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Cleveland Orchestra delivers charming resourceful spin on Mozart at Blossom Music Center (Aug 12)

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This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

(Photo: Roger Mastroianni)

By Peter Feher

CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio — In a playful twist, this summer’s all-Mozart program at Blossom Music Center featured a couple of pieces that weren’t by Mozart.

Call it counterintuitive, but The Cleveland Orchestra’s concert on Saturday, Aug. 12 stayed true to the spirit of this singular composer. The traits that typify Mozart’s style — a combination of instant charm and endless resourcefulness — were also the qualities that brought together the entire evening.

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Marriage, divorce, musical tourism, and a bit of mystery: a conversation with Nic McGegan

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by Mike Telin

Although conductor Nic McGegan has only worked with Cleveland Orchestra principal clarinet Afendi Yusuf on one occasion, he said it was pure heaven. “It was a couple of years ago when we did the suite from Schubert’s Rosamunde, which has a wonderful clarinet part and he just blew me away. You don’t hear clarinet playing that classy everyday. I’m thrilled that he’s going to play this concerto and I’m just so happy to be able to stand next to him.”

On Saturday, August 12, at 7:00 pm at Blossom Music Center, McGegan will lead Afendi Yusuf and The Cleveland Orchestra in a performance of Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto. The program also includes Mozart’s Overture to The Marriage of Figaro, Elena Langer’s Suite from Figaro Gets a Divorce, and Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4, “Italian.” Tickets are available online.

Saturday’s concert also marks Yusuf’s debut as a concerto soloist with his Cleveland colleagues. “That’s an extra treat for me,” McGegan said during a recent phone conversation. “And it’s one of those pieces which an audience always warms to, so it’s going to be great fun.”

Unlike a lot of Mozart’s music — which McGegan said was often written for a performance “next week” — this is not true of the clarinet concerto. “Obviously it dates from the last month he was alive, but it appears that he may have been thinking about it at least two years earlier.”

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Apollo’s Fire captivates with jubilant Messiah (Dec. 8)

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by Stephanie Manning

There’s something so engaging about watching Handel’s Messiah performed live — especially in the capable hands of Apollo’s Fire and Apollo’s Singers. The movement of the instrumentalists, the stage presence of the singers, and the enthusiastic response from the audience all elevate the experience of listening to this familiar music. On the evening of December 8 at Federated Church in Chagrin Falls, guest conductor Nic McGegan led the ensemble in a breathtaking performance of one of Handel’s cornerstone works.

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Nic McGegan makes Apollo’s Fire debut in Handel’s Messiah

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by Mike Telin

Although Nic McGegan has led numerous concerts with The Cleveland Orchestra, he has never conducted Apollo’s Fire. That will change this week when he makes his debut with the acclaimed period instrument ensemble in five area performances of Handel’s Messiah.

On Wednesday, December 8 at 7:30 pm at St. Bernard Catholic Church in Akron, McGegan will lead Apollo’s Fire & Apollo’s Singers and soloists Erica Schuller, soprano, Daniel Moody, countertenor, Thomas Cooley, tenor, and Hadleigh Adams, baritone, in Handel’s celebrated oratorio. Performances run through Sunday, December 12. See our Concert Listings page for locations and times. Tickets are available online.

For the next two weeks McGegan’s musical life will be all about Handel’s oratorio. “I’m doing nine in total — five with Apollo’s Fire and then four with the Chicago Symphony,” the affable maestro said during a telephone conversation from St. Louis, where he was conducting concerts with the St. Louis Symphony. 

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