Caldwell-Titcomb
By Caldwell Titcomb Harvard’s two main volunteer musical events of the summer took place on consecutive nights in Sanders Theatre. The Summer Chorus, buttressed by a full orchestra, held forth on Friday, July 30, and the Summer School Orchestra followed on Saturday, July 31. The former was of special significance since the conductor, Jameson Marvin…
Read MoreBy Caldwell Titcomb Stephen Sondheim, the greatest genius in the history of musicals, has turned 80 this year, and there have been celebrations of all sorts to mark this milestone. London joined the hoopla by devoting its BBC Prom 19 on July 31 to a full evening drawn from Sondheim’s achievements and presented in the…
Read MoreBy Helen Epstein July 30 featured a Russian warhorse program at Tanglewood: Glinka’s “Overture to Ruslan and Ludmila”; Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, and Prokofiev’s Music from the ballet Romeo and Juliet. These are familiar (some might say over-familiar) works for orchestra, but, of course, there’s a reason they’re still being programmed.…
Read MoreBy Caldwell Titcomb August 3: The Old West Organ Society presents the award-winning, young organist Jacob Street in a program including works by Buxtehude, J. S. Bach, and Mendelssohn. He will also play music by Jean Langlais (1907-91) and Gaston Litaize (1909-91). At Old West Church, 131 Cambridge Street, Boston, MA, 8 p.m.
Read MoreReviewed By Caldwell Titcomb A large audience braved a rainy evening to attend the July 23 concert in Jordan Hall presented by the New England Conservatory Festival Youth Orchestra. (NECYFO’s YouTube Channel) The project was founded in 2000 by New England Conservatory (NEC) faculty member Aaron Kula, who remains its conductor in addition to holding…
Read MoreBy Caldwell Titcomb July 7: The Church of St. John the Evangelist offers a series of free, late-afternoon Wednesday concerts, now in their fourth year. The July series starts off with a tribute to the 200th anniversary of Robert Schumann in the form of two of the greatest song cycles ever written (both from 1840).…
Read MoreReviewed By Caldwell Titcomb The Jordan Hall stage was crammed full of 70 players for the season’s final concert by the Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP) on May 28. Under its artistic director Gil Rose, we heard music by five composers, the earliest dating from 1989. For two works the distinguished baritone Sanford Sylvan (b.…
Read MoreBy Caldwell Titcomb June 4: The Old West Organ Society presents Yuko Hayashi in an organ recital celebrating the 40th anniversary of the C. B. Fisk organ. Old West Church, 131 Cambridge Street, Boston, 7 p.m.
Read MoreOne admires not just the quality of Brian Stokes Mitchell’s voice, but his artistry in getting to the emotional heart of whatever he is singing. He has long been a national treasure. Reviewed By Caldwell Titcomb The Celebrity Series concluded its 2009-10 season with one of its finest offerings: a solo concert by Brian Stokes…
Read More