Classical Music

F.Mendelssohn-B., Organ Works Yuval Rabin (Braun/Mathis organ of St.Marzellus, CH) MDG Felix Mendelssohn B. was fond of organs and organ music and wrote idiomatically for the instrument. You just can’t hear it in his other compositions (think Bruckner, for contrast), and since you just about never hear Mendelssohn’s organ music in recital or concert either, that part of his output—limited

We just finished watching our DVRed copy of PBS's Friday night telecast of the Met's HD film of its new production of Michael Mayer's Regietheater...

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"Rossini’s La donna del Lago at the Royal Opera House boasts a superstar cast. Joyce DiDonato and Juan Diego Flórez are perhaps the best in these roles in the business at this time. Yet the conductor Michele Mariotti is also hot news. He has only just turned 34, but has extensive experience. He conducted Rigoletto at the Met. “You know,” he smiles, “the Rat Pack Rigoletto”" "Rossini expresses feelings in a more abstract, intellectual way. The structure is almost completely vertical, not contrapuntal. It can look quite ‘frozen’ in theory, but it’s a very different way of expressing feelings. For example, in the Act Two trio, "Qual pena in me gia desta", Elena and her two suitors are singing short, sharp high C’s. But these notes bear swords!” “In the ‘King’s aria’, “O fiamma soave”, you can hear that Uberto cannot be a shepherd because the coloratura is so elegant, so royal that only a king could sing like that. He’s wearing a disguise as a shepherd, but the people in the audience can hear who he really is.” Read the whole interview here in Opera Today Michele Mariotti conducts La donna del lago (Full review to come) Above: Michele Mariotti [Photo by Amati Bacciardi (Pesaro) courtesy of Columbia Artists Music] He has only just turned 34, but has extensive experience. He conducted Rigoletto at the Met. “You know,” he smiles, “the Rat Pack Rigoletto”.

A starry cast is set to make waves in La Donna del Lago at Covent Garden. I had a brief chat with the director, John Fulljames, about why he thinks Rossini's rarity is - well, rare.He thinks it's all to do with the difficulty of the vocal writing; as for the story, it's at the heart of that weird 19th-century idea that Scotland is the most romantic place on earth - a form of cultural nationalism that was invented, as he explained, by Sir Walter Scott. Might it yet prove to be a favourite opera for the Scottish National Party? We'll see... anyway, one hopes they can't go far wrong with Joyce DiDonato and Juan Diego Florez out front. http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/features/la-donna-del-lago-at-the-royal-opera-house-starry-cast-all-set-to-make-waves-8619557.html?origin=internalSearch

Despite living not that far away from Nunhead cemetery, I missed Biped's Monitor which was presented in the cemetery by the Arbonauts. Described as a unique site-based theatrical experience merging highly-visual, surreal environments with an ethereal operatic score, it involved strange and evocative installations created for the disused chapel and trees of Nunhead Cemetery. Now the group plan to bring the event back this summer for six evenings. Biped's Monitor is inspired by the Italo Calvino folktale, The Baron in the Trees which follows a young aristocrat who takes to the trees. The Arbonauts promise a surrel experience that allows the audience to explore and encounter characters and spaces at their own pace. Arbonauts was formed in 2011 by Helen Galliano and Dimitri Launder. They are a multidisciplinary collective which includes theatre maker Helen Galliano, designer Dimitri Launder and composers Alex Nikiporenko and Louise Drewet. They specialise in 'performative installations inspired by unusual spaces and surreal narratives. Our work is often voyeuristic and provocative – made for a curious audience.' For August they are looking for local singers and choirs to perform with them further information (and contact info) from the Arbonauts webpage.

