Metropolitan Opera on Demand. Wagner's Die Walkure. Watched July 23, 2024.

Performance Date: April 8, 1989.

Conductor - James Levine.  Brunnhilde - Hildegard Behrens, Sieglinde - Jessye Norman, Fricka - Christa Ludwig, Siegmund - Gary Lakes, Wotan - James Morris, Hunding - Kurt Moll; Helmwige - Katarina Ikonomu, Ortlinde - Martha Thigpen, Gerhilde - Pyramid Sellers, Waltraute - Joyce Castle, Siegrune - Diane Kesling, Rossweisse - Jacalyn Bower, Grimgerde - Wendy Hillhouse, Schwertleite - Sondra Kelly.

Metropolitan Opera on Demand. Wagner's Das Rheingold. Watched July 19, 2024.

Performance Date: April 23, 1990.

Conductor - James Levine.   Wotan - James Morris; Loge - Siegfried Jerusalem; Alberich - Ekkehard Wlaschiha; Fricka - Christa Ludwig; Freia - Mari-Anne Haggander; Froh - Mark Baker; Donner - Alan Held; Fasolt - Dan-Hendrik Rootering; Fafner - Matti Salminen; Rheinmaidens - Diane Kesling, Meredith Parsons, Kaaren Erickson; Mime - Heinz Zednik; Erda - Birgitta Svenden.

An Otto Schenk production.

Metropolitan Opera on Demand. Wagner's Gotterdammerung. Watched July 17, 2024.

Performance Date: February 11, 2012.

Conductor - Fabio Luisi.  Norns - Maria Radner, Elizabeth Bishop, Heidi Melton; Brunnhilde - Deborah Voigt; Siegfried - Jay Hunter Morris; Gunther - Iain Paterson; Hagen - Hans-Peter Konig; Gutrune - Wendy Bryn Harmer; Waltraute - Waltraud Meier; Alberich - Eric Owens; Woglinde - Erin Morley; Wellgunde - Jennifer Johnson Cano; Flosshilde - Tamara Mumford.

Balourdet Quartet. July 15, 2024.

Richardson Auditorium at Princeton University.  Orchestra Level (Seat L17, free).

Program

String Quartet No. 23 in F Major, K. 590 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791).

String Quartet No. 4 "Strange Machines" by Karim Al-Zand (b. 1970).

String Quartet No. 16 in F Major, Op. 135 by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827).

Artists

Angela Bae, Justin DeFilippis, violins; Benjamin Zannoni, viola; Russell Houston, cello.

This was the last of four concerts for the Princeton University Summer Chamber Concerts this year; and was the second one we attended.

Both the Mozart and the Beethoven quartets were the last quartets written by the composers, in June 1790 and October 1826 respectively.  The four movements of the Mozart quartet are Allegro moderato; Andante; Menuetto: Allegretto; and Allegro.  For Beethoven they are: Allegretto; Vivace; Lento assai, cantante e tranquillo; and "Der schwer gafasste Entschluss" Grave, ma no troppo tratto - Allegro.

Al-Zand is a well-known composer (at least from what was announced from the stage) who now teaches at Rice University.  The three movements that comprise his quartet are Alberti Machine; Goldberg Machine; and Mannheim Machine.

The quartet members all look quite young.  The quartet itself was formed in 2018 (or soon after), and is named after Antoine Balourdet, a chef at the Taos School of Music.  (That's a new one, I guess with so many quartets being formed, it's difficult to find a name that stands out.)  They all looked like they enjoyed making music together, with no one dominating the performance.  The two violinists took turns being the lead, DeFilippis led the Mozart and Al-Zand pieces, while Bae led the Beethoven.  Every now and then there were intonation problems, perhaps unavoidable in a close-up chamber performance.

Ruth Ochs provided some commentary before the Mozart and Beethoven pieces.  She pointed out both were the last quartets the composers wrote (but didn't mention when they were written), and that F Major has a pastoral feel to it.  For the Beethoven quartet she linked the "Must it be? It Must be." notation in the manuscript to an artists being paid, which I thought trivialized what Beethoven intended to say, whatever that might be.  She also mentioned the key of the third movement (D-flat Major) could present intonation problems to the performers.  That may be true.  I was also under the impression that since composers often choose this key as there are no "open string" notes, thus giving the music a special (melancholy, perhaps) characteristic as the natural resonances are suppressed.

It was quite imaginative for Al-Zand to conceive what the movements of his quartet should be.  The "Alberti bass" is a common way to write accompaniment for instrument music (I am familiar with the sound, not not the term), it was used as the basis for the first movement.  The name Goldberg brings to mind the Goldberg variations in the music world, and Rube Goldberg inventions in others.  The second movement basically is Rube Goldberg ending as the Goldberg theme.  The Mannheim movement describes how the sound and fury of a rocket launch end up fizzling out.  That is the gist of the description given by DeFilippis (who delivered it in an engaging manner).  One could find Al-Zand's description of this work on his website.  The break between the second and third movements was difficult to discern.

For encore, the quartet play Haydn's Op. 33, Movement 3, "The Bird."

Today was very warm (mid 90s during the day), so we were thankful the AC in the auditorium was working.

Metropolitan Opera on Demand. Wagner's Siegfried. Watched July 13, 2024.

