Satie’s Parade, Poulenc's Les Mamelles de Tiresias, and Ravel's L'Infant et les Sortileges had their premiere at the Metropolitan Opera as a remarkable triple bill (sets by David Hockney!) in 1981. Seated at the rear of the orchestra section in Row AA was your truly, surrounded by many of the great and the good of … Continue reading A Night at the Opera
Category: Reviews and Musings
Virtuosity
Before diving into the Romantic Period, it is important to take stock of how the music world had changed over the last two centuries. Through much of music history to this point, the Church had been the primary benefactor of the great composers. As the Church's influence began to wane, particularly in the German States, … Continue reading Virtuosity
The Friday Symposium: Christmas Edition
A symposium is a tightly choreographed social gathering where men drank together, conversed, and enjoyed themselves in a convivial atmosphere. Last year's Christmas Playlist was such a hit, I decided to make two more. Taking a break from all things classical, here's a playlist of classic songs that have been jazzed up. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5uNOhC94LrIoRNuEx6P6yp A traditionalist … Continue reading The Friday Symposium: Christmas Edition
A Gertus History of Music’s Top 25* Albums of 2022
The death of good music has been greatly exaggerated. Over the last year, just like in every year in recent memory, artists (and, it must be said, particularly young artists) have released so many stunning albums that keeping up with contemporary music is a practical impossibility. The following is thus an imperfect and very incomplete … Continue reading A Gertus History of Music’s Top 25* Albums of 2022
The Friday Symposium: A Schubertiade
A symposium is a tightly choreographed social gathering where men drank together, conversed, and enjoyed themselves in a convivial atmosphere. As chronicled here, Mozart exploited his remarkable talents to become the first freelance composer in history. As such, he was beholden only to those who paid for his compositions and not to any one church … Continue reading The Friday Symposium: A Schubertiade
A Gertus History of Music 