Silver Hall Series Archives - Cleveland Classical

Silver Hall Series: Yume Daiko at the Maltz (Apr. 25)

May 5, 2021 by Jarrett Hoffman

by Jarrett Hoffman

Percussion music is full of nuance, but you can also boil it down to the single, simple action of striking something. And whether you’re the one doing that, or you’re watching it happen, it can be cathartic, which is one reason why that genre might feel particularly welcome during a time that still has its share of anxiety.

Indeed, catharsis was on full display — as well as beautiful theatricality and impressive subtlety — during a live-streamed concert by taiko ensemble Yume Daiko on April 25 at the Maltz Performing Arts Center, presented as part of the venue’s Silver Hall Series. [Read more…]

Rob Kovacs brings video game music
to Tuning In and Silver Hall Series

January 19, 2021 by Jarrett Hoffman

by Jarrett Hoffman

At one point during our recent conversation on Zoom, pianist/composer and Cleveland native Rob Kovacs gestured behind him to a bookshelf holding what he estimated to be 350-400 old video game cartridges. He laughed. “I’ve been collecting for about fifteen years, and I just keep going.”

His point was that if you add up all of those games, there’s a bounty of music that very few people have heard. “A lot of it’s great,” he said. “And when you hear it on a real, acoustic instrument, played in a fairly virtuosic way, I think it helps to make more people interested, and certainly helps them view it in a different light.”

That’s exactly what Kovacs aims to achieve when he brings this music into a classical context in two free, live-streamed concerts early this year: first on the Local 4 Music Fund’s Tuning In series on Thursday, January 21 at 7:00 pm, then on the Maltz Performing Arts Center’s Silver Hall Series on Sunday, March 7 at 3:00 pm.

[Read more…]

Pianist Yuja Wang creates magic with The Cleveland Orchestra (Nov. 28)

by Stephanie Manning

This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Thanksgiving weekend concerts by The Cleveland Orchestra often center around a big-ticket soloist or a popular piece.

This year’s program offers both, thanks to star pianist Yuja Wang and Maurice Ravel’s brilliant orchestration of Modest Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition.”

On Friday November 28, the snow cleared just in time for the crowds to arrive at Severance Music Center for the evening event. Led by conductor Petr Popelka, the resulting concert equally displayed the prowess of Orchestra and soloist over the course of three fascinating works.

György Ligeti’s Piano Concerto stood out in contrast to the lush textures and easy-to-follow melodies of the works that surrounded it. Premiered in 1988, its dissonant and avant-garde music might have come from another world. But both Wang and the Orchestra rose to meet the challenge of its devilishly tricky rhythms with an assured confidence.

[Read on…]

Les Arts Florissants make Vivaldi’s Four Seasons feel fresh and inspired (Nov. 18)

by Stephanie Manning

Performing a work as ubiquitous as Antonio Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons requires a delicate balance. At its best, the musicality and intention must be crystal clear, so that the end result feels as fresh as it does familiar. It’s a high bar, but one that Les Arts Florissants cleared with the utmost ease.

On November 18, the renowned French baroque ensemble visited Tuesday Musical to celebrate the 300th anniversary of Vivaldi’s famous quartet of violin concertos. Soloist Théotime Langlois de Swarte led the spirited group in the Vivaldi-focused program, which also included works by Marco Uccellini and Claudio Monteverdi. [Read on…]

BlueWater Chamber Orchestra with violinist David McCarroll in Rocky River (Nov. 23)

by Daniel Hathaway

Let’s cut to the chase and simply say that it would be difficult to imagine a more perfect and moving performance of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto than the one David McCarroll gave with Daniel Meyer and BlueWater Chamber Orchestra on Sunday afternoon, November 23 at Rocky River Presbyterian Church. We’ll come back to that thought.

The straight-through performance preceded the Beethoven with works by Cleveland composer Margaret Brouwer and a youngish Aaron Copland.

Brouwer’s engaging and popular The Art of Sailing at Dawn evokes memories of growing up on the Great Lakes. A flute conjures sonic images of gulls, and subtle waves support a lovely oboe solo before the wind kicks up and dark clouds assemble. A storm erupts, but soon passes, leading to a quiet ending. [Read on…]

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