Tanglewood — 2021/08/14-15

 It's the last weekend of the BSO's Tanglewood season. It will not close with the traditional Beethoven 9th Symphony, but with Herbert Blomstedt coming back to lead an all-Brahms program on Sunday. But first we get the Saturday concert with a mixi of the new and the familiar led by a BSO assistant conductor.

Saturday, August 14, 2021.  WCRB's capsule tells us:

Saturday night at 8pm, live from Tanglewood, the BSO Assistant Conductor leads Elgar’s Enigma Variations, Elena Langer’s Figaro Gets a Divorce, and Ravel’s jazz-infused Piano Concerto in G, with soloist Jean-Yves Thibaudet.

Anna Rakitina, conductor
Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano

Elena LANGER Suite from Figaro Gets a Divorce
RAVEL Piano Concerto in G
ELGAR Enigma Variations

(Some emphasis added.)

I read the program note for the Suite from "Figaro Gets a Divorce," (accessible via the link on the BSO's performance detail page), and I still have no idea what to expect. Of course, it won't be as good as Mozart or Rossini, but I set the bar very low for new music: as long as it's tolerable, I'm content. I don't care about the Ravel concerto either. I just hope that they'll be able to give a good chunk of the Elgar before my brother calls from Tokyo.

Sunday, August 15, 2021.  As I mentioned, it's all Brahms. WCRB provides specifics:

In the closing concert of the 2021 Boston Symphony Orchestra season at Tanglewood, it’s an all-Brahms concert with Leonidas Kavakos as the soloist in the Violin Concerto and Herbert Blomstedt conducting the Symphony No. 4, Sunday evening at 7pm.

Herbert Blomstedt, conductor
Leonidas Kavakos, violin

ALL-BRAHMS PROGRAM
Violin Concerto
Symphony No. 4

(Emphasis added.)

Most people will probably like this one a lot. The performance detail page has the usual links. As you know, I don't care very much for Brahms' symphonies and concertos, but I'm definitely in the minority on that. So enjoy.

Traditions are generally a good thing, but the one of concluding the Tanglewood season with the Beethoven 9th is fairly recent. I won't be upset if they don't go back to it if there's a full season next summer.