Budapest
Submitted by Bridget McDonough on Wed, 11/26/2008 - 12:52pm.
This is the second of my three-part blog regarding my trip to Vienna,
Budapest and Ekatarinburg
Russia.
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Artists
CSO best in US
Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Tue, 11/25/2008 - 3:32pm.
No one has written about this yet on chicagoclassicalmusic.org so I get to do it. Gramophone Magazine, a British publication, has named our very own Chicago Symphony Orchestra as the number one ranked orchestra in the United States, and the fifth highest ranked orchestra in the world. Congratulations to our friends and colleagues at the CSO. It’s nice to see others recognize what we in Chicago have known for a long time – this band rocks! I am including the full list for those of you who haven’t yet seen it.
I know that some people are uncomfortable with ratings like this. It is, after all, pretty subjective when you look at the top 10-15 orchestras on this list. But there must be something in our mental make-up that draws us to ranking things like orchestras, most embarrassing reality TV moments, best deep dish pizza, and the like. Here’s my question for you. Are there rankings in the classical music world that do make sense, and help us process all of the information floating around? What lists do you like or approve of?
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To Commission or Not To Commission?
Submitted by Jonathan Miller on Thu, 10/23/2008 - 3:28pm.
Well, we're in that interesting zone where I'm trying to get all interested parties on board (no pun intended) to support, financially and energetically, a commission for a pretty big new piece for next season. A composer with a good track record, whose pieces Chicago a cappella has done often in years past, came to me with an idea for a very cool compilation of music, which would serve as the scaffolding on which I could create a concert program.
I can't tell you who it is, since we have not finished the process, but you might be interested in the process.
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Perpetual Evolution
Submitted by Guest Blogger on Mon, 10/13/2008 - 2:26pm.
Today's guest blog is written by Stefan Lano who will conduct the Chicago Sinfonietta during the upcoming performances of the opera Margaret Garner at the Auditorium Theater beginning November 1st.
As we prepare for the production of Margaret Garner at the Auditorium Theater, I am pleased to share some thoughts with you about this important opera.
Although, the commissioning venues of Michigan Opera Theater, the Cincinnati Opera and The Opera Company of Philadelphia were most generous in alotting ample time and funding for workshops prior to the world premiere here in Detroit, both hindsight and the experience gained through repeated performances will inevitably color subsequent re- visitations to this score. That this is now the case, became evident at our first rehearsals and run-throughs of the
opera this past week. The goals and priorities set by production teams of most any opera, play or film are pretty
much the same: 1. tell the story clearly and with dramatic efficiency; 2. entertain the public while, hopefully, simultaneously edifying them; 3. try to achieve a sense of closure at evening's end such that the public feels that they have been 'taken somewhere.'
An example of point number 3, would be the ambience in the public when the reprise of the Aria is reached in Bach's Goldberg Variations; or the sense of tragic inevitability at the end of Verdi's Otello as opposed to the comic inevitabiltiy at the end of his Falstaff. Point number 2 is a bit more subtle. In some opera, such as Mozart's Magic Flute, the moral of a given scene is presented as an aside in the form of the ensembles where the characters address the public more directly rather than each other. In an opera such as Margaret Garner, the message of Toni Morrison is, as one would expect from a literary national treasure, inherent in her story. Thus do we arrive at the conundrum articulated by Madeleine in the final scene of Richard Strauss' Capriccio: do the words or the music take precedence?
Rather than argue for one or the other, I have always found that if the notion of effective theater is well-served, then both words and music are better clarified. In the case of this run of Margaret Garner, this notion dictates our modus operandi perhaps moreso than the first time around. The care taken in the preparation of any first performance is, more often than not, devoted to 'getting it right', especially when composer and librettist may be present. There is, however, more to theater than merely getting it right. One can get the words and the notes right while missing their element of dramatic marriage. From the resonance of the opening productions of Margaret Garner, it seems that most would agree that we 'got it right.'
It bespeaks the vision of David Di Chiera in his mounting a reprise of Margaret Garner relatively soon after the premier. His decision is now the more felicitous as we approach an historic Presidential election in which an African-American could well become our next President. That our country evolve as to embrace change.
