BSO — 2023/10/07

 The Orchestra begins their subscription season in Symphony Hall this week after five months away. WCRB has chosen to give us a recording of the Friday afternoon concert (which I attended) rather than this evening's Opening Night Gala, which began at 6:00 p.m. It has a different second half: Duke Ellington's New World A-Coming for piano and Orchestra and Carlos Simon's Four Black American Dances instead of the Muskats and Strauss. IIRC, they played the Simon piece last season in Symphony Hall and again this summer at Tanglewood.

Anyway, here's WCRB's description:

Saturday, October 7, 2023
8:00pm

Andris Nelsons begins his 10th season as the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Music Director with works by Beethoven, Richard Strauss, and Arturs Maskats, as well as Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23, with soloist Rudolf Buchbinder.

Andris Nelsons, conductor
Rudolf Buchbinder, piano

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN Consecration of the House Overture
Wolfgang Amadeus MOZART Piano Concerto No. 23
Arturs MASKATS Tango 
Richard STRAUSS Suite from Der Rosenkavalier

(This concert is performed on Friday, Oct. 6, 2023)

To hear Rudolf Buchbinder talk with CRB's Brian McCreath about Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 23, his most recent recording, Soirée de Vienne, and more, use the player above and follow along with the transcript below.

TRANSCRIPT:

Brian McCreath I'm Brian McCreath at Symphony Hall with Rudolf Buchbinder, back to begin the Boston Symphony's new season with Mozart's P

The BSO's own performance detail page gives links to the program notes for each piece as well as performer bios and the following blurb:

Boston Symphony Orchestra

Symphony Hall, Boston, MA 

Andris Nelsons, conductor 
Rudolf Buchbinder, piano

BEETHOVEN Consecration of the House Overture 
MOZART Piano Concerto No. 23 in A, K.488
Intermission
Arturs MASKATS Tango 
STRAUSS Suite from Der Rosenkavalier

Ludwig van Beethoven’s masterful Consecration of the House Overture raises the curtain on our season. Soloist Rudolf Buchbinder joins music director Andris Nelsons for Wolfgang Mozart’s light and lyrical Piano Concerto No. 23; Latvian composer Arturs Maskats’ Tango, a rich orchestral tribute to the dance, follows. The program closes with the theme from Richard Strauss’s 1911 opera Der Rosenkavalier, another lilting waltz that lovingly evokes the grace and elegance of Mozart’s years in Vienna.

There is a very favorable review in the Intelligencer. I can't find anything about it in the Globe.

I enjoyed the performance, especially the first half, and while nothing was particularly earth-shattering or "revelatory," there's nothing that was unpleasant either. So I give it a solid thumbs up.

BSO/Classical New England — 2023/09/30

 While we wait for the BSO to return to Symphony Hall, WCRB gives us another "encore broadcast," this time from last February:

Saturday, September 30th, 2023
8:00pm

In an encore broadcast, British cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason makes his Boston Symphony debut with Ernest Bloch’s Schelomo, and Andris Nelsons conducts the world premiere of Carlos Simon’s Four Black American Dances and Beethoven’s poetic Symphony No. 7.

Andris Nelsons, conductor
Sheku Kanneh-Mason, cello

Carlos SIMON Four Black American Dances (world premiere)
Ernest BLOCH Schelomo: Rhapsodie hébraïque, for cello and orchestra
Ludwig van BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7

This concert was originally broadcast on February 11th, 2023 and is no longer available on demand.

For information about Carlos Simon's Requiem for the Enslaved, visit Hub New Music.

For information about Sheku Kanneh-Mason's Song, visit Decca.

Listen to a preview of Bloch's Schelomo with Sheku Kanneh-Mason with the audio player above, and read the transcript below.

TRANSCRIPT:

Brian McCreath I'm Brian McCreath at Symphony Hall with Sheku Kanneh-Mason,

I posted about it at the time, and I'm confident the links to the BSO page and the reviews still work. Since I hadn't heard the conce4rt previously, I couldn't give any impressions of my own, so those links are your best source for background information. My recollection is that I found it pleasant enough to listen to when I got to hear it. So you might as well listen this evening.

