by Daniel Hathaway
TODAY’S FEATURED VIDEOS:
The third chapter in James Ehnes’ and Andrew Armstrong’s traversal of the complete Beethoven violin sonatas was scheduled for this evening on the Cleveland Chamber Music Society series at the Maltz Performing Arts Center. Just to remind our readers of their superb playing, click here to watch a video of their performance of the first movement of the Sonata in E-flat, Op. 12, No. 3 at the Wigmore Hall in London. Or click here to listen to the opening movement of the Sonata No. 8 in G, Op. 30, No. 3 from their CD featuring three of the sonatas.
Also this evening, the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist was set to host a concert by the Choir of Notre-Dame, Paris — who have been shut out of their normal venue by the disastrous fire just a year ago. Here’s a performance of American composer Morten Lauridsen’s O Magnum Mysterium by the adult choir of the Maîtrise (which dates back 800 years and comprises five different ensembles). And here’s a poignant performance of Jean-Charles Gandrille’s Stabat Mater for soprano voices and organ, the communion anthem sung on Palm Sunday 2019, which turned out to be the last choral music sung in the Cathedral before the fire broke out less than a day later.
To continue with Margaret Brouwer’s oratorio Voice of the Lake in observance of the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day this week, click here to listen to Part Two of her oratorio. “The Public Hearing” portrays the conflict of opinion in Cleveland as to whether it is safe to dump the dredged sediment from the Cuyahoga River bottom, which contains PCBs, into Lake Erie. Domenico Boyagian leads Brouwer’s Blue Streak Ensemble and Chamber Singers with Angela Mortellaro, soprano, Sarah Beaty, mezzo-soprano, Brian Skoog, tenor, and Bryant Bush, bass and the CIM Children’s Choir in Kulas Hall at the Cleveland Institute of Music on October 19, 2018.
TODAY ON THE WEB:
Check the Concert Listings for details about Tuesday’s Lunchtime with the Cleveland Orchestra, a reading by pianist Stephen Hough from his recent essay collection, the MET Opera’s Tosca in HD, the latest edition of Oberlin Stage Left (“Beat the Blues with Broadway”), and a curated collection of performances from Tuesday Musical featuring members of the Escher and Dover Quartets. And see the On-Demand listings to watch Apollo’s Fire’s “Beethoven the Revolutionary” video and a trailer for Playing With Fire, the new documentary by Allan Miller being screened this week online by the Cleveland International Film Festival.
TODAY’S ALMANAC:
On today’s date in 1749, a public rehearsal of Handel’s Royal Fireworks Music took place — against the composer’s wishes — at London’s Vauxhall Gardens. Obviously not respecting social distancing, an impressive crowd of 12,000 turned out, causing traffic jams for three hours on London Bridge. The eventual premiere performance on April 27 in Green Park was something of a disaster — one of the pavilions caught fire, rockets went astray, and other effects fizzled due to rain. Click here to listen to a not historically informed performance by the London Symphony led by Cleveland’s own George Szell — he also leaves out the 101 cannons called for at the work’s debut.
And today in 1899, composer Randall Thompson was born in New York City. Best known for his choral music, although he also wrote symphonies and an opera, his Alleluia has been sung around the world. Serge Koussivitsky commissioned it for the 1940 opening ceremony of the Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood, requesting a piece with simple words that could be learned and sung by international musicians in a single, short rehearsal. While writing it, the composer learned of one of the pivotal moments in World War II, and described his piece as “a sad fanfare for the fall of France.” Click here for a decidedly international performance by Stockholm’s S:t Jacobs Chamber Choir at the Basilica di San Pietro in Perugia, Italy.
