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Austin Symphony Takes Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring “Beyond the Score”

By Paul E. Robinson on 8 December 2012 Concert Reviews, Contemporary, Orchestral

by Paul E. RobinsonStravinsky: Le Sacre du printemps (the Rite of Spring)Gerard McBurney, narratorRobert Faires, actorRick Rowley, actorAustin Symphony/Peter Bay, conductorDell Hall, Long Center for the Performing ArtsAustin, TexasFriday, November 30, 2012For major orchestras, Stravinsky’s Le sacre du printempshas become standard fare, but for second and third tier orchestras it is still a huge challenge, for both technical and financial reasons: for the players, the rhythms and harmonies are difficult; for managers and boards, the costs for additional players and extra rehearsal time are not easy to swallow. The Austin Symphonyis a part-time per service orchestra, which nonetheless manages to play consistently…

Austin Symphony and Conspirare Partner to Present Psalm Settings by Stravinsky and Bernstein

By Paul E. Robinson on 28 May 2012 Baroque and Early, Concert Reviews, Contemporary, Orchestral

by Paul RobinsonMaestro Peter BayBach/Stokowski: Toccata and Fugue in D minor BWV 565*Stravinsky: Symphony of Psalms**Bach-Stokowski: Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor BWV 582**Bernstein: Chichester Psalms*Conspirare Symphonic ChoirAustin Symphony OrchestraCraig Hella Johnson/ conductor*Peter Bay/ conductor**LongCenter for the Performing ArtsAustin, TexasIt was a clever idea to program together two important Twentieth Century musical settings of psalms, one by Igor Stravinsky and the other by Leonard Bernstein. While the texts are drawn from the same source, the music could hardly be more different. Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms is cool and austere while Bernstein’s “Chichester Psalms” is emotional and more popular in style.…

Hans Graf/HSO: Two Faces of Shostakovich in Houston

By Paul E. Robinson on 15 May 2012 Concert Reviews, Contemporary, Orchestral

by Paul RobinsonPhoto by Craig Chesek/Carnegie HallShostakovich/Milman: Anti-Formalist RayokShostakovich: Symphony No. 11 in G minor Op. 103 “The Year 1905”Mikhail Svetlov, bassHouston Symphony/Hans GrafJones HallHouston, TexasMay 3, 2012Over 44 years ago, Leopold Stokowskiconducted the first North American performance of the Symphony No. 11 byShostakovich. Stokowski was then music director of the Houston Symphony Orchestra (HSO) and had already conducted a number of important Shostakovich (photo: right) premieres. Around the time of those 1958 performances of Symphony No. 11, Stokowski and the HSO also made the first commercial recording of the piece.Hans Graf, the current music director of the Houston Symphony, is…

Sounds Unlikely: The Bohlen-Pierce System

By Marc Chénard on 1 April 2012 Classical Music, Contemporary, Interviews

Author : (Marc Chénard)

The story of microtonality might be as old as music itself. In non-Western music traditions, e.g. Indian Carnatic music or Arabic melismas, its use is commonplace. Western concert music, in contrast, is built on fixed pitches no closer together than the semitone and now commonly played with twelve-tone equal temperament, a device that effectively ‘rounded off’ minute tone differences. While still confined to its margins, microtonality is gaining new acceptance in our culture, as witnessed by a steadily growing body of works exploring these timbral possibilites. The Russian Ivan Wyschnegradsky was a true pioneer in this respect, writing piano…

“RachFest” a High Note for Graf, Gerstein, and the Houston Symphony!

By Paul E. Robinson on 25 January 2012 Concert Reviews, Contemporary, Orchestral

by Paul E. RobinsonRachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 1Rachmaninov: Isle of the DeadRachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 4Kirill Gerstein, pianoHouston Symphony: Hans Graf, conductorJones HallHouston, TexasSunday, January 15, 2012Symphony orchestras frequently mount “festivals” to package their wares more effectively, but I can’t remember ever coming across a Rachmaninov Festival, or “RachFest,” as they called it in Houston.Composer Sergei RachmaninovThere are usually two main reasons for classical music festivals: to celebrate artistic achievement and to fill seats. Whereas Beethoven and Mozart festivals have become so common and in the beginning at least were so lucrative that artistic purposes were almost beside the point, in the case of Houston’ s…

Rare Szymanowski with Austin Symphony and Emanuel Ax a Texas Treat!

