REVIEW: Tanglewood "Lewis+/Gerstein+/Ehnes+"

Ozawa Hall, Tanglewood, Lenox, MA

www.bso.org/tanglewood

July 24, 31 & August 21, 2024

by Michael J. Moran

Three recent concerts in Tanglewood’s Ozawa Hall extended the range and repertoire offered in earlier concerts during the 2024 season.

The Boston Symphony Chamber Players July 24 program opened with BSO flutist Elizabeth Rowe’s moving performance of Allison Loggins-Hull’s “Homeland” for solo flute, a harrowing 2018 depiction of Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. English pianist Paul Lewis next joined BSO members John Ferrillo, oboe, William R. Hudgens, clarinet, Richard Svoboda, bassoon, and Richard Sebring, horn, in a sprightly reading of Mozart’s cheerful 1784 Quintet in E-flat, K. 452. The BSO’s Alexander Velinzon and Tatiana Dimitriades, violins, Cathy Basrak and Danny Kim, violas, and Blaise Dejardin and Oliver Aldort, cellos, closed the concert with a glowing account of Johannes Brahms’s radiant 1866 String Sextet No. 2 in G, Opus 36.

Photo by Hillary Scott

A week later, Russian-American pianist Kirill Gerstein was joined by American violinist Joshua Bell and British cellist Seven Isserlis in a program of French music written between 1915 and 1923. Bell and Gerstein played Claude Debussy’s violin sonata with the “joyful commotion” that the composer noted in the piece. Isserlis and Gerstein showcased the Spanish flavor of Debussy’s cello sonata. Bell and Isserlis focused their virtuosic take on Maurice Ravel’s sonata for violin and cello on its spiky modernism. In a solo piano set, Gerstein offered sensitive versions, with engaging commentary, of Gabriel Faure’s “heartbroken” Nocturne No. 13, an ethereal nocturne written in homage to Faure by jazz pianist Brad Mehldau, and four haunting late works by Debussy. A bracing rendition of Faure’s piano trio ended the evening on a life-enhancing note.   

On August 21, Canadian violinist James Ehnes and Italian pianist Alessio Bax made their Tanglewood debuts as last-minute replacements for violinist Leonidas Kavakos (recovering from a shoulder injury) and pianist Danill Trifonov. Prefacing each piece with helpful commentary, Ehnes said they had selected three of their favorite sonatas. They began with a nimble account of Mozart’s brief 1778 Sonata in E minor, K.304, including a dramatic “Allegro” and a stately “Tempo di Menuetto.” Next came an impassioned Brahms 1878 Sonata No. 1 in G, Opus 78 (the only carryover from the original program). They ended with an exhilarating account of Beethoven’s towering 1803 Sonata No. 9 in A, Opus 47, “Kreutzer” (named, ironically, after a violinist who never played it).  

 

Their whirlwind encore, the jazzy “Perpetuum mobile” finale of Ravel’s 1927 second sonata for violin and piano, brought another diverse Ozawa Hall season to a dazzling close.

REVIEW: Tanglewood, "Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra Series"

Ozawa Hall, Tanglewood, Lenox, MA

www.bso.org/tanglewood

August 5, 12, & 19, 2024

by Michael J. Moran

The last three TMCO concerts presented the two 2024 TMC conducting fellows with new opportunities: vocal music, contemporary works, and replacing a missing conductor.

On August 5, TMC fellow Na’Zir McFadden led a touchingly vivid account of Maurice Ravel’s four-movement 1920 tribute to victims of World War I, “Le Tombeau de Couperin.” TMC fellow Ross Jamie Collins shaped a brilliant reading of Silvestre Revueltas’s 1938 tone poem “Sensemaya,” which fully captured its ritualistic Afro-Latin sensuality. American BSO guest conductor Alan Gilbert skillfully guided the TMCO through the complex rhythms and shifting colors of Henri Dutilleux’s 1964 “Metaboles” (“Transformations”), making this challenging piece surprisingly accessible. He then poked hilarious fun at himself and the audience with a playful rendition of Joseph Haydn’s 1788 Symphony No. 90, with its several surprise endings.      

Photo by Hillary Scott

A week later, the TMC conducting fellows led 12 TMC vocal fellows in excerpts from “The
Magic Flute,” “Don Giovanni,” and “The Marriage of Figaro” for a delightful “Mozart Opera Evening.” Collins cued the singers and instrumentalists more extravagantly than McFadden, whose more economical gestures drew equally compelling performances. Standouts included: soprano Emily Rocha’s devastating “Ach, ich fuhl’s” (“Ah, I feel it”) as a hopeless Pamina in “The Magic Flute;” a seductive “La ci darem la mano” (“Give me your hand”) from baritone John Arlievsky as a suave Don Giovanni and mezzo-soprano Anna Maria Vacca as a befuddled Zerlina; and a hilarious “Voi, che sapete” (“You who know”) by mezzo-soprano Carmen Edano as a lovestruck teenage Cherubino in “The Marriage of Figaro.” English subtitles were helpfully projected above the stage.

