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Victor L. Schermer is a contributing editor to the the ”All About Jazz” website, a practicing psychologist in Philadelphia, and a free-lance writer on music, psychology, and other subjects. He lives in Center City.
More articles by Victor L. Schermer, newest first
| Orchestra plays Bach’s ‘St. Matthew Passion’ (1st review) |
April 02 2013 |
In a magnificent performance of Bach’s transcendent St. Matthew Passion, Yannick Nézet-Séguin made the most of the drama and emotion contained in the story of Christ’s betrayal and crucifixion. That wasn’t necessarily Bach’s choice, but a work of genius lends itself to multiple interpretations.
Philadelphia Orchestra: J.S. Bach, The Passion According to St. Matthew. Malin Christensson, soprano; Karen Cargill, mezzo-soprano; Andrew Staples, tenor; Andrew Foster-Williams, Luca Pisaroni, bass-baritones; The Westminster Symphonic Choir; American Boychoir. Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor. March 28-30, 2013 at Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center, Broad and Spruce Sts. (215) 893-1999 or www.philorch.org.
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| Yannick’s homage to Stokowski (1st review) |
June 25 2012 |
In four memorable concerts this past weekend, the Philadelphia Orchestra’s new leader, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, paid homage to the showmanship and musicianship of its late conductor Leopold Stokowski. He also demonstrated that he still has a thing or two to learn from Stoky.
Philadelphia Orchestra: Stokowski Celebration. Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor. June 22 & 23 2012 at Academy of Music, Broad and Locust Sts. (215) 893-1999 or www.philorch.org.
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| Rattle, the Orchestra and death |
April 28 2012 |
In its latter stages, Austro-German Romanticism mostly concerned the beauty of death. Simon Rattle demonstrated that he’s learned something in Berlin about the subtle German approach to emotion.
Philadelphia Orchestra: Brahms, Symphony No. 3 in F Major, Op. 90; Webern, Six Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 6; Schumann: Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 97. Simon Rattle, conductor. April 26-29, 2012 at Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center, Broad and Spruce St. (215) 893-1999 or www.philorch.org.
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| Orchestra plays Bartok and Stravinsky |
April 17 2012 |
Two milestone works by Bartok and Stravinsky are rarely performed together because of the massively difficult effort involved. The Orchestra provided a rare chance to compare two great modern composers who changed the face of 20th Century music.
Philadelphia Orchestra: Mendelssohn, Hebrides Overture (“Fingal’s Cave”), Op. 26; Bartok, Piano Concerto No. 2; Stravinsky, Petrushka (1947 Version). Yefim Bronfman, piano; Gilbert Varga, conductor. April 13, 2012 at Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center, Broad and Spruce Sts. (215) 893-1999 or www.philorch.org.
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| ‘Van Gogh Up Close’ at the Art Museum (2nd review) |
January 31 2012 |
“Van Gogh Up Close” reveals a brilliant artist who used every means at his disposal to stretch the limits of art in ways that anticipated future developments. More so than his contemporaries, Van Gogh recognized that we see (and artists paint) with everything that constitutes our experience in the world.
“Van Gogh Up Close. ” Through May 6, 2012 at Philadelphia Museum of Art, Ben. Franklin Parkway and 26th St. (215) 763-8100 or www.philamuseum.org.
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| Blomstedt conducts Beethoven |
January 24 2012 |
Should Beethoven be performed in the grand Romantic style or in the tighter manner of Beethoven’s own times? Herbert Blomstedt managed to straddle both sides of that fence.
Philadelphia Orchestra: Beethoven, Piano Concerto No. 3; Symphony No. 3 (Eroica). Leif Ove Andsnes, piano; Herbert Blomstedt, conductor. January 19-21, 2012 at Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center, Broad and Spruce Sts. (215) 893-1999 or www.philorch.org.
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| Orchestra’s heavyweight Brahms Requiem |
November 08 2011 |
Brahms’s stirring German Requiem was performed with astonishing power by the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Westminster Choir and two outstanding soloists director-designate Yannick Nézét-Séguin. Yet it raised questions of just how this work should be interpreted and performed.
