Archive | Concerts

Hilbert Circle Theater, Indianapolis, IN; April 7 & 8, 2017—The 2017 American Pianists Awards Gala Finals took place over two evenings, where each of the five finalists performed a concerto with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra led by Gerard Schwarz, and aired via live webcasts hosted by soprano Sylvia McNair and pianist Eric Zuber, a 2013 […]

Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center, Indianapolis, IN; April 6, 2017; Christ Church Cathedral, Indianapolis, IN; April 7, 2017—The American Pianists Association’s Discovery Week marks the culmination of a seven-month period during which five selected finalists participated in concerts and community outreach events. The finalists have convened this week for the competition’s home stretch, […]

Church of St Ignatius Loyola, New York, NY; February 1, 2017—Presented by the organization Sacred Music in a Sacred Space, the concert on February 1st was in the exquisite German Baroque Revival Church of St Ignatius Loyola on 84th Street and Park Avenue in Manhattan; surroundings and music were perfectly wed. The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber […]

La Scala, Milan, January 21, 2017—Riccardo Muti’s return to La Scala has been a long time coming. The opera house and its former music director parted on painful terms back in 2005. Thereafter he had conducted here only once: with the Vienna Philharmonic that same year. On this occasion the public turned up in droves […]

Carnegie Hall, New York: November 30, 2016, 8pm Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Semyon Bychkov (cond.) Detlev Glanert is a contemporary composer who takes himself very seriously. His Theatrum bestiarum, subtitled “Songs and Dances for Large Orchestra” supposedly explores the juxtaposition of man and beast, expresses primal terror, and has something to do with Caligula. The piece […]

Metropolitan Opera, Lincoln Center, N.Y. October 25, 2016—It has been 80 years since the Metropolitan Opera staged Rossini’s final opera, Guillaume Tell. A gigantic work lasting four-plus hours, here it is presented almost complete, with only a piece of ballet and a few recitatives omitted—about 15 minutes’ worth. The issue with it is not its […]

Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, NY, September 28, 2016—It’s always good to re-visit the Met’s production of La bohème, particularly when new singers have been called in to navigate the vast stage with Franco Zeffirelli’s stunning and gargantuan sets. Critics balk at the scale of the production, some claiming that the singers get lost in […]