Gramophone: Figaro in the City: Mozart as a television series
When I had the initial idea to salvage a concert version of the Marriage of Figaro, Paris was just coming out of its first confinement period. Springtime was bursting out, we no longer needed to fill out forms to leave our homes and while all performing venues were closed, the prevalent feeling in the streets was that the time had come to find imaginative ways to keep music alive. I had just spent a month re-reading Magic Mountain, and coming down from the heights of the sanatorium, I felt an urge to find a way to refit our project to adapt to the challenges of the day.
Gramophone
David Stern
A young cast, imaginative filming - how the project came about. Watch the first episode for free
When I had the initial idea to salvage a concert version of the Marriage of Figaro, Paris was just coming out of its first confinement period. Springtime was bursting out, we no longer needed to fill out forms to leave our homes and while all performing venues were closed, the prevalent feeling in the streets was that the time had come to find imaginative ways to keep music alive. I had just spent a month re-reading Magic Mountain, and coming down from the heights of the sanatorium, I felt an urge to find a way to refit our project to adapt to the challenges of the day.
Read more here.
OperaWire: Q & A: David Stern on Opera Fuoco’s New Opera Mini-Series ‘Figaro in the City’
David Stern’s opera company, Opera Fuoco, recently released a 14-part online series of “The Marriage of Figaro” which is set in 2020.
The series was created in response to the new technological developments and the new streaming era of opera which has grown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Stern is a firm believer that in the Netflix-era, people want/need to be able to consume the arts in smaller bites. As a result, the new series was created and stars members of Opera Fuoco’s Young Artist Program and world-renowned singer Laurent Naouri.
OperaWire had a chance to speak with Stern about the new series, the filming process, and the challenges of making an opera show.
OperaWire
Francisco Salazar
David Stern’s opera company, Opera Fuoco, recently released a 14-part online series of “The Marriage of Figaro” which is set in 2020.
The series was created in response to the new technological developments and the new streaming era of opera which has grown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Stern is a firm believer that in the Netflix-era, people want/need to be able to consume the arts in smaller bites. As a result, the new series was created and stars members of Opera Fuoco’s Young Artist Program and world-renowned singer Laurent Naouri.
OperaWire had a chance to speak with Stern about the new series, the filming process, and the challenges of making an opera show.
OperaWire: How did you come up with the idea for “Figaro in the city?”
Read more here.
France 24: Arena rock? Palm Beach says try arena opera
With the pandemic forcing most stages to go virtual, the Palm Beach Opera is embracing its tropical weather and holding an outdoor festival.
The company is expecting to host some 1,000 people per show at their series kicking off this weekend starting with the classic "La Boheme" -- the largest-scale opera with an audience in the United States since the pandemic essentially shut down live performance nearly a year ago.
France 24
With the pandemic forcing most stages to go virtual, the Palm Beach Opera is embracing its tropical weather and holding an outdoor festival.
The company is expecting to host some 1,000 people per show at their series kicking off this weekend starting with the classic "La Boheme" -- the largest-scale opera with an audience in the United States since the pandemic essentially shut down live performance nearly a year ago.
Organizers say the capacity for the festival running from February 19-27 is possible due to the size of their outdoor amphitheater, which has 6,000 fixed seats. Masks, temperature checks and social distancing will be required to attend.
While much pandemic-era opera has gotten more intimate, via screens or with small audiences, the Palm Beach festival is aiming to expand.
"Ozzy Osbourne stood in the place where I'm conducting," David Stern, the opera's chief conductor who will lead both "La Boheme" and "The Magic Flute," told AFP with a laugh.
Read more here.
The Strad: Why we should all be violists
What is a viola?
Walking down the street, meeting strangers the conversation often goes ‘So you play the violin?’
‘No, actually it is a viola.’
‘A WHAT??’
‘Well, it’s an instrument bigger than the violin, smaller than a cello.’
‘Oh, I see …. never heard of it! Good luck with THAT!’
As I write this, spell check is not allowing me to write the word ‘violist’, suggesting the word ‘violinist’ as a possible fix. Funnily enough, I too never heard of it when growing up in Taiwan 30 years ago. We young musicians were given the option to pick a second instrument as we entered the 4th grade. Knowing only that I didn’t want to play the violin like everyone else, I opted to play something that the orchestra needed. They offered me either the oboe or the viola. We had no idea what a viola was, but my father thought playing the oboe did not look too appealing, so the viola was what we settled on.