Performance Date:  November 5, 2011.

Conductor - Fabio Luisi.  Mime - Gerhard Siegel, Siegfried - Jay Hunter Morris, The Wanderer - Bryn Terfel,  Alberich - Eric Owens, Fafner - Hans-Peter Konig, The Forest Bird - Mojca Erdmann, Erda - Patricia Bardon, Brunnhilde - Deborah Voigt.

Metropolitan Opera on Demand. Wagner's Die Walkure. Watched July 10, 2024.

Performance Date: May 14, 2011.

Conductor - James Levine; Siegmund - Jonas Kaufmann, Sieglinde - Eva-Maria Westbroek, Hunding - Hans-Peter Konig, Wotan - Bryn Terfel, Brunnhilde - Deborah Voigt, Fricka Stephanie Blythe, Gerhilde - Kelly Cae Hogan, Helmwige - Molly Fillmore, Waltraute - Marjorie Elinor Dix, Schwertliete - Mary Phillips, Ortlinde - Wendy Bryn Harmer, Siegrune - Eve Gigliotti, Grimgerde - Mary Ann McCormick, Rossweisse - Lindsay Ammann.

Anne and I watched this over three days.

We saw the same opera on May 5, 2011.  That day James Levine was ill and another conductor was at the podium.  The principal actors were the same (I didn't note the names of the other eight daughters).

Metopera on Demand. Wagner's Das Rheingold. Watched July 6, 2024.

Performance Date: October 9, 2010.

Conductor - James Levine; Woglinde - Lisette Oropesa, Wellgunde - Jennifer Johnson, Flosshilde - Tamara Mumford, Alberich - Eric Owens, Fricka - Stephanie Blythe, Wotan - Bryn Terfel, Freia - Wendy Bryn Harmer, Fasolt - Franz-Josef Selig, Fafner - Hans-Peter Konig, Froh - Adam Diegel, Donner - Dwayne Croft, Loge - Richard Croft, Mime - Gerhard Siegel, Erda - Patricia Bardon.

We have tickets to the Ring cycle at Bayreuth next month.  To prepare for that I would try to watch the cycle beforehand.  To that end I subscribed to Met Opera on Demand - it helped that they were running a special.

The was the first season the 24-plank set was used.

Ulysses Quartet. June 23, 2024.

Richardson Auditorium, Alexander Hall, Princeton, NJ.  (Orchestra level, Seat L21, free).

Program

Wild Summer by Joan Tower (b, 1938).

Traditional Folk Songs arr. Danish String Quartet.

   Hur var du i aftes sa sildig

   Unst Boat Song

   The Dromer

String Quartet in E-flat Major by Fanny Hansel Mendelssohn (1805-1847).

Quartet No. 15 in A minor, Op. 132 by Beethoven (1770-1827).

Artists

Christine Bouey and Rhiannon Banerdt, violin; Peter Dudek, viola; Grace Ho, cello.

For this summer we should be able to attend a few of these Princeton University Summer Chamber Concerts.  This was the first one.

Per the description in the Program Sheet, this group was formed a few years ago, and has managed to make quite a name for itself.  Listening to their performance today, it's easy to understand why.  Their sounds were clear, they were in sync, the balance was excellent.  I don't know enough about the pieces to comment on how well they were interpreted.

Ruth Ochs, a professor at Princeton, spoke of the pieces (except the folk songs) at the beginning of both halves of the program.  The information might have been useful in my appreciation of the pieces, but too bad I had forgotten most of them by the time I heard the actual performance.  It would take a lot more work, but some written notes would have been useful.

Joan Tower is an 85-year old American composer who was described as "one of the most successful woman composers of all time" in her Wikipedia entry.  This was the first time I heard of her, or her music.  Contrast that with Caroline Shaw and Jesse Montgomery, who seem to appear in many programs nowadays.  "Wild Summer" is a delightful piece that showcases the different instruments of the quartet.

For reasons unclear to me, Ochs referred to Fanny Mendelssohn more by her married name (Hansel).  Mendelssohn was regarded as a great pianist in her days, her compositions have gained more in popularity these days, but - fairly or unfairly - are seldom the central piece of a program.  Today's quartet is quite substantial.  The four movements are Adagio ma non troppo, Allegretto, Romanze, and Allegro molto vivace.

I wasn't aware Beethoven had composed a quartet that was about 50 minutes long (about the same as Eroica).  It is also unusual in that it has five movements: Assai sostenuto - Allegro; Allegro ma non tanto; Molto adagio; Alla marcia, assi vivace; Allegro appassionato.  (And no Allegro con brio!)  The middle movement is 16 minutes in duration, and consists of 5 sections (thanks to Ochs description), and there was no pause between the last two movements.

The folk songs were from Northern Europe, transcribed for a quartet by the Danish String Quartet.  At times the music reminds me of bayou music.  Banerdt, the second violin, described what the folk songs were.

The concert started at 4 pm on a Sunday, another unusual aspect of these summer concerts.  Today was a sweltering hot day, so I was relieved that Richardson Auditorium had adequate air conditioning.  The concert lasted more than two hours, so at intermission I had to go out and feed more coins to the parking meter - Princeton now charges parking on Sundays (1 pm - 8 pm).

