by Timothy Robson
Few new works performed by The Cleveland Orchestra in recent memory have been as musically imaginative and sonically arresting as Caroline Shaw’s Watermark, which received its first Cleveland Orchestra performance at Blossom Music Center on Saturday evening, August 28. Pianist Jonathan Biss, for whom the piece was written, was the superb soloist, with associate conductor Vinay Parameswaran at the podium.
by Timothy Robson
Chanticleer, the legendary all-male vocal ensemble, appeared on Tuesday Musical’s series at E.J. Thomas Hall on July 27. Founded in 1978, the ensemble presented one of their trademark eclectic programs, in which a Renaissance motet by William Byrd could bump up against Burton Lane’s pop song On a Clear Day, or a commissioned work might transition to a gospel song. Part of their first post-pandemic tour, this was their first performance in Northeast Ohio under new music director Tim Keeler, who had previously sung countertenor in the group.
by Timothy Robson
Venezuelan-born conductor Rafael Payare made his debut with The Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom Music Center on Sunday, July 25. Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 2 featured Stefan Jackiw as soloist, and the program concluded with Antonín Dvořák’s evergreen “New World” Symphony. Payare is the music director of the San Diego Symphony and music director-designate of the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal.
by Timothy Robson
It was March 20, 2020, when The Cleveland Orchestra and Franz Welser-Möst gave their last concert as a complete ensemble before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down live performances for more than a year. The Orchestra, with guest conductor Brett Mitchell, returned triumphantly to Blossom Music Center on July 3 and 4 to celebrate Independence Day. I attended on July 4.
by Timothy Robson
It was with a sense of relief and anticipation that I attended last Thursday’s third-to-last concert of ChamberFest Cleveland 2021, after a complete pandemic cancellation of its 2020 season. This musical star of Cleveland summers returned along with many performers from past seasons, plus talented younger musicians in CFC’s Rising Star program. As usual, the performances were top-notch. [Read more…]
by Timothy Robson
“We are so happy to be performing in front of a live audience again. Just saying the words gives me shivers.” These were the words of Mark Holloway, violist in the Pacifica Quartet, at their splendid performance with clarinetist Anthony McGill, presented by Tuesday Musical on May 4 at E.J. Thomas Hall.
In addition to Holloway, the quartet members are Simin Ganatra and Austin Hartman, violins, and Brandon Vamos, cello. The audience was intentionally limited to 300, with strict social distancing and required face masks. There was a muted but celebratory atmosphere in the hall as friends greeted each other. [Read more…]
by Timothy Robson
Les Délices premiered another winner this weekend with the debut of their pre-recorded Christmas concert “Noel, Noel,” a highly enjoyable blend of English, French, and German carols, interspersed with Christmas-themed poetry from authors as diverse as Christina Rosetti and e.e. cummings. (The program is available until December 23. Click here for tickets.)
Earlier in the year Les Délices had put out a call to local poets to submit Christmas poems for this concert. Three were chosen: Diane Kendig’s At the Christmas Tree, Dave Lucas’ Three Kings, and Julie Warther’s one child’s candle. The styles are diverse, from Kendig’s sonnet to Wather’s six haiku miniatures. [Read more…]
by Timothy Robson
“Bewitched,” the first subscription concert of this season by Les Délices, can be summed up in one word: sensational. In her introductory remarks, director Debra Nagy talked about the “Embracing Change” theme of the season and completely rethinking the concert experience for streaming. The detailed planning was in evidence throughout the program. “Bewitched” was not just a concert; it was a carefully planned musical film, with elements of drama and music appreciation, all in support of the inspired program choices featuring Medea and Circe, two famous witches (or sorceresses, if you prefer) of classical antiquity. [Read more…]
by Timothy Robson
Christa Rakich, currently Visiting Professor of Organ at Oberlin Conservatory, played an intriguing and unusual program on Sunday afternoon at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Akron. The concert was presented in a “hybrid” format for an in-person as well as an at-home audience.
by Timothy Robson
Jerusalem, sacred city of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The location of horrific violence and oppression for over two millennia. But yet a magical city in which Jews, Christians, and Muslims have lived and interacted with each other in harmony. It was the latter aspect of Jerusalem that Jeannette Sorrell and Apollo’s Fire highlighted in their sensational program “O Jerusalem! Crossroads of Three Faiths.” I heard the performance on Wednesday, March 11 at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Gartner Auditorium was well filled, and it now turns out that Apollo’s Fire gave the last major performance at the Museum for an unknown period of time, due to precautions around COVID-19. [Read more…]