more brilliance from A-ross May 2, 2008
Posted by Charles Noble in : appreciation/criticism, chamber music, composition, add a comment
Alex Ross, music writer for the New Yorker, who was Pulitzer shortlisted for his music history page-turner The Rest Is Noise, and blogger at the site of the same name, just wrote a review of the series presented at Carnegie Hall by the Brentano Quartet, which concerned the late works of a variety of composers.
How many classical music critics (or any other journalists for that matter) do you know who can regularly turn out such prose as this in the course of their beat?
Whatever it is that allows artists to maintain their powers of invention as they grow older, composers possess it more richly than most. Musical figures from Monteverdi to Messiaen have had careers that can be plotted as steadily rising curves. In old age, certain composers reach a state of terminal grace, in which even throwaway ideas give off a glow of inevitability, like wisps of cloud illumined at dusk
That’s seriously good stuff. Read the rest here.
new concert space debuts in KBPS benefit April 30, 2008
Posted by Charles Noble in : chamber music, fundraising, add a commentThe Museum of Contemporary Craft, at 724 NW Davis (the DeSoto building, on the North Park blocks), will make its debut as one of Portland’s newest concert venues in a benefit for KBPS’ “Permanent Home on Your Dial” campaign to secure its broadcast license in perpetuity.
The concert will feature Portland chamber music fixtures violist Joël Belgique, violinist Inés Voglar, pianist Cary Lewis, and cellist Dorothy Lewis.
They’ll present a very interesting concert of chamber music rarities, including a world premiere by composer and classical radio announcer Robert McBride of a new work for violin and piano. An arrangement of Borodin’s Polovetsian Dances for piano quartet will also be featured, as well as Enoch Arden, a melodrama by Richard Strauss, with KBPS announcer Edmund Stone narrating.
Tickets are $20 and are available in advance at Classical Millennium at 3144 E. Burnside, or at the door the evening of the performance.
To learn more about the Craft museum, take a look at this video:
wordless music in pdx April 17, 2008
Posted by Charles Noble in : News, chamber music, contemporary, music, popular music, 2commentsWordless Music, a group that promotes cross-pollination amongst popular and classical music genres (to put it rather grotesquely) is presenting two concerts in Portland this week, on Thursday (tonight) the 17th and Friday the 18th of April, with the Friday concert featuring the Portland contemporary music ensemble Third Angle.
Here is what they are about, in their own words:
The Wordless Music Series is devoted to the idea that the sound worlds of classical and contemporary instrumental music – in genres such as indie rock, free jazz, and electronic music – share more in common than conventional thinking might suggest. To illustrate the continuity between these worlds, the series will pair rock and electronic musicians in an intimate concert setting with more traditionally understood classical and chamber music performers. In so doing, the series will bring together audiences and introduce listeners of both classical and contemporary music to composers they might not otherwise encounter, for a completely new concert experience.
Sounds interesting, doesn’t it?
Here are the particulars, lifted from their press release:
On Thursday, April 17, Stars of the Lid will perform with a string quartet and projections, on a program opened by electronic composer and Ghostly recording artist Christopher Willits. Also appearing will be members of Portland’s Classical Revolution PDX, to perform Shostakovich’s String Quartet No. 8 in C minor and Arvo Pärt’s Spiegel im Spiegel for piano and viola.
The two-day kickoff event continues on Friday, April 18, at the Old Church, where Portland native and Wordless Music favorite Eluvium will make his second appearance for the series, on a program with local new-music ensemble Third Angle, which will perform chamber music by Chen Yi, Zoltan Kodály, and Portland composers Tomas Svoboda and David Schiff. Tickets to both inaugural Portland Wordless Music events can be purchased at brownpapertickets.com and local Jackpot Records stores.
mendelssohn April 5, 2008
Posted by Charles Noble in : chamber music, fundraising, music, add a commentLast night was the benefit concert at the Community Music Center for the Naomi Blumberg Fund for Chamber Music Education at the Community Music Center.
The first half was a wonderful performance of the Mendelssohn Trio for violin, cello and piano in c minor, Op. 66. It was given a wonderfully polished and emotional performance by CMC students Brandon Garbot, violin, Boris Popadiuk, cello, and Eloise Kim, piano. It was so nice to hear such young performers give such a poised and flexible performance of a great work from the piano trio literature.
Next came the Mendelssohn Octet, Op. 20, which was written when the composer was just 16 years old (just a year or two older than the young performers who played his piano trio on the first half!).