BSO/Classical New England — 2023/09/23

 WCRB https://www.classicalwcrb.org/show/the-boston-symphony-orchestra/2022-11-10/the-symphony-hall-debuts-of-canellakis-and-benedetti-with-the-bso gives us another encore concert broadcast while the BSO is away and we wait for the Symphony Hall season to begin:

Saturday, September 23rd, 2023
8:00 PM

In an encore broadcast, Karina Canellakis takes up her baton at Symphony Hall for the very first time in a folk-inspired Boston Symphony program that features Dvořák’s The Wood Dove and Lutosławski’s Concerto for Orchestra, and Nicola Benedetti makes her BSO debut with Szymanowski’s Violin Concerto No. 2.

Karina Canellakis, conductor
Nicola Benedetti, violin

Anton DVOŘÁK The Wood Dove
Karol SZYMANOWSKI Violin Concerto No. 2
Witold LUTOSŁAWSKI Concerto for Orchestra

This concert was originally broadcast on January 21st, 2023 and is no longer available on demand.

Hear a preview of the program with Karina Canellakis in the audio player above, and read the transcript below:

INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT:

Brian McCreath I'm Brian McCreath at Symphony Hall with Karina Canellakis, who is here to conduct the Boston Symphony for the first time in this space, though, Karina, you have conducted the BSO a couple of times in the past. Thanks for a little bit of your time today.

I posted about back in January, and although I wasn't enthusiastic about it, the good reviews led me to recommend listening. I have no reason to change that. I presume the links in my post still work.

 Enjoy.

BSO/Classical New England — 2023/09/16

 Return with us now to the thrilling days of earlier this year. Garrick Ohlsson rides again in an encore broadcast of the January 14 concert. WCRB tells us more:

Saturday, September 16th, 2023
8:00 PM

In an encore broadcast, Alan Gilbert conducts the Boston Symphony in a program that includes Dvořák’s glittering Carnival Overture and the world premiere of Justin Dello Joio’s Piano Concerto, Oceans Apart, with soloist Garrick Ohlsson.

Alan Gilbert, conductor
Garrick Ohlsson, piano

Lili BOULANGER D’un Matin de Printemps
Wilhelm STENHAMMAR Serenade
Justin DELLO JOIO Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, Oceans Apart (world premiere)
Antonín DVOŘÁK Carnival Overture

This concert was originally broadcast on January 14th, 2023 and is no longer available on demand.

To hear a preview of the program with conductor Alan Gilbert, listen with the audio player above and read the transcript in the tab below. To hear an interview with pianist Garrick Ohlsson, listen with the audio player below and read the transcript in the tab below:

Garrick Ohlsson InterviewAlan Gilbert Interview

This interviews with the soloist and conductor are linked on the station's page.

My post about it last January gives links to reviews and the BSO performance detail page, which could be good reading before or during the show. As I mentioned, I wasn't there for the earlier performance, and frankly I don't remember anything about it from whatever I colud hear broadcast. OTOH the Carnival Overture is pretty good. So you might as well listen in and see how you like it all.

BSO/Classical New England — 2023/09/09

 This week's "encore concert" is a single work. WCRB tells us:

Saturday, September 9th, 2022
8:00 PM

In an encore broadcast, the Boston Symphony scales the depth and breadth of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 6 led by Music Director Andris Nelsons.

Andris Nelsons, conductor

Gustav MAHLER Symphony No. 6

This concert was originally broadcast on October 22nd, 2022 and is no longer available on demand.

Andris Nelsons talks with CRB's Brian McCreath about Mahler's Sixth Symphony, how its emotional power is different from the Fifth Symphony, and how his interpretation of the piece has changed over the years. Also, Nelsons talks about the BSO's upcoming tour to Japan, which include, coincidentally two pieces with major roles for ... cowbells (Mahler's Sixth Symphony and Strauss's Alpine Symphony). To listen, use the audio player above, and read the transcript below.

