The New York City Opera’s John Zorn’s Masada Marathon happening tomorrow inspired me to share this video.

The NYC Opera will have 12 different ensembles playing his 316 Masada pieces.

These compositions by the avant-garde multi-instrumentalist feature some of the most lyrical and heavily jewish influenced music he has written throughout his career.

But, is this still Jazz? The truth is, it doesn’t really matter does it?

Even Zorn stated:

“The term ‘jazz’, per se, is meaningless to me in a certain way. Musicians don’t think in terms of boxes. I know what jazz music is. I studied it. I love it. But when I sit down and make music, a lot of things come together. And sometimes it falls a little bit toward the classical side, sometimes it falls a little bit towards the jazz, sometimes it falls toward rock, sometimes it doesn’t fall anywhere, it’s just floating in limbo. But no matter which way it falls, it’s always a little bit of a freak. It doesn’t really belong anywhere. It’s something unique, it’s something different, it’s something out of my heart. It’s not connected with those traditions.”

Zorn has certainly been unique in his compositions and playing style, which has not only made him a recipient of multiple awards and grants (including the MacArthur “Genius” Grant) but also an indisputable authority in contemporary music.

Igor Stravinsky at a grand piano.

Signature picture by Arnold Newman

Maestro Pierre Boulez conducting a rehearsal of his Notations I-IV (for orchestra) with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.

One of the greatest musical minds of our time, and a prodigious ear.

exceededharmony:

Igor Stravinsky’s evolution of western classical music in drawings.

Michael Brecker - Naima

Pure Genius.

Chicago Symphony Conductor, Riccardo Muti, receives the Birgit Nilsson Award for outstanding contributions in opera and concert music.

“Maestro Muti is being recognized for his extraordinary contributions in opera and concert, as well as his enormous influence in the music world both on and off the stage,” the jury said in the citation.

The award, consisting of a $1 Million dollar prize, sparked controversy because it was awarded to one of the few musicians who already belong to the elite circle of “millionaire batons.”

Former prize recipient, singer/conductor Placido Domingo, stated that the money given to him would be used to fund his annual singers competition Operalia.

Today I saw a post by one of my FB friends saying,

“Of all the Home Towns I’ve known in my life, Chicago has to be the music capital!”

I myself have never lived in Chicago, but I used to live in Boston and then moved to New York. And, as a Jazz Composer and avid contemporary “classical” music advocate, I can say that I got to know the Music Scene in those two cities pretty well.

So my question is: Does Chicago really beat New York?

One thing is for sure, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra has been consistently rated higher than the NYPhil, the MetOpera Orchestra and even the Boston Symphony Orchestra by the BBC Music Magazine. Also, Chicago’s Blues Scene is much more genuine (needless to say, larger) than that of New York. But, can Chicago’s Jazz Clubs really beat The Village Vanguard, The Blue Note, Dizzy’s, Smalls, Birdland, Iridium, etc, etc?

What do you think? Please advice…

Composer Gunther Schuller, who has secured his place in american history thanks to his compositions and pedagogical career at the New England Conservatory is still pushing the envelope at age 85.

Schuller, originally a french horn player, started playing professionally with mayor symphony orchestras since he was 15 years old. A couple of years later he was already playing with the Cincinnati Symphony and the Metropolitan Orchestra and under the baton of every mayor conductor (including Toscanini and Karajan).

His career has spanned from contemporary works for symphony orchestras, to pieces incorporating the Jazz idiom and even the creation of the Third Stream.

He continues to write for mayor symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony, for whom he wrote the piece When the World Ends.

Now, he prepares to premier and conduct his latest composition, a Tuba Concerto originally commissioned by the late tuba titan Harvey Phillips. The selected ensemble will be the Boston University Symphony Orchestra along with soloist Mike Roylance (principal tuba player for the BSO).

In an article by Boston Globe’s David Weininger titled “Concerto moves the tuba front and center,” Roylance not only said he had to practically “relearn how to play [his] instrument,” but also that is was “the hardest thing [he had] ever played.”

