What concerts are you looking forward to? (Part II)

[bhodges]

Will be in Chicago next week and will catch a few Grant Park Symphony concerts...

Grant Park Orchestra
Carlos Kalmar, conductor
ZOFO, piano duo

Anna Clyne: This Midnight Hour
Franz Schubert: Symphony No. 8, Unfinished
Carl Vine: Zofomorphosis (World Premiere)


Grant Park Orchestra
Carlos Kalmar, conductor
Simone Lamsma, violin​​​​​​

Erich Wolfgang Korngold: Violin Concerto
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 11, The Year 1905

Sorry, meant to express "yay" for these concerts, especially the Shostakovich, which isn't performed that often. It is really powerful live. But that Vine looks interesting, too. Please report if you like.

--Bruce

[bhodges]

Looking forward to hearing this interesting program later on BBC Radio 3:

Xiayin Wang (piano)
BBC Philharmonic
Kerem Hasan (conductor)

Price: The Oak (first UK broadcast)
Gershwin: Piano Concerto in F
Kapustin: Divertissement Op.91
Immanuel Davis (flute), Adam Kuenzel (flute), Pitnarry Shin (cello), Timothy Lovelace (piano)
Shostakovich: Symphony No.10

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0018yph

--Bruce

[Ganondorf]

Hopefully, if I can spare enough money, the tickets haven't been all sold out yet and if covid doesn't prevent it for the millionth time, Die Walküre in next month, of the first completely Finnish production of Ring. Saw Rheingold in 2019 autumn just before the outbreak of covid and it was awesome.

[VonStupp]

The Ravinia Festival is kicking off tonight (program below). I don't know how often I will take the train in, but I hope to at least see Bernstein's Kaddish Symphony on July 30.

VS

Julia Perry: Study for Orchestra
Rimsky-Korsakov: Sheherazade
PI Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto 1

Stewart Goodyear, piano
Chicago SO - Marin Alsop

[bhodges]

The Ravinia Festival is kicking off tonight (program below). I don't know how often I will take the train in, but I hope to at least see Bernstein's Kaddish Symphony on July 30.

VS

Julia Perry: Study for Orchestra
Rimsky-Korsakov: Sheherazade
PI Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto 1

Stewart Goodyear, piano
Chicago SO - Marin Alsop

That looks like a lot of fun. The Minnesota Orchestra did that Perry piece recently and it's worth hearing. And the Rimsky-Korsakov is always worth hearing, if only for a reminder of its magical orchestration. And then you have Goodyear, who is quite excellent.

--Bruce

[VonStupp]

That looks like a lot of fun. The Minnesota Orchestra did that Perry piece recently and it's worth hearing. And the Rimsky-Korsakov is always worth hearing, if only for a reminder of its magical orchestration. And then you have Goodyear, who is quite excellent.

--Bruce

A review from the evening. Since Ravinia is an outdoor affair, perfect acoustics are rarely in play.

https://chicagoclassicalreview.com/2022/07/alsop-cso-open-ravinia-with-late-romantic-favorites-after-a-poignant-tribute/

VS

[TheGSMoeller]

Will be in Chicago next week and will catch a few Grant Park Symphony concerts...

Grant Park Orchestra
Carlos Kalmar, conductor
ZOFO, piano duo

Anna Clyne: This Midnight Hour
Franz Schubert: Symphony No. 8, Unfinished
Carl Vine: Zofomorphosis (World Premiere)


Grant Park Orchestra
Carlos Kalmar, conductor
Simone Lamsma, violin​​​​​​

Erich Wolfgang Korngold: Violin Concerto
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 11, The Year 1905

Sorry, meant to express "yay" for these concerts, especially the Shostakovich, which isn't performed that often. It is really powerful live. But that Vine looks interesting, too. Please report if you like.

--Bruce

Interesting turn of events occurred with these concerts. Their principal conductor, Carlos Kalmer, tested positive for covid 4 hours before the first program. They called in a local Chicago based organist/conductor, can't recall his name, but since the Carl Vine was a world premiere and the Anna Clyne piece is new-ish they had to scrap them and replace it with Beethoven's Egmont Ovt, and Tchaikovsky's Romeo & Juliet Ovt. The ZOFO duo did perform the Vine Piano Sonata for two pianos in between the orchestral works, which was really cool. The orchestra/conductor also had no rehearsals with the Egmont and R&J so the performance was sort of a blind run-through but Grant Park is compiled of professionals so you would've never known, they sounded great. 

And unfortunately they had to scrap the DSCH, they called in the music director, either current or incoming, of the Oregon Symphony but he was not comfortable with the DSCH 11th so they changed to Brahms 1st Symphony. Which again sounded great but already seeing the Brahms several times live I would've preferred the DSCH, which is one of the few of his symphonies I'm dying to see live.

