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Trinity’s third summer live stream: John McElliott on Britten’s Canticle II

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by Daniel Hathaway

“Britten is such a master of theater that his Canticle II is like a little 17-minute opera,” countertenor John McElliott said in a telephone conversation. “Any chance I have to sing this music is such a great joy that I savor every one.”

In fact, McElliott has had many opportunities to savor Benjamin Britten’s “Abraham and Isaac” together with his colleagues, tenor JR Fralick and pianist Todd Wilson. “We’ve performed it many times both at the Church of the Covenant and at Trinity Cathedral. At this point, it’s become an old friend.”

McElliott, Fralick, and Wilson will renew that friendship in the third of Music and Art at Trinity’s live streamed concerts this summer, an episode that will air in real time with no audience present on Friday, September 18 at 7:00 pm. The program, “Music by Three B’s,” will include Nadia Boulanger’s Three Improvisations, played by organist Nicole Keller, and Brahms’ Violin Sonata in A, performed by Andrew Sords with pianist Elizabeth DeMio. The event is free, but donations are welcome toward a COVID-19 musicians relief fund.

Britten wrote his five Canticles between 1947 and 1974. Though the titles suggest liturgical works, they’re more like little cantatas for various combinations of voices and instruments. Three of them were crafted as memorials, and all five reflect the composer’s knack for setting fine examples of English literature to highly expressive music. [Read more…]

Arts at Holy Trinity: Schubert’s Die schöne Müllerin for guitar and voice

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by Jarrett Hoffman

Like many song cycles, Schubert’s Die schöne Müllerin — originally for high voice and piano — has been transposed for different vocal ranges. And like other beloved works of any genre, it has taken on different forms through arrangements by musicians eager to experience it and lend a new perspective.

On Sunday, September 20 at 4:00 pm, Akron’s Arts at Holy Trinity will present Die schöne Müllerin in a recently-recorded, virtual performance by baritone Michael Kelly and guitarist David Leisner. Adding another touch of interpretation, visual artist Kevork Mourad will offer prepared animation and imagery to accompany the music. Click here to register to attend.

During a recent Zoom call with Leisner, who made the arrangement, and who chairs the guitar department at the Manhattan School of Music, I asked about the inspiration behind moving this cycle into the world of the guitar.

[Read more…]

Harpist Parker Ramsay releases Debut CD: Bach’s Goldberg Variations 

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by Mike Telin

“To transcribe the music of Bach is to undertake the spirit of Bach,” harpist Parker Ramsay said during a Zoom interview. “He would often transcribe his own music for other instruments, as well as music of other composers.”

On Friday, September 18, Ramsay’s debut recording, Bach: Goldberg Variations, will be released on the King’s College Recordings label. The album will be available on CD and to stream and download via all major digital music services. Recorded in King’s College Chapel in Cambridge, England, the album includes liner notes by Pulitzer Prize-winning music critic Tim Page and leading Bach scholar Burkhard Schwalbach.

Ramsay noted that people have been transcribing Bach’s music for many years for a variety of instruments including the Moog synthesizer. “I love Wendy Carlos’ Switched-on Bach,” he said. “It’s just incredible.” In his recent New York Times essay, Ramsay muses on Bach, transcriptions, and instrumentation.

When asked why he chose such an iconic work for his debut recording, Ramsay said that he wanted to present the harp as an instrument that is not just capable of playing new music or idiomatic music, but one that is worthy of the great works in the classical canon. “I also wanted to highlight all the different types of education that I have had.” [Read more…]

Shapiro begins third Beethoven cycle this Sunday on Hudson’s MFTWR Series

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by Daniel Hathaway

“The first time I did the whole thing within a month — two a week for four weeks. That was kind of crazy. The second time it was one concert per month, which is what I’m hopefully doing now.”

“Now” refers to the current season, when pianist Daniel Shapiro begins his third expedition into Beethoven’s 32 piano sonatas on Sunday, September 13 with a 5:00 pm performance on the Music From The Western Reserve series at Christ Church in Hudson. Because COVID-19 has precluded live audiences at the beginning of the season, Shapiro is pre-recording his recital this week for streaming on Sunday.

In a telephone conversation, Daniel Shapiro noted that he had played that first “kind of crazy” cycle in 1995 when he was teaching at the University of Iowa, and the second in 2001-2002 after he had joined the faculty of the Cleveland Institute of Music. The third will be spaced throughout 2020-2021 at several area venues, details still to be announced. [Read more…]

Violinist Wendy Case joins faculty of YSU’s Dana School of Music

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by Daniel Hathaway

Although this is not an optimal moment to start a new job, violinist Wendy Case is enjoying her new position on the faculty of the Dana School of Music at Youngstown State University.

“So far it’s been fantastic. We’re doing all the classes online, and private lessons and chamber groups in person, both indoors and outside, where we have some spaces we can use.”

Case, who studied at the University of Michigan, the Cleveland Institute of Music, and SUNY Stony Brook, has recently held teaching positions in Chattanooga, Tennessee at Berry College, Covenant College, and Chattanooga State. Founding violinist of the Brahms’ Ghost Piano Trio, she has served as artistic director of the Scenic City Chamber Society and performed with the Tetris Duo, the Pitch Pipe Foundation, the Nashville Opera, and the Atlanta Symphony. Her current projects include recordings and a series of presentations on the interplay of advanced string technique and acoustical physics.

