Robert L. Kendrick’s ambitious new monograph, a detailed look at the oratorio in Catholic Italy and Hapsburg Vienna, covers more than a century of repertoire, connecting Biblical stories — fratricide, child sacrifice, forbidden love, death — with political events and considers the social and moral impact on the listeners.
Life Lessons and Catholic Oratorio Read More »
American countertenor Reginald Mobley’s much-anticipated second solo album, ‘Solitude,’ is a collection of mostly English songs, with familiar tunes and a few surprising additions. Backed by lutenist Brandon Acker and bassist Doug Balliett, it’s music of substance and haunting beauty.
Solitude: Reginald Mobley Unplugged Read More »
Haydn’s oratorio ‘The Seasons,’ in a stunning new recording from Jordi Savall and his period-instrument Les Concert de Nations, is full of pastoral joy and almost-operatic drama, ‘burly, occasionally bawdy, and chock-full of good cheer.’
Burly, Bawdy, Full of Good Cheer: Haydn’s The Seasons Read More »
A new period-instrument ensemble, Chicago’s Bach in the City, opens its inaugural season next week. Artistic leaders Richard Webster and Jason Moy, veterans of the Chicago classical scene, have secured dedicated funding to give the group staying power. ‘Suddenly, now, we have a critical mass of period-instrument players attracted to Chicago, and that was not true a decade ago.’
Bach in the City, Chicago’s Newest Period Ensemble Read More »
Gluck’s ‘Orphée et Eurydice,’ in its Paris version, caused a sensation 250 years ago and a new recording from Les Arts Florissants captures that vitality. The strength of this recording serves as ‘a corrective to the dominance of the Italian version in modern performance.’
The Searing Intensity of Gluck’s ‘Orphée et Eurydice’ Read More »
