Oberon's Grove

Forgotten French Artists

Above: Une philosophe, by Jean Louis Ernest Meissonier, c.1878

Another wonderful article from Artsy: LINK

Qui tollis peccata mundi...

Agnus Dei ~ Verdi REQUIEM - Montserrat Caballe and Bianca Berini - NY 1980

Claudia Schreier's SOLITAIRE @ Vail

Above: New York City Ballet's Unity Phelan and Zachary Catazaro in the pas de deux from Claudia Schreier's SOLITAIRE; photo by Erin Baiano for the Vail International Dance Festival

SOLITAIRE, the newest ballet from choreographer Claudia Schreier, premiered at the Vail International Dance Festival on August 8th, 2016. The ballet was danced by Unity Phelan, Zachary Catazaro, Joseph Gordon (all of New York City Ballet) and Da'Von Doane (of Dance Theater of Harlem). The music, by Dmitri Shostakovich and Alfred Schnittke, was performed live by New York City Ballet's pianist deluxe Cameron Grant, and the Catalyst Quartet.

I'm so pleased to share this video recording by Nel Shelby Productions of this new ballet's world premiere performance: LINK

Erin Baiano photographed the premiere of SOLITAIRE, and here are some of her wonderful images:

Above: Unity Phelan, with Joseph Gordon and Da'Von Doane

Above: a pose from SOLITAIRE's first section

Above: Unity Phelan and Zachary Catazaro in the pas de deux

Above: ballerina Unity Phelan and choreographer Claudia Schreier take a bow following the premiere of SOLITAIRE, which drew a standing ovation from the Vail audience.

All production photos by Erin Baiano.

US Open Qualifiers 2016

Above: US Open ball-boys waiting for the first match of the day

Wednesday August 24th, 2016 - Last summer, I only made it out to the US Tennis Center for two days of the 2015 US Open Qualifying Tournament. This year, I was hoping to make it three days, but looking at the schedule for Tuesday it seemed that none of the players I am most interested in seeing were going to play til Wednesday, so I decided to skip the opener (despite perfect weather) and head out to Queens for day 2.

After a sluggish ride on the #7 train, I got to the Center with time to do a walkabout before my first match. Major changes have been made: the new Grandstand is ready for use, walkways have been widened, and the addition of more restrooms and drinking fountains will be a boon when the crowds pour in for the main tournament next week.

I couldn't have asked for a more enjoyable day of tennis than what today offered. Mercifully, there's been a lull in the recent heatwave, though temperatures will soon start creeping upwards again; hopefully last year's catastrophic Hell-like conditions at the Open won't be repeated. Honestly, I don't know how the players do it: especially on certain courts, the sun is utterly merciless and there is no place to hide from it.

My day started with checking out a new (to me) player: China's Yan Bai (above). He was facing the American Noah Rubin, who was a huge favorite with the very large crowd that had gathered for this qualifying match. Yan Bai seemed out-of-sorts, and after watching him lose three games in a row, I wandered over to have a look at his compatriot Ying-Ying Duan. I later learned that Yan Bai retired from his match, leaving Rubin to proceed into the second round.

Things were rosier for Ying-Ying Duan (above). After losing a tight first set to the Tunisian Ons Jabeur, the Chinese woman's athleticism and power prevailed: she dominated in the two remaining sets.

I then went out to the far courts to have a look at the new Grandstand; while there, I could hear the sound of some really big hitting coming from court 4, so I went to see who was playing, and found a really exciting match in progress.

The players were João Souza (Brazil), above...

...and Andrew Whittington (Australia), above.

Whittington has a cracking serve which Souza was pretty much able to reply to: they pounded away on point after point. The Aussie's tendency to over-hit allowed the Brazilian to take the upper hand; if Whittington can develop the accuracy to match his power, he will be a force to be reckoned with. 

Souza reveled in his return-of-serve ability; his own serve (above) has an almost operatic quality: a slow build-up leading to a walloping bang! The final score of 6-4, 6-4 doesn't quite reflect the threat Whittington posed, but Souza carried the day. It was a hard-fought match, and the forceful, charismatic Brazilian enjoyed vociferous support from his fans.

Above: João Souza takes a celebratory selfie with fans after the match.

The rest of my day was vastly pleasing, as three of my favorite players notched up straight-set victories over combative opponents.

Japan's Yuichi Sugita (above) was the #1 seed among the qualifiers this year, and in his spirited match against the Frenchman Alexandre Sidorenko, the handsome Japanese displayed the wonderfully neat and crafty aspects of his game that make him a formidable opponent.

