Detroit Symphony Blog

Meet the Musician: Úna O'Riordan, Cellist

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 20:26:00 +0000

If the name Úna Fionnuala O'Riordan doesn't tip you off that the DSO's newest cellist is Irish through and through, her bright blue eyes and thick mane of wavy red hair should certainly do the trick. O'Riordan is, in fact, a first generation Irish-American whose parents moved to the United States when her father, an engineer, was transferred from Ireland to Chicago. Although she was born here, O'Riordan still has deep roots in her parents' homeland.

"My mother has 10 siblings, and I have about 35 first cousins in Ireland," she said. "I've visited a number of times over the years. Usually at family get-togethers there's a lot of storytelling and music-making going on, and everyone ends up participating in one way or another. I'm grateful when there's a cello around, because singing is definitely not my strong suit!"

O'Riordan began playing the cello at age 4 after hearing a string instrument demonstration in her kindergarten class. When her family relocated to the Washington, D.C. area when she was 9, she continued her musical education. She went on to attend the Interlochen Arts Camp in 1992 as an Emerson Scholar and returned for the next two summers. There, she took a master class with DSO cellist Paul Wingert, and as a member of the camp's World Youth Symphony, she was partnered with another DSO cellist, Marcy Chanteaux, when the DSO played a side-by-side concert with the youth ensemble.

O'Riordan received a Bachelor of Music with Distinction from the Eastman School of Music where she was named an Arts Leadership Scholar. She continued her studies as a graduate student at the Northwestern University School of Music as a recipient of the Eckstein Grant, a two-year, full-ride fellowship. During her time at Northwestern, she was a winner of the school's concerto competition and performed as a soloist with the Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra. At the same time, she was co-principal cellist of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago under the batons of Daniel Barenboim and Pierre Boulez.

After graduating, O'Riordan won positions with the Sarasota Orchestra (assistant principal cellist), the Sarasota Opera (principal cellist) and the Oregon Symphony. While in Oregon, she also had the unique opportunity to play with two acts that were far removed from the symphony world: Michigan native and award-winning indie rocker Sufjan Stevens and Pink Martini, the "little orchestra" from Portland, Or. that melds jazz, Latin and multiple ethnic influences to create what might be described as "world lounge" music. O'Riordan continued her relationship with Pink Martini and performed with the ensemble in Los Angeles' Walt Disney Hall on New Year's Eve, 2003, soon after it opened. She was also a guest artist on Pink Martini's album, Hey, Eugene, recorded in 2007.

In 2001, while living in Florida, O'Riordan was invited to perform as a last-minute substitute cellist with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra on their 12-city European tour. "The tour began in Ireland, and we landed in Dublin the morning of my birthday. There were even a few of my aunts waiting at the airport to greet me…it was such a great birthday present. Joining the tour was a great professional opportunity, and seeing family I hadn't seen in over 5 years was icing on the cake." O'Riordan won her coveted section position in December 2006, and earned her tenure a year later. She loves working with the DSO which she says has a great sense of camaraderie that is not always found in professional symphonies. She also feels proud to play in the historic Orchestra Hall and is extremely excited about having Leonard Slatkin as the new Music Director. "There was just an immediate chemistry with him," she said. "The orchestra sounds fantastic when he's on the podium."

Outside of her work with the DSO, O'Riordan can be heard playing with various musicians in the Detroit area. Upcoming performances include a duo recital with Principal Cellist Robert DeMaine, chamber recitals with Sharon Sparrow, and collaborations with members of New Music Detroit. She recently worked as a cello coach with actress Lake Bell for her role as a jazz cellist in the upcoming film "Little Murder," which was filmed in Detroit. In addition to her private teaching studio, she is a faculty member for the DSO's Power of Dreams String Project.

In her free time, she does pilates and yoga to stay strong and recently started salsa lessons with DSO oboe fellow Geoffrey Johnson. "Our goal is to hold our own on the dance floor in Miami at the end of the upcoming Florida tour next February!"

O'Riordan lives in Plymouth and has become very fond of her adopted home. "Detroit has a rich cultural history, but it also has a vibrant community of artists and musicians who are defining and shaping the Detroit of tomorrow, and I'm proud to be a part of it."

Improved Subscriber Benefit for iPhone Users

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 20:03:00 +0000

DSO classical subscribers* now have the ability to access the Naxos music library via iPhone or iTouch.

Beginning 12 November 2009, Naxos Music Library-the world's largest collection of streaming classical, jazz, wind band, choral, and world music-owned by the world's leading classical label-announced a new iPhone Application which will allow subscribers remote access to their personal and account playlists. To read the entire Naxos release click here.

To set the Naxos music library app up:

Go to, http://www.detroitsymphony.com/naxos
Enter your DSO username and password and click login.
Click the link displayed on our website to enter the Naxos music library.
On the menu bar select Playlists.
If you have not registered to set up your own playlist select Sign up on the right hand side of the of the screen.
Fill out your information and register for a new account.
To activate your account check your email and click the link provided for activation.
You can now begin building your playlists and login in on your iPhone or iTouch to listen to the Naxos music library on the go!

*At this time only DSO classical subscribers have the ability to utilize Naxos music library.

Klezmer and Classical? Why not.

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 19:52:00 +0000

by Jim Boyle

Over the years as Jewish immigrants left Eastern Europe for American cities like Detroit, with them came their rich traditions. Musically, this often meant Klezmer, the sort of Eastern European, traditional folk-jazz sound that's some times associated with Fiddler on the Roof and Jewish weddings.

With roots that harken back to biblical times, Klezmer's popularity in the United States has waned and resurged in pulsating increments since the arrival of European settlers. One noted downturn was after World War II and the Holocaust, as immigrating Jews anxious to adjust to American culture sought a less "ethnic" musical direction. However, as with many great traditions, Klezmer was rediscovered by subsequent generations of musicians (both in the U.S. and elsewhere) searching for their own cultural identities and inspiration. Today, wisps of its influence can be heard all around us - from jazz to world-music to indie rock.

But can Klezmer work in the classical world? Mashing the two might be a stretch for some. But, just as Gershwin brought jazz out of the clubs and into the orchestra pit with his ever-popular Rhapsody in Blue (including the very Klezmer-esque opening clarinet), so might Klezmer be received in the classical sphere. Fresh. Insightful. New.

Judge for yourself on on December 10th and 11th when Leonard Slatkin brings us a truly rare world premiere - concerto for Klezmer and Orchestra - composed by the inventive Wlad Marhulets. With his classical training and Jewish heritage it's a nature fit and perfectly aligned with his lean towards the experimental. It's certainly shaping up to be a special I-was-there night.

