by Jarrett Hoffman
Premiering on February 1, last week’s episode of Les Délices’ SalonEra series explored “Afro-Caribbean Roots” in early music, delving into the evolution of an 18th-century Haitian text, the original works and arrangements of Guadeloupe-born composer Joseph Bologne, and the modinhas of Brazilian guitarist and singer-songwriter Joaquim Manoel da Câmara.
by Jarrett Hoffman
SalonEra is off and running, continuing into its fourth, fifth, and sixth episodes over the next several weeks with “Strike The Viol” (October 5), “Latin Baroque” (October 19), and “Schubertiade” (November 2).
I reached out to Les Délices artistic director Debra Nagy to learn more about these three very different programs, but also to talk about the new role she’s taken on for this series: interviewer. And whether you’re Conan O’Brien or Debra Nagy, there’s a lot that goes into that.
For Nagy, it starts with a “discovery call” with someone she’d like to bring on the show: “a very open phone call that is maybe as much as an hour long,” she said during our own recent call over Zoom. Of course, she’ll already know in advance what someone’s specialty is, “but also, people surprise me,” she said. From there, and sometimes with a second phone call to further refine a topic, she can begin to weave a web that ties together different discussions and performances (all to be pre-recorded).
During the final taping of each episode, Nagy has enjoyed the challenge inherent in any interview: steering a conversation so that it’s both substantive and concise. The interviewee, of course, plays a part in that as well: both sides have to come together in a sort of dance that’s simultaneously organic and prepared.
by Daniel Hathaway
Pianist Conrad Tao tweeted earlier this month that thanks to the exigencies of the pandemic, he would refer to two pre-recorded video performances he was preparing not as concerts, but as “shows” in the sense of television. “We’re production companies now,” he wrote.
After considering all its options, Cleveland’s period ensemble Les Délices decided to fully embrace the idea of creating pre-recorded “shows” in the place of live, in-person performances this season. [Read more…]
by Jarrett Hoffman
Early on in the pandemic, Baroque oboist and Les Délices artistic director Debra Nagy decided to avoid spending time on social media. It wasn’t just the clickbait articles, or the echo chamber of opinions, or the anxiety that it can provoke in even the best of times.
It was also, as she told me in April, the “sea” of invites to live concerts streamed from living rooms. It was overwhelming. One thing she found nourishing was programming potential concerts, planning for a future where artists could once again “collaborate in meaningful ways.”
Looking back now, it’s clear that Nagy was always going to find her own unique way to approach music-making in the time of COVID. Enter SalonEra, a free series that begins August 24 and represents one half of Les Délices’ 2020-21 season.