In the spirit of opera being an art form in perpetual evolution, Kenny Leon and I intend to greatly expand upon that which we presented some years ago and are especially thrilled that we will do so in the architectural landmark of the Roosevelt Theatre about which one can only echo George Ballanchine's comment: 'Why don't they build them like this any more...?" Amen.
All best wishes to you,
Stefan Lano
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The 3% Solution
Submitted by Guest Blogger on Fri, 10/10/2008 - 2:20pm.
Today’s blog is submitted by musician and writer, Rashida Black.
In his recent blog, Chicago Sinfonietta Executive Director Jim Hirsch wrote about his support of the mission of the Sphinx Organization. Jim noted that Sphinx actively promotes diversity and inclusiveness in classical music and that it's "not our field's favorite topic... based on the national statistics that show less than 3% of orchestral musicians being people of color." That's where I'd like to jump in to mention the many organizations, some of which are under the radar, that acknowledge the racial disparities and that are trying to do something about it. Like the Chicago Sinfonietta...
Just briefly, I'll point out youth programs like The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra's Talent Development Program , which prepared many of Sphinx's top performers over the past decade. There are larger organizations and festivals including the Soulful Symphony in Baltimore and the Gateways Music Festival that showcase Black and Latino talent and nurture their careers. There are web sites like Bill Zick's AfriClassical.com and my own, myrtlehart.org, which advocate, promote and educate the general public on the subject. I'm just scratching at the surface of who is working to raise that 3%. We live the 3%. We also acknowledge the fact that many who can do something about it simply don't want to do something about it, which is why we've stepped up to the plate.
So, in an effort to "do something about it," the Myrtle Hart Society is raising funds and awareness through its first benefit featuring The Boys Choir of Kenya to be held at 6:30 pm on Monday, October 13 at the G. R. N'Namdi Gallery located at 110 North Peoria, Chicago.
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Interview with Karen Kim of the Parker String Quartet
Submitted by BrianBaxterMusic on Mon, 09/08/2008 - 5:22pm.
As a way of introducing our artists to the public before their performances, Music in the Loft will be posting brief interviews with selected performers before each concert. The critically acclaimed Parker String Quartet will be kicking off our 16th season with two concerts, one at 8PM on Saturday September 20th and one at 3PM on Sunday September 21st. The program will feature music by Antonín Dvořák, Anton Webern, and the 08-09 Music in the Loft composer-in-residence Matthew Tommasini. The Parker String Quartet, winners of the 2005 Concert Artists Guild International Competition as well as the 2005 Bordeaux International String Quartet Competition, have been praised by the New York Times as “something extraordinary,” and by the Boston Globe for giving “fiercely committed performances.” Enjoy the interview below with Parker Quartet violinist, Karen Kim.
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The Kronos Quartet’s Sidney Chen on the Open Internet
Submitted by Angela Golden on Tue, 08/19/2008 - 10:13am.
Today's guest blog was co-written by Jean Cook, Deputy Director and Casey Rae-Hunter Communications Director; both of of The Future of Music Coalition
When you think of classical music listeners, you might not picture web-savvy youth firing off blog posts about the great recital they just attended, or flitting through social networks to interact with their favorite contemporary ensemble. But according to Sidney Chen, Artistic Administrator of the avant-classical ensemble Kronos Quartet, all that and more is currently happening online, thanks to a cool little concept called net neutrality.
Net neutrality is the principle that protects the open Internet. It allows musicians to distribute their work in any way they want, without interference from gatekeepers and middlemen. It also provides fans with a plethora of legal ways to get their musical fix, often directly from the artist. But big telecommunications and cable companies want to change the fundamental structure of the internet by charging those who put content on the web — artists, filmmakers etc. — a fee for the faster delivery of their sights and sounds. If they couldn’t afford to (or didn’t want to) pay this toll, they’d be forced into in the information superhighway’s slow lane.This would be devastating to artists like Kronos Quartet, who depend on the Internet to reach potential audiences. “Our projects don’t normally fit neatly into genres,” Chen says. “The Internet allows us to reach those people who aren’t reliant solely on mainstream media and other information gatekeepers.”
