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

[(poco) Sforzando]

Yesterday morning at 11am, Patricia Kopatchinskaja with the New York Philharmonic doing the Stravinsky violin concerto under Jakub Hrusa. Since the Times had given the concert a rave review, I tumbled out of bed, quickly dressed, got a train into the city, and for $22 I picked up a rush ticket in row D center orchestra. I must say she puts on quite a show. Following a negligible opener for string orchestra by one Jessie Montgomery, PatKop emerged in a wild folk-inspired outfit, barefoot, and scratched her way through the Stravinsky - dancing, grimacing, lurching for 22 minutes in a performance more like a dancer in The Rite of Spring than a typical concert artist. Then a brief encore "Crin" by the Venezuelan Jorge Sánchez-Chiong, which combined violin-playing and nonsense syllables. The audience loved it, and her.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1TbzPjgbeA

Following intermission, a return to normalcy with a solid Brahms 1 under Hrusa. But good to see the standard staid concert world shaken up a bit by this daring Moldavian artist.

[ultralinear]

Tonight, a group calling themselves the Wigmore Soloists will be performing:

Casella  Serenata Op.46
Prokofiev  Quintet in G minor Op.39
Stravinsky  The Soldier's Tale

[Brian]

That is the group Michael Collins assembled from some chamber music "regulars" to begin recording albums for BIS. Some of their albums have been rather good.

[ultralinear]

That is the group Michael Collins assembled from some chamber music "regulars" to begin recording albums for BIS. Some of their albums have been rather good.

Interesting.  The concert blurb gave the impression that Wigmore Hall's Director had wanted a pool of musicians to draw from, to act as a "house band" on occasion according to the instrumental configuration required.  E.g. the Casella piece with violin, cello, bassoon, clarinet and trumpet.  Worked well tonight.  

[brewski]

This livestream on May 9 looks great. I heard Widmann do Graal théâtre live a few months ago, and both she and the piece were fantastic.

Lutosławski: Kleine Suite for chamber orchestra
Saariaho: Graal théâtre for violin and orchestra
Saariaho: Verblendungen for orchestra and tape
Debussy: La Mer

Carolin Widmann, Violin
Matthias Schneider-Hollek, Sound direction
SWR Symphonieorchester
Bas Wiegers, conductor

[pjme]

I"ll wait patiently for a year...May 9th 2026 - Koncertgebouw Amsterdam. 

Dutch Radio Filharmonisch Orkest and Groot Omroepkoor 
Oscar Jockel dirigent 
Benjamin Goodson chorus conductor 
Laetitia Gerards soprano,  Elina Vähälä violin 
Jockel New work voor violin, elektronics, chorus and orchestra (wereldpremière, opdrachtwerk NTR ZaterdagMatinee) 
Sibelius Vioolconcert (...boring...I can do without this overplayed favorite... )
 Ligeti Lux aeterna 
Langgaard Sfærernes Musik (Muziek der sferen) 

De jonge Duitse componist en dirigent Oscar Jockel, winnaar van de Herbert von Karajan Prijs 2023, leidt dit concert met een werk dat hij in opdracht van de ZaterdagMatinee componeert. 
Heel bijzonder op dit programma is de zelden gehoorde Muziek der sferen van de Deense componist Langgaard, in 1918 zijn tijd ver vooruit.

https://cms-assets.nporadio.nl/npoRadio4/ZM0407-Brochure-2026-2026-spreads.pdf?v=1742491875

[Christo]

De jonge Duitse componist en dirigent Oscar Jockel, winnaar van de Herbert von Karajan Prijs 2023, leidt dit concert met een werk dat hij in opdracht van de ZaterdagMatinee componeert. 
Heel bijzonder op dit programma is de zelden gehoorde Muziek der sferen van de Deense componist Langgaard, in 1918 zijn tijd ver vooruit.

My guess would be that you mean to write: The young German composer and conductor Oscar Jockel, winner of the Herbert von Karajan Prize 2023, leads this concert with a work he is commissioned to compose for the Dutch Radio 4 'Saturday Matinee'. Very special on this program is the rarely heard Music of the Spheres by Danish composer Langgaard, in 1918 far ahead of its time. 

[brewski]

On Wednesday night, this great livestream from Musicians from Marlboro, presented by the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society. Especially looking forward to the Lachenmann, which I've never heard.

