T/classical-music

  1. When Musical Directions Don’t Say What to Do, but How to Be Arts, Yesterday

    What is the purpose of a poem, an illustration or a nonsensical phrase in a score? If it makes musicians stop and think, that’s a good start.

  2. Bard Music Festival: An Innovator in Exile Arts, August 10

    Bohuslav Martinu, a Czech composer who thrived on the artistic and scientific explosions of the 20th century, is the center of this summer’s programming.

  3. Brooklyn Rider Still Has More to Say With the String Quartet Arts, August 6

    The group is celebrating its 20th-anniversary season with a series of concerts that look back, one player says, “with a lot of forward motion.”

  4. The Record Label That Reset My Expectations for Classical Music Arts, August 5

    For 40 years, ECM New Series has been a product of its founder’s vision and an indispensable part of the recording landscape.

  5. Heather Cox Richardson Enters the History of ‘Lincoln Portrait’ Arts, August 4

    Cox Richardson, the historian behind the newsletter Letters From an American, discusses preparing for the narrator role in Aaron Copland’s piece.

  6. ‘Dalibor’ Review: A Gently Ravishing Score, an Awkward Plot Arts, August 3

    The director Jean-Romain Vesperini cleverly tied together the loose strands of Bedrich Smetana’s opera at Bard’s SummerScape festival.

  7. What to Do in New York City in August Arts, July 31

    Looking for something to do in New York? See what Taylor Tomlinson is up to, let a clowder of onscreen cats entertain you, or catch some recently restored silent-era gems.

  8. Gary Karr, Virtuoso Who Elevated the Double-Bass, Dies at 83 Arts, July 29

    He made the cumbersome bass soar, sing and leap, and became one of few bassists in history to successfully pursue a career outside an orchestra.

  9. At 93, John Williams Unveils His First Piano Concerto Arts, July 28

    Williams is best known for his grandly symphonic, Oscar-winning film scores. But his latest concert work is quieter, and more haunting.

  10. This Classical Pianist Has Reached the Mountaintop. No, Really. Arts, July 26

    The classical pianist Hunter Noack has embarked on an unusual journey, to take his music to natural landscapes well beyond the concert halls.

  11. ‘Billy Joel: And So It Goes:’ 5 Takeaways From the Film’s Conclusion Arts, July 26

    The HBO documentary about the singer and songwriter wrapped with a deep exploration of his tabloid troubles, creative process and decision to return to live performance.

  12. John Williams Hasn’t Stopped Composing. His Latest? A Piano Concerto. Arts, July 25

    Williams, best known for his film work, has a parallel career in classical music. His concerto, haunted by the ghosts of jazz past, is premiering at Tanglewood.

  13. A Puppet Theater Gets Weird, With Georg Baselitz as a Guide Arts, July 24

    At this year’s Salzburg Festival, the German artist has designed marionettes for a troupe that usually performs “The Sound of Music.”

  14. He Put Vivaldi ‘in a Mixmaster’ and Is Serious About Classical Humor Arts, July 24

    Michael Abels writes scores for Jordan Peele. He won a Pulitzer Prize for the opera “Omar.” Now, the Festival Orchestra of Lincoln Center shows off his classical side.

  15. The Circus Comes to Williamstown, With Celebrities and Beefcake Theater, July 24

    Pamela Anderson, Amber Heard and Tennessee Williams on ice are part of Jeremy O. Harris’s big tent at the famous summer festival.

  16. A ‘Tosca’ Shows the Boston Symphony’s Conductor at His Best Arts, July 21

    Andris Nelsons led a concert performance of Puccini’s opera at Tanglewood. It was a high point of the season.

  17. Italian Festival Cancels Appearance by Russian Conductor With Ties to Putin Arts, July 21

    Some lawmakers in Italy had argued that Valery Gergiev’s planned appearance sent the wrong message as Europe strives to remain united in its support for Ukraine.

  18. Jaap van Zweden’s Brief, Fraught Time Atop the New York Philharmonic Arts & Leisure, May 28

    He arrived on a mission to reshape the ensemble as its music director. Now, as he departs, he’s still making sense of his pandemic-interrupted tenure.

  19. Audience Snapshot: Four Years After Shutdown, a Mixed Recovery Culture, March 12

    Covid brought live performance to a halt. Now the audience for pop concerts and sporting events has roared back, while attendance on Broadway and at some major museums is still down.

  20. It’s Never Too Late to Find a New Career (a Mile Above Your Old One) Projects and Initiatives, March 12

    Patrick Milando, an accomplished French horn player, now splits his time between the orchestra pit and the cockpit, where he teaches budding pilots like he himself once was.

  21. Channeling the Pain of Chinese Immigrants, in Music and Verse Arts & Leisure, January 7

    “Angel Island,” an oratorio by Huang Ruo, brings to life the stark poetry of the people who were detained on the California island in the early 1900s.

  22. Raising Our Glasses to a Pianist Who Loves Vodka Metro, October 13

    Gary Graffman, who is turning 95, is a man of many enthusiasms, including citrus infusions.

  23. Audiences Are Coming Back to Orchestras After ‘Scary’ Sales Last Fall Culture, May 23

    “It seemed like a switch flipped right before Thanksgiving,” the leader of the Chicago Symphony said.

  24. The Met’s Efforts to Increase Ticket Sales for Operas Letters, December 30

    Readers praise plans for more contemporary works. Also: Zelensky and American values; protecting the minority; remote work; the Groucho exception.

  25. Onstage, It’s Finally Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas Again Culture, December 21

    After one holiday season lost to the pandemic and another curtailed by Omicron, seasonal staples including “The Nutcracker,” “A Christmas Carol” and “Messiah” are back in force.

  26. After Covid, Playing Trumpet Taught Me How to Breathe Again Magazine, November 29

    The benefits of group (music) therapy.

  27. In New York, Masks Will Not Be Required at the Opera or Ballet Culture, October 17

    Many arts groups, worried about alienating older patrons, have maintained strict rules. Now “the time has come to move on,” one leader said.

  28. Live Performance Is Back. But Audiences Have Been Slow to Return. Culture, August 21

    Attendance lagged in the comeback season, as the challenges posed by the coronavirus persisted. Presenters hope it was just a blip.

  29. Theater at Geffen Hall to Be Named for Two Key Donors Culture, August 3

    The Wu Tsai Theater will honor a $50 million gift from Joseph Tsai, a founder of the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, and Clara Wu Tsai, a philanthropist.

  30. San Antonio Symphony to Dissolve Amid Labor Dispute Culture, June 17

    The decision will make San Antonio the largest American city without a major orchestra.

  31. San Antonio Symphony to Dissolve Amid Labor Dispute Culture, June 17

    The decision will make San Antonio the largest American city without a major orchestra.

  32. Never Missing a Curtain This Season, the Met Opera Takes a Final Bow Culture, June 13

    As it ended a challenging pandemic return, the Met had one last marathon: a matinee, an evening performance, and then moving out as American Ballet Theater moved in.

  33. New York Philharmonic Agrees to Restore Pay for Musicians Culture, June 13

    After a stronger-than-expected season, the orchestra said it would reverse pay cuts imposed at the height of the pandemic.

  34. At the Met This Season, Opera Was Icing on the Cake Arts & Leisure, June 12

    Amid a labor battle, the continuing pandemic and war in Ukraine, it often felt as though the real drama was in simply putting on a show.