Jonathan Blumhofer

Music Feature: Top Classical Recordings of 2015

December 5, 2015
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For classical music recordings it has been a remarkably rich year, especially over its second half.

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Concert Review: Boston Symphony plays Haydn, Bartók, and Tchaikovsky

December 1, 2015
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Andris Nelsons possesses a clear fondness for Slavic music and his Tchaikovsky performances in Boston have become can’t-miss events.

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Concert Review: Boston Modern Orchestra Project’s Gunther Schuller Memorial

November 25, 2015
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As a composer, Gunther Schuller’s legacy is complex and has yet to be settled. Sorting through it all will constitute a great, welcome adventure.

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Concert Review: Boston Symphony Orchestra plays Berg and Shostakovich

November 25, 2015
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Andris Nelsons drew playing from the BSO that reveled in Alban Berg’s sense of color and musical drama.

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Concert Review: The Boston Philharmonic Orchestra plays Wagner—Superbly

November 20, 2015
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The biggest takeaway from the evening was the superb quality of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra’s playing.

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Classical Album Review: Tenor Jonas Kaufmann’s “Nessun Dorma”—Puccini Sung Right

November 4, 2015
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If you like good, smart singing, tenor Jonas Kaufmann’s Nessun Dorma:The Puccini Album disc is for you.

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Concert Review: Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra at Symphony Hall

November 3, 2015
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By any measure, this is an impressive orchestra, as technically accomplished as any number of professional ensembles, domestic and international.

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Classical CD Review: “Con eco d’amore”—Elizabeth Watts sings Scarlatti

October 21, 2015
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Soprano Elizabeth Watts’ voice is as clear as crystal in every musical context and texture.

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Rethinking the Repertoire #5: Leonard Bernstein’s “Songfest”

October 19, 2015
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Bernstein’s Songfest is Exhibit A in the argument that American orchestras and conductors need to champion the music of these shores.

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Fuse Concert Review: A High-Voltage “Elektra” at Symphony Hall

October 19, 2015
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I’ve rarely heard the Boston Symphony Orchestra playing with greater color, pliancy, or controlled energy as they delivered on Saturday night.

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