The Strad
Hsin-Yun Huang
Violist and teacher Hsin-Yun Huang makes the case for her instrument of choice
What is a viola?
Walking down the street, meeting strangers the conversation often goes ‘So you play the violin?’
‘No, actually it is a viola.’
‘A WHAT??’
‘Well, it’s an instrument bigger than the violin, smaller than a cello.’
‘Oh, I see …. never heard of it! Good luck with THAT!’
As I write this, spell check is not allowing me to write the word ‘violist’, suggesting the word ‘violinist’ as a possible fix. Funnily enough, I too never heard of it when growing up in Taiwan 30 years ago. We young musicians were given the option to pick a second instrument as we entered the 4th grade. Knowing only that I didn’t want to play the violin like everyone else, I opted to play something that the orchestra needed. They offered me either the oboe or the viola. We had no idea what a viola was, but my father thought playing the oboe did not look too appealing, so the viola was what we settled on.
Read more here.
“Listening to the Future” Documentary Highlights the Success of Chinese Contemporary Music
The Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing (CCOM)—founder of the Chinese Music Composition Center and a driving force in the global success of Chinese contemporary music— releases a documentary about the Chinese music of today: “Listening to the Future.” The 30-minute film chronicles the Central Conservatory of Music Symphony Orchestra of Beijing’s Carnegie Hall debut and celebrates initiatives propelling Chinese Contemporary Music forward.
The Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing (CCOM)—founder of the Chinese Music Composition Center and a driving force in the global success of Chinese contemporary music— releases a documentary about the Chinese music of today: “Listening to the Future.” The 30-minute film chronicles the Central Conservatory of Music Symphony Orchestra of Beijing’s Carnegie Hall debut and celebrates initiatives propelling Chinese Contemporary Music forward.
The works of CCOM composition professors have been premiered multiple times to great critical acclaim in North America including at Lincoln Center in 2018 and at Carnegie Hall by the CCOM Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Professor Feng Yu, President of CCOM, in 2019. The compositions feature well-incorporated Chinese and Western musical elements including a mix of traditional Chinese instruments and Western chamber orchestra. In the documentary, all eight composers who had their works performed at Carnegie Hall in 2019 discuss their compositions and thoughts about Chinese contemporary music. Classical music critic, Dr. Linda Holt—who attended the 2019 Carnegie Hall concert—shares the origin of her interest in Chinese music and uses CCOM as an example of the success of the genre.
Other highlights of the film include details of the long-term partnership between the internationally-renowned publishing house, Edition Peters, and Central Conservatory of Music Publisher (CCMP). Together, they launched the Edition Peters Silk Road Library project in April 2019 and plan to release the international version of CCOM’s score collection in 2021. By working with Edition Peters to publish works by Chinese composers, the CCMP can be certain that orchestras, conductors, and performers have the confidence to program the works of Chinese composers outside China, forging unprecedented, longstanding genuine links between the East and West.
Additionally, the documentary details the Chinese Music Composition Center’s upcoming performance tour in Europe next year. Comprised of musicians from the symphony orchestras of the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (MDW) and the Central Conservatory of Music, the ensemble performs in 2021 in the Grosser Saal of Wiener Konzerthaus and Festsaal. Ulrike Sych, Rector of the MDW, explains the long and intensive collaboration between MDW and CCOM, two of the largest and most renowned music universities in the world on opposite sides of the world. The joint orchestra is set to provide musical dialogue of western and Chinese repertoire at the highest artistic level. Especially in these globally challenging days—in the face of public restrictions, closed borders, and closed institutions—the ensemble provides the most beautiful evidence that culture knows no borders and always remains open.
Watch below.
The Denver Post: Colorado’s Biggest and Boldest Art Moments of 2020
The pandemic was raging this summer when the Bravo! Vail Music Festival threw caution to the wind and went ahead with an abbreviated summer concert season. Sure, it was different than the usual fare. Instead of putting major international orchestras on stage, the programs featured small ensembles. And instead of packing the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater with throngs of classical fans, it played to the bare maximum, filling just a portion of the seats to keep spectators at safe distances. Not everything that was planned actually happened. But something about the effort felt epic, as the organization stood firm, as best it could, against its viral showstopper. It was also generous. Unlike other orchestras that took whatever cash they could this summer, Bravo! Vail also made the programming free online to anyone who wanted to see it. Those who clicked in will remember the concerts for a long time.