Hoboken Children's Theater. The Little Mermaid. June 16, 2024.

Hoboken Children's Theater.  Stalls ($5).

Maisie was in the play and had roles as a "sea folk" (fish?) and Carlotta.

New Jersey Symphony. Xian Zhang, conductor; Daniil Trifonov, piano. June 8, 2024.

Count Basie Theater, Red Bank, NJ.  Orchestra Center (Seat R120, $68).

Program

Porgy and Bess: A Symphonic Picture (1943) by George Gershwin (1898-1937)/arr. Robert Russell Bennett (1894-1981).

Autumn Days and Nights (2023-24) by Daniel Bernard Roumain (b. 1971).

Concerto in F Major for Piano and Orchestra (1925) by Gershwin.

The numbers from Porgy and Bess included in the suite.

This was the final series for the season.  On tap were two pieces of American classics, a new piece (and a world premiere to boot) by NJ Symphony's resident catalyst Roumain, and the well-known pianist Trifonov.

With due respect to the composer, arranger, and the orchestra's musicianship and talent, the "Symphonic Picture" is best characterized as a crowd pleaser, with the many familiar tunes from Porgy and Bess.  And it served that function well.

This is the last season where Roumain serves as the catalyst at NJ Symphony.  I have encountered the name many times during his tenure, but have heard his music (same composition) only twice.  That piece, "I am a white person who ... Black people," was composed before he came to NJ Symphony.  (The second time had a different orchestration, as I recall.)  He came out to describe his piece, this time there were more social justice elements to his description.  Tonight's was the third time the piece was performed (this being the third concert in the series).  To me the earlier piece was a lot more accessible.  I wasn't sure where the music was going, and why the title "Autumn Days and Nights" was appropriate, especially given DBR's explanation.  He described the last 10 minutes as a passacaglia with various "things" happening over a series of repeated bass notes (calling it a theme can be considered overselling).  That indeed was the case, but "so what?"

DBR being acknowledged after his composition was performed.

After the intermission we heard Gershwin's piano concerto.  I saw Trifonov perform the same concerto with the National Youth Orchestra All Stars earlier this year at Carnegie Hall, conducted by Nezet-Sequin.  For that event I was sitting way up in the balcony; tonight I was in Row R (17th row).  Here I could both see and hear the performance clearly, and it was amazing how Trifonov pulled it off with ease.  Some writeups on the concerto describe the three movements as "fast jazz, blues, and faster jazz" (actual markings are Allegro; Adagio-Andante con moto; Allegro agitato), and there is a lot of truth to that.

For an encore he played Prokofiev: Three Pieces from "Cinderella," Op. 95: II. Gavotte.  I found the title via Google, which also describes it as a "song by Trifonov and Prokofiev."

The concert ended after Trifonov came out and bowed to the audience twice, rather quickly.

I noticed the absence of the principal bass, and one of the members of the violin section.  They often perform as extras at NY Phil concerts.  I saw the bassist at David Geffen Hall on Thursday, so her absence for this series is expected (though not quite explainable), I didn't see the violin player, though.

The concert was reasonably well-attended (by NJ Symphony standards), although there were still quite a few empty seats.  And when I walked up to the balcony during intermission, I noticed many sections were entirely empty.  Such is the state of the art in NJ.

New York Philharmonic. Jaap van Zweden, conductor. June 6, 2024.

David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center.  Orchestra (Seat AA119, $84).

Program

Symphony No. 2 in C minor, Resurrection (1888-94) by Mahler (1880-1911).

Artists

Hanna-Elisabeth Muffer, soprano; Ekaterina Gubanova, mezzo-soprano.

New York Philharmonic Chorus - Malcolm J. Merriweather, director.

This was it, the last concerts of van Zweden's tenure with the NY Phil.

I did come to the concert with high expectations.  No matter what one's view of van Zweden's success as the NY Phil Music Director, a farewell concert carries with it nostalgia, sadness, (self-)reflection, and hope for a new beginning, among other emotions.  (For the record, I have enjoyed going to concerts he led.)  To boot, this would be the first time (as far as records in this blog go, and per my memory) I got to hear Mahler's second symphony, and this would complete the cycle of nine symphonies for me.

While Mahler provided a program for this composition on a couple of occasions, he ultimately withdrew them, thus leaving the interpretations to the performers and the audience.  Since those programs are still available, it would be difficult not to associate what one hears with the stories/scenes Mahler was trying to describe; that there are lyrics in the last two movements make it near impossible.  Of course the vastness and complexity of the work allows for different specific interpretations of what one hears at a particular movement, that there are stories being told in each movement is inescapable.