It was a delight to play this great piece with such a fine group of colleagues. Jun Iwasaki, our new concertmaster, led easily and clearly from the first violin chair, and handled its many hurdles quite nicely.
It was my first time to perform in a chamber group with Jun, as well as with cellist Adam Esbensen, who leaves after this season for the Boston Symphony, cellist Trevor Fitztpatrick and violinists Inés Voglar and Becky Anderson.
In spite of rehearsing from three different editions of the parts (I was constantly asking where we were in rehearsals) we were able to put together a convincing performance of the piece, and show the rewards of being good collaborators (which reaps many dividends in the orchestral ensemble as well).
It was great fun for everyone involved, and I learned (unofficially) that it was a very successful fundraiser for the endowment fund as well. I hope that it’s the first of many such collaborations.
jun iwasaki & friends concert tonight April 4, 2008
Posted by Charles Noble in : News, chamber music, fundraising, music, 1 comment so far
An exciting concert will be presented this evening to endow the Naomi Blumberg Endowment Fund for Chamber Music Education at the Community Music Center. The concert features OSO concertmaster Jun Iwasaki, OSO musicians, and CMC students and alumni in a full evening of chamber music.
The concert will feature the Mendelssohn Trio in c minor, Op. 66, and the Octet for strings, Op. 20.
Here’s a listing of the performers:
From the Oregon Symphony: Jun Iwasaki, Greg Ewer, Inés Voglar, Joël Belgique, Charles Noble, Trevor Fitzpatrick, and Adam Esbensen.
CMC Students and Alumni: Becky Anderson, Brandon Garbot, Boris Papadiuk and Eloise Kim.
Tickets are on sale at the door, come early as seating is limited.
Daniel Ott premiere in NYC March 29, 2008
Posted by Charles Noble in : chamber music, composition, music, 1 comment so far
Composer Daniel Ott
Friend and composer Daniel Ott, whose new work for string quartet, solo violin, and piano (á la Chausson) entitled Blue Water is being given its world premiere at the venerable Bargemusic concerts in New York City this weekend, deserves a shout-out from this blog. Way to go, Dan! (more…)
living with janacek March 27, 2008
Posted by Charles Noble in : appreciation/criticism, chamber music, music, 1 comment so farYesterday my quartet (the Arnica Quartet) played an early Mozart quartet (the G major, K. 157) and the great second string quartet of Leos Janacek, subtitled Intimate Letters. The concert was on a series presented by the OHSU Foundation, and took place in the acoustically and visually lovely OHSU Auditorium up on Marquam Hill.
The concert went very well, and was also well received (which is not always a guaranteed combination). It was also a fun concert to play.
While it might come as a surprise to many non-musicians, performing often not fun for a majority of the time for many of us. (more…)
thomas adés nytimes profile March 23, 2008
Posted by Charles Noble in : appreciation/criticism, chamber music, composition, music, recordings, the orchestra world, add a comment 
G. Paul Burnett/The New York Times
British composer phenom Thomas Adés (age 37) is presenting a concert of his music at Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall with the Birmingham Contemporary Music Group on Friday, March 29th. The New York Times’ Vivien Schweitzer writes this article about his background and ethos in today’s edition of the paper. Here are a few of my favorite observations from the article:
northwest horn orchestra March 13, 2008
Posted by Charles Noble in : chamber music, music, add a commentJen Harrison, free-lance horn player extraordinaire, sent out the following - sounds like a fun time:
THE NORTHWEST HORN ORCHESTRA TAKES THE STAGE
March 22nd @ 8pm at
The Old Church 1422 SW 11th, in downtown Portland.
Tickets at the door: $8 for adults/ $5 for students and seniors.
The Northwest Horn Orchestra is a revolving assembly of 16 French horn players from The Oregon Symphony, The Portland Opera, The Oregon Ballet Theatre, The Eugene Symphony, The Vancouver Symphony and The Columbia Symphony. They perform from a broad spectrum of styles starting from the instrument’s traditional classical sounds then branching out into jazz and even rock-n-roll using a full rhythm section. Along with a ridiculously entertaining rendition of Star Trek music, this show will include works by Mozart, Fauré, Freddie Mercury, and Led Zeppelin. Come prepared to be surprised.
fEARnoMUSIC concert tonight March 7, 2008
Posted by Charles Noble in : chamber music, composition, contemporary, music, add a commentIf you’re not set on what you’re going to do this Friday evening, why not go hear some spankin’ new music played to the hilt by some of the finest musicians around? (more…)
