Category Archives: Music Writing

The Gallic Lightness of Ravel, Poulenc, and Connesson

By Posted in Music Writing, Program Notes Tagged , , , , Leave a comment

mravel

This weekend, Music Director Designate Stéphane Denève leads the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in works by Maurice Ravel, Francis Poulenc, and Guillaume Connesson. The special guest pianists Christina and Michelle Naughton perform Poulenc’s Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra.

If you can’t make it to Powell Hall, be sure to tune in at 8 PM CST to St. Louis Public Radio. That’s FM 90.7 for those of you in the broadcast range, or you can follow the livestream here:

http://news.stlpublicradio.org/#stream/0

My program notes can be read on the SLSO website, in the Plan Your Visit section, but here’s a slightly longer version for people who prefer the somewhat more prolix version of me.

RavelSLSO2018

Mendelssohn, Ruzicka, Adams

By Posted in Music Writing, Program Notes Tagged , , , , , Leave a comment

 

FelixMendelssohn460px

Felix Mendelssohn

This weekend (January 26 and 27), Music Director David Robertson leads the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (and special guest violinist Julian Rachlin) in Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor, Adams’s Harmonielehre, and Ruzicka’s Elegie: Remembrance for Orchestra (U.S. premiere).

My program notes can be read on the SLSO website (under Program Notes, in the Plan Your Visit section), but here’s a slightly longer version for the insane RSS completists out there (all two of you).

Sub13Mendelnotes

All Vivaldi

By Posted in General, classical, Music Writing, Program Notes Tagged , , , , 1 Comment

vivaldi(His famously red hair must be powdered or obscured by a periwig, but this is supposedly Antonio Vivaldi.)

This weekend (December 1 and 2, 2017), guest conductor Nicholas McGegan leads the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and members of the St. Louis Symphony Chorus in a wide-ranging program of works by Antonio Vivaldi. If you can’t make it to Powell Hall tonight (concert starts at 8:00 CST, and tickets are still available!), be sure to tune in to the live stream on St. Louis Public Radio at 8:00 PM Central Time.

http://news.stlpublicradio.org/#stream/0

Program:
VIVALDI Concerto in D minor for 2 Violins, Cello and Strings
VIVALDI Concerto in F major for 2 Horns and Strings
VIVALDI Gloria in D major, RV 589

Sherezade Panthaki, soprano
Jay Carter, countertenor
Thomas Jöstlein, horn
Christopher Dwyer, horn
St. Louis Symphony Chorus, Amy Kaiser, director

My program notes are linked below. (You can also read the notes on the SLSO website, as usual, where they are formatted somewhat differently and slightly abbreviated; I’m including the link only because I think a few people might enjoy the gratuitous David Bowie and Rufus Wainwright references. However, the SLSO website version contains better images and supplementary information, so check that out, too.)

vivaldislso2017

 

Ravel, Chausson, Falla, Sarasate

By Posted in classical, Music Writing, Program Notes Tagged , , , , , Leave a comment

ravel

This weekend (November 24–26), guest conductor Jun Märkl leads the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in works by Ravel, Chausson, Sarasate, and Falla. My program notes are here:

http://tinyurl.com/y9ffwr5x

If you can’t make it to Powell Hall on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, tune in to the live stream on St. Louis Public radio at 8:00 pm CST:

http://news.stlpublicradio.org/#stream/0

 

Strauss, Berg, Beethoven

By Posted in Music Writing, Program Notes, Various Worthwhile Things Tagged , , , , , , 2 Comments

edfe8982cd54faf77cbacd4458c243cc--alban-berg-classical-music

(Portrait of Alban Berg, by Arnold Schoenberg.)

This weekend Music Director David Robertson leads the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in works by Richard Strauss, Alban Berg, and Ludwig van Beethoven. SLSO principal horn Roger Kaza performs Strauss’s Horn Concerto No. 2, and Soprano Christine Brewer sings Berg’s Seven Early Songs. After intermission the SLSO performs Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. If you can’t make it to Powell Hall on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, make sure you listen to the live stream on St. Louis Public Radio at 8:00 pm CST: http://news.stlpublicradio.org/#stream/0

My program notes are here:

http://tinyurl.com/ybroy583

Mackey, Rachmaninoff, Tchaikovsky

By Posted in Music Writing, Program Notes, Various Worthwhile Things Tagged , , , , , Leave a comment

1453131486_55365(I love this photograph so, so much: wretched old dreamer Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky, on a settee, flanked by well-upholstered, waistcoated, pocket-watch-flaunting grandees. Apologies to possible copyright holders; I’ll take it down if you like, or attribute credit if you send me the information. This photo must date to about 1890, or so; Tchaikovsky died at 53 on November 6, 1893, after possibly contracting cholera on purpose.)

This weekend Music Director David Robertson leads the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in works by Mackey, Rachmaninoff, and Tchaikovsky, with special guest piano virtuosa Orli Shaham performing Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. If you can’t make it to one of the performances at Powell Hall—and good tickets are still available! —be sure to tune in to the live broadcast on St. Louis Public Radio, which begins at 8:00 pm CST. Here’s the website to listen if you want to hear this gorgeous (Russian-ish) program but can’t make it to Powell Hall in St. Louis: http://news.stlpublicradio.org/#stream/0

My notes can be found here.
http://tinyurl.com/yd8kv4md

 

Berlioz, Khachaturian, Walton

By Posted in classical, Music Writing, Program Notes Tagged , , , , 1 Comment

Aram Khachaturian

This weekend, the St. Louis Symphony performs works by Hector Berlioz, Aram Khachaturian (pictured), and William Walton. If you can’t make it to Powell Hall this weekend, be sure to tune in to St. Louis Public Radio for the broadcast or live stream, which begins at 8:00 CST.

My program notes can be found here:

http://tinyurl.com/yclyk2up

Chopin, Rachmaninoff, and Rouse

By Posted in Music Writing, Program Notes Tagged , , , 1 Comment

fryderyk chopin fotografia_6023200

This weekend the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, led by Conductor Laureate Leonard Slatkin, performs works by Chopin (pictured above), Rachmaninoff, and Rouse.

If you can’t make it to one of the performances at Powell Hall–and good tickets are still available!–be sure to tune in to the live broadcast on St. Louis Public Radio, which begins at 8:00 pm CST.

My notes can be found here:

http://tinyurl.com/y9wkbeoy

So Much Mozart!

By Posted in Music Writing, Program Notes Tagged , , Leave a comment

croce-mozart-detail

I wrote about a slew of Mozart pieces for three all-Mozart concerts performed by the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, starting with opening weekend (this weekend, in fact!). There’s still plenty of time to get tickets to all the upcoming performances, which feature pianist Emanuel Ax.

On Mozart’s Symphony No. 41 (“Jupiter”), the overture to Le Nozze di Figaro, and Piano Concertos Nos. 19 and 27. (My notes begin on p. 24.)

https://tinyurl.com/yc8sy85h

On Mozart’s Symphony No. 39, the overture to Così fan tutte, and Piano Concertos Nos. 20 and 14. (My notes begin on p . 24.)

http://tinyurl.com/ycume5df

On Mozart’s Symphony No. 40, Piano Concertos No. 16 and 17, and the overture to Don Giovanni (My notes begin on p. 32.)

http://tinyurl.com/ya8zb5yq