Exploration celebration
According to Chen, Kronos fans come from a wide variety of backgrounds, ages, and locations. “The consistent thread that ties together all of our fans is that they’re adventurous listeners,” he relates. “The Internet has allowed us to find people who are just out there exploring and looking for new and interesting sounds. It’s allowed us to have a direct, two-way connection with our existing fans and also uncover new audiences.”
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Margaret Garner - New American Opera!
Submitted by Angela Golden on Tue, 07/15/2008 - 10:22am.
Today's guest blogger is Brett Batterson, Executive Director of the Auditorium Theatre. This is the first in a series of postings about their November 2008 production of the opera, Margaret Garner.
"NEW AMERICAN OPERA BY TONI MORRISON AND RICHARD DANIELPOUR STARRING DENYCE GRAVES MAKES CHICAGO DEBUT!"
"AUDITORIUM THEATRE CONTINUES TO FIND NEW, EXCITING WORKS THAT RESONATE WITH CHICAGO!"
The headlines to this, the first entry in a series of blog posts about the Auditorium Theatre’s upcoming production of Margaret Garner that ChicagoClassicalMusic.org is graciously hosting, could go on forever. There is just too much to be excited about with the Chicago premiere of this great American work this November: the story, the music, the performers, the collaborators, the educational programs... like I said, the list goes on and on.
How, you might ask, did this come to be? Why is the Auditorium the location for Margaret Garner’s Chicago debut? The answer actually goes back to when Toni Morrison and Richard Danielpour were writing the opera for Denyce Graves. They were also looking for an opera company to commission and produce it.
How, you might ask, did this come to be?
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The Summer Festival Season
Submitted by Jerry Fuller on Fri, 07/11/2008 - 2:07pm.
The summer music festival season is many things: a chance to play interesting repetoire with not often enough seen colleagues; a chance to reflect; and to explore different cities and restaurants.
This week I'm in St Louis for the St Louis Early Music Festival and Baroque Academy. This is a terrific festival ably led by William Bauer. During the day 25 musicians of all ages are discovering the joys of Boismortier, Merula and Ortiz. The faculty, clearly inspired by their students are performing and recording music from the English Restoration and French Baroque.
I've had a little time to think away from daily pressures and have been reflecting on the importance of building community around those people and things we value. A special "thank you" to ChicagoClassicalMusic.org for helping do just that.
Exploring St Louis has been a delight, especially after a delicious meal at the Shaved Duck!
This coming weekend I will be teaching at the Midwest Young Artists Early Music workshop which will be held at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin followed by performing at the Madison Early Music Festival and Green Lake Festival.
I hope our paths will cross and we can share some music, conversation and maybe even a good meal. Happy summer!
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17th Century Music and 21st Century Technology
Submitted by Jerry Fuller on Mon, 06/09/2008 - 4:39pm.
Earlier today I performed Biber's Mensa Sonora composed in 1680 with Chicago's period instrument orchestra, The Baroque Band, and we recorded it with the 21st century technology of Jim Ginsburg's Cedille Records.
It was interesting to play this fascinating music in a manner, and with instruments, that Biber might recognize and record it with a dizzying array of microphones and computers that Biber probably would never have imagined.
Why shouldn't we just use modern instruments outfitted with string technology based on the latest synthetic materials research?
I think the answer lies in the important distinction between aesthetics and functionality. I believe music has its most profound affect when utilizing the instruments and performance practices from the period during which the music was composed. I also believe it makes sense to use technolgy that has the functionality to most faithfully record those sounds.
It is important that we don't confuse these two concepts: aesthetics and functionality.
You can learn more about both the aesthetics of performing Early Music during a workshop on July 12-13, as well as learn about the latest breakthroughs in Recording Technology in a workshop to be held July 26-31. Both workshops will be presented by Midwest Young Artists and are designed for students ages 12-20. For more information see mya.org/summer. I hope to see you there!
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