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

[Brian]

IIRC (and there are no guarantees that I am ), I have heard only one Higdon work, a short orchestral piece called Blue Sky which was commissioned by the National Symphony Orchestra. The NSO wanted new works for encores; I thought the piece would work better as an opener, as it was thoughtful and somber. She was writing it right after 9/11. I thought it a fine work.

I think you mean blue cathedral, which is the Higdon piece I've heard and which, for reasons unknown to me, is not capitalized. I found it rather silly ... somber, somewhat Hollywoodish in colors, and with the string section making an odd whooshing sound by waving little metal rings of some kind around at the end.

That NY Phil concert sounds incredible! I would gladly attend were I in the right time zone ... and Drucker is, by this point, one of America's national musical treasures. I remember the Hurwitzer, panning a CD of the Rhapsody in Blue with the NYPO and pianist Fazil Say, writing that Drucker should have gotten top billing for his incredible opening glissando!

[owlice]

Brian, I could of course be mistaken, but I'm pretty sure that it was not blue cathedral; the work was about five minutes long. The NSO commission was for a short ensemble work to serve as an encore. I could be confusing the title with another work I heard the NSO premiere by another composer, though, called Beyond the Blue Horizon, and if that's the case, the name of the Higdon piece is probably out of my brain for good, alas!

Maybe I saved a program; will look. It was from the early part of this century, though, so I may not still have it.

[Brian]

Brian, I could of course be mistaken, but I'm pretty sure that it was not blue cathedral; the work was about five minutes long. The NSO commission was for a short ensemble work to serve as an encore. I could be confusing the title with another work I heard the NSO premiere by another composer, though, called Beyond the Blue Horizon, and if that's the case, the name of the Higdon piece is probably out of my brain for good, alas!

Maybe I saved a program; will look. It was from the early part of this century, though, so I may not still have it.

Maybe it is Blue Sky, then! I seem to remember cathedral being closer to ten minutes. Perhaps Ms Higdon should consider using another color 

[owlice]

Maybe it is Blue Sky, then! I seem to remember cathedral being closer to ten minutes. Perhaps Ms Higdon should consider using another color 

Or maybe it's by someone else entirely!! And was called purple rain!! Geez, who knows; it's all sooooo yesterday!

[Brian]

Or maybe it's by someone else entirely!! And was called purple rain!! Geez, who knows; it's all sooooo yesterday!

I don't know; I'm kind of hoping that Jennifer Higdon went through a "Blue Period"! 

[owlice]

I don't know; I'm kind of hoping that Jennifer Higdon went through a "Blue Period"! 

HA!

Her brother's middle name was "Blue," and blue cathedral was a response to his death from melanoma. (I learned this today when looking for "Blue Sky.") I would likely have remembered that association (as my younger brother died when he was 36); the little piece I heard -- whatever its title might be! -- was written after 9/11, so definitely after blue cathedral had already premiered, and whatever the work was, I was at the NSO's premiere of it.

The NSO's website was of no help whatsoever in looking for this work; I'm going to be left with pawing through stacks of Playbills to see whether I kept that one, methinks!

[owlice]

Maybe I imagined it... it's not listed on Wikipedia; surely that means it doesn't exist, right?

[stingo]

My last concert of the season - the Berlioz Requiem in Philadelphia.

[DavidRoss]

http://jenniferhigdon.com/works.html

[karlhenning]

My last concert of the season - the Berlioz Requiem in Philadelphia.

Their season runs late, doesn't it!?

What a great piece!

[owlice]

David, thanks. I didn't see the work I heard there. I'll have to see whether I still have the program. I didn't get to that this weekend, as homework, the pool, and bikeriding took precedence! Also a nap on Saturday, from which I awake at 7:50 PM, which means... I did not make it to the concert.

Karl:

What a great piece!

Indeed, despite the paucity of alto lines!

[bhodges]

Lorin Maazel is wrapping up his tenure with the New York Philharmonic, and for his final concerts in June is going out with a bang.  Tomorrow night:

Britten: War Requiem

New York Philharmonic
Lorin Maazel, conductor
Lionel Bringuier, conductor
Nancy Gustafson, soprano
Dale Rideout, tenor
Ian Greenlaw, baritone
New York Choral Artists
The Dessoff Symphonic Choir
Brooklyn Youth Chorus

--Bruce

[Renfield]

Lorin Maazel is wrapping up his tenure with the New York Philharmonic, and for his final concerts in June is going out with a bang.  Tomorrow night:

Britten: War Requiem

New York Philharmonic
Lorin Maazel, conductor
Lionel Bringuier, conductor
Nancy Gustafson, soprano
Dale Rideout, tenor
Ian Greenlaw, baritone
New York Choral Artists
The Dessoff Symphonic Choir
Brooklyn Youth Chorus

--Bruce

Impressive choice! And I was not aware Maazel was inclined towards Britten.

[bhodges]

Impressive choice! And I was not aware Maazel was inclined towards Britten.

Well, we shall see.  He may not be! 

Seriously, I don't recall ever hearing him conduct any Britten, but somehow I think he may be a good match for this score.  He does like works with very large forces: his final concerts at the end of the month are the Mahler Eighth.

--Bruce

[ChamberNut]

Last night's chamber music concert, 2008/2009 season finale (Winnipeg Chamber Music Society):

Mozart - Piano Quartet in E flat, K.493
Puccini - Crisantemi
Grieg - String Quartet in G minor, op. 27 *

*This quartet is amazing heard live.  I always loved it, but after hearing it live, I love it 10 times more.  My favorite non-Viennese string quartet.  0:)

[Sef]

Friday June 19
Chicago Symphony Orchestra

New World Symphony

Sir Mark Elder, conductor
Alisa Weilerstein, cello


Dvorák -   Carnival Overture
Dvorák -   Cello Concerto
Dvorák -   Symphony No. 9 (From the New World)

Love it, Love it, Love it.

[ChamberNut]

Friday June 19
Chicago Symphony Orchestra

New World Symphony

Sir Mark Elder, conductor
Alisa Weilerstein, cello


Dvorák -   Carnival Overture
Dvorák -   Cello Concerto
Dvorák -   Symphony No. 9 (From the New World)

Love it, Love it, Love it.

Wow, now that's a Tour-de-force Dvorak lineup!  Awesome. 

[Sef]

Wow, now that's a Tour-de-force Dvorak lineup!  Awesome.  

Yeah - CSO is in the middle of a 3 week Dvorak festival!

http://www.cso.org/main.taf?p=3,11,6&CategoryID=dvorak&SeasonID=0809

The Carnival overture was the first piece my eldest daughter played with the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra many years ago, and the 9th was just performed by the same orchestra with my youngest daughter a month ago. I'm taking them both, but I really want to hear the Cello Concerto. Despite being more interested in 20th Century music these days nothing really approaches the Dvorak Cello Concerto as the finest example of that idiom in my opinion.

[Sef]

Oh, and this, Saturday August 1

CSO at Ravinia

Salerno-Sonnenberg Returns

Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Christoph Eschenbach, conductor
Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, violin


Shostakovich -   Violin Concerto No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 99
Shostakovich -   Symphony No. 5 in D Minor, Op. 47

My belated Father's Day present.

[Gabriel]

Two recent concerts. I attended yesterday (Théâtre des Champs Élysées) a performance of Haydn's Die Jahreszeiten conducted by Christophe Rousset and played by Les Talents Lyriques. It was a good performance, not extraordinary, but very enjoyable. Today was Jordi Savall's turn (at the Salle Pleyel), conducting Monteverdi's Vespro della Beata Vergine: it was truly memorable.