Concert Review: Extreme Orchestral Sports

The New York Philharmonic plays Berio and Strauss.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Oh what a mountain! The New York Philharmonic played Ein Alpensinfonie this week.

An evening (or an afternoon) at the New York Philharmonic is more than just a pleasant way to spend two hours: it is a way for the seeker to experience the razor-sharp cutting edge of musical expression. On Friday afternoon, the orchestra played the second of three concerts featuring two extreme examples of the symphonic genre: Sinfonia by Luciano Berio and Ein Alpensinfonie by Richard Strauss. This was the second of two concert programs led by guest conductor Semyon Bychkov.

Concert Review: Another Philly Championship

Yannick and company rock Carnegie Hall.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Yannick Nézet-Séguin at the controls of the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Photo by Jessica Griffin for the Philadelphia Orchestra © 2018 courtesy Carnegie Hall.

It's not always easy to make the cities of New York and Philadelphia see eye to eye. And yet, that was the mission of the Pennsylvania city's most famous export on Tuesday night, as the Philadelphia Orchestra and their music director Yannick Nézet-Séguin (who is also the newly crowned music director of the Metropolitan Opera) played the last of this season's subscription concerts at Carnegie Hall.

Concert Review: They Dig American Music

The New York Philharmonic explores its musical legacy.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

The trumpets, trombones and tuba of the New York Philharmonic.
Photo by Chris Lee © 2018 The New York Philharmonic.

There is a perception in the world of classical music that is a fallacy: that the music created by composers born in the United States is somehow inferior or lesser than the works of those composers born on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. The New York Philharmonic has a long record of fighting against that ugly prejudice, through the commission and creation of works by Yankee composers. On Thursday night America's oldest orchestra upheld that tradition with the the first of three concerts this week that focused on the brilliance and innovation of orchestral music created in this country the 20th century.

Concert Review: The Young Person's Cure for Anxiety

The NJSO plays a matinee of Bernstein and Mahler. 
by Paul J. Pelkonen

The pianist Kirill Gerstein played Thursday afternoon with the
New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. Photo courtesy the NJSO.

The composer Leonard Bernstein was a pivotal figure in the 20th century, not just for his own catalogue of symphonies, musicals and operas, but for his work as a conductor. It was Bernstein who brought the large and muscular symphonies of Gustav Mahler to the attention of the general public, eventually making Mahler a cornerstone of the symphonic repertory. On Thursday afternoon, it was the turn of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra and music director Jacques Lacombe to bring Bernstein's little-played Symphony No. 2 before their Newark public.

The Superconductor Interview: Sarah Chang

The violinist on Bernstein, love stories and playing in New Jersey.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Sarah Chang and friend. Photo © Sony Classical.

The New Jersey Symphony Orchestra has made January a good time to be in the Garden State. For January is when the orchestra holds its two week annual orchestral festival, concentrating its concert programming around a single thematic idea or solo artist This year, Shakespeare is the focus of the festival, and the soloist is internationally known virtuoso violinist and New Jersey native Sarah Chang.

Opera Review: Strong Singers Make Noise in A Quiet Place

The first New York City Opera production of Leonard Bernstein's final opera A Quiet Place features strong performances in a deeply problematic work.

Ghost busting: Patricia Risley haunts Louis Otey in A Quiet Place
Photo by Carol Rosegg © 2010 New York City Opera

This three-act opera originated as a sequel to Bernstein's  1952 one-act opera Trouble in Tahiti, a one-act drama depicting the life of a typical American family. A Quiet Place checks in on the same family three decades later, following the death of Dinah, its matriarch, in a car crash.

The family consists of the widowed Sam, (Louis Otey) his troubled kids Junior (Joshua Hopkins) and Dede, (Sara Jakublak) and Dede's French-Canadian husband François, (Dominic Armstrong) who happens to be Junior's lover and caretaker. The libretto, written by Stephen Wadsworth, also incorporates much of the Tahiti material in the second act. All this makes for a heavy, sometimes turgid story. The two  flashbacks contribute to the opera's general incoherence.