A Colorful Voyage to Exotic Places

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:40:00 +0000

by William Guy Barast

Tonight's concert by the DSO made me think a little bit of one of those shows on the Travel Channel that give you several snapshots of life in exotic locales.

Four works were on the program: Berlioz' Le Corsaire Overture, Debussy's La Mer, Ginastera's Four Dances from Estancia and the Piano Concerto No. 1 by the DSO's Erb Jazz Creative Director Chair Michel Camilo. On the podium was Andrew Grams (a replacement on very short notice for Leonard Slatkin). The composer was at the piano.

The evening started with a bang. Berlioz' madcap overture Le Corsaire (The Pirate) was given an excellent reading by Maestro Grams and the DSO, one that didn't press the pedal too hard to the metal (which Berlioz does well enough by himself). For my money, listening to this manic orchestral adventure is far more energizing than a cup of coffee any day. Berlioz wrote it while on his second visit to Nice, and while it underwent several changes of title, it isn't actually an overture to anything in particular--just a dazzling, sparkling, totally vertiginous display of complete orchestral virtuosity.

Next came Debussy's La Mer. French for 'The Sea', Debussy's triptych is positively cinematic at times in its amazing ability to evoke a maritime atmosphere. Grams and the DSO gave a wonderfully nuanced, finely textured performance of this audience favorite. Especially effective was the wonderful sense of total calm that preceeded the big moment at the end of the first section. Of course, the piece was written that way, but there was no hurrying to get to that glorious, technicolor moment, which made it all the more effective when it finally arrived. Another favorite moment, admirably presented, came at the end of the third section, where the high pitch held by the violins before the flutes' entrance evokes the sea in its sunny, hazy majesty.
Ginastera's four Dances from Estancia paint four vivid pictures of life on the Argentinian plain. All were marvellously effective (especially the lovely 'Wheat Dance,' the second of the set), but none more so than the closing Malambo. Grams took a brisk tempo and the DSO's playing couldn't have been tighter. In short, it rocked the house.
Camilo's Piano Concerto provided a highly effective showcase for his dazzling pianistic gifts. Incorporating 20th-century elements, jazz and Afro-Caribbean rhythms, this piece is a tour-de-force for piano and orchestra. The two outer movements, muscular and more aggressive, flank a gorgeous slow movement that is simply magical, evoking at times a slow, smoky, jazzy flavor. Camilo's performance of this work is a show-stopper and must be seen--and heard--to be believed.
If you're already feeling the winter blahs (or even if you're not!) this concert is for you. There's one more chance to catch it, Saturday night in Orchestra Hall at 8:30. Not to be missed!

A Fun-Filled Blast from the Past

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 02:29:00 +0000

by William Guy Barast

The second concert in the DTE Energy Foundation's DSO Pops Series, Disco Days and Boogie Nights, opened this morning to a large and very enthusiastic crowd. I wasn't quite sure at first how I felt about an entire concert of music from the'70s; however, after less than five minutes I'll admit that I was hooked!

Conductor Jack Everly led the DSO, the male a cappella vocal group Chapter Six and singers Anne Beck, Farah Alvin and N'Kenge in a high-energy traversal of the decade that not only left no stone unturned, but also left this listener with an ear-to-ear grin for the better part of two hours.

Everything just clicked today: the arrangements were all top-notch, the DSO mixed their usual precision playing with just a touch of '70s grit and the incredibly talented vocalists had plenty of energy (and pipes!) to spare. A real show-stopping moment came in the second half of the concert, when Chapter Six presented their own arrangement of Freddie Mercury’s '70s classic Bohemian Rhapsody—entirely a cappella!

So dust off your platform shoes, put on your polyester leisure suit and get down to Orchestra Hall this weekend—I promise you won't regret it! Show times (and yes, this is a 'show'!) are Thursday at 8:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday at 8:30 p.m. and Sunday afternoon at 3:00. Enjoy!

Darkness and Light

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:26:00 +0000

by William Guy Barast

This evening's concert by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra featured a program tailor-made for a Halloween weekend: Samuel Barber's warm, romantic violin concerto was bookended by two darker, more introspective works; Latvian composer Peteris Vasks' Musica Dolorosa for string orchestra and Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6, "Pathetique." The DSO was led by guest conductor Andrey Boreyko.

Composed in 1983, Musica Dolorosa employs an expanded harmonic palette, created in part through the use of a device known as "controlled indeterminacy:" improvisatory sequences that are manipulated at the conductors' discretion. The DSO strings (performing in a modified seating arrangement that added clarity to Vasks' complex, sometimes dense textures) gave a brilliant, impassioned performance of this haunting work.

The DSO's celebration of the centenary of Samuel Barber's birth continued with a first-rate performance of his violin concerto. Soloist Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg delivered an energetic, impassioned interpretation of this much-loved work. Ms. Salerno-Sonnenberg's singing tone embraced the entire dynamic spectrum from a bare whisper to a full-throated operatic voice. In the first movement she played with an edgy, forward-moving energy; her reading of the second movement was tender and lyrical, and the closing moto perpetuo was delivered at a breathtaking clip.

Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6 also known as "Pathetique" filled out the evening. This work, Tchaikovsky's last, was given a rock-solid performance by the DSO in a masterful interpretation by a conductor who has this music in his blood. The low brass and winds sounded particularly fine tonight and the warm, honeyed tone of the DSO strings provided a perfect compliment.

You have two more chances to catch this terrific program: Friday night at 8:00 and Saturday night at 8:30. Don’t miss out.

Something for everyone

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 22:40:00 +0000

by William Guy Barast

This morning's concert by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra proved to be the perfect tonic for a dreary, rain-soaked Friday.

The program was guaranteed to please, offering the perfect blend of the familiar and the less-well-known. On the menu: Barber's Essay No. 1 for Orchestra, Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 3 and Dvorak's bucolic Symphony No. 8. DSO Conducting Assistant Charles Greenwell was on the podium.

Barber's Essay No. 1 for Orchestra set the tone for the first half of the program. Dramatic yet understated, this compact, ruminative work has a uniquely taut, brooding, "American" feel. The DSO knows Barber's Three Essays well, having recorded them under Neeme Järvi for Chandos in the mid-1990's. That familiarity was apparent today, with Maestro Greenwell leading the DSO in a performance that captured the dramatic spirit of the work while allowing Barber's ravishingly beautiful orchestration to shine.

Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3 was given an heroic performance by Russian pianist Kirill Gerstein, whose big, bold tone and penchant for breakneck tempi made for an exhilarating experience. This finger-busting work is one of the titans of the piano concerto repertoire, typically clocking in at around 45 minutes. Mr. Gerstein's performance must surely have come in a bit under that mark but left absolutely nothing wanting along the way. Soloist, conductor and orchestra worked as one, bringing the audience to their feet after the final crashing chords (which (deliberately?) mirror the syllables of the composer’s last name: Rach-man-in-off!).

