A last-minute weekend thought here...

Don't feel like fighting the Bay--to-Breaker crowds in SD or at BFD in the South Bay?

 

Well,  then,  have I got an event for you: join the JMPP-the fabulous Dale Tsang-Hall on piano,  the wonderful Adaiha  MacAdam-Somer on cello,  and me-in San Jose , for "New, Forbidden,  and Forbidden," our season finale.  New music by David Garner, Laura Schwendinger , Elena Ruehr, Gabriela Lena Frank,  and Ruth Lomon. Forbidden and forgotten music by Edwin Frost,  Vitezslava Kapralova, and Alexander Zemlinsky. 3 p.m. 

Yet another shameless plug among many,  but hope to see some of you there:-)!

Two wonderful musicians: George Mesterhazy and Zheng Cao

In the universe of my very occasional blog, here's a very much belated post about a colleague and marvelous jazz pianist, plus a slightly less belated post about another wonderful musician and talented mezzo-soprano.

I met George Mesterhazy through a Mensa-musician friend, a trombone player named Herb Roselle who thought we'd enjoy knowing each other and talking music, and connected us.  Herb was right...and I had the pleasure and privilege of hearing George play live in San Francisco a couple of years ago.  Such a special player, arranger, and composer!

George passed away in his sleep in April 12, 2012 (yes, over a year ago: I'm embarrassingly delinquent in this post, with my apologies to all), and Herb has given me permission to post this clip of a soulful, lyrical Tennessee Waltz that he recorded when George let him put a digital recorder inside George's piano as he played.

Enjoy...

Another inspiring, generous, and fabulous musician passed away this year on Feb. 12 after a long battle with cancer: mezzo-soprano Zheng Cao. Formerly an Adler Fellow and long associated with SF Opera, Zheng premiered Bonesetter's Daughter (operatic setting of the wonderful Amy Tan novel) and was beloved among audiences and colleagues for her passionate performances and warm, rich mezzo-soprano voice.  There's an open Facebook group as a memorial to her, Zheng Cao celebration, and a public memorial is planned on June 24 at 3 p.m.  Hear her warm, rich portrayal of "You'll never walk alone" in 2011.

Two beautiful stars in the musical firmament for us all to keep alive in our hearts.

What I'm listening to: Salamone Rossi's madrigals and canzonettas; Barbara Strozzi duets, especially "Begl' occhi"; Elena Ruehr, David Garner, and Laura Schwendinger, Ruth Lomon.

What I'm studying: Ruth Lomon, Viteslzava Kapralova, Gabriela Lena Frank,  Edwin Geist and David garner for the  upcoming JMPP concert (May 19, San Jose).

What I'm reading: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children; Job by Joseph Roth, The Time Keeper by Mitch Alboum, and Stoner by John Williams.

Just a short post today, as ...the excitement is mounting...because in just two days, Dale (Tsang-Hall), the fabulous pianist of the Jewish Music & Poetry Project, and I will perform the World Premiere of David Garner's Phoenix, to texts by poet Rose Auslaender.  Four short but powerful songs to four witty, ironic poems, focusing on exile and displacement, in a post-Holocaust context.  The concert is timed for this weekend in honor of Yom Hashoah.

The concert will also feature the West Coast premiere of Edwin Geist's 3 Lithuanian Songs and solo piano works by Jewish women composers , Gabriela Lena Frank, Elena Ruehr,  Laura Schwendinger, and Viteszlava Kapralova.  Other composers: Zemlinsky and Golijov.

On a more serious note, this is the concert for which we were received our most recent grant, from the Zellerbach Family Foundation, and for which we've been very grateful to our many supporters, who've helped us commission this piece from fabulous SF composer David Garner.

WHEN & WHERE:  FRIDAY, April 5 at 8:00 p.m. at Old First Concerts in San Francisco (corner of Sacramento and San Francisco).  Tickets: $17/ $14

Hope to see some of my readers there!

Incidentally, Dale and I had the honor and pleasure of joining David Garner's seminar in 20th century song at the SFCM.  Great students, smart, good questions, excellent comments.  We hope they enjoyed having us there as much as we enjoyed getting a chance to talk to them!

