Reviews

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Review

A Full Plate of Previn

Jason Victor Serinus - August 10, 2009
To celebrate André Previn's 80th birthday, Deutsche Grammophon has released André Previn: A Celebration, a six-CD set chock full of his recordings for the DG and Decca labels. Chosen by Previn, the performances highlight his accomplishments as both a conductor and composer of classical instrumental and vocal works.
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Review

Deeply Touched by Menahem Pressler

Jerry Kuderna - August 3, 2009
“We are looking for someone who will touch us deeply, in a way that we cannot forget.” These words, spoken by the pianist Menahem Pressler in a documentary about the Van Cliburn competition, came to mind while listening to his solo recital at this summer’s Music@Menlo Festival.
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Review

Seriously Mendelssohn

David Bratman - August 3, 2009
A cycle of the Mendelssohn string quartets: It sounds like a reasonable programming idea, yet it isn’t done very often. Felix Mendelssohn wrote seven full quartets, plus a small assortment of individual movements, just about the right amount of music for a set of three concerts.
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Review

Good Vibrations

Dan Leeson - July 28, 2009
Following what I had expected to be the preconcert lecture for the Music@Menlo evening presentation of "Midsummer Night Dreams," I found myself listening to an extravagant performance of the Dvořák Terzetto in C Major, followed by a breathtaking presentation of Brahms' Clarinet Trio in A Minor.
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Review

Mozart and a Master

Jerry Kuderna - July 27, 2009
It seemed fitting that the conclusion of the 35th season of the Berkeley-based Midsummer Mozart Festival, coinciding with the number of years of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s life, would include an early symphony from his youth in Salzburg and conclude with his last, the glorious, seemingly unsurpassable “Jupiter.”
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Review

Together? And How!

Jason Victor Serinus - July 27, 2009
Those of us who attended violinist Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg’s opening concert as music director and concertmaster of the New Century Chamber Orchestra (NCCO) can hardly forget her bracing and authoritative playing.
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Review

Betting on My Friend Fritz

Georgia Rowe - July 27, 2009
L’amico Fritz is one of opera’s neglected gems. As the follow-up to his hugely acclaimed Cavalleria rusticana, Pietro Mascagni’s 1891 commedia lirica never quite achieved the popularity of its predecessor. These days, with arts funding at a new low, productions of it are as rare as hen’s teeth.
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Review

Menlo Does a Must-Play Mendelssohn

David Bratman - July 27, 2009
In an ideal musical world, there would be a law: Whenever two string quartet ensembles collaborate on a concert, they must perform Felix Mendelssohn’s Octet for Strings in E-flat, Op. 20. It’s that good a work. The St.
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Review

Bach as a Springboard in Carmel

Scott MacClelland - July 27, 2009
Festival namesake Johann Sebastian Bach constitutes roughly 18 percent of the current Carmel Bach Festival’s total programs, now spanning just over two weeks, down from three weeks over the last several years.
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Review

Pianistic Pictures Trump Diva in Napa

Janos Gereben - July 27, 2009

The Festival del Sole concert Thursday in Napa’s Castello di Amorosa was an exception to the conventional structure of a concert. It consisted of two unrelated sections, each featuring a big star, and felt like two separate musical events. The two featured performers could not have been more different, not that there is anything wrong with that, but the concert was indeed unusual.