The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra has reported a network outage at Music Hall. Saturday’s Classical Roots in-person performance in Music Hall will continue as planned. However, the digital premiere will now take place on Sunday at 7:30 p.m. (instead of live) on the CSO’s YouTube channel and website.
Also, the box office is closed, but the website, cincinnatisymphony.org, is fully operational.
The orchestra said in a statement that it is working quickly to resolve the issue.
The Grammy Awards were announced today, and there are a few familiar names this year. The biggest news: Elaine Martone has won Producer of the Year, Classical for a host of recordings, including: Joy! (John Morris Russell & Cincinnati Pops). It is her sixth Grammy Award in her stunning career. Congratulations to Elaine, who produces the Cincinnati Symphony and Pops recordings. She is truly world-class. (Martone is married to Robert Woods, founder of Telarc Records, which was famous for the 100 or so Pops albums they recorded during the Erich Kunzel years … )
The other supporting works on her list are:
• Bartók: String Quartet No.3; Suite From ‘The Miraculous Mandarin’ (Franz Welser-Möst & The Cleveland Orchestra)
• The Book of Spells (Merian Ensemble)
• Bruckner: Symphony No. 4 (Franz Welser-Möst & The Cleveland Orchestra)
• Divine Mischief (Julian Bliss, J. Eric Wilson & Baylor University Wind Ensemble)
• Prokofiev: Symphony No. 6 (Franz Welser-Möst & The Cleveland Orchestra)
• Schubert: The Complete Impromptus (Gerardo Teissonnière)
• Stranger at Home (Shachar Israel)
• Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 (Franz Welser-Möst & The Cleveland Orchestra).
Here are some other classical music awards, which also have a few Cincinnati connections:Read More »
Besides great performances in Cincinnati, 2024 was a year of anniversaries, historic firsts, farewells and new beginnings. In some instances, there was news-making connected with these performances. In chronological order:
1) Last February, when he led a thrilling and revelatory performance of Shostakovich’s monumental Symphony No. 11 with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, we didn’t yet know that Cristian Macelaru would be announced as the 14th CSO music director. The conductor riveted listeners in Music Hall when he led Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 11, “The Year 1905.” He moved little as he led Shostakovich’s vast symphonic canvas, but the sheer visceral impact of this performance lingered long afterward. The orchestra’s musicians were impressed. For Macelaru, the feeling was mutual, he said in April, when his appointment was announced. Macelaru returns for his only performances with the CSO this season in February. And in other CSO leadership news, the CSO announced that President and CEO Jonathan Martin will retire Feb. 16. Robert McGrath, the CSO’s chief operating officer, will then step in as acting president and CEO.Read More »
The Fall season is fast approaching. And here are some fun, just-announced Friday Experiences and CSO Proof programs coming up during the CSO season:
COPLAND: SYMPHONY IN LIGHT — Jan. 10, 2025 in Music Hall
Former Beatle Paul McCartney will not be attending the July 18 opening night performance of “Liverpool Oratorio,” the world premiere of it’s first-ever staged version presented by Cincinnati Opera in Music Hall. But he will send a personal message to Cincinnati opera audiences, officials said on July 15.
“While we’ve just learned that Sir Paul is unable to travel to Cincinnati for opening night, he wanted to be with us at Music Hall however he could. He’s shared an exclusive message intended just for Liverpool Oratorio audience members—only those in attendance at Music Hall will have the chance to experience it,” said artistic director Evans Mirageas, in a note to attendees of “To Sir with Love,” a party taking place after the opening night show.
An audio of Sir Paul’s message will be played for the opening night audience.
Don’t give up — McCartney could potentially appear for another performance during the run, which includes four addditional shows through July 27. That is not confirmed, however.
A city-wide “Get Paul to Music Hall” campaign has been mounted to invite him to the premiere. Tickets are nearly sold out for opening night, but some remain for the rest of the run.
McCartney — along with composer Carl Davis — penned the oratorio for the 150th anniversary of the Liverpool Philharmonic Society in 1991. It’s a love letter to Liverpool, with personal remembrances from McCartney’s boyhood there. The oratorio has never been presented with opera-style staging, sets, lighting and costumes before. There will even be ballet dancers.
You’ll find more information about the production here: I interviewed the creative team and two of the leading cast members. (Cincinnati Business Courier arts stories are free to read.)
For the full synopsis, performance times and tickets, click here.
A review of La Traviata is coming… It’s a gorgeous production and a must see. Unfortunately, there was an incident at Music Hall last night just as we were arriving. Here’s the statement from Chris Milligan, general director and CEO, just released:
As you may be aware, there was a police incident outside Music Hall on Thursday, June 27, just as our opening night performance of La Traviata was about to begin.
Police Chief Teresa Theetge offered a public statement that police officers had been in pursuit of a suspect accused of attacking a woman in a neighborhood west of downtown. The chase ended near Music Hall, where the armed suspect was shot by police. The suspect died at the scene.
More information is available here: https://www.wvxu.org/local-news/2024-06-27/police-kill-man-outside-music-hall-after-he-reportedly-pointed-a-gun-at-officers.Read More »
Maybe you’ve seen brief mentions of the Jewish Music Festival, with musical performances, lectures and sometimes art exhibitions taking place throughout the area. The festival is brand new, and organized by Aik Khai Pung, associate professor at CCM, where he is music director of the CCM Concert Orchestra. I noticed in an online listing that the Ariel String Quartet was playing last night at Hebrew Union College, and by luck, I was able to go.
The concert, which was co-presented by concert:nova and the Cincinnati Cultural Exchange, was held in Mayerson Auditorium in the Skirball Museum on the HUC campus. Curator Abby Schwartz provided commentary about the art by Jewish artists that surrounded us, and the paintings’ relationships to the music.
