HEARTbeats for Children

Listening to lots of solo cello music in preparation for a recital later this fall.  Today I am loving the Arnold Bax Folk-Tale, for cello & piano (1918):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rVPotQaCgY

All that anglo-pastoral late romanticism seems very fresh to me right now.

I'm all about the cello lately, in a semi-obsessional way.  Was looking at my "cello grand-pa's" website.  He has established a foundation that seems to be doing real, "on the ground" work for the most underserved children in the world:


http://www.heartbeatsforchildren.org/


I've been looking at non-profits a lot lately.  A lot.  More on that soon.  Not sure if I want to launch one, or merely contribute time, talent, money, and energy to an already extant organization.  Great quote from Harrell:


"Music is the international language. Devoid of politics, music is one of the greatest teaching tools of peace and is understood by all. As I approach the twilight of my career, my focus is now the future; my children’s and the world’s children.” 


I studied briefly with a student of Harrell.  Cello...grand-pa....


(photo credit: http://www.heartbeatsforchildren.org/nepal2010/)

What's your summer playlist?

I enjoyed Bobbie Barabas's ode to summer on yesterday's  "Classical with Bobbie Barabas" on 88.9 WCVE.  She included the obligatory "Summertime" from Gershwin's  Porgy and Bess, but left off the chestnut Summer from Vivaldi's The Four Seasons.

Here is a link to her playlist.  

I was so happy to hear Joseph Suk's "A Summer Tale," which I had never heard before.  It was luscious--really sort of eye-opening.  It is such a pleasure to hear something on the radio that re-invigorates your interest, your hope in finding "something you haven't heard before," especially something that sounds new and fresh to your ears. 

Summersings - Rutter's "Requiem", tonight 7:30 pm

The lament goes, "there is not enough music in Richmond during the summertime."  A few organizations are trying to change that.  I especially appreciate groups trying to prod ordinary folks to create music, rather than just sitting passively, admiring, critiquing, and worshipping at the altar of professional music institutions.  Summersings! is a great idea.  The Richmond Choral Society presents two opportunities for singers to explore gorgeous chorale masterworks in a low-stress way.  The first Summersings! happens tonight, with a reading of the gorgeous Rutter Requiem.

Pick Your Poison: Equal Temperament

It's Offenbach's birthday:
No one escapes high school band or orchestra without slogging through his Cancan (the actual title is "Galop" from his operetta "Orpehus on the Underworld").  I think I learned the meaning of the derogation 'oomp-pah' from playing the cello part to this piece, which has appeared in myriad good, bad, and indifferent arrangements for young musicians.  But this composer wrote many operettas which merit a listen.  Played with sparkle and verve, his best work is like champagne, and his melodies are tender and charming.  He was also a cello virtusoso and jammed with Mendelssohn, Liszt, and Anton Rubinstein. 
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Saw this tweet from goth-chick violinist Rachel Barton Pine yesterday:

@RBPviolinistRachel Barton Pine

Geeking out on "How Equal Temperament Ruined Harmony (and Why You Should Care)" by Ross W. Duffin.

3 hours ago via txt

For a review of the aforementioned book and a decent crash course in what this all means, read "The Wolf at Our Heels: The Centuries-old struggle to play in tune" by Jan Swafford (and the 90-plus comments that follow):

Richmond Boys Choir tonight at Dogwood Dell

The Richmond Boys Choir performs tonight at 7 pm as part of the 2011 Dogwood Dell Festival of Arts (raindate-same time tomorrow) .  In this clip from a 2008 performance at the White House (above), they show off their tight, tight harmonies--exquisite, actually.

You can view the entire Festival of Arts schedule here.

Tessellated blooms with the voids at their centers...

Today I have to teach a lesson to a very smart young piano player, and then I hope to see The Richmond Philharmonic concert today at 6 pm, which is free...and outdoors.  Hoping the weather holds out. ("Just for Fun: A Free Summer Family Concert" - The Gardens at Sunday Park in Brandermill, 4602 Millridge Parkway Midlothian, VA).  The saxophone player in the E-Street Band has died, and too young--sad.


