The first two weeks of March have been quite busy, and again I’ve fallen behind in posting about my concert-going experiences. So here is a quick catch-up.
I had a double-header on Saturday, March 1, attending the Metropolitan Opera’s production of Prince Igor in the afternoon, and a piano recital by Alexandre Tharaud at Peoples’ Symphony Concerts in the evening.
The Met’s new production of Prince Igor, produced an designed by Dmitri Tcherniakov, takes a … <Read More>
Last Wednesday I attended a perform of William Finn and James Lapine’s new musical show, “Little Miss Sunshine,” at the Second Stage Theatre off-Broadway. This show as inspired by the movie of the same name from several years back. Mr. Lapine directed. I thought the production was well-designed, given the limitations of the small stage, but I did not think this story was crying out for musical treatment. It seemed more like a play with … <Read More>
I had a mixed reaction to tonight’s concert by the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, led by Principal Conductor Pablo Heras-Casado, at Carnegie Hall.
The centerpiece of the concert was Benjamin Britten’s Serenade for Tenor, Horn, and Strings, Op. 31, with soloists Ian Bostridge (tenor) and Stewart Rose (horn). As prelude, the orchestra performed Mendelssohn’s Overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream. After intermission, they played Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 9.
The Britten was splendid, as one could … <Read More>
Last night I attended the Orchestra of St. Luke’s subscription concert at Carnegie Hall. Pablo Heras-Casado was making his first appearance at Carnegie Hall as principal conductor of the orchestra. Christian Zacharias was the piano soloist in Chopin’s Concerto No. 2, Op. 21. The program began with Beethoven’s Egmont Overture, and continued after intermission with Hans Zender’s orchestration of five piano preludes by Debussy, concluding with the original 1841 version of Robert Schumann’s Symphony No. … <Read More>