Dvorak's Symphony No. 8 filled the second half of the program with the lilting sounds of the Bohemian countryside. Maestro Greenwell led the DSO in a performance that was both spacious and sensitive. Especially enjoyable were the interplay between the dark-hued clarinets and the flute in the second movement and the slightly slower, more pensive return of the lovely waltz theme in the third movement. The fourth movement brought a rousing finish with the brass having loads of fun.

Since the audience seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves, Maestro Greenwell asked if they'd like an encore. Their sounds of approval brought forth a polished performance of Dvorak's Slavonic Dance Op. 46, No. 6. It may have been raining outside, but after this encore there was plenty of Bohemian sunshine inside Orchestra Hall!

Speaking of our dear Orchestra Hall, she turned 90 yesterday. Kirill Gerstein turned 30 today, and it was he who gave us a gift. What a day. Two more performances follow this weekend, Saturday evening at 8:30 and Sunday at 3:00. Don't miss out!

Over the Top!

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 04:29:00 +0000

by William Guy Barast

Tonight's concert by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra with Principal Guest Conductor Peter Oundjian was an absolute tour-de-force and a treat for fans of big, romantic-era orchestral music.

The program featured Beethoven's Fidelio Overture, Wagner's Prelude and Liebestod from Tristan und Isolde and Gustav Mahler's massive Symphony No. 7.

The Fidelio overture got the evening off to a rousing start. Maestro Oundjian led a performance that was taut and muscular, yet sensitive and refined.

Wagner's Prelude and Liebestod from Tristan required a dramatic shift of musical gears. The Prelude opens at the volume of a whisper, and Maestro Oundjian waited patiently to begin conducting until the audience was suitably quiet, which I fully appreciated. His reading was sensitive and well-paced; allowing Wagner's brilliant orchestration and delicate textures to breathe and fill the Hall.

However, the Mahler Seventh was, as they say, worth the price of admission. Coming in at a solid 75 minutes, this gargantuan work is rarely performed. Perhaps the fact that it is scored for a huge orchestra including additional brass and winds, as well as plentiful percussion, mandolin, guitar and cowbells has something to do with this. The sounds of nature, military fanfares and marches all abound in this extraordinary work, and the closing Rondo-Finale is an absolute roof-raiser. While Oundjian's tempi were somewhat on the expansive side, this was much-appreciated as it provided the opportunity for me to fully appreciate the multifarious colors and textures that Mahler's imaginative scoring draws from the orchestra. Individual and section solos abound throughout this work; but for me the true stars of the evening were undoubtedly the French horns, led by Karl Pituch.

If you missed tonight's performance, you have one more opportunity to hear this program, Sunday afternoon at 3:00. Highly recommended!

DSO to Tour Florida in February 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 05:00:00 +0000

Six-day tour to bring DSO to Vero Beach, West Palm Beach, Naples, Longwood, Sarasota and Miami

The DSO, Music Director Leonard Slatkin and acclaimed cellist Sol Gabetta will embark upon a tour in southern Florida from Tues., Feb. 9 to Sun., Feb. 14, 2010.

Tour venues will include:
- Indian River Symphonic Association at Vero Beach Community Church on Feb. 9 at 7:30 p.m.
- Kravis Center for the Performing Arts of West Palm Beach on Feb. 10 at 8:00 p.m.
- Philharmonic Center of Naples on Feb. 11 at 8:00 p.m.
- Northland, A Church Distributed of Longwood on Feb. 12 at 7:30 p.m.
- Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall of Sarasota on Feb. 13 at 8:00 p.m.
- Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami on Feb. 14 at 4:00 p.m.

Performances will include Brahms' Symphony No. 2, Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 2, Berlioz's Le Corsaire, Op. 21 as well as Barber's Cello Concerto in honor of the composer's 100th birthday, and Peter Mennin's Concertato for Orchestra, "Moby Dick."

"Florida has always been a welcoming state on any major orchestra's touring agenda," says Slatkin. "I am pleased to have my very first tour with the Detroit Symphony take place in this very sophisticated musical community."

The orchestra previously toured Florida in 2001 with guest artist and violinist Joshua Bell under the direction of then music director Neeme Jarvi.

Born to Russian-French parents in Cordoba, Argentina in 1981, the charismatic cellist Sol Gabetta is forging an impressive career; she has a recording contract with SonyBMG, directs her own festival, and has invitations from major orchestras all over the world. Winner of the 2007 Echo Klassik Award and a 2007 Grammy Award nominee, Sol Gabetta has worked this season with orchestras such as the Munich Philharmonic, the National Symphony Orchestra and has toured with the Basel Chamber Orchestra. Recitals have led her to many major venues and festivals in Europe and Asia, including the Vienna Musikverein, the Luxembourg Philharmonie and the Louvre in Paris.

The DSO Florida Tour is made possible in part by a grant from the Marjorie S. Fisher Fund and sponsorship by the Forbes Company. In addition to our appreciation of a variety of generous individual gifts, we also wish to gratefully acknowledge the following donors for leadership contributions: Cecilia Benner, Herman & Sharon Frankel, Dr. Deanna & Mr. David B. Holtzman, David & Valerie McCammon.

The DSO is offering a Florida Patron Tour for those who wish to join the orchestra on this tour. Information on purchasing tickets to see the DSO on its Florida tour can be obtained by visiting www.detroitsymphony.com/fl

Change is in the Air ;-)

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 20:17:00 +0000

"Harsh booing at the gala opening night of the Metropolitan Opera - where strong negative reactions are rarely heard, at least in comparison with European opera houses - was still ringing in the ears of the opera world on Tuesday."

The New York Times Sept. 23, 2009

The Detroit Symphony has announced plans for a completely revamped season, starting with its concerts this week. The programs will not be changed, at least the ones advertised, but the manner in which the works are performed will be altered.

To begin, the orchestra will be seated with their backs to the audience. Music Director Leonard Slatkin said at a press conference yesterday, " feel that the listeners are distracted by seeing the faces of the musicians. By turning around, people will tire of looking at backsides and focus purely on the music."

But that is only the beginning of the new era. For the final work on the program, Rachmaninov's 2nd Symphony, the conductor is not only going to reinstate the cuts sanctioned by the composer, but will add some additional ones as well. All in all the total performing time will be about 12 minutes.

"The piece is so long and repetitive. Once you have heard the main tunes, well, they are so memorable that they do not have to be played again."

Slatkin went on to say, "It is my hope to perform a Bruckner cycle using this philosophy. In that way, we can get through all of them in one concert, perhaps with time for the two that have no number as well."

Beethoven's 5th will get a trimming, but with a different rationale.