The Denver Post
Ray Mark Rinaldi
Playing on: Bravo! Vail Music Festival
The pandemic was raging this summer when the Bravo! Vail Music Festival threw caution to the wind and went ahead with an abbreviated summer concert season. Sure, it was different than the usual fare. Instead of putting major international orchestras on stage, the programs featured small ensembles. And instead of packing the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater with throngs of classical fans, it played to the bare maximum, filling just a portion of the seats to keep spectators at safe distances. Not everything that was planned actually happened. But something about the effort felt epic, as the organization stood firm, as best it could, against its viral showstopper. It was also generous. Unlike other orchestras that took whatever cash they could this summer, Bravo! Vail also made the programming free online to anyone who wanted to see it. Those who clicked in will remember the concerts for a long time.
Read more here.
The Times: Composer’s Carol Honours Oxford Team’s Covid Vaccine
Joseph’s doubts as he made his way to Bethlehem have inspired a new carol in honour of Oxford University’s vaccine scientists.
The composer John Rutter and bass-baritone Sir Bryn Terfel have been recruited by the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra for a concert in the city’s Sheldonian Theatre in honour of the team at the university who have developed a coronavirus vaccine.
The Times
David Sanderson
Joseph’s doubts as he made his way to Bethlehem have inspired a new carol in honour of Oxford University’s vaccine scientists.
The composer John Rutter and bass-baritone Sir Bryn Terfel have been recruited by the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra for a concert in the city’s Sheldonian Theatre in honour of the team at the university who have developed a coronavirus vaccine.
Read more here.
Classical Music Magazine: Oxford Philharmonic to Stream Concert Dedicated to Vaccine Team
On Friday 18 December the Oxford Philharmonic will stream a concert from the Sheldonian Theatre in celebration of and dedicated to the Oxford vaccine team.
It was a joy to attend a recording session on December 3. The programme includes the world premiere of John Rutter’s Joseph’s Carol, written 'at the invitation of Marios Papadopoulos and the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra and respectfully dedicated to the Oxford Vaccine team': the Oxford Vaccine Group, the Jenner Institute and the RECOVERY team. It was written with bass-baritone Bryn Terfel in mind, who sang the premiere, which was conducted by John Rutter himself.
Classical Music Magazine
On Friday 18 December the Oxford Philharmonic will stream a concert from the Sheldonian Theatre in celebration of and dedicated to the Oxford vaccine team.
It was a joy to attend a recording session on December 3. The programme includes the world premiere of John Rutter’s Joseph’s Carol, written 'at the invitation of Marios Papadopoulos and the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra and respectfully dedicated to the Oxford Vaccine team': the Oxford Vaccine Group, the Jenner Institute and the RECOVERY team. It was written with bass-baritone Bryn Terfel in mind, who sang the premiere, which was conducted by John Rutter himself.
Read more here.
Toronto Star: Azrieli Foundation conducts a new approach to launching its prize-winning composers
Bach, Mozart, Beethoven? You know what they do. What about Keiko Devaux, Yotam Haber and Yitzhak Yedid? Actually, they do the same: they are composers. Only they are still alive and relatively unknown.
That is where the Azrieli Foundation comes in. Like philanthropic enterprises elsewhere, the Montreal-based foundation has undertaken a mission to discover and celebrate creative talent in music.
Established in 2014 and awarded biennially, the Azrieli Music Prizes are, at a total value of $200,000 each — including a commissioning prize, a gala concert, national premier and recording for release — the largest in Canada to be awarded to composers.
Toronto Star
William Littler
Bach, Mozart, Beethoven? You know what they do. What about Keiko Devaux, Yotam Haber and Yitzhak Yedid? Actually, they do the same: they are composers. Only they are still alive and relatively unknown.
That is where the Azrieli Foundation comes in. Like philanthropic enterprises elsewhere, the Montreal-based foundation has undertaken a mission to discover and celebrate creative talent in music.
Established in 2014 and awarded biennially, the Azrieli Music Prizes are, at a total value of $200,000 each — including a commissioning prize, a gala concert, national premier and recording for release — the largest in Canada to be awarded to composers.
Read more here.
BBC In Tune: Nicolas Namoradze
Sean Rafferty is joined by pianist Nicolas Namoradze ahead of the Southbank 'Inside Out' concert (3:34). Listen until November 19.
BBC In Tune
Sean Rafferty is joined by pianist Nicolas Namoradze ahead of the Southbank 'Inside Out' concert.
Listen here until November 19, beginning at 3:34.