Conductor Andrew Grams leads Colorado Symphony in A Midsummer Night's Dream

By -

Conductor Andrews Grams leads Colorado Symphony in Eastertide program featuring soprano Katherine Whyte and soprano Michelle Areyzaga

Escape into the wondrous fantasy world of Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream with the Colorado Symphony on Friday, April 22 and Saturday, April 23 as young American conductor Andrew Grams leads the orchestra in a special Eastertide program. The evening begins with Wagner's Prelude and Good Friday Spell from Parsifal, an opera about the famous knight in search of the Holy Grail. Parsifal, which Wagner called a "stage-consecration-festival play," is rich in philosophical allusion, mystical symbolism and historical reference.

The concert's centerpiece is Mendelssohn's magical A Midsummer Night's Dream, featuring soprano Katherine Whyte, soprano Michelle Areyzaga and the Colorado Children's Chorale. Actors Shelly Gaza and Leigh Miller will read passages from Shakespeare's comedy to bring the melodrama to life amidst shimmering music and radiant voices.

From the first few moments, Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream conjures up images of Shakespeare's play in a musical journey to the enchanted woods and the land of sprites and fairies. Mendelssohn composed the Overture to Shakespeare's comedy in less than a month when he was only 17. Arguably, it is the greatest piece of orchestral music ever composed by one so young, including Mozart and Schubert.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Role of Music in Opera

By -
There are numerous books on the topic, and every composer, librettist, director, singer and audience member has their opinion as to what role the music should play in an opera. In a play without music, the words ought to support the meaning behind a character's actions. However, in the case of action movies, often times the action is what tells the story and there aren't words, just images to forward the plot. We might hear music to accompany action, build tension, but the action tells the story. Musicals tend to speak until the emotion of the moment just "has" to break out in song - unless it's something like "Mama Mia" where the dialog is the rails we travel on between songs; the songs themselves, written before the concept of the musical, are the focus of the production, while the story is secondary. Operas are a different beast. The music provides emotion to the words spoken, but it also plays the role of ambience when there is only action. In &quo
Read more

Acclaimed Fauré Quartett returns to Deutsche Grammophon with their first recording of Brahms

By -
Image
The Fauré Quartett continues to add authoritative recordings to the chamber music catalog with their new recording of two Brahms quartets, available from Deutsche Grammophon on January 12, 2010. These large, some say symphonic, works test the limits of technical and musical capabilities, and the Fauré Quartett once again proves why they are one of the most acclaimed ensembles performing today. Within a short period of time the Fauré Quartett has conquered the great concert halls of London , Paris , Berlin , Amsterdam , Brussels , Geneva , Hamburg , Frankfurt, Milan , Buenos Aires , Rio de Janeiro and elsewhere. “They attract superlatives wherever they go,” wrote The Strad following a concert at London ’s Wigmore Hall, while the Süddeutsche Zeitung praised them for a performance that “brought tremendous pleasure by highlighting interpretative details that had scarcely ever been heard before”. The Fauré Quartett strives to achieve a unique sound for Brahms (as indeed for every work)
Read more

Episode 210b: Joyeuse le départ

By -
Image
Podcast:  Play in new window  |  Download Subscribe:  Apple Podcasts  |  Android  |  Google Play  |  Stitcher  |  TuneIn  |  RSS Provost Cunningham has Transmigrated, but to where! What is Dr Sage going to do with his body? And how can she bring home her friends, Abigail and Erasmus, without also bring home Cunningham? What are they going to say when they find the “skeleton” she’s hiding in her closet? Cast: Eddie Louise Clark  as Dr Sage Chip Clark  as Professor Savant Justin Bremer  as the Narrator Emily Riley Piatt  as Abigail Entwhistle, Calypso & Dean Stewart Written by  Eddie Louise Theme music by  Unwoman Sound Design by  Chip Michael
Read more