Silent Monks Sing Hallelujah

After the epic fail of the Messiah organist on crack, I wanted to share another unique and memorable interpretation of Handel's "Hallelujah Chorus." Here's a performances from a group of silent monks.

Bach Passacaglia in C minor for...accordion??

On his new blog Unquiet Thoughts, Alex Ross introduces us to Aleksandr Hrustevich, a young Ukranian who plays Bach's tremendous Passacaglia in C minor, originally written for the organ, on an accordion! For comparison's sake, here's organist Karl Richter performing the original. Incredible how little is lost in translation (er, transcription).

Browsing through the "Related Video" bar, you'll also find Hrustevich's renditions of Summer from the Four Seasons, the finale of Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto, and others.

"Messiah" on Crack

After a long absence, I've returned with good tidings for the holiday season and a favorite seasonal tradition: the "Messiah" on Crack. We've all had one of those days. But no all of us have those days recorded for posterity. Enjoy!!

(Clip from The Rambler.)

Memorial Day

A letter of condolence from Abraham Lincoln to Fanny McCullough, whose father was killed in December 1862.

Dear Fanny

It is with deep grief that I learn of the death of your kind and brave Father; and, especially, that it is affecting your young heart beyond what is common in such cases. In this sad world of ours, sorrow comes to all; and, to the young, it comes with bitterest agony, because it takes them unawares. The older have learned to ever expect it. I am anxious to afford some alleviation of your present distress. Perfect relief is not possible, except with time. You can not now realize that you will ever feel better. Is not this so? And yet it is a mistake. You are sure to be happy again. To know this, which is certainly true, will make you some less miserable now. I have had experience enough to know what I say; and you need only to believe it, to feel better at once. The memory of your dear Father, instead of an agony, will yet be a sad sweet feeling in your heart, of a purer and holier sort than you have known before.

Please present my kind regards to your afflicted mother.

Your sincere friend

A. Lincoln

On this day, please remember all those who have given so much in defense of this country.

YouTube Symphony Orchestra Post-Concert Recap

The YouTube Symphony Orchestra made it's much-publicized debut on Wednesday night at Carnegie Hall, and two of the country's foremost music critic were there to cover the event.

For the New York Times, Anthony Tommasini found the concert inspiring, but took exception with the "gimmicky" program put together by conductor Michael Tilson Thomas.

For the Washington Post, Anne Midgette was frustrated by the inconsistent orchestral playing:

Music, it turns out, isn't a language universal enough that people can converse in it easily right off the bat. The orchestra sounded ragged, uneven, of wildly different quality. It sounded, in fact, like a lot of different people talking at one another in many different languages--which is, of course, what it was.

Naturally, the entire concert is now viewable on YouTube. 

Program Announced for YouTube Symphony Orchestra

The YouTube Symphony Orchestra has finalized the program for its April 15 concert at Carnegie Hall, The New York Times's James Oestreich reports. Selections include movements from Brahms's Fourth Symphony, Tchaikovsky's Fourth Symphony, and Debussy's Nocturnes, as well as music by Gabrielli, Mason Bates, and Tan Dun. Pianist Yuja Wang, violinist Gil Shaham, and soprano Measha Brueggergosman are among the featured soloists. 

Here's Michael Tilson Thomas, the orchestra's conductor and artistic advisor, discussing the upcoming performance.

Washington Post's Anne Midgette Enters the Blogosphere

Anne Midgette, The Washington Post's classical music critic, has just launched a new blog: The Classical Beat. Her initial post promises to address issues that "would not be possible in the confines of a daily paper" and encourage discussion--civil and intelligent, hopefully--among her readership. 

(Photo by Matthew Worden)

Midgette vs. Lebrecht: Two Critics Debate Wagner's "Ring" Cycle on WNYC

Anne Midgette, chief classical music critic at the Washington Post, and Norman Lebrecht, the music critic at London's Evening Standard, have recorded a joint radio interview on Wagner's Ring cycle for WNYC. The two critics debate whether Wagner's tetralogy is 16 hours of bombast and bore, or 16 hours of some of history's most glorious, transcendent music. Lebrecht also fires a parting shot on his blog: "The man's odious ideology is part and parcel of the work. Eliminate it, and the Ring becomes a teddy bears' tea party." I bet you can't guess which side of the argument he's on. 

The debate coincides with the Met's revival of Otto Schenk's seminal Ring production--the last time it will be staged at the Met. Three complete cycles will be performed over the next six weeks, starting on Saturday, March 28 with Das Rheingold. Levine will conduct. Domingo, Morris, among others, will sing. Good luck finding tickets, at least if you're on a recession-induced budget. Family Circle seats (obstructed or nonexistent view) start at $300. Center Parterre more your style? $2,600. Better start saving.

Here is a reminder--the stunning, malevolent "Oath Trio" that closes Act II of Götterdämmerung, courtesy of Levine and the Met--why Wagner is totally awesome, no matter how "odious" his ideology.

YouTube Symphony Winners Announced

The winning auditions videos for the YouTube Symphony have been posted on the orchestra's YouTube page. According to a BBC story, more than 3,000 entries from 200 countries were submitted, with 30 different nationalities represented in the ensemble. The orchestra performs on April 15 under the baton of Michael Tilson Thomas at Carnegie Hall.

The Self-Promotion Continues: Feature Article in Symphony magazine

Here's a link to "Class Acts," a feature article I wrote for the March/April issue of Symphony magazine. It includes short profiles of a handful of innovative volunteer-run arts education programs across the country.

More Shameless Self-Promotion: Feature Article in Symphony managzine

Here's a link to "Starting Line," a feature article I wrote that appears in the current issue of Symphony magazine. It's about artist managers who specialize in identifying and nurturing young musicians, and the process emerging artists go through to transform a promising talent into a successful, sustainable career.

New York Times: Met in Serious Financial Trouble

Dan Wakin has a startling article in the New York Times that lays out a pretty bleak financial picture for the Metropolitan Opera. The recession's impact on other cultural institutions, particularly New York City Opera, has been well-documented, but this is the biggest sign of trouble from the mightiest of arts organizations. 

The company's general manager, Peter Gelb, said that through administrative cuts, concessions from unions, and the elimination of some of next season's more costly productions, he hopes to avoid a "disaster scenario." An anonymous source put their hypothetical deficit at $40 million, with an endowment that has hemorrhaged one-third of its $300 million.

I don't think the Met is worried about going under--the precipice NYCO teetered on much of the summer and fall--but it does prove that no one is immune from our country's dire financial situation.