I am excited for many reasons beyond the excellence I expect to encounter from the principals. Richard III is the first play I ever saw in the theatre, and its unremitting drama (and those fearsome ghosts!) left a permanent deep impression. Also, my own view has been that this play is undervalued by comparison with the other transcendent tragedies of the Bard...
Re-thinking Ginastera
Tomorrow I am performing, with my great friends, the phenomenal Brentano Quartet, a rarely-heard piano quintet by the Argentine master Alberto Ginastera. Written in 1963, it is largely a dodecaphonic work, shockingly discordant to an ear more familiar with the famous works of his nationalist period, such as the First Piano Sonata, the Variaciones concertantes, the Danzas Argentinas, or the Harp Concerto.
Welcome Aboard, Nephew Seva!
Linsanity Everywhere
If you live in New York City, and especially if you are a long-suffering Knicks fan like myself, you can’t turn on the radio or ride the subway or even walk out your door without hearing everyone talk about the sensational Jeremy Lin.
The Great Blondin Returns
the Great Blondin over Niagara Falls
Does anyone else remember reading, in grade school, about the mythical Charles Blondin, a.k.a. The Great Blondin, cooking an omelette while perched atop a tightrope strung across Niagara Falls? It’s something that’s remained lodged in my brain. Well, now comes news that, after the obligatory regulatory hand-wringing—de rigueur in our timorous age—the stunt can be attempted again, for the first time in over a century. WOW.
Curtis Students Shine in Dark Brahms
What wonderful artistry from Curtis students Michelle Cann (piano), Rebecca Anderson (violin), Ayane Kozasa (viola), and Eric Han (cello). They have been coaching the Brahms C-minor Piano Quartet with me, and last night performed it splendidly at Field Hall.
Election Fever Heating Up in Russia
Another week, another brilliant video lampooning the election campaign from the sensationally popular "Citizen Poet”, a supremely clever joint effort of the poet Dmitri Bykov and the actor Mikhail Efremov.
No Dog In This Fight
Leo Ornstein, 1893-2002
A few days ago this Russian-American composer was brought to my attention by the invaluable Jay Nordlinger. Stop and look at those dates again.
Début at Mariinsky Opera
What a thrilling week it has been. For a long time I have held close to my heart the momentous second opera of Shostakovich, Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk. To have the opportunity at last to conduct it, and on the legendary stage of the Mariinsky Opera to boot, is very much a dream come true. Rehearsals had gone fruitfully, chorus and orchestra executing splendidly (although it is a work they do not perform often), the lead soloists re-imagining and deepening their involvement in the score and the drama from day to day. I felt a special responsibility to guide the several outstanding artists making their role [...]