching his baton to his left hand and guiding the musicians with his right, the orchestra created a delicious sense of weightlessness in the third movement. The fugue statement in the fourth with its five interwoven motifs wrapped up the piece gloriously.
P.S. The actual world premiere of the Turnage piece took place the night before in Salem. However, Turnage asked for a slight change afterwords; so the audience in Portland heard a revision of the world premiere.
MTT announces his final season with the SFO
The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the 1919-2020 season will be the final one for Michael Tilson Thomas at the helm of the San Francisco Symphony.
From the SFO press release:
SAN FRANCISCO, October 31, 2017 — Michael Tilson Thomas today announced plans to conclude his distinguished tenure as Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony (SFS) in June 2020. The 2019–2020 Season will mark both his 75th birthday and his 25th year leading the Symphony in what is widely considered one of the most productive musical partnerships in the orchestral world. Tilson Thomas’ legacy with the SF Symphony began in 1974 with his debut at age 29, conducting Mahler’s Ninth Symphony, and was solidified by his commencement as the Orchestra’s 11th Music Director in September 1995. Following the 2019–2020 Season, Michael Tilson Thomas will assume the title of Music Director Laureate of the San Francisco Symphony, and will continue to conduct the Orchestra for a minimum of four weeks each season in addition to other special projects. In anticipation of the celebratory 25th anniversary season of the MTT/SFS partnership, the next two years will feature signature recording projects, festivals, commissioning of new works, staged productions, a two-week tour of the United States in 2018–2019, and a three-week European tour in 2019–2020.
From the SFO press release:
SAN FRANCISCO, October 31, 2017 — Michael Tilson Thomas today announced plans to conclude his distinguished tenure as Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony (SFS) in June 2020. The 2019–2020 Season will mark both his 75th birthday and his 25th year leading the Symphony in what is widely considered one of the most productive musical partnerships in the orchestral world. Tilson Thomas’ legacy with the SF Symphony began in 1974 with his debut at age 29, conducting Mahler’s Ninth Symphony, and was solidified by his commencement as the Orchestra’s 11th Music Director in September 1995. Following the 2019–2020 Season, Michael Tilson Thomas will assume the title of Music Director Laureate of the San Francisco Symphony, and will continue to conduct the Orchestra for a minimum of four weeks each season in addition to other special projects. In anticipation of the celebratory 25th anniversary season of the MTT/SFS partnership, the next two years will feature signature recording projects, festivals, commissioning of new works, staged productions, a two-week tour of the United States in 2018–2019, and a three-week European tour in 2019–2020.
Today's Birthdays
Roger Quilter (1877-1953)
Eugen Jochum (1902-1987)
Bruno Bjelinski (1909-1992)
Victoria de Los Angeles (1923-2005)
William Mathias (1934-1992)
Lyle Lovett (1957)
and
Stephen Crane (1871-1900)
Grantland Rice (1880-1954)
A. R. Gurney (1930-2017)
Edward Said (1935-2003)
and from the Composers Datebook:
On this day in 1830, Chopin’s friends in Warsaw throw a festival “bon voyage” dinner for the composer-pianist on the eve of his departure for Paris. As it turned out, he would never return to his native land.
Eugen Jochum (1902-1987)
Bruno Bjelinski (1909-1992)
Victoria de Los Angeles (1923-2005)
William Mathias (1934-1992)
Lyle Lovett (1957)
and
Stephen Crane (1871-1900)
Grantland Rice (1880-1954)
A. R. Gurney (1930-2017)
Edward Said (1935-2003)
and from the Composers Datebook:
On this day in 1830, Chopin’s friends in Warsaw throw a festival “bon voyage” dinner for the composer-pianist on the eve of his departure for Paris. As it turned out, he would never return to his native land.
Tuesday, October 31, 2017
Today's Birthdays
Louise Talma (1906-1996)
August Everding (1928-1999)
Colin Tilney (1933)
Odaline de la Martinez (1949)
Naji Hakim (1955)
and
Jan Vermeer (1632-1675)
John Keats (1795-1821)
Susan Orlean (1955)
from The New Music Box:
On October 31, 1896, the Boston Symphony premiered the Gaelic" Symphony in E Minor by Mrs. H.H.A. Beach (Amy Marcy Cheney Beach), the first symphony by an American woman ever publicly performed.
and from the Composers Datebook:
On this date in 1933, Arnold Schoenberg, accompanied by his wife, baby daughter, and family pet terrier "Witz," arrives in New York on the liner Isle de France.
