by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•ChamberFest and Chamber Music Society come together tonight
•An update on the theft of Berta Rojas’ guitar (pictured: surveillance footage of the suspect)
•In memoriam Anne Parsons, and news about Anna Netrebko
•Louis Spohr: his useful inventions, his clarinet concertos, and a boastful passage in his autobiography
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
A concert by Dana percussionist Brett Weigel, a profile of Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov (pictured), a job opening at CIM, an issue facing the Rock Hall, the official song for the Cleveland Guardians, Garrison Keillor rescheduled, and the confusion, anger, and division surrounding the birthday of Bach.
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•Organ and piano trio music this afternoon and evening on World Piano Day
•Articles about two new works inspired by Emmett Till and George Floyd
•Almanac: Beethoven’s first public concert appearance, and his funeral — plus his other two burials
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•Events from The Cleveland Orchestra, BW Opera, and Oberlin Opera
•The Orchestra’s return to Miami, and job postings from Apollo’s Fire and Oberlin
•R.I.P. William Kraft, hero of percussion in contemporary music
•Almanac: Bach delivers the Brandenburgs, along with an obsequious note of dedication
by Jarrett Hoffman
Inna Faliks has always found it natural to mix and match the arts.
“I think that’s directly related to growing up in Odessa, Ukraine, in a musical household, but also a household of people who love books,” the UCLA piano professor said during a recent telephone conversation. “I feel like the arts speak to each other in a way that’s extremely natural, so exploring that has never been anything that I decided to do. It’s always been second-nature to me.”
That’s been evident throughout Faliks’ career in projects combining music with poetry and theater. In the category of musical autobiography is her monologue-recital “Polonaise-Fantaisie: Story of a Pianist,” which she will bring to Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Akron on Sunday, March 27 at 4:00 pm as part of the Arts @ Holy Trinity series.
Faliks has described this one-woman show as her most personal. The narrative, spanning from immigration to music and love, is interspersed with works by Rodion Shchedrin, J.S. Bach, Jan Freidlin, Niccolò Paganini, Franz Liszt, Mozart, Chopin, and Beethoven. Admission is free. Click here to see the full program and to register for the livestream option.
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•Today’s schedule: etudes for solo piano, an early-music send-off to Carnegie Hall, works for organ and viola by Black composers, and jazz voice & trumpet
•Today’s reading: Amherst Early Music and Oberlin BPI compared and contrasted, the Ukrainian Contemporary Music Festival, and a heckler at the Met
•Today’s (meta) almanac: a look back at the early days of our Diary
by Jarrett Hoffman
Three members of Philadelphia-based chamber choir The Crossing visited the Cleveland Museum of Art in 2017 to perform David Lang’s Lifespan, a piece that could be crudely described as people blowing and whistling at a rock.
“It sounds like the dumbest thing ever, but it’s a really great piece,” Donald Nally, who heads up The Crossing, said during a recent telephone conversation. Lifespan had caught the eye of CMA director of performing arts Tom Welsh, who then wanted to continue the relationship by bringing the entire choir to Cleveland.
It was a tragic event the following year — the passing of a beloved figure in the local music community, Robert G. Schneider, from complications following a car accident — that gave rise to an idea about what the museum and the ensemble could do together, in Schneider’s memory, around his two great passions of choir and organ.
On Friday, March 25 at 7:30 pm in Gartner Auditorium, The Crossing and organist Scott Dettra will give the premiere of Stacy Garrop’s In a House Besieged, commissioned by Welsh and CMA. The program also includes Lansing McLoskey’s The Memory of Rain and Arvo Pärt’s Salve Regina. Tickets are available here.
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•Les Délices releases “Gods & Heroes” on digital
•Two pioneering women: French Baroque composer Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre (pictured) and Ukrainian writer and activist Lesya Ukrainka — whom you can visit in the Cultural Gardens
•The composers who will be featured in the She Scores concert series this June from the Local 4 Music Fund
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•
Organist Oziah Wales at Church of the Covenant, and Rosamunde String Quartet on the CCMS series
•Calls for performers, interns, and volunteers from Tri-C JazzFest, Heights Arts, Canton Symphony, and Les Délices
•Trinity Wall Street fires music director Julian Wachner after an accusation of sexual assault in 2014
•Masks no longer required at Severance
•Honors in the area: Ron Varn and Imari Hill
•Almanac: Lili Boulanger, chronic illness, and an intense pursuit of composition
by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•Concerts this evening from The Cleveland Orchestra, Oberlin faculty, Youngstown Symphony, and No Exit
•News briefs: Bop Stop trumpeters, Severance safety policy
•In the industry: arts organizations reconsidering their COVID rules, and heading to court to receive relief funds
•Almanac: John Harbison on writing for orchestra