What I'm reading: The Lives of Things by Jose Saramago, recommended by a friend;
What I'm listening to: Garner and more Garner, Zemlinsky, Geist, Frank, Schwendinger, Ruehr, Kapralova, and Golijov.
What I'm working on: the same ;)!

Vinaccesi, CDs and Premieres

The Vinaccesi Ensemble at the Legion of Honor, at the end of our March 17, 2013, La Belle Vie concert.

L to R, Jonathan Smucker, Kindra Scharich, Susie Fong, Nanette McGuinness, Hallie Pridham.

Time for some more shameless plugs...

But first, for those inquiring minds who might want to know, the Vinaccesi Ensemble's concert was wonderful, with a large, generous audience, terrific presenters/ hosts (thank you, San Francisco Friends of Chamber Music and Legion of Honor!), a lovely space, and a wonderful harpsichord, courtesy of John Phillips.  A great time was had by all on both sides of the proscenium--not that there actually was a proscenium, mind you.  The picture above comes from a friend's iPhone, at the end of the concert.

And a quick note about a world premiere earlier this week, of Pulitzer-Prize winning and Grammy nominee Steven Stucky's The Stars and the Roses, beautifully performed by Noah Stewart and the Berkeley Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Joana Carneiro.  A shimmering three-song work (to poetry by the ever-wonderful Czeslaw Milosz) with transparent textures for the orchestra and lyrical writing for the glorious voice of the former Adler fellow. Stucky dedicated the piece to his about-to-be-wife, whom he charmingly told the audience he was flying off to marry after the concert: a sweet introduction to a lovely piece.

Back to the plugs...

Coming up this week, I've got two important events.  First, on April 1 (no fooling!), the Vinaccesi's premiere CD will be officially released on Centaur Records.  Benedetto Vinaccesi the Solo Cantatas contains all 8  extant solo cantatas by the group's namesake, that quirky, stylish and inventive Venetian composer.You can buy the CD from Centaur, directly from the ensemble, from Arkiv Music, etc. (Centaur CRC 3270).*

The CD includes the above musicians, plus bass Kirk Eichelberger and archlutenist Sarge Gerbode.

Hmmm, that's long enough for now.  Not to be tantalizing, but the next plug will come tomorrow or next day.  In the meantime, Happy Passover and Happy Easter to all.

What I'm reading: Sadly, I've now finished all the Martin Walker Inspector Bruno books that have been written thus far.  Hopefully there will be more soon.

What I'm listening to: Garner, Stucky, Erickson, Vinaccesi, Salamone Rossi, Elena Ruehr, and much more, natch!

*A blog with a footnote?  Could it be!  But every once in awhile, my erstwhile academic hackles rise again. and this is one of those moments: we couldn't have made the CD without our fantastic recording engineer, Michael Demeyer, nor without the help of a grant from the Musical Grant Program, which is administered by the San Francisco Friends of Chamber Music and supported by the Heller Foundation, the Hewlette Foundation, the San Francisco Foundation, and San Francisco Grants for the Arts.

Pick of the Week!

Just a quick note to all: the Vinaccesi Ensemble's concert on Sunday March 17 at the Legion of Honor at noon (see this morning's post) has been chosen as Locaphonic's Weekly Pick.  Check it out and spread the word, please!

Vinaccesi Ensemble at the Legion of Honor

It's been an amazing 2013 thus far, with a plethora of fabulous musical events every weekend, so many of them performed by my wonderful colleagues.  So much good music, so little time...at the risk of sounding too   wide-eyed and "gee whiz" about things, the Bay Area is such a wonderful place!

Today's post is a last-minute shameless--or should I say shameful?--plug for this Sunday's concert that my Baroque chamber group, the Vinaccesi Ensemble, will be performing: March 17 at noon at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco.  It's part of the La Belle Vie 2013 series at the Legion of Honor, co-produced by the San Francisco Friends of Chamber Music and accompanies the Legion's exhibit, the Royal Treasures from the Louvre: Louis XIV to Marie Antoinette, which has just been extended to March 31.