The musical artists for this program were sensational. The Ariel Quartet, quartet-in-residence at CCM, opened with Lera Auerbach’s “Frozen Dreams” and “Cetera Desunt” for string quartet. Both works were a revelation. “Frozen Dreams” was haunting and deeply personal. Auerbach’s music is simply astonishing; it is both searing and lyrical. In “Cetera Desunt” Auerbach took her cue from Shostakovich, and the listener could detect the repeating motive signifying Shostakovich’s signature. The superb performers — violinists Alexandra Kazovsky and Gershon Gerchikov, Jan Grüning, viola, and Amit-Even-Tov, cello — soared through this treacherous score with exciting precision and passion. In the frenzied passages, they dug into their strings with bows flying. I plan to try to hear more of Auerbach’s music.
They joined with clarinetist Pavel Vinnitsky for Osvaldo Golijov’s “The Dreams and Prayers of Isaac the Blind.” It is named for a blind, mystical rabbi who lived centuries ago, but is also a tribute to Golijov’s great-grandfather. This piece blends liturgical prayers in its outer movements with raucous Klezmer music. There could not have been a better champion for both styles than Vinnitsky, who wailed and almost danced in his seat as he performed Golijov’s riveting music, using three different clarinets.
Read the program notes for this program here.
Vinnitsky joined CCM’s clarinet faculty about two years ago. He and the Ariel Quartet will perform the Brahms Clarinet Quintet on March 26 at CCM, 7:30 p.m. in Werner Recital Hall. It’s not-to-be missed!
The Jewish Foundation is sponsor of the inaugural festival, a total of nine concerts and events. Other participants have included the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, composer Anna Vinnitsky, saxophonist Rick VanMatre and others.
Several more events are coming up: Read More »
David Allan Klingshirn was one of Cincinnati’s biggest boosters, who loved the city and its arts. He was the founder of the Cincinnati-based American Classical Music Hall of Fame, which has recognized 165 individuals and institutions across the nation. Anxious to shine a light on classical music, which he believed received less recognition than sports, Mr. Klingshirn was fond of saying, “Cincinnati has major-league sports and major-league classical music.”
Mr. Klingshirn died at his home in Cincinnati on June 20. He was 84.
“David was a visionary who loved classical music and its ability to touch our souls and enrich our lives,” Gary Ingle, president of the Hall of Fame’s board of directors and CEO of the Music Teachers National Association. “He was a passionate advocate for classical music and guided the Hall of Fame tirelessly for these 27 years. The death of our founder is a deeply felt loss for all of us. Our hearts are heavy but filled with gratitude for David and the great legacy he leaves. His legacy will live on through the work we will continue to do together to advance the mission and goals of this very special organization.”
The Cincinnati businessman was the owner of Tischbein Pharmacies for 30 years. In 2004, he was ordained a Deacon for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati and served at St. Peter in Chains Cathedral and St. Margaret’s Hall.
Read More »
I recently received the news that former Cincinnati Opera general director and artistic director James “Jim” de Blasis has passed away at the age of 91. His daughter writes:
“During his career, which spanned nearly 50 years, Jim worked with and gave opportunities to many young opera singers, who went on to become famous in their field. He was ahead of his time in staging productions of rare operas and set the level of expectation of his casts very high. The result was always thrilling!”
Some of those “young rising stars” included James Morris, Tom Fox and Barbara Daniels. During his tenure, a “Who’s Who” of the opera world crossed Cincinnati’s stage — Beverly Sills, John Alexander, Kathleen Battle, Sherrill Milnes, Renata Scotto, Richard Leech and many more.
Mr. de Blasis worked with Cincinnati Opera for about 28 years. He was named Cincinnati Opera’s Resident Stage Director in 1968. He served as its General Director from 1973 to 1987. In 1988 he became its Artistic Director, a post he held until 1996.
In his 25th anniversary in 1993, it was reported that his record was only surpassed by Fausto Cleva. He’d directed 93 productions, including 15 company premieres. He oversaw the move of the Summer Festival from its longtime home outdoors at Cincinnati Zoo to Music Hall in 1972.
His innovations included the Cincinnati Opera Ensemble, which toured area schools, and the Young American Artists Program.
During his tenure, Cincinnati Opera programmed rare operas such as Maxwell Davies’ Resurrection and Weinberger’s Schwanda the Bagpiper. It also added musicals to its repertory — H.M.S. Pinafore, South Pacific and The Music Man — in an effort to broaden the audience base.
One of early highlights of the de Blasis era was a new interpretation of Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore, which changed the setting from Spain in the 1820s to the “Wild West” of 19th-century Texas. The production was later filmed by WCET and nationally televised on PBS in 1980.
Mr. de Blasis was preceded in death by his wife Ruth — who often delivered pre-performance lectures and provided narrations — and leaves his daughter Blythe de Blasis Watkins, son-in-law Brad Watkins, and grandchild Brenna Watkins.
The family wishes memorial contributions be made to East End Hospice, P.O. Box 1048, Westhampton Beach, NY 11978.
With thanks to Eldred Theirstein’s Cincinnati Opera: From the Zoo to Music Hall.
The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra is performing this Thanksgiving weekend, and it’s always fun to take those out-of-town guests to Music Hall. The program features Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 and Elgar’s “Enigma Variations.”
The CSO issued a statement on Monday that pianist Khatia Buniatishvili has been forced to withdraw from this weekend’s performances.
The pianist Conrad Tao will step in for performances on November 26 & 27. Ironically, he appeared exactly a year ago on Thanksgiving weekend.
Elim Chan, a graduate of the University of Michigan, is guest conductor.
Tickets: 513-381-3300, cincinnatisymphony.org
