It’s fortunate that Lulu at Den Norske Opera was the last stop on the “Regietournee,” because honestly anything after that would have amounted to an anticlimax. If there is a more brilliant director working in opera today than Stefan Herheim, well, maybe I shouldn’t see any of his work, because it might be too much for the human brain to absorb. Read the rest of this entry »
She sees dead people
April 28th, 2011Here Comes the Bride
April 28th, 2011By Keith Clarke
There is a fair likelihood that the rest of the world is little interested in Princess Diana’s son William getting hitched to an English lass whose extended family includes a cousin who runs a fish and chip shop. On the other hand, the airport arrivals halls seem to be pretty busy and people have been camping outside Westminster Abbey ready for tomorrow’s nuptials. Suddenly, London is the place to be, so I’m getting out of it. Had I got my act together and let out my apartment before heading out of town tonight it would probably have kept me in turkey dinners for the rest of the year.
While the music business toyed with the great unknown of which stirring tunes would make it on to the order of service, one thing we did know was that the happy couple had shunned the notion of getting a few notes out of the Master of the Queen’s Music. Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, for it is he, told today’s Times: “I was put on standby, but it seems that Prince William and Kate don’t want me. I’ve had no part in the music at all. But that’s all right. I’m Master of the Queen’s Music, not theirs.”
Max throws a graceful huff (fairly often), and is quite a magnet for publicity. But the timing of this flap of the wrists was interesting, for no sooner had we digested the Times piece than the royals sent us all a press release detailing the music for the wedding. And guess what? It contains a lovely piece by the Master: Veni Creator Spiritus.
For many, that might be enough information already. But for those who still harbour memories of the UK as a cosy crumpets-for-tea nation with Big Ben, Tower Bridge, red buses and smiling policemen in silly helmets, here is the full announcement of music for the match of the year:
Music for the Wedding Service
Prince William and Miss Catherine Middleton are pleased to announce the music for their Wedding Service. The music has a largely British theme. The Couple have put considerable thought into selecting the music, and their choices blend traditional music with some newly commissioned pieces.
Before the Service
The music before the Service will begin with a selection of organ pieces: Fantasia in G (Pièce d’orgue à 5) by Johann Sebastian Bach, followed by Veni Creator Spiritus by the Master of The Queen’s Music, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies; Prelude on St. Columba Op. 28 by Sir Charles Villiers Stanford and Sonata for Organ Op. 28 (Allegro maestoso and Allegretto) by Edward Elgar.
Following this will be seven orchestral pieces:
Serenade for Strings in E minor Op. 20 (Allegro piacevole, Larghetto and Allegretto) by Edward Elgar
Courtly Dance V: Galliard from Gloriana (Symphonic Suite) Op. 53a no. 7 by Benjamin Britten
Fantasia on Greensleeves by Ralph Vaughan Williams
Farewell to Stromness by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies
On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring by Frederick Delius
Touch Her Soft Lips and Part from Henry V Suite by William Walton
Romance for String Orchestra Op. 11 by Gerald Finzi
Three of these pieces – Farewell to Stromness, Touch Her Soft Lips and Part and Romance for String Orchestra Op. 11 – were played at the Service of Prayer and Dedication for The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall in 2005. The Couple specifically chose these pieces for that reason. The final piece of music before the Service begins continues the broadly British theme: Canzona from Organ Sonata in C minor by Percy Whitlock.
Processional Music
The Service will begin with a Fanfare by The State Trumpeters of the Household Cavalry to mark the arrival of The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh. The Fanfare will be followed by three Processionals. For the Procession of The Queen, Prince William and Miss Middleton have chosen March from The Birds by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry. Prelude on Rhosymedre by Ralph Vaughan Williams will accompany the Procession of the Clergy, and was chosen for its Welsh echoes. The Couple have selected ‘I was Glad’, also by Parry, for the Procession of the Bride.
Hymns
Prince William and Miss Middleton have chosen three hymns for the Service: ‘Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer’, words by William Williams, translated by Peter Williams and others, and music by John Hughes. The second will be ‘Love Divine All Love Excelling’, words by Charles Wesley and music by William Penfro Rowlands. The third will be ‘Jerusalem’, by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, words by William Blake. All three hymns have been chosen because they are favourites of the Couple.