One can find many references to the "plot."  The one found in today's Program Notes is distilled from Mahler's three known explanations: the struggles of a titanic (or at least "well-loved") hero, his succumbing to fate and to death, the striving of the soul toward God, the inner experience of redemption, and so on.  I find the description in the book "Beauty and Sadness" by David Vernon particularly convincing and mesmerizing.  I was surprised that I ended up hearing something slightly different from what I had in mind going into the concert.  Indeed the first movement (Allegro maestoso) describes death and man's struggle with it, with the soft note at the end signifhing resignation, or that all is lost.  The second movement  (Andante moderato) is a delightful landler, broken up a couple of times by dark passages.  It was what 'peace' would be like (most of the time, anyway).  The third movement (in quietly flowing motion) the stirrings of discontent and grief reappear in the scherzo, punctuated by the "death shriek" chord (B-flat major/C), which is also used to start the last movement.  The title of the fourth movement (Primal Light: Very solemn, but simple) is self-explanatory.  The poem from Des Knaben Wunderhorn describes how the protagonist (or, if one prefers, the hero) refuses to be turned away from God.  The last movement, with a tempo marking of "In the speed of the scherzo - Allegro energico - Slow, mysterious," started with a long passage of instrumental music before the voices joined in.  The words to the poems written by Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock and Mahler clearly point to a resurrection (aufersteh'n, ja aufersteh'n wirst du; was vergangen, auferstehen!).   The Program Notes makes a distinction between The Resurrection (Christian) and the resurrection Mahler had in mind - a rebirth of the individual into immortal triumph.  One could argue the words Mahler chose are more of the former kind.  Perhaps it should simply be left to the listener to interpret what the words mean?  (I am sure Mahler did not have the meaning spelled out, although he was widely regarded as an atheist.)

This was a powerful symphony, even a memorable one.  In terms of personal impact, it didn't quite rise to the level of the third symphony performed in March 2023 by the LA Phil, conducted by Zubin Mehta.  Nonetheless it held my attention for the entire 85 or so minutes.  The choice of the work to mark van Zweden's end with the New York Philharmonic is natural.  I first thought van Zweden was using this to describe his experience the last few years, and his hope for the future.  The Program Notes describes the decision as "conveying a message composed more than 100 years ago by one of his most eminent predecessors on our podium pointing to the Orchestra's future, while also saying farewell to the players and audiences who has accompanied his journey here."  Fair enough.

The symphony uses a lot of instruments, and a couple of off-stage ensembles.  The New York Philharmonic Chorus had its inaugural concerts in the 2022-23 season - that explains why I had never see it before; I wonder if they will now be used regularly as the chorus for NY Phil concerts.  Both vocalists stood out in their brief appearances (even less for the soprano).  They were on stage for close to an hour for those passages.  One could argue an opportunity to participate in such a production is worth the wait.

Van Zweden was recalled to the stage many times by the enthusiastic applause of the audience.

I remember a report that Yo-Yo Ma saying to Alan Gilbert at the end of Gilbert's tenure of the NY Phil that (paraphrase) "you have been the music director of the NY Phil, there is nothing more to prove."  The same must be said of van Zweden.  Looking back on my blog entries, it was interesting that both Lorin Maazel (No. 8, June 2009) and Alan Gilbert (No. 7, June 2017) performed a Mahler symphony as their last program with with New York Philharmonic.

Anne couldn't make the trip, so I asked CS to join.  We met up at the auditorium, and afterwards he took the subway to Penn Station to catch a train, and I got off Port Authority to catch a bus for Hoboken.

New Jersey Symphony. Xian Zhang & Jessica Rivero Altarriba, conductors; Min Kwon, piano. June 1, 2024.

Count Basie Theater, Red Bank, NJ.  Orchestra Center (Seat G101, $46).

Program

Fanfare from The King's Row by Korngold.

Suite from Lieutenant Kije by Prokofiev.

Adagio sostenuto from Piano Concerto No. 2 by Rachmaninoff.

The Ride of the Valkyries from Die Walkure by Wagner/Hutschenruyter.

Imperial March from Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back by John Williams.

Hedwig's Theme from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by Williams.

Selections from Star Wars by Williams

- Anakin's Theme from Episode I: The Phantom Menace.

- Princess Leia's Theme from Episode IV: A New Hope.

- Rey's Theme from Episode VI: The Force Awakens.

- Main Title from Episode IV: A New Hope.

Host - Brett Boles.

Zhang led the first half of the program.

This concert wasn't part of the NJ Symphony "season" we got last year.  Our crowded calendar made it necessary to switch to tickets for this concert.  Anne was feeling well enough that she decided she could attend, I did drop/off close to Count Basie so she didn't have to do the long(ish) walk from the Red Bank Train Station.

The concert had two conductors: Zhang did the first half, consisting of pieces from Korngold, Prokofiev, and Rachmaninoff; Altarriba, a Colton Fellow originally from Cuba, conducted the second half, which featured John Williams music scores from well-known movies.  The host, Brett Boles from Connecticut, provided some interesting (and often funny) commentary during the concert.

The concert did generate a few takeaways for me.  The most prominent aspect is Altarriba conducting.  With the cooperation of the orchestra, she did an excellent job.  It also helped that many of the themes in the music were well-known.

Someone not familiar with the Korngold piece would be excused in thinking it was composed by Williams.  That Williams somehow borrowed from Korngold was news to me.  To be fair, a search of the web would return references that Williams does cite Korngold as his inspiration.

The story behind the fictional character Lieutenant Kije is quite interesting.  Boles referred to the Suite by Prokofiev as (possibly) the first time such a composition is extracted from music composed for a movie.  The five movements in the Suite refer to Kije's birth, romance, marriage, ride on a horse-drawn sleigh, and death; and it was relatively easy to follow.

