A look back at the year on the local classical music scene:
2015 Reger Awards: The year in classical music. The Orange County Register, Dec. 23, 2015
Related post:
2015: Features
Some feature articles I wrote for The Orange County Register during the calendar year; click on titles to read:
Nonprofit arts can be good for Orange County business. July 26.
Reclaiming ‘Bolero’. Aug. 7.
A classical strategy for the great outdoors. Aug. 16.
Musical bucket list: 50 classical pieces to hear before you die. Aug. 20.
Concert etiquette baffling? Here’s a hand. Oct. 9.
Neglected symphonies catch online ear. Nov. 20.
Related post:
William Henry Fry: Niagara Symphony (1854)
Sort of the “Become Ocean” of its day.
Tony Rowe conducts the Royal Scottish National Orchestra.
To hear other works in my Neglected Symphonies series, click here.
Lots of Rachmaninoff
Review: Los Angeles Philharmonic indulges in Rachmaninoff. The Orange County Register, Dec. 20, 2015.
Related story:
New recordings: Yuja Wang, Daniil Trifonov, Yo-Yo Ma
Review: Yuja Wang, Yo-Yo Ma, Daniil Trifonov: new discs and downloads. The Orange County Register, Dec. 18, 2015.
photo: Deutsche Grammophon
Gustavo Dudamel is cameo conductor in ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’
Half the world is about to hear Gustavo Dudamel conduct, though probably few will know it.
The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times are reporting that composer John Williams invited Dudamel in October to direct part of the soundtrack to “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” which opens Thursday. The music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic was brought into the studio “in secret,” the publications say.
“When John called and asked if I would conduct the opening music and closing credits for this historic film, I remember thinking, ‘He’s joking,’” Dudamel said in a prepared statement released to the papers. He was told that he couldn’t tell anyone about it.
Dudamel, who composed the film score to “The Liberator,” is a self-described big fan of Williams’ music and conducted an entire program of it to open the Philharmonic’s 2014-15 season. Williams was a guest then, and took a turn leading the orchestra himself. The concert was later broadcast on PBS.
Will Dudamel be a credited conductor on the soundtrack album, sure to be a bestseller? Neither paper makes it clear.
Update: Saw the movie. Dudamel gets a “Special Guest Conductor” credit.
Mirga Grazinyte-Tyla conducts Los Angeles Philharmonic in Orange County
Review: Mirga Grazinyte-Tyla makes Orange County debut with Los Angeles Philharmonic. The Orange County Register, Dec. 14, 2015.
2015: Classic films on Blu-ray and DVD
For the cinephile on your Christmas list. Click on the titles to read my reviews:
“All at Sea,” Alec Guinness, Ealing Studios. Warner Archive
“The Palm Beach Story,” Joel McCrea, Claudette Colbert; Preston Sturges. The Criterion Collection
“Tootsie,” Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Teri Garr; Sydney Pollack. The Criterion Collection
“Union Station,” William Holden, Barry Fitzgerald, Nancy Olson; Rudolph Maté. Olive Films
See also: On film: 2014
Anonymous 4 says goodbye in Irvine
Review: Anonymous 4 says goodbye in Irvine. The Orange County Register, Dec. 6, 2015.
Interview: Mirga Grazinyte-Tyla
Dynamic young conductor will bring L.A. Philharmonic to Costa Mesa. The Orange County Register, Dec. 6, 2015.
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