RIP Charles Wuorinen (1938-2020)
American composer, conductor, and pianist Charles Wuorinen has passed away. Wuorinen was the first person to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for an electronic music work, Time’s Encomium. He was…
Jonathan Powell plays Sorabji (CD review)
Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji Sequentia Cyclica – Super Dies Irae ex Missa Pro Defunctis Jonathan Powell, piano Piano Classics PCL10206 (7 CD boxed set; digital) Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji (1892-1988) was the…
Two Recordings by David Felder (CD Review)
David Felder Jeu de Tarot Irvine Arditti, violin; Ensemble Signal, Brad Lubman, conductor; Arditti Quartet Coviello CD COV91913 David Felder Les Quatre Temps Cardinaux Laura Aikin, soprano; Ethan Hesrchenfeld, bass;…
Barbara Hannigan “La Passione” (CD Review)
La Passione La Passione Barbara Hannigan, soprano and conductor; Ludwig Orchestra Alpha Classics La Passione is soprano and conductor Barbara Hannigan’s second CD with Ludwig Orchestra. Their first collaboration, Girl…
Adés Conducts Adés (CD Review)
Adés Conducts Adés Kirill Gerstein, piano; Christianne Stotijn, mezzo-soprano; Mark Stone, baritone; Boston Symphony Orchestra, Thomas Adés, conductor Deutsche Grammophon CD/DL 4837998 Thomas Adés is in his third year as…
Live concert resources for a music-thirsty world
It’s a brave new world. Large gatherings are prohibited in many cities to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, and so nearly all concerts have been postponed or cancelled. Still,…
Kopatchinskaya and Hong perform Kurtág in Seattle
Few composers have embraced the Webernian aesthetic of brevity more closely than the Hungarian György Kurtág (b.1926). Starting with his earliest canonical work, the Op. 1 String Quartet (1959), he…
Separation Songs at Monk Space
On Tuesday, February 18, 2020, Brightwork newmusic presented the Los Angeles premiere of Separation Songs, by Matt Sargent. A 70-minute work for two string quartets, Separation Songs comprised the entire…
Terry and Gyan Riley at The Shannon Center
On Saturday, February 1, 2020 the Shannon Center for the Performing Arts at Whittier College staged a concert titled Terry Riley with Gyan Riley – Live at 85. Featuring one…
Ray-Kallay Duo @ Monk Space
On Tuesday, January 28, 2020 Tuesdays@Monk Space presented a concert titled 20/20 Visions which consisted of several new pieces for microtonal keyboards. Presented by Brightwork New Music, the concert featured…