The Anthem and Motet
The Anthem, ‘This is the day which the Lord hath made’, has been composed specially for the occasion by John Rutter. It was commissioned by Westminster Abbey as a wedding present for Prince William and Miss Middleton and will be performed by both the Choir of Westminster Abbey and the Chapel Royal Choir. Mr. Rutter is a British composer, conductor, editor and arranger who specialises in choral music.
The Anthem will be followed by the Motet ‘Ubi caritas’ by Paul Mealor, a Welsh composer, who is currently Reader in Composition at The University of Aberdeen.
Mr. Mealor’s composing studio is on the Isle of Anglesey, where Prince William and Miss Middleton live. This version of ‘Ubi caritas’ was written on Anglesey and premiered at the University of St. Andrews in November 2010.
The National Anthem will be sung immediately before the Signing of the Registers.
The Signing of the Registers and the Recessional
During the Signing of the Registers, the choirs will sing ‘Blest pair of Sirens’, words by John Milton from At a Solemn Musick, music by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry.
Following the Signing, there will be a Fanfare by the Fanfare Team from the Central Band of the Royal Air Force. The Fanfare, called Valiant and Brave, after the motto of No. 22 Squadron (Search and Rescue Force) was specially composed for this Service by Wing Commander Duncan Stubbs, Principal Director of Music in the Royal Air Force.
The Recessional, for the Procession of the Bride and Bridegroom, will be Crown Imperial by William Walton. Toccata from Symphonie V by Charles-Marie Widor and Pomp and Circumstance March no. 5 by Edward Elgar will follow the Service.
An Experience To Be Missed?
April 28th, 2011by Edna Landau
To ask a question, please write Ask Edna.
The following question comes from an individual whom I had the joy and privilege of representing in the early days of his career. My first exposure to his conducting was with the Haddonfield (New Jersey) Symphony. While I could predict even then that he would go on to great things, the music directorship of the New York Philharmonic and the directorship of conducting and orchestral studies at the Juilliard School were still far-away dreams. I am honored that he has chosen to write to “Ask Edna.”
Dear Edna:
I have enjoyed reading your advice column on musicalamerica.com.
I have a question that I have often been asked by young conductors, and I have a feeling that your insight, experience and thoughtful approach may shed very useful light for many people early in their conducting careers.
Experience in front of orchestras is obviously crucially important for any conductor —is there a level of orchestra below which one should not go just in order to get experience? That is to say, to put it bluntly, when does the experience of conducting a not very accomplished orchestra become worse than not having a chance to conduct at all? —Alan Gilbert
Dear Alan:
Thanks so much for writing in to my blog. I’m glad you have enjoyed reading it.
I have thought a great deal about your question and I don’t think there is one all-encompassing answer. It depends on the conductor and the stage in his or her career that we are considering.
Conductors obviously differ in one major way from other performing artists: they cannot practice and perfect their craft without a group of musicians in front of them. For some, this process begins at school. The quality of school orchestras can be quite high, sometimes affording the conductor a chance to try things out at a level that may be more advanced than what they would encounter in the field. At the same time, a school environment is somewhat compromised, since fellow students have a predisposition to go the extra mile and to give their very best for one of their own. Some aspiring conductors start their careers without even the benefit of a school orchestra with whom to work. Obviously, for those conductors, working with almost any orchestra is better than not working at all.
There are certain basics of conducting that any young conductor must master and part of that process is trial and error. A certain amount of experience with lower-level orchestras at the start of a career would seem beneficial, if only to gauge the efficacy of certain gestures and to try out different rehearsal techniques. Of course, there can come a point in a rehearsal when a player is consistently late with an entrance and it may be unclear to the conductor whether this is the player’s fault or his own. Even if the conductor is sure it isn’t his or her fault, succeeding in getting the desired outcome will serve him well in future orchestral encounters. Accepting these engagements is also very important because any young conductor has a formidable amount of repertoire to learn and trying it out in less exposed situations is virtually a “must.”