 

McFadden and Collins faced a new challenge on August 19, when Finnish conductor Hannu Lintu, who would have led Sergei Prokofiev’s 1945 fifth symphony, cancelled his Tanglewood appearances due to a recent leg injury. Their ingenious solution was for each of them to lead two of its four movements. McFadden’s more restrained conducting style produced a vibrant first movement (“Andante”) and a haunting third (“Adagio”), while Collins’s flashier style inspired a driving second movement (“Allegro moderato”) and an exuberant finale (“Allegro giocoso”). The result was a powerfully cohesive vision of the Russian composer’s heroic masterpiece.

That concert opened with Mexican composer Gabriela Ortiz’s six-minute folk-inflected 2021 “Kauyumari” (“Blue Deer”), representing a spiritual guide for the Huichol people of Mexico, in a visceral reading under McFadden. Next came a sensitive account, also under McFadden, of British-American composer Bernard Rands’s equally brief but bracing “Adieu,” for brass quintet and string orchestra, in honor of the composer’s recent 90th birthday. The program’s first half concluded with an electrifying Collins-led rendition by the TMCO of Jean Sibelius’s 1892 tone poem “En Saga,” evoking the spirit of Finnish folklore.

The past eight weeks of intensive concerts, professional training, and musical camaraderie, including their major role in the annual Tanglewood Festival of Contemporary Music, will surely be formative experiences in these young musicians’ careers.   

REVIEW: Jacob’s Pillow, "Dance Theatre of Harlem"

Jacob’s Pillow, Becket, MA

www.jacobspillow.org 

through August 25, 2024

by Josephine Sarnelli

Dance Theatre of Harlem has remained true to its classical ballet roots, while breathing life into this program with infusions of R&B and funk. The versatility of this dance company allowed for a brilliant and varied program from four diverse choreographers.

To open the program, Robert Garland, new Artistic Director of DTH, choreographed “Higher Ground” to several genius works of Stevie Wonder. Although written half a century ago, the lyrics of the songs remain relevant in addressing socioeconomic and political issues. A thought-provoking program note written by Garland reads, “Higher Ground represents a Sankofa-esque reflection on our current time.”  Sankofa is a Ghanian word meaning to go back for what you have forgotten behind or learning from the past.  Garland may be referring to this on a cultural level, but possibly also to DTH’s mission of making ballet attainable to all. The optimistic lyrics of the song for which the piece is named address reincarnation and a second chance at life. This, too, could be referring to our global state of affairs or to DTH, in particular.

   

The classical training of the six dancers provided outstanding en pointe work and partnering. There were numerous overhead lifts, cabrioles and grand jetes to satisfy traditional ballet audiences, blended with jazz-like movements in keeping with the contemporary nature of the music. The choreographer brought the dancers together at the crossroads of ballet, funk and soul.

“Take Me With You,” a short duet choreographed by Robert Bondara, relied heavily on the athleticism and connection between performers Delaney Washington and Derek Brockington. Set to Radiohead’s “Reckoner,” the dance’s entrance and exit offer haunting acapella clapping. Unusually complex lifts were masterfully executed as their bodies seamlessly unite only to separate again. As with “Higher Ground,” this choreography might be making a commentary on world struggles or on a more simplistic level examining the cycles of interpersonal relationships.

Photo by Christopher Duggan

Balanchine’s “Allegro Brillante” was an exuberant performance to Tchaikovsky’s “Piano Concerto No.3.” With only eight dancers performing for 13 minutes, the piece is a concentrated indulgence into classical Russian ballet style. It was joyful and an excellent complement to the other nontraditional offerings in the program.

“Blake Works IV (The Barre Project, 2023),” choreographed by William Forsythe to songs written by James Blake, closed off the program. With its start date during the pandemic, the original choreography was created over Zoom and echoes back to the isolation of that period. Dancers entered and exited singly to a ballet barre located at the back of the stage. The distance of the barre from the audience and lack of connection of the performers with one another was appropriate for the pandemic era but grew monotonous for a live audience. The dancers performed exquisitely, but in a vacuum, to the soulful music.

Sankofa is symbolized by a bird that has its grounded feet facing forward, while holding an egg in its mouth as it looks backwards. Dance Theatre of Harlem remains faithful to its founders’ mission of ensuring classical ballet is accessible to all, while keeping it relevant for a new generation.

REVIEW: Berkshire Opera Festival, “Faust”

Berkshire Opera Festival, Great Barrington, MA

www.berkshireoperafestival.org

August 27 & 30, 2024

by Michael J. Moran

Photo by Ken Howard

To conclude their ninth season, Berkshire Opera Festival presents its first French opera: a triumphant production of Charles Gounod’s 1859 masterpiece “Faust.” Based on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s play “Faust, Part I,” and with a French libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carre, “Faust” was not only Gounod’s breakthrough work but has remained by far the most popular of his 12 operas.

Act I opens as Faust, an aging scholar, plans to end his life in despair at its meaninglessness, when the sound of happy young voices outside his window makes him long to regain his lost youth. Mephistopheles, the Devil, promptly appears and offers to grant his wish on earth if Faust will serve him in hell. The remaining four acts follow the handsome younger Faust’s seduction of the beautiful Marguerite and its effects on both of them and on her family and community.  

