Concert Review: Rushing Into the Stratosphere

The Mariinsky Orchestra with Denis Matsuev at Carnegie Hall.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

The pianist Denis Matsuev returned to Carnegie Hall on Wednesday night.
Photo © Matsuev.com

The second of the Mariinsky Orchestra's two concerts this week at Carnegie Hall was in some ways similar to the first.. Outside, a dozen protesters appeared again, chanting slogans about music director Valery Gergiev and his close connection with the current government of Russia. Inside, cameras were mounted in the rear of the parquet and on stage left to capture Mr. Gergiev and his forces, in the first digital broadcast of an orchestral concert from Carnegie Hall on Medici.TV.

Concert Review: From Exile to Silence

The Mariinsky Orchestra returns to Carnegie Hall.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Valery Gergiev. Photo by Alexander Shapunov for the Mariinsky Theater.

The Mariinsky Orchestra, currently on tour in North America, returned to New York on Tuesday night. So did the protesters, lining the sidewalk in front of Carnegie Hall. About a dozen in number, they held up placards in English and Cyrillic. They shouted at concert-goers, handed out fliers and chanted slogans. Their issue: the close connection between Mariinsky artistic director Valery Gergiev and Vladimir Putin, the Russian political leader whose 2014 invasion of the Ukraine and anti-homosexual agenda were the twin subjects of the protest.

Metropolitan Opera Preview: Don Giovanni

Peter Mattei returns as Mozart's lust-driven nobleman.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Peter Mattei (with knife) and Luca Pisaroni are partners in crime in Don Giovanni.
Photo by Marty Sohl © 2011 The Metropolitan Opera.

Don Giovanni may be Mozart's crowning achievement. The opera is a deft blend of comedy and tragedy, with the Don's everything-and-the-kitchen-sink approach to the fair sex leading him to an inevitable, terrifying and fiery end. Mozart had written both comedies and tragedies at this point, and fearlessly blended light and dark in this brilliant score. The work combines grand musical ambition with hummable, unforgettable tunes.

Concert Review: The Crowd Pleasers

Maxim Vengerov at the New York Philharmonic.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Maxim Vengerov. Photo by Sheila Rock for Warner Brothers Classics.

A debut and a return were the story at the New York Philharmonic this week. Making his debut before a subscription audience was Long Yu, the Chinese maestro who leads three orchestras in that country. The return was that of violinist Maxim Vengerov, who had not played with the Philharmonic in nine years. His solo spotlight: the evergreen Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto, an audience favorite that puts much of the burden squarely on the soloist's shoulders.