Jonathan Blumhofer

Classical Concert Review: Boston Philharmonic Orchestra plays Bruckner’s Symphony No. 8

October 16, 2021
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This was an epic performance of an epic piece, steeped in Brucknerian character.

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Classical Concert Review: Boston Symphony Orchestra plays Strauss and Mozart

October 12, 2021
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Andris Nelsons’s conception of Strauss’s Tod und Verklärung was impressive, marked by strong contrasts of character, flexibility of phrasing, and a commendable grasp of musical space.

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Classical Music CD Review: The Aptly Named “Enigma” String Quartet

October 10, 2021
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I’m not entirely sure if Enigma just adds up to the sum of its parts or if it, in fact, exceeds them. Either way, it is music of stirring, striking originality.

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Classical Music Preview: Catching Up and Looking Ahead with Benjamin Zander on the BPO/BPYO Season

October 9, 2021
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For Benjamin Zander and his musicians – as for all of us – it was a strange, even desperate, several months.

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Classical Album Review: The British Project

October 5, 2021
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This is an all-English album whose strongest moments are mighty and who’s most intriguing piece is a revelation.

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Classical Album Review: Cellist Maya Beiser plays Philip Glass

September 26, 2021
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Some tracks work better than others, but Maya Beiser’s larger effort succeeds in presenting Glass’s music in a more nuanced – and musically complex – light.

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Classical Album Review: Pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason’s “Summertime” — A Keeper

September 25, 2021
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A thoughtfully conceived, technically excellent, beautifully recorded, and expressively rich album that celebrates 20th-century piano music by (mostly) American composers.

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Classical Album Review: The Nash Ensemble — Bruch’s Chamber Music

September 20, 2021
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One could hardly ask for more persuasive Bruch advocacy than what the Nash Ensemble offers here.

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Classical Album Review: Escher String Quartet — Barber & Ives String Quartets

September 19, 2021
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Here is an outstanding recording from the Escher String Quartet of music by two stylistically divergent 20th-century American composers, Samuel Barber and Charles Ives.

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Classical Album Review: Composer Joan Tower’s “Strike Zones”

September 3, 2021
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For Joan Tower fans, this disc is a must; for the Tower-curious, it offers an excellent introduction to the composer’s wider work, all of it compellingly played.

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