CBF Chamber Concert: “Le Mozart Noir” in Paris

by Heidi Van der Veer
August 8, 2017

Portrait c. 1787 of composer Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges (1745-1799), dubbed “Le Mozart Noir”

On July 21 the Carmel Bach Festival Chamber Concert, Mozart in Paris at 2:30 pm at All Saints Church, introduced many of us to an intriguing classical composer about whom we had never heard, known as Le Mozart Noir. From the program notes written by Allan Whear, found on page 170 of the 2017 CBF program book, “Saint-Georges is without a doubt one of the most fascinating characters in music history, worthy of a romantic novel or Hollywood screenplay. Born on the Caribbean Island of Guadeloupe, he was the son of a Senegalese slave [Nanon], and a French plantation owner. His father, *George Bologne de Saint-Georges, became wealthy raising sugar cane in the New World, and returned to Paris [with his son and Nanon] to become a minor aristocrat.” Saint-Georges was brought up as a gentleman in Paris and received musical training in violin and composition.As a young man, he led orchestras, published a body of instrumental and vocal works, and premiered his own compositions while becoming quite well-known in musical and aristocratic circles. “He also excelled at fencing, becoming known as the finest swordsman in France.” The most famous image of Saint-Georges is a dashing portrait of the composer portrayed with a sword, painted in 1787 by Mather Brown. Read full story →

Archived in these categories: Baroque, Chamber music, Classical Era

Deutsche Marks — German Virtuosity at Menlo

by Dr. Gary Lemco
July 23, 2017

The Saturday July 22 Concert Program III at [email protected], “German Virtuosity,” transported the Italian violin tradition from Cremona northward, as deftly demonstrated in five elegantly performed works at the Menlo-Atherton’s Center for Performing Arts. Works by Rode, Beethoven, Spohr, David, and Mendelssohn graced a felicitous program that took Beethoven’s last sonata as a point of departure for the violin’s emergence into a burgeoning Romantic tradition in which the instrument would soar in expressive range and scale. Read full story →

Archived in these categories: Chamber music, Classical Era, Romantic Era

Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony Ends CBF First Week

by Lyn Bronson
July 22, 2017

The first week of Carmel Bach Festival 2017 ended not with a whimper, but with a bang, and quite a big bang at that. With three masterpieces on the program and seemingly a cast of thousands on stage, we were hearing the Carmel Bach Festival at its best.

In the pre-concert lecture David Gordon described the circumstances of the premier of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony on May 7, 1824. It was by any standard a near disaster — hastily thrown together, under rehearsed and a bitter experience for Beethoven, not only because of his deafness, but also as a drain on his finances at a time in his life when he was most vulnerable. Read full story →

Archived in these categories: Carmel Bach Festival, Choral, Classical Era, Orchestral

Carmel Bach Festival — “A Night in Vienna”

by Lyn Bronson
July 18, 2017

We hear grumbles from a few people who are saying, “This is the Carmel Bach Festival? But where’s the Bach? Where’s the Baroque?” And it is true that during the current festival, some of the main evening programs are completely devoid of any works by Bach. It’s time to face up to it. The Carmel Bach Festival is continuing to evolve in new directions, and this has been happening for a long time. Although some CBF programming features Bach’s influence among subsequent composers from the 19th to the 21st centuries, we are also hearing programs that are just plain fun. Such a program we heard last night at Sunset Center — “An Evening in Vienna, led by CBF Concertmaster Peter Hanson.” Read full story →

Archived in these categories: Carmel Bach Festival, Classical Era, Orchestral

Santa Cruz Symphony — Pianist Yuja Wang Returns

by Joe Sekon, D.M.A.
June 26, 2017

  

Faithful supporters of the Santa Cruz Symphony under the direction of Music Director Daniel Stewart were treated to rare, innovative programming, in a special sixth concert of its 2016-2017 season featuring Yuja Wang — certainly one of the most sought after pianists in the world. In her first performance with the Santa Cruz Symphony in February at Civic Center and Mello Center Wang created a sensation performing the Concerto No. 5 by Prokofiev and Concerto No. 2 by Johannes Brahms. Subsequently. it was Yuja Wang who having enjoyed her first Santa Cruz appearances who suggested this special return engagement.  Read full story →

Archived in these categories: Classical Era, Orchestral, Piano, Romantic Era, String quartet