By Caldwell Titcomb The world’s largest festival of classical music is the BBC Proms in London. Founded in 1895 by Sir Henry Wood (who in 1918 was offered the conductorship of the Boston Symphony Orchestra but declined), the Proms this season run for two months from mid-July to mid-September. The core of the enterprise is […]
Music
Culture Vulture: Andre Previn and the Art of Literate Conversation
by Helen Epstein Go here for information about a live-chat, scheduled for August 23rd, with Helen Epstein on “The Art of Narrative Writing.” They were around for most of my lifetime, I thought as I listened to Martin Bookspan, the 83-year-old radio announcer and music commentator and 80-year-old conductor, composer, and jazz artist Andre Previn.
Culture Vulture at Tanglewood
Another extraordinary evening at Tanglewood. No bones to pick. Just appreciation and delight. At Tanglewood: James Levine conducts BSO and Tanglewood Festival Chorus, John Oliver, Conductor; Hei-Kyung Hong, Soprano; Matthias Goerne, Baritone. (Photo Credit: Hilary Scott) by Helen Epstein It’s time that some cultural reporter with a budget explored what makes the Tanglewood Festival Chorus […]
CULTURE VULTURE IN THE BERKSHIRES
A true embarrassment of riches in the Berkshires this summer, with almost every cultural institution in the county scheduling round-the-clock events and package deals designed to attract even the least culturally interested among us. By Helen Epstein James Levine conducts pianist Leon Fleischer and the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Tanglewood (Photo Credit: Hilary Scott) Last […]
Classical Music Review: Kalifornia Kids Konquer Kambridge
By Caldwell Titcomb The Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra (PACO), made up of the most talented high-school string players in California’s Bay Area, kicked off its first East Coast tour with an impressive June 27 concert in Harvard’s Sanders Theatre before a large audience that spilled over into the balcony.
Classical Music Review: It’s ‘Sick Puppy’ Time
By Caldwell Titcomb Attention has shifted from the very old to the very new: the Boston Early Music Festival ended on June 14, and June 13 saw the start of the eight-day 2009 Summer Institute for Contemporary Performance Practice at the New England Conservatory (NEC).
Opera Review: ‘L’Incoronazione di Poppea’
By Caldwell Titcomb If you know a bit about opera, you will have heard of Verdi – but perhaps not of Monteverdi. Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643) was the first major composer in the history of opera, and the biennial Boston Early Music Festival (BEMF) is presenting his last opera, “L’Incoronazione di Poppea” (“The Coronation of Poppaea”) […]
Opera Review: ‘The Bartered Bride’
By Caldwell Titcomb In “The Bartered Bride,” Jennifer Aylmer plays Marenka, who loves the farmhand Jenik, but is pressured to marry Vasek, the son of a wealthy neighbor. Boston has had the unusual luck of experiencing two major Czech operas within a few weeks. First, the Boston Lyric Opera gave us Antonin Dvořák’s “Rusalka” (see […]
Classical Music Review: Boston Musica Viva
By Caldwell Titcomb Richard Pittman ends the 40th season of the Boston Musica Viva on a strong note. Back in 1969, Richard Pittman founded the Boston Musica Viva (BMV), the first local ensemble dedicated entirely to contemporary music. On May 1, Pittman and his colleagues wound up their 40th season with a concert of three […]
Classical Music Review: Russians Do Russians
By Caldwell Titcomb Back for a return visit to Symphony Hall on April 22 was the National Philharmonic of Russia (NPR), founded in 2003 and not to be confused with the 19-year-old Russian National Orchestra. On the podium for this Celebrity Series event was violin virtuoso Vladimir Spivakov, who will turn 65 in September and […]