Philadelphia Orchestra: Brahms, Ein Deutsches Requiem. Matthias Goerne, baritone; Dorothea Röschmann, soprano; Westminster Choir (Joe Miller, director); Yannick Nézét-Séguin, conductor. November 3-5, 2011 at Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center, Broad and Spruce Sts. (215) 893-1999 or www.philorch.org.
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| Mysteries of conducting, with Sean Newhouse |
October 09 2011 |
What does an orchestra conductor really accomplish when he waves his baton? The Boston Symphony’s young assistant Sean Newhouse, rushed into the spotlight this year to replace the ailing maestro James Levine, reflects on aspects of his job that most audiences take for granted.
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| The Marlboro mystique: Pros and cons |
August 22 2011 |
After 50 years, the Marlboro festival remains a remarkable incubator where promising young musicians form disciplined ensembles. But it’s also a pressure-cooker that can squelch an individual musician’s personal expression.
Marlboro Music 2011: Public Concert X. Works by Haydn, Mendelssohn, Brahms. August 12, 2011 at Marlboro College, Marlboro, Vt. www.marlboromusic.org.
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| Boston Symphony at Tanglewood: A Romantic mixed bag |
August 22 2011 |
Romanticism in music has had its ups and downs. A recent weekend of Boston Symphony Orchestra concerts at Tanglewood suggests that much of its success depends on the nature of the performance.
Boston Symphony Orchestra: Works by Beethoven, Rachmaninoff, Johann Strauss, Jalbert, Mendelssohn, Smetana, Mozart, Tchaikovsky. Raphael Frühbeck de Burgos, Sean Newhouse, Lionel Bringuier conducting; Yuja Wang, piano; Emanuel Ax, piano; Sarah Chang, violin. August 5-7, 2011, at Tanglewood Music Center, Lenox, Mass. www.bso.org/bso.
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| Lenape Chamber Ensemble’s 25th anniversary concerts |
July 12 2011 |
For its 25th anniversary concerts, the Lenape Chamber Ensemble offers a quick lesson in modern sensibility: The line from Haydn to Dvorak to Shostakovich defines the ascent of individuality, self-consciousness and inner conflict in Western thought.
Lenape Chamber Ensemble 25th Anniversary concerts: Haydn, Piano Trio in E Flat; Shostakovich, String Quartet No. 7; Dvorak, Piano Quartet in D Major, Op. 23. Kathryn Eberle, Stephanie Jeong, violins; Arash Amini, cello; Marcantonio Barone, piano; Catherine Beeson, viola. July 9, 16 and 23, 2011 at Delaware Valley College, Route 202, Doylestown, Pa. (610) 294-9361 or www.lenapechamberensemble.org.
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| Jurowski conducts the Philadelphia Orchestra |
February 21 2011 |
This stellar Philadelphia Orchestra concert, conducted by Vladimir Jurowski and including a stunning rendition of the Beethoven Violin Concerto by Lisa Batiashvili, ennobled the Classical repertoire as few concerts do.
Philadelphia Orchestra: Wagner, Prelude to Parsifal; Beethoven, Violin Concerto in D Minor, Op. 61; Prokofiev: Symphony No. 6 in E-flat minor, Op. 11. Lisa Batiashvili, violin; Vladimir Jurowski, conductor. February 17-19, 2011 at Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center. (215) 893-1999 or www.philorch.org.
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| Yannick and the Orchestra: Mozart’s ‘Requiem’ (2nd review) |
January 11 2011 |
The Philadelphia Orchestra’s stellar performance of Mozart’s Requiem reminded this listener that great music isn’t merely the work of a few giants. Consider the forgotten Franz Xaver Süssmayr, who selflessly finished Mozart’s work while others around the master engaged in a post-mortem feeding-frenzy.
Philadelphia Orchestra: Debussy, Nocturnes; Mozart, Requiem. With Philadelphia Singers. Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor. January 6-9, 2011, at Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center, Broad and Spruce Sts. (215) 893-1900 or www.philorch.org.