TRANSCRIPT:

Brian McCreath I'm Brian McCreath at Symphony Hall with Andris Nelsons. And Andris, it's great to see you again and great to hear Mahler's Sixth Symphony. One of the the pieces that's a remarkable piece of music, but maybe, perhaps, less understood by audiences than other symphonies by Mahler. I'm curious about what draws you to Mahler's Sixth Symphony.

If you go to the WCRB page you have the option of listening to the interview with Maestro Nelsons. If you have the time before the concert, that might be better than reading the transcript because, as I see in the transcript, there are several places where he sings a bit of the music to show what he's talking about.

I posted quite favorably about my experience hearing it two days earlier. The links in my post to the BSO page and the reviews are probably still working, so you can avail yourself of them to prepare for the show. I hope you'll enjoy it if you listen.

BSO/Classical New England — 2023/09/02

 The "encore broadcasts" continue. This week we get a chance to hear the concert of November 26, 2022. Here's the description from WCRB:

In an encore broadcast, BSO Assistant Conductor Anna Rakitina conducts the suite from Elena Langer’s Figaro Gets a Divorce and Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, and Inon Barnatan is the soloist in the crown-jewel of Rachmaninoff’s works, Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.

Anna Rakitina, conductor
Inon Barnatan, piano

Elena LANGER Figaro Gets a Divorce Suite
Sergei RACHMANINOFF Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini
Modest MUSSORGSKY Pictures at an Exhibition (orch. Ravel)

This concert was originally broadcast on November 26th, 2022 and is no longer available on demand.

In a conversation with CRB's Brian McCreath, pianist Inon Barnatan describes his love for Rachmaninoff's music, how the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini is unique among the composer's works for piano, and what he's learned as Music Director of the La Jolla SummerFest. To listen, use the player above, and read the transcript below.

TRANSCRIPT:

Brian McCreath I'm Brian McCreath at Symphony Hall with Inon Barnatan, who is back with the BSO for the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, one of my favorite pieces by Rachmaninoff, and so, Inon, thanks a lot for your

I wrote about it at the time, and the links in my post still work, so you can go there to read the review in the Intelligencer — unimpressed by the Langer, enthusiastic for the Rachmaninoff, and finding fault with the Mussorgsky. You can also see the program notes which are available at the BSO's performance detail page. The explanation of the pictures might make the Mussorgsky more understandable. The Globe ended up publishing a favorable review a few days after I posted.

So there you have it: two familiar pieces, one very well performed, after a newish item that's no great shucks. If my brother weren't going to call at the time, I'd be tempted to listen to the Rachmaninoff "Rhapsody," and follow the Red Sox game before and after that, but I don't think it'd be a big mistake to listen to the wole thing.

BSO/Classical New England — 2023/08/26

 Once more, the BSO is on hiatus. They are on tour in Europe now, I believe, and the Symphony Hall subscription season will begin on October 5, with the first Saturday concert on October 7. Meanwhile, as usual, WCRB gives us "encore broadcasts" of earlier BSO concerts. Today it's from October of last year. Here's what WCRB says:

Saturday, August 26, 2023
8:00 PM

In an encore broadcast, Colombian conductor Andrés Orozco-Estrada has his Boston Symphony Orchestra debut conducting a rich program that includes Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet and Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 18 with soloist Emanuel Ax.

Andrés Orozco-Estrada, conductor
Emanuel Ax, piano

Peter TCHAIKOVSKY Romeo and Juliet Overture-Fantasy after Shakespeare
Wolfgang MOZART Piano Concerto No. 18
Béla BARTÓK The Miraculous Mandarin Suite
Georges ENESCU Romanian Rhapsody No. 1

This concert was originally broadcast on October 15, 2022 and is no longer available on demand.

In a preview of the program, Andrés Orozco-Estrada describes the character of each piece, how he prepares to lead an orchestra for the first time, and who his models were as he learned his craft as a young conductor. To listen, use the audio player above, and read the transcript below.