August Everding (1928-1999)
Colin Tilney (1933)
Odaline de la Martinez (1949)
Naji Hakim (1955)
and
Jan Vermeer (1632-1675)
John Keats (1795-1821)
Susan Orlean (1955)
from The New Music Box:
On October 31, 1896, the Boston Symphony premiered the Gaelic" Symphony in E Minor by Mrs. H.H.A. Beach (Amy Marcy Cheney Beach), the first symphony by an American woman ever publicly performed.
and from the Composers Datebook:
On this date in 1933, Arnold Schoenberg, accompanied by his wife, baby daughter, and family pet terrier "Witz," arrives in New York on the liner Isle de France.
Monday, October 30, 2017
Today's Birthdays
Peter Warlock (Philip Arnold Heseltine) (1894-1930)
Stanley Sadie (1930-2005)
Frans Brüggen (1934-2014)
Grace Slick (1939)
René Jacobs (1946)
James Judd (1949)
Shlomo Mintz (1957)
and
Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751-1816)
André Chénier (1762-1794)
Ezra Pound (1885-1972)
Robert Caro (1935)
Stanley Sadie (1930-2005)
Frans Brüggen (1934-2014)
Grace Slick (1939)
René Jacobs (1946)
James Judd (1949)
Shlomo Mintz (1957)
and
Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751-1816)
André Chénier (1762-1794)
Ezra Pound (1885-1972)
Robert Caro (1935)
Sunday, October 29, 2017
Six more composers named in Portland Piano International commissioning project
From the press release:
Portland Piano International / SOLO is pleased to be a part of building piano repertoire for the 21st century by commissioning 12 new works for solo piano. In 2016, we announced the first six composers for this project, and we are pleased to announce the names of the six talented Oregon composers who are completing the Commissioning Project. Each new work is five to ten minutes long and must be inspired by an earlier composer’s work. Young Rising Star pianists from across the globe work closely with the composers and then premiere these new pieces in free, interactive concerts in Portland and around Oregon.
The composers who have been commissioned for the final six compositions are:
Jay Derderian, Portland, OR
Brent Weaver, Newberg, OR
David Schiff, Portland, OR
Darrell Grant, Portland, OR
Renee Favand See, Portland, OR
Kenji Bunch, Portland, OR
This past summer Rising Star Elisabeth Tsai premiered Jay Derderian’s work titled In the Tides I Break, a work inspired by Henry Cowell’s Tides of Manaunan (composed in 1917). In September, Rising Star Sam Hong premiered a composition by George Fox University professor Brent Weaver. Weaver’s work, Two Intermezzos, is inspired by the Intermezzos of Brahms, with a musical connection with American musical styles such as jazz, folk music and more recent popular styles.
“To make sure that these new pieces are documented and have a life beyond the performances, we record them at Westwind Farm Studio,” explains executive director Ellen Bergstone Wasil. “The video and audio recordings of the entire group of 12 new works will be released later in 2018. We’ll also link to where the sheet music can be purchased. The diversity of the commissions and the skill of the performers creates a rich musical landscape that highlights the breadth and depth of Oregon’s composers.”
The Commissioning Project is funded through a Creative Heights Grant from The Oregon Community Foundation. In August 2014 Portland Piano International was selected as one of only 13 organizations statewide for the first round of these new grants, which were established through the Fred W. Fields Fund.
-----
PS: The first six composers named in the commissioning project are
David Crumb
Jack Gabel
Sarah Zipperer Gaskins
Bryan Johanson
Michael Johanson
Greg Steinke
Portland Piano International / SOLO is pleased to be a part of building piano repertoire for the 21st century by commissioning 12 new works for solo piano. In 2016, we announced the first six composers for this project, and we are pleased to announce the names of the six talented Oregon composers who are completing the Commissioning Project. Each new work is five to ten minutes long and must be inspired by an earlier composer’s work. Young Rising Star pianists from across the globe work closely with the composers and then premiere these new pieces in free, interactive concerts in Portland and around Oregon.
The composers who have been commissioned for the final six compositions are:
Jay Derderian, Portland, OR
Brent Weaver, Newberg, OR
David Schiff, Portland, OR
Darrell Grant, Portland, OR
Renee Favand See, Portland, OR
Kenji Bunch, Portland, OR
This past summer Rising Star Elisabeth Tsai premiered Jay Derderian’s work titled In the Tides I Break, a work inspired by Henry Cowell’s Tides of Manaunan (composed in 1917). In September, Rising Star Sam Hong premiered a composition by George Fox University professor Brent Weaver. Weaver’s work, Two Intermezzos, is inspired by the Intermezzos of Brahms, with a musical connection with American musical styles such as jazz, folk music and more recent popular styles.