So not the ideal programming I wanted to see, but shit happens and the orchestra reacted wonderfully and provided two great evenings at Millennium Park. And Chicago might be my favorite city so I always enjoy visiting.

On an even sadder note the following concert was to be N-RK's Russian Easter Overture, which was also scrapped, and it features one of the few solos for a 2nd-trombone, and my brother is the 2nd-trombonist of Grant Park so I felt his disappointment 
The orchestra's President even apologized to my brother when they announced the program change. 

[bhodges]

Wow, sorry that the virus zapped everything, especially with such interesting programming. Things are being cancelled left and right this summer.

Glad you enjoyed anyway! And hope Kalmar is OK.

--Bruce

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

Tonight at Ravinia:

Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Marin Alsop, conductor

Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 (Pastoral)
Strauss: An Alpine Symphony

Hm, I detect a nature theme here. We've got some friends visiting from Europe and are planning to picnic on the lawn. Hope it doesn't rain!

[Brian]

Man, I am super bummed on behalf of Greg (and his trombone playing friend).

Alpine Symphony is a ton of fun to see live. I had the pleasure of introducing my parents to it live - they hadn't heard it before - with Dallas/Luisi right before the pandemic, and they really enjoyed it.

[Christo]

Next week, Saturday, Amsterdam Concertgebouw:

Liszt, Second Piano Concerto
Mendelssohn, Symphony No. 4 'Italian' (an old favourite)
Tchaikovsky, Romeo and Juliette

Alexandre Kantorow, piano
Belgian National Orchestra under Hugh Wolff

Hugh Wolff is now replaced by Antony Hermus, the new chef of the orchestra; the repertoire remains the same. Am preparing myself by playing Alexandre Kantorow's version of the same concerto on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-9GpHjPCnc

Last time I was there was maybe 2005? After an initial visit I fell in love with the hall, and made maybe a dozen trips there over 7-8 years -- just to hear the orchestra. This was mostly during the Chailly years, so there were many fine concerts afoot. Also other groups, like the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, and some chamber music in the smaller recital hall. But in the main hall, pretty much everyone sounds splendid.

--Bruce

Great to learn! Many thanks, hope to enjoy it as much as you did.

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

Alpine Symphony is a ton of fun to see live.

And so it was. I was sitting in the pavilion, so I had a good view of the CSO and better sound than the picnickers on the lawn got. Possibly the biggest orchestra I've ever seen on a stage, and of course loud as hell.

I also like the fun, aspirational vibe of the piece ("Yay, let's all go up the mountain!").

[Mirror Image]

And so it was. I was sitting in the pavilion, so I had a good view of the CSO and better sound than the picnickers on the lawn got. Possibly the biggest orchestra I've ever seen on a stage, and of course loud as hell.

I also like the fun, aspirational vibe of the piece ("Yay, let's all go up the mountain!").

Very nice! This is one piece I'd love to see live, especially with an orchestra of the CSO's caliber. I bet that horn section was off-the-charts!

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

Very nice! This is one piece I'd love to see live, especially with an orchestra of the CSO's caliber. I bet that horn section was off-the-charts!

The whole brass section was predictably awesome, really tremendous! Also the enhanced percussion with wind machine and thunder sheet. Everyone got their deserved bows at the end and the audience was appropriately enthusiastic! Great outdoor music, and we lingered on the lawn for about an hour afterwards, drinking wine and snacking. A great experience 

[Mirror Image]

The whole brass section was predictably awesome, really tremendous! Also the enhanced percussion with wind machine and thunder sheet. Everyone got their deserved bows at the end and the audience was appropriately enthusiastic! Great outdoor music, and we lingered on the lawn for about an hour afterwards, drinking wine and snacking. A great experience 

Sounds like a great way to spend a day.

[vandermolen]

Proms Concert London (18th August)

Sibelius: Symphony No.7

Beethoven: Piano Concerto No.4

Nielsen: Symphony No.4 'The Inextinguishable'

[VonStupp]

Osvaldo Golijov: Rose of the Winds
Leonard Bernstein: Symphony No. 3 'Kaddish'

Janai Brugger, soprano
Jaye Ladymore, narrator

Kayhan Kalhor, kamancheh
David Krakauer, klezmer clarinet
Cristina Pato, gaita (Galician bagpipes)
Michael Ward-Bergeman, hyper-accordion

Chicago Children's Choir
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Marin Alsop, conductor

Tonight - I have been looking forward to Ravinia's Kaddish performance for some time, a work I never really expected to hear live.

VS

[André]

Proms Concert London (18th August)

Sibelius: Symphony No.7

Beethoven: Piano Concerto No.4

Nielsen: Symphony No.4 'The Inextinguishable'

Jeffrey, you're going ?  Let us know how it was !

[Mirror Image]

Jeffrey, you're going ?  Let us know how it was !

You'll have to wait until August 18th for the answer to the second question.

[André]

You'll have to wait until August 18th for the answer to the second question.

Isn't that obvious ?