November 25, 2024

🎶 Keep it real today, unlike the AI scammers trying to impersonate violin virtuoso Hilary Hahn in fake Instagram ads hawking master classes. Even artificial intelligence can't fake that kind of talent.

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The big idea: The Canadian singer behind Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue
Talking points:
— Metropolitan Opera general manager pens guest essay in New York Times
— Yo-Yo Ma records final album with collaborator of forty years
Around the web + Laugh of the week

CLASSICAL CHARTZ

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THE BIG IDEA

The Canadian Singer Behind Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue

Organizations, orchestras, and even city mayors are marking the 100th anniversary of George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue (1924). A favourite amongst music and Disney-fans alike, the work has felt omnipresent since F. Scott Fitzgerald penned in 1927 that it captured the youthful zeitgeist of the Jazz Age.

Omitted from these celebrations is mention of the French-Canadian singer responsible for the commission of Gershwin’s seminal work - Éva Gauthier (1885-1958).

Wait, who?

If you haven’t heard of her, mezzo-soprano Éva Gauthier was a pioneer in both ethnomusicology and classical crossover music. Born in Ottawa in 1885, Gauthier studied singing in Paris with support from Canadian Prime Minister Sir Wilfred Laurier and his wife Zoë. Gauthier toured with fellow-Canadian Emma Albani before marrying the Dutch importer Frans Knoote and moving to Java, Indonesia in 1910.

Cultural appreciation or appropriation?

In Java, Éva Gauthier was entranced by folk music and the unique sounds of the Javanese gamelan. She studied Javanese folk traditions, upon which she hoped to capitalize when returning to the West. After moving to New York City in 1914, Gauthier made a name for herself performing Javanese music in Indigenous costumes. She became friends with composers Maurice Ravel, Érik Satie, and Igor Stravinsky, and premiered their own Far East homages including Stravinsky’s Trois poésies de la lyrique japonaise. When Gauthier tired of these, her friend Ravel suggested she try singing another popular idiom of the time - jazz.

Classical crossover comes to New York

Gauthier took to jazz. In the 1920s, she performed hybrid recitals with the young pianist and composer, George Gershwin (1898-1937). Impressed by Gershwin’s compositions, Gauthier featured his music in a controversial recital at New York’s Aeolian Hall that also included pieces by Jerome Kern and Irving Berlin alongside classical works. The bandleader Paul Whiteman was in attendance, who commissioned Gershwin to compose Rhapsody in Blue.

Gauthier’s historical erasure

While Rhapsody in Blue remains one of the canon’s most beloved works, Gauthier’s contributions to its creation have been largely forgotten. Warner Bros. omitted Gauthier from its 1945 Gershwin biopic, Rhapsody in Blue. And while the New York Times wrote about Gauthier’s death in 1958, the Canadian press stayed quiet.

There’s no denying the groundbreaking creativity of Éva Gauthier, who could be considered a co-creator of some of the 20th century’s seminal works. Let’s ensure she isn’t forgotten.— SS

TOUR DE HEADLINES

🎶 Coachella goes classical? Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic are set to perform at the 2025 Coachella Festival, bringing Beethoven to the desert alongside Beyoncé. In a bold move to bridge the gap between pop and classical, Dudamel aims to introduce symphonic sounds to festival-goers more accustomed to synths than symphonies. Could this mashup be the key to making classical music cool again? Read more

🎭 Opera's dramatic remix: Met Opera GM Peter Gelb is stirring the pot with a fiery New York Times editorial, taking aim at critics clinging to tradition. Gelb argues it's time to make opera new again, embracing innovation to lure in younger audiences. With attendance dwindling, he's betting that bold changes—not stuffy staples—will keep the curtains rising. Read more

🎻 Lost and found: French cellist Ophélie Gaillard is all smiles after being reunited with her stolen €1.3 million Goffriller cello. The priceless instrument was snatched but, in a twist worthy of a concerto's climax, safely returned. Looks like happy endings aren't just for fairy tales—or finales. Read more