“To make sure that these new pieces are documented and have a life beyond the performances, we record them at Westwind Farm Studio,” explains executive director Ellen Bergstone Wasil. “The video and audio recordings of the entire group of 12 new works will be released later in 2018. We’ll also link to where the sheet music can be purchased. The diversity of the commissions and the skill of the performers creates a rich musical landscape that highlights the breadth and depth of Oregon’s composers.”
The Commissioning Project is funded through a Creative Heights Grant from The Oregon Community Foundation. In August 2014 Portland Piano International was selected as one of only 13 organizations statewide for the first round of these new grants, which were established through the Fred W. Fields Fund.
-----
PS: The first six composers named in the commissioning project are
David Crumb
Jack Gabel
Sarah Zipperer Gaskins
Bryan Johanson
Michael Johanson
Greg Steinke
Today's Birthdays
Harold Darke (1888-1976)
Vivian Ellis (1904-1996)
Václav Neumann (1920-1995)
Jon Vickers (1926-2015)
James Dillon (1950)
Lee Actor (1952)
James Primosch (1956)
and
James Boswell (1740-1795)
Harriet Powers (1837-1910)
Henry Green (1905-1973)
David Remnick (1958)
Vivian Ellis (1904-1996)
Václav Neumann (1920-1995)
Jon Vickers (1926-2015)
James Dillon (1950)
Lee Actor (1952)
James Primosch (1956)
and
James Boswell (1740-1795)
Harriet Powers (1837-1910)
Henry Green (1905-1973)
David Remnick (1958)
Saturday, October 28, 2017
Today's Birthdays
Giuditta Pasta (1797-1865)
Howard Hanson (1896-1981)
Dame Cleo Laine (1927)
Carl Davis (1936)
Howard Blake (1938)
Kenneth Montgomery (1943)
Naida Cole (1974)
and
Evelyn Waugh (1903-1966)
John Harold Hewitt (1907-1987)
Francis Bacon (1909-1992)
John Hollander (1929-2013)
Anne Perry (1938)
Howard Hanson (1896-1981)
Dame Cleo Laine (1927)
Carl Davis (1936)
Howard Blake (1938)
Kenneth Montgomery (1943)
Naida Cole (1974)
and
Evelyn Waugh (1903-1966)
John Harold Hewitt (1907-1987)
Francis Bacon (1909-1992)
John Hollander (1929-2013)
Anne Perry (1938)
Friday, October 27, 2017
Today's Birthdays
Niccolò Paganini (1782-1840)
Helmut Walcha (1907-1991)
Conlon Nancarrow (1912-1997)
Dominick Argento (1927)
Julius Eastman (1940-1990)
Håkan Hardenberger (1961)
Vanessa-Mae (1978)
and
Lee Krasner (1908-1994)
Dylan Thomas (1914-1953)
Roy Lichtenstein (1923-1997)
Sylvia Plath (1932-1963)
Zadie Smith (1975)
Helmut Walcha (1907-1991)
Conlon Nancarrow (1912-1997)
Dominick Argento (1927)
Julius Eastman (1940-1990)
Håkan Hardenberger (1961)
Vanessa-Mae (1978)
and
Lee Krasner (1908-1994)
Dylan Thomas (1914-1953)
Roy Lichtenstein (1923-1997)
Sylvia Plath (1932-1963)
Zadie Smith (1975)
Thursday, October 26, 2017
Today's Birthdays
Hans Leo Hassler (1564-1612)
Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757)
Johan Helmich Roman (1694-1758)
Mahalia Jackson (1911-1972)
György Pauk (1936)
Christine Brewer (1955)
Natalie Merchant (1963)
Sakari Oramo (1965)
and
Andrei Bely (1880-1934)
Napoleon Hill (1883-1970)
John Arden (1930-2012)
Andrew Motion (1952)
Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757)
Johan Helmich Roman (1694-1758)
Mahalia Jackson (1911-1972)
György Pauk (1936)
Christine Brewer (1955)
Natalie Merchant (1963)
Sakari Oramo (1965)
and
Andrei Bely (1880-1934)
Napoleon Hill (1883-1970)
John Arden (1930-2012)
Andrew Motion (1952)
Wednesday, October 25, 2017
Arnaldo Cohen no longer artistic director at Portland Piano International
Earlier this year, Portland Piano International and its artistic director, Arnaldo Cohen parted ways. Founder and longtime artistic director Harold Gray will step into the AD role and curate the 2018/2019 SOLO Piano Series. According to executive director Ellen Bergstone Wasil, PPI's board of directors will engage a guest curator for the 2019/2020 season. The guest curator will be announced in teh fall of 2018.
