Dr. Bob Prescribes: Beethoven: The Complete Piano Sonatas – Ronald Brautigam, fortepiano
October
23rd,
2018
Fine Dining I am presently looking for recipes for the best way to prepare crow. Sadly, there seem to be any: I’m told that crow meat smells bad and tastes worse (the things eat carrion, after all). Consequently, I fear that I’ll have to eat mine raw, crow tartare, as it were. (Does anyone out…
Music History Monday: The First Rock Star
October
22nd,
2018
First known photo of Liszt, taken in 1843 when he was 32 years old. Party hats and noisemakers at the ready, today we celebrate the birth of Ferencz (that’s Hungarian; Franz in German) Liszt. (Woohoo! Let’s make some noise!) He was born on October 22, 1811 – 207 years ago today – in the market…
Behind the Scenes With The Phoenix Symphony
October
19th,
2018
Saying Ah In Phoenix In this week’s “Dr. Bob Prescribes” I mentioned that I spent a good portion of the first week of October in Phoenix with The Phoenix Symphony, there to record 22 video program notes for this season. I thought it might amuse you to see some photos and videos that document the…
Dr. Bob Prescribes: Esa-Pekka Salonen: Concerto for Violin
October
16th,
2018
Esa-Pekka Salonen: Violin Concerto Leila Josefowicz, violin Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen Deutsche Grammophon I’ve been working with The Phoenix Symphony (TPS) for two seasons. Last season, I wrote and recorded eight video program notes (which were made available on the symphony’s YouTube Channel as well as on my Facebook page) and…
Music History Monday: You’re the Top!
October
15th,
2018
Cole Porter Today we mark the death of the songwriter and bon vivant par excellence Cole Albert Porter. He was born on June 9, 1891, and died at the age of 73 on October 15, 1964: 54 years ago today. We begin with what is, I think, is a great story. In September of 1939,…
Tuning Systems and Key Selections
October
12th,
2018
Patreon Patron, Mr. Franklin, asks: “Dr. B - how about a post/lecture discussion about WHY certain composers or genres chose specific major or minor keys. To state the obvious, the intervals between the pitches in all major keys are the same whether the tonic is C or Ab. Why choose one over the other? Thanks.”…
Dr. Bob Prescribes: My Parsifal Conductor – A play in two acts by Allan Leicht
October
9th,
2018
https://vimeo.com/294151318/ My Parsifal Conductor opens October 11, 2018 for a limited engagement at the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater at the West Side Y, 10 West 64th Street, New York, NY; presented by The Directors Company. Starring Eddie Korbich, Claire Brownwell, Geoffrey Cantor, Carlo Bosticco, Logan James Hall, Alison Cimmet, and Jazmin Gorsline, and directed…
Music History Monday: “Ma: I got the Job!”
October
8th,
2018
On October 8, 1897 – 121 years ago today - Emperor Franz Joseph I of the Dual Monarchy of Austria and Hungary officially named Gustav Mahler Director of the Vienna Court Opera. Mahler in 1865-66 For the 37 year-old Mahler, it was the culminating moment in what had been (and sadly, what would continue to…
In Praise of South Korean Pianism
October
3rd,
2018
During the course of some correspondence, my Patron Cory-Paul Allen mentioned his love for the piano playing of Yeol Eum Son. For those of you who are not familiar with her, she is a 32 year-old miracle (born 1986) from South Korea. Here’s a link to a live performance of her playing Chopin’s Etudes Op. 25.…
Dr. Bob Prescribes: Florence Price: Symphony No. 1
October
2nd,
2018
“Showing the Path”: Antonin Dvořák in America Antonin Dvořák ca. 1891 By 1891 – at the age of fifty – Antonin Dvořák was that rarest of living composers: successful, world famous, and not in financial need. Dvořák’s music has a distinctly Czech “flavor” to it, and it was Dvořák’s fame as a “nationalist” composer that…