by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•OLO’s The Student Prince at 2:00, ChamberFest Cleveland’s “Extrême Expressions” at 7:30 — and perhaps a drink or two at the end of the day
•Details about Quire Cleveland’s 15th season
•News from Les Délices: new episodes of Music Meditations, and a job opening
•Almanac: Esa-Pekka Salonen, Clarence Cameron White, and Federico Mompou
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•A new project from tenor Karim Sulayman, and a dive into pianistic excellence deep in the heart of Texas
•Ukraine: a ban on some Russian music, and Eurovision hosting duties taken away
•Almanac: Henry VIII, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Joseph Joachim, and Richard Rodgers
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•Ohio Light Opera and ChamberFest Cleveland continue their seasons, while Tri-C JazzFest and the Local 4 Music Fund’s “She Scores” series kick off their programming tonight.
•A report from the Institute for Composer Diversity, an article about jazz in Detroit, and the reopening of Odessa Opera
•Almanac: Canton-born conductor John Finley Williamson and his Westminster Choir
by Jarrett Hoffman
“The piece that you’re going to hear is not the piece that I wanted to write,” composer Yevgeniy Sharlat said during an interview.
Sharlat’s Dumka-22, a commission from ChamberFest Cleveland that will receive its premiere on Saturday, June 25 at 7:30 pm at the Cleveland Institute of Music, was originally conceived around the idea of family — in particular the family at the core of ChamberFest.
That would be Franklin Cohen (clarinet), his daughter Diana Cohen (violin), and her husband Roman Rabinovich (piano) — the three co-artistic directors — as well as Diana’s brother Alexander Cohen (percussion), a frequent performer at the Festival.
So, how about a “family piece” written for that quartet? That was the pitch to Sharlat, the Russian-born composer who was a 2020 Guggenheim Fellow and who teaches composition at the University of Texas at Austin.
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•World music on the horizon from Tuesday Musical
•Winners of the Rubin Institute for Music Criticism announced
•Two storied institutions closing their doors: the San Antonio Symphony and the community music school McGill Conservatory
•Almanac: Pavel Haas, Alan Hovhaness, and Gunther Schuller
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•Tonight: Irish traditional music and ChamberFest’s opening night
•In the news: Paul Jacobs celebrates Franck’s 200th, and The Onion “reports” on a conductor tampering with his baton
•Almanac: Franck’s wedding gift to Ysaÿe, premiered in the dark
by Jarrett Hoffman
In one way, the next event in ENCORE Chamber Music Institute’s Music & Ideas Festival has a wide appeal. As I said to artistic director Jinjoo Cho during an interview, the music on Friday’s program is both brilliant and, without a doubt, fun.
Still, Cho pointed out that it might not be for all audiences. One piece, Derek Bermel’s Coming Together for clarinet and cello, is composed entirely of glissandos, often wild ones. And depending on the listener, you might hear those as depicting — well, one half of the title of this program.
“Food & Desire” will be presented on Friday, June 17 at 7:00 pm at the Dodero Center for Performing Arts in Gates Mills, preceded by a 6:00 conversation featuring Brandon Chrostowski, founder of EDWINS Leadership & Restaurant Institute. In addition to the Bermel, the program includes music by Svante Henryson, Andrew Rindfleisch, Paul Schoenfield, and Bohuslav Martinů — much of it influenced by jazz. In-person and livestream tickets are available here.
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•No Exit tonight at Cain Park
•Akron Community Foundation grants, an Oberlin Conservatory Global course on music theory, and five new categories for the 2023 Grammys
•Almanac: Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•Chamber music at the Aronson Festival, and three opening nights in opera and contemporary music
•Berta Rojas’ guitar is recovered, and the Guitar Society schedules a Community Celebration
•Almanac: Carl Nielsen and the personalities of the Copenhagen Wind Quintet
by Jarrett Hoffman
There’s a beloved type of small ensemble that is rarely heard in programs of chamber music: the a cappella group. For that reason, the appearance of Dallas-based Kings Return on this year’s roster for ChamberFest Cleveland is one of the most unique elements of the Festival’s 10th season.
Formed almost by accident in 2016 when Gabe Kunda gathered singers for his college graduation recital, the group has found fame through viral videos of their music-making, which spans a variety of genres. Their versatility is quite clear in their ChamberFest setlist — part of a program that pairs a cappella and instrumental music on Friday, June 17 at 7:30 pm in the Cultural Arts Center at Disciples Church. Tickets are available here. [Read more…]