Contemporary - my/maSCENA

Lebrecht Weekly – British Clarinet Concertos 2 (Chandos)

By Norman Lebrecht on 14 March 2016 Contemporary, Lebrecht Weekly, Orchestral

An unknown work by Benjamin Britten sets the pulse racing. It turns out to be fragments of a concerto he started writing for Benny Goodman in 194. What with Pearl Harbour and Peter Grimes, it got pushed to the back of the desk. Before Britten sailed home to England in March 1942, the only finished movement was seized by US Customs was seized on suspicion that it contained espionage codes. The movement did not see light of day until 1989 when it was retrieved and orchestrated by Colin Matthews, Britten’s composing assistant, and premiered by the clarinet virtuoso Michael Collins.…

Lebrecht Weekly – Mahler: 1st Symphony (BR Klassik)

By Norman Lebrecht on 7 March 2016 Contemporary, Lebrecht Weekly, Orchestral

Yannick Nézet-Séguin’s interpretation of Mahler’s first symphony is beautifully played by Munich’s (some say Germany’s) best orchestra and thoughtfully structured by an impressive guest conductor. I think I am safe in saying that it is conceptually different from any of the 120 Mahler Firsts on record, stretching all the way back to Dmitri Mitropolous’s towering Minnesota performance for Columbia in April 1940. And that’s no small distinction in a much-repeated piece. Where Yannick differs from all others is in atmospherics. The opening four and a half minutes of ambient sound, where the ear searches for a clue to what’s going…

Lebrecht Weekly – Rudi Stephan, Albéric Magnard (accentus)

By Norman Lebrecht on 29 February 2016 Contemporary, Lebrecht Weekly, Violin

These two composers are joined by tragic deaths on opposite sides of the First World War. Stephan, a Munich avant-gardist, was the only soldier in his German unit to die in a September 1915 battle with Russian troops for the Galician town of Stryi. Magnard, a French traditionalist, was either shot or burned to death defending his home from German troops in September 1914. Only 28 at the time of his death, Stephan was little known outside German new music circles and not well liked within them. A young man of strong opinions and no tolerance for sycophancy, he…

André Gagnon Baroque (ATMA)

CD Review: André Gagnon Baroque (ATMA)

By Michèle-Andrée Lanoue on 1 February 2016 Baroque and Early, CD and Book Reviews, Contemporary, Quebec Music

André Gagnon Baroque Mes Quatre saisons – Les Turluteries Jean-Willy Kunz, harpsichord Orchestre symphonique Vallée du Haut-Saint-Laurent, Daniel Constantineau ATMA Classique. 2015. ACD22715. 65 min 17 s André Gagnon’s Mes quatre saisons (1969) and Les turluteries (1972) are infused with a new breath of life with this new disc on which baroque and popular music blend joyfully. With a style approaching that of Bach and Vivaldi, Jean-Willy Kunz on harpsichord interprets and transforms the melodies of Léveillée, Vigneault, Leclerc and la Bolduc’s “turlutes”, along with the Orchestre symphonique de la Vallée-du-Haut-Saint-Laurent directed by Daniel Constantineau. Its unique character comes across…

collectif9: On the Edge

By Kiersten van Vliet on 1 February 2016 Chamber Music, Contemporary, Interviews, Quebec Music, Strings

Known for pushing the boundaries in their music, Montréal-based classical string band collectif9 is forging into uncharted territory with the release of their debut album (see review here), featuring the world premiere recording of Volksmobiles by Canadian composer Geof Holbrook. Formed in 2011 by Thibault Bertin-Maghit, collectif9 is a group of nine classically trained string players who aren’t shy about shaking things up. The members, who met at McGill University and the Université de Montréal, are violinists Yubin Kim, Frédéric Moisan, Grégor Monlun, and Roland Arnassalon; violists Scott Chancey and Xavier Lepage-Brault; cellists Andrea Stewart and Jérémie Cloutier; and bassist…

