Make Music! Archives - Cleveland Classical

Preview: Cleveland Orchestra “Make Music!” Week: an interview with Youth Chorus director Lisa Wong

March 5, 2013 by Special to ClevelandClassical.com

by Mike Telin

The Cleveland Orchestra Youth Chorus will join conductor James Feddeck and the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra in concert on Sunday evening, March 10 at 7:00 pm at Severance Hall. The Chorus will sing Johannes Brahms’s Nänie and Howard Hanson’s Song of Democracy in the final performance of The Cleveland Orchestra’s “Make Music!” Week.

Lisa Wong, Assistant Director of Choruses for The Cleveland Orchestra, added the directorship of the Youth Chorus to her portfolio at the beginning of the current season. She is also in her fourth year on the faculty of The College of Wooster, where she directs the Wooster Chorus, the Wooster Singers, and teaches courses in conducting and music education. She has a long history of working with students of all levels from pre-Kindergarten to college. We spoke to her by telephone. [Read more…]

Preview: Cleveland Orchestra “Make Music!” Week: an interview with guest conductor Robert Franz

March 5, 2013 by Special to ClevelandClassical.com

by Mike Telin

As part of The Cleveland Orchestra’s “Make Music!” educational week, guest conductor Robert Franz will lead the orchestra in a special family concert titled “Symphony Under the Sea” on Friday, March 8 at 7:00 pm in Severance Hall. The concert includes selections from Handel’s Water Music, Glière’s Russian Sailor Dance, Wagner’s Overture to Thee Flying Dutchman, Britten’s Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes, Sousa’s Hands Across the Sea and Menken & Beck’s suite from Disney’s The Little Mermaid. Special guests will be the Singing Angels.

Just last week, Franz was named music director designate of the Windsor Symphony in addition to his posts as music director of the Boise Philharmonic and assistant conductor of the Houston Symphony. As well as receiving numerous honors for his work in education, Franz has authored his first children’s book with a CD entitled Stella’s Magical Musical Tour of America. The book, which Franz uses as a family concert theme, introduces children to classical music by incorporating various musical excerpts intertwined throughout the story of a girl’s journey in a hot air balloon. We spoke to him by telephone. [Read more…]

Christmas with Cantus at Tuesday Musical (Nov. 30)

by Peter Feher

Tuesday Musical gave Akron audiences a generous Christmas gift this year. The presenter tied three holiday classics together in one sumptuous concert on Sunday afternoon, November 30, at E.J. Thomas Hall. First up was the story of The Velveteen Rabbit, followed by a quick waltz through The Nutcracker and a ride on The Polar Express.

Delightfully, this trio of tales was recounted with drama and poise — not by any actors or dancers but by the eight members of the all-male a cappella ensemble Cantus. The group, based in Minnesota and now in its fourth decade, is once again touring the country with a polished, compact production of carols, pop tunes, and of course Tchaikovsky.

[Read on…]

Oberlin Music Theater soars in The Great Comet of 1812 (Dec. 3)

by Peter Feher

The stars aligned for Oberlin Music Theater’s production of Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, suggesting a bright future for the college’s newest area of study.

Oberlin Conservatory has cultivated young talent for more than 150 years, but musical theater only entered the curriculum this semester. The program’s first students arrived in the fall under director and professor Victoria Bussert, who brought with her several colleagues from Baldwin Wallace University — including a few who collaborated on her 2023 staging of Great Comet for Cleveland’s Great Lakes Theater company.

Even for the experienced, this show is a massive undertaking, with a story adapted from Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace and a score demanding stamina and stylistic range. But nothing daunted the student actors on opening night, December 3. Not the immersive direction by Bussert, nor the energy-intensive choreography by Alex Sanchez. (Two casts alternated in eight performances through December 10.)

[Read on…]

Cleveland Orchestra channels all things merry, bright in Holiday Concert at Severance (Dec. 13)

by Kevin McLaughlin

Photo by Roger Mastroianni

This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Holiday concerts trade on familiarity, but the best of them feel less like ritual and more like reunion.

On Saturday evening, Dec. 13 at Mandel Concert Hall, The Cleveland Orchestra welcomed a full house for the second of its twelve annual Holiday Concerts, a tradition that dates back to 1919.

Led by guest conductor Sarah Hicks, with soprano Meredith Wohlgemuth and the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus, and members of the Blossom Festival Chorus under the direction of Lisa Wong, the evening unfolded with easy charm.

Throughout the performance, Hicks proved an ideal guide. Her conducting was clear and unshowy, her rapport with the audience unaffected and delightful.

[Read on…]

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