"Many years ago, I did a production of Tosca in Hamburg. The director told me that since everyone knows the opera, he wanted to eliminate many of the traditions that have bogged the work down. So there was no church in the first act. The heroine did not leap to her death at the end. Yes, we were roundly booed, but I started wondering whether the same rationale could be applied to symphonic music."

So for these performances of the overly familiar Beethoven score, the opening five bars will not be played, since everyone knows how they go. It will be straight into the 6th measure. In fact, every time the four-note motto comes in and is played loudly, the passage will either disappear or be performed softly.

Most of the soloists will be surprised to learn that the tuttis that usually herald the first entrance will go away. So no more three minute intro for either the Brahms 1st piano concerto or Violin Concerto.

Slatkin has a reason for this as well.

"We are not paying them to sit or stand around."

Other emendations include orchestration changes. The opening of Stravinsky's Rite of Spring, played by the bassoon in a high register, will now be intoned on the tuba, two octaves lower than printed.

"Tubists at the beginning of the 20th Century were not as facile as today’s artists. Bassoonists have plenty of solos. Why not let someone else have a chance at it?"

There will also be a chamber version of Mahler's 8th Symphony. Sometimes referred to as the "Symphony of a Thousand," Slatkin hopes to get it down to 46.

"There are fine chamber versions of the 4th Symphony and Das Lied, so precedent is on our side."

Another of Slatkin's projects is to present the complete organ works of Cesar Franck, transcribed for accordion. These will be played at the orchestras pre-concert recitals.

Then there is the "Pictures Project," a round-the-clock set of performances including the 33 known orchestrations of the Mussorgsky classic. Long an advocate of alternate versions of the Ravel, Slatkin said "It is impractical to include one on each of our subscription concerts. So we will start on a Friday, and keep playing until we get through all of them. If we lose a member of the orchestra along the way, so be it."

Finally, in keeping with the new seating arrangement, the orchestra will perform in street clothes, but the audience is requested to come in formal attire.

"Let them learn how long it takes to put on white tie and tails."

Season tickets, subscription renewals can be taken care of directly with the DSO box office.

Meet the Musician: Dennis Nulty, Principal Tuba

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 17:00:00 +0000

Joining the DSO this season is Principal Tuba Dennis J. Nulty who received his appointment while completing his graduate studies at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston.

Born in upstate New York, Dennis began his musical studies in third grade on cello. In fifth grade he left the orchestra for the band, where he started on trumpet, at which he claims he was "terrible."

"I was relegated to the baritone/euphonium after only a couple of weeks with the trumpet," said Dennis. "I picked up the tuba in sixth grade only because I was on the football team and was the biggest kid in the band at that time, and there were no other tuba players!"

Dennis completed his undergraduate studies at the Eastman School of Music, earning a Performers Certificate, one of only a handful of tuba players to do so. He then joined the New World Symphony in Miami where he was a fellow for three years.

Dennis has performed extensively with the Boston Symphony, Buffalo Philharmonic, Rochester Philharmonic and Syracuse Symphony. He also plays with a variety of ensembles such as brass quintets, marching bands, jazz groups and period instrument ensembles, including the New Sousa Band with which he toured Florida. He has performed frequently at historic Fenway Park, including at the opening ceremonies for game one of the 2007 World Series, and most recently has been recording a CD/DVD with trumpeter Chris Botti and the Boston Pops.

In addition to music, Dennis is most passionate about photography, reading and biking.

Samuel Barber: A Centennial Tribute

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 17:00:00 +0000

by Marilou Carlin

American music has always enjoyed a place of pride in the Detroit Symphony Orchestra's classical repertoire, and will again in the 2009-2010 season, the first to be fully programmed by Music Director Leonard Slatkin. But among the many American composers that the DSO has championed over the years, none is more important than Samuel Barber.

Barber figured prominently in the DSO's award-winning "American Series" recordings in the 1990s, appearing on four different releases. Importantly, his works have also been performed regularly on the DSO's classical series.

Meanwhile, Leonard Slatkin, one of the country's most ardent promoters of American composers, has also had a long affinity for Barber. He recorded a dozen Barber compositions with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and also conducted the BBC Symphony Orchestra in a recording of Vanessa, the composer's most successful opera.

So it is entirely fitting that the DSO should join with many other American orchestras this year to celebrate Samuel Barber's centennial with a season-long tribute. These performances offer audiences a unique opportunity to enjoy and explore the contributions of one of our country's greatest composers.

"Perhaps no other American composer was as misunderstood as Samuel Barber," said Leonard Slatkin. "In many ways a throwback to the 19th century, his musical language seemed at odds with the time in which he lived. However, during the past decade, we now regard him as a true individualist with a distinctive voice and prodigious musical gifts."

Born on Mar. 9, 1910 in West Chester, Pennsylvania, Samuel Barber was one of the first students to study at the Curtis Institute of Music, which he was enrolled in at the age of 14 and where he studied composition, voice and piano. He went on to win the Prix de Rome as well as two Pulitzer Prizes, and many of his works have since become part of the core classical repertoire. Hailed for the rich lyricism and melodic beauty of his music, his compositions are most often characterized as deeply emotive and exquisitely crafted.

Still, Barber's enduring legacy was not a foregone conclusion during his life. At a time when American composers were more often being lauded for breaking away from European tradition, Barber unabashedly built upon that tradition, particularly the Romantic aesthetic. His music was sometimes labeled "anachronistic" and critics unfavorably compared him to some of his more groundbreaking contemporaries such as Aaron Copland, Roger Sessions, Virgil Thomson and Elliott Carter.

Despite the critics, Barber developed a following and was championed by many of the 20th century's most celebrated conductors and musicians. Some of his greatest successes came early, such as the Overture to the School for Scandal (1931) and the Adagio for Strings (1936), both of which will be performed in the first DSO Barber program of this season (Oct. 1-3) under Slatkin's direction.

The Adagio for Strings is perhaps Barber’s most well known work. It is an orchestral arrangement of the slow movement of his String Quartet No. 1. The renowned conductor Arturo Toscanini, who was acquainted with and impressed by Barber's work, requested a short piece to play on tour with the NBC Symphony, the resultbeing the Adagio. It had its premiere in 1938 with Toscanini conducting the NBC Symphony in a nationally broadcast radio concert heard by millions, bringing greater fame to the composer and instant popularity for the work.

Although Barber insisted that it was "just music," the achingly beautiful piece, infused with a sense of tragedy, resonates on a deep emotional level with nearly all who hear it. Featured on numerous soundtracks, it has added eloquent gravitas to such films as Platoon, The Elephant Man, El Norte and Lorenzo's Oil. It has also come to be performed regularly on solemn occasions, including the funerals of Franklin D. Roosevelt and Prince Rainier of Monaco. In fact, Leonard Slatkin conducted the BBC Orchestra in the Adagio just four days after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 in a live televised performance filmed in tribute to the victims and heroes of those tragedies.

