The Finnish Symphony
(cover image by Pasi Jormalainen) The final feature of the year, the Finnish symphony series, finally! It’s a contrast to the two English-speaking symphony series we did this year, and I guess kind of a callback to the end of … Continue reading The Finnish Symphony
Robert Fuchs: String Quartet no. 1 in E, op. 58
performed by the Minguet Quartett second and third/fourth movements (cover image by Steven Wang) Robert Fuchs was born on February 15, 1847 in Frauental an der Laßnitz, the youngest of 13 children. He studied at the Vienna Conservatory with Felix Otto … Continue reading Robert Fuchs: String Quartet no. 1 in E, op. 58
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig in Taiwan
with Leonidas Kavakos under Herbert Blomstedt Well, add one more to the list. Yet another world-class orchestra comes through Taipei, with a world-class conductor and soloist. I’ll be honest. When I heard about this concert many months ago, my first … Continue reading Gewandhausorchester Leipzig in Taiwan
Chopin: Preludes, op. 28
performed by Rafał Blechacz It’s about darn time to get Chopin’s music back on the blog, and so we’ll revisit him by discussing a work that so simply, so powerfully expresses the entire gamut of human emotion in an irresistible, … Continue reading Chopin: Preludes, op. 28
The American Symphony in Review
(cover image by Ian Dooley) The series is available, in reverse chronological order, here. This has been one of the most exciting series we’ve done. There has been such a wide spectrum of styles and approaches, but really just excellent … Continue reading The American Symphony in Review
Blackwood String Quartet no. 3
performed by the Pacifica Quartet (no video today, but go check out the album for some audio clips) (cover image by Steven Wang) Back to Blackwood. If you know Blackwood’s name from somewhere (and you’re not a contract bridge player; … Continue reading Blackwood String Quartet no. 3
Thomas Hampson in Taiwan
with the NSO under Kahchun Wong It’s all Mahler tonight. Another performance of Mahler’s first. But that wasn’t the only first on the program. The terribly charming, famous, and very talented Thomas Hampson made his very first visit to our … Continue reading Thomas Hampson in Taiwan
George Walker: Sinfonia no. 3
performed by Sinfonia Varsovia under Ian Hobson More and more, I realize the power of music—the power of the interval, of rhythm, of being exact in what I put down as what I meant to hear. George Walker, Strings Magazine … Continue reading George Walker: Sinfonia no. 3
Glass Symphony no. 3
performed by the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra (commissioner of the work) under Dennis Russel Davies https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkgQxdUt7ns second, third and fourth movements (cover photo by John Price) Here we are today with Glass’s first symphonic work to appear on the blog, the … Continue reading Glass Symphony no. 3
Babbitt: Transfigured Notes
performed by Gunther Schuller’s ad hoc string orchestra Just let the music wash over you in its totality, and you might be surprised what rich and totally new listening rewards you will reap. -Gunther Schuller, on Transfigured Notes (cover image by … Continue reading Babbitt: Transfigured Notes
Glass String Quartet no. 3, ‘Mishima’
performed by the Smith Quartet, or below by the Kronos Quartet (cover image by Oskar Krawczyk) Philip Glass’s third string quartet is in many ways (at least spiritually) related to the second. That work was to be incidental music for … Continue reading Glass String Quartet no. 3, ‘Mishima’
Steve Reich: Clapping Music
performed by two people with four hands (cover image by Tim Gouw) Stephen Michael Reich was born on October 3, 1936 in New York City. His parents divorced within a year or so of his birth, so he divided his … Continue reading Steve Reich: Clapping Music
Ellen Taaffe Zwilich: Three Movements for Orchestra (Symphony no. 1)
performed by The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra under John Nelson third movement here (second movement seems not to be on YouTube. Just go buy the album!) Throughout the entire Symphony, the melodic and harmonic implications of the first fifteen bars of … Continue reading Ellen Taaffe Zwilich: Three Movements for Orchestra (Symphony no. 1)
William Bolcom: Symphony No. 3, for Chamber Orchestra
performed by the Louisville Orchestra under Lawrence Leighton Smith (cover image by Jennifer Arlem Molina) William Elden Bolcom is still alive. He was born May 26, 1938 in Seattle. He entered the University of Washington at the exceedingly young age of 11 … Continue reading William Bolcom: Symphony No. 3, for Chamber Orchestra
Irving Fine: Symphony
performed by the Boston Modern Orchestra Project under Gil Rose, or below by the Boston Symphony Orchestra under the composer’s baton (cover image by Andrew Yardley) Irving Gifford Fine was born in Boston on 3 December 1914. He earned both … Continue reading Irving Fine: Symphony
John Cage: 4’33”
performed by you, or anyone, or everyone, anywhere (cover image by Felix Mooneeram) By being hushed and silent we should have the opportunity to hear what other people think… John Milton Cage, Jr. was born on September 5, 1912 in Los … Continue reading John Cage: 4’33”
Elliott Carter: String Quartet no. 1
performed by the Pacifica Quartet, or below by the Juilliard Quartet Like the desert horizons I saw daily while it was being written, the First Quartet presents a continuous unfolding and changing of expressive characters—one woven into the other or … Continue reading Elliott Carter: String Quartet no. 1
TSO’s Pre-Tour Concert
featuring violinist Paul Huang (黃俊文) It’s been a little while since I’d seen the TSO. I wasn’t able to attend the all-Sibelius concert with Okko Kamu, unfortunately, but Varga was back in town tonight. Not for long, though. As the … Continue reading TSO’s Pre-Tour Concert
Walter Piston: Symphony no. 2
performed by the Seattle Symphony under Gerard Schwarz …without even the shadow of a doubt one of the half dozen great works written during the last ten years. It sings forever in my heart and in my consciousness, and it … Continue reading Walter Piston: Symphony no. 2
William Schuman: Symphony no. 3
performed by the New York Philharmonic under Leonard Bernstein, or below by the Philadelphia Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy This is no abstract intellectual exercise but an expression of changing moods and emotions, generating excitement and ecstasy at the climactic points. … Continue reading William Schuman: Symphony no. 3
David Diamond: Symphony no. 1
performed by the Seattle Symphony Orchestra under Gerard Schwartz second and third movements It speaks a language familiar to most audiences and does so with imaginative new inflections – such sumptuously long-breathed themes, such rhythmic vitality and such crystalline orchestration. … Continue reading David Diamond: Symphony no. 1
Fugue for Thought 