Rachmaninoff's music is often used in movies and ballets.  The movement heard today was made famous by the film "Brief Encounter" (so says the Program Notes).  I do think the concerto is well-known and well-regarded in its own right, but being included in a movie makes it much wider known.

Boles provided commentary on the program which was insightful.  Why did they have to bring someone in from Connecticut?  The well-dressed person standing in attention just opened the lid on the piano.

Min Kwon performed the Rachmaninoff movement.

Altarriba enjoyed her chance to conduct in front of a live (and quite substantial) audience.

Boles also described how Anakin's theme was related to Darth Vader's theme, and that John Williams had over 60 lietmotifs in his music scores for the Star Wars episodes.  The rest of the program explored three of the character themes.

The pianist Kwon teaches at Rutgers, and she played Debussy's Clair de Lune as an encore.  At the end of the concert a Star Wars theme was played as an encore.

Attendance was very good - although still far from being sold out.  Many people treat this as a pop concert, in that talking and looking at cell phones during the performance were widely practiced.  I even got the feeling that when the music was loud those who were inclined to converse raised their voices to be heard.  Perhaps a fair price to be paid for a well-attended event.

Next week would be NJ Symphony's last program for the year, and Trifonov is performing.  I wonder how crowded the auditorium would be (two weeks in a row at Red Bank!).

One does wonder why Zhang chose to conduct only the first half.  Of course this gave Altarriba an excellent opportunity to appear before a reasonable audience, and she acquitted herself well.

New York Philharmonic. Jaap van Zweden, conductor; Igor Levit, piano. May 31, 2024.

David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center.  Orchestra (Seat T-1, $89).

Program

Sinfonia concertante in E-flat major for Violin, Viola, and Orchestra, K.364/320d (1776) by Mozart (1756-91).

Concerto No. 1 in C minor for Piano, Trumpet, and Strings, Op. 35 (1933) by Shostakovich (1906-75).

Concerto in A-minor for Violin, Cello, and Orchestra, Op. 102 (1887) by Brahms (1833-97).

Igor Levit and Christopher Martin.  Michelle Kim led the orchestra today.

Artists

For Mozart: Sheryl Staples, violin; Cynthia Phelps, viola.

For Shostakovich: Christopher Martin, trumpet.

For Brahms: Frank Huang, violin; Carter Brey, cello.

This was another "farewell" van Zweden concert, titled "Igor Levit and the Stars of the NY Phil. " Principals in the orchestra performed as soloists in the three pieces on the program.  The only exception was Levit played the piano in the Shostakovich concerto.

The Mozart and Brahms pieces are relatively familiar, and the orchestra and soloists certainly put in competent and pleasant performances.  The movements of the Mozart Sinfonia Concertante are Allegro maestoso, Andante, and Presto; of the Brahms are Allegro, Andante, and Vivace non troppo.

Cynthia Phelps and Sheryl Staples.

Frank Huang and Carter Brey.

I don't remember hearing the Shostakovich piece before, but it was surprisingly easy to follow.  Played without pause, the three movements are Lento, Moderato, and Allegro con brio.  The break between the first two movements during the performance was quite obvious, even though van Zweden had his arms up.  While listening to this piece, I thought back on the Gubaidulina concerto I heard, and could make the connection between the two composers.  The del segno passage in today's piece cemented that observation.

Levit put in a spirited rendition.  If one were simply to listen to the concerto, it would be natural to conclude that it's a piano concerto, with a rather prominent trumpet part in the orchestra.  Per the Program Notes, this was first perceived by the composer as a trumpet concerto, which eventually became a piano concerto, with the trumpet "relegated" (my word) to a supporting role.  Perhaps he forgot to re-title his work, so that's why the trumpet still gets its top billing?  In any case, there were several virtuosic passages for the instrument.

All things considered, this felt like a concert that didn't quite live up to expectations.  Certainly all the "stars" are great musicians, but the level of engagement seemed more like "a day at the office" level.  Last week I raved about the good acoustics in my seat, this week the solo instruments sounded more muddled.

There was a recent article (in the New York Times, if I recall correctly) about van Zweden's tenure at NY Phil, which basically says "unfulfilled promise" (apologies if the author didn't mean to say that).  This concert perhaps underlined that sentiment.  Instead of walking away being wowed by the programming and execution, the reaction I had was "it was nice."

Next week will be the final concert of this Farewell series, and Mahler's Resurrection Symphony is on the menu.  I certainly hope the performance will live up to the name.

The concert started at 11 am.  We left South Amboy at 8:30 am to get to Hoboken where Anne was dropped off, by the time we got back home it was around 3:30 pm.  My lunch was a Dunkin muffin bought at Port Authority.

New York Philharmonic. Jaap van Zweden, conductor; Antoine Tamestit, viola. May 23, 2024.

David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center.  Tier 2 (Seat CC03, $85).

Program

Concerto for Viola and Orchestra (1996, rev. 1998) by Sofia Gubaidulina (b. 1931).

Requiem, K. 626 (1791, completed by F.X. Sussmayr) by Mozart (1756-91).

Ave Verum Corpus, K.618 (1791) by Mozart.

Tamestit at the end of the viola concerto, with van Zweden looking on.  One can see in the front NY Phil's principal bass as part of the quartet.

