Lots to like from Valentina Lisitsa - her debut on Deccais a live concert from Royal Albert Hall. “Of course it’s a concert” she says, “but it’s also a celebration.”
She will perform in the US this winter and next spring - if you get a chance, see her in concert, but we can't recommend enough to check out her new cd and dvd. Fans of Russian repertoire will melt at the Rachmaninoff, and be stunned at her Scriabin. Chopin and Liszt devotees have floating, touching, and incredibly moving performances of Nocturnes and Etudes. Most impressive and powerful is Lisitsa's Beethoven. Here she is most expressive, spinning the Moonlight Sonata with grace, and at times, perfect momentum.
Bonus for the DVD includes Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 and Valentina speaking, items you really should consider! It will be available August 7th.
In August 2010, HJ performed the complete Beethoven Piano Sonatas over eight consecutive days in Paris and one year later she recorded the complete cycle for EMI Classics with whom she now records exclusively. Tomorrow EMI Classics releases HJ Lim's outstanding collection of Beethoven Piano Sonatas on iTunes. Hear her discuss recording the monumental works, the relationship of symphonies to sonatas and deciding not to include two of the sonatas with host John Clare:
For a limited time, these 99 tracks will be available for $9.99. It is a bargain and great aural pleasure!
Here is a sample of HJ playing the "Moonlight" Sonata:
As San Antonio audiences just heard these works live throughout January and February, you'll love revisiting these masterworks with this 19 year old pianist.
It’s been quite a journey. The city-wide Beethoven Festival (http://www.sasymphony.org/2011/03/beethoven-festival/) was led by the San Antonio Symphony and included 11 artistic partners. There are still a couple of events to go – a 5k/10k Beethoven Run with YOSA on March 24th and the Vienna Piano Trio playing a Beethoven Piano Trio for the San Antonio Chamber Music Society on April 1st.
Hard to believe it all started with some cello sonatas with Camerata San Antonio on January 6th:
The next day, the complete Piano Sonatas began with Jeffery Swann at Trinity University. It made me harken back to school, as a student learning form and analyis, studied quite a few of Beethoven’s works, and Swann began with the Sonata #1, Opus 2 #1. Another performance, on January 13th with the SA Symphony also made me think of the college years, as I had conducted Beethoven’s First Symphony with the fledgling Wichita Chamber Orchestra (that also included a now world famous mezzo soprano, Joyce DiDonato, read about that here http://classicallyhip.blogspot.com/2007/03/at-speed-of-life.html). This is from that first concert with Swann, part of the Hammerklavier Sonata:
One of the more creative concerts came with SOLI Chamber Ensemble, who presented four new works based on Beethoven’s Grosse Fuge, as well as a transcription of the fugue for their instrumentation. This is Paul Moravec’s delightful work:
I didn’t make all of the events, I am pretty sure Jack Fishman might have, but know that it was wonderful to see alot of familiar folks at each of the events that I did go to, and new faces I had never seen at concerts before. One of the ideas behind the collaboration of arts organizations is to reach new audiences. I also think the Beethoven Festival created a great buzz around the city.
Bravo to all who presented concerts and to everyone who attended. You can read about a lot of the concerts on Jack Fishman’s blog (http://blog.mysanantonio.com/jackfishman/), as well as reviews from Mike Greenburg (http://www.incidentlight.com/home.htm). Texas Public Radio has some great videos if you would like to relive the events (http://www.youtube.com/user/JohnNasukalukClare) or catch one you didn’t make them: http://www.youtube.com/user/TexasPublicRadio. -host John Clare
The Beethoven Festival has a few more events - the San Antonio Symphony wrapped up their portion this weekend with THREE performances of the Choral Symphony, but the next event is tomorrow night (Valentine's Day) with the San Antonio International Piano Competition.
