Interchanging Idioms

Fresh from Japan with the NHK Symphony Orchestra, Spanish conductor Pablo Heras-Casado launched September with the Orchestre National de Bordeaux, conducted his debut with Zurich's Tonhalle Orchestra and returned to the Collegium Novum Zurich. Earlier this month he led the orchestra at London's Royal Academy of Music, Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte Carlo in Monaco, and Klangforum Vienna in Parma, Italy. The versatile 31-year-old has a number of significant debuts in the coming months, culminating at the Hollywood Bowl: his re-engagement with the Los Angeles Philharmonic next summer. Oct. 24: BBC Philharmonic debut; Manchester, UK (Mendelssohn, Dvorak, Beethoven) Dec. 15: Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France (Schubert: Sym. No. 7 - DVD for Naïve) Jan. 9: Orquesta Nacional de Espana debut; Spain Feb-Mar.: English National Opera debut (L'Elisir d'Amore; Jonathan Miller, dir.) Apr. 8 & 9: Danish National Symphony Orchestra; (Nielsen, Chopin, Holst) June-Jul...

Vagn Gylding Holmboe (1909-1996) began formal music training at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen at the age of 17. Three years later he moved to Berlin where he studied with Ernst Toch. Eventually he moved back to Copenhagen to teach at the Conservatoire in Copenhagen. He composed over 200 works including over 20 concertos (his Trombone Concerto Op. 52 is particularly cool!), 13 symphonies, 21 string quartets and numerous other pieces including a pair of sonatas for guitar. So he was very versatile. He may not be as "undiscovered" as some other composers as he has his own LastFM channel, where you can hear a number of his pieces. His Piano Concerto No. 1, Op 17 composed in 1939 has elements of Prokofiev and early Lutosławski. While there are elements of angular lines, for the most part Vagn Holmboe is firmly in the tonal world. He definitely is a mid-20th century composer based on the pieces I heard. Even his Symphony No. 13, written in 1994, has mor...

At the age of 31, Pablo Heras-Casado already has a remarkably versatile international career. In the past few months the Spanish conductor has led concerts with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and BBC Singers in London in music exploring Mendelssohn's royal connections; two world premieres with Klangforum Vienna in Granada and Seville; film scores with Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France; concerts in Aldeburgh and London's Tate Modern gallery with the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain; and a recording of Nino Rota's Trombone Concerto with SWR Symphony Orchestra Freiburg. Later this month Heras-Casado travels to Tokyo for Stockhausen's Gruppen with the NHK Symphony Orchestra. Orchestral, choral, new and early music and opera are intertwined in Heras-Casado's musical interests. "I look for the new," says the Granada native, "whether the ink is still wet on the page or a first performance of ancient music. It's about the discovery....

Nurturing young musicians is important. However, when we think of budding young musicians we imagine a screeching violin never quite in tune or a halting performance of “Heart and Soul.” From the Top at the Pops with Erich Junzel and the Cinicinnati Pops Orchestra is a soon to be released CD by Telarc where the star performers are young, budding musicians, but a far cry from out of tune – quite the opposite, this recording is a stunning example of what the horizon holds for classical music. There are shafts of brilliant gold screaming through a heavily laden sky of great classical music. The pieces range from the powerful Piano Concerto in A minor by Edvard Greig (with Ji-Yong on piano, age 17) to the very modern jazz The Upward Stream by Russell Peck (with Corey Dundee on Tenor Saxophone, age 17). For the past ten years From the Top has been showcasing young performers. Caroline Goulding, who's debut CD I recently reviewed, is one of these stunning performers and well on ...

I think I have found my new favorite violinist! It is a joy to discover new artists, particularly young artists like Caroline Goulding who are so very versatile while proving to be virtuoso at the same time. In Caroline’s instance, what impressed me the most was her virtuoso ability across such a diverse range of violin styles. Her soon to be released CD Caroline Goulding covers a wide variety of styles from Klezmer styles of Fritz Kreisler’s Gypsy Caprice through the sliding jazz styles in selections from George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess and into Celtic fiddle with Johnny Cope . Caroline does them all with such finesse you’d never know she hadn’t been steeped in each style dozens of years. However, she’s only 16, so she hasn’t had that luxury. She must achieve her mastery of all these sundry styles through a magic wand (or magic bow as the case may be). The CD begins with a selection of four Fritz Kreisler melodies. Each has its own character, but all are steeped with a s...

