Tag: CCM

Gunther Schuller and Cincinnati: Personal memories from a patron and a critic

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Gunther Schuller had lifelong ties to Cincinnati
Gunther Schuller had lifelong ties to Cincinnati

Gunther Schuller, a giant of American music, Pulitzer Prize-winning composer and the man who defined the fusion of classical and jazz as “Third Stream,” died on June 21 at age 89. Many tributes note that he was the youngest French hornist of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra early in his career (1943-45).

“It was a very rich and rewarding period in my life, a growing period because I was 17 to 19 (years old),” Schuller told me in an interview.

After concerts, he often continued playing in late-night jazz clubs in Cincinnati. However, his ties to Cincinnati continued for his entire life. In fact, he taught at the old College of Music, which is where he met his wife Marjorie. (Perhaps he was also their youngest-ever faculty member!)Read More »

‘Two Women’ channels Puccini, Hollywood in world premiere 

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Italian diva Anna Caterina Antonacci took her cue from Sophia Loren as the character Cesira in "Two Women"
Italian diva Anna Caterina Antonacci took her cue from Sophia Loren as the character Cesira in “Two Women”

Marco Tutino’s new opera “Two Women,” which takes place in war-torn Italy during World War II, has one stirring moment. Near the end of Act I, Rosetta (sung by Sarah Shafer), the 16-year-old daughter of Cesira, lifts her pure-toned soprano in a poignant prayer for peace. It becomes a touching anthem for the whole village, as they join her a lush chorus, singing “Father, do not abandon us,” as battles are growing closer to their village.

To a full War Memorial Opera House, San Francisco Opera presented the world premiere on Saturday of the hotly-anticipated opera, “Two Women” (“La Ciociara”) by Tutino, to his libretto with Fabio Ceresa. As the creators told us in a panel discussion on Friday, the opera is based on Alberto Moravia’s novel, but not so much on the 1960 movie from the novel, produced by Carlo Ponti and starring Sophia Loren.Read More »

Meet John Doe

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The cast of CCM singers gave a terrific performance that was partly choreographed
The cast of CCM singers gave a terrific performance that was partly choreographed

Daniel Catán’s last opera, “Meet John Doe,” was his homage to America. So, from the first notes, one is thrust into the Swing Era, with hot drumming — Louis Prima style — and finger-snapping in the chorus. This is one jazzy newsroom.

On Saturday night, I heard the first reading of excerpts from Act I of Catán’s opera, based on the 1941 film that starred Barbara Stanwyck and Gary Cooper. Read More »

CCM grads, Louis Langrée in national publications

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The November issue of Opera News mentions about two dozen CCM grads
The November issue of Opera News mentions about two dozen CCM grads

Two magazines are featuring Cincinnati musicians prominently in their February editions. CSO music director Louis Langrée is given a half-page spotlight in Vanity Fair, with the headline “Bonjour Cincinnati.” A photographer came to Cincinnati earlier this fall to photograph him in Springer Auditorium.

And Opera News mentions CCM alumni about two dozen times in its current issue — by faculty member Donna Loewy’s estimation. Here’s the list:Read More »

First peek at ‘Great Scott”

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I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I am grateful for my family and friends and for living in a city with so much to do. In the midst of the rush to get that turkey cooked (sage butter) and stuffed (cornbread chorizo), I also attended some impressive performances. Before we plunge into holiday concert season, here are a few observations from last week:

Heggie Mem hallOn Tuesday, I was in an audience of opera lovers, patrons, critics and teachers in Memorial Hall for a reading of excerpts from Jake Heggie’s latest opera, “Great Scott.” He and the creative team– including librettist Terrence McNally, director Jack O’Brien and conductor Evan Rogister (shown in this photo)– were in town for a workshop through Opera Fusion:New Works. The excellent singers assembled for the reading were all CCM students and alumni. A fine pianist named Grant Loehnig came down from “Porgy and Bess” at Chicago Lyric Opera to collaborate at the piano.

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Conversations with André Previn

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André Previn — the composer, conductor, pianist, recording artist and much more — was in town for the premiere of his new Double Concerto, written for violinist Jaime Laredo and cellist Sharon Robinson. On Friday noon, as I was finishing up my opera review from Thursday’s performance of “Hansel and Gretel” at home and preparing to dash downtown to file it — I noticed a text from Music Hall on my phone. Mr. Previn has a few minutes for an interview. Did I want it?

Andre Previn spoke to a CCM audience on Saturday
Andre Previn spoke to a CCM audience on Saturday

Well, yes. With no time to prepare, I flew down I-75 to Music Hall, where Previn was waiting patiently in the Green Room. He said some lovely things about Cincinnati, the CSO and Music Hall (“Big!”) for my iPhone camera, which you can see here. (“Oh, is that the way you take videos these days? That’s amazing,” he said. )

Here are some of his other thoughts during our conversation:Read More »

Reviews in the news

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In case you missed them, here are links to the two shows I reviewed this weekend:

On Thursday, the opera “Hansel and Gretel” at CCM: There’s a moment in the fairy-tale opera “Hansel and Gretel,” when the two hungry and terrified children, lost in the woods, kneel and sing the “Children’s Prayer” against softly falling snow. It’s always heart-stopping, as the sleepy children sing about 14 angels who will guard them through the night. What happens next, in the production mounted Thursday by the opera department of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, is unexpected and magical.

On Friday, a world premiere at the CSO in Music Hall: The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra has premiered many important pieces since its founding in 1895. On Friday, the orchestra added an engaging new work to the list with the world premiere of a new Double Concerto by the celebrated composer and conductor André Previn. It was performed by violinist Jaime Laredo and cellist Sharon Robinson. Sophisticated and well-crafted, Previn’s new work is a terrific addition to the double concerto repertoire.

Wagner triumphs on the West Side

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The cast, with conductor Isaac Selya and director James Slouffman, center
The cast, with conductor Isaac Selya and director James Slouffman, center

Last weekend, on a beautiful fall day, I traveled to the West Side of Cincinnati to see the Queen City Chamber Opera mount Wagner’s “Siegfried” Act I. The opera start-up led by Isaac Selya, 28, was putting on a reduced version of the orchestration by Alfons Abbass. It is believed to be the first performance of this edition in the United States.

“Siegfried” is the the third drama in “Der Ring des Nibelungen.” It was the second Wagner opera tackled by Selya, in collaboration with the Wagner Society of Cincinnati — he mounted Act I of “Die Walkure” last spring. It was an ambitious undertaking, but no surprise for those who know about this ambitious young company. Their productions take place in the Dunham Arts Center – a Hannaford-built Arts Deco building that at one time served as an arts center for patients of a tuberculosis sanatorium on the park grounds.Read More »