Archives
Fall 2017
Sept 19 | Does America Have Classical Music? Star Wars at the Philharmonic; Gershwin and Bernstein with Yannick Nezet-Seguin at Carnegie opening
Related Performance: Carnegie Hall / Opening Night Gala on Oct 4
Sept 26 | Whose Tales? Whose Hoffmann? The enduring fascination of Offenbach’s only “grand” opera (returning to the Met Sept 26) and E.T.A. Hoffmann’s peculiar legacy – plus the difficulties of deciding what to perform in a “problem” opera whose contents are up for grabs.
Related Performance: Metropolitan Opera / Les Contes d'Hoffmann on Sept 26, 30(m), Oct 4, 7, 13, 18, 21(m), 24, 28(m)
Oct 3 | The Unique Contribution of Rostropovich Cellists have a late-20th-century repertory richer than that of any other instrument, thanks to one man.
Related Performance: Carnegie Hall / Alisa Weilerstein plays Britten, Mackey & Mendelssohn at Zankel on Oct 17
Oct 17 | The Exterminating Angel Do we finally have a repeatable opera composer? Thomas Ades makes his newest bid at the Met
Related Performance: Metropolitan Opera / The Exterminating Angel on Oct 26, 30, Nov 3, 7, 10, 14, 18(m) & 21
Oct 24 | The Future is Now We are not surprised to see Carnegie presenting the symphony orchestras of Israel (Nov 7-9) or St. Petersburg (Nov 14-15), but the series also includes the China NCPA Orchestra (Oct 30), with a famous conductor and soloist, both Chinese, and a program of three works, two of them Chinese. A look at what’s to come.
Related Performance: Carnegie Hall / China NCPA Orchestra on Oct 30
Oct 31 | Halloween special! It's the first time one of our classes has fallen directly on Hallowe'en itself, and since the holiday is associated with the supernatural, we are going to trace a surprisingly interesting strand of developments in opera having to do with either the supernatural or the "para-normal." Spoiler alert: Enchantment, witchcraft, magic, madness, sleepwalking, etc. are usually the way for a character to do what she or he really wants to do, but is forbidden. And music heightens the thrill of the forbidden.
Nov 7 | Dvorak and America The first major European composer who really got to know the United States said he found here everything a nation needs to create its own national style, and tried to get it started.
Related Performance: New York Philharmonic String Quartet at 92Y on Nov 12
Nov 14 | Verdi’s “Latest Opera in Ecclesiastical Vestments” That’s what Hans von Bülow called the Requiem (later adding “I was a fool”). The work, which Verdi intended as the last of his long career, may be the most popular oratorio in the repertory; its history makes an enthralling story.
Related Performance: Metropolitan Opera / Requiem on Nov 24, 27, 29 & Dec 2(m)
Nov 28 | What a “Modern” Opera Production Should Be François Girard’s vision of Wagner’s Parsifal wassuch an unexpected success that the schedule has been torn up to bring it back for seven performances beginning Feb 5, 2018.
Related Performance: Metropolitan Opera / Parsifal on Feb 5, 10, 13, 17(m), 20, 23 & 27
Related Performance: Carnegie Hall / Opening Night Gala on Oct 4
Sept 26 | Whose Tales? Whose Hoffmann? The enduring fascination of Offenbach’s only “grand” opera (returning to the Met Sept 26) and E.T.A. Hoffmann’s peculiar legacy – plus the difficulties of deciding what to perform in a “problem” opera whose contents are up for grabs.
Related Performance: Metropolitan Opera / Les Contes d'Hoffmann on Sept 26, 30(m), Oct 4, 7, 13, 18, 21(m), 24, 28(m)
Oct 3 | The Unique Contribution of Rostropovich Cellists have a late-20th-century repertory richer than that of any other instrument, thanks to one man.
Related Performance: Carnegie Hall / Alisa Weilerstein plays Britten, Mackey & Mendelssohn at Zankel on Oct 17
Oct 17 | The Exterminating Angel Do we finally have a repeatable opera composer? Thomas Ades makes his newest bid at the Met
Related Performance: Metropolitan Opera / The Exterminating Angel on Oct 26, 30, Nov 3, 7, 10, 14, 18(m) & 21
Oct 24 | The Future is Now We are not surprised to see Carnegie presenting the symphony orchestras of Israel (Nov 7-9) or St. Petersburg (Nov 14-15), but the series also includes the China NCPA Orchestra (Oct 30), with a famous conductor and soloist, both Chinese, and a program of three works, two of them Chinese. A look at what’s to come.
Related Performance: Carnegie Hall / China NCPA Orchestra on Oct 30
Oct 31 | Halloween special! It's the first time one of our classes has fallen directly on Hallowe'en itself, and since the holiday is associated with the supernatural, we are going to trace a surprisingly interesting strand of developments in opera having to do with either the supernatural or the "para-normal." Spoiler alert: Enchantment, witchcraft, magic, madness, sleepwalking, etc. are usually the way for a character to do what she or he really wants to do, but is forbidden. And music heightens the thrill of the forbidden.
Nov 7 | Dvorak and America The first major European composer who really got to know the United States said he found here everything a nation needs to create its own national style, and tried to get it started.
Related Performance: New York Philharmonic String Quartet at 92Y on Nov 12
Nov 14 | Verdi’s “Latest Opera in Ecclesiastical Vestments” That’s what Hans von Bülow called the Requiem (later adding “I was a fool”). The work, which Verdi intended as the last of his long career, may be the most popular oratorio in the repertory; its history makes an enthralling story.
Related Performance: Metropolitan Opera / Requiem on Nov 24, 27, 29 & Dec 2(m)
Nov 28 | What a “Modern” Opera Production Should Be François Girard’s vision of Wagner’s Parsifal wassuch an unexpected success that the schedule has been torn up to bring it back for seven performances beginning Feb 5, 2018.
Related Performance: Metropolitan Opera / Parsifal on Feb 5, 10, 13, 17(m), 20, 23 & 27