I love libraries. They are treasure troves of mystery and wonder. While walking through the Denver Library today, looking for a score for Berlioz' Symphonie Fantastique , I stubbled across a book entitled The Symphonies of Havergal Brian (Volume One Symphonies 1 to 12) by Malcolm MacDonald ISBN 0-8008-7527-3 (1973) . Having never heard of Havergal Brian before, I was intrigued. So I opened up the front cover and read a bit about Mr Brian. It seems he wrote 32 symphonies during his life (1876-1972) and yet is relatively unknown. Wow, 32 symphonies! Shostakovich (one of my heros) was considered a great symphonist and he only wrote 15 - but then again, he is remembered. Numerous other composers never got past nine as if that was the magic number and to attempt anything more was to demand too much of the muses. So, who was the unknown composer and why are there two books covering his symphonies and yet no real discussion of him in music history classes? Well, the second part...

I will attempt to discover a new composer or list of works every week (or so) and write about them here. The first "Discovery" is about William Havergal Brian , a 20th century composer who is unfortunately, relatively unknown. I hope you will enjoy discovering these new composers as much as I will. There is a lot of music out there and so much of it tends to get ignored. Well, no longer, not if I have anything to say about it.

Cellist Joshua Roman earned a warm welcome back to Seattle when he recently performed the world premiere of David Stock's Cello Concerto. Like the Beatles song, he got a little help from his friends - his former colleagues in the Seattle Symphony where he played for two seasons as principal cellist, a job he snared at the ripe old age of 22. The Seattle Weekly called his performance "electrifying" and noted, "Stock was lucky, too, to have popular cellist Joshua Roman on hand, who can not only play anything but sell anything." The Gathering Note said the piece "could have been written for Roman. The style suits him exactly. While he can throw off fireworks like any whiz-bang young soloist, Roman is essentially a thoughtful, thought-provoking and lyrical player." The 25-year-old musician is artistic director of Town Hall's TownMusic series in Seattle. He returned from his home base in New York City in late June with a handpicked ensemble...

Composers will travel to Minneapolis for Orchestra’s acclaimed professional training program; Institute runs from November 17-22, 2009, highlighted by November 21 Future Classics concert Seven emerging composers have been selected as participants in the Minnesota Orchestra’s ninth annual Composer Institute, Institute Director Aaron Jay Kernis announced today. Chosen from a pool of 143 candidates through a competitive process, the composers hail from locations throughout the U.S. as well as Spain and Hong Kong , and their works represent a variety of musical styles. They will travel to Minneapolis from November 17 to 22, 2009, for six days of rehearsals, seminars and tutoring sessions, as well as a public concert of their works on Saturday, November 21, led by Music Director Osmo Vänskä. The participants are Fernando Buide of Santiago , Spain ; Geoff Knorr of Baltimore , Maryland ; Hong Kong native Angel Lam of New Haven , Connecticut ; Kathryn Salfelder of Boston , Massachusetts ; ...

Cellist Joshua Roman is now a familiar figure to YouTube users around the world. The April 15th concert, which featured Roman as a soloist with the YouTube Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, has been viewed more than 1.3 million times in the past month. Roman's solo spot playing Bach at the sold-out event was introduced (on video) by one of his role models, Yo-Yo Ma: "Occasionally I get to meet an extraordinary young musician. Such is the case with Joshua Roman. ... To me, Joshua is one of the great exemplars of the ideal 21st-century musician. He's deeply grounded in a classical tradition and he is a fearless explorer of our world." This week the 25-year-old cellist returns to the Seattle Symphony for the world premiere of David Stock's Cello Concerto with conductor James DePreist. Roman has strong ties with the orchestra there: he was appointed principal cellist of the Seattle Symphony at age 22 and held the position for two years. As well as keepi...

Featuring Three Brand New Songs – on Tour and at Carnegie Hall (May 11) with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra Susan Graham ’s recording Songs by Ned Rorem , featuring Malcolm Martineau at the piano, was issued by Erato in 2000, abundantly praised by numerous critics, and nominated for a Gramophone Award for “Best Vocal Recording” of the year. A decade after the recording was made, Rorem has orchestrated some of his songs especially for the popular mezzo. With Orpheus Chamber Orchestra , she will sing world premieres of three brand new Rorem songs as well as premiering eight newly-orchestrated arrangements in a series of concerts culminating at Carnegie Hall on May 11. One reviewer called the Rorem CD “a marvelous anthology”, praising the way “Graham is constantly attentive to the marriage of music and text … and phrases their little worlds into being with grace and wit. She can shade to a sweet vanishing point or allow her voice to blossom, orchid-like, into a dazzling profusion of c...

by Chicago Symphony Orchestra Mead Composer in Residence Mark-Anthony Turnage Chicago Opera Vanguard - the city’s new home for cutting edge musical theater – continues its inaugural Season Ø with the Chicago premiere of GREEK by Chicago Symphony Orchestra Mead Composer in Residence Mark-Anthony Turnage. For this modern retelling of the Oedipus myth, COV Artistic Director Eric Reda has gathered an impressive ensemble of singing actors, orchestral musicians and emerging visual artists from across Chicago’s creative community. GREEK ’s limited run of 1 preview and 5 performances begins Tuesday June 2 at the St. Paul Cultural Center, 2215 W. North Ave, in Chicago ’s Wicker Park neighborhood. GREEK is a translation of Oedipus myth into the Thatcher era. The economically depressed East End of London forms the background for the story of “Eddy,” a working class kid who’s who dreams of a better world. Racism, violence and mass unemployment appear as symptoms of a plague of oppression...

