Classical Musings

PSO in Carnegie

Andrew Druckenbrod — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 17:47:00 GMT

The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra is in New York City tonight for an important concert at Carnegie Hall. I should be there, I have been there for every Carnegie Hall concert since I came in 1999, but I caught a stomach bug and am out of commission -- well, other than sitting on a couch and typing on the laptop. Based on how amazing the concert was last Friday at Heinz Hall, I would have loved to hear the same program repeated at Carnegie Hall tonight. But more important is how the New York critics view the concert. We will just have to wait for that.

In the meantime, a few of the members are having fun at rehearsal yesterday, with their own PSO jerseys. Good luck to the PSO.

Liam Bonner debuts tonight at the Met

Andrew Druckenbrod — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 17:12:00 GMT

Hope you had a chance to catch my piece on local-grown baritone Liam Bonner, who debuts tonight at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City -- that's if the snow doesn't stop things. BTW, my story didn't reflect soprano Angela Gheorghiu's cancellation. But really, all we care about is the local boy does good. Good luck to Bonner!

If you can't make the performance, you can listen to its broadcast on Sirius/XM or hear it streamed on the Web at www.metoperafamily.org/metopera

Also, Bonner is not the only singer from the region at the Met this season. I was reminded of singers David Crawford and Jennifer O'Loughlin, who went to Quaker Valley High School, performed together in Strauss' "Ariadne auf Naxos," earlier this month at Lincoln Center. There are many others. We can't get into it all now, although you can always drop names in the comments. Suffice it to say, this region continues to impress in how much talent it turns out in music from such a small population.

PSO amid the snow

Andrew Druckenbrod — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:00:00 GMT

Well, this last weekend was a bit of a doozy, what with 20+ inches falling around Pittsburgh. The PSO cancelled its Saturday concert and probably should have canceled its Friday one since by the time the concert let out roads were quite bad. I heard of a few patrons who had to spend nights in hotels rather than go home. But at least those that went Friday were treated to an outstanding concert, with violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter and the musicians all in top form ahead of their visit to Carnegie Hall Tuesday. I am curious if the New York press will think as highly of the Honeck/PSO vibe as I do. You never know.

Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra announces finalist candidates

Andrew Druckenbrod — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 22:05:00 GMT

I don't typically write about the Westmoreland Symphony, but I wanted to pass on this news. The orchestra's search for a new music director has come down to two candidates: Thomas Hong, the assistant conductor of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and Christopher James Lees, associate conductor of the Akron Symphony Orchestra. Good luck to both as they each lead the orchestra in concert next season (why not sooner?) as part of the competition for the post:

Each candidate will conduct the Westmoreland Symphony as part of the audition process at a concert in the spring of 2011. The new Music Director will begin duties in the summer of 2011. Kypros Markou, who has been Music Director since 1979, will be concluding his tenure after 31 years of distinguished service to the WSO and its community at the end of this season.

Villazon gets mad, and then even

Andrew Druckenbrod — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 21:21:00 GMT

Is anyone aware of this controversy surrounding the newish reality-TV show " Popstar to Operastar"? I was not, but Rolando Villazon convinces me he is on the right! Villazon has a few local connections: he attended the Pittsburgh Opera Center at Duquesne and he is a diehard Steelers fan. Really! But thank goodness his throat has healed and is back on the opera stage, regardless of what happens in this TV show...

Chatham University concert raises funds for Haiti

Andrew Druckenbrod — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 15:07:00 GMT

Saturday's Haiti Earthquake Relief concert at Chatham University that benefited the Friends of Hopital Albert Schweitzer Haiti garnered about 300 patrons and raised $6,147, the school reported. Congrats to all on this success for the worthy cause. Among the performers were Pittsburgh Symphony members, Chatham faculty and local classical and jazz luminaries such as Etta Cox, Maureen Budway, Daphne Alderson, Lilly Abreu, Cello Fury, Kenia, Robbie Klein and Max Leake.

PSO and Mahler 4 with Honeck, and Haydn and Mozart with Gil Shaham.

Andrew Druckenbrod — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 15:25:00 GMT

The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra musicians aren't the only ones who perform on Friday night. I do to, so to speak, when I have to sit down and write a review immediately afterward and on less than an hour. It's not the same level of difficulty, but you do have to produce or else. The show (paper) must go on.

Sometimes the process flows smoothly, other times it has bumps in the road, just like some concerts. My review last weekend of the PSO performing Mahler 4 with Manfred Honeck was a troublesome one. I must have tried to start it 4 or 5 times! In I don't know how effective I was in expressing my thoughts on the structure of the concert. And I also don't know if I expressed enough how amazing I found the second movement of the Haydn Violin Concerto No. 2. I knew that work, but hearing it live brought so much more to it, esp. in Gil Shaham's hands. It was almost static, it moved so slow, sort of like the slow movement of Schubert's Quintet for 2 cellos.

