Night After Night

The New York Philharmonic Contact! at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, December 21, 2012

Elizabeth Futral, Jayce Ogren and members of the New York Philharmonic, by Richard Termine/The New York Times

The New York Philharmonic Contact! at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, December 21, 2012
The New York Times, Dec. 27, 2012

A return to old times for the New York Philharmonic's new-music run-out series, at least for one night. You can hear the concert, featuring pieces by Andy Akiho, Andrew Norman, Jude Vaclavik and Jacob Druckman, on demand until January 25 or thereabouts on the WQXR website.

So Percussion at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, December 19, 2012

Grey Mcmurray with So Percussion, by Sara Krulwich/The New York Times

So Percussion at the Brooklyn Academy of Music
The New York Times, Dec. 21, 2012

A review of Where (we) Live, the latest multimedia beguilement from So Percussion, who use vivid imagination and a solid grounding in John Cage's music to create a thoughtful meditation on the meaning of home. Be sure to read this fascinating related article by my excellent colleague, Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim.

The Barber of Seville at the Metropolitan Opera, December 18, 2012

Isabel Leonard and Rodion Pogossov, by Andrea Mohin/The New York Times

The Barber of Seville at the Metropolitan Opera, December 18, 2012
The New York Times, Dec. 24, 2012

That's right: not exactly Rossini's flawless Il barbiere di Siviglia, but the Met's new family-friendly shortened Barber in English. I'm grateful for a spot-on headline – Just a Little Off the Top for Rossini’s Old ‘Barber’ – and for timely Twitter comments from @OperaTeen, which allowed me the chance to add to Harry Rose's burgeoning renown.

(Re)New Amsterdam at the Empty Bottle, December 16, 2012

Dominic Johnson and Ellen McSweeney of Chicago Q Ensemble, by Marc Perlish

"After the Deluge, an Outpouring of Support From Afar"
The New York Times, Dec. 19, 2012

A notebook about (Re)New Amsterdam, a remarkable show of solidarity in which Chicago's young, vital new-music community participated in an afternoon marathon concert meant to raise funds for New Amsterdam, an invaluable New York City record label and fledgling concert presenter that suffered devastating losses during and after Hurricane Sandy. The details are all in the article, but it's important to note that New Amsterdam can still benefit from your assistance. Read this page for more information, and give what you can.

Hats off to Marcos Balter, Doyle Armbrust and all of the amazing Chicago musicians who participated in this inspiring event. I expect to hear more from all of you.

Aeolian Chamber Players at the Leonard Nimoy Thalia, December 14, 2012

Aeolian Chamber Players at the Leonard Nimoy Thalia, December 14, 2012
The New York Times, Dec. 17, 2012

Not a bad thing at all to be able to celebrate your 50th anniversary with a program of works that Ralph Shapey, Luciano Berio, George Crumb, William Bolcom and Huang Ruo wrote for you, eh?

"Curtains Fall, But Operas Reverberate": New York Times year-end essay

Einstein on the Beach at BAM, by Sara Krulwich/The New York Times

"Curtains Fall, But Operas Reverberate"
The New York Times, Dec. 16, 2012

A year-end essay for The New York Times about the two events that had the most enduring impact for me in 2012: Philip Glass and Robert Wilson's Einstein on the Beach, which lived up to and surpassed a quarter-century's worth of personal expectations in a revival at the Brooklyn Academy of Music; and Dog Days, the first full-length opera by David T. Little, with a powerful libretto by Royce Vavrek and an explosive stage conception by Robert Woodruff, presented by Montclair State University as part of its ambitious Peak Performances series.

It bears mention that neither of these shows is at an end. Einstein on the Beach continues its triumphal world tour; it's in Amsterdam right now, with dates ahead in Hong Kong and Melbourne, at the very least. As for Dog Days, I'm aware of no firm future dates, but rumor has it you should keep an eye on the ambitious Fort Worth Opera. Meanwhile, Little's Soldier Songs opens for its first fully staged New York City run on Friday, January 11, as part of the inaugural Prototype festival of new opera and musical theater, and a reading of the libretto for his next stage work, Artaud in the Black Lodge, is scheduled for February 9 at HERE.

Mantra Percussion at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, December 13, 2012

Mantra Percussion, by Ian Douglas/The New York Times

Mantra Percussion at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, December 13, 2012
The New York Times, Dec. 15, 2013

Michael Gordon's new percussion sextet, Timber, ended up on both my year-end Top 10 list for Time Out New York (details of which will come in a subsequent post) and Alex Ross's list for The New Yorker. This week, I was surprised and delighted to have a brief cameo in Alex's column about Gordon and David Lang in The New Yorker, available to subscribers and purchasers only. Try to find it; it's superb.

You can still watch Mantra Percussion's clever video of a Timber performance at a Lowe's Hardware store, as filmed by NPR, on YouTube, here.

Curlew River and Riders to the Sea at the Juilliard School, December 9, 2012

Kyle Bielfield in Curlew River, by Ruby Washington/The New York Times

Curlew River and Riders to the Sea at the Juilliard School, December 9, 2012
The New York Times, Dec. 11, 2012

A tremendous double bill of Britten's church parable Curlew River and Vaughan Williams's opera Riders to the Sea, presented by what might just be the most consistently stimulating company in New York City. Watch out for tenor Kyle Bielfield, who'll be featured in the first concert of Juilliard's Focus! 2013 festival, an overview of postwar British music, on January 25 at Alice Tully Hall. You'll find an article by Joel Sachs about the festival here.

Wu Man at the Leonard Nimoy Thalia, December 6, 2012

Wu Man, by Hiroyuki Ito/The New York Times

Wu Man at the Leonard Nimoy Thalia, December 6, 2012
The New York Times, Dec. 10, 2012

Beyond its intrinsic merits, this concert marked the start of a promising new series of intimate concerts hosted by World Music Institute, an invaluable organization that brings all manner of worthy artists to New York City. It also served as a celebration of Wu Man's newly released DVD, Discovering a Musical Heartland: Wu Man's Return to China, which documents her journeys home to identify traditional artists for a Carnegie Hall festival, Ancient Paths, Modern Voices. My review of one of those concerts is here.

 

The New York Philharmonic at Avery Fisher Hall, December 5, 2012

Juraj Valcuha conducts the New York Philharmonic, by Hiroyuki Ito/The New York Times

The New York Philharmonic at Avery Fisher Hall, December 5, 2012
The New York Times, Dec. 7, 2012

An auspicious debut for conductor Juraj Valcuha.