A digital organ was evidently used in the concert.  One would think an organization such as NY Phil would have a "real" organ installed (even if most people can't tell the difference).  It's is the only major auditorium I've been to without a pipe organ.

Artists

Amanda Forsythe, soprano; Cecelia Hall, mezzo-soprano; Nicholas Phan, tenor; Michael Sumuel, Bass-Baritone

Musica Sacra, chorus; Kent Trittle, director. 

The New York Philharmonic's last concerts of the season constitute to a farewell to van Zweden, who will leave after the conclusion of this season.  We have tickets to the last three concerts for the "occasion."

Gubaidulina is a Russian composer who now lives near Hamburg, Germany.  Shostakovich was quoted as encouraging her to "... continue along your mistaken path," something she has carried "close to her heart."  Of course many would argue that Shostakovich chose his own mistaken path also.

This viola concerto has many interesting aspects to it.  Very noticeable is the large orchestra, and the myriad of instruments used, including the Wagner tuba, finger cymbals, piano, celesta, and an amplified harpsichord.  There is also a quartet comprising the principal players of the violin, viola, cello, and bass sections with instruments tuned a quarter-tone lower.  The piece itself is quite long (ca. 32 minutes per the Program Notes), without any distinct movements.  The violists get to play most of the time - there are only two extended passages the violist gets a break.

This must be one of the more interesting viola concertos around, and satisfying for the violists who can pull it off.  There are so many passages played in the high registers that even I could hear the notes clearly.  It is somewhat unfortunate that Tamestit had a bit of intonation problems at the top end of the fingerboard.  The harmonics, however, were well executed.  There were a couple of themes - a la Shostakovich - that were easy enough to pick out, and they provided some continuity for me.  The differently-tuned quartet was quite visible, but I simply couldn't tell how its playing affected the music.  Perhaps things would sound "sunnier" if their instruments were tuned "properly?"  If A were set at 440 Hz, then G# would be 415.3 Hz, so would the "lower" A be tuned to 427.65 Hz?  And would that drive someone with perfect pitch crazy?  During my best days as a violinist I could tell if the pitch was slightly off (never measured it, but much less than a quarter-tone, I am sure).

With modern compositions I often complain they are too long, usually after 10 minutes as I feel the composers had by that time exhausted all their ideas.  Not this one, I stayed with it for most of the 32 minutes.  Sitting in Tier 1, I could see the percussionist hitting the fourth drum of the timpani set, which was usually in the domain of the timpanist.  At one point, when I felt the the composer had run out of things to say, she kept it interesting by added an extended del segno passage for the orchestra.  (Well, sometimes I feel Schubert's Great Symphony is too long.)

Before Tamestit played an encore, he mentioned he met with Gubaidulina and the experience was like talking to one's grandmother (she will turn 93 later this year).  He probably explained how that led to the encore piece (he?) constructed out of Ukrainian melodies with some Bach thrown in.  It was an enjoyable piece.

Ken Trittle has been NY Phil's organist for a long time.  Today he figured prominently in the program, mostly through the ensemble Musica Sacra, and his role at the organ for the Ave Verum Corpus.

It is well-known that Mozart's Requiem was a commission by an anonymous wealthy patron, widely believed to be Count Walsegg.  It was to be used at the anniversary of the Count's wife, who died at age 20.  Mozart finished a few sections, sketched out a few, and didn't do much work on the rest.  Many people (even today) have attempted to complete the work, although the most widely performed version is that by his student Sussmyer.

I jot down from the Program Notes what Mozart did before he passed away: Introit, Kyrie, and Sequence (through the beginning of Lacrimosa).  Sussmyr composed the Sanctus, Benedictus, and Agnus Dei (partially drawing on ideas Mozart had shared with him).  For the Communion, Mozart's Introit and Kyrie were reused.

Ave Verum Corpus was composed in June, 1791, and describes Christ's death on the cross.

This was the first time I sat in the Second Tier of the renovated auditorium (it's been a few years), and I must say the acoustics were quite excellent.  The chorus's singing was great, and the soloists came through with their lines.

The Ave Verum Corpus was performed right after the Requiem.  Standing next to van Zweden are Sumuel, Phan, Hall, Forsythe, and Trittle.

Anne couldn't make this event due to her recent surgery, so I dropped her off at Ellie's place before taking public transportation to Lincoln Center.

Recital. Geneva Lewis, violin; Evren Ozel, piano. May 5, 2024.

Town Hall, NYC.  Orchestra (Seat N117, $15.45).

Program

Sonata for Violin and Piano in G Major, Op. 78 (1879) by Brahms (1833-1897).

Out of Doors, Sz. 81 (1926) by Bartok (1881-1945).

Sonata for Violin and Piano, Op. 7 (1997) by Fazil Say (b. 1970).

Per the Program, both Lewis and Ozel are up and coming musicians.  They were recent Avery Fisher Grant winners, which put them in great company.

I have loved the Brahms G Major sonata since I studied it in high school.  It was the first "complete" work I played, with a conservatory student playing the piano.  I still remember my mother - not a great fan of classical music - telling me how nice the melody sounded.

