Open Stages (9/13/25)

Brooklyn Conservatory of Music

This was more of a "happening" (yes, I'm dating myself) than a concert per se. Open Stages is Brooklyn Conservatory of Music's way of bringing music to the people. This was a mini-street fair with musical performances on the stoop of a Brooklyn townhouse. There were hot dogs and hamburgers (free) with water/sodas/chips. There was a bouncy castle. There were soccer balls and skateboards. Oh, did I mention there were kids?

The MTA gave me convoluted directions, but I eventually found Rutland Road. Of course, I was early because I always build in time for getting lost. While eating my hot dog, I chit-chatted with a gal who flew in from San Diego to surprise her family because her grandchildren would be performing. Hi, Ellen!

Um, 'Meister, let's get to the concert? The afternoon started with a jazz trio—sax, electric guitar, drums—playing On the Sunny Side of the Street. After a brief equipment boo-boo, the trio played another jazzy number that I did not recognize, with a nice Latin flavor. After a third trio number, the drummer was replaced by a student drummer. I'm not good with ages, though he was probably about seven. He acquitted himself very well. A second guest drummer (nine?) replaced him and also did a great job. Then the drum teacher joined the second guest drummer for two drum duets.

Next on the program were two young cellists who are part of the Suzuki program at BCoM. I don't know a lot about the Suzuki method of string teaching, but it was interesting to see two different sized miniaturized cellos. Each cellist played two brief solos and then the two brothers played a duet. The cellists were my new friend Ellen's grandchildren.

Following that was a young lady playing the piano and singing It's a Better Place Since You Came Along. Indeed, with these programs for young music students it is a better place. And Ellen even pointed me to my beloved Q train for an easy ride home.

I got on the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music's mailing list after joining them for caroling in December 2024. There's a lot to explore out there.

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Orchestra of St. Luke's: A Sunset Celebration (9/3/25)

This was interesting. It took place in Bella Abzug Park, a place I'd never been to. The performers were from three generations: Youth Orchestra, Grad students from Mannes School of Music and Manhattan School of Music, and OSL players. I heard, in order, the grad school woodwind quintet, the OSL players brass quintet, and the youth orchestra.

The woodwind quintet consisted of flute, oboe, bassoon, French horn, and clarinet. Pay no attention to the fact that the flute is metal and so is the horn—just go with the flow. They played six pieces, but I don't know what they were. There was no running order for the event other than a QR code. I have no idea whether the QR code listed the pieces and composers. As most woodwind quintet pieces are bubbly to some extent, all six pieces were bubbly. The first piece was jolly though it also had a few subdued phrases. There was a good mix of phrases, a good mix of volumes, and a gentle ending. The second was bubbly while the third had subdued bubbling. The fourth had a calm opening and then the tempo picked up, quicker but not frantic. The fifth was in a slower, gentle tempo that was sort of a relaxed dance. The sixth opened with a brief bassoon solo, then it was quickly tutti (all five playing together), with relatively perky bubbling. I left early since the first set started at 4:00-ish, and the next group I wanted to hear started at 4:30.

Hello, brass quintet! The five here were French horn, trombone, tuba (the regular kind, not a Sousaphone), and two trumpets. The first piece sounded like a fanfare and was pretty modern. After they finished, it was announced that it was a fanfare written by Paul Dukas. My ear was pretty good. Some pieces were announced while some weren't. Next up was Puttin' on the Ritz. My notes say—pure fun! The third was a jazz tune that I didn't recognize, upbeat, with an almost ragtime feel. A Gershwin medley followed consisting of Fascinatin' Rhythm, Summertime, and I Got Rhythm. I was tempted to sing out like Merman but I restrained myself. West Side Story's Maria was next, and it opened with a horn/trombone duet, then tutti, then closed out with a lovely horn to finish. It was paired with Tonight—trumpet, horn, trombone to open, then tutti. It was fairly straightforward with a bright button ending. Not quite a medley, I Feel Pretty closed out the grouping in a bright and fun fashion. Mississippi Rag, written by William Krell, began with a short tuba solo and then they all joined in. It had a definite ragtime feel and format. Gershwin's Love Is Here to Stay was given a gentle treatment and arrangement, then going up tempo for the repeat, before returning to a gentle, jazzy ending. (Side note: I always thought the title was Our Love Is Here to Stay. Wikipedia disabused me of that. I also include this from Wikipedia as I found it interesting: "Love Is Here to Stay" was the last musical composition George Gershwin completed before his death on July 11, 1937. Ira Gershwin wrote the lyrics after George's death as a tribute to his brother. Originally titled "It's Here to Stay" and then "Our Love Is Here to Stay," the song was finally published as "Love Is Here to Stay.") Tiger Rag, by anonymous? it has a bit of a checkered history, was a fairly typical rag, bright and brisk. A Dixieland one-step closed out the set, with built-in humor in the arrangement—think slide trombone with the trumpets gettin' in on the slidin'.