Thoughts?

Trumpeter Sean Jones ignites David Cutler's "Approaching Chiang Mai" with the PSO

Andrew Druckenbrod — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 19:50:00 GMT

A Post-Gazette staffer, Rosa Colucci, went to the Pittsburgh Symphony's "Tribute: A Symphonic Celebration Of African American Culture" concert last night (Jan. 26) at Heinz Hall featuring trumpeter Sean Jones, on the faculty of Duquesne University, and a new piece by his colleague, composer David Cutler.

She flagged me down today to talk about it with such passion that I had her write something up for Classical Musings. Be wary of your enthusiasm, huh! She also passed on the photo of the percussion set-up for Cutler's piece. Very cool looking. For the sake of full disclosure, Rosa is a good friend of David Cutler:

The real fireworks came when Sean Jones played “Approaching Chiang Mai.” The composition by David Cutler was originally written for wind ensemble and received its orchestral premiere last night. He made full compositional use of all of the instruments available to him and it was glorious.
Cutler describes the piece as a “concerto of sorts... defying categorization combining improvisation and other jazz elements with a multi-layered counterpoint...” Jones soared to new heights as the musical interpretation of the composer’s visit to the ancient Buddhist temple Wat Doi Suthep in Thailand was brought to life in an otherworldly performance, hitting notes that I never thought possible on the instrument.
Principal percussionist Andrew Reamer had a ball of his own on the piece playing a full drum kit that had a full array of tribal looking cymbals including one shaped like a warrior’s breastplate that he struck with his elbow to produce sound and two full lines of pitched cymbals. The eleven-minute piece was dissonant, melodic, grandly symphonic and simply beautiful — and it rightly brought the audience to its feet.
—Rosa Colucci

George Jellinek, RIP

Andrew Druckenbrod — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 19:32:00 GMT

Our Robert Croan writes a personal remembrance of George Jellinek, who, like pianist Earl Wild, also died last Saturday:

“Music is my only hobby, and vocal music and recordings have been my lifelong passion,” George Jellinek wrote in his memoir, “My Road to Radio and The Vocal Scene.” As music director of New York classical radio station WQXR and creator of syndicated programs “The Vocal Scene” and “First Hearing,” this congenial yet erudite critic and commentator filled a gap in the lives of music lovers – and particularly opera aficionados – until his retirement, for reasons of health, in 2004.
It is with a personal sense of loss that I note that my longtime colleague and also a valuable mentor died Saturday [1/23] near his home in Hastings-on-Hudson, NY. He was 90, and had enjoyed a long, productive career, but his passing marks a distinct shortfall in the classical musical world. I can think of no one in the field today with a comparable sense for quality and musical taste. Music was not only his hobby; it was his mission.
Born in Hungary, Jewish, Jellinek escaped to Cuba and then the United States just before the Third Reich took over. His parents died in Auschwitz. That part of his life story reads like a thriller-adventure novel, but it happens to be truth, not fiction. He became a familiar voice on the airwaves. While he retained a charming European inflection in his speech, he spoke with impeccable grammar and wrote with more style and elegance than most of his native English-speaking associates. In addition to his work in WQXR, Jellinek was a frequent contributor to Opera News and guest panelist on the Opera Quiz, a delightful intermission feature of the Metropolitan Opera’s Saturday afternoon broadcasts.
I was deeply honored when, at a time when I was less established in the music business, Jellinek recognized me and invited me to be a regular on “First Hearing,” a lively show in which a panel of critics listened to a new recording without knowing who the artists were, then gave an instant verbal review. Working with Jellinek and other distinguished WQXR personalities, including announcer and host Lloyd Moss, proved to be an invaluable professional experience.
I have long believed that the test of a good critic is his or her ability to find the right descriptive words to make the reader envision something without having seen or heard it. Jellinek’s terse lines about his favorite singer, the late soprano Victoria de los Angeles, are a prime example:
“Her voice was not large but always full and pure…and the winning smile that was her trademark was unmistakably present in the richness of her tones.” Only the actual sound of her recordings can tell you any more.

Pittsburgh pianist and CMU alumnus and former teacher Earl Wild dies at 94

Andrew Druckenbrod — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 14:02:00 GMT

Please read the obit here and add appreciation comments below. I will add more later.

Here is the specifics of Wild's time at Carnegie Mellon University

Earl Wild was hired onto the faculty at Carnegie Mellon School of Music in 1993.
His title was ‘Distinguished Visiting Artist’.

Here is an earlier column I wrote on Wild.