By Paul E. Robinson on November 26, 2014
In the spring of 2012 the Philadelphia Orchestra presented a “Stokowski Celebration” in the orchestra’s old home, the Academy of Music. The programs consisted of music associated with Stokowski, the longtime music director of the orchestra, and there was a well-curated display of Stokowski memorabilia in the lobby and on the orchestra’s website. Yannick Nezet-Seguin conducted all the concerts and in one remarkable moment Stokowski “passed” the baton to Yannick by means of lifelike holograms on either side of the proscenium. A year later Yannick made his first recording with the Philadelphia Orchestra and it included several of the works played at the Stokowski Celebration.
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By Paul E. Robinson on October 20, 2014
It has long been known that Dvořák’s New World Symphony was inspired by African-American and Native American music. And Dvořák himself mentioned Longfellow’s The Song of Hiawatha as another source of inspiration. But most musicians and musicologists were reluctant to be more specific than that. In recent years, however, the musicologists Joseph Horowitz and Michael Beckerman have tried to show that all of these elements, especially the Hiawatha story, can be linked to specific passages in the New World Symphony...
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By Paul E. Robinson on October 14, 2014
How many orchestras does a man need? Yannick Nézet-Séguin is music director of three of them at last count and has close connections as a guest conductor with several others. No wonder he recently cancelled several weeks of concerts to grab some rest. But then it is a whole new experience for a Canadian conductor to be in such demand. It has never happened before and 39-year Yannick Nézet-Séguin can be forgiven for finding it difficult to say no...
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By Paul E. Robinson on October 8, 2014
During his long career the American violinist Oscar Shumsky (1917-2000) did not enjoy the fame of some of his colleagues but he was held in the highest esteem by violinists everywhere. He studied with Leopold Auer and appeared with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Stokowski when he was only eight years old. He had a strong Canadian connection. In addition to frequent solo appearances, starting in 1959 he served as music director with Glenn Gould of the Stratford Music Festival.
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By Paul E. Robinson on September 23, 2014
Sir Georg Solti was the conductor for the first-ever complete recording of Wagner’s Ring cycle. It was an historic event and Decca Records and producer John Culshaw deserve enormous credit for undertaking the enormous risk involved. Against all odds – EMI producer Walter Legge thought it would be a disaster - the cycle was spectacularly successful. With most of the leading Wagner singers of the day taking part the performance was glorious, and John Culshaw and his team of engineers created a sound world that was far ahead of its time.
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