American pianist Richard Dowling has been praised throughout the world
for his elegant and charismatic style of pianism. The former SAIPC Gold
Medalist will perform one of Beethoven's most beloved and well-known
works: the Sonata in C-sharp Minor known as Moonlight.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
7:30 PM
Christ Episcopal Church Sonata No. 2 in A, Op. 2, No. 2 Sonata No. 9 in E, Op. 14, No. 1 Sonata No. 16 in G, Op. 31, No. 1 Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp Minor, Op. 27, No. 2, "Moonlight"
As we get closer to Ludwig van Beethoven's birthday this month and the Beethoven Festivalnext month, we thought it would be fun to focus on the Bonn master. Here is maestro Riccardo Chailly discussing Beethoven's first three symphonies:
What would that be for you? For Ludwig van Beethoven it was confirmation that his hearing, "the one sense which should have been more perfect in me than in others, a sense which I once possessed in highest perfection" was now eroding. How could this supreme master of sound be reduced to shouting "speak louder for I am deaf" and still have the respect of those around him?
In his Heiligenstadt Testament, Beethoven agonized about his self-exile from humanity and the misunderstandings of those who perceive him as stubborn, haughty or misanthropic. The searing nature of this confession is so personal and discouraging that some experts thought of it as a first draft of a suicide note to those that would have found him. As reduced as Beethoven was by his illness he did find a way out that was more positive for humanity, music.
Could Beethoven compose with such weighty matters depressing him? The answer is yes, his dear art and its alchemy turned base anger and frustration into art. Hear Beethoven's unique piano sonata in d minor "the Tempest" this Sunday afternoon at 5 on the Piano. Along with a sterling performance, we will give a listen to several musicians and their approach to this masterwork.
Today composer Paul Moravec turns 54 years young. He'll have a world premiere this January in San Antonio with SOLI Chamber Ensemble, basing a quartet on Beethoven's Grosse Fuge - part of the Beethoven Festival. Moravec is also the commissioned composer for the San Antonio International Piano Competition in October 2012 and will be in town to judge. Host John Clare has interviewed Moravec numerous times and shares this insightful talk from 2006: mp3 file We'll have more coverage with Paul this January and October, but wish Paul a very happy birthday! From WQXR a live performance of Moravec's Pulitzer Prize winning Tempest Fantasy:
Cypress releases Volume 2 of Beethoven The Cypress String Quartet is exploring the music of Ludwig van Beethoven, who said “Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom and philosophy, it is the wine of a new procreation, and I am Bacchus who presses out this glorious wine for men and makes them drunk with the spirit.”For their latest release, Cypress has given us Beethoven’s Opus 130 and the last quartet music he ever wrote, a finale he revised. Cellist Jennifer Kloetzel discusses the recording process and the monumental Grosse Fuge. You can hear some more of their Beethoven here: http://www.cypressquartet.com/listen.html The Cypress Quartet visits San Antonio in January 2011 as guests of the San Antonio Chamber Music Society.
YOSA on the go The Youth Orchestras of San Antoniostart their season later this month with a chamber music concert focusing on Italy. Music Director Troy Peters talks with host John Clare about leading youth in classical music, engaging their energy and what to expect on their Gold Series. This season includes visits from Jaime Laredo & Sharon Robinson, the Youth Orchestra of Monterrey, and Jon Anderson from the rock group YES. Hear YOSA and Troy Peters in action on September 25, 2010, at Coker United Methodist Church starting at 7 p.m.
Turtle Island New Release The Turtle Island Quartet has done it again, expanding the sound and repertoire for quartets with a new cd of Jimi Hendrix and their own David Balakrishnan. The new release features Electric Ladyland plus the genre bending Tree of Life. Balakrishnan talked with host John Clare while on tour in LA, about the group’s technique and the unique sound they play. Sample part of the new album on the Quartet’s website: http://turtleislandquartet.com/ They’ll be in Brownsville, TX at the UTB/TSC Arts Center on October 1st, 2010 7:30pm a program called Danzon with Luna Negra Dance Theater & Paquito D’Rivera.
SA Sym SLL Preview Next month, the San Antonio Symphonywelcomes Sebastian Lang Lessing as it’s ninth Music Director in 76 years! On the program will be Mahler’s First Symphony and a champagne toast. It will be a busy season for Lang Lessing who continues to conduct around the world…but he took out a few minutes to chat with host John Clare about outreach, festivals and of course, his first year in San Antonio.
