The Classical Chat Thread

[kishnevi]

Fresh from Forbes:



AUG 5, 2015
The 2015 Bayreuth Festival Ring: Das Rheingold

...The Rhinemaidens were a terrific trio, extremely even and very good and saucy
actresses all, svelte blondes, sexed-up lascivious bombshells with ankles to which
no English critic could object....

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jenslaurson/2015/08/05/the-2015-bayreuth-festival-ring-das-rheingold/

My first thought on seeing that photo was of the opening scene in Guys and Dolls.

[jlaurson]

Just for you, I shall have some forthcoming (on ionarts)! 

Voila!

http://ionarts.blogspot.com/2015/08/production-photos-from-bayreuth.html

[Karl Henning]

My first thought on seeing that photo was of the opening scene in Guys and Dolls.

♫ I tell you Paul Revere, now this is no bum steer:
It's from a handicapper that's real sincere!

[jlaurson]

Fresh from Forbes:



AUG 5, 2015
The 2015 Bayreuth Festival Ring: Die Walküre

...But one casts Botha for his voice and has to accept that, dramatically, he
isn't the bee's knees, being easily out-acted by the more talented of the two
live turkeys in the cage. His preferred modus operandi is to stand there, arm
stretched out to the sides, and let us have it – and we take it pretty gladly...

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jenslaurson/2015/08/05/the-2015-bayreuth-festival-ring-das-rheingold/

2015 Bayreuth Festival, Walküre, Act I
courtesy Bayreuth Festival, © Enrico Nawrath

[Karl Henning]

Leonard Slatkin's 10 Forgotten American Masterpieces

(Ken may be relieved that there is no Mennin on the list.)

[Karl Henning]

Ouch! Schuman's name is misspelled . . . .

[Ken B]

Leonard Slatkin's 10 Forgotten American Masterpieces

(Ken may be relieved that there is no Mennin on the list.)

Blocked at work! Maybe it's that suggestive name, Slatkin.
I will look at home.

Update. A good list. I do not know two of them, so some listening to do!

[jlaurson]

Fresh from Forbes:



AUG 5, 2015
The 2015 Bayreuth Festival Ring: Die Walküre

...But one casts Botha for his voice and has to accept that, dramatically, he
isn't the bee's knees, being easily out-acted by the more talented of the two
live turkeys in the cage. His preferred modus operandi is to stand there, arm
stretched out to the sides, and let us have it – and we take it pretty gladly...

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jenslaurson/2015/08/05/the-2015-bayreuth-festival-ring-das-rheingold/

2015 Bayreuth Festival, Walküre, Act I
courtesy Bayreuth Festival, © Enrico Nawrath

More production photos from that performance here: http://ionarts.blogspot.com/2015/08/production-photos-from-bayreuth_8.html

[jlaurson]

Fresh from Forbes:



AUG 6, 2015
The 2015 Bayreuth Festival Ring: Siegfried

...Wolfgang Koch, who continues his smarmy, drunken, sleazy, seedy Wotan with most admirable gusto and believability, certainly shows that it's not for lack of will or skill on his part... seeing that he gets plenty to do in the third act, when he summons Erda. It's perhaps the most touching moment of this Siegfried, when the washed-up Wotan, ex-lover, gets together with Erda, his aged, long-time favorite ho, for a spaghetti dinner and too much wine, in a scene full of recriminations and regrets and make-up blow jobs. When Wotan-Wanderer is supposed to pay up (the waiter catching Erda in flagrante), he realizes he's just a bit short on cash and with the words "Dort seh' ich Siegfried nahn!" ("Woha, I think Siegfried approaches!") he's off, properly welshing and leaving Erda with the bill and the audiences in stiches. It's not the only moment that garnered laughter, but there could have still been more, seeing that Siegfried is supposed to be a comedy and that Castorf certainly has the irreverent streak that lends itself to comedy....

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jenslaurson/2015/08/07/the-2015-bayreuth-festival-ring-siegfried/

2015 Bayreuth Festival, Siegfried, Act III
courtesy Bayreuth Festival, © Enrico Nawrath

[jlaurson]

Fresh from Forbes:




AUG 6, 2015
The 2015 Bayreuth Festival Ring: Götterdämmerung

...After the excellently sung, superbly conducted, and rather warmly received Rhein-
gold, Walküre, and Siegfried, the last of the tetralogy's operas, Götterdämmerung,
felt like a triumph. Never mind the boos, when Castorf came out...

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jenslaurson/2015/08/08/the-2015-bayreuth-festival-ring-gotterdammerung/

2015 Bayreuth Festival, Goetterdaemmunger, Act II
courtesy Bayreuth Festival, © Enrico Nawrath

[TheGSMoeller]

  

Petrenko Does Suk, But That's A Good Thing
Review by: David Hurwitz

http://www.classicstoday.com/review/petrenko-does-suk-but-thats-a-good-thing/

[Karl Henning]

I love Amazon.com's honesty...

Groovy!

Separately:

There are no underrated composers, there are only composers that are known, all whom are rated correctly, and unknown composers, who have no rating at all but for the most part are unknown for a reason.

Such unblinking faith in the status quo is pretty to see!

[jochanaan]

Voila!

http://ionarts.blogspot.com/2015/08/production-photos-from-bayreuth.html

Mmmm.  And they can sing too, or so I've read.

[jlaurson]

Here are more production photos from the other Ring operas... and Tristan photos soon to follow: http://ionarts.blogspot.com/search/label/Bayreuth%20Festival

Meanwhile, fresh from Forbes:



AUG 22, 2015
The 2015 Bayreuth Festival: Tristan & Isolde

...And then King Marke himself who entered, goodness gracious, all Colonel Mustard in a pimp-coat evidently tailored from the trombone-yellow carpet of Bayreuth's last Tristan production (Christoph Marthaler's, quite boring itself, but a thriller compared to this). I felt like playing a bored [sic] game: The mystery is solved! Melot! With the dagger! In the high-security bicycle shed! Nobody wins. Can we go home now?....

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jenslaurson/2015/08/07/the-2015-bayreuth-festival-ring-siegfried/

2015 Bayreuth Festival, Tristan, Act II
courtesy Bayreuth Festival, © Enrico Nawrath

[Brian]

Stories like this are why I check eClassical's daily deal every day. Robert von Bahr writing about one of BIS's Bartok CDs:



"A nice memory, this one, to celebrate my birthday on. Actually, this was the very first CD I recorded in my (then) new house, where we had lifted up my Bösendorfer 275 concert grand through a hole in the wall to a huge attic in the dilapidated enormous house we just bought and took another 10 years to really get up to snuff. Robin McCabe and Bob Aitken came over to Sweden from the US and Canada, stayed with us for the better part of a month and made 2 piano solo and 2 flute/piano LP:s in the house. This is the first, a Bartók programme, incl. Allegro barbaro, a favourite piece of mine. Since the LP was too short for a CD, I included a song cycle, sung by the baritone Rolf Leanderson (who also doubled as my throat and ear doctor) and his wife. Yes, happy memories."

[Brian]

Applying to a job at the Seattle Symphony this week.

[Mirror Image]

Applying to a job at the Seattle Symphony this week.

For?

[Brian]

For?

Nice try, I don't want any competition

Nah, it's a gig in their communications department.

[Karl Henning]

Conquer!

[TheGSMoeller]

Nice try, I don't want any competition

Nah, it's a gig in their communications department.

Good luck, Brian!