The youth orchestra grouping began with two movements of a Mozart string quartet (with one of the mentors playing viola). In the outdoor setting, it was a little difficult to hear. The whole group played Bruno Mars (I think) followed by the first movement of Eine kleine Nachtmusik. I packed it in after that. But the afternoon/evening was a lot of fun, and Puttin' on the Ritz was my hands-down favorite.

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Broadway by the Boardwalk at Hudson River Park (8/11/25)

 Anthony Rapp and Adam Pascal

These two guys put on a great show and there was quite a crowd on hand for this final concert in a summer series. Having the show Rent as part of each performer's history, it featured in parts of the program. Not having ever seen/heard Rent, some of that was lost on me. But they have performed this style of a set over the past several years and it came off very well Monday evening.

Without a printed program, I can't really tell you what songs were performed and which vocalist sang solo in the solos. The set opened with (I think) If It Makes You Happy. This was followed by a song from Spring Awakening (another show I've never seen/heard). The third incorporated "blah-blah-blah" (literally) and "totally fucked" as lyrics. The latter might actually be the title.

Some Rent trivia followed, with one of the guys saying that he always had a problem remembering the lyrics to One Song Glory. So, he taped the lyrics on orange poster cards to the top of a desk, and the blocking was created so that he could get back to the desk periodically. That worked fine when the show played Off Broadway, but when the show transferred to Broadway, the stage manager said that the orange cards could be seen from the balcony, so they had to go. I think he got all the lyrics right Monday night.

Next up was a Peter Gabriel song I didn't know, followed by a Radiohead song I didn't know. Four more songs I didn't know were next, a combination of solos and duets. One of the vocalists also played guitar, and backup included electric guitar and keyboard.

As announced from the stage (and their banter was very easygoing and easy to follow), Billy Joel's I've Loved These Days was next, then David Bowie's Starman.

Living in America followed, and the concert closed out with Seasons of Love (Five thousand-twenty-five ... even I sort-of knew that one!) [“Five Hundred Twenty Five Thousand Six Hundred”] and the crowd loved it. Am I glad I went? Yes. Was it my cup of tea? Not exactly. But it was a real joy seeing so many people enjoying live music. And the crowd knew a lot more of the songs than I did. Kudos to BrotherMeister for letting me know about the concert.

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Naumburg Orchestral Concerts (8/5/25)

ECCO: East Coast Chamber Orchestra

J.S. Bach/arr. Michi Wiancko (1685–1750)/(b. 1976), Chaconne, from Partita No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004, (1717–1720) 

George Gershwin (1898–1937), Lullaby for Strings, (1919)  

David Ludwig (b. 1974), Virtuosity – Five Microludes for a String Orchestra, (2013)** 
1. Concerto for Two Violins, 2. Concerto for Viola, 3. Concerto for Cello, 4. Concerto for Contrabass, 5. Concerto for Orchestra

Jennifer Higdon (b.1962), String, (2002) 

John Adams (b.1947), Shaker Loops, (1983)
1. Shaking and Trembling, 2. Hymning Slews, 3. Loops and Verses, 4. A Final Shaking

** commissioned by ECCO

The Bach started calmly for the most part, opening with a solid tutti (all of the fourteen string players) though later there were sections where smaller groups were featured. There was a nice mix of volumes, tempi, and rhythms. [Barking dog! This dog had been rambunctious leading up to the concert, so much so that another patron who was already there with her dog decided to give up her seat and move somewhere else. Bad form. The human, not the rambunctious dog.] 

The Gershwin was new to me and seemed fairly modern at the beginning, especially for Gershwin in 1919. It then settled into a gentle, rhythmic feel—restful indeed, with a slightly Latin flavor to it.  

The composer, David Serkin Ludwig, was at the concert and spoke before his piece was performed, including the fact that the movements sort of blended together. I’m glad he told us because I couldn’t tell where one left off and the next began. The first movement (featuring two violin soloists) was modern, with some dissonances but not harshly atonal. The second (viola) was brisk, almost frenetic, then gentler and calmer. The third went back to frantic and then slightly mournful (hello! it's a cello). The fourth movement (bass) had the bass providing strong rhythm before settling into a tune followed by more frantic sounds. At times, the bass was used for percussion and at times the writing sounded like very low growling. The fifth was brisk but not frantic and had a section where all five soloists played together before we had a full tutti again. There were some nice aural effects, for example, orchestral glissandos. During the applause, the composer came back onstage to join the orchestra for a bow. 