For this concert, Vinaccesi Ensemble (me, mezzo-soprano Kindra Scharich, tenor Jonathan Smucker, Hallie Pridham, Baroque cello and gamba, and Susie Fong, harpsichord; our bass Kirk Eichelberger will be on the road and unable to join us) will feature music performed in Paris during the lifetimes of the Sun King and Marie Antoinette, that is, between 1630 and 1790, which will include pieces by Marais, Couperin, Rameau, Handel, de la Barre, Gluck, the young Mozart, and the ever popular Monsieur Anonyme, as well as a melody by the royal Sun King's father, Louis XIII. 

Susie Fong will perform on a newly-completed harpsichord based on a 1707 Nicholas Dumont instrument by renowned Berkeley harpsichord maker John Phillips, who will discuss the instrument during intermission and after the concert.

AND...equally exciting, the Vinaccesi Ensemble's new CD--due to be released on Centaur Records on April 1, no fooling!--has shipped and is available for purchase from the ensemble and at the concert.  Benedetto Vinaccesi: the Solo Cantatas has all 8 extant solo cantatas by the group's inventive and stylish Venetian namesake. (More on this in a future post perhaps?)

As a quick side note, the 28th Jewish Music Festival in Berkeley produced the world premiere of David Garner's Vilna Poems, with texts by renowned Yiddish poet Avrom Sutzkever, to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising.  Garner's compositions are always moving and ever-lyrical, and this song cycle--beautifully performed by Lisa Delan, soprano, Kristin Pankonin, piano, David Krakauer, clarinet, and Matt Haimowitz, cello--is no exception.  You can hear Garner's radio interview with Sarah Cahill on KALW in which he talks about about this and others of his pieces (including the song cycle of his I'll be premiering in April, "Phoenix"--but more about that on a future post).  The second half of the program centered on a breathtaking performance of Messiaen's  ethereal--and timeless--Quartet for the End of Time, by Krakauer, Haimowitz, Kay Stern and Kathleen Tagg.

As a second quick side note, I have several more belated and overdue topics for my always-occasional and ever-delinquent blog.  Perhaps the month of March will be a good one for slightly more timely posting, or at least catching up?  Time will tell... but as we're enjoying an early, lovely spring here in Berkeley, hope--at least in this blogger's heart--springs eternal.

And as a third and final side note, March 14 was my birthday (as well as that of my niece and my stepsister--three Pi day birthdays shared with Albert Einstein in one fabulous family ;)) and I wanted to thank all my  wonderful friends who wished me a happy birthday today!

The regular disclaimer: I'm talking about friends and acquaintances in this post...

What I'm listening to: Strauss, Wolf, Garner, Geist, Handel, Gluck, Mozart, Lomon, Ruehr, Golijov, Gabriela Lena Frank, and much, much more. This is a busy month!

What I'm working on: all of the above.

What I'm reading: Martin Walker's Black Diamond (the third in his excellent Inspector Bruno series); Cinda Williams Chima's Seven Realm series, and more....

Fabulous Poppea

Just a quick note today:  run, don't walk, to see West Edge Opera's fabulous Poppea.  

There are only two more shows, Feb. 1 and Feb. 2., so time is of the essence!

With a period chamber ensemble stylishly conducted from one of two harpsichords by Music Source's Gilbert Martinez, WEO has another hit on its hands.  And with now-G.D. Mark Streshinsky at the helm, the company continues to make consistently brilliant artistic decisions in the pieces chosen, how they are updated, and how they are trimmed down.

For Poppea, WEO has pruned the excellent score (by musicologist and conductor Alan Curtis) to Monteverdi's L'incoronazione di Poppea into two roughly one-hour acts, and--a canny decision-- left the opera in the original Italian--Gott sei Dank.  This is one opera that I'd rather see in Italian any day.

The singing and acting is uniformly excellent--as the talent pool in the Bay  Area is wide and deep.  Perhaps one of the biggest strokes of genius was to cast the marvelous soprano Christine Brandes as Nerone (Nero).  With soprano Emma McNairy as Poppea, the red-hot onstage chemistry between the two sensually smolders as Poppea seduces her way to an empress' throne, aided and abetted by a hilarious cross-dressing Arnalta (Brian Thorsett)--who looks to do a mean mani-pedi.  Paul Thompson is suitably stoic as an end-of-life, emphysema-stricken Seneca (an interesting touch), and countertenor Ryan Belongie and soprano Tonia D'Amello present an appealing--and much more innocent--couple as foils to Nerone and Poppea.