MORE CLASSICAL NEWS TO KNOW

🕵️‍♂️ China's cracking down: The State Administration of Market Regulation launches inquiries into Shen Yun Performing Arts Group, known for its extravagant shows and links to the banned Falun Gong movement. Read more

🗿 Statue for a composer: Classic FM's Zeb Soanes kicks off fundraising to erect a Benjamin Britten statue on Lowestoft seafront, aiming to celebrate the famed composer's roots and inspire a new generation. Read more

🚚 Opera on the move: The English National Opera is packing its bags for Manchester, establishing an out-of-London base after funding cuts. The bold relocation aims to reach new audiences and spark creativity, proving that sometimes a change of scenery is just the overture needed. Read more

TALKING POINTS

Peter Gelb (courtesy photo)

Metropolitan Opera General Manager Pens Guest Essay in New York Times

Last week, the Met’s general manager Peter Gelb wrote an Opinion piece in the New York Times. Gelb’s essay focused on the importance of programming new works when working to ensure opera’s continued relevance.

What’s the buzz: On November 17th, Peter Gelb published a guest essay entitled “How to Save Opera in America? Make It New Again” in the New York Times. The Metropolitan Opera general manager highlighted the opera industry’s struggles due to the pandemic and a lack of government support and educational programs. Gelb explained how the Met’s production of new operas has helped to attract younger audiences, despite receiving mixed reviews in the press.

The rebuttal: Gelb’s “Sunday sermon,” as it was dubbed by music writer Norman Lebrecht, has drawn mixed reviews itself. Lebrecht criticized Gelb’s frequent use of the first-person pronoun, musing on whether or not Gelb saw opera as a teamwork-based affair. Meanwhile, the Washington Post’s former music critic Anne Midgette and the occasional Financial Post critic Olivia Giovetti saw Gelb’s guest essay as an expression of his difficulties accepting criticism.

In an age where not only classical music funding but also classical music criticism is increasingly rare, perhaps it is hard to know how a critic should be, as Giovetti pondered following Gelb’s article. We’re all for the free press over here. — SS

Yo-Yo Ma and Kathryn Stott (Video still)

Yo-Yo Ma Records Final Album With Collaborator of Forty Years

After 4 decades of collaborations, the cellist Yo-Yo Ma and pianist Kathryn Stott recorded their final album together. Stott plans to retire from playing at the end of this year.

Driving the news: Last month, the legendary cellist Yo-Yo Ma released his final album with his collaborative partner of 40 years, the pianist Kathryn Stott. Entitled Merci, Stott and Ma describe the album as an expression of gratitude that centres on works by Gabriel Fauré, who died 100 years ago. It also includes works by members of Fauré’s circle including his friend Pauline Viardot, his students Nadia and Lili Boulanger, and his teacher Camille Saint-Saëns. The album is recorded by Sony Classical.

Digging deeper: In a press release, both artists described the deeply personal nature of their programming choices on Merci. Both Ma and Stott hold connections to Gabriel Fauré. Stott played Fauré’s fourth Barcarolle for Nadia Boulanger when she was 10 years old and Ma studied with Boulanger’s student Luise Vosgerchian while he was at Harvard. Ma credits Vosgerchian with turning him “from a neurotic musician into an even more neurotic musician.”

Over the years, Ma and Stott have developed a close personal and musical relationship. Hearing them play the music of their musical predecessors on their last album together should be a treat indeed. — SS

GAMES

Nothing says a new week like a mini-crossword .

AROUND THE WEB

📚 On this day: 1900: Alexander Scriabin's Symphony No. 1 in E minor premiered in Saint Petersburg, Russia, conducted by Anatoly Lyadov.

👀 Interesting: Check out these surprising facts about the Hollywood Sign as it celebrates its 101st birthday.Thrillist

🧮 That's cool: Explore the evolution of calculators from the 19th century to modern times, showcasing 20 unique designs.

🔢 Game: Challenge yourself with this interactive number sequence puzzle that tests your speed and accuracy.

🐾 Aww: Behold this adorable “cat tree”.

LAUGH OF THE WEEK

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