Sara Jakubiak has a high-lying soprano, and her "Good Morning" monologue at the start of Act III was a show highlight. Patricia Risley shines in the Tahiti act, where she has some wonderful vintage Bernstein music to sing. Otherwise, she spends most of the outer acts prowling the stage as a ghost in high heels and slacks. Mention must also be made of mezzo Victoria Livengood in the smaller role of Mrs. Doc. Her angry drunk act is the best thing about the funeral that opens this opera.

City Opera mainstay Louis Otey is right for the role of Sam, bringing neurosis and paternal comfort in equal parts. But it is Joshua Hopkins, as the OCD-afflicted son Junior, who steals the show. Although his couch-jumping psychotic freakout in the second act recalls Tom Cruise, this is otherwise an intelligent performance by a fine singing actor.

Bernstein is still Bernstein, and he makes an heroic effort to salvage his subject matter. Once past the opening "car crash" chords, the opera provides surprisingly smooth sailing, all the way to the Tahiti material. At that point, the younger, brash Lenny take over the writing duties, with a couple of great arias and "Island Magic", a funny Broadway pastiche that takes gratuitous shots at South Pacific. The final act (when the family's conflicts are resolved in a glowering, then glowing ensemble) is among his finest writing for the stage.

A final note on the sensible production design by Christopher Alden, who did last year's Don Giovanni at City Opera, also set in a funeral home. It would be wonderful to see this talented designer work on a piece that does not involve funeral homes or coffins. Unless of course the company is planning to put the HBO series Six Feet Under on stage for next year?

Mahler Mix and Match

Gustav Mahler

So this morning I was tooling around the Universal Classics websites (that's Decca and Deutsche Grammophon, mostly.) I found a new web applet for Mahler lovers. The company has opened its vault and created Mahler: The People's Edition, making it possible for listeners to select, stream, and download their favorite recordings of the symphonies.

Registered users can then post on the site their Dream Mahler list of the "ultimate" recordings of Mahler symphonies. It's a good idea, which can be later applied to Beethoven, Bruckner, etc. and might serve to open some of the buried riches of the catalogue to the casual (or expert) listener). Unfortunately, Das Klagende Lied and Das Lied von der Erde have been left out of the "Dream."

Anyway, here's my list. Please keep in mind that this only includes recordings that are available from Universal Music Group. It should really include something by Simon Rattle or Klaus Tennstedt, the new Bernard Haitink Mahler recordings with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the first round of Bernstein/New York Philharmonic recordings or anything conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas. C'est la vie.

My list:

Symphony No. 1 "Titan": Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra cond. Leonard Bernstein. (1989)
Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection": New York Philharmonic cond. Leonard Bernstein (1988)
Symphony No. 3: Berlin Philharmonic cond. Claudio Abbado (1999)
Symphony No. 4: Philharmonia Orchestra cond. Giuseppe Sinopoli (1993)
Symphony No. 5: Vienna Philharmonic cond. Leonard Bernstein (1988)
Symphony No. 6: "Tragic" Vienna Philharmonic cond. Pierre Boulez (1995)
Symphony No. 7: "Song of the Night": Chicago Symphony Orchestra cond. Claudio Abbado (1984)
Symphony No. 8: "Symphony of 1,000": Chicago Symphony Orchestra cond. Sir Georg Solti (1972)
Symphony No. 9: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra cond. Bernard Haitink 1970
Symphony No. 10 (first movement only): Vienna Philharmonic cond. Leonard Bernstein (1991)

Because I'm a completist type, I would add the following recommendations:
Des Knaben Wunderhorn: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra cond. Leonard Bernstein
Das Klagende Lied: Philharmonia Orchestra cond. Giuseppe Sinopoli
Das Lied von der Erde: Vienna Philharmonic cond. Pierre Boulez

Of course if all this is too much, you can just check out the new Mahler: Complete Edition boxed set, which compiles a "best of" from the DG and Decca catalogue and represents some of the finest available recordings. Some of them are even on my list!