Barber's Adagio had its premiere when he was just 26, and scholars have noted that the composer "found himself" as an artist at a very early age. But while this and other early pieces established his career, works that he wrote in middle age earned him the highest honors, namely the Pulitzer Prize. His first Pulitzer was awarded for the 1957 opera Vanessa, the libretto of which was written by Gian Carlo Menotti, Barber's lifelong personal and professional partner. His second Pulitzer came in 1962 for his Piano Concerto. Barber died all too young in 1981, at the age of 71.

According to those who knew him well, Samuel Barber was urbane, sophisticated, witty, melancholy and brilliant. He was also an uncompromising and meticulous artist who firmly and unequivocally established the validity of the American composer. According to the musical scholar Paul Wittke, "The taste and refinement of the America that gave us a Samuel Barber is rapidly disappearing – but it is there in his music if we but listen."

DSO Recordings Available Now in the DSO Shop

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 05:00:00 +0000

August 25th marks the release of two new recordings by the DSO.

First, E1 Music will release the new compact disc The Melody of Rhythm: Triple Concerto and Music for Trio. Recorded live in Orchestra Hall in Jan. 2009, this disc features the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) and Music Director Leonard Slatkin, along with internationally-renowned virtuosi and composers Bela Fleck, banjo; Edgar Meyer, double bass; and Zakir Hussain, tabla.

The centerpiece and catalyst for the album, featuring the DSO and Slatkin, is The Melody of Rhythm: Concerto, a beautiful and haunting three-movement composition for banjo, double bass and tabla, which melds Indian classical music with rhythmic American roots-derived melodies. A composition created for three such disparate instruments as banjo, double bass and tabla (a pair of drums of North India) occupies a unique position in the classical repertoire. Also featured on this disc are Bahar, Out Of The Blue, Bubbles, Cadence, In Conclusion and Then Again.

Then, the DSO makes its recording debut on the Naxos label with Michael Daugherty's Fire & Blood. Led by Music Director Emeritus Neeme Jarvi and highlighting guest violinist Ida Kavafian as well as percussionist Brian Jones, this recording celebrates three works commissioned and premiered by the DSO during Daugherty's four years as Composer-in-Residence, including Fire & Blood (2003) for violin and orchestra, MotorCity Triptch (2002) and Raise the Roof (2003) for timpani and orchestra.

Fire & Blood was inspired by the Mexican modernist artist Diego Rivera's Detroit Industry murals, commissioned in 1932 by Edsel Ford. Rivera, who came to Detroit with his wife Frida Kahlo, spent two years creating murals that eventually spanned four large walls of the inner courtyard at the Detroit Institute of the Arts.

To place an order for these recordings for pick up at the DSO shop, please contact Paul Yee at (313)576-5115 or pyee@dso.org.

Hello, from Leonard

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 02:21:00 +0000

This week we begin an exciting new journey in Detroit as I join the DSO as its music director. The program that we've prepared this week features the iconic Carmina Burana by Carl Orff as well as the world premiere of "A Different Soldier's Tale" by James Lee III.

I'd like to invite you to join me for an Open Forum one hour before each concert for an informal chat where we can discuss the music to be played and answer any of your questions. This is a great opportunity for me to learn about your interests and in addition I will share my hopes and vision for this great orchestra.

You can submit your questions by selecting the comment button at the bottom of this post. I'll respond to your question here on this blog and your question may be discussed from the stage during one of my open forums at any of this week’s concerts.

I look forward to hearing from you on this blog and seeing you at our concerts!

Yours,

Leonard Slatkin

Click here For Tickets to the Leonard Slatkin Performances
For an upcoming schedule of Detroit Symphony Orchestra events and information visit detroitsymphony.com

Attacking the Invisible Wall

chris@dptv.org (Chris Felcyn) — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 19:58:00 +0000

The final 8 Days in June standing O (one among many) for maestro Peter Oundjian and the ladies and gentlemen of the Detroit Symphony

It was Peter Oundjian who brought it up. He was on the stage of Orchestra Hall just prior to the final concert of the DSO's 8 Days in June extravaganza. He and Tom Allen were talking over the sophomore year of 8 Days, when Peter pointed out how crucial it was to break down the invisible wall between the performers and the audience.

Then Tom actually leapt through that wall, taking a microphone into the pre-concert crowd like a latter day Phil Donahue, and we were off. Here was the real payoff of 8 Days.

More than the music, though the performances I heard were uniformly thrilling.

More than the programming, though there was plenty of adventure in that department (Glass, Messiaen and Cage? In the same week?).

More even than the deliciously casual, free-flowing atmosphere filled with newcomers of all ages, which has been discussed elsewhere on this blog.

More than all of that, it was this deliberate thrust to consistently and directly engage the audience that puts this festival into a very special category indeed.

Case Study No 1: Schnittke Happens

On Saturday night's program, following Mendelssohn's brilliant Overture to a Midsummer Night's Dream, up comes a quirky modern piece called (Not) a Midsummer Night's Dream by Alfred Schnittke. In a pre-8 Days world, hearing this kind of thing cold turkey would empty large sections of Orchestra Hall. Not this time.

Out come Tom and Peter, not with a lecture on atonality and the influences of the Second Viennese School, but with the simple statement that we should expect "a lot of wrong notes." It makes all the difference. The thing is a spoof. Now that we're all in on the joke, instead of uncomfortable fidgeting once the music starts to go off the rails, the audience actually laughs out loud. We get it. And a load of bricks are dislodged from that invisible wall.

Case Study No. 2: Cage Match

Last April Fool's Day, Tom Allen on his CBC morning show held a Cage Match of competing performances of 4'33" by John Cage, a notorious piece wherein the musician is totally silent. Well, on Day 6 Tom got the chance to participate in a real contest when the festival presented Cage's Lecture on the Weather, a typically unconventional composition featuring overlapping excerpts of texts by Henry David Thoreau. True to form, the element of chance underlies the composition by design, so that no two performances are alike.

At intermission there is a spirited discussion over what was heard including a couple of patrons who "just didn't like it at all." And then they performed it again. The whole piece. And sure enough it came out differently. This time our disappointed patrons actually liked the piece. And another load of bricks fell out of the wall.

Now the point here is not that anyone was "converted" to modern music. The real gem of this incident, and the festival's gold standard of success, is that here was an audience that felt comfortable enough (and safe enough) to actually say out loud that they didn't like something. In front of the people who played it.

That's why when I asked Tom for some of his post festival impressions, he told me without hesitation that the real star of 8 Days In June was the community of listeners that emerged around the concerts.

