Author Archives: barczablog

Gimeno and Moussa: Ligeti, Wagner and Strauss’s Don Quixote

Posted on April 5, 2024 by barczablog

Last night’s brilliant concert at Roy Thomson Hall from the Toronto Symphony was improved by the introductory remarks from Music Director Gustavo Gimeno, explaining his unorthodox choices. The concert may have been titled “R Strauss’s Don Quixote” but Gimeno explained … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Reviews | Tagged Don Quixote, Gustavo Gimeno, Gyorgy Ligeti, Jörgen van Rijen, Joseph Johnson, Lohengrin, Lontano, Parsifal, program music, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Samy Moussa, tone poem, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Yericho | Leave a comment

Violinissimo II calibrating Esprit at Koerner

Posted on March 29, 2024 by barczablog

Thursday March 28th Esprit Orchestra led by their artistic director and conductor Alex Pauk presented Violinissimo II at Koerner Hall. The program leant heavily on soloist Mark Fewer in a pair of big works, playing solos for over an hour … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Reviews | Tagged Alex Pauk, Antonio Vivaldi, Esprit Orchestra, György Ligeti, Koerner Hall, Max Richter, Roy Thomson Hall, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Wesley Shen | Leave a comment

Korngold’s other film-score

Posted on March 26, 2024 by barczablog

On April 7th the ARC Ensemble present a concert “The Viennese in Los Angeles”, a happier title than what they might choose to call it, from composers in exile. In the promotion for the event we’re told that for the … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Dance, theatre & musicals, Music and musicology | Tagged A Midsummernight's Dream, ARC Ensemble, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Ernest Kanitz, Felix Mendelssohn, Kevin Ahfat, Leni Riefenstahl, Max Reinhardt, Robert Müller-Hartmann, Royal Conservatory of Music, Simon Wynberg, Triumph of the Will, Warner Brothers | Leave a comment

Jerskin Fendrix scores Poor Things

Posted on March 18, 2024 by barczablog

Every year in the aftermath of the Academy Awards I’m left wondering how they do it. Yes I should be in awe of the creations: but I was speaking of the awards process. Why this film and not that one? and … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Music and musicology | Tagged Adventures of Baron Munchausen, Billie Eilish, Black Panther, Danny Elfman, Emma Stone, film music, Good Will Hunting, Jerskin Fendrix, John Neville, Kinds of Kindness, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ludwig Göransson, Mark Ruffalo, Martin Scorsese, Michael Kamen, Poor Things, Richard Strauss, Terry Gilliam, The Fisher King, Till Eulenspiegel, Uma Thurman, Willem Dafoe, Yorgos Lanthimos | Leave a comment

Finding out about Maghan McPhee, soprano

Posted on March 13, 2024 by barczablog

Sometimes interviews are just a series of obvious questions designed to publicize an artist and their work. I’m happy to play that game. But there are times when I’ve been fascinated by what I’ve seen from an artist, my curiosity … Continue reading →

Posted in Interviews, Opera | Tagged BIIMA, Breno Italy International Music Academy, Carl Philippe Gionet, Christina Raphaelle Haldane, Geoffery James Lee, Maghan McPhee, portfolio career, Ronald Royer, Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra | 1 Comment

John Holland’s unexpected polemic in The Lost Tradition of Dvořák’s Operas

Posted on February 29, 2024 by barczablog

When I started reading John Holland’s new book, I didn’t expect it to be more than a study of a composer and his operas. That modest goal would already be significant, considering the cognitive dissonance I feel whenever the plural … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Literature, Opera | Tagged Bolshoi, Das Rheingold, Dmitri Tcherniakov, dramaturgy, Giuseppe Verdi, Jacobin, John Holland, Linda Hutcheon, Prince Igor, Regietheater, Richard Wagner, Robert Donington, Rusalka, Ruslan und Ludmilla | 1 Comment

Robbie Robertson’s Killers of the Flower Moon

Posted on February 26, 2024 by barczablog

I watched the last hour of Killers of the Flower Moon today. I had heard terrible things about the violence in this film, although the same was true of Taxi Driver, another Martin Scorsese film with a brilliant orchestral score … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Reviews | Tagged A Midsummernight's Dream, Academy Awards, Erich Korngold, Felix Mendelssohn, John Williams, Killers of the Flower Moon, Ludwig Göransson, Martin Scorsese, Max Reinhardt, Oppenheimer, Oscars, Robbie Robertson | Leave a comment

Toronto Symphony explores nuances of newness in Stravinsky’s Pulcinella

Posted on February 24, 2024 by barczablog

Tonight Gustavo Gimeno and his Toronto Symphony presented their latest TSO live concert at Roy Thomson Hall, recorded for future release by Harmonia Mundi recording label. We were a well-behaved audience, not making any disruptive noises, like polite voyeurs watching … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Music and musicology, Reviews | Tagged Ballets Russes, commedia dell'arte, Glenn Gould, Gustavo Gimeno, Harmonia Mundi, Igor Stravinsky, Isabel Leonard, Kelly-Marie Murphy, Le Baiser de le fée, Linda Hutcheon, palimpsest, Petula Clark, Pulcinella, Sergei Diaghilev, Tchaikovsky, The Fairy's Kiss, Toronto Symphony Orchestra | 2 Comments

Questions for Tammy Wilson

Posted on February 21, 2024 by barczablog

Tamara Wilson is one of the best singers in the world. Yes we import Europeans to sing opera but some Americans have no equal. We’re lucky to have heard that voice in Toronto, usually the most impressive sound in that … Continue reading →

Posted in Interviews, Opera | Tagged Aida, COVID, Die Fledermaus, Giuseppe Verdi, Isolde, Kenan Thompson, Richard Wagner, saturday night live, Savannah Bananas, Tamara Wilson, Turandot | Leave a comment

30 years since Derek Jarman died.

Posted on February 19, 2024 by barczablog

It’s the anniversary of Derek Jarman’s passing, February 19th 1994. He was 52 years old when he passed. I was looking at Jarman’s IMDB entry, where there are a pair of pictures with him with Amy Johnson, listed on IMDB … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays | Tagged Amy Johnson, Aria, David Ferry, Derek Jarman, Franz Schubert, Frederic Chopin, Leontyne Price, Pet Shop Boys | Leave a comment