Tenor Duke Kim is an ardent Faust, singing and acting with passion, clarity, and plush tonal beauty. Bass-baritone Justin Hopkins portrays Mephistopheles with a winning mix of demonic power, comic wit, and even sex appeal. Soprano Raquel Gonzalez tracks Marguerite’s journey from demure grace through amorous infatuation to abject heartbreak with unerring skill. Mezzo-soprano Sun-Ly Pierce as Siebel, a local boy in love with Marguerite; baritone Jarrett Porter as Marguerite’s brother, Valentin; mezzo-soprano Abbegael Greene as her neighbor; Marthe, and baritone Kyle Dunn as Wagner, a student, all make strong impressions in their roles.

Vocal highlights include: Porter’s affecting rendition of Valentin’s Act II aria “Before I Leave This Place;” Gonzalez’s poignant reading of Marguerite’s Act III “King of Thule” aria; Greene’s hilarious pass as Marthe at Hopkins’ roguish Mephistopheles in the Act III quartet; a stirring Act IV soldiers’ chorus; and Hopkins’ menacing laughter in Mephistopheles’ Act IV serenade.

Resourceful direction by BOF Co-Founder Jonathon Loy culminates in a stunning coup de theatre at Marguerite’s Act V redemption, when Alex Jainchill’s subtle lighting design suddenly brightens. Committed performances under BOF Artistic Director and Co-Founder Brian Garman by the BOF orchestra and chorus (led by Chorus Master Geoffrey Larson) bring Gounod’s brilliant score to vivid life. Sensitive choreography by Andrea Beasom, elegant costume design by Brooke Stanton, and spare but flexible scenic design by Stephen Dobay keep the focus squarely on the characters and the drama.

This outstanding “Faust” shouldn’t be missed by lovers of Romantic grand opera. Perhaps more importantly, "Faust" offers the opportunity for those who aren't opera aficionados to see a love story sung in French.

Note from editor: A surprising start to the performance was the swift staccato beat of a solo snare drum, followed by the full orchestra, and the unprompted audience immediately standing, facing the U.S. flag to sing "The Star-Spangled Banner". Now that both the Republican and Democratic conventions are behind us, without touching on politics, a salute to our country seemed fitting.

REVIEW: Barrington Stage Company, “Next to Normal”

Barrington Stage Company, Pittsfield, MA

https://barringtonstageco.org

through September 8, 2024

by Michael J. Moran

Winner of three Tony Awards in 2009 and the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 2010, “Next to Normal” is one of the most acclaimed and widely produced musicals of the 21st century.  The Pulitzer board called it "a powerful rock musical that grapples with mental illness in a suburban family and expands the scope of subject matter for musicals.” BSC’s intensely moving production shows just how powerful it can be in the right hands.

 

Photo by Daniel Rader

The story focuses on Diana Goodman’s struggle to manage her psychotic disorder and its effects on her family -- husband Dan, son Gabe, and daughter Natalie. The other two characters are Henry, Natalie’s high school classmate; and Dr. Madden, Diana’s therapist. The plot merges scenes of Diana’s treatments with past and present scenes of her family life and Natalie’s budding romance with Henry, leading to hope for a life that, if not exactly “normal,” is at least “next to normal.”

The six-member cast of singing actors uniformly realizes the often-heroic demands of Tom Kitt’s searing score and Brian Yorkey’s lucid book and witty, poetic lyrics. Natalie Joy Johnson is sensational as Diana, capturing the full range of her emotions, from rapture in “I Miss the Mountains,” to sardonic humor in “My Psychopharmacologist and I,” to despair in “Didn’t I See This Movie?” Alan H. Green, a resourceful veteran of many BSC shows, is stalwart as Dan in “A Promise” and vulnerable in “Song of Forgetting.”

Adante Carter is a mesmerizing Gabe, defiant in “I’m Alive” and haunting in “There’s a World.” Madison McBride and Ben Clark are appealingly awkward and resilient as Natalie and Henry in their duets (“Hey” and “Perfect for You”). Joseph Morales is an empathetic Dr. Madden. The full ensemble is impressive together in a resonant choral finale, “Light.”    

Director Alan Paul (BSC’s Artistic Director) creatively uses Nicholas Hussong’s live video projections to immerse the audience in the characters’ emotions throughout. Choreographer Eamon Foley imaginatively deploys the cast and scenic designer Wilson Chen’s flexible set to suggest the fluidity of the characters’ experiences. Music direction by Angela Steiner and a powerhouse band of six under Jacob Carll binds the musical forcefully together.    

BSC’s “Next to Normal” is “must see” theatre for all fans of serious musical drama.

REVIEW: Boston Symphony Orchestra, "A Tanglewood Weekend"

Tanglewood, Lenox, MA

www.bso.org/tanglewood

August 17-18, 2024

by Michael J. Moran

Three of the 12 music experiences offered last weekend at Tanglewood highlighted the multi-faceted approach this leader of summer festivals takes to presenting, promoting, and preserving classical music.

Saturday afternoon featured the last of six concerts in Ozawa Hall by the Young Artists Orchestra of the Boston University Tanglewood Institute (a younger version of Tanglewood Music Center training program). Conductor Justin Casinghino led the musicians, ages 14-20, in a colorful reading of 18-year-old BUTI composer Billy Waldman’s “Stellification,” which depicted how a planet becomes a star. This was followed by a fiery account of Gustav Mahler’s sprawling 1902 fifth symphony under Paul Haas’ dynamic baton. They played both demanding scores with a maturity and professionalism that belied their youth.