WEO's productions continue to be don't-miss events.  You can help the company grow, as they've received an NEA matching grant.

Warnings and disclaimers: 1) don't take the younger kids, though--the bedroom scenes and video graphics are relatively explicit for opera; 2) .many of the folks here are friends and acquaintances.

What I'm reading:  Poetry by Ruth Stone, Connie Wanek, and Chana Bloch, Mercedes Lackey's Collegium Chronicles; the newest Thea Stilton Graphic Novel; James Alan Gardner's Expendable.

What I'm listening to and working on: Handel and Caldara cantatas, new music by S.F. composer David Garner (Phoenix, for the JMPP's premiere on April 5 at Old First Concerts), excerpts from Gluck's Orphee (the French 1774 version) for the Vinaccesi Ensemble's concert at the Legion of Honor in SF on March 17 and much, much more.  This is a busy, busy season--and I'm grateful!

Back from Berlin!

After an easy return to the U.S. and a fabulous family Thanksgiving--I hope everyone also had a wonderful Thanksgiving!--I'm returning to post on my shamefully occasional blog.

Yes, oh faithful and forgiving blog readers, today's post goes into the shameless plug department, to quote, shamelessly, from the recently retired Car Talk show hosts, the "Tappit" Brothers.

But first, a tad of catching up...
The last part of my trip was a whirlwind of train rides (Go, Eurail!), meetings, a beautifully played, moving concert in Berlin, archival research at the Akademie der Kuenste and snippets of sightseeing here and there.  Budapest, for example, is ever so schoen (oh, so lovely)!

The moving concert was "Musik der Erinnerung," performed by the Neue Juedische Kammerphilharnomie Dresden, conducted by Maestro Michael Hurshell at the Synagogue Rykestrasse.  The NJKD program explores orchestral music by some of the composers that we also focus on in the Jewish Music & Poetry Project.

Which leads me to the shameless plug.  Coming up on Sunday, December 9 at 3:00 p.m., at the Berkeley Arts Festival, 2133 University Avenue in Berkeley, pianist Dale Tsang-Hall, cellist Adaiha Macadam-Somer, and I will perform new music to poetry by Jewish women writers, as well as "forbidden" music, i.e., by composers whose works were banned and whose lives were altered--or worse--during the Holocaust.

The program includes songs and solo piano music by: composers Alexander Zemlinsky, Arnold Schoenberg, Erich Korngold, Pavel Haas, Edwin Geist, Vitezslava Kapralova, and David Garner, the collaborative composer-in-residence and co-director, with me, of the JMPP, to poetry by Mascha Kaleko, Annette von Droste-Huelshoff, Rose Auslaender, Richard Dehmel, and more..

If you're interested in coming to the concert:
    

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And if you'd like to donate to the JMPP, to fund future tours, premieres, and new music commissions:

Speaking of David Garner, kudos and congratulations!  After years of writing terrific, cool, and beautiful music, he has been nominated for a 2013 Award in Music by the American Academy of Arts & Letters!

What I'm working on: music for our December 9 concert (natch)

What I'm reading: after waiting for from the ever-popular and well-stocked Berkeley Public Library, Gone Girl.  Definitely worth the wait.  A twisted murder mystery about a woman who goes missing.   Without adding any plot spoilers, suffice it to say that the usual suspect is...suspected, but the missing woman's body is...missing.

What I'm listening to: Dresden songwriter Ursula Kurze's CD, which she was kind enough to send a copy of to me. Very nice.  She has a setting of Mascha Kaleko's "Gebet" (which David Garner also set), that's quite different from his.  It's always interesting to hear two different artistic minds approach the same text!

Back in Berlin: Don't Forget to Vote!

Dear long-suffering blog readers who've told me they wish my occasional blog would...occasionally have an occasion...and to new readers, too,

I am back in Berlin after a great concert here about two weeks ago at the Lichtburgforum, presented by the Juedische Gemeinde, with the Jewish Music and Poetry Project.  I promise to post soon and to catch everyone up, at least somewhat.

But in the meantime this is just a quick post to say, run, do not walk--safely, of course--and VOTE today, preferably for the candidate of my choice, i.e., Obama, but no matter what, please, vote!