"Every night there were more interesting and insightful comments, every concert brought the ideas, the musicians and the people listening a little closer together. The lines that have traditionally kept great music at a distance from the people who love it are growing fainter and fainter, and the wonderful 8 Days audience is telling us to keep going further in that direction. That means bright things ahead!"

And the wall came a tumblin' down.

Amen.

Related Stories:

8 Days in June fest a chaotic success, by Mark Stryker; Detroit Free Press; June 23, 2008

Orchestra's '8 Days' festival a mix of fun, insight, by Lawrence B. Johnson; Detroit News; June 23, 2008

(From The Well-Tempered Wireless)

Hearing With New Ears?

noreply@blogger.com (Miss Music Nerd) — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 00:37:00 +0000

Sometimes before I go to an orchestra concert, I think to myself, "I should listen to a recording of the pieces on the program before I go, so that I can better appreciate the music when I'm hearing it live." But actually I tend to reject the idea, though, because I enjoy the thrill of being surprised, hearing something for the first time (or for the first time in a long time.)

So I didn't listen to the Mozart or the Holst before Friday night, and I don't regret that decision at all. The Holst was absolutely thrilling live, as familiar as several passages are. I was glad to listen to Mozart's music through the prism of Tom Allen's comments. He spoke of the desperate straits Mozart found himself in while writing this transcendent music. Mozart's financial troubles and health problems are well-known, but contemplating the contrast between his life and his work added a poignant dimension to the listening experience.

Something kept nagging at me, though.

I love hearing orchestral music live, whether it's music I know well or a piece I'm hearing for the first time. I love watching the musicians on-stage, and I also play a little game with myself trying to sense how the audience around me is responding to the music (as I pray that no one will decide to unwrap a cough drop during a quiet passage, ahem!).

But I wonder, when a piece is as seminal as Mozart 41, is it really possible to hear it differently? Can we come to it with new ears? And if so, how do we do it?

I've been thinking lately how odd it is that we go to the symphony to hear music we've already heard before. Why bother? Why get all dressed up, pay for tickets and parking, and fight traffic just to hear music you already know? Do we do the same for other art forms? We go to the movie theater to see the latest release, not something we own on DVD and have watched any number of times, right?

Well, not exactly, evidently. Some classic movies get audiences out of the house, whether they're available on video or not. Then there are rock concerts. The audience goes wild when the band plays their biggest hits, but this can be frustrating for the band members, who might be more excited about playing cuts from their latest album. But audiences can get mighty testy if their expectations aren't met. I've read that the singer Ani DiFranco got so tired of her audiences drowning her out singing along with her songs that she changed them around and made it impossible for the audience to sing along. The people were not pleased!

Being a composer myself, I confess that I get impatient sometimes with what sometimes seems like a form of musical ancestor worship. How's a living composer supposed to compete? I think what it comes down to is, there are (at least) two kinds of listening experiences that a classical concert provides, and they're pretty distinct from each other.

The Trust Walk

The less common experience is the thrill of hearing something for the first time. I know that many people get frustrated with unfamiliar works; It can be so hard to know what to expect. When you're hearing a brand new piece by a composer you may never have heard of, it can really feel like a roll of the dice (or worse, a game of musical Russian roulette!). Will the music be spiky and dissonant or smooth and consonant? Will it use the repetitive techniques of minimalism, or will it be formally idiosyncratic? You can't know for sure until the music starts, even if you have program notes or the composer's comments to prepare you.

The biggest favor you can do for the composer is to be willing to be taken on a journey along a road you've never traveled before. It might feel a bit like a "trust walk," where you're blindfolded and have to have faith that the person guiding you won't walk you into a wall. Fortunately, you can't hurt yourself too badly listening to music, even if you don't end up liking a particular piece.

The Familiar Path

Even though I'm a composer, and therefore a new music enthusiast, I still understand the appeal of hearing a piece you love and know well. It's a powerful experience. I think it's worth exploring why it's so powerful, though -- it has to be more than just the comfort factor. If you come to a concert simply to be made comfortable, expecting the music to function like an aural security blanket -- well, I don't mean to scold, but you need to do a little homework. You need to eat your veggies before you can have your dessert. ;) I've written before about my professor John Swackhamer, who responded to students' complaints about modern music that they "couldn't understand" with the damning rhetorical question, "Do you think you understand Beethoven?" No matter how familiar and beloved a piece of music is, it should never be treated like audio wall paper -- unless that's what the composer intended, of course!

______________________________________________
Read more from Miss Music Nerd at her very own blog.

Tuesday's Patterns and Structure

noreply@blogger.com (Dominic) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 14:51:00 +0000

I have seen many great performances at the DSO over the last 7 months or so, but last nights Day 4: Patterns and Structure with the FLUX Quartet and New Music Detroit was easily one of my favorites, if not my favorite.

The night started off with a very intense performance of John Adams' Shaker Loops. I have never seen the performance performed before, so I guess I don't have anything to compare the performance to, but I loved it. I thought the FLUX Quartet did an amazing job and definitely blew me away.

Their second piece was Steve Reich's Different Trains. Again, FLUX did an excellent job. I was really interested in this piece because of the context in which it was made. This was a good balance with Shaker Loops in the beginning too.

The program ended with New Music Detroit performing Les Moutons de Panurge (which means The Sheep of Panurge) by Frederic Rzewski. Because all of us here at the DSO have been so busy these last few weeks getting ready for 8 Days, I almost skipped out of the last performance because I still had many things to do before I had to go to sleep last night. But I am glad I didn't. New Music Detroit killed it on this one. I especially liked the drums on it and loved that there was a jazz feel to it as well.

All in all, it was one of the best programs I've seen here. I especially liked the John Adams piece. I think I'll look for that on vinyl.

See you tonight at Being and Becoming.

All City's Playlist

noreply@blogger.com (Dominic) — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 15:06:00 +0000

So a few patrons and fellow employees wanted me to post my playlist from Friday night's 8 Days in June opening night party. It was actually pretty cool. Among other things, I had old men coming up to me talking about old vinyl records (I could talk about that for hours), another man was shocked he was hearing Moondog in a public setting and 2 older ladies actually asked me to write down a couple of tracks I played. One of them exclaimed, "I guess this is one way music connects our generations." I couldn't agree more. Here she is...