Later that day, the Linde Center hosted an enlightening lecture by Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) violist emeritus and Holocaust music scholar Mark Ludwig on “Trauma, Memory & Transcendence in Music.” It included Ludwig's video interview of composer Osvaldo Golijov about his song cycle “Falling Out of Time,” based on Israeli writer David Grossman’s novel of that name on the death of his son in the Lebanon War; and a moving performance by BSO members Si-Jing Huang and Takumi Taguchi, violins; Steven O. Laraia, viola; and Adam Esbensen, cello; of the third string quartet by Czech composer Viktor Ullmann. This was written in the Terezin concentration camp shortly before Ullmann's execution at Auschwitz in 1944. With these and other sources, Ludwig perceptively showed how music can lift the human spirit from profound grief to unexpected joy.  

Photo by Hilary Scott

An overflow BSO audience on Sunday afternoon found joy in the return of Yo-Yo Ma to the Shed after Covid forced the renowned cellist to cancel last summer. Before soloing in Robert Schumann’s poignant 1850 cello concerto, the ever-genial Ma thanked maestro Earl Lee, also a cellist, for his three years as BSO Assistant Conductor and asked him why he likes Schumann’s music. Lee’s answer: its “emotional conflict,” a quality well captured by the full, rich tone and trademark depth of feeling in Ma’s impassioned playing, with committed support from Lee and the BSO.      

The concert opened with Carlos Simon’s 2020 "Fate Now Conquers,” modestly introduced by the composer as a “riff” on Beethoven’s seventh symphony. The five-minute piece’s title quotes a Beethoven diary entry, based on which Simon remixes fragments of the symphony’s “Allegretto” second movement to suggest “the unpredictable ways of fate.” Lee and the BSO gave the mercurial work a playful and dynamic spin.  

Their thrilling performance of Beethoven’s 1813 symphony recalled the grace, humor, and verve of Leonard Bernstein’s classic BSO/Tanglewood performance in his last concert 34 years ago. Throughout the symphony, those in the Shed seemed to be having great fun, from a Berkshire wren loudly chirping along with the Allegretto in its ceiling perch. An instant standing ovation suggested that there’s no better way to end a typically varied and historic weekend at Tanglewood.   

REVIEW: Shakespeare & Company, “Flight of the Monarch”

Shakespeare & Company, Lenox, MA

www.shakespeare.org 

through August 25, 2024

by Shera Cohen

Photo by Nile Scott Studios

Two of Shakespeare & Company’s (S&Co.) finest actors, not to mention among the best in the Berkshires, take the stage and the subject matter straight-on, full-force playing brother and sister in “Flight of the Monarch”. The two create characters living the effects of their parents, warts, and all.

Audiences are used to seeing Corinna May (Sheila) and Allyn Burrows (Thomas) as consummate Shakespearean thespians. In “Monarch,” they are essentially stripped of make-up, wear clothing seemingly from the dregs of a costumer’s closet, and live (only seen is Sheila’s home) in a disheveled old house.

Sheila and Thomas depend on each other for different reasons, and for the most part, they have come through their own relationship and disconnections with their parents – not happily but at least they are still here. Yet, at Sheila’s latest trip to the psychiatric hospital (Act I), where Thomas visits, she has made some major decisions.

As of late, it is encouraging to observe so many collaborations in the arts’ fields. Community theatres promote each other, professional symphonies support the work of smaller music groups.

In the case of “Monarch,” S&Co. has teamed up with the newer troupe Great Barrington Public Theatre (GBPT), about 15-minutes up the road, as playwright Jim Frangione and director Judy Braha (from GBPT) craft a contemporary narrative with May and Burrows, not as the expected sibling rivals, but as caring people.

Many audience members shy away from two-character plays. Yes, May and Burrows are the only figures onstage. No more are needed in this story. 

Yet, neither actors’ character is solely that of sibling. Frangione has fleshed out five or so decades as backstory, including characters never seen: mother, father, daughter, ex-husband, a younger sister. May and Burrows talk about, and to, these people in their lives, and the audience immediately knows them.

“Monarch” is an example of a perfect blend of drama and comedy. At times, it feels a bit uncomfortable laughing at some of the horrible events in the characters’ lives. But don’t we all do this in the real world?

Beware of first impressions. The actors are exceptional at understatement. May’s Sheila smolders beneath her laisse-faire attitude. Burrows’ Thomas seemingly bit dim-witted stereotype dwarfs his innate intelligence.

One particular challenge in the rehearsal process must have been learning and maintaining the Cape Cod accent; somewhat like Maine with mellow undertones.

Why the title? Sister and brother are enthralled with their surroundings, full of beauty – flowers and butterflies. The audience will understand the author’s analogy as insight to the characters that May and Burrows so concisely portray.