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| Yannick and the Orchestra (3rd review) |
November 02 2010 |
Yannick Nézet-Séguin’s choice of Mahler for his introductory concert with the Philadelphia Orchestra was no accident: The two musicians share a great deal in common. In the process, Nézet-Séguin demonstrated why the sometimes-scorned Mahler deserves a place among the great symphonic composers.
Philadelphia Orchestra: Haydn, Symphony No. 100 ("Military"); Mahler, Symphony No. 5. Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor. October 29-30, 2010 at Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center, Broad and Spruce Sts. (215) 893-1955 or www.philorch.org.
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| Dolce Suono’s Barber celebration (2nd review) |
January 22 2010 |
With a little help from three of Samuel Barber’s protégés, Dolce Suono afforded a glimpse into the confluence of traditional and modern idioms that was Barber’s hallmark.
Dolce Suono: “Samuel Barber at 100: The Composer and his World.” Barber, Summer Music; Higdon, Autumn Music; Rorem, Trio for flute, cello, and piano; Ludwig, Haiku Catharsis; Barber, Capricorn Concerto. Mimi Stillman, flute; Geoffrey Deemer, oboe and English horn; Samuel Caviezel and Paul R. Demers, clarinets; Michelle Rosen, bassoon; Shelley Showers, horn; Hirono Oka, Mu Na, violins; Burchard Tang, viola; Yumi Kendall, cello; Robert Kesselman, double bass; Gabe Globus-Hoenich, percussion; Charles Abramovic, piano. January 17, 2010 at Field Concert Hall, Curtis Institute of Music. (215) 893-7902 or www.mimistillman.org/dolcesuono/index.html.
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| Handel’s ‘Messiah’ by Philadelphia Singers and Philadelphia Orchestra |
December 15 2009 |
Handel’s Messiah, often watered down to a benevolent Christmas carol, got the all-out passionate Baroque interpretation this magnificent oratorio deserves. Credit conductor Paul Goodwin, a stickler for historical intent.
Philadelphia Singers Chorale and Philadelphia Orchestra: Handel, The Messiah. Celena Shafer, soprano; Kelley O'Connor, mezzo-soprano; Anthony Dean Griffey, tenor; Andrew Foster-Williams, bass-baritone; Paul Goodwin, conductor. December 13, 2009 at Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center, Board and Spruce Sts. (215) 893-1999 or www.philorch.org.
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| Andre Watts Plays Schubert and Liszt |
November 03 2009 |
On an otherwise dreary Sunday afternoon, Andre Watts lit up the musical world with stellar performances of piano works by two stylistically different composers. Among other achievements, Watts brought out a depth in Liszt that few performers have accomplished.
Andre Watts: piano recital. Works by Schubert and Liszt. November 1, 2009 at Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center. (215) 893-1999 or www.kimmelcenter.org.
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| Lenape Chamber Ensemble |
July 28 2009 |
Is a “pure” rendering of the composer’s intent indeed ever possible? A mid-summer concert of Beethoven, Faure and Prokofiev by the Lenape Chamber Ensemble conjured thoughts about each composer’s circumstances at the moment of creation.
Lenape Chamber Ensemble: Beethoven, Piano Trio, Op.1, no.1; Faure, Sonata for Violin and Piano in A Major; Prokofiev: String Quartet No. 2. Ayano Ninomiya, Arnaud Sussmann, violins;
Arash Amini, cello; Marcantonio Barone, piano; Catherine Beeson, viola. July 11, 2009 at Delaware Valley College, Doylestown. (610) 294-9361 or www.lenapechamberensemble.org.
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| Dolce Suono’s ‘Rouge, blanc et bleu’ (2nd review) |
May 12 2009 |
The long and complex relationship between the U.S. and France is reflected in their music, but with distinct differences in style and approach. Dolce Suono contemplated the musical and historical connections in a concert of three French composers plus a new French-influenced work by Philadelphia composer Andrea Clearfield.
Dolce Suono: "Rouge, blanc, et bleu: American-French Connections." Mimi Stillman, flute and director; Coline-Marie Orliac, harp; Paul Arnold, violin; Burchard Tang, viola; Yumi Kendall, cello. May 8, 2009 at First Unitarian Church, 2125 Chestnut St. (267) 252-1803 or www.mimistillman.org/dolcesuono.
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