Mitsuko Uchida - Cal Performances at Home Free Stream: Mahler Chamber Orchestra and Mitsuko Uchida (calperformances.org) Click here to watch Arguably the greatest Mozart pianist of our time, Mitsuko Uchida and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra (concertmaster Mark Steinberg), perform a program that draws a line from Henry Purcell’s uniquely English form of Baroque music to Mozart’s Viennese masterworks. Playing and conducting from the keyboard, Uchida takes on a monumental programme of mostly Mozart but also Purcell and Bach. Uchida is a revered figure of the concert stage—who gained renown early in her career for her complete recorded cycles of Mozart’s concertos and sonatas. This program features two concertos composed in the winter of 1785–86, when Mozart was at the height of his genius: the A major concerto is best known for its magnificent slow movement; the C minor concerto for its bold inventiveness. Rounding out the program, the strings of the MCO are featured in a selection of fantasias by Purcell, brilliant compositions that cap an uncommonly fertile era of viol consort music. The programme includes Mozart’s Piano Concerto in A major, K. 488, Purcell’s Four Fantasias (arr. string orchestra), Mozart’s Piano Concerto in C minor, K. 491, and, as an encore, Bach’s Sarabande from French Suite in G major, BWV816. Unmissable. June 16-22 Dream of the Red Chamber - San Francisco Opera Click here to watch Bright Sheng and David Henry Hwang’s Dream of the Red Chamber, the musical retelling of the 18th-century novel by Cao Xueqin, one of China’s literary masterworks, played to sold-out audiences during its world premiere run at San Francisco Opera in 2016. It now returns to San Francisco Opera with a new cast in the original production by director Stan Lai, with sets and costumes by Academy Award-winning production designer Tim Yip and lighting design by Gary Marder. The opera, sung in English, was rapturously received at its premiere. Playwright David Henry Hwang worked closely with Sheng on the work’s libretto, creating a three-hour opera from a vast literary epic. The opera centers on the couple Bao Yu and Dai Yu, performed by South Korean tenor Konu Kim and Chinese soprano Meigui Zhang, debuting Chinese mezzo-soprano Hongni Wu is Bao Chai, the heiress who is to marry Bao Yu, creating a love triangle that threatens the illustrious Jia family. Singaporean conductor Darrell Ang joins the Company for the first time to conduct the San Francisco Opera Orchestra and Chorus. Livestream is on June 19 at 2 pm PT and then available on demand until June 22. The Gulf Stream and the Atlantic World - Met Museum of Art YouTube Click here to watch When I was in New York recently I spent a fascinating day at Winslow Homer:Crosscurrents, the monumental exhibition of paintings by an American painter whose work I knew only slightly. Now the Met is offering a free lecture on one of Homer’s most recognisable paintings and its wider implications, by a number of significant scholars. Join these scholars and artists for a discussion of Winslow Homer's most famous painting - The Gulf Stream - and its intersecting themes of race, politics, and environment in the context of the Atlantic world. These experts include Ada Ferrer, Julius Silver Professor of History and Latin American History, New York University, Bernard Ferguson, poet and essayist, Hugh Hayden, artist, Stephanie Herdrich, Associate Curator of American Painting and Sculpture, The American Wing, The Met and Sylvia Yount, Lawrence A. Fleischman Curator in Charge, The American Wing, The Met This programme is pre-recorded and can be viewed on YouTube from June 22 at 6pm ET Michelle DeYoung - Aspen Music Festival Click here to watch The last of Aspen’s virtual concerts will be screened this week, just before their great live summer Music Festival begins. Throughout the pandemic regular Aspen musicians have kept us going with some lovely free recitals and I, for one, am very grateful. This one, on June 14 and then available for three days following the initial stream, comes from the mezzo Michelle DeYoung and pianist Jeremy Reger. June 14 6pm Mountain Time and then available for three days at AMFS Virtual Stage Jacob’s Pillow 90th Anniversary Gala Click here for tickets This is a live stream presentation of the 90th Anniversary Gala performance - a one-night-only programme to support Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival. Live stream access will only be available on June 18 from 6:30-8:00pm ET. $35. $10 per live stream ticket will be donated to the Youth America Grand Prix’s Hotline to Help Ukrainian Dancers. The Chinese Lady – Timeline Theatre Company Click here for tickets The Chinese Lady, the story of Afong Moy, the first Chinese woman to arrive in the United States in 1834, unearths hidden history with humor and insight, asking us to explore the way we consider both ourselves and others. The New York Times said of this Chicago production, “We look at Afong and see whole centuries of American history. She’s no longer the Chinese lady. She is us.” Starring Mi Kang and Glenn Obrero, Lloyd’s Suh’s play is directed by Helen Young. This production is available with either English captions or Chinese subtitles. Both languages available with purchase of a one time viewing, on demand June 7-19 $34.95 Atonal Music – Merle Hazard Click to watch This is one of the funniest musical jokes I’ve seen in years, sent to me by two classical music friends. This is NOT Merle Haggard but Merle Hazard who is well known in the US for his musical spoofs. Many of his songs are about politics, this one is just about music and it’s terrific.
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AuthorRuth Leon is a writer and critic specialising in music and theatre. Archives
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