The world is watching with a decent amount of anxiety to see what we do, whether the shenanigans of voter registration will affect the legitimacy of the count, whether the electronic balloting in Ohio will be honest and fair, and most of all, perhaps, if the shadow of Sandy that still hangs over the Northeast will cast a pall on the overall ability of people to get to the polls and cast their vote.

So, even if it seems super-daunting this time around, if you haven't already voted, please,make that extra effort, folks, get out there and vote.  (And for those who are wondering, I cast my vote via absentee ballot from the U.S. Consulate in Munich.)

What I'm reading: various books on Kindle for the Sharp Writ Book Awards (there are some excellent ones this year!).  What I'm working on: the Marshallin's monologue (Rosenkavalier)--except bin ich ein bisschen erkaeltet, also singe ich nicht fuer ein Paar tage.... Total pain...
What I'm listening to: Ravel's Sheherazade, which I recently heard live by the Berlin Staatskapelle (along with a wonderful performance of Beethoven's 8th and Berlioz' Romeo and Juliet), in an illuminating Regine Crespin historical recording:  Here's to you, Christina!

Vinaccesi Ensemble and Jewish Music & Poetry Project

Photo credit: German Consulate General in San Francisco

Even by my own occasional blog standards, it's been a shamefully long time since I've posted here, due primarily to a very busy performing year. The summer is looking to be a bit calmer, which will let me catch my breath, and--I promise--catch up here on my beyond-occasional blog.

In the meantime, above is a picture from the concert last month at the German Consulate General in San Francisco with Adaiha Macadam-Somer and Dale Tsang-Hall. Our new name is the Jewish Music & Poetry Project and we are performing in Berkeley in Aug. and Berlin in October. More on all that later, BUT as you can see, the concert was packed and overflowing, the audience was knowledgeable, generous, and appreciative, and the performance was a marvelous success.

Tiny plug: we are now a fiscally-sponsored affiliate of the SFFCM and are actively looking for donations (i.e., begging for your help) in raising funds to get us to Berlin this fall. Click HERE to make a tax-free donation, please!

Why post today, though, instead of any other random day in June...or May? Well, it's shameless plug time:

The Vinaccesi Ensemble, my Baroque chamber group will be performing at the Berkeley Fringe Fest this week: WEDNESDAY, June 6 at 12:30 p.m.

We have a great lineup and a great group...

Who: Nanette McGuinness, soprano, Kindra Scharich, mezzo-soprano, Jonathan Smucker, tenor, Kirk Eichelberger, bass, Sarge Gerbode, archlute, Farley Pearce, Baroque cello, and Yuko Tanaka, harpsichord

Where: Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana, Berkeley
How: For advance reservations, call 510-549-3864
How much: $15/ $10 Info: www.trinitychamberconcerts.com  No one turned away for lack of funds.

What: Musical treats from the north Italian Baroque: a seldom-heard but stunning Monteverdi madrigal from Book VIII, arias and duets by Monteverdi, Cavalli, and Barbara Strozzi, and two new-to-the Fringe Fest cantatas by the quirky and creative Benedetto Vinaccesi, fresh from our recording sessions for our Centaur Records CD. Hope you'll be able to come!

~~~ What I'm listening to: the Vinaccesis this week, also gorgeous music by Elena Ruehr for August. What I'm reading: Death Cloud, a fun prequel to the Sherlock Holmes stories for young readers (Young Sherlock Holmes: the Adventure Begins, by Andrew Lane). Who was he before he grew up? Also Between Shades of Gray (by Ruta Sepys) a mesmerizing, stark look at the seldom-told story of the genocide by the Stalinist regime in the Soviet Union before, during, and after WWII. Beautifully written and researched, it is a multiple-hanky read that I'd delayed starting for weeks, as I knew it would be a horrendous tale. According to the notes at the end, some 20 million people were killed, including roughly 1/3 of the population of Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia. Man's inhumanity to man never ceases to astonish me. Will we never learn?

Added note: Dora Sorell, Holocaust survivor and author of To Tell the Story, about Jewish life in Romania before, during, and after the war, will appear at the North Branch of the Berkeley Public Library (1170 The Alameda) on Saturday June 9m, 2-4 p.m.