The premiere is scheduled for June 2013 in Madrid's Teatro Real. There is an interview between Juan Antonio Muñoz H. of El Mercurio and composer Charles Wuorinen about a new project he is working on, "Brokeback Mountain" - the opera. Annie Proulx, who wrote the original story, wrote the libretto, so the opera will not necessarily compare to the film. Some of the changes are women playing a slightly larger role, there will be no physical expression of sex on stage, but rather the emotions will be sung, and, as there are no close-ups, there are more internal dialogs. The above link is only a translation of the original article/interview, but it illuminates some interesting aspects about writing an opera, working with the subject matter of homosexuality and how Charles Wourinen is approaching this work.

Andrew Ford 's new opera Rembrandt's Wife to a libretto by Sue Smith will have its world premiere as part of Victorian Opera 's 2009 season. Gary Rowley will star as Rembrandt and Jacqueline Porter as both his late wife, Saskia, and his muse and lover Hendrickje Stoffels. Roxane Hislop sings the role of Geertje Dircx and Paul Biencourt sings the six tenor roles. Rembrandt's Wife is a compelling story that explores the tragic relationships of one of the world's greatest painters: the death of his beloved wife Saskia, the madness of his lover Geertje and the haunting visions of his muse to be, Hendrijke. A chamber opera, this work will reflect in words and music the light and colour that are the hallmarks of Rembrandt's style. Fiona Gruber has an interesting article in The Australian : A note accompanying his later work mentioned that, after being lionised for many years as the greatest living painter, Rembrandt fell from favour and into bankruptcy. The...

“Photographers are in a sense composers, and the negatives are their scores.” —Ansel Adams (1902–1984) Stockton Symphony premiered a new work last week by Dave Brubeck and his son Chris, Ansel Adams: America! The Brubecks' one-movement work will correspond to 92 photographs projected onto a rear screen. Most of the photos to be shown were taken by Adams. A few are by Adams' contemporaries, and nearly a dozen are photos taken of Adams when he was a child. Ansel Adams: America! was co-commissioned by the Philharmonic and six other orchestras - the Stockton Symphony, the Monterey Symphony, the Fresno Philharmonic, the Temple University Symphony Orchestra, the Abilene, Texas, Philharmonic and Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. Sacramento Philharmonic board member Jennifer Bayse Sander came up with the idea for a musical work honoring Adams in 2006, soon after she made the orchestra's commission of an Andre Previn work honoring Wayne Thiebaud. Although the elder Dave Brubeck, ...

The Scottish Chamber Orchestra performs the world premiere of Joseph Swensen ’s Symphony for horn and orchestra ‘ The Fire and the Rose ’ in Glasgow City Halls on Friday 3 April, and Edinburgh Queen’s Hall on Saturday 4 April, conducted by Swensen (pictured) himself and featuring virtuoso horn player Radovan Vlatković , for whom the work was written. The new symphony is programmed alongside Sibelius’ Pelléas and Mélisande and Respighi’s The Birds . The Fire and the Rose is the largest scale work Swensen has written to date, both in length and instrumentation. Swensen took his inspiration from T.S. Eliot’s poem, Four Quartets , a poem that was written in response to Beethoven’s late string quartets. The two main themes are time and remembering, with many references to déjà vu in Eliot’s poem. Swensen has captured the essence of déjà vu by creating echoes of echoes which reverberate throughout the piece. The symphony features an extensive range of percussion, from cowbells to ...

World Premiere of an unpublished Mendelssohn piece at the Ravivia Festival June 20 Misha and Cipa Dichter will also perform the work at the Aspen Music Festival on August 20 Misha Dichter and Cipa Dichter , who have become known for bringing many previously neglected works of the two-piano and piano four-hand repertoire to the concert stage, will perform the world premiere of an unpublished work by Felix Mendelssohn at the Ravinia Festival on Saturday, June 20, followed by a performance of the work on Thursday, August 20 at the Aspen Music Festival . The “Seven Songs Without Words, Op. 62 and Op. 67” for piano four-hands are among more than 270 unpublished works recovered by The Mendelssohn Project. Mendelssohn began writing his “Six Songs without Words” for solo piano, Op. 62, in 1841 and completed them in early 1844. Soon after at a dinner in London with British novelists Charles Dickens and William Thackeray, the idea was discussed of arranging the Op. 62 songs for piano f...