Opera Review: Deviled Eggs

The Washington National Opera's Faust goes directly to Hell.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Hellbound: Raymond Aceto as Méphistophélès in Faust.
Photo by Scott Suchman for the Washington National Opera.

In the last hundred years, Charles Gounod's Faust has fallen from the pinnacle of the repertory. Its descent has been rapid, almost as fast as that of its protagonist, a searching scholar who sells his soul to Satan in the opera's first act. Faust has fallen into irrelevance in this new century. Its stirring choruses, sweet harmonies and story of demonic love and angelic redemption seem quaint in this dark age. When fascists are defended in the media by the sitting President, and hatred lurks in the corridors of power, Faust just ain't scary anymore.

Festival Preview: PROTOTYPE 2019

The good, the loud and the weird in avant-garde opera.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Cellist and singer Leah Coloff stars in Thistree at this year's PROTOTYPE Festival.
Photo © 2019 HERE.

The new year is here, and January means it's time for the PROTOTYPE Festival. Now in its seventh year, this is the annual celebration of cutting edge opera and experimental theater pieces, centered around the the TriBeCa performance space HERE. The Festival opens on Jan. 5 and runs to Jan. 13 this year, offering eleven new works in venues on both sides of the East River. There's also a Festival Soirée. This year it's Jan. 9 at 6:30pm at City Winery.

Here's the slate:

Summer Festival Preview: Mostly Mozart 2018

Bigger, Better, Faster, but still Mostly Mozart.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Louis Langree (back to camera) leads the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra

When the time came for Lincoln Center to choose between its two signature summer festivals, there was no question: it was Mostly Mozart that had the brand recognition. For 51 years, this month-long festival held the stage at what is now David Geffen Hall, a haven of culture for New York music lovers who were unable or unwilling to leave the city in the summer months.

Brass Tacks: The Concerto

The Eternal Struggle of Soloist vs. Orchestra.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Sergei Rachmaninoff at the piano.
Acclaimed as a composer and pianist, he wrote four piano concertos.

In today's installment we're going to talk about forms again--specifically the concerto, one of the most popular types of concert music. Concertos are a standard feature of most orchestral programs, appearing second after an overture and before the symphony.

Some concertos have the soloist enter first. Others have the orchestra lead off. This can change from movement to movement, with the soloist and conductor "taking turns."

Concertos usually have three movements: a fast Sonata allegro, a slow central Adagio and a Presto finale. The music generally observes sonata form, eliminating the dance movement found in most symphonies. 

The three movements usually have passages (cadenzas) where the orchestra stops entirely and allows the solo player to either play a pre-written solo or add one of their own creation. These are usually placed between the different sections of the sonata, for example between the development and the recapitulation.
Here's a helpful diagram courtesy of our friends at Wikipedia.