Music
1932 results
Page 138
"Tannhäuser': Blasphemy or piety?
The TannhÓ¤user riddle: What was Wagner's game?
Is Tannhäuser a religious opera, or sacrilegious? Put the blame on Wagner, a composer who insisted on his right to partake of both worlds.
Articles
4 minute read
On sitting in Verizon's "conductor's circle'
The other side of the podium, or: ‘You can practically read their scores'
The conductor's circle at Verizon Hall may not be the best place to hear violin concertos and subtle nuances. But sitting so close to the musicians should appeal to anyone who appreciates intensity and passion.
Articles
4 minute read
Piffaro's Renaissance Christmas
Pagans and Christians on common ground
On a single Christmas program, Piffaro managed to combine our mix of pagan rite, Christian holy day and All-American party-time.
Articles
4 minute read
Jazz pianist Trudy Pitts: an appreciation
In sushi heaven with Trudy Pitts
What defines a musical treasure? For me, it was the pleasure that the jazz pianist and organist Trudy Pitts brought to many a weekend evening and Sunday brunch.
Khaner/Abramovic concert at Settlement
Composers propose, performers dispose
Flutist Jeffrey Khaner and pianist Charles Abramovic demonstrated what two superb musicians can do with music intended merely for gifted amateurs.
Articles
3 minute read
The Met's "Don Carlo': The high-def screen version
Little details make a big difference
What's the difference between a live opera performance and a high-definition screen transmission? Like night and day, to judge from the Met's Don Carlo. On screen, for one thing, singers can whisper. For another, you can notice whose portrait is in a jewel box.
Articles
2 minute read
Tempesta di Mare channels Couperin and Louis XIV
Music for the royal couch potato
Some people spend Sunday reading the New York Times. Louis XIV summoned Francois Couperin and his court chamber players, who keenly understood audience psychology.
Articles
4 minute read
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Monteverdi Vespers by Choral Arts and Piffaro (3rd review)
Monteverdi's magnificent job application
To appreciate Monteverdi's Vespers of 1610, it helps to understand the age and the place in which it was composed. In effect this operatic pioneer was following in Michelangelo's artistic footsteps.
Articles
4 minute read
Are symphonies really dying? (A response)
Are symphonies really dying? Count them for yourself. (I did.)
BSR contributor Robert Zaller laments the demise of the symphony in our times. Out of curiosity, I conducted a census of symphonic composers from Haydn to the present. The surprising numbers and ratios I found suggest almost the opposite conclusion.
Articles
5 minute read
La Scala's "Walkure' on the high-def big screen
La Scala and Die Walkure: Not quite ready for our close-up, Mr. DeMille
The good news: The miracle of high-definition TV saved me the hassle of a plane trip to La Scala's opening night. The bad news: This new production of Wagner's Die Walkure was the dullest in my memory, and La Scala made no concessions to the demands of large-screen cinema.
Articles
5 minute read