by Jarrett Hoffman
IN THIS EDITION:
•Today: Violinist Caroline Shin and cellist Brian Snow present a duo recital at BW, and Les Délices uses SalonEra to explore Henry VIII’s flagship the Mary Rose, which sank in 1545 with a chest full of instruments on board
•Announcements: Singers’ Club auditions, Music Educator of the Year nominations, Creative Meetups series, Creative Forces Community Engagement grant applications, and Cleveland Chamber Choir caroling requests
•Almanac: Louis-Lefébure-Wély, Gioachino Rossini, and Nikolai Medtner
HAPPENING TODAY:
At 6:00 pm in Fynes Hall, Baldwin Wallace Conservatory will host Bowling Green string faculty Caroline Shin (violin) and Brian Snow (cello) in a duo recital that you can watch in person or via livestream. The concert will be followed by a masterclass, and both events are free.
And at 7:30 pm, Les Délices will premiere SalonEra Season 4 Episode 2 on YouTube. “Shipwreck!” explores Henry VIII’s flagship the Mary Rose, which sank in 1545 with a chest full of instruments on board. This episode will feature Allison Monroe (vielle) and Peter Walker (bagpipes) discussing how to tell the ship’s story through music, and will include performances by the Medieval ensemble Trobár. Watch here — free, with a suggested donation of $15 — or listen to the already-released podcast version here.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Singers’ Club of Cleveland is holding auditions throughout the concert season. The ensemble rehearses on Tuesday evenings at 7:00 at Coventry P.E.A.C.E. Campus in Cleveland Heights. Details here.
The Canton Symphony is accepting nominations for the Music Educator of the Year Award. “Teachers eligible to be nominated must be licensed Music Educators in a public, private or parochial school classroom setting in Grades K-12 in the region served by the Stark County Educational Service Center. Educators from all fields of music are eligible.” Nominations are due January 4.
The Creative Meetups series will continue on November 20 at 5:30 pm at Breakthrough Sounds Recording Studio in Valley View. “Our goal is to curate space designated for creators of all sorts (artists, poets, entrepreneurs, innovators)…Pull up to our co-creation oasis to share what you’re working on, connect with like minded creators, and express yourself.” Reserve a spot here.
The Ohio Arts Council has announced that applications are now open for Creative Forces Community Engagement grants. “A partnership between the National Endowment for the Arts and Mid-America Arts Alliance, grants support community-based arts engagement programming for military and veteran populations — including family members and caregivers.” Applications are due January 17. Learn more here.
And this holiday season, Cleveland Chamber Choir is offering caroling quartets. Interested in having your festivities serenaded by a group of CCC singers? Send an email with the details.
TODAY’S ALMANAC:
by Daniel Hathaway
French organist and composer Louis-Lefébure-Wély was born on this date in Paris in 1817. Closely associated with the symphonic organs built by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll, he occupied important positions at Saint-Roch, the Madeleine, and Saint-Sulpice. Nowadays, Wély’s exuberant, over-the-top compositions usually find their way onto recital programs as period novelties, but they reflect the taste of Parisian church-goers in the mid-19th century. YouTube offers a wide selection of his works, some played on harmoniums (not the same as American reed organs!) Click here to listen to René Saorgin play a selection of Wély’s pieces on the 1845 Nicolas-Antoine Lété instrument in Nantua.
Italian bel canto opera composer Gioachino Rossini died on this date in 1868, having written 39 operas by 1829, when he laid down his pen for the last 40 years of his life. Cleveland Opera Theater responded to the Covid-19 pandemic by reworking his The Barber of Seville into six educational episodes. Start watching here.
One of his few late career works is the Petite messe solennelle for choir, piano and harmonium — neither small nor solemn, despite the title. Click here to watch a performance by the Czech Philharmonic Choir led by Paolo Gatto and featuring soprano Patricia Janečková.
On November 13, 1951, Russian-born pianist and composer Nikolai Medtner died in London at the age of 71. It took some 25 years after his demise for the concert world to recognize him as a worthy colleague of Rachmaninoff and Scriabin in the Russian piano pantheon.
Here are three performances of single works by Medtner: first, his Tale in B-flat, played by the composer himself in 1930; then his Tale Op. 26, No. 3, performed by Daniil Trifonov at Carnegie Hall in December, 2016; and finally, his Canzona matinata and Sonata tragica from Op. 39, recorded by Alex Tuchman at CIM in April, 2019.