By Paul E. Robinson on 24 January 2012 Concert Reviews, Contemporary, Orchestral, Piano

by Paul E. RobinsonMozart: The Impresario OvertureBeethoven: Piano Concerto No. 2Moniuszko: Bajka (A Fairy Tale) Fantastic OvertureSzymanowski: Symphony No. 4 “Symphonie Concertante” for Piano and Orchestra Op. 60Emanuel Ax, pianoThe Austin Symphony, Peter Bay, conductorMichael and Susan Dell Hall Long Center for the Performing ArtsAustin, TexasJanuary 13, 2012We hear a lot about troubled orchestras these days. As the recession lingers on, ticket sales continue to be disappointing and donations are down. The orchestras that survive are the ones that tighten their belts and step up their marketing. They also tend to limit their programming to more popular fare.The Austin Symphony…

Nagano-OSM Week at Orford an Impressive Affair

By Paul E. Robinson on 11 August 2011 Concert Reviews, Contemporary, Orchestral

by Paul E. RobinsonWhen the Knowlton Festival folded two years ago, the Orchestre symphonique de Montreal (OSM) and its chief conductor, Kent Nagano, needed to find an alternative venue for some of their summer music-making. An inspired choice was the Orford Festival. While last season’s appearances were uneven, this summer everything came together and the results were impressive.Last summer at Orford, the OSM gave two full concerts under Nagano, who also worked with the Orford Academy Orchestra (OAO) on a third concert. The venue for all three performances was the Saint-Patrice Church in Magog. This year, the OSM gave only…

Les débuts modestes du Festival Opéra de Québec

By La Scena Musicale Team on 21 July 2011 Classical, Concert Reviews, Contemporary, Opera

Par Julie Berardino Le très attendu Festival Opéra de Québec se déroulera cet été (du 25 juillet au 6 août) à Québec avec une version modeste du Rossignol et autres fables de Stravinsky et de la Flûte enchantée de Mozart. Tel que prévu, Robert Lepage, originaire de Québec, sera à l’honneur dans la production qu’offre sa compagnie Ex Machina de l’opéra de Stravinsky, qui fut créée par le Canadian Opera Company et a récemment complété une tournée à New York. La production amène chanteurs et marionnettiste à évoluer dans un grand bassin d’eau sur scène (salle Louis-Fréchette du Grand Théâtre de Québec)…

DSO and van Zweden: A Persuasive “Manfred” in Dallas!

By Paul E. Robinson on 5 April 2011 Concert Reviews, Contemporary, Orchestral

by Paul E. RobinsonMy first encounter with Tchaikovsky’s Manfred Symphony was most likely Toscanini’s 1953 recording with the NBC Symphony; it is intense, exciting and almost life-changing in its range of emotion. The sound of the recording left a lot to be desired, of course, but for its time, this was a great performance.Over the years, although I rarely encountered Manfred in the concert hall, I continued to check out fresh performances and new recordings; unfortunately, not one of them could hold a candle to the Toscanini – until, that is, now.This extraordinary performance was live, and I may have…

Anne Akiko Meyers Gives Austin Prokofiev with Passion!

By Paul E. Robinson on 3 March 2011 Concert Reviews, Contemporary, Orchestral, Violin

by Paul E. Robinson It was just over a year ago that Austin music lovers last heard Anne Akiko Meyers (photo: above) in an imaginative and brilliantly played recital at the Butler School of Music at the University of Texas. Meyers had recently been appointed to the faculty at the school and – with a baby on the way – she and her husband had decided to move to Austin. What a coup for the school, its students and Austinites! We all looked forward to hearing Meyers on a regular basis; unfortunately, even the most carefully planned relationships don’t always…

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