Sugita is a stylish player who likes to maintain cool control over his matches. That he can also dig deep and show a ferocious willpower was displayed in the sixth game of the first set where Sugita came from being 0-40 down on his serve to win the game in a series of impressively-constructed points. I truly enjoyed watching him play.

Above: Steve Darcis

I made it over to Court 17 ("The Oven") just in time for the start of the Steve Darcis match. Steve is a Belgian player who I have admired since first seeing him play at the 2007 US Open Qualifiers. In the ensuing years, his career has been something of a roller-coaster: once ranked as high as #44 worldwide, he seems to have been hampered by injuries which have kept him from attaining the position in the tennis world one might expect from him, given his skills. When he's on, he is ON...he plays textbook, winning  tennis, and he's a joy to watch.

And that is exactly what we saw today: Steve Darcis methodically dismantled the game of American Tommy Paul, a bigger and stronger player. Undeterred by the blistering mid-day heat, the Belgian found his rhythm immediately and played some gorgeous points: his shot placement is just so much fun, and he can vary the pace by sumptuously floating the ball over the net, achieving enviable depth and control.

The crowd was very pro-Paul; Steve barely got a hand-clap when his name was announced. A bit later, a group of enthusiastic Darcis supporters arrived at the court, supporting him with shouts of "Allez! Allez, Steve!" Darcis marched to victory as if it was pre-destined. I was able to catch up with him on his walk back to the clubhouse; literally drowning in sweat, he thanked me for my congratulations. 

After the exhilaration of the Darcis win, I wanted the best possible finish to my wonderful day of tennis, and it was Japan's Go Soeda (above) who gave me just what I was looking for. The day had turned sublime: a breeze had kicked up, shadows fell atmospherically across the courts, most of the children had been taken home, and a crowd of serious tennis-lovers ringed Court 6 for Go's match against the Roumanian Marius Copil.

Go Soeda would probably be considered a veteran player at this point, yet his still-boyish looks, taut physique, and bursts of energetic bravado remain intact; I've seen him play so many times, but never better than today. Copil was a strong opponent - and who knew there were so many Roumanian fans in Gotham? - who took Go to a tie-breaker in the first set. The second set was pretty much dominated by the Japanese, and I sat in the high bleachers savoring the beautiful evening and the brilliance of Go's playing.

Above: Go Soeda

Overall, this was one of my happiest US Open experiences since I started going in 1998. The drawbacks were relatively minor, though annoying: cellphones, babbling bystanders who indulge in lengthy court-side conversations with friends while ignoring the match at hand, and - this year more than ever - huge number of babies being carried about by earnest moms. I wonder if it's a good idea to bring tiny children out on such torrid days, a-glare with inescapable sunshine.

I also wondered if the linesmen should be required to take an eye exam each year: there were so many bad calls along the way.

My plan to return for the Thursday session was abandoned after I realized how sunburnt I had gotten on Wednesday. Hopefully some of my Wednesday heroes will continue to move onward.

The Rhinemaidens

Soprano Heidi Krall (above) leads a distinctive trio of Rhinemaidens in this excerpt from a 1957 Met RHEINGOLD:

The Rhinemaidens ~ Das Rheingold - Heidi Krall - Rosalind Elias - Sandra Warfield - with Lawrence Davidson - Met bcast 1957 - Steidry cond

Ms. Krall sang nearly 300 performances with the Metropolitan Opera Company, both at the Old Met and on tour. While usually heard in roles like Frasquita or The Priestess in AIDA, she did sing several Musettas, as well as appearing as Micaela, Donna Elvira, Nedda, and the 1st Lady in ZAUBERFLOETE.

Au cimetière

Above: Sunset Chapel in Acapulco

Cemeteries have always fascinated me. As a teen-ager in the little town, I used to take my girlfriend to the local cemetery to make out. No one would think to look for us there, though we sometimes heard other couples nearby on moonlit nights.

A great article - with photos - from Artsy here.

Eleanor Steber - Au Cimetière from Berlioz's LES NUITS D'ETE

 

Smoker

Pablo Picasso: Smoker III | Fumeur III (1964)

Abscheulicher! wo eilst du hin?

Elizabeth Connell as Leonore in Beethoven's FIDELIO.

Abscheulicher! - FIDELIO - Elizabeth Connell - Met bcast 2~16~91

"You monster! Where will you go?
What have you planned in your cruel fury?
The call of pity, the voice of mankind,
Will nothing move your tiger's heart?
Like storm-driven ocean waves,
Ire and anger rage in your breast.