Lewis explained this as a work expressing Brahms's love for Clara Schumann.  Their relationship is also a mysterious and possibly sad one.  However, by the time the sonata was finished, Robert Schumann had been dead for over 20 years, and Brahms and Clara probably had parted ways (permanently) by then.  Thus I find it unlikely Clara Schumann commented on it the way Lewis described it: that she would want the third movement to accompany her to the next life.  Makes for an wistful story, though; and certainly more intriguing than simply calling that movement "raindrop."

All that aside, it was an enjoyable performance.  My only "wish" would be for a louder violin.

Bartok's piece "Out of Doors" was for piano only.  And it was Ozel's turn to talk about it before the performance.  With his reputation of being an ethnomusicologist, it's no surprise that there were considerable folk elements in the Bartok piano suite.  Ozel gave a brief description of each of the movements.  I.  With Drums and Pipes - Pesante, just as the title suggests; II. Barcarolla - Andante, boatman's song; III. Musettes - Moderato, (I forget); IV.  The Night's Muse - Lento - Un poco piu andante, what you expect to hear at night; V.  The Chase - Presto, galloping horses.  That helped considerably with my appreciation of how the music progressed.

Ozel also described how he heard and fell in love with Say's sonata at a very young age, and that he asked the piece be put into today's program.  The names of the movement certainly correlated well with how the music sounded, and Ozel described it as a romp (my word) through the Anatolian landscape.  Since I have never been to that part of Turkey (not completely true as I did visit some cities once), I will have to take his word for it.  The movements are: I.  Melancholy - Andante mysterioso, II.  Grotesque - Moderato scherzando;  III. Perpetuum Mobile - Presto; IV.  Anonymous - Andante; and V.  Melancholy (Da Capo) - Andante mysterioso.

One way to characterize the piece is a Mozart sonata on steroids.  In two senses: first, the piano part clearly dominates in terms of what the audience hears; and second, the violin part is extremely difficult, I am sure the piano part is equally virtuosic.  I can like the piece if I get a chance to be more familiar with it.

The astute observer will notice there are two more pieces in the program which I didn't describe.  I left after the Say piece.  Not because I wasn't enjoying the concert, it's that there were other things on my mind.  The day started quite early in Hackensack, I had an evening meeting, and I hadn't eaten anything since toast for breakfast.  Together with being back from Europe just a few days ago, and that this would be a busy week, I just didn't want to miss the 4:07 pm train.  Given what I heard, I am sure the last two pieces would also be nicely done.

Studio L Dance Co. 2024 Recital. May 5, 2024.

Bergen County Academies, Hackensack, NJ.  Left Section (Seat P-1, $25).

Everly is the rightmost kid in this group of purple dresses.

The Program.  Everly's group did "Make Some Noise."

The music was generally too loud.  It hit as high as 102 dB where we sat.  The little girl seemed unprepared for that level of noise.  I covered my ears a few times during the show.

I don't know how to judge dance.  But some of these moves are clearly very acrobatic.

Our youngest granddaughter goes to this academy for her dance lessons.

For this event they hired a rather large auditorium seating approximately 1200.  Not filled, but a respectable showing nonetheless.  Of course each student brought in several audience members - in Everly's case, 5.  So 200 students would fill the auditorium if all the families are equally enthusiastic; and there were easily 200 students.

Afterwards Anne and the Garssons went to P F Chang's for lunch.  I took the Route 4 Jitney (first time) to cross the GW Bridge, and then the A train to Port Authority to attend a concert in the Town Hall.

New York Philharmonic. Esa-Pekka Salonen, conductor; Sheku Kanneh-Mason, cello. May 1, 2024.

David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center.  Orchestra (Seat J103, $80).

Frank Huang, Sheku Kanneh-Mason, and Salonen at the end of the Shostakovich Cello Concerto.

Program

Concerto No. 1 for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 107 (1959) by Shostakovich (1906-75).

Symphonie fantastique: Episode de la vie d'un artiste (Fantastic Symphony: Episode in the Life of an Artist), Op. 14 (1830, rev. 1832) by Berlioz (1803-69).

Let's jump right into it, starting with the Shostakovich concerto.

Fairly or unfairly, the British cellist Kanneh-Mason is best known for performing at Harry and Meghan's wedding, believed to be seen by 2 billion (yes, B) people.  I suspect that number eclipses all other cellists - even Yo Yo Ma playing at a president's inauguration did not garner such numbers.  The natural question is: how much hype, and how much substance?

Having listened to this, there was a lot of substance.  To this non-cellist, the concerto seems impossible to play well, and they young (b. 1999) Kanneh-Mason did an excellent job.  Being seated in the tenth row, it was amazing to see how he pulled the piece off without any difficulty.  He played an encore: Prelude No. 18 by Mieczyslaw Weinberg.  (Per the review in "New York Classical Review,"  Google couldn't figure it out.)

Whenever it comes to this work, a couple of things come to mind.  One is for me the definitive performance remains the one by Alisa Weilerstein, back in 2011.  That was the performance that made me "understand" the concerto, and it was the first time I heard it.  The specifics may not stay with me, but the "spark of understanding" will always be there.  The other is this Shostakovich theme of D-S-C-H, which we heard in his quartet performed in Hamburg not even a week ago.  I am happy to say that idea still remains refreshing.

