Mendelssohn Club's Cathedral program

The space is the thing

Some musical works are deliberately theatrical; others become theatrical in the right venue, as the Mendelssohn Club's recent program at Philadelphia's grandest cathedral reminded us.

Oct 27, 2012 · Articles · 3 minute read

Philadelphia Orchestra's Verdi "Requiem' (2nd review)

God (or Yannick) grant us eternal rest

Yannick Nézet-Séguin approached Verdi's Requiem much as Eugene Ormandy once did: revealing the warm sound of the Philadelphia Orchestra, accommodating his quartet of famous singers and paying close attention to the libretto's intimate thoughts about death.

Steve Cohen

Oct 23, 2012 · Articles · 4 minute read

Dolce Suono's "Debussy and Jazz'

Do I hear a saxophone?

Dolce Suono opened its season-long Debussy celebration by surveying the composer's relationship with jazz and that often-disrespected instrument, the saxophone.

Tom Purdom

Oct 23, 2012 · Articles · 3 minute read

Philadelphia Orchestra's Verdi "Requiem' (1st review)

A very promising start

With his spectacular rendition of Verdi's already spectacular Requiem, Yannick Nézet-Séguin demonstrated his faith in the Philadelphia Orchestra's future, as well as his ability to make believers of the rest of us.

Dan Rottenberg

Oct 21, 2012 · Articles · 4 minute read

Orchestra's opening night

Yannick's inaugural: Just one slight problem

The Philadelphia Orchestra's opening concert amply demonstrated its musicians' ability to deliver memorable moments. Now, if only their managers could deliver an audience.

Dan Rottenberg

Oct 20, 2012 · Articles · 3 minute read

On music and politics

From Beethoven to Wagner: The political uses and abuses of music

What was Beethoven trying to say about Napoleon? What was Shostakovich trying to say about Stalin? Whom am I voting for? And why does it matter?

Kile Smith

Oct 20, 2012 · Articles · 5 minute read

Piffaro's "Renaissance Towns'

The next best thing to a time machine

For 21st-Century Renaissance musicians, mastering a musical instrument is merely one of many challenges. They spend much of their professional lives studying the playing styles and even the ornaments of five centuries ago.

Tom Purdom

Oct 16, 2012 · Articles · 3 minute read

Opera Company's "La Bohème'

With a litle help from Van Gogh and Renoir

When computer programs bring Impressionist paintings to life, an old chestnut like La Bohème becomes a whole new experience without sacrificing its setting or story.

Steve Cohen

Oct 02, 2012 · Articles · 4 minute read

Chamber Orchestra: Brossé, Beethoven and Gatto

The Belgian connection

Dirk Brossé opened the Chamber Orchestra season with one of his own pieces and introduced Americans to a high-powered fellow Belgian violinist.

Tom Purdom

Oct 02, 2012 · Articles · 3 minute read

Choral Arts' Rachmaninov "Vespers'

Cossacks in the cathedral

Choral Arts Philadelphia presented Rachmaninov's Vespers in an ideal setting, even if the Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul rests on a slightly different religious tradition.

Tom Purdom

Oct 02, 2012 · Articles · 3 minute read