Music
Halka struts its stuff, impressively, in this new recording with an all-Polish cast conducted by internationally renowned Gabriel Chmura.
Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony have ways of digging into the music and providing new perspectives on it such that their recordings are, by and large, can’t-miss events.
May the Boston Symphony – which just concluded its annual weekend celebrating the music of Black composers by shunting them off on their own, away from Rachmaninoff, Strauss, Beethoven, and Friends – take note: this is how it should be done.
The book’s main contention is clearly correct: Dylan’s lyrics aren’t everything, and his vocal delivery is eminently important. But, according to Larry Starr, every period is a golden one, and the most minor effort deserves major respect.
New CD releases provide splendid performances of remarkable American music, from Barber and Bernstein to recently rediscovered Black composers Florence Price and William Grant Still.
With its wide-ranging textual and musical materials, this “church parable” stands as one of Benjamin Britten’s most striking creations.
One of pianist Edward Simon’s strengths is his ability to be simultaneously romantic and clear-headed, precise and suggestive.
The range of Kurt Elling’s repertoire is astonishing and his program at Jimmy’s was commensurately ambitious.
Jane Ira Bloom responded to her pandemic isolation with a CD of duets with bassist Mark Helias and a CD of duets with drummer Allison Miller. These two sessions are unique projects in her discography and beautiful testaments to her ingenuity.
I spoke with Jane Ira Bloom on September 21, 2021 via Zoom. This transcript has been edited for space and ellipses have been omitted for readability. Some paraphrases and details are added for clarity.
Recent Comments