by Daniel Hathaway
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
The Boston Camerata writes, “It is with profound sadness that The Boston Camerata, its Artistic Director, musicians, staff, and Board announce the death of Joel Cohen (1942–2026) on July 26 in Haverhill, Massachusetts.” He was 84. Read the Violin Channel article here.
“A visionary musician, conductor, composer, and musicologist, Cohen led The Boston Camerata from 1963 to 2008, leading it to international fame. His pioneering work brought Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, and early American music to broad audiences through historically-informed performances, acclaimed recordings, and innovative programming. He collaborated with leading artists, appeared at major festivals worldwide, and released more than fifty recordings.”
Cleveland.com announces that The Video Game Symphony, a Northeast Ohio-based 100-piece orchestra and choir, returns to Severance Music Center on August 23 with “Choose Your Character!” featuring music from Super Mario Odyssey, The Legend of Zelda, Pokémon and other fan-favorite games, Joey Morona shares highlights of the event.
TODAY’S ALMANAC:
English baritone Simon Keenlyside was born on this date in 1959 in London.
Cleveland audiences will remember his appearances with The Cleveland Orchestra in the title role of Don Giovanni in March, 2011, in Sibelius songs in May, 2019, and in that same week, his performance of Schubert’s Winterreise in Reinberger Chamber Hall at Severance with pianist Natalia Katyukova. (Read our review of the 2019 performances here.)
And in 1998, Russian composer Alfred Schnittke died of a stroke (the last of several that plagued him late in his career) in Hamburg at the age of 63. Watch a 1990 BBC documentary, The Unreal World of Alfred Schnittke here.
ChamberFest Cleveland included his Piano Quartet after Mahler on its WCLV program yesterday, Click here to watch ChamberFest violinists Yehonatan Berick and David Bowlin play his Prelude in Memoriam Dmitri Shostakovich at Harkness Chapel on June 26, 2015.