And yet, a rainbow on my path still shines,
Which brightly rests o'er sombre clouds:
It looks so calm, so peaceful to me,
reminding me of happier days
And soothing thus my troubled heart.

Come hope, let not the last bright star
be obscured by doubt!
Illuminate my goal, however far:
Through love I shall reach it still.

I follow my inner calling,
I shall not waver:
Strength I derive
From my marital vows.
Oh you, for whom I have endured so much:
If only I could penetrate
Where malice has imprisoned you,
And bring to you sweet comfort!
I follow my inner calling...
In faithfulness and love, I shall triumph!"

Joshua Bell @ Mostly Mozart

Above: violinist Joshua Bell

Wednesday August 17th, 2016 - Geffen Hall was packed to the rafters for Mostly Mozart tonight: all the stage seats were taken, and there was a line for ticket returns: could it have had something to do with Joshua Bell being the scheduled soloist?  Mr. Bell certainly impressed in his performance of Mozart's 4th violin concerto, and the program overall was highly enjoyable.

Any hearing of Felix Mendelssohn's overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream is bound to summon up visions of Balanchine's enchanted forest - it's quite amazing, in fact, when you think of the amount of narrative and dancing Mr. B was able to fit into this 12-minute overture, without ever for a moment seeming over-busy. The Mostly Mozart Orchestra coped well with the brisk tempi set by the youthful-looking conductor, Matthew Halls, and it was so much sheer fun to hear these familiar themes played live again. I must mention Jon Manasse's lovingly-phrased clarinet solo.

Joshua Bell then appeared to a warm greeting from the crowd. In this rendering of the Mozart violin concerto #4 in D-major, the violinist and the conductor formed a steady rapport. Unobtrusively using a score, Mr. Bell launched the solo line in the stratosphere and went on to play the Allegro vivace's capricious music with easy aplomb. There's a lot of high-velocity coloratura in play here, and it culminates with a florid, witty cadenza of Mr. Bell's own design.

On a high, sweetly sustained note, Mr. Bell lures us into the Andante cantabile; the melody eventually dips into a lower range where his playing a balm to the ear. An elegant 'interlude' has a different sort of appeal; then the main theme recurs, before the violinist ascends to another high-lying cadenza. 

After an elegant start, the Rondeau turns sprightly - a delicate mini-cadenza teases us and then there's another more extended cadenza. The soloist joins the massed violins in a sort of chorale, and Mr. Bell continues to seize opportunities for yet two more cadenzas, the first having an ironic buzzing quality.

As ever, Mr. Bell's physically engaged playing is as enjoyable to watch as to hear. The random smudged note here or there was nothing to deter from the ongoing sweep of his music-making, and though I agreed with my companion that the cadenzas sometimes seemed rather too 'modern', they gave the performance an individuality that was refreshing in its own right.

Beethoven's overture to Coriolan, Op. 62, was the composer's first opportunity to write for the stage, and his success has kept the overture in the repertory. Originally conceived as a prelude to the play of the same title by the composer's friend Heinrich Joseph von Collin - a theatrical success in Vienna in 1802 - the overture didn't appear until 1807, when the play's popularity had waned. It seems that only one performance of the play with Beethoven’s overture took place: on April 17th, 1807. After that, the eight-minute overture went on to thrive as a concert number.

This evening's performance was finely-wrought by Maestro Halls, and most attractively played. The contrasting themes of anger and tenderness express the theme of the play: the betrayal of his duty as a Roman general by Coriolanus, and his mother's entreaties to abandon his plan to lead the enemy forces in an attack on Rome. Her pleading is effective: Coriolanus abandons his scheme and faces his punishment.

A warm and appealing performance of Beethoven's "little" symphony - the 8th - concluded the evening on an optimistic note. The last time I heard this symphony performed live was in December 2013 when the Spanish conductor Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, then in his 80th year, led the New York Philharmonic in the work and left my friend Dmitry and I with wonderful memories of the highly-respected Maestro, who passed away in June 2014. We still speak of that Philharmonic concert with special affection. 

Timed at around twenty-five minutes, this four-movement symphony flies by: there's no adagio to make us stop and ponder, but rather a charming and often witty flow of themes with the congeniality of dance rhythms ever-ready to buoy the spirit.

A lively podium presence, Maestro Halls was well in his element here, and the musicians seemed fully engaged in this music which successfully blends elegance with folkish gaiety. The horns sounded plush, and again Mr. Manasse made his mark: an outstanding musician.

Aase Nordmo Løvberg

Aase Nordmo Løvberg sings "Dich, teure halle" from Wagner's TANNHAUSER.