Event details HERE

Two weeks ago NY Times music critic, Anthony Tommasini, took on what he himself called a rather futile attempt at ranking the Top classical composers. But, I agree with him completely in that the interesting part of this ‘exercise’ was the journey in itself and not the final list. With that said, I have to point out that I was astounded by two of Mr. Tommasini’s choices for the Top 10 List. The final ranking was revealed two days ago:

1. Bach
2. Beethoven
3. Mozart
4. Schubert
5. Debussy
6. Stravinsky
7. Brahms
8. Verdi
9. Wagner
10. Bartók

It’s an incredibly strong list that’s for sure, but his reasons for leaving out Haydn and Liszt were not entirely convincing for me. He points out that Haydn’s legacy was carried over by the rest of the Viennese School (Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert) and that Schubert’s death has been the biggest loss in music because he died at 31 and he could have accomplished so much more, and he would have furthered his career, etc, etc. But, we can’t judge composers for what they could have been, but simply for what they were. Don’t get me wrong, Schubert is magnificent, but leaving out the father of the Classical period, the person who defined the Symphony, the quartet, the sonata, the person who is to thank for Mozart’s and Beethoven’s motivic development technique, and putting Schubert in his place instead is just preposterous to me.

And also, leaving out Liszt?! If there was no Liszt there couldn’t have been a Wagner! Simply put, Tristan’s chord (one of the most famous passages of music) had already appeared in Liszt’s “Ich möchte hingehen”. I don’t mean we should take out Wagner, not at all, I just feel like Brahms doesn’t deserve Liszt’s spot. Having said that, I should note that I enjoy Brahms’ music a lot more than Liszt’s and I have a tremendous appreciation for Brahms’ revolutionary ideas that influenced even modern composers like Schoenberg (see my previous post); but Liszt’s compositions completely changed piano writing, his playing continues to be praised above all, his symphonic poems led way to Strauss.

All in all, I think the articles don’t provide enough basis for the exclusion of these two major composers. (Then again, I understand this is not a musicology dissertation)

But his thoughts on Liszt are a bit mind boggling:

“Liszt? As a comprehensive musician (pianist, composer, conductor, major champion of composers like Wagner), Liszt was arguably the most influential figure of the 19th century. Still, there is nothing to do with his exhilaratingly virtuosic, wildly experimental, moody, restless and radical music other than to listen in wonder. But a top 10 composer? I don’t think so.”

Whaaaat?! The most influential figure of the 19th century and still not a Top 10 Composer? Beats me…

I’m not talking about things like “Oh, without Palestrina there would be no Messiaen because it would break the evolution of music and bla bla bla.” No, I’m talking about two major names in music history who created schools in their own right and were displaced without sufficient justification.

Finally, while reading the last couple of paragraphs in the article which unveiled the final list, I was pleased with the rationale behind placing Wagner below Verdi (although not very musically relevant, but I would have done the same). And, amid the anxiety of learning who the last position belonged to, my eyes unconsciously skipped forward and caught a glimpse of the name Puccini. I was completely petrified! But, kept on reading and was pleasantly relieved to see Bartók included in the list. Perfect choice!

Another qualm I have about Mr. Tommasini’s selection methodology is that he was at times too lenient with composers and his writing avoided excessive public confrontation. I was much more convinced (and amused) when reading his thoughts on Verdi naysayers:

“Verdi should not be blamed for his own popularity nor tainted by the excessive devotion of the most fanatical opera buffs. Those who dispute the sophistication of his craft don’t know what they’re talking about.”

In a nutshell, I’ll keep defending Haydn and Liszt over Schubert and Brahms. After all, the whole point of Top 10 Lists is to argue. In fact, in this 2 week period over 1,500 music fans commented and challenged the choices for the list. More than 1,500 active classical music fans…who woulda thought?!

After a tremendous trajectory and a copious repertoire which ranges from Mozart to Penderecki, violin virtuoso Anne-Sophie Mutter began her residency at the New York Philharmonic on November 14th with an all Beethoven program, followed by a Mozart and Rhim program on the 18-21st. The Beethoven program consisted of string trios played by Mutter along with two of the leading string authorities in the world, Yuri Bashmet (viola) and Lynn Harrell (cello).

She has played with every major orchestra in the world, worked and studied every major composer (whether it is classical or contemporary), and some believe she is at the very acme of her musical career; but I believe she is far from it. Not because she is not an incredible violinist but because she is only 47 years old…she’s already an institution when it comes to violin playing, but she has so many more years to show us how much a virtuoso can develop now a days.

Just as Itzhak Perlman was the Jascha Heifetz of the post-war era; Mutter has already made a name in the ‘classical’ world strong enough to replace Perlman even before his death. Now, one can only fantasize of the grandioseness of Mutter’s achievements in the near future. 

With a quintet that sounds like a blend of many different influences, Mary Halvorson creates sounds reminiscent of modern rock fusion, free jazz, and it even has a hint of that Charles Mingus small group flavor. But, her playing (emphasis on repeated notes, intricate lines full of leaps and raw tone) give this blend of influences a distinct sound which can be of one’s liking or not, but it is certainly worth a listen. 