A note about some modern music. It’s not the cup of tea for some people. In fact, the audience was smaller by about one-fourth after the intermission. And some people left during the final two pieces on the program. 

The Higdon work had a pizzicato opening (plucked strings, not bowed) and was bright, fun, and modern. Once again, there were dissonances but not overly harsh ones. It had driving rhythms leading to a button at the end. Yes, some more audience members left. 

The Adams was very modern, and I could not tell where any of the movements ended, except for the fourth, when the orchestra stopped playing. So, my notes are sort of stream of consciousness, since the names of the movements also didn’t really give much of a clue to what I should be listening for. The piece started with quick back-and-forth bowing that stretched on quite a bit. The volume varied from time to time. Then it was quieter for a bit. I’m not sure what it was trying to achieve nor whether it achieved it, and audience members were leaving with some regularity. I was tempted but I stayed. During a very pretty solo cello line four people sat down in the empty row in front of me—go figure. I don’t even remember how the piece ended, as I had stopped taking notes by then. 

The modern stuff was not exactly my cup of tea either, but I stayed all the way through. Would I hear any of the three modern pieces again? Maybe. But only if only one of them was on the program and there was something else on the program that I really wanted to hear. 

A note about the scores the musicians play from. More and more, they are not physical paper scores, they’re electronic (I’m assuming iPad, but I could be wrong). At one point, the first violin’s electronic device malfunctioned. She had to physically walk back two rows to see another violinist’s device in order to cue her own back up. I’d never seen that happen before. What a world.

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Naumburg Orchestral Concerts (7/22/25)

Nosky's Baroque Band
Aissslinn Nosky, Director & Violin Soloist

George Frideric Handel (1685–1759), Concerto Grosso in D major, Op. 6, No. 5, HWV 323, (1739) 1. Allegro, 2. Presto, 3. Largo, 4. Allegro, 5. Minuet 

George Frideric Handel (1685–1759), Sonata a 5 in B flat major, HWV 288, (1707) 1. Andante, 2. Adagio, 3. Allegro

Joseph Haydn (1732–1809), Concerto for Organ and Violin in F major, Hob. XVIII:6, (1766)  1. Allegro Moderato, 2. Largo, 3. Presto

Antonio Vivaldi (1678–1741), Concerto in D minor, Op. 3, No. 11, RV 565, (1711)
1. Allegro, 2. Adagio e Spiccato, 3. Allegro, Largo e Spiccato, 4. Allegro

Joseph Haydn (1732–1809), Violin Concerto in G major, Hob. VIIa:4, (1769)  1. Allegro Moderato, 2. Adagio, 3. Allegro Encore – Antonio Vivaldi (1678–1741), Concerto per Violino in Bb, RV 372a, (1716 to 1740) 1. Andante

The audience was quite large, probably because of the picture-perfect weather. The first movement of the Handel concerto grosso was a rather stately Allegro that got a little more energetic (but not too much) followed by a lightly brisk Presto (second movement). The third movement was calm, subdued, and almost haunting that led into a pseudo-segue fourth movement, a bright, cheerful Allegro that was a lot of fun. Fittingly, to match the first movement, there was a stately Minuet to finish.

After tuning, which happened often at the beginning of works, the Handel sonata had a solid opening, workmanlike, but not in a bad way. The second movement was also solid, almost-but-not-quite somber. The third was brisk and lively – a baroque version of off to the races, especially for the concertmaster (Ms. Nosky).

While the organ played in all of the pieces, it was prominent in the Haydn concerto. The first movement was cheerful, nicely featuring the organ and then the solo violin. It was a rather extensive movement, with a bit of an organ/violin cadenza. The second was gentle and calm, though still full bodied. There were fun violin and organ solos with the rest of the band providing pizzicato accompaniment, and there was another duet cadenza. My notes for the third were simple – bright, happy Haydn.