I am furiously updating my concert calendar, which I hope will be a useful resource to Richmond-area music lovers and students.  But as the curator of yet another calendar of the arts, I am forced back on the same old question--what is classical?  The Modlin series has an eclectic mix of genre-defying performers.  For example, writer, songsmith, guitarist and all-around genius Josh Ritter is coming to Modlin this fall.  I know very little about him, so I listened to his song "Remnant" which is posted on the Modlin website.  
I'll admit--I'm under-impressed by the music itself.  It is spare and reminds me of the "White Stripes," (whose disbanding broke my heart), but doesn't strike me as startlingly original.  
Ritter's lyric-making, however, is a splash of cold water in the face.  If Cormac McCarthy wrote songs, they would sound like this:

All the Right Notes

I enjoyed this article about pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim's "lack of perfection."  In "Is pianistic perfection all that it's cracked up to be?" The Guardian's classical music writer Tom Service discusses the perils of expecting perfection from musicians.  Because of the living in the age of electronica, "we actually have an incredibly narrow calculus of perfection when it comes to judging musical performances."  

And of course, performers are aware of this, often--quite often--putting down their instruments permanently because audiences (& conductors, friends, teachers) expect superhuman, robot-like execution.  

Richmond Philharmonic Concert this weekend-FREE!

Please God, give us back Stravinksy--we'll give you Miley Cyrus and Justin Bieber in return!*




It's Stravinsky's birthday!  This Russian composer is regarded as one of the most significant musicians of all time--Time magazine included him on their list of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century, and NY Times critic Anthony Tommasini recently anointed him one of the top ten composers of all time.


We often think of the bombastic, crackling, riot-causing Rite of Spring, which changed the course of music history, like an earthquake changes the course of a river.  But I also enjoy Stravinsky's rapturous melody-making.  


Above we see Igor conducting the Finale to The Firebird Suite (you can see him conduct the full Firebird here--the applause never...stops....).  Be patient for the start of this video.  It takes a while to begin for some reason.  

Thank you, Igor!!

* attribution - anonymous comment on youtube


Below the jump, I've posted a video of the gorgeous segment from Fantasia 2000 using Stravinksy's music and my musings on the only movie I know of covering Stravinsky.

***

The Richmond Philharmonic will hold its much-beloved annual "Just for Fun" summer concert this Sunday, June 19th at 6 pm.  The concert will be conducted by guest conductor Paul Kim.  Robert Mirakian takes the helm again this fall.  The orchestra will play light classics and popular swing tunes, as well as the obligatory but appropriate patriotic charts.

Details (from their website):

Just for Fun - A Free Summer Family Concert

Sunday, June 19, 2011 - 6:00 p.m.
Free Outdoor Concert
(Bring chairs or blankets for seating, and have a lawn picnic if you like. Limited seating is available inside the pavilion.)
The Gardens at Sunday Park in Brandermill

4602 Millridge Parkway
Midlothian, Virginia

What an orchestra can do....

The BSO Academy is underway in Baltimore.  This unique program affords adult musicians the opportunity to play alongside word-class performers of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.  The Academy operates with a camp-like atmosphere (with the very adult addition of cocktail parties!), giving adult amateurs the opportunity to leave behind their workaday lives and immerse themselves in the experience of performing in major concert hall under the baton of conductor Marin Alsop.

ASCAP "Adventurous Programming" Awards

It's Edvard Grieg's birthday today!  I've had the opportunity to play his Peer Gynt Suite #1 (perhaps too many times), and I've conducted the sparkling Holberg Suite.  As much as I love the work of this late-Romantic composer, I am really excited by new music as well.


The ASCAP "Adventurous Programming" Awards were announced just a few days ago.  Whenever I hear about "new" music, innovative programming, and ways to make concerts more lively and engaging, I get all goose-bumpy.