REVIEW: Chester Theatre Company, “Big Big Sky”

Chester Theatre Company, Chester, MA

https://chestertheatre.org

through August 18, 2024

by C. L. Blacke

Photo by Andrew Greto

From London, UK to Chester, MA comes “Big Big Sky,” a tender reflection on grief, community, and the healing power of nature. Tom Wells’ play is set in the seaside village of Kilnsea, East Yorkshire, where everyone knows each other and favorite pastimes include line dancing and bird watching. The action is staged solely in Angie’s Cafe, only open during tourist season, and is a haven for lost souls seeking respite and new beginnings.

It’s no wonder, then, that Angie (Meghan Maureen McDonough,) is the anchor of this play, providing comfort to her patrons with a pot of peppermint tea and plate of pasty and beans. She is the consummate nurturer, cheerleader, and symbol of eternal optimism, despite her own problems. McDonough brings in spades her experience in stage, film, and television while also bringing the house to tears in a powerful scene fraught with raw emotion.

As Angie watches, locals, Lauren and father Dennis (Equity actors Hero Marguerite and James Barry, respectively) play out their family drama as only a headstrong young woman and a father entombed in misery can—with barbs and general avoidance. Barry’s performance lends everything to this story—the neurotic fragility of a grieving husband, the unshakable strength of a father when needed most, and even a proper Yorkshire accent. The gravity of Barry’s performance remains onstage even when he doesn’t.

In Lauren’s rare moment of vulnerability, Marguerite, a Berkshire Theatre Awards Nominee, sings a haunting song while in search of human connection that she hasn’t felt since her mother’s death.

Enter Ed (Abuzar Farrukh), the newcomer in search of a job, who is a self-affirmed vegan, nature enthusiast, and simpleton. Always a delight, Farrukh, who starred in last year’s “Guards at the Taj,” excels in portraying Ed’s childlike wonder and playfulness and brings a slice of cheeky humor, great compassion, and a vegan brownie into the mix.

Director James Warwick’s love for this story and familiarity with the Yorkshire country as a native of England is evident throughout. His use of ballad “Scarborough Fair,” adapted by Nathan Leigh, sets the melancholy tone, while the quintessential English cafe, designed by Ed Check, provides a cheery juxtaposition for the characters to move about both naturally and with purpose. Nothing about this production seems staged or overlooked. “Big Big Sky” has a big big heart and the perfect play for any Anglophile.

ON THE ROAD: End of season thoughts on Tanglewood 2024

The Berkshires Summer is almost over?

www.tanglewood.org

by Shera Cohen

My introduction to the Berkshires was at, what I realize now, is the epicenter: Tanglewood. In fact, I had thought that this region of MA had two wonders going for it: the natural beauty of the landscape, and Tanglewood.

This young thespian in grade school knew nothing about Berkshire Theatre, Williamstown Theatre, or Shakespeare & Company. I omit the rest of the current theatres because they didn’t exist at that time.

To me, the Berkshires is over with the final wave of the conductor’s baton at Tanglewood’s perennial finale; Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, complete with five soloists, the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, and full Boston Symphony Orchestra, all beneath the giant white, acoustically excellent shed. This year's epic performance will be Sunday, August 25, 2024.

The Gift of Music

Through the courtesy of Tanglewood, I recently gifted special friends something that could never be regifted: two tickets to “John Williams’ Film Night” to help them check an item off their Berkshire bucket-list. This specific concert is one of the venue’s top, fill-the-tent, crowd-the-lawn, best sellers. Even without Mr. Williams (unfortunately, ill and recovering from a hospital stay), the draw of movie music always makes for a winning concert.

Comments from my giftees were: the audience reacts to the conductors like they are rock stars, with their mere entrances on to the stage eliciting whoops of delight.The Lawn People are dedicated, many just hunker down in the pouring rain to enjoy the whole evening, layered up in raincoats, ponchos and bucket hats, with no discernible effect on their enthusiasm. Pops concerts automatically include multiple encores. Hmm? Why not include such well-known music in the program listing, especially when everyone knows that the encores are coming.

Violinist Midori

Mementos of the season

I’m a saver… program books and/or ticket stubs from every concert, play, dance, museum, festival, historic home, lecture, etc. since the 1960’s. They fill at least 5 large baskets. Admittedly, I don’t remember all of these events. Yet, among the standouts drumming in my memory include Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana” performed by the BSO and Chorus at Tanglewood.

As of this posting date, Tanglewood’s 2024 Summer is not over, with 25 music events still on its calendar: BSO concerts, Chamber Music, Rehearsals, Talks & Walks, Chorus. concerts, and the Boston Pops.

REVIEW: Sevenars Music Festival, "Junwen Liang"

The Academy, Worthington, MA

www.sevenars.org

August 4, 2024

by Michael J. Moran

Junwen Liang

In advance publicity for this concert, Sevenars called 29-year-old Chinese pianist Junwen Liang their 2024 “young artist to watch,” a prophecy that was richly fulfilled in his varied program of challenging repertoire by five diverse composers.

Perhaps his boldest stroke was starting with the program’s centerpiece, Franz Schubert’s 35-minute Sonata in C minor, D. 958, as the entire first half of the concert. This is the darkest of the composer’s last three piano sonatas, all written months before his death at age 31 in 1828, and now considered among his greatest masterpieces. Liang launched with swagger into a dramatic opening “Allegro;” his “Adagio” was calm but suffused with the sorrow that haunts much of Schubert’s music; the “Menuetto” was somber and graceful; the “Allegro” finale, relentless.    