Cristo Redentor by Donald Byrd
All Things To All Men featuring Roots Manuva by Cinematic Orchestra
Stamping Ground by Moondog with Orchestra
Quiet Dawn (Examples Of Twelves Remix) by Nostalgia 77
Fairy Take From A Dusty Crate by Skalpel
Hurry On Now featuring TM Juke by Alice Russell
High And Dry featuring Bilal by Pete Kuzma
Broadway by Sebastien Tellier
Oscar Brown, Jr (remix) by Matthew Herbert
Sympathy for the Devil by Rolling Stones
Its Simple by Visioneers
L.O.V.E and You & I by Jazzanova
I Am The Black Gold Of The Sun (4 Hero Remix) by Nuyorican Soul
Everything Featuring Bajka by Radio City
Sirius B by The Heliocentrics
Stars and Rockets featuring Auora Dawn (peter_thomas_sound_orchestra_ remix) by Spiritual South
Listen To The Drums [Original Edit] by Outlines
Waltz For Goddess by Soil & Pimp Sessions

See You At 8 Days.

Dominic Arellano
DSO Employee
(All City - the Few Records)

1 Day in June

chris@dptv.org (Chris Felcyn) — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 15:23:00 +0000

Friday, June 13, 2008. Opening night of the Detroit Symphony's 8 Days in June festival. It was a blast last year. Would the magic be back tonight?

Initial indications were promising. For people-watching, it was a target rich environment. From club wear to polo shirts over jeans, from Saville Row suits to Hawaiian shirts and Birkenstocks and just about everything in between, it all contributed to the pre-concert buzz in the atrium of the Max Fisher Music Center. At the box office a line of ticket seekers grew until it snaked onto Woodward Avenue. So far, so good.

As you enter Orchestra Hall, you're welcomed by beaming t-shirt clad ushers who, like the musicians warming up on stage, have ditched the formal wear. Casual Friday returns to the Max. Another good sign.

Now the music begins and it's time for the promise to be kept. Could lightning strike again?

Long before the end of Mozart's Jupiter symphony, I had my answer. As that miraculous fugal finale unwound in front of me, the adrenalin coming off the stage was seeping into the audience, culminating in a roar of appreciation as we headed to intermission. In the second half, Holst's The Planets was dazzling, a tour de force for a great orchestra in a great hall.

Following another thunderous ovation, a glowing crowd poured into the atrium to keep the party going to the infectious world music rhythms filling the Max Fisher Music Center.

The reviews in The Detroit News and Free Press, while giving generally high marks for the DSO's performance, took issue with how successfully the "Power of Change" theme of the festival was working. Perhaps it is a bit of a stretch, but for me that's not important.

What I saw in a packed Orchestra Hall Friday night, taking up most of the row in front of me, was a group of 20-somethings decked out for a fun night coming to hear Mozart.

I heard one mature couple behind me making conversation with another that "hadn't come down here in years." Maybe now there won't be as much time between visits.

I saw a pre-teen red-headed boy who could have stepped out of a Norman Rockwell painting pick two seats right in the front row, where he and his younger brother stared in rapt attention at every move maestro Oundjian made, for the entire concert.

To all those concerned about the future of classical music in this country, these are powerful signs that it is alive and well in Detroit.

There are 7 Days in June left. Come as you are. Sit where you like. But whatever you do, don't miss it.

(From The Well-Tempered Wireless)

Detroit's Lucky Day!

noreply@blogger.com (Miss Music Nerd) — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 17:56:00 +0000

If you're superstitious, you probably already have your lucky rabbit's foot or some such charm or talisman at the ready, tomorrow being Friday the 13th and all. I would say that tomorrow is a very lucky day for Detroit, though. At a time of year when they could be taking a well-deserved post-season break, the DSO is kicking it into high gear for 8 Days longer. It's like a fabulous, flambéed-Cherries-Jubilee bonus at the end of an already decadent and delectable multi-course meal!

I'm particularly looking forward to hearing Olivier Messiaen's Turangalîla-Symphonie on June 18. A killer piano part, massive percussion section, and ondes Martenot, all in service of the theme of forbidden love? Who could ask for anything more? ;)

Also, you don't want to miss anything that New Music Detroit is involved in, and you get two chances to hear them during the festival: after the Mozart/Holst festival opener on Friday night, walk across the street to the MOCAD and stay up late with John Zorn, then come back on June 17th for Patterns and Structure.

Don't just take my word for it, though -- attend the whole festival and decide for yourself what the highlights are!

Why is this festival so important? Well, a few weeks ago, Dominic posed the following question to readers here:

"How do you think music helps change Detroit for the better?"

Here's my answer: while thrilling performances of outstanding music are the obvious draw, this year's festival has special significance for me personally. I moved from Southern California to Detroit exactly one year ago with my new husband, who was beginning his medical residency at the Detroit Medical Center. I confess that my expectations for the classical music scene here were not very high. Fortunately, while still camping out on the floor of our apartment waiting for our furniture to arrive, I heard about 8 Days in June on WDET radio, and a whole new world opened up for me. The Fisher Music Center is now one of my favorite places.

Then there's the bigger picture. Both longtime residents and newcomers to Detroit are painfully aware of the city's less-than-sparkling public image, both at home and nationwide. Try telling your friends and family in California that you're moving to Detroit, on purpose -- the mixed expressions of revulsion and pity on their faces are priceless. "But Detroit's still on fire from the riots in the sixties!" someone actually said to me. Then try telling them that Detroit is being revitalized and there are actually some cool things going on, and they just assume you drank too much champagne on your wedding day and never quite recovered.

In short, the old dictum, "There's no such thing as bad publicity" doesn't apply in this case! :P

So, Detroit needs as many marks in its "good" column as it can get. I think having things we can be truly proud of will help Detroiters better face the city's challenges. The DSO is one of the jewels in Detroit's crown.

One more little story: I've spent some time on Facebook lately, reconnecting with friends from high school and college. Upon learning that I'm in Detroit now, one friend had this to say:

"The tune for "Detroit Rock City" is inextricably linked to any mention of your town. I don't think of the place as even having a symphony. :-)"

I'll tell him June would be a great month to visit! :D
______________________________________________
Read more from Miss Music Nerd at her very own blog.

Getting Jiggy with the DSO

chris@dptv.org (Chris Felcyn) — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 16:03:00 +0000

Seems like the modern symphony orchestra has always been grappling with the challenge of attracting younger concertgoers without alienating their loyal but aging core audience. Sometimes these attempts show promise, sometimes not so much. But in today's Detroit Free Press, music critic Mark Stryker called the Detroit Symphony Orchestra's 8 Days in June festival

" . . . that rare example of an orchestra trying to be hip and mostly pulling it off with natural flair and true adventure."

And pull it off they sure did. Last year's inaugural festival was extraordinary. Adventurous programming was a big part of it, but for me at least as important was a host of welcome changes that seemed to blow untold decades of cobwebs out the roof of Orchestra Hall.

The orchestra had ditched the penguin suits for tasteful (and I'm sure more comfortable) black shirts and slacks. The attendees in the audience were a stimulating mix of hip-hop, Gen X, and urban funk mingling with the regular clientele. Seating was more open, allowing groups to gather spontaneously as they met.