Originally a Michigander, Case says she’s excited to move back North. “I’m glad to be here. I’ve loved Northeast Ohio for a really long time.” [Read more…]

M.U.S.i.C. offers “Garden Concerts” featuring Arseniy Gusev premiere

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by Jarrett Hoffman

Fresh from Piano Cleveland’s online Virtu(al)oso Competition, where he played one of his own works in the final round en route to winning Second Prize, Russian-born Arseniy Gusev will have another opportunity to showcase his dual musical abilities in September, this time with a live performance and a new piece.

On September 10 and 12 at 5:00 pm at a private location in Orange Village, M.U.S.i.C. – Stars in the Classics will host two “Garden Concerts” featuring the premiere of Gusev’s Rondellus for piano and violin. That’s part of a program devoted to Russian and Scandinavian composers, including Rachmaninoff, Tchaikovsky, Arensky, Glinka, and Grieg, in addition to a work of Danish folk music.

These outdoor, socially-distanced concerts are the last of the year in M.U.S.i.C.’s garden series. Click here for the address to the venue, rain dates, masking requirements, food and drink options, ticketing, and RSVP. [Editor’s note: both evenings are now sold out.]

Joining Gusev to perform Rondellus will be Victor Beyens, to whom the piece is dedicated. “He’s a wonderful violinist and a good friend of mine,” the composer said by email. “I was very grateful for the opportunity to work on the commission for such a fine musician, even though the piece was meant to be rather short.”

[Read more…]

Al Fresco events take off
in Northeast Ohio

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by Daniel Hathaway

Apollo’s Fire sold out all seven of its outdoor “Tuscan Sun” concerts last week, and now patrons of Akron’s Tuesday Musical “Music al fresco: Passport 2020” have snapped up all the available seats — socially distanced, of course — for its three Sunday afternoon performances in September and October at historic Barder House in West Akron.

That’s a nice problem to have, and TMA has solved it by adding an extra 1:00 pm performance to the existing 3:00 pm performances on September 6 (Russian Duo), September 20 (Black Squirrel Winds), and October 11 (Found Sounds: Ghana, Trinidad, Brazil).

Executive Director Cynthia Snider wrote in a press release, “We have carefully designed Music al fresco: Passport 2020 to provide a safe entertainment option for audiences in Northeast Ohio where most live arts events have been canceled for months because of COVID-19.”

Snider added that strict safety protocols will be in force in coordination with Summit County Public Health. [Read more…]

Les Délices: the SalonEra series and a look at its first three programs

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by Jarrett Hoffman

Early on in the pandemic, Baroque oboist and Les Délices artistic director Debra Nagy decided to avoid spending time on social media. It wasn’t just the clickbait articles, or the echo chamber of opinions, or the anxiety that it can provoke in even the best of times.

It was also, as she told me in April, the “sea” of invites to live concerts streamed from living rooms. It was overwhelming. One thing she found nourishing was programming potential concerts, planning for a future where artists could once again “collaborate in meaningful ways.”

Looking back now, it’s clear that Nagy was always going to find her own unique way to approach music-making in the time of COVID. Enter SalonEra, a free series that begins August 24 and represents one half of Les Délices’ 2020-21 season.

[Read more…]

41st Tri-C JazzFest
goes virtual Aug. 21-23

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by Jarrett Hoffman

The Tri-C JazzFest kicks off its all-virtual 41st edition this weekend, August 21-23, with a focus on local acts and a schedule that’s designed like a variety show. Each night’s free 7:00 pm presentation will be made up of recent pre-recorded performances, live music, interviews, and features from the archive.

Of course, precautions around COVID-19 played a large part in how it all came together. “If we were going to try to honor our local musicians and our local scene, we needed to make something that would be as safe as possible,” director Terri Pontremoli said by Zoom.

During the month of July, one band per day recorded a short set inside the 600-seat Simon and Rose Mandel Theater on the eastern campus of Cuyahoga Community College. “Because we’re part of a big institution, the COVID safety guidelines were very serious, and the musicians felt really good,” Pontremoli said. “We got them in and out, and kept it all as clean as possible.”

Those sessions proved to be a powerful experience for everyone involved. “I have to tell you, it was so heartwarming to see the musicians play together, because it had been such a long time, and they were so grateful.” She recalled one message that bassist Kip Reed delivered backstage. “He said, ‘Playing means so much to me that I literally dream about it these days.’”

[Read more…]

Cleveland Classical Guitar Society: Berta Rojas performs online after cancelled Cleveland debut

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by Jarrett Hoffman

Paraguayan guitarist Berta Rojas was set to make her Cleveland debut on March 14 in a presentation by the Cleveland Classical Guitar Society. Then the coronavirus crisis intervened.

Now, Rojas and the Guitar Society have worked out an alternative. On Saturday, August 15 at 7:30 pm, she’ll give a free, pre-recorded online concert, broadcast on YouTube and entirely devoted to the music of Agustín Barrios Mangoré, a fellow Paraguayan who lived from 1885 to 1944.

That programming choice shouldn’t surprise anyone who was looking forward to her concert in March, which would have been all-Barrios during its second half. It also shouldn’t surprise anyone who’s followed Rojas’ career, from her 2008 album Intimate Barrios to her four-year tour, “In the Footsteps of Mangoré,” with clarinetist and saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera.

[Read more…]

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