Pierre Boulez : 1925-2016

By La Scena Musicale Team on 1 February 2016 Contemporary, Interviews

Cliquer ici pour télécharger notre page de coloriage de Pierre Boulez / Click here to download our Pierre Boulez colouring page Pierre Boulez was a brilliant, courageous and imposing visionary who changed how we think, hear and evaluate music performance. As a composer and performer, his influence and memory will outlast his own era, joining those other immortal greats of Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff, Mahler, Bernstein, Beethoven, Mozart, Bach… to name a few. To me personally, Pierre Boulez was a great mentor, introduced to me by my teacher, Olivier Messiaen. For a time I was lucky enough to study conducting with both…

Cette semaine à Montréal (2 à 8 novembre) / This Week in Montreal (November 2 – 8)

By Kiersten van Vliet on 2 November 2015 Contemporary, Orchestral, This Week in Montreal, Violin

Musique / MusicPro Musica : Quatuor Zemlinsky QuartetFondé en 1994, le Quatuor Zemlinsky est reconnu comme un exemple de la grande tradition tchèque de la musique de chambre. Récipiendaire de prix prestigieux, l’ensemble possède un répertoire de plus de 200 œuvres. Au programme : Dvořák, Gemrot, Beethoven. Théâtre Maisonneuve, lundi 2, 20 h. http://promusica.qc.ca/The Zemlinsky Quartet, created in 1994, is an example of the great Czech tradition of chamber music. Winner of prestigious awards, the ensemble has a repertoire of over 200 pieces. The program includes Dvořák, Gemrot, and Beethoven. At Théâtre Maisonneuve, Nov. 2, 8 pm. http://promusica.qc.ca/en/Kaléidoscope : les années 1920…

Margaret Atwood. Photo Jean Malek

Double Meaning: Margaret Atwood on Pauline

By Rebecca Anne Clark on 1 September 2015 Contemporary, Literature, Opera

Author : (Rebecca Anne Clark)

Poet. Trailblazer. Canadian luminary. These descriptors apply as much to Margaret Atwood as they do to the subject of her first libretto, E. Pauline Johnson. While many will instantly recognize Atwood as the contemporary First Lady of CanLit, it is only in the last few decades that Johnson’s life and work have experienced a renaissance on the Canadian cultural scene. Pauline Johnson has become more relevant than ever in an era in which the subjects of her writing – First Nations issues, biculturalism and multiculturalism, women and sexuality, and Canadian identity – are hotly discussed. Born in 1861 to a…

American Composer Philip Glass is Eleventh Glenn Gould Prize Laureate

By Newswire on 14 April 2015 Chamber Music, Contemporary, Newswire, Opera, Orchestral

Philip Glass Announced asEleventh Glenn Gould Prize LaureateA fearlessly innovative, collaborative and prolific composer“I am very pleased to be the winner of the Eleventh Glenn Gould Prize. It is for me a special honor as I am one of the many musicians who have been inspired by him. Glenn Gould’s name is associated with a lifetime of excellence in music interpretation and performance. Also I am aware that this award places me in the company of some of the most celebrated names in the broad spectrum of the music of our time. It is, therefore, with great pleasure that I accept this award.” – Philip…

Don Quixote Rides Again at Stratford

By Paul E. Robinson on 8 July 2014 Classical, Concert Reviews, Contemporary, Strings

by Paul E. RobinsonMan of La ManchaWritten by Dale Wasserman with music by Mitch Leigh and Lyrics by Joe DarionDirector: Robert McQueenChoreographer: Marc KimelmanMusical Director: Franklin BraszMiguel de Cervantes/Don Quixote: Tom RooneySancho Panza: Steve RossAldonza: Robin HuttonStratford FestivalAvon TheatreJune 20, 2014Man of La Mancha opened on Broadway in 1965 and quickly entered the ranks of the classics of the American musical theatre. It is an inspired treatment of Cervantes’ Don Quixote story and continues to delight audiences all around the world. More than that, it is recognized as part of a genre that was created with commercial success in mind…

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