In my experience, it is a relatively small number of conductors who move quickly up the ladder by virtue of word of mouth or who begin their careers working with a fairly high level orchestra. Some might create their own orchestra and gain experience that way. Many others will only attract attention after having demonstrated that they have had significant conducting experience. Their resume will be their primary sales tool and it will need to show some heft. There are conductors who might be able to demonstrate that they have had experience in conducting educational and outreach concerts which could weigh in their favor as they apply for higher positions. I believe that the best approach during the early years is never to lose sight of the higher rungs of the ladder and to do everything possible to reach them, but also, to plant one’s feet firmly on the lower steps, taking in every opportunity to learn along the way.
As conductors advance in their career, the type of experience they need to gain changes. A higher level orchestra will afford them a greater opportunity to explore interpretive nuances and a broader range of color. They will use their rehearsal time differently and make adjustments in how they address the players. If they don’t get the results they are seeking, it may become clearer that they need to re-examine their own technique. During this particular growth period, it would probably be beneficial to limit the number of lower level orchestra engagements, perhaps making exceptions for orchestras who gave them a chance early in their career or who are interested in special projects that are meaningful to the conductor but not yet an option with a more prominent ensemble.
I discussed your question with conductor Jeffrey Kahane, who focused on the human side of it. He said that “working with an amateur orchestra reminds us that amateur music-making is important to our artistic culture.” I believe this takes on heightened significance in a time when we are struggling to build audiences for classical music. He also said that working with a community orchestra, for example, “might not significantly help your career or technique but it will reinforce who you are as a musician and your purpose as a musician.” Anyone who has attended concerts by such orchestras has witnessed the tremendous dedication of the players and their love for music-making, which may not be their primary occupation. Audiences are unfailingly inspired by this and conductors would do well to carry a little of it along with them, wherever their career path may lead.
To ask a question, please write Ask Edna.
© Edna Landau 2011
The Philadelphia Story
April 27th, 2011by Sedgwick Clark
The first Chapter 11 fallout predicted by the musicians of the Philadelphia Orchestra occurred yesterday with the appointment of the PO’s excellent first clarinet, Ricardo Morales, as principal clarinet of the New York Philharmonic.
As everyone in our beleaguered music world knows, on April 16, after years of mortal combat between management and musicians, the board of directors declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy–the first major U.S. orchestra to do so. Fortunately, concerts will continue, at least for the time being.
Here’s the story: The Philadelphia Orchestra board is tired of living up to its long-term contract agreements, and the musicians are deluded into thinking that worldwide economic crises don’t apply to them. Chapter 11 will allow the board to renegotiate such costly contracts as the musicians’ pension funds. Over the past year a new management, headed by Alison Vulgamore, who proved herself a strong leader in her previous job as president of the Atlanta Symphony, has been trying to convince the musicians of the dire situation, but too many years of distrust stand in the way.
For decades the once-challenging artistic leadership has been content to give its conservative audience what it wanted: superb performances of mostly non-threatening repertoire, presented in a traditional manner. Chief conductor Charles Dutoit has been a frequent guest conductor of the orchestra for 30 years and knows how to get the best out of these extraordinary musicians. As one who has reveled for over four decades in what Stravinsky called the orchestra’s “chinchilla echo,” hearing the ensemble’s annual concerts at Carnegie Hall leaves no doubt that the Philadelphians remain fabulous.
The Swiss conductor has one year to go in his four-year interim appointment between the five-year mismatch of Christoph Eschenbach and the ascension of the young Music Director Designate Yannick Nézet-Séquin (“call me Yannick”) in September 2012. Problem is, Philadelphia audiences have slipped to around 60 percent of capacity for some five years. Will next season’s shockingly rearguard programming sell more tickets in our still-parlous economy? One bright ray of sunlight is that all of Yannick’s concerts early this year were reportedly sold out–indicating audience hibernation rather than extinction. (Balanced against such optimism, the Philadelphia Inquirer‘s testy music critic Peter Dobrin was “underwhelmed.”)
