by Jarrett Hoffman
CONCERTS THIS WEEKEND:
In the words of Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong, “Gone fishin’ — there’s a sign upon our door.” We’re taking a break from our Diary until Monday, so here are a few musical recommendations looking ahead to this weekend.
On Friday at 7, No Exit goes miniature in several ways. The concert will last about half the length of their normal performances, and will consist of solos and duos of five minutes or less by Iannis Xenakis, Kaija Saariaho, György Ligeti, Leo Ornstein, Betsy Jolas, and Charles Delaney. More info here.
Then on Sunday at 8 — live as part of the Silver Hall series — Daniel Shapiro continues his journey through the complete cycle of Beethoven piano sonatas with the Sonatina in G (Op. 79), Sonata No. 4 (Op. 7), the famous “Moonlight” Sonata, and its lesser-known bunkmate in Op. 27. Click here at start time.
Speaking of Beethoven cycles, we’ll have to wait until May 2021 for James Ehnes and Andrew Armstrong to finish up their three-part series covering the composer’s complete violin sonatas for the Cleveland Chamber Music Society. But, as an alternative, artistic director Eric Charnofsky caught up with the duo to find out what they’ve been up to since COVID struck, and to hear some music — movements from Beethoven sonatas, yes, but also works by Debussy and Rimsky-Korsakov. Listen here on the Society’s “Safe With Sound” series.
GRAMMY NOMINATIONS HAVE BEEN RELEASED…
…and Cleveland’s Azica Records is on the list. They’re represented by the Dover Quartet’s October 2019 album The Schumann Quartets in the category of Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance. (Listen on Spotify or Apple Music, and see the complete list of nominations here.)
The album was produced by Alan Bise (right) and engineered by Azica’s founder Bruce Egre (left), who sadly passed away in September of this year. Bise wrote to us yesterday: “It’s very bittersweet not to be able to celebrate with Bruce — I’m really missing him today.” Read an obituary for Egre here from Brown-Forward Funeral Home.
Back in 2015, Bise and Egre spoke to ClevelandClassical.com’s Mike Telin about the fascinating and ever-evolving recording industry — streaming, physical CDs, and more. We also got a taste of their humble personalities:
Why did Bruce Egre start Azica Records? “Perhaps I was a little ignorant,” he answered with a laugh.
Read that interview here.
AS FOR THANKSGIVING DAY:
No history or musical recommendations this time, just our very best wishes for the holiday — and a reminder that Zoom is lifting its 40-minute limit for group calls starting at midnight on November 26, and lasting through 6 am ET on November 27. So enjoy your screen time with anyone who’s out of reach, and if needed, start planning ahead for a new excuse to hang up.