| Columns Retired Columns & Blogs |
| Loudspeakers Amplification Digital Sources | |
Analog Sources Accessories Featured | |
Music Columns Retired Columns | |
Show Reports | |
Features Latest News Community | |
Resources Subscriptions |
© 2024 StereophileAVTech Media Americas Inc., USA
All rights reserved
Hi
Im really pissed off.
I missed last Fridays of Russian performances because ive been working 7 x 14 hour days, now its probable that ill miss this Thursday's Chicago brass section performance.
Work is a bitch !!!
Lifes not fair !!!
Alan
Hi
Well as previously mentioned ive missed 3 concerts in a row due to work committments, this unfortunately also included Verdi's requiem for which my anticipation had risen greatly.
An upside however was that I was in London on business last week and was able to catch the London Philarmonia play Tchaikovsky piano #1 and Prokofiev symphony 5, this was at the London Festival Hall. The Pianist was i believe Boris Glitburg.
This was my first chance to see another orchestra outside of Chicago with enough experience to compare. I really love the Tchaikovsky peice and was looking forward to it, it turned out to be a disappointment. Thsi is going to sound strange but the sound of the hall seemed very dry and the music univolving, sure it was very detailed with great resolution but it just didnt get me excited the way a perfornance in the Chicago hall does.
My question is was this hall related, orchestra related or was i just in the wrong mood ? I believe i went in very open minded so i dont think that was the issue.
Interested on thoughts or questions
Alan
I understand that the CSO Resound label will release this Muti-conducted live performance on SACD.
Thanks
Ill look forward to that.
Not the same as a box seat though !!!
I was 1 day from going to the concert, had to fly out that day
Alan
As you've found, the hall is GIANT. The Kennedy Center in Washington absolultely sucks. Lincoln Center, before revision, was a dead as a doornail. Dallas' Myerson Hall is really great as is Chicago's Symphony Hall.
What'll be interesting for you is to hear the CSO in different halls. Since you travel a lot maybe you'll be able to catch them in other halls.
Dave
Hi
Im feeling a bit concert deprived !! ive missed several concerts due to work. I do have a lot coming up around April though.
My question is that Hilary Hahn is playing tommorrow and im debating attending, my last attempt at chamber music didnt work out to well, i just couldnt get excited. Do you think this would be the same ?
http://www.cso.org/main.taf?p=3,11,6,1&EventID=2542
Thanks
Alan
I'm a fan of Charles Ives, and it's interesting she's juxtaposing so much of Ysaye's work w/ Ives... haven't seen that programming before. Hilary Hahn's a really interesting young violinist; seems to plan/program her concerts & albums with real intelligence. Pairing up Schoenberg w/ the Sibelius on her latest CD worked like a charm. Her Sibelius is an icy, slow burn... it's growing on me...
So did you end up going?
Self
Yes, i ended up going.
I was totally unfamilair with any of the music except i did recognize a bit of the Brahms. Ive now seen 3 notable violin players and im totally baffled by them. The first was the Russian guy Repin ( excuse spelling ) who was fantastic he really attacked the violin, the second was Anne Sophie Mutter who im sure is a very talented and respected musician but she was as exciting and interetsing as a party political broadcast she showed no emotion or involvment with the music at all it was very correct, it might be a cliche but she sounded German !! like a VW golf very correct but no soul or passion.
So to yesterday i was expecting more of the Mutter approach being a chamber concert, as usual i didnt know what I was talking about. Hahn played with such intensity and passion it absolutely blew me away, her violin had an incredible sound it filled the whole hall and you could feel every last inch of movement in her bow. She has an incredible understanding of how complexities of the peices she was playing. Now i dont have a clue of how to play violin but it was very apparant to me that Mutter was playing a very safe boring set of peices just to go through the motions, Hahn was having none of that she was out to entertain and show off her skills which she did to incredible effect.
So bottom line is an incredible performance that showed a level of indvidual skills ive very rarely if ever seen. Again im not an expert but for one player to ellict no emotion or interest whatsoever and one to have you hanging on every note for two hours sure indicates something to me.
Once again the most amazing thing is how one little violin being played so delicately can hold the attention and focus of 2000 people in a hall !!!
Next week is Helene Grimaud doing Beethoven's 5th, a classical cliche if ever their was one !! but im still looking forward to it. I get the feeling its a classical Smoke on the Water or Stairway to heaven.
Alan
You hit the nail on the head my friend.
Dave
Hi
Watched Bach last night.
I dont know why but i always imagined Bach to be big powerful orchestral music, wrong again !!
It was OK but very safe, nothing wrong with it but nothing to really get excited about either.
Its getting very hard to predict these concerts, they never seem to go as i imagine !!
Alan
Pages