Author: Joanna Bettelheim

Multiple American orchestras will perform concerts and programs commemorating the twentieth anniversary of the tragic events of September 11, 2001. Here is a partial list. On Saturday, September 11, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, in collaboration with the Western New York Families of September 11 and the American Red Cross, Western New York Chapter, will present “American Resilience: 20th Anniversary Commemoration to 9/11 Heroes.” The concert, conducted by John Morris Russell, will feature George Walker’s Lyric for Strings, Copland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man,” the Largo from Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9, and songs of inspiration. On September 11, the Colour of Music Festival, in residence at the University of South Carolina School of Music, will present the Colour of Music Orchestra in a free concert that honors the 20th anniversary of September 11, conducted by Julius P. Williams. Since 2013, the Colour of Music Festival has brought classically trained musicians, composers, and performers of African descent together to showcase Black classical artistry. On September 11, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra will mark the twentieth anniversary of 9/11 with a concert benefitting Carry the Load, a Dallas-based nonprofit that aims to spotlight the sacrifices made by members of the military, veterans, first responders, and their families. Leonard Slatkin will lead the DSO in music by American composers. On September 11, Pennsylvania’s Johnstown Symphony Orchestra will present a free concert at the Flight 93 National Memorial that honors the community’s response to the events of 9/11. Led by Music Director James Blachly, the hour-long concert will take place outdoors at the Flight 93 National Memorial’s Wall of Names. On September 10, an ensemble from the Johnstown Symphony will provide music as part of a luminaria ceremony at the national park. On September 11, the Mainly Mozart Festival in San Diego, California, will present its Mainly Mozart All-Star Orchestra, which comprises concertmasters and principal players from multiple U.S. orchestras, in a benefit concert honoring the twentieth anniversary of 9/11. Led by David Chan and featuring saxophonist Branford Marsalis, the event is presented in collaboration with the National Conflict Resolution Center. The National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C. will perform a free “Concert of Remembrance” on Friday, September 10 marking the 20th anniversary of 9/11, reflecting on the ongoing loss from COVID-19, and honoring those who have been on the front lines during the pandemic. Music Director Gianandrea Noseda will lead a program that includes a world premiere by James Lee III, commissioned by the NSO.

On May 6, pianist and composer Conrad Tao will perform a virtual recital as part of the Kaufman Music Center’s Ecstatic Music series in New York City, featuring Tao’s own repertoire composed during the pandemic, including improvised pieces, plus music by Brahms, John Adams, Jason Eckardt, and other composers. Tao’s multimedia presentation is intended to “reimagine what a piano recital can be,” according to a press release, and is the culmination of Tao’s 2020-21 artist residency at the Kaufman Music Center. The next virtual installment of the Ecstatic Music series on May 25 will feature another Kaufman resident artist, cellist Seth Parker Woods, who will perform Frederick Gifford’s Difficult Grace, Monty Adkins’s Winter Tendrils (with film by Zoë McLean), Nathalie Joachim’s The Race: 1915 (with images of Jacob Lawrence’s The Migration Series), Freida Abtan’s My Heart Is a River, and Pierre Alexandre Tremblay’s asinglewordisnotenough 3 [invariant] (with choreographer/dancer Roderick George).

On May 6, Classical Movements, the concert-touring company and music presenter based in Alexandria, Virginia, will live-stream “A Concert for India” on Facebook and YouTube. The virtual event, presented free of charge, is being held “in solidarity with the resilient and beautiful people of India” during that country’s worsening COVID-19 health crisis, says Neeta Helms, Classical Movements’ founder and president. The concert will feature eight Indian American classical musicians performing Indian and Western classical music and contributing personal statements. Musicians will include Reena Esmail, Vijay Gupta, Saili Oak, Sherezade Panthaki, Dilshad Billimoria Posnock, Jason Posnock, Rohan Ramanan, Eva Schaumkell, Priyanka Venkatesh, and Vijay Venkatesh. The virtual concert will take place on May 6 at 11:30 a.m. ET / 8:30 a.m. PT. Viewers are encouraged to donate to international and Indian organizations supporting efforts to fight the pandemic.

“Dale Archer McNulty, a longtime resident who served as president of the board of the Palm Beach Symphony, died Monday, April 26, surrounded by his family. He was 79,” writes Shannon Donnelly in Thursday’s (4/29) Palm Beach Daily News (FL). “Born May 9, 1941, in New York … Mr. McNulty grew up in Palm Beach…. After graduating from Fairfield University in Connecticut, he had a nearly 40-year career as a member of the New York Stock Exchange. During his time in New York City, he was president of the Blue Hill Troupe theatrical company, where his physical presence as ‘the very model of a modern major general’ won him roles in its many Gilbert and Sullivan productions. He was an ardent music lover and supported the Palm Beach Symphony…. He would later become president of the symphony board. In addition to his home in Palm Beach, he also reclaimed a U.S. Army hospital on Cushing’s Island in Maine and transformed it into a summer retreat. More recently, Mr. McNulty was … active in charitable affairs and served as a chairman for multiple fundraisers.” McNulty is survived by his wife, Marietta, a sister, four children, and two stepsons.