The University of Texas at Austin announced the above release on Longhorn Records on April 8, 2010: University’s Record Label Releases “Queenie Pie,” Duke Ellington’s Only Opera Sergio Mims forwards this press release: CHICAGO OPERA THEATER ANNOUNCES 2014 SEASON COT’s 2014 Season is 100% 20th Century and 150% COT with works by Duke Ellington, Carl Orff, Viktor Ullmann and Ernest Bloch CHICAGO (May 17, 2013) – Chicago Opera Theater (COT) General Director Andreas Mitisek today announces programming for COT’s 2014 season, including two operas and a double-bill of one-acts. Mitisek comments, “It’s a season that is 100% 20th century and 150% COT. New, rare and with contemporary relevance for a curious audience that is hungry for new theatrical experiences.” The season opens with the Chicago Premiere of Duke Ellington’s Queenie Pie, February 15 – 23, 2014. In the spring, COT presents a double-bill of Carl Orff’s Die Kluge and Viktor Ullmann’s Der Kaiser von Atlantis, May 31 – June 8, 2014. The season wraps in the fall with the Chicago Premiere of Ernest Bloch’s Macbeth, September 13 – 21, 2014. Mitisek also comments “We increased our subscriber family by 18.5% in 2013. COT is THE place for adventure and discovery. We invite our audience on a journey into the good and evil of ambition.” About the Season Duke Ellington’s only opera and one of his fairly unknown and rarely performed works, Queenie Pie, blends big band sound and clever lyrics with the musical styles of opera, jazz and musical theater. The title character, Queenie Pie, was inspired by the life of Madam C. J. Walker, the first African American self-made woman millionaire, who developed and sold a line of hair and beauty products through innovative mail orders and door-to-door sales. Interested in the opera genre since the 1940s, Ellington started composing Queenie Pie in 1962, when he received a commission from the New York public TV station WNET. In collaboration with librettist Betty McGettigan, he worked on the opera from 1967 to his death in 1974, but the work remained unfinished. Since then, different versions have been produced (1986 in Philadelphia and Washington, DC; 1993 in Brooklyn; and 2008 by the Oakland Opera Theater). COT performs the version that librettist McGettigan created for the Butler Opera Center at the University of Texas at Austin in 2009, proclaiming it to be the closest to Ellington's original vision. For this production, COT partners with the renowned Chicago Jazz Orchestra. Queenie Pie is also planned as a co-production with Long Beach Opera, CA. COT performs Queenie Pie at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, 205 E. Randolph Street, February 15 – 23, 2014. Tickets and Subscriptions Three-opera subscriptions start at $95 and go on sale July 1, 2013. Individual tickets go on sale January 6, 2014. Subscriptions and tickets may be purchased through Chicago Opera Theater at www.chicagooperatheater.org or by phone at 312-704-8414. About Chicago Opera Theater Chicago Opera Theater has carved a significant place for itself in the operatic life of Chicago and has reached an audience of hundreds of thousands through its main stage performances, community engagement, education programs in Chicago Public Schools, as well as its renowned Young Artist Program. Experience MORE OF THE DIFFERENT with Chicago Opera Theater! For more information on the Chicago Opera Theater and its programs please visit www.chicagooperatheater.org.

Zanaida Robles John Malveaux of www.MusicUNTOLD.com writes: Choral conductor and soprano Zanaida Robles has accepted an invitation to sing three songs from Coretta Scott King' July 10, 1959 Concert program at the Dayton Art Institute. Coretta Scott studied under Metropolitan Opera star Mme Marie Sundelius at the New England Conservatory of Music where she also sang in the Conservatory chorus which annually sang with the Boston Symphony Orchestra Thanks, John Malveaux

Dave is a cellist, husband, brother, son, uncle, and overall amazing man who was diagnosed on May 9th, 2013 with Stage IV Renal Cell Carcinoma - kidney cancer that had spread undetected to his brain and lungs. The diagnosis was a total shock. He first went to the doctor for what he had thought was a simple strain injury in his right arm from too much time on the cello, only to discover he had a brain tumor, an infected kidney, and over 30 tumors in his lungs. Today David is in the fight for his life. But he's not alone... Please click here for more information and to donate, and please share. The Harlem Chamber Players, Inc. 191 Claremont Avenue #25 New York, New York 10027 212-866-1492 www.harlemchamberplayers.org

The Harlem Chamber Players present The "Appalachian Spring" Concert Sunday, May 19, 2013 at 3 PM St. Mary's Episcopal Church 521 West 126th Street, New York, NY 10027 Between Broadway and Amsterdam Click here for directions. Click here to print and view a flyer. Featuring Amadi Azikiwe, Conductor; Ashley Horne, Solo Violin; Brandee Younger, Solo Harp; Lisa Arkis, Flute; Liz Player, Clarinet; Amy Fraser, Bassoon; Evelyn Golz, Piano; Monica Davis, Violin; Vita Wallace, Violin; Charlene Bishop, Violin; José Manuel Pietri-Coimbre, Violin; Aundrey Mitchell, Viola; Adam Hill, Viola; Lawrence Zoernig, Cello; Patrice Jackson-Tilghman, Cello; Maurice Belle, Double Bass; Paul Novosel, Harpsichord Program Pachelbel Canon Debussy Danses sacrée et profane Vivaldi Summer from Four Seasons Copland Appalachian Spring for 13 Players Meet-the-Artists Wine and Cheese Reception to Follow Hosted by Eric K. Washington