TRANSCRIPT

Brian McCreath I'm Brian McCreath at Symphony Hall with Andrés Orozco-Estrada, who is here with the Boston Symphony for the very first time.

The full transcript of the interview is available at that WCRB page (likked above), as is the audio recording of it. I think you'll find it interesting if you have the time.

I posted about it back then, and the links in my post for the BSO performance detail page and the reviews still work, so you can go there for more backgrtound information on a well received performance.

Enjoy!

Tanglewood — 2023/08/19-20

 Again I apologize. I didn't think of the Friday evening Tanglewood concert until the Red Sox game was over, about 10 o'clock. It was a couple of piano concertos, preceded by something titled "Four Black American Dances." Here's a link to the BSO announcement. If you didn't listen last evening, you can try to find it in the "On Demand" on the WCRB homepage.

This is the final weekend of the BSO's Tanglewood Season, so it will end with the traditional Beethoven Ninth Symphony. That's on Sunday. This evening WCRB will transmit the following:

Saturday, August 19th, 2023
8:00 PM

Leonidas Kavakos is the soloist in Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto, and Andris Nelsons leads the Boston Symphony Orchestra in Prokofiev's Symphony No. 5 at Tanglewood.

Andris Nelsons, conductor
Leonidas Kavakos, violin

Pyotr TCHAIKOVSKY Violin Concerto
Sergei PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 5

Leonidas Kavakos appears courtesy of Sony Classical, a label of Sony Music Entertainment

Leonidas Kavakos can't perform with the BSO unless Sony Classical permits him to? Wow!

The Tchaikovsky is good listening; I don't know the Prokofiev, so no comment on it. But there are links on the BSO page for the concert where you can read the program notes for each of the works.

As promised, on Sunday we get the Beethoven Ninth, after a "curtain raiser." As WCRB tells us:

Sunday, August 20th, 2023
7:00 PM

Susanna Mälkki leads the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra and the Tanglewood Festival Chorus in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with soloists Amanda Majeski, J’Nai Bridges, Stephen Costello, and Jongmin Park. BSO Choral Director James Burton leads the TFC in Tippett's breathtaking Spirituals from A Child of Our Time.

Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra
Susanna Mälkki, conductor (Beethoven)
James Burton, conductor (Tippett)
Amanda Majeski, soprano
J’Nai Bridges, mezzo-soprano
Stephen Costello, tenor
Jongmin Park, bass
Tanglewood Festival Chorus

Michael TIPPETT Spirituals from A Child of Our Time
Ludwig van BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9

The Beethoven Ninth is pretty well known since the second movement was used as the theme music for the Huntley-Brinkley Report on NBC. Unfortunately the BSO page for the concert doesn't give us a link to the program note for the Tippett music, while it does give us one for the Beethoven.

Tanglewood — 2023/08/11-13

 Today I remembered, so here's a preview of all three Tanglewood concerts to be broadcast this weekend.

First, here's the synopsis for this evening, courtesy of WCRB:

Friday, August 11th, 2023
8:00 PM

Superstar violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter joins Andris Nelsons and the BSO in John Williams's Violin Concerto No. 2, with works by Strauss and Ravel also on the program.

Andris Nelsons, conductor
Anne-Sophie Mutter, violin

John WILLIAMS Violin Concerto No. 2
Richard STRAUSS Death and Transfiguration
Maurice RAVEL La Valse

My recollection of the Williams concerto is that it's nothing to write home about; but the Strauss and Ravel are pretty good. I would'nt call them must-hear. but they've stayed in the repertoire for a reason, and if you don't have something important to do, you might as well listen in.

On Saturday, they save the best for first:

Saturday, August 12th, 2023
8:00 PM

Susanna Mälkki leads the Boston Symphony Orchestra in Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra, and Seong-Jin Cho is the soloist in Mozart’s brilliant Piano Concerto No. 9.

