Live Music
I haven’t done a formal seeding for composers so far in the World Cup of Composers but I think it will help with the American bracket. Here they are 1-16 with their matchups. Aaron Copland …
With all the American composers at the San Diego Symphony this month, it is obviously time to start the American leg of the World Cup of Composers. Here’s the challenge: find 16 American composers. We’ve …
The theme of the Opus Gala at San Diego Symphony was "The Roaring '20s." The concert started with John Harbison. Harbison is a fairly well known American composer. He's one of those names that crops …
At of 8:00 pm on Friday, the 11th of October, the Joan and Irwin Jacobs Music Center was opened at Symphony Hall. At the Opus Gala on Saturday night, the Jacobs’ were brought onstage to …
There was a good reason for Augustin Hadelich to join the audience for Prokoviev's 5th Symphony. I was at the Saturday night concert which meant Augustin had already heard the Prokofiev on Friday. He knew …
When I saw the size of the orchestra on the stage at Symphony Hall for David Bruce’s Night Parade, I knew we were in for a rumpus. I love, love, loved, this piece of music …
It’s finally here, the opening of the San Diego Symphony Orchestra Masterworks Season. This weekend, October 4th, 5th, and 6th at Symphony Hall, the orchestra will be performing with renowned violinist Augustin Hadelich. The Concert …
And here we are at the conclusion of the first round for England. The final two players are Finzi and Elgar. Believe it or not, I used to know a baritone who was so enamoured …
The final two matches for the English first round are Tippett versus Vaughan Williams and Elgar versus Finizi. Michael Tippett was a contemporary of Benjamin Britten and William Walton. Tippett, as with Britten, was an …
When’s the last time you heard a piece of music by Vincent d’Indy? Never is a perfectly acceptable answer. What if I told you there was a chance to hear this overlooked French composer on …
“I am the very model of modern major-general, I’ve information vegetable, animal, and mineral...” Who hasn’t heard this before? The text is from the Major General’s patter song in Gilbert and Sullivan’s *The Pirates of …
Who is going to prevail between Arnold Bax and Henry Purcell? While Purcell isn’t a household name, there isn’t a mezzo-soprano alive who’s escaped her undergraduate studies without singing When I Am Laid in Earth. …
When the sole remaining founder of the Tokyo String Quartet, Kazuhide Isomura, announced his intention to retire along with second violinist, Kikuei Ikeda, the two remaining players began to accept auditions to fill those spots. …
Let’s get on with England. Ethel Smyth versus Holst doesn't appear to be much of a contest except for the fact that Ethel Smyth is one of only two women who will be competing in …
This World Cup of Composers is a much larger undertaking than I first imagined. With that in mind I think it is wise to review where we are in the process. This is a single …