I still haven’t recovered from Gramophone‘s December 2008 rating of the world’s top 20 orchestras, in which the Philadelphia Orchestra was scandalously relegated to a “Past Glories” sidebar along with the NBC Symphony (which disbanded in the 1950s after Toscanini’s retirement!) and l’Orchestre de la Suisse Romande (which gradually lost its standing after founder Ernest Ansermet’s retirement in 1968 after 50 years).
Nor has Philadelphia. Whether or not one agrees with that panel of 11 international critics, it was a wakeup call that no music lover–player, management, board of directors, subscriber–in the City of Brotherly Love can afford to ignore.
Company Filmed After All
So, in the end, an outfit called Screenvision made a film of the New York Philharmonic’s production of the Stephen Sondheim-George Furth musical, Company. This hilariously jaundiced 1970 take on marriage will be given “a limited number of engagements” in movie theaters beginning June 15. I saw the first of the four Philharmonic performances, on April 7, which was only the second time that orchestra, cast, and crew had actually worked together on the same stage. As reported in a preview piece in the Times, bi-coastal rehearsals were conducted individually via iphone, Skype, and MP3 files. To no surprise, it felt tentative throughout; the later performances were reportedly more secure.
I don’t watch much television, what with my concert schedule, but if these 14 singing actors represent an “all-star cast of television and stage heavyweights,” I’m missing less than I thought. None rose above serious deficiency in personality and vocalism, especially the fatally pallid lead, Neil Patrick Harris as Bobby. Some critics have suggested that the character is intended to be weak; if so, Harris went far beyond the call of duty. Even Patti LuPone, apparently trying to avoid any comparison with Elaine Stritch’s supremely campy Joanne in the original production, made surprisingly little impression.
Nonetheless, Sondheim’s wondrous music and lyrics conquered all, and the Philharmonic’s augmented orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick were a constant pleasure, despite Paul Gemignani’s four-square beat. Sondheim’s lyrics always vex the capacity of the human ear, particularly in a venue as large as the 2,800-seat Avery Fisher Hall. The woman next to me complained that the orchestra was too loud, but the engineers will fix balances in the mix. As I found in the Metropolitan Opera’s HD presentation of Nixon in China, close-ups and more vivid sound will strengthen the performances considerably. I will definitely catch the screening.
Looking Forward
My week’s scheduled concerts:
4/28 Metropolitan Opera. Wagner: Die Walküre. James Levine, cond.; Voigt, Westbroek, Blythe, Kaufmann, Terfel, König.
4/29 Avery Fisher Hall. New York Philharmonic/Alan Gilbert; Emanuel Ax, piano. Debussy: Estampes. Messiaen: Couleurs de la cité céleste. Mahler: Symphony No. 5.
4/29 Alice Tully Hall. Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center; Thomas Hampson, baritone; Gilbert Kalish, piano. Crumb: Selections from Six American Songbooks. Tan Dun: Elegy: Snow in June for Cello and Percussion.
4/30 Carnegie Hall. Bang on a Can All-Stars and Friends; eighth blackbird; Kronos Quartet; So Percussion. Reich: Mallet Quartet (N.Y. premiere). WTC 9/11(N.Y. premiere). 2 x 5 (N.Y. premiere). Double Sextet.
5/1 Alice Tully Hall. Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center; Gilbert Kalish, Wu Han, pianos; Daniel Druckman, Ayano Kataoka, percussion. Xenakis: Rebounds for Percussion. Bartók: Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion. Crumb: Music for a Summer Evening (Makrokosmos III) for Two Amplified Pianos and Percussion.
5/1 Zankel Hall. Christian Tetzlaff, Antje Weithaas, violins. Leclair: Sonata, Op. 3, No. 6. Bartók: Violin Duos. De Bériot: Duo Concertante, Op. 57, No. 1. Ysaye: Sonata for Two Violins in A minor.
5/3 Peter Jay Sharp Theater at the Juilliard School, 5 p.m. Milton Babbitt Memorial. Musical selections.
5/3 Carnegie Hall. The Philadelphia Orchestra/Charles Dutoit; Paul Groves, tenor; Petra Lang, mezzo; Robert Gierlach, bass-baritone; David Wilson-Johnson (baritone); Men of the Philadelphia Singers Chorale. Stravinsky: Apollo. Oedipus Rex.