As festival host Tom Allen took the stage to contextualize the music, the atmosphere was giddy with excitement and anticipation.

What followed blew the lid off the place.

Led by maestro Peter Oundjian, the concerts were electrifying. The crowds were fully engaged and the whole experience was so totally vibrant it made me fervently hope it could spill over into the rest of the season. This is what concertgoing was meant to be. Not a reverent homage to a dusty, long-gone past, but a living exaltation of the human creative spirit.

And it's coming back, starting Friday. Fantastic!

(From The Well-Tempered Wireless)

Why I Can't Wait Until Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Mari) — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 14:42:00 +0000

Here is what I am most anticipating in the next 8 Days: Day 4: Patterns and Structure, Day 5: Being and Becoming and Day 6: Civil Disobedience. And which of the three am I most excited about, you ask? Day 5, because Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini is AMAZING. Something about that piece of music makes me absolutely crazy—in the best sort of way. The first time I heard it performed was in Orchestra Hall during the 2006-2007 season opening weekend. It was Peter Oundjian conducting Lang Lang and the DSO, and the performance was incredible. It was completely transporting, and I was very close to dancing around in the box seat area of Orchestra Hall. Which, since I am employed here, might not be entirely appropriate. (You, however, should definitely dance around in the boxes.)

I’ve been obsessed with this piece ever since that weekend. I have it on my Ipod (Valery Gergiev conducting Lang Lang and the Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre) and I listen to it in the car quite a bit. I love cruising down I-75 and blasting this Rachmaninoff piece. I’m sure people who pass me on the road and see me dancing around in the car would guess that I am listening to some Minor Threat, or at the very least, a good Neil Diamond jam. But really I am listening to Rachmaninoff! Anyways, don’t miss hearing this piece on Wednesday. You’re crazy if you do. Stuart Goodyear is supposed to great—and Peter and the DSO always are. And you can look for me—I’ll be the DSO employee behaving inappropriately in the boxes.

Mari

8 Days in June Music Festival: How it is helping change the artistic landscape in Detroit.

noreply@blogger.com (Detroit Symphony Orchestra) — Tue, 20 May 2008 16:03:00 +0000

8 Days provides a different side of the DSO and something different altogether for all art performances in Detroit. The festival challenges the audience and community to set aside their pre-conceptions about music and the concert experience, all the while wearing a t-shirt and jeans to the symphony! Presenting music in a socially relevant context, 8 Days in June encourages audiences to engage and participate in the contemporary ideas and emotions they explore.

This year’s festival will approach the subject of “change” from different themes each day, such as Civil Disobedience and Patterns and Structure (see website for all the details – www.8DaysInJune.com.) The programming encompasses jazz, experimental electronica, minimalism, classical and chamber and music as well as drama, spoken word, film, lectures and visual art in venues throughout the Max M. Fisher Music Center. Hosted by Festivla Artistic Director Peter Oundjian and CBC radio personality Tom Allen, the repertoire includes music by Philip Glass, Messiaen, John Cage, Steve Reich, Stravinsky, Holst, Beethoven and others.

So we end this blog asking some questions to others…How do you think music helps change Detroit for the better? How do you help/support change in Detroit, especially in a musical context? How else would you like to see the DSO help change in Detroit in the future, especially as a music institution? We’re listening…

Dominic

s u m m e r t i m e

noreply@blogger.com (Erin Fung) — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 19:28:00 +0000

So, school's out. I allow myself one final, vagrant emoticon before I graduate this Saturday and get shipped off to grad school where I'll have to uphold a certain sense of propriety : D. The past month has been a maelstrom of paper writing, test grading, preparing for my recital, sneaking out for the occasional film at the DIA, (disparagingly) just one DSO concert, and (unfortunately) several visits to the hospital. Things have finally cleared up though, and I'm looking forward to the next month of concerts (Mahler 9 AND Beethoven 9?!).

This year's 8 Days in June series looks incredible, with composers featured such as John Zorn, Marc Mellits, Philip Glass (has anyone seen the documentary yet? http://youtube.com/watch?v=AOM_YtP5f0U ), the minimalist troika of Adams, Rzewski, and Reich, and Messiaen's Turangalila (the Ondes-Martenot!), among many other greats. I hope everyone goes and leaves comments here to tell me how amazing it was, 'cause I'll be in Colorado for two months... ! To make up for missing this, I think I'm finally going to have to make the trip west for the Bang on a Can marathon this summer. I'm so happy to see a blossoming contemporary music scene here in Detroit, and hope a lot of people come out to support this festival.

noreply@blogger.com (Erin Fung) — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 02:38:00 +0000

Friday, I was finally released from the shackles of Old Main, gasping my first breaths of Spring Break! After collapsing in bed, exhausted from having organized the school's new music ensemble's performance that morning, I deserted the warmth of my 500 thread count sheets for Orchestra Hall. Missing Emmanuelle Boisvert's Beethoven for a few broken hours of non-REM sleep was unthinkable. Also, I think I've seen Jerzy Semkow and his stout baton every time he's come to Detroit in the past few years.

For perhaps the first time in my life, I think I may have heard and felt music from its historiographic perspective. The past few weeks, I've been reading treatises of Rameau and Riemann and thinking a lot about aural logic from a listener's perspective, and experiencing the live performance of works by Mozart, Schumann, and Beethoven was exactly what I needed. (Maybe it was one of those 'Backwards Days', since I began with Andriessen, spent the mid-afternoon in the throes of Schoenberg's Gurre-Lieder, and found myself ending with Beethoven)

Jerzy Semkow's interpretations of the Mozart and Schumann were so tasteful and effective. The entire concert demonstrated a vintage of musical refinement that I felt I hadn't heard in quite some time. Listening to Emmanuelle Boisvert was divine; her style, that empyrean tone, those sublime cadenzas! My friends and I have been joking about synaesthesia lately, and this is ridiculous to assert let alone confess, but it's been about a year since I've discovered Charles Baudelaire... I can't really visualize his concept of 'azure', but somewhere in the middle of her first cadenza, I think I felt it.

To be a little indulgent, here's a touch of Baudelaire, if only to complement the great Emmanuelle Boisvert.

Beauty
I am as lovely as a dream in stone,
And this my heart where each finds death in turn,
Inspires the poet with a love as lone
As clay eternal and as taciturn.

Swan-white of heart, a sphinx no mortal knows,
My throne is in the heaven's azure deep;
I hate all movements that disturb my pose,
I smile not ever, neither do I weep.

Before my monumental attitudes,
That breathe a soul into the plastic arts,
My poets pray in austere studious moods,

For I, to fold enchantment round their hearts,
Have pools of light where beauty flames and dies,
The placid mirrors of my luminous eyes.