The story behind Berlioz's symphony, and Berlioz's obsession with Smithson, is well-known.  Today's Program Notes includes the notes Berlioz himself penned, although the narratives are so familiar by now that it was barely necessary.

The piece is also a showcase for an orchestra's capabilities, and NY Phil certainly met the challenges with ease.  I suspect this piece is so "standard" that the ensemble would put in a solid performance even without a conductor.  Salonen, who recently quite the San Francisco Symphony, was certainly enjoying himself.

Four harps (!) used in the Berlioz piece.

Sitting in Row J, we could clearly see Salonen enjoying the concert.  What's not to like?

In Berlioz's own words.  I suppose this was translated from the French, especially the composition was premiered in Paris.

All in all a great concert.  One could ask how these two pieces found their way into the same program.  I can offer up one compelling reason: both pieces rely heavily on their respective themes.  We talked about Shostakovich earlier, and in Berlioz's case it was the "idee fixe" that did the job.  Well, Dies Irae didn't hurt, either.

Regardless, this was an immensely enjoyable concert; and I didn't even have to prepare for it.

We were in NYC earlier in the day for Anne's medical appointments, and drove to Hoboken, parked our car, and took public transportation into the city.  It worked out well, but made for a long day.

Stevens Cooperative School. The Jungle Book Kids. April 30, 2024.

Stevens Cooperative School Jersey City.  (Free)

Reid was the Baby Elephant, Maisie a Vulture.

Notice that Reid's ears grew.

We got back from Europe the day before, and were a bit exhausted from the trip, so we skipped the 4/29 performance and attended this one instead.

In addition to the rehearsals, the kids also helped out in making the costumes and preparing the props.

The performers enjoyed themselves.  The audience had a good time.

By coincidence, this is the same play put on by the Hoboken Children's Theater earlier.  They felt very different, though.

Reid had his first solo line.

Staatsoper Hamburg. Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito. April 28, 2024.

Staatsoper Hamburg.  Parkette Links (Seat 19-8, 143 Euros).

The person in the middle of the front row (of 7) is Adam Fischer.  To his left is Sesto, and second to his right is Tito.

Story.  See previous post.

Adam Fischer - Conductor; Tito - Bernard Richter, Sesto - Michele Losier, Annio - Kangmin Justin Kim, Servilia - Katharina Konradi, Vitellia - Tara Erraught, Publio - Han Kim, Berenice - Anna Wrobel

We had seen this opera once at the Metropolitan Opera, back in 2012.  Reading over that blog entry, the conductor was Harry Bicket, and Sesto's role was sung by Elina Garanca.  I don't remember much of it.  My remarks in that entry were generally neutral, except I thought the opera was a bit long.

Certainly the performance tonight didn't feel long.  The performance started quite on time at 6 pm, and ended at 8:30 pm, and there was a 30-minute intermission in between.  By opera standards it was a short two hours.  That has to be attributed to how engaging the performance was.

A major reason for that was how well the singers did.  For the 2012 performance I recorded the confusion caused by Sesto being sung by a woman, and Annio by a countertenor.  Sitting in the Met balcony I had trouble seeing who was doing the singing.  Today I was less confused, probably because I knew the story better, and I was close enough that I could often tell which individual was doing the singing.  My other complaint with the Met performance was that Tito took forever to decide what to do with Sesto's betrayal.  Things didn't feel so tortuously protracted tonight.  Perhaps the second act was shortened, or because I was more engaged?

To say there were different sets used for the different scenes is probably an overstatement.  There is basically this "room" decorated differently to depict the different scenes.  The only "complex" element was this hole being dug, probably to represent the uncertain fate that awaited Sesto in the second act.  Four different words appeared: Delizia, Potenza, Tradimeto, and Clemenza.(delight, power, betrayal, clemency), describing the main theme of the segment of the drama.

We had seen Adam Fischer at the Met before.  He did justice - and more - to the music score.  At the Met there probably would be applause at the end of every "memorable" aria - and there were many - here Fischer seemed to strive for continuity.  His arms were up most of the time (but the audience didn't respect that!), except on a few occasions where a pause to acknowledge a great job was warranted. 

The production team also came on stage, this being the premiere for the season.

The acoustics in the hall was great.  With 1690 seats, the opera house is medium size by European standards (smallest I have been to: Zurich at 1100 seats; largest: Covent Garden at 2250 seats).  And that there were these walls behind the singers certainly helped with their sound projection.  This performance was the premiere of a 10-performance run, so I was a bit surprised that there were quite a few empty seats.  In fact I moved one seat over to have a less obstructed view of the stage.  (Northern Europe has a lot of tall people.)

The Hamburg State Opera's non-imposing exterior.  Other than the sign and the banners, it is just a building at a street corner.

Mahler was the music director of Hamburg State Opera for a few years.

The interior foyers (one on each floor) are functional, but not ornate.

View from my seat.  I moved one seat to the right and had a clear view of the stage.

The seating capacity is 1670.

Today was our last day for our trip; we would be flying back to NJ tomorrow.  We checked into a hotel near the Hamburg Airport so we wouldn't have to rush the next day.  To attend this concert would mean taking the subway (or rather the U) into town again.  Anne decided not to do it, so I went by myself.  I ate a hamburger at a nearby place before the show, and picked up a muffin at the U-station close to the hotel on my way back.