Deadly Downtown Shows: John Kelly and Young Jean Lee
April 25th, 2011By Rachel Straus
Downtown New York nightlife is as good a destination for surveying America’s fixation with youth culture as there is. But last week, two established performance artists presented works created for downtown venues that focused on a most anti-youthful subject: Death. Young Jean Lee wrote and performed “We’re Gonna Die” at Joe’s Pub. John Kelly brought back to P.S. 122 his “Escape Artist,” which won him the organization’s 2010 Ethyl Eichelberger Award.
The two shows couldn’t have been more different. While Kelly sang alone on stage about his trauma, pain, and brush with death (alongside compelling visuals), Lee and four talented rock musicians sang about mortal issues in which they were not the direct focus. Guess whose show was more interesting?
It wasn’t Kelly’s. But to be fair, Kelly’s navel gazing wasn’t the problem. The former Trockadero Gloxinia Ballet Company dancer sang in a style, recalling a Stephen Sondheim musical circa 1984. Worse yet, Kelly sang off key; perhaps because almost all his vocalizations occurred on the horizontal.
In “Escape Artist,” Kelly lay on an operating-size table, telling the tale of taking a trapeze lesson, falling from a flip, and spending weeks in St. Vincent’s Hospital flat on his back—without pain medication. During this relived torture, Kelly drew occasional fortitude from channelling the life of Caravaggio, who escaped pain through art making, but also died young because of it.
Because this show’s strength rested with projections of Caravaggio’s paintings (in which beauty and violence collide) and with Kelly’s quirky video design (created with Jeff Morey), it’s best to describe the visuals. Behind Kelly, three video screens’ content created a triptych-type feast for the eyes. The projections included Caravaggio’s paintings (i.e. “Judith Beheading Holofernes”), moving montages (such as a filmed visit through a MRI machine), and live video recording (of Kelly’s face as recorded by a camera perched above the operating table). The combined technological effect produced a time traveling sensation. It called to mind Salvador Dali’s “Persistence of Memory,” in which melting clocks make reference to the psyche’s indifference to chronological events.
In “We’re Gonna Die,” Young Jean Lee’s chronologically unfolding family tale moved forward with a structural elegance that felt spontaneous. Alternating between speaking to the audience and singing with the band Future Wife, Lee became a modern-day bard. Her rich, melodic voice exponentially increased as her confessional-style self-ribbing grew. She began “Die” describing her uncle’s isolated self-loathing. She continued with love life experiences that crashed. Lee ended with her father’s death; he stopped breathing hours before being given life-saving medication. All the while, Lee spoke a truth most of us dare not speak: We believe, somehow, we will be exempt from suffering and dying.
In the finale, Lee, three guitarists and a drummer sang, “I’m gonna die some day. Then I’ll be gone and it will be okay”. Most of the Joe’s Pub’s crowd spontaneously joined their refrain. This sounds maudlin, but Lee’s intimate performance style possessed the quality of a lullaby. And the audience rocked in her cradle.
As for the dancing, it came briefly and unceremoniously as an encore. When Benedict Kupstas raised his drumsticks in the air, the cast commenced a casual jig. Arranged into tableaus, thanks to choreographer Faye Driscoll, they resembled holiday picture postcards, which make life look sweeter than it is.
“Gonna Die” will be repeated at Joe’s Pub three more times (April 29-30). It’s a feel-good show, uncannily leading us to consider the inevitable: Death.
Pact with the Devil
April 21st, 2011by Keith Clarke
“It might be a disaster,” Terry Gilliam tells the Daily Telegraph cheerfully, contemplating his version of Berlioz’ The Damnation of Faust, currently in rehearsal at the London Coliseum. It might well, given English National Opera’s track record in handing out operas willy nilly to people who have never seen the inside of an opera house in their lives.
It’s a bit of a slap in the face to the serried ranks of opera professionals who would give their eye teeth for a chance to tackle a mainstage production. But then we might not have heard of them, whereas Gilliam is the wacky brain behind the cartoons in Monty Python’s Flying Circus and director of Brazil, a film that put the wind up studio executives to such an extent that Gilliam took a page in Variety asking them when they were going to release it.