You can win a voucher for tickets to see & hear the San Antonio Symphony – check it out – Find SLL! Don’t forget to relive the 2009-10 season of the SA Symphony Sunday afternoons with your host Nathan Cone on KPAC & KTXI through September.
Barry in Bavaria! KPAC's Barry Brake has had a busy summer. Not only is he a new father (congrats – Greta is so cute!) but Barry spent some time in Bavaria, Germany this summer. While there, Barry interviewed Markus Zwink, music director for the Oberammergau Passion Play, which has been performed in Oberammergau, Bavaria, Germany by its inhabitants since 1634.
Part 1:
Part 2:
Listen to all of these interviews on the NEW Classical Spotlight page, and remember to tune in Thursdays at 1pm on your classical oasis, KPAC & KTXI!
For a limited time, you can listen to a live recording of Janine Jansen play Tchaikovsky's Violin Cocnerto with the LA Philharmonic from NPR Music. Take a listen here.
The San Francisco based Cypress String Quartetis about to release their Beethoven String Quartet cycle (August 25th) with volume 1 containing Opus 131 and Opus 135. Cecily, Tom, Ethan and Jennifer recently spoke with host John Clare about the new recording. Listen to their discussion {mp3 file} Here's a hd video of the quartet in concert last April, celebrating 10 years of Call and Response, that also included Beethoven's Opus 135.
In 2005, a Los Angeles Times reporter stumbled upon a unique sight in the middle of downtown L.A. on his way back to the office. There was a lone man, in his mid fifties, playing a violin with two missing strings. Something about the man intrigued Lopez, and after some conversation and a little digging, Lopez found out the man, Nathaniel Ayers, was a former Julliard student whose schizophrenia led him to life on the streets for over 30 years. Through a series of columns in the Los Angeles Times, Lopez told Ayers’ story, and how the two men developed a friendship that went beyond the typical journalist/subject relationship.
Sounds like a great idea for a movie, right? In a special feature included on the DVD of the film “The Soloist,” Lopez himself talks about how Hollywood producers came knocking on his door soon after the story began to develop in the paper. But what works well on the page doesn’t always translate to the screen.
Robert Downey Jr. plays Lopez in the film “The Soloist,” and Jamie Foxx stars as Ayers. Both men deliver solid, compassionate performances. But even though it seems like all cylinders are firing in “The Soloist,” there’s a curious lack of emotional connection to the story and characters. I’ve tried to think what it is that is keeping this story at arm’s length. Downey Jr. does well in portraying the determination to get the story that feeds the reporter’s soul, and nothing about Foxx’s role as Ayers is syrupy or over-the-top as one might fear. Maybe it’s something about the disease itself. Ayers’ schizophrenia led him to distance himself from family and friends, fearful of the voices in his head. And if even family members had a hard time connecting to Ayers, that means there’s an extra challenge in store for the filmmakers when all you have is a two-hour movie.
I haven’t read Lopez’ columns or the subsequent book that “The Soloist” is based on, but I suspect that the story reads better than it plays on screen. The printed word may be better at conveying the emotional heft of Ayers’ relationship with Lopez (and Beethoven); or, at least it may allow for more time for the audience to develop an understanding of Ayers and schizophrenia in general.
“The Soloist” is not without its merits, though. By illustrating that Nathaniel Ayers’ story is one of many on L.A.’s Skid Row, this movie fulfills an important mission. In another of the DVD’s special features, volunteers and staff members from LAMP (Los Angeles Men’s Project) and Midnight Mission in Los Angeles speak in plain truths about the homeless problem in L.A. Casey Horan, LAMP’s Executive Director, points out the astonishing statistic that Los Angeles has more homeless persons than New York City, Chicago, Houston, Portland, San Francisco and Philadelphia combined. If the only thing “The Soloist” does is raise greater awareness of the homeless population, and the need for humanitarian and financial aid, then it has succeeded.
Texas Public Radio will speak with all the candidates for the San Antonio Symphony Music Director Search and have them on Classical Spotlight. You'll get a chance to learn more about the maestros - don't forget to attend the symphony and fill out the questionaire as well!
(See a larger version here) This week we talk with Christian Knapp. John Clare asked about the program, music and the setting of the Majestic.
The Youth Orchestras of San Antonio 