The program’s second half began with sensitive readings of Claude Debussy’s 1907 “Images,” Book 2. A shimmering “Cloches a travers les feuilles” (“Bells through the leaves”) was exquisitely shaped; a probing “Et la lune descend sur le temple qui fut” (“And the moon descends on the temple that was”) evoked the sound Debussy loved of the Indonesian gamelan; a nimble “Poissons d’or” (“Golden fish”) sparkled playfully. Liang extended the impressionistic mood with a rhapsodic account of Chinese-Australian composer Wanghua Chu’s 2003 “Jasmine Flower Fantasia,” inspired by a Chinese folk tune. 

 

Shifting into a more virtuosic gear, Liang next offered a joyfully swinging take on Ukrainian-Australian composer Catherine Likhuta’s jazzlike 2001 “Rondo,” which recalled the infectious jazz-based style of her fellow Ukrainian Nikolai Kapustin. But it was Franz Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12 which brought out the full-blown musical showman in Liang. As he unerringly found his groove through the piece’s contrasting moods and abrupt tempo changes, it was hard to imagine that even the legendary Liszt could have wowed his audiences with greater technical finesse on his European concert tours.

Nor could Liszt have been more dazzling than Liang was in performing as his encore what has been called Frederic Chopin’s most difficult work, his Etude, Op. 25, No. 6. With an engaging stage presence, helpful spoken introductions to the music, and confident programming skills, Junwen Liang is ready for a major career.

Sevenars continues on Sundays at 4 pm through August 18th.

REVIEW: Tanglewood, "Milos/Wang/Les Arts Florissants"

Tanglewood, Ozawa Hall, Lenox, MA

www.bso.org/tanglewood

July 10, 17, & 18, 2024

by Michael J. Moran

Every summer Tanglewood’s Ozawa Hall hosts world-class artists in many genres from across the globe. Three recent concerts showcased the wide range of attractions in this intimate venue.

Milos Karadaglic

The primary focus of Montenegrin guitarist Milos Karadaglic’s program was music from the Baroque era. Known professionally by only his first name, Milos brought tenderness and virtuosity to sensitive transcriptions by himself and others of pieces by Sylvius Leopold Weiss, Francois Couperin, and Domenico Scarlatti. But the standout performance was his moving interpretation of the towering 15-minute “Chaconne” from Johann Sebastian Bach’s second partita for solo violin in his own transcription for guitar. An elegant encore of Harold Arlen’s “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” arranged by himself and Toru Takemitsu, revealed a more delicate side of his charismatic artistry.

A week later, superstar Beijing-born pianist Yuja Wang astounded an overflow audience (some seated on the stage) with her mastery of typically challenging repertoire. A set of preludes and fugues by Dmitri Shostakovich was alternately brilliant and austere. Her powerful reading of Samuel Barber’s piano sonata mixed spiky harmonies with hushed serenity. Wang’s thrilling renditions of Frederic Chopin’s four ballades were emotionally intense and beautifully shaped. Famous for playing multiple encores, she obliged her enthusiastic fans with no fewer than five of them, from a flowing Philip Glass Etude No. 6 to a knuckle-busting Feinberg-Wang transcription of the Scherzo movement from Tchaikovsky’s “Pathetique” symphony.       

The next evening, French-based early music ensemble Les Arts Florissants (“The Flowering Arts”), founded and led by Brooklyn native William Christie, presented an eclectically entertaining version of English composer Henry Purcell’s 1692 opera “The Fairy Queen,” based loosely on Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” A period orchestra of 24 players was accompanied by eight singers and six dancers from around the world. Mourad Merzouki’s dazzling choreography mixed classical with modern breakdancing styles. The dramatic and comic acting skills of both singers and dancers, and their continuous interaction on stage, produced often breathtaking results in this timelessly enchanting production.  

Future Ozawa Hall programs include: pianist Paul Lewis, with the Boston Symphony Chamber Players; pianist Kirill Gerstein, with violinist Joshua Bell and cellist Steven Isserlis; and violinist Leonidas Kavakos, with pianist Daniil Trifonov.

REVIEW: Tanglewood, "Festival of Contemporary Music"

Ozawa Hall, Tanglewood, Lenox, MA

www.bso.org/tanglewood

July 25-29, 2024

by Michael J. Moran

Co-curators Tania Leon and Steven Mackey focused their selection of music for Tanglewood’s 60th annual Festival of Contemporary Music on the theme of “personal and public storytelling” by “the astonishing variety of musical voices active in the U.S.,” including their own. Three of the six FCM programs, performed mostly by Tanglewood Music Center fellows, illustrated their success in achieving this goal.

Zhaoyuan Qin

Thursday’s opening concert presented music for mixed ensembles by seven composers, starting with Leila Adu-Gilmore’s astonishing “United Underdog,” a loose variation for solo piano on “America the Beautiful,” performed with staggering virtuosity by Zhaoyuan Qin. Leon’s Cuban-inflected “Indigena” (“Indigenous”) featured sensational solos by trumpeter Michail Thompson. Trevor Weston’s ethereal “A.N.S. (A New Sound)” was sensitively played by flutist Elizabeth McCormack and marimbist Soojin Kang. Protean singing by mezzo-soprano Carmen Edano of touching poems by Nathaniel Bellows, accompanied by four nimble percussionists (Jack Rutledge, Matthew A. West, Jeremy D. Sreejayan, and Michael Rogers) playing 25 instruments, captured the fearless energy of Mackey’s rock-based “Afterlife.”