Gilliam is the next in a line of directors to benefit, if that’s the word, from ENO’s mania for having productions directed by just about anyone other than opera directors. Given some of the self-indulgent tosh that the pros come up with, that might not seem such a bad idea, but it is not a policy that has covered itself in glory thus far. The most recent ingénue was film maker Mike Figgis, who got so bound up in making miniature movies to go with his Lucrezia Borgia that he forgot to direct the opera at all.
Maybe Gilliam will surprise us all, making something of a strange work that was never supposed to be staged anyway. Hope springs eternal, and all that.
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An unlikely alliance of the Almighty, the royal family and the workers is giving the UK eight out of 11 days off work starting tomorrow, if you include weekends. The beano starts with a late Easter and finishes with a May Day holiday. In between comes a royal wedding, which is currently getting the press into a predictable lather of excitement.
The musical aspects of the event have not been immune from forensic examination, of course, with much speculation over what’s on the order of service, who’s going to take part, and second-rate songwriters offering their services.
We’ve seen the boys of the Choir of the Chapel Royal rehearsing; we’ve had a tv interview with conductor Christopher Warren-Green, veteran of many royal occasions; we’ve learnt how Wing Commander Duncan Stubbs has written a fanfare for the trumpeters of the Central Band of the Royal Air Force to herald the moment Prince William and Kate Middleton sign the register. The excitement is intense, as they say. At least it’s another day off.
Social Butterfly or Caterpillar?
April 21st, 2011by Edna Landau
To ask a question, please write Ask Edna.
Dear Edna:
How important is the social aspect of one’s career—hanging out at receptions, meeting and greeting other artists at concerts (not my own), cultivating potential donors and charming presenters—in contrast to the time one needs to spend alone with the music? I am not the most social person and I find this public aspect enervating and distracting, but think it may be necessary if I am to be on the “inside track.” Please advise! —Not quite a social butterfly
Dear Not quite a social butterfly:
Although there is no denying that building a successful performing career depends on countless hours of musical preparation, it has become virtually impossible to sustain a successful career without recognizing the importance of good will and interpersonal relationships. A manager may get you your first engagement with a given orchestra or concert series. Your chance for a reengagement may well depend not only on how well prepared you were and how well you performed and engaged with the audience but also, what sort of impression you left on the presenter, their staff and even their donors. (See last week’s blog, “The Art of Reengagement.”) A post-concert reception will generally take up no more than an hour of your time (an informal dinner, a bit more). Donors absolutely love to meet the artist personally, to have an opportunity to ask questions, and to get an idea of an artist’s life offstage. It gives them a privileged feeling and makes their contribution all the more meaningful. It also allows them to brag to their friends that they met artist X—something that is seemingly minor, but incalculable in value to them. You don’t need to reveal anything that would make you feel uncomfortable. A little speech by you thanking the donors, as well as the presenter for inviting you to perform on their prestigious series is certain to melt everyone’s hearts and leave a wonderful memory of your visit in their minds. This becomes all the more important if your concert was a debut with that orchestra or series and if you don’t have a manager.
Regarding meeting and greeting artists at other peoples’ concerts, this is a wonderful way to open new doors or learn about opportunities that could be extremely meaningful to you. Examples might be meeting a composer whose music you might want to commission, or if you are a composer, securing a possible new commission; learning of a new festival, concert series or performance ensemble that is in the process of formation; meeting a conductor or contractor who might be helpful to you; meeting a presenter who might take an interest in you – the possibilities are varied and seemingly endless. And if you’re really lucky, you may get invited to join the artists for a meal after the concert. Artists love to let their hair down after a concert and enjoy good food, good wine, great jokes and inside-the-industry stories. That kind of bonding gives potential new colleagues a chance to get to know you and become acquainted with what you are doing, leading to future possibilities for collaboration. In such a case, if it is your nature to be shy, put on your best Academy Award-winning performance and join wholeheartedly in the fun. You can always get up an hour earlier tomorrow to be “alone with the music.”
To ask a question, please write Ask Edna.