Today's Birthdays
Thomas Weelkes (1576-1623)
Johann Strauss II (1825-1899)
Georges Bizet (1838-1875)
Don Banks (1923-1980)
Galina Vishnevskaya (1926-2012)
Peter Lieberson (1946)
Diana Burrell (1948)
Colin Carr (1957)
Midori (1971)
and
Pablo Picasso (1881-1973)
John Berryman (1914-1972)
Anne Tyler (1941)
Johann Strauss II (1825-1899)
Georges Bizet (1838-1875)
Don Banks (1923-1980)
Galina Vishnevskaya (1926-2012)
Peter Lieberson (1946)
Diana Burrell (1948)
Colin Carr (1957)
Midori (1971)
and
Pablo Picasso (1881-1973)
John Berryman (1914-1972)
Anne Tyler (1941)
Tuesday, October 24, 2017
List of Van Cliburn winners who have appeared with Portland Piano International
Two weeks ago I heard Van Cliburn winner Yekwon Sunwoo's performance at Portland Piano International. His concert was outstanding, and I wrote a glowing review for International Piano magazine. I then asked Portland Piano International's executive director, Ellen Bergstone Wasil, for a list of Van Cliburn winners who have been presented by PPI. Here is her answer:
Beginning in 1985 with pianist José Feghali, Portland Piano International has presented the Gold Medalist of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in the season following his/her win.
Vadym Kholodenko (2013)
Haochen Zhang (2009)
Alexander Kobrin (2005)
Stanislav Ioudenitch (2001)
Olga Kern (2001)
Jon Nakamatsu (1997)
Simone Pedroni (1993)
Alexei Sultanov (1989)
José Feghali (1985)
Five other Cliburn Gold Medalists performed for Portland Piano International but not during the season after they won.
Andre-Michel Schub (1981)
Steven De Groote (1977)
Vladimir Viardo (1973)
Radu Lupu (1966)
Ralph Votapek (1962)
Only two of the Gold Medalists have not graced our stage: Nobuyuku Tsujii (2009 co-winner with Haochen Zhang) and Christina Ortiz (1969).
Beginning in 1985 with pianist José Feghali, Portland Piano International has presented the Gold Medalist of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in the season following his/her win.
Vadym Kholodenko (2013)
Haochen Zhang (2009)
Alexander Kobrin (2005)
Stanislav Ioudenitch (2001)
Olga Kern (2001)
Jon Nakamatsu (1997)
Simone Pedroni (1993)
Alexei Sultanov (1989)
José Feghali (1985)
Five other Cliburn Gold Medalists performed for Portland Piano International but not during the season after they won.
Andre-Michel Schub (1981)
Steven De Groote (1977)
Vladimir Viardo (1973)
Radu Lupu (1966)
Ralph Votapek (1962)
Only two of the Gold Medalists have not graced our stage: Nobuyuku Tsujii (2009 co-winner with Haochen Zhang) and Christina Ortiz (1969).