The awards are designed "to salute those orchestras who have a commitment to the music creators of our time.”

No pressure..well, maybe a little...

The XIV International Tchaikovsky Competition starts today, 7 pm. (GMT+4hrs).


This event, which occurs Olympically every four years, is considered to be one of the most important confluences of youth, talent, and prestige in the music world.  Superstars will be annointed.  Past winners include Van Cliburn, Vladimir Ashkenazy, violinists Gidon Kremer and Elmar Oliveira, and cellist Nathaniel Rosen.
The competition voting procedures have been overhauled, and in a departure from the past, a first prize winner will always be awarded (talk about demoralizing--imagine going through that grueling event only to have the jurors decide that no one was good enough for first prize:  "No one is first!"  Sounds like a Monty Python sketch...)


Watch webcasts of the event here (you have to sign up for the service): http://pitch.paraclassics.com/Welcome.aspx

See video of Van Cliburn winning in 1958 after the jump:

Joshua Bell appointed Music director of Academy of St. Martin in the Fields

Richmond Classical: You know you have a crush on him!
Sylvia: Stop it--he's a serious artist, not a GQ model.  Stop objectifying him!!
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For anyone who has followed the career of this splendid violinist, this news comes as no surprise and as a pure delight.  We can only hope the Academy will come back to Richmond very soon!

“I have felt a particular affection for the Academy of St Martin in the Fields ever since I made my very first concerto recording with them under the baton of Sir Neville Marriner when I was just 18 years old. Since then the orchestra has come to feel like family to me, as we have shared so many cherished moments together both musical and personal. Over the past several years I have begun to explore the great symphonic repertoire with the ASMF and I am thrilled that I will have the opportunity to continue this collaboration under the official title of Music Director.” (Joshua Bell, May 27, 2011)


Read more at: http://www.asmf.org/739/news-reviews/new-music-director/

Ready, get set....

Summer is the perfect time to re-assess whether or not your current equipment is giving you what you need--flexibility, consistency and responsiveness 

In Finding the Perfect Setup, Part 2, Brianna Richardson covers some of these issues for upper string players.

For upper string players in particular, incorrect posture and playing position can result in career-ending injury,  What solutions have worked for you?  Tell me in comments!

"Viola Smackdown" in San Francisco

We've heard of guitar players hurling their axe down the stage in fury, or simply for dramatic effect.  Never heard of a viola player doing it.  In a fit of rage over heckling, violist John Eichenseer broke the headstock off of his viola.

Read more here:
"Viola Smackdown! - A broken instrument and enraged audience after a heckler disupts Pamela Z's avant-chamber music event." (Jeanne Cartensen, The Bay Citizen, June 9, 2011)


And you thought Richmond was Fist City...

I don't understand the audience's dismay.  Joan Jeanrenaud, formerly of the Kronos String Quartet...."said she was surprised by this reaction and added, “Hasn’t John Cage already proved the point that all sound is music?”

If "all sound is music," then the sound of the heckling is music, the sound of the scroll popping off is music, the sound of the viola crashing to the ground and causing reverberations in the speaker is music.  You're performing avant-garde music, expect avant-garde reactions.

Do we really want audiences to sit passively, hands neatly folded, keeping their opinions to themselves?
Is the appropriate reaction to heckling to destroy an instrument?

I'm about 95 percent convinced the entire thing was staged.  More power to them.  It made for high drama, a great evening of theater, I'm sure.  How was the music, though?

Brooklyn Rider

Quartet I'm loving right now:

http://www.brooklynrider.com/

There's a lot that's noteworthy here--I love the way the violinist (Colin?, or Johnny?) is holding his bow like a Baroque fiddle player.

I'm so happy they are coming to Richmond next season--October 8, 2011--as part of VCU's Mary Anne Reynolds Chamber Concert series. 

The programming on this series is genius.  Hats off!