© Edna Landau 2011
Regie in its natural habitat
April 19th, 2011By James Jorden
The Staatsoper Stuttgart may be called the cradle of Regietheater, or at least a cradle of Regietheater. Strong theatrical values have characterized this company from the opening of the theater in 1912 (the world premiere of Ariadne auf Naxos, helmed by megaregisseur Max Reinhardt) through the 1950s, when Wieland Wagner’s frequent projects there caused the house to be nicknamed “the Winter Bayreuth,” on through the future, as Jossi Wieler becomes intendant in the fall of 2011. Read the rest of this entry »
Acting Like Grownups
April 15th, 2011by Cathy Barbash
The new maturity of the relationship between the U.S. and China was evident earlier this week as the 2011 U.S.-China High-Level Consultation on People-to-People Exchange (CPE) meetings went forward despite both the U.S. Embassy in Beijing’s calling for the release of superstar artist Ai Weiwei and planning difficulties resulting from the possible U.S. government shut-down.
The two-day event included an opening plenary co-led by CPE Coordinators Under Secretary of State for Education and Cultural Affairs Judith McHale and Vice Minister of Education Hao Ping, followed by break-out working group sessions in culture, education, science and technology and sports. McHale’s opening remarks indeed alluded to the situation, stating; “…But when human rights activists and intellectuals and artists fear arbitrary arrest or forced detention, or when education and cultural programs are abruptly canceled as a sign of displeasure, that good faith is undermined, and all the positive momentum our nations have built is slowed.”
Once the official remarks were over however, both sides got down to work in day-long very people-to-people, face to face meetings. The Culture Working Group divided their efforts into three sessions, including
an overview of U.S. and Chinese government supported programs, U.S. and Chinese Development Programs for Museum and Library Professionals, and U.S. Private Sector Initiatives with China. In addition to U.S. governmental cultural institutions (Smithsonian, NEA, NEH, IMLS, ECA’s Dance Motion, etc.), presenters included The Philadelphia Orchestra, The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Asia Society, the American Association of Museums and, most unexpectedly, Rodeo China. The findings were reported to Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chinese State Councilor Liu Yandong the next day in a formal public meeting at the State Department. I will follow the development of the proposed projects in future posts.
Alice at the Opera
April 14th, 2011By Keith Clarke
It sounds like something from Alice in Wonderland. You build an opera house. Being a dream, it only takes a month. You put on 21 performances. Then you knock it all down again.
That is the realty for Garsington Opera in its new home. It was always a bit mad. Founder Leonard Ingrams set the thing up in his back garden while his wife was looking the other way. She forgave him, but having failed to do a charm offensive with the neighbors, he ran into all kinds of trouble, culminating in a grand evening of protest when the opera was interrupted by a synchronized hedge trimming event, an extra pizzazz being added by a local nutcase strafing the opera in a Tiger Moth plane.
When Ingrams died, tragically, at the wheel of his car on a journey back from Glyndebourne, his widow bravely continued to host the opera for a while, but made it clear that in time she would like her garden back.
One of the strange things about England is that while extreme poverty is not hard to find in the inner cities, out in the countryside there are so many opulent estates big enough to host an opera festival that Garsington spent quite some time whittling down a shortlist. When the roulette wheel stopped turning, the ball landed on Wormsley, a 2,500-acre traditional English country estate owned by the Getty family.
I went for a look round on Monday, and it is one of those perfect stretches of countryside where your eye stretches so far across the estate that it seems there can’t be much more of England beyond the horizon.
The estate generally only opens its gates to the public for cricket matches, but the current Getty – Mark – is keen to make it a bit more arty, so an opera company is a good fit. But the Gettys did not get where they are without driving a hard bargain so Garsington will be paying a healthy rent for use of the grounds. Then there is the cost of the purpose-built Opera Pavilion, which will take 12-15 workers about four weeks to construct and deconstruct.
With just 600 seats to sell, it doesn’t take too long with a calculator to see why Garsington is so pleased to welcome aboard global investment firm Jefferies as its first ever season sponsor.
The season runs June 2 – July 5, with The Magic Flute, Rossini’s Il Turco in Italia, and Vivaldi’s La verità in cimento.
www.garsingtonopera.org/