Friday’s concert followed a similar pattern of music by five composers for small instrumental groups. Standouts included: jazz pianist Vijay Iyer’s cross-genre “The Law of Returns” for piano quartet, which includes some improvised passages, and whose title denotes reinforcing interaction between performers and audience; and Niloufar Nourbakhsh’s stunning “Aid for Sex,” inspired by 2018 reports of sexual exploitation by UN aid distributors in war-torn Syria. 

Monday’s closing concert was performed by the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra. TMC conducting fellow Ross Jamie Collins led cogent accounts of Ellen Taaffe Zwilich’s declamatory curtain-raiser “Celebration” and Leon’s dazzling tribute to her Afro-Cuban ancestors, “Ser” (“Being”). TMC conducting fellow Na’Zir McFadden directed a vibrant take on T. J. Anderson’s challenging “Squares,” a dense collage of gospel, bop, and avant-garde classical traditions.

Orli Shaham & Stefan Asbury

Stefan Asbury, head of the TMC conducting program, took the podium for electrifying
renditions of the program’s two highlights. Mackey wrote his 2011 “Stumble to Grace” piano concerto for soloist Orli Shaham, who displayed a deep mastery of its technical and interpretive demands. She, Asbury, and the TMCO found infectious fun in its five “stages” of a child’s growing up and uninhibited joy in the exhilarating final fugue. Leon’s kaleidoscopic “Pasajes” (“Passages”) combined sharply contrasting sonorities from all sections of the orchestra to end the concert and the entire FCM on what felt like a note of all-embracing love. 

Many FCM composers were present at these concerts. Their frequent bows to enthusiastic audiences reinforced the power of classical music as a living art form. The composers’ thanks to the accomplished young performers will be priceless milestones in their brilliant musical careers.

ON THE ROAD: The Mount, Lots of Talking in the Berkshires 2024

The Mount, Lenox, MA

www.edithwharton.org 

by Shera Cohen

Nearly every performing and visual arts venue in the Berkshires provides the opportunity tolearn about the particular genre’s history, techniques, and personal stories. For me, this was the “Summer of Talks”. I felt, and still do, that I had to spend most of my awake vacation hours watching the part of the art with physical movement: dance, music, theatre. I’ve learned that I can appreciate even more.

Summer Lecture Series

In its 30-years, the Mount (home of prolific author Edith Wharton) has hosted its Summer Lecture Series. On average, one author speaks on his/her book, twice each week. All lectures include Q&A.

With attendance bursting the proverbial seams of the original Barn venue, the series has moved to the grounds under a huge tent. 

Authors of fiction or nonfiction discuss the writing process, research, publishing, and other aspects of making the piece complete.

Oftentimes, the books’ focus is on historical figures. Upcoming are authors: Jonathan Eig, Deborah Cohen, Charlotte Gray, and Brenda Wineapple.

Masters Series

In its second year, author Andre Bernard, former VP of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, interviews well-known, much-published authors.

My latest “to do list” now includes reading any Lauren Groff novel. This prolific, young writer juggles writing  at least three books at a time. Groff’s most recent, “The Vaster Wilds,” has consistently received excellent reviews since published in 2023.

This series is an introduction to authors who are favorites of Bernard. I suspect that Groff’s works are as fascinating, colloquial, and unflinching as her personality. Without going into particulars, Groff was not afraid to step on toes in her not-so-subtle comments on the banning of books.

Next up in the series: Rosanne Cash’s “Composed,” Jonathan Alter’s “His Very Best: Jimmy Carter, a Life,” and Michael Pollan’s “This Is Your Mind on  Plants”.

Wharton Revisited Series

For over a century, authors, performers, and artists have been drawn to Edith Wharton’s writing. This latest series of talks explores recent adaptations on the page and for the stage.

The opening talk, titled “The Shadow of a Doubt,” discussed the long-lost, hidden away Wharton play of the same name, written in 1901 and discovered by two scholars in 2016. Director Peter Hinton-Davis and designer HAUI explained the concerns, complexities, and character development in mounting the world premiere at the Shaw Festival in Canada. The audience heard about every nuance and detail of behind-the-scenes work to make this Wharton-penned play into an ultimate production.

Future speakers are: Joan Ross Sorkin, Mariah Fredericks.

It certainly makes sense that Wharton’s home has become the venue for discussions on authors.

ON THE ROAD: Some of my favorite things & other stuff in the Berkshires

by Shera Cohen

Gift Shops, everywhere – Years ago, I wrote an article on performing art, museum, and historic home gift shops. Why? Because I am a souvenir store fanatic. My mug collection can no longer fit in my kitchen. But everyone sells mugs. Unique in variety, quantity, and themes related to the particular venue are: The Mount’s Book/Gift Shoppe, Tanglewood’s Glass House, and Ventfort Hall’s Parlor of period items.

