Night After Night

Blue lagoon.

Rusalka at the Metropolitan Opera
The New York Times, March 11, 2009

We'll always have Paris.

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center at Alice Tully Hall
The New York Times, March 10, 2009

It was a treat to finally hear Measha Brueggergosman in person for the first time; that the encounter also brought out-of-the-ordinary music by Poulenc, Satie and Prokofiev, all accompanied by Jean-Yves Thibaudet, was a special bonus.

The power and the glory.

Evgeny Kissin at Carnegie Hall
The New York Times, March 7, 2009

How is it that I didn't know what a stupendous piece Chopin's Polonaise-Fantaisie in A-flat is? Holy smokes. I seldom make requests here, but I'm asking readers who know and care about this piece to recommend their favorite version or versions, and to succinctly explain why.

Four shadowing.

The Belcea Quartet at Alice Tully Hall
The New York Times, March 6, 2009

Admittedly not one of my snappiest header quips, "Four shadowing" does at least indicate that the Belceas' concert was an unofficial prelude to the deluge that is the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center's "Around Prokofiev" series. The Belceas return to Alice Tully Hall with Prokofiev's Second Quartet and Britten's First on March 13.

Twelve-stepping with the Bad Plus.

[Posted this afternoon on The Volume.]

You don't need us to tell you how much the Bad Plus kicks ass, but we're still amazed at the frequency with which this combo continues to top itself. TBP's new disc, For All I Care, breaks ground in a couple of interesting ways. It's the first time this restlessly inventive jazz trio, still best known for its uniquely twisted versions of pop and rock songs, has stuck a singer out front; Twin Cities alt-rocker Wendy Lewis lends her pipes to hits by Nirvana, Pink Floyd, Heart and others. Even less likely are the band's versions of contemporary-classical ditties by Igor Stravinsky, György Ligeti and Milton Babbitt, at least some of which date to a joint appearance by TBP pianist Ethan Iverson, a not-very-closeted classical maven, and blogosphere it-boy Alex Ross, of The Rest Is Noise renown and endless accolades thereof.

Now, not only has Iverson prevailed upon his ace collaborators to join his madness, but seemingly innocent dancing girls have been roped into shuffling and kicking to Milton "Who Cares If You Lindy?" Babbitt's deathless Semi-Simple Variations in a new music video posted today on YouTube (and embedded below). Iverson tells the whole story on his always fresh and crispy blog, Do the Math; if you want to hear Babbitt unadulterated for comparison, visit Augustus Arnone's blog.

Hot type.

Most of my local culturati pals know that Elisabeth Vincentelli, my longtime colleague and aesthetic soulmate-cum-sparring partner at TONY (and the diligent blogger behind The Determined Dilettante), flew the coop some weeks ago in order to become the new chief theater critic at the New York Post. Strange and wonderful as that development was, another surprise came this morning, this one not nearly so well kept among kultur circles: James Jorden, a very stylish and deeply insightful opera critic (and an unnatural friend to all who frequent Parterre Box), made his opening splash all over Mary Zimmerman's La Sonnambula in this morning's Post. Here's hoping this is the first of many sightings; we need more voices weighing in here, especially those as cheeky and informed as Jorden's.

Themes and variations.

Daniel Hope: "War and Pieces" at Alice Tully Hall

and

Donald Berman: "When Brahma Sleeps" at (Le) Poisson Rouge
The New York Times, March 3, 2009