Lucy Fitz Gibbon, soprano
Claire Bourg & Leonard Fu, violin
Cara Pogossian, viola
Marie Bitlloch, cello
Sahun Sam Hong, piano

Haydn: String Quartet TBA
Lachenmann: Got Lost
Mozart: String Quartet in D Major, K. 575

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Yesterday morning at 11am, Patricia Kopatchinskaja with the New York Philharmonic doing the Stravinsky violin concerto under Jakub Hrusa. Since the Times had given the concert a rave review, I tumbled out of bed, quickly dressed, got a train into the city, and for $22 I picked up a rush ticket in row D center orchestra. I must say she puts on quite a show. Following a negligible opener for string orchestra by one Jessie Montgomery, PatKop emerged in a wild folk-inspired outfit, barefoot, and scratched her way through the Stravinsky - dancing, grimacing, lurching for 22 minutes in a performance more like a dancer in The Rite of Spring than a typical concert artist. Then a brief encore "Crin" by the Venezuelan Jorge Sánchez-Chiong, which combined violin-playing and nonsense syllables. The audience loved it, and her.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1TbzPjgbeA

Following intermission, a return to normalcy with a solid Brahms 1 under Hrusa. But good to see the standard staid concert world shaken up a bit by this daring Moldavian artist.

She is one hell of a musician. I'd love to have seen that concert.

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Tonight:

Schubert  Die Zauberharfe – Overture, 'Rosamunde'
Prokofiev  Symphony No.2

London Symphony Orchestra
Gianandrea Noseda  conductor

One of the "Half Six Fix" events introduced by Simon Rattle when he took over the LSO, where for half the normal ticket price you get an early evening performance, usually of the main work from an upcoming program preceded by an introductory talk from the conductor.  Rattle's own presentation of Shostakovich's 4th Symphony proved to be a revelation in a number of ways, and already this year we had Antonio Pappano with Vaughan Williams' A Sea Symphony, so I have high expectations of this one.  Noseda may not have the starriest profile but everything I've heard from him has been excellent.

Could this be the making of a RVW cycle from Pappano I wonder? The LSO Live label have already released his performances of Symphonies Nos. 4 & 6, which I haven't heard.

[ultralinear]

Could this be the making of a RVW cycle from Pappano I wonder? The LSO Live label have already released his performances of Symphonies Nos. 4 & 6, which I haven't heard.

It's quite possible - later this year Pappano will be conducting A London Symphony, and in another program, Flos campi and Dona nobis pacem.  Alternatively it may be less of a distinct RVW cycle and more a program to promote British music generally (like Petrenko does with the RPO), as he'll also be doing some Elgar, Walton and Musgrave.  Other hands will conduct Britten, Bliss, Delius, et al.
 
The recording I'd really like to see on LSO Live is that Prokofiev #2 from Noseda - an outstanding performance that presented it like a symphonic expansion of Mosolov's Iron Foundry - an idea which has obviously occurred to others also, as Jurowski will be presenting exactly that program with the LPO next year - Iron Foundry followed by Prokofiev #2 (you also get the Paganini Rhapsody plus Anna Korsun's Terricone for good measure.)  Now that's a concert I'm really looking forward to. 

[brewski]

On Wednesday night, this great livestream from Musicians from Marlboro, presented by the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society. Especially looking forward to the Lachenmann, which I've never heard.

Lucy Fitz Gibbon, soprano
Claire Bourg & Leonard Fu, violin
Cara Pogossian, viola
Marie Bitlloch, cello
Sahun Sam Hong, piano

Haydn: String Quartet in D Minor, Op. 76, No. 2, "Fifths"
Lachenmann: Got Lost
Mozart: String Quartet in D Major, K. 575

This concert was terrific. I'd never heard the Lachenmann before (from 2008), and it's a virtuoso piece both for the soprano and the pianist (who also vocalizes). It made a great break between the Haydn and Mozart. The Haydn, originally "TBA," turned out to be Op. 76, No. 2, "Fifths," and was wonderful.

The stream is available for 3 more days.

[Christo]

Saturday afternoon, Dom Church, Utrecht, organ transcriptions of two unexpected pieces:
* Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) – Ma Mère l'Oye, 5 pièces enfantines (1911)
* Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) – Le sacre du printemps (1913)
Good old friend Jan Hage, organ, four hands with Adriaan Hoek in the Sacre.
https://domkerk.nl/evenementen/orgeltranscripties