Caldwell-Titcomb
Reviewed By Caldwell Titcomb Much attention has rightly been paid to Stephen Sondheim, who has reached the age of 80 and is the greatest composer/lyricist our country has produced. Boston University got into the act by mounting a production of Merrily We Roll Along in the large B.U. Theatre for a five-day run (April 28–May…
Read MoreReviewed By Caldwell Titcomb Opera Boston is winding up its season with a delightful production of Jacques Offenbach’s La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein (1867). This operetta, one of more than 100 of Offenbach’s works for the music stage, followed closely after three of his most accomplished contributions: La Belle Hélène (1864), Barbe-Bleue (1866), and La Vie…
Read MoreBy Caldwell Titcomb May 1: The month kicks off with an unusual concert celebrating the noted tuba player Kenneth Amis, who joins the MIT Wind Ensemble. Amis will play his own “Concerto for Tuba” (2007), along with the premiere of his “Bell-Tone’s Ring,” and pieces by famous European composers. At MIT’s Kresge Auditorium, 48 Massachusetts…
Read MoreMozart wrote some wonderful music in Idomeneo for his wind players, who were up to the task under the capable baton of David Angus. Reviewed By Caldwell Titcomb Turning out an enormous amount of music in a host of genres during his short life (1756–91), Mozart felt that opera was his most important task. It…
Read MoreLeonard Bernstein was the most charismatic conductor of the last century, and Gustavo Dudamel is the most charismatic one of this century. By Caldwell Titcomb I provided a lengthy update on the phenomenal conductor Gustavo Dudamel here in December. But now there is important fresh news about him. He actually came to town this weekend…
Read MoreReviewed By Caldwell Titcomb Now celebrating its 20th anniversary, the St. Lawrence String Quartet (SLSQ) came to town for an April 9 Jordan Hall concert under the sponsorship of the Celebrity Series. Geoff Nuttall (violin) and Lesley Robertson (viola) are founding members, while Christopher Constanza (cello) joined in 2004 and Scott St. John (violin) in…
Read MoreReviewed By Caldwell Titcomb The noted pianist Ursula Oppens is no stranger to the standard repertory, but she has for decades been an ardent champion of new music for her instrument. Indeed, she has commissioned and premiered works by 15 or 20 composers. In Harvard’s Blodgett Distinguished Artists Series, she gave an April 1 recital…
Read MoreReviewed By Caldwell Titcomb Yo-Yo Ma is the greatest living cellist. Now 54, he has been playing the cello for 50 years amassing a huge number of awards and other honors along the way. The Celebrity Series coaxed him home from his world-wide touring for a sold-out Symphony Hall recital on March 26 with British…
Read MoreReviewed By Caldwell Titcomb I was not able to catch Ariadne auf Naxos until the last of six performances that the Boston Lyric Opera (BLO) presented at the Shubert Theatre. By this time everything was clicking superbly—both the singers and the instrumentalists in the pit. What we got was a production that the BLO imported…
Read More