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Tag: Italian

concert review, operaLeave a comment

NSO’s Tosca

February 22, 2019March 7, 2019 Fugue for Thought

Deception. Rebellion. Jealousy. Betrayal. Lust. Torture. Murder. Suicide. Catholicism. It’s all here. I finally saw Tosca! It was an opera concert, but honestly was as fully staged as you could expect it to be and still be in a concert hall … Continue reading NSO’s Tosca

Music, Petite Piano2 Comments

Berio: Six Encores

July 31, 2018July 29, 2018 Fugue for Thought

performed by Andrea Lucchesini (cover image by Aaron Blanco Tejedor) Berio’s Encores are relatively short pieces composed over a three decades, and provide a pretty wide-ranging vocabulary for the performer. For the brevity of the individual pieces, they provide a really wonderful … Continue reading Berio: Six Encores

20th Century Opera, concert review, Music, opera1 Comment

NSO’s Il Trittico

July 21, 2017July 22, 2017 Fugue for Thought

performed by Taiwan’s 國家交響樂團 a.k.a. National Symphony Orchestra a.k.a. Taiwan Philharmonic, or below in a trailer for the work from The Royal Opera This is a concert (opera) review, and less so a discussion of the opera itself, but I’m … Continue reading NSO’s Il Trittico

Music, SQSLeave a comment

Giacomo Puccini: Crisantemi

July 8, 2017June 17, 2017 Fugue for Thought

performed by the Venice Quartet, or below by the Enso String Quartet Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini had a long name. He was born on December 22, 1858 in Lucca, Italy, one of nine children in the Puccini … Continue reading Giacomo Puccini: Crisantemi

Music, SQSLeave a comment

Verdi String Quartet in E minor

July 1, 2017June 17, 2017 Fugue for Thought

performed by the Venice Quartet, or below by the Shanghai Quartet I’ve written a Quartet in my leisure moments in Naples. I had it performed one evening in my house, without attaching the least importance to it and without inviting … Continue reading Verdi String Quartet in E minor

concerto, Music, New NovemberLeave a comment

Niccolò Paganini: Violin Concerto No. 5 in A minor

November 9, 2016November 4, 2016 Fugue for Thought

performed by Salvatore Accardo and the London Philharmonic under Charles Dutoit It’s Paganini! How haven’t we done Paganini here yet? His name has only (to my recollection) been uttered on these pages in the context of an incredible concert earlier this year where … Continue reading Niccolò Paganini: Violin Concerto No. 5 in A minor

Music, New November, SQSLeave a comment

Luigi Boccherini: String Quartet in D, op. 8/1

November 5, 2016October 30, 2016 Fugue for Thought

performed by the Venice Quartet, or below by the Takeuchi String Quartet in a surprisingly clear recording Ridolfo Luigi Boccherini was born on February 19, 1743 in Lucca, Italy, into a musical family. His father was a cellist and bassist, and … Continue reading Luigi Boccherini: String Quartet in D, op. 8/1

Darmstadt Beginnings, Music, SQSLeave a comment

Berio: Quartetto (1956)

July 24, 2016July 23, 2016 Fugue for Thought

performed by the Arditti quartet The string quartet under discussion begins at this point in the above video, or from here In searching for information about this quartet, I came to find that there is very little discussion virtually anywhere of Berio’s almost-earliest work … Continue reading Berio: Quartetto (1956)

Darmstadt Beginnings, Music, SQSLeave a comment

Bruno Maderna: Quartetto per archi in due tempi

July 23, 2016July 22, 2016 Fugue for Thought

performed by the Cicada Quartet Maderna’s Quartet is the hardest nut to crack [on the album], with its fragmented phrases and restless rhythms and dynamics. But behind the notes the Cikadas’ deeply committed playing reveals glimpses of a dramatic personality … Continue reading Bruno Maderna: Quartetto per archi in due tempi

Darmstadt Beginnings, Music4 Comments

Nono: Il Canto Sospeso

July 21, 2016July 16, 2016 Fugue for Thought

performed by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, with Susanne Otto, Marek Torzewski, Barbara Bonney, Dietrich Knothe & Rundfunkchor Berlin under Claudio Abbado If any evidence exists that Webern’s work does not mark the esoteric “expiry” of Western music in a pianissimo of … Continue reading Nono: Il Canto Sospeso

Darmstadt Beginnings, Music3 Comments

Luigi Nono: Liebeslied for mixed choir and instruments

July 19, 2016July 8, 2016 Fugue for Thought

performed by the Wiener Jeunesse-Chor, Günther Theuring, and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under Claudio Abbado Today we begin a rather brief discussion of one of the pillars of the Darmstadt school, in fact of the very man who coined the phrase … Continue reading Luigi Nono: Liebeslied for mixed choir and instruments

Darmstadt Beginnings, Music, SQSLeave a comment

Luciano Berio: Opus Number Zoo, Children’s Play for Wind Quintet

July 17, 2016July 8, 2016 Fugue for Thought

performed by Quintette Nielsen & Pierre Roullier, or below by The Philharmonic Five I feel a little bit bad that this is the first representation that Berio will be getting in our series here, but while he is a critically important name … Continue reading Luciano Berio: Opus Number Zoo, Children’s Play for Wind Quintet

podcast, thoughts1 Comment

Podcast: Schumann’s Cipher

May 16, 2016May 28, 2016 Fugue for Thought

featuring cellist Carmine Miranda. Listen here or find it in iTunes. I’m interested in interesting things. Aren’t you? Codes and ciphers are interesting. Is there something secretive in Schumann’s sole cello concerto? While not a performer of any kind, I agreed with what … Continue reading Podcast: Schumann’s Cipher

Music, Symphonic PoemLeave a comment

Ottorino Respighi: Feste Romane

March 3, 2016February 27, 2016 Fugue for Thought

performed by the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal under Charles Dutoit Four years after yesterday’s Pines, and more than a decade after Fountains, we have Festivals. As Wikipedia says: Each of the four movements depict a scene of celebration from ancient or modern Rome. It is … Continue reading Ottorino Respighi: Feste Romane

Music, Symphonic PoemLeave a comment

Ottorino Respighi: Pini di Roma

March 2, 2016February 26, 2016 Fugue for Thought

performed by the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal under Charles Dutoit The Pines of Rome Like I said in yesterday’s post, I have a strange nostalgic connection to these pieces. It’s not that they’re necessarily favorites, but I have a certain fond memory … Continue reading Ottorino Respighi: Pini di Roma

Music, Symphonic PoemLeave a comment

Ottorino Respighi: Fontane di Roma

March 1, 2016February 21, 2016 Fugue for Thought

performed by the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal under Charles Dutoit …or Fountains of Rome While it’s a four-movement work, this entire piece takes up only about fifteen minutes. But we should back up a bit and start by saying that this … Continue reading Ottorino Respighi: Fontane di Roma

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