“French cafes, restaurants, cinemas and other cultural venues and businesses that have been closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic will reopen in several stages from May 19,” writes Clare Byrne in Thursday’s (4/29) Agence-France Presse. “Museums, theatres, cinemas and concert halls will reopen on May 19, along with non-essential shops and outdoor seating at cafes and restaurants, [said] President Emmanuel Macron…. Cafes and restaurants will have to wait until June 9, however, to be allowed to serve clients indoors, he added. Macron also gave a timetable for lifting an unpopular night-time curfew which has turned French cities into ghost towns after 7:00 pm.… France is nearing the end of a third national lockdown imposed to try and tame a severe third wave of infections. … The number of new cases reported daily has fallen in the past month, from around 40,000 to 27,000 on average over the past week…. Primary schools reopened on Monday after a three-week shutdown, with secondary schools to follow suit next week…. The French had been particularly anxious to know when the cafes and museums, which have been closed since October 30, would reopen.”

“Bay Area appearances by the resourceful bass-baritone Davóne Tines have been few but dazzling,” writes Joshua Kosman in Tuesday’s (5/4) San Francisco Chronicle. “Just before the onset of the pandemic, [Tines gave] a terrifyingly forceful performance as the villain in Handel’s ‘Aci, Galatea e Polifemo’ with the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra & Chorale. Now Tines, 34, is set for … a yearlong creative partnership with Philharmonia…. Tines’ appointment is the latest in a series of shifts at Philharmonia under Executive Director Courtney Beck…. First came the appointment of Music Director Richard Egarr…. Tines is no stranger to the traditional European classical repertoire, both as a singer and a former professional violinist.” Tines’ role at Philharmonia Baroque “consists of three segments. One involves performance, including a series of recital programs he’s devised that combine Bach, spirituals and contemporary music by such composers as Tyshawn Sorey and Caroline Shaw. A second piece, which draws on his undergraduate training in sociology, will entail what he calls a ‘semi-scientific experiment’ using detailed audience outreach to create a new vision of the organization’s goals. Finally, he plans to be steeply involved in the organizational work, attending every board meeting and having full access to the administrative process.”

“Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park will host three live, in-person concert series this summer,” writes Danielle Nelson in Tuesday’s (5/4) Grand Rapids Business Journal (MI). “The concert series are Fifth Third Bank Summer Concerts at Meijer Gardens, Tuesday Evening Music Club, and the Jim & Marie Preston Sunday Strings. The 2021 Fifth Third Bank Summer Concerts at Meijer Gardens will take place in July, August and September…. There will be numerous local and national performers, and Meijer Gardens and the Grand Rapids Symphony will partner for three shows during the Fifth Third Bank Summer. The symphony will have a solo performance led by Bob Bernhardt, Principal Pops conductor…. In addition to the Grand Rapids Symphony, the Verve Pipe, O.A.R., Kansas, St. Paul & The Broken Bones, and Black Violin + Blind Boys of Alabama will take to the stage this summer…. The Jim & Marie Preston Sunday Strings will include five Sunday performances—June 6 [through] Sept. 12. The performances will be led by violinist Haijin Choi, and … will happen throughout the park. They will feature combinations of violin, harp, marimba, mandolin, cello and more. The July 18 performance will include an opportunity for audience participation.”

“Singer Aoife O’Donovan will premiere her song cycle ‘American, Come,’ honoring women’s suffrage at an Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra concert titled ‘An American Celebration’ on May 8 in the city’s Festival Park,” writes Matthew Palm in Sunday’s (5/2) Orlando Sentinel (FL). “The 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote, was ratified in August 1920 … O’Donovan’s 20-minute cycle of five songs, arranged by Tanner Porter, is inspired by historical writings and speeches, from suffragist Carrie Chapman Catt to President Woodrow Wilson. She drew the lyrics from their words….  Other works on the Philharmonic’s program include … Copland’s ‘Appalachian Spring,’ selections from Leonard Bernstein’s ‘West Side Story’ and John Philip Sousa’s ‘Stars and Stripes Forever.’ O’Donovan [is] a frequent performer with orchestras around the country and tours as a solo singer-songwriter…. She splits her time between New York and Orlando with her husband, Philharmonic music director Eric Jacobsen, and their young daughter…. One of the songs in the cycle is titled ‘Daughters’ and talks about not leaving the fight for equality to ‘the daughters of our daughters.’ ‘I feel very impassioned by this. I’m a mother,’ she says. ‘It has lit a fire for sure.’ ”