The Vivaldi concerto pitted two violins and one cello versus the rest of the band (I'm using band since the total number of players was ten). The first movement was almost perpetual motion, which is sort of a Vivaldi hallmark. Take a look at the names of movements two and three – I had to look up spiccato. Here's what Wikipedia has to say: spiccato [spik'ka:to] is a bowing technique for string instruments in which the bow appears to bounce lightly upon the string. The term comes from the past participle of the Italian verb spiccare, meaning "to separate". Now, back to the music. The second movement was slower but with a dance-like feel, while the third was still subdued, even though it was a bit quicker in tempo. It segued nicely into the fourth movement which was pleasant all the way around.

The second Haydn piece's first movement was bright, both in key and in tempo, a little lengthy (Haydn expanding the baroque?) including a violin cadenza that was more full than the others and not at the end of the movement. The second movement was slow and solid and really featured the solo violin, including another interior cadenza. The third was jaunty and fun, just the way this concert should have ended.

But wait, there's more! We got an encore. I didn't take any notes, as I had already started packing up. It was brief and enjoyable, and I think it's the first encore I've experienced at a Naumbug bandshell concert. 

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Naumburg Orchestral Concerts (7/8/25)

Orchestra of St. Luke's

Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847) String Symphony no. 10 in B minor, MWV N 10, (1823) 1. Adagio – Allegro – più presto 

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791), Divertimento in D major, K 136, (1772) 1. Allegro, 2. Andante, 3. Presto 

Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904), Serenade for Strings in E major, Op. 22, (1875) 1. Moderato, 2. Menuetto, 3. Scherzo, 4. Larghetto, 5. Finale

Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847) String Symphony No.12 in G minor, MWV N 12, (1823)
1. Fuga (Grave), 2. Andante, 3. Allegro molto – più allegro

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791), Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, K 525, (1787) 1. Allegro, 2. Romance: Andante, 3. Menuetto: Allegretto, 4. Finale: Rondo Allegro 

The program looked good on paper, and I was really looking forward the Dvořák.  It's a piece I danced to when I was in college, paired with a Tchaikovsky Serenade for Strings. (Oh, the things that are stuck in these old gray cells.) Alas, the weather did not cooperate. We heard the first Mendelssohn work and the first movement of the Mozart as well as a portion of the second movement.

Even though there were a few sprinkles, the concert began as scheduled. Sort of. The program listed above was not the order of the works in the printed program. The Naumburg website was updated, so I did a copy/paste.

The Mendelssohn began in a slightly foreboding way, neither dour nor dire, just pensive. A quick tempo change followed that was pleasant and upbeat. And then it was off to the races for the finish.

I'm not a key person per se (some people have visceral reactions to the key a piece is in), but after the B minor Mendelssohn, the D major Mozart was definitely bright from the get-go, bright and fun. The second movement was gentle and almost song-like. Then the rain came down harder. Then there was lightning, which is always a no-no. The concert was paused and then canceled. And I've still never heard the Dvořák live. I'll have to keep my eyes and ears on the lookout for other live performances.

Fortunately, the Naumburg concert on July 22 had perfect weather, so you'll hear more about that one later.

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Naumburg Orchestral Concerts (6/24/25)

 A Far Cry

A Far Cry is a Boston-based collective of musicians—there is no director, each musician has equal input. That's their story and I'm sticking with it.

The program:
Overture & Chorale (2020) – Andrea Casarrubios (b. 1988)

Say for String Orchestra, arr. Washington (2016) – Shelley Washington (b. 1991) 

“La Follia” Variations for String Orchestra (2011) – Francesco Geminiani (1687–1762) / Michi Wiancko (b. 1976) 

Metamorphosen (1945) – Richard Strauss (1864–1949)

It's interesting hearing new, or newer, music. Unfortunately, it's not easy knowing when to applaud. More about that later. The Casarrubios was scored for seven strings*. It had a lovely, subdued opening with three cellos, almost bordering on, but not quite getting to, somber. A short piece, it sort of left us in a lurch. [Yes, I led the applause.]

After tuning, we had the sing?/chant?/speak? features of Say for String Orchestra. There was body percussion. There were stomps/claps/singing/chanting/humming as well as actually playing the instruments. [I decided to not lead the applause. It took a little longer to begin.]

After tuning again, the Geminiani/Wiancko, with a larger group, had a fuller sound which I really liked. It was definitely my favorite piece on the first half of the concert. I also liked the shifting dynamics and tempi of the variations. The tapping of instruments (plus a tambourine), while welcome, tended to wear out the welcome.

With twenty-three strings, the Strauss was the closest we got to an orchestra. Not that there's anything wrong with that. The low strings, slightly ominous, turned a little more hopeful. But only a little. I wanted to be more moved by the work than I was. [I led the applause again.]

All in all, an enjoyable evening of music.

*plus chirping birds

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