The question is, Is she the next big thing in the NY Jazz Scene?

What do you think?

Remember Greg Hopkins?

Incredible Jazz Composition/Orchestration teacher and trumpet/flugelhorn player, he arranged and composed multiple tunes for Buddy Rich while serving as a section player and as a soloist with the band.

Those of you who (like me) studied under him will already know this video, but those of you who didn’t (or don’t know who he is) are in for a real treat. This is Greg, way back when he was playing with the Buddy Rich Orchestra. The warmth of his tone is definitely something to be noted, not to mention he is a master at harmonic/melodic considerations in improvisation.

Spain the Lighter in Boston - LIVE at Berklee College of Music’s “David Friend Recital Hall” this Thursday Nov. 4th, 7:30pm.

I have recently learned about this new group, based out of Boston, which is producing high energy flamenco Jazz music. These 4 multi-instrumentalists from Berklee College of Music (Juan Perez, Daniel Garcia, Mario Carrillo, and Jorge Perez) have taken upon themselves the herculean task of infiltrating the lines of the Flamenco/Jazz fusion artists…lucky for them, they have it in their blood.

Audio and video files from Spain the Lighter’s LIVE show will be posted shortly. In the meanwhile, I highly recommend that you invest a couple of minutes to listen to their music HERE. And yes, I do mean invest, because it is sure to pay back.

While reading former NYTimes music critic Harold Schonberg’s book “The Great Conductors” I came across Sir Thomas Beecham’s chapter, which was full of quotes which I thought were worth sharing.

Beecham came from an extremely wealthy family, in fact he was so rich that he was able to train in the conducting art with an orchestra he himself created…and paid for!

He was also of paramount importance in the creation of the London Symphony Orchestra in 1904, and later in 1944 he created the Royal Philharmonic.

The following quotes were taken directly from the book:

“The English people are not educated enough to appreciate opera. They are the most common-place, uncultured race in Europe.” - This made the newspaper headlines in 1916.

“Toscanini [is] a glorified Italian bandmaster.” ” Koussevitzky? I doubt if he can read a score at all.”

“He told Neville Cardus, the English critic, that violinist Bronislaw Huberman was “a very fine artist, penetrating, as you say. But as a violinist, he has a certain defect…he can’t play the violin.”

Beecham told an errant player during rehearsal, “We do not expect you to follow us all the time, but if you would have the goodness to keep in touch with us occasionally…”

During rehearsal, “At Figure 19, cymbals, a grand smash of your delightful instruments to help in the general welter of sound, if you please.”

To a trombonist during rehearsal, “Are you producing as much sound as possible from that quaint and antique drainage system which you are applying to your face?”

As the curtains went up on the opening night of Richard Strauss’ Elektra, the audience heard Beecham telling his orchestra, “The singers think they’re going to be heard, and I’m going to make jolly well certain that they are not!”

“A musicologist is a person who can read music but can’t hear it.”

Merely 2 seasons after being named Musical Director of the Boston Symphony, maestro James Levine took on the herculean task of pairing two of the most revolutionary musical minds (though a century and several stylistic periods apart from each other). Levine created the Beethoven-Schoenberg Project which allowed the listener (by hearing Beethoven and Schoenberg juxtaposed in several concerts) to notice how similarly ahead of their time these two composers were. Although it’s fairly easy to realize how progressive Beethoven’s ideas were - let alone Schoenberg’s - this marvelous project generated a substantial amount of criticism within Boston concert goers. Nevertheless, those of us who don’t reject Schoenberg’s music with crass phrases like “random noise” (I actually heard this outside Symphony Hall several times), had the opportunity to listen to Beethoven in a completely fresh, new context.

Now, israeli pianist Shai Wosner has just released a new recording that mimics Levine’s efforts with the BSO. Wosner does not merely establish a co-relation between two composers like Levine did, instead he pairs Schoenberg, again, with Brahms…the latter, a composer who was heavily criticized for being “the Classicist of the Romantics.” But, by pairing these two composers, Wosner pays homage to Schoenberg’s essay “Brahms: The Progressive” and shows the listener (just as Schoenberg did) the vast influence that Brahms had on his contemporaries - especially Schoenberg. A pairing that will assure the same outcome as it had for Beethoven’s music with the BSO, it will allow us to listen to Brahms as an exciting and revolutionary composer once again - deservedly so.

Anthony Tommasini gives a fascinating review in his article for the NY Times, linked in this post’s title, that is bound to drive most of us Brahms/Schoenberg lovers to purchase it - I know I already did!