Jacob’s Pillow Visitors Center, Becket – There’s more to the Pillow than dance. Guests can enjoy art shows, videos, talks, displays, and one-shot seminars all free. Films and photos about the Pillow’s founding as well as snippets of dance to take the stage in upcoming weeks are always on display. Suggestion --  arrive early.

Museum Outlets, Pittsfield – Around the corner from Berkshire Museum is this attractive store aesthetically jam-packed with mid-range and unique chachka. It never fails that I don’t purchase a gift for someone and a gift for myself. The store’s primary business is framing book binding images of antique novels. 

Signage, everywhere – Realizing that a huge percentage of Berkshire art lovers reside elsewhere and realizing that the Berkshires is not just one dot on a map (do they still make maps?) but large in geographic land mass, it would be extremely helpful to see more signage. I don’t mean highway signs and arrows, but location markers once near or at the venue. Great Barrington Public Theatre, located on a college campus, is a tough site to navigate.

St. Francis Church Gallery, Lee – I would change the name of this art show/gallery to one less clerical. Yes, the location is an old church, but a whimsical metal sculpture of Jack Benny at the violin stands by the front door. Nearly three-quarters of the art is that of local professionals. The balance are artifacts from Kenya. Annually, the gallery’s owner travels to African to help educate and promote the talents of young people in pursuit of expressing their artforms. Eclectic best describes this venue.

Rehearsals, Tanglewood, Lenox – What once seemed like a secret, has become the best secret that everyone knows – Tanglewood’s Saturday morning rehearsals. Tix are far less expensive, dress is ultra-casual, lots of kids on the lawn, and sometimes the music unexpectedly stops. The reason is that the conductor, with his deft ear, needs to make changes during rehearsal so that the end product is perfection.

Shakespeare & Company’s Outdoor Theatres, and any other outdoor venues, Lenox – One of my least favorite things on the planet are mosquitos, although the Berkshires seems to have been taken over by gnats this year. Patrons at S&Co. tented plays must deal with the elements. As for me, my jewelry of choice are yellow twisty bracelets on each arm. I’m not sure if they are loaded with DEET, but it works. 

Ice Cream, everywhere – I once read that MA is one of the highest per capital ice cream devourers’ states. Seems odd, but apparently, we eat the treat in all seasons; even winter. Whether in a cone, a dish, as a sundae, or a drink, downtown Lee, Lenox, and Stockbridge have small stores selling locally churned ice cream. Yummy.

Explore these and more Berkshire destinations at: https://berkshires.org

REVIEW: Barrington Stage Company, "Happy 30th Anniversary and Boeing, Boeing"

Barrington Stage Company, Pittsfield, MA

www.barringtonstageco.org 

runs through August 3, 2024

by Shera Cohen

Life got in the way, and I offer sincere apologies to Barrington Stage Company (BSC) and to In the Spotlight’s readers for the lateness of this article/review of the amazing production of “Boeing, Boeing”.

I’d seen the movie decades ago, and disliked its slapstick shenanigans; it starred Jerry Lewis, of course. However, I had never seen “Boeing” as a play, not to mention produced by BSC, starring two of my favorite actors in the Berkshires and beyond.

Photo by David Dasheill

I have deemed myself co-president of the Mark H. Dold Fan Club. The actor is a master at drama and equally superb at comedy.

Debra Jo Rupp’s forte is getting the driest of laughs, milking optimum humor with every vocal nuance, facial expression, and even the minutia of opening a door.  

The plot is simple: bachelor in Paris juggles his romantic liaisons with the comings and goings of three airline hostesses (it’s the 1960’s). Neither lady knows about the other. What a surprise! Yet, simple it is not, as the script calls for tight, split-second timing by director Julianne Boyd, cast, and crew. Welcome back, if even for a moment, Ms. Boyd; retired founder of BSC.

Ol’ friend Robert (Dold) surprises Bernard (Christopher Innvar) with a visit. Thus begins an excellent example of the epitome of French farce at its most uproarious. I looked the term up for accuracy. What French farce is not is slapstick or broad humor solely for audience laughs. Moliere set the tone centuries ago. No wonder Moliere is one of my favorites. 

Some key elements of farce are physical acrobatics and clowning. Literally from the moment that nerd-like Robert enters the flat, the action begins. But Dold’s character isn’t just a man who acts geeky in the midst of the norm. Each character has his/her distinctness in a 60’s era that could have settled for stereotypes. It is Dold’s adeptness at playing the sympathetic dweeb in the midst of running around from room to room with doors opening, closing, opening again, that anchors the play.

A personal note: It was my pleasure to attend BSC’s plays in its premier year. The location was a high school in Great Barrington, MA. I believe that the stage was a rather messy basement level music room. I felt that this new theatre had potential, but launching a troupe at without the right venue, not to mention the all-important funding challenge would be tough.

Flash forward 30 years and my ego was sky-high when en route to the current home of BSC. But in the midst of miles and miles of open fields to find the location, we became lost. My philosophy is that reviewers must arrive on time, not leave early, and compose themselves.

Anyway, staff at BSC literally held the curtain for me. Me? I think I might have been the only reviewer at the time, or for that particular play. BSC has been gracious since Day 1, continuing to present quality theatre in the Berkshires. 

Three decades! Congratulations!