Today's Birthdays
Ferdinand Hiller (1811-1885)
Imre [Emmerich] Kálman (1882-1953)
Conrad Leonard (1898-2003)
Paul Csonka (1905-1995)
Tito Gobbi (1913-1984)
Luciano Berio (1925-2003)
George Crumb (1929)
Sofia Gubaidulina (1931)
Malcolm Bilson (1935)
Bill Wyman (1936)
George Tsontakis (1951)
Cheryl Studer (1955)
and
Sarah Josepha Hale (1788-1879)
Moss Hart (1904-1961)
Denise Levertov (1923-1997)
Norman Rush (1933)
Imre [Emmerich] Kálman (1882-1953)
Conrad Leonard (1898-2003)
Paul Csonka (1905-1995)
Tito Gobbi (1913-1984)
Luciano Berio (1925-2003)
George Crumb (1929)
Sofia Gubaidulina (1931)
Malcolm Bilson (1935)
Bill Wyman (1936)
George Tsontakis (1951)
Cheryl Studer (1955)
and
Sarah Josepha Hale (1788-1879)
Moss Hart (1904-1961)
Denise Levertov (1923-1997)
Norman Rush (1933)
Monday, October 23, 2017
Today's Birthdays
Albert Lortzing (1801-1851)
Miriam Gideon (1906-1996)
Denise Duval (1921-2016)
Ned Rorem (1923)
Lawrence Foster (1941)
Toshio Hosokawa (1955)
"Weird Al" Yankovic (1959)
Brett Dean (1961)
and
Robert Bridges (1844-1930)
Johnny Carson (1925-2005)
Nick Tosches (1949)
Laurie Halse Anderson (1961)
Miriam Gideon (1906-1996)
Denise Duval (1921-2016)
Ned Rorem (1923)
Lawrence Foster (1941)
Toshio Hosokawa (1955)
"Weird Al" Yankovic (1959)
Brett Dean (1961)
and
Robert Bridges (1844-1930)
Johnny Carson (1925-2005)
Nick Tosches (1949)
Laurie Halse Anderson (1961)
Sunday, October 22, 2017
Today's Birthdays
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Sir Donald McIntyre (1934)
Elizabeth Connell (1946)
and
John Reed (1887-1920)
John Gould (1908-2003)
Doris Lessing (1919-2013)
From the Writer's Almanac:
It was on this day in 1883 that the Metropolitan Opera House opened with a performance of Faust. The opera was based on Goethe's German poem, and it was composed in French, but it was sung in Italian. The New Yorkers who designed the opera house wanted it to have an Italian feel, so they had it built with a palazzo on Broadway, and Italian was the language of choice.
There was already an opera house in New York, the Academy of Music, near Union Square. It was one of the main gathering places of the city's high society, who watched each other from the opera boxes as eagerly as they watched the opera itself. But there were only 18 opera boxes at the Academy of Music, and in the 1870s a whole generation of industrial millionaires were emerging in New York. These nouveau riche were not so welcome at the Academy of Music, or in any of the social circles of old money. But they wanted a place to display themselves, so they decided to build their own opera house. Seventy people got together and pooled $1.7 million to buy land and build a concert hall. They put in three levels with 36 box seats in each, more than enough for everyone.
In The Age of Innocence, Edith Wharton wrote:
"On a January evening of the early seventies, Christine Nilsson was singing in Faust at the Academy of Music in New York.
"Though there was already talk of the erection, in remote metropolitan distances 'above the Forties,' of a new Opera House which should compete in costliness and splendor with those of the great European capitals, the world of fashion was still content to reassemble every winter in the shabby red and gold boxes of the sociable old Academy. Conservatives cherished it for being small and inconvenient, and thus keeping out the 'new people' whom New York was beginning to dread and yet be drawn to; and the sentimental clung to it for its historic associations, and the musical for its excellent acoustic, always so problematic a quality in halls built for the hearing of music."
Sir Donald McIntyre (1934)
Elizabeth Connell (1946)
and
John Reed (1887-1920)
John Gould (1908-2003)
Doris Lessing (1919-2013)
From the Writer's Almanac:
It was on this day in 1883 that the Metropolitan Opera House opened with a performance of Faust. The opera was based on Goethe's German poem, and it was composed in French, but it was sung in Italian. The New Yorkers who designed the opera house wanted it to have an Italian feel, so they had it built with a palazzo on Broadway, and Italian was the language of choice.
There was already an opera house in New York, the Academy of Music, near Union Square. It was one of the main gathering places of the city's high society, who watched each other from the opera boxes as eagerly as they watched the opera itself. But there were only 18 opera boxes at the Academy of Music, and in the 1870s a whole generation of industrial millionaires were emerging in New York. These nouveau riche were not so welcome at the Academy of Music, or in any of the social circles of old money. But they wanted a place to display themselves, so they decided to build their own opera house. Seventy people got together and pooled $1.7 million to buy land and build a concert hall. They put in three levels with 36 box seats in each, more than enough for everyone.
In The Age of Innocence, Edith Wharton wrote:
"On a January evening of the early seventies, Christine Nilsson was singing in Faust at the Academy of Music in New York.
"Though there was already talk of the erection, in remote metropolitan distances 'above the Forties,' of a new Opera House which should compete in costliness and splendor with those of the great European capitals, the world of fashion was still content to reassemble every winter in the shabby red and gold boxes of the sociable old Academy. Conservatives cherished it for being small and inconvenient, and thus keeping out the 'new people' whom New York was beginning to dread and yet be drawn to; and the sentimental clung to it for its historic associations, and the musical for its excellent acoustic, always so problematic a quality in halls built for the hearing of music."
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