Susanna Mälkki, conductor
Seong-Jin Cho, piano

Wolfgang Amadeus MOZART Piano Concerto No. 9 in E-flat, K. 271
Béla BARTÓK Concerto for Orchestra

I have no memory of the Mozart, but it has to be good. As for the Bartók, the BSO owns the piece. That is, it was commissioned by them and they gave the world premiere nearly 80 years ago. Since then it has been one of their signature pieces. Still, it's Bartók, quite dissonant and jagged. I've heard it enough that I'm kind of used to it, but it's probably not to all tastes. I'd suggest giving it a try, if you aren't already familiar with it.

Then on Sunday evening at 7:00 we can hear:

Sunday, August 13th, 2023
7:00 PM

Andris Nelsons leads the BSO in Julia Adolphe’s Makeshift Castle, Stravinsky’s Petrushka, and Strauss songs with orchestra, featuring world-class soprano Renée Fleming.

Andris Nelsons, conductor
Renée Fleming, soprano

Julia ADOLPHE Makeshift Castle
Richard STRAUSS Songs with orchestra
Igor STRAVINSKY Petrushka (1947 version)

Yo-Yo Ma, who was originally scheduled to perform Shostakovich's Cello Concerto No. 1, has withdrawn from this performance due to illness.

I hope Yo-Yo Ma will get well soon. On the other hand I'd rather hear the Strauss than Shostakovich.

The BSO page has links to information about all three concerts and others. They give us the program note about "Makeshift Castle," which at least gives some idea of what to expect and listen for. There doesn't seem to be anything similar for the Strauss and Stravinsky. Strauss is usually pretty good with songs, and Petrushka was composed before "Rite of Spring," so it's not terribly jarring, and actually kind of tuneful.

Tanglewood — 2023/08/05-06

 Oops! I Did(n't) it again. I hope you check out WCRB on Friday evenings even if I've neglected to post about the concert. Here's a bit about the rest of the weekend. First for this evening:

Saturday, August 5th, 2023
8:00 PM

A cherished Tanglewood tradition, John Williams’ Film Night returns with the Boston Pops! John Williams and David Newman conduct cinematic classics and music from Williams’s own astonishing catalog.

John Williams and David Newman, conductors
BU Tanglewood Institute Chorus

John Williams’ Film Night

The BSO page gives us more detail:

John Williams and David Newman, conductors
BU Tanglewood Institute Young Artists Vocal Program
 Penelope Bitzas, director
 Katie Woolf, conductor

A cherished Tanglewood tradition, John Williams’ Film Night returns with the Boston Pops, along with Maestros Williams and Newman sharing the podium for a memorable program of film clips and music from the silver screen. It’s a special evening of movie magic that you won’t want to miss.

WHITING, Arr. John WILLIAMS Hooray for Hollywood!
WILLIAMS The Cowboys
HERRMANN Scène d’amour from Vertigo
WILLIAMS Suite from Far and Away
WILLIAMS Theme from Jurassic Park
WILLIAMS Love Theme and March from Superman
WILLIAMS Selections from Star Wars:
 The Asteroid Field
 Anakin’s Theme
 Throne Room & Finale

Then tomorrow evening WCRB says we'll be able to hear this program recorded Sunday afternoon:

Sunday, August 6th, 2023
7:00 PM

Dutch pianists Lucas and Arthur Jussen are the soloists in Mendelssohn’s Concerto in E minor, and Kazuki Yamada leads the BSO in the Symphonie fantastique by Berlioz.

Kazuki Yamada, conductor
Lucas and Arthur Jussen, pianos

Felix MENDELSSOHN Concerto in E for two pianos and orchestra
Hector BERLIOZ Symphonie fantastique

The BSO page has a link to some information about the Berlioz piece:

Kazuki Yamada, conductor
Lucas and Arthur Jussen, pianos

MENDELSSOHN Concerto in E for two pianos and orchestra
Intermission
BERLIOZ Symphonie fantastique

Gates open at 12pm

This program is supported by the Dutch Culture USA program of the Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in New York and has received funding through a grant from the Netherland-America Foundation.

If you like John Williams, tonight's show is one you won't want to miss. The Sunday concert should be quite enjoyable.