| The return of the links Jan 18th 2013, 09:22 Happy New Year. After a period of radio silence, we now return you to this blog's regularly scheduled programming. Thanks to all who asked if I was all right during this hiatus, though I hope a steady stream of articles in the Washington Post attested to my continued good health. Read full article >>   |  | Conductor notes: Muti ails, Orozco-Estrada prevails Jan 18th 2013, 07:01 The frailty of Riccardo Muti When I think of frail conductors, I think of the late German maestro Gunter Wand, standing small on the podium before the Berlin Philharmonic and looking downright battered by the volume of sound they were emitting during the Bruckner 8th. Riccardo Muti, by contrast, a mere 71, projects a somewhat hale and handsome image. Yet Muti, since he took over the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 2010, has turned out to be one of the most fragile conductors around, almost rivaling James Levine in a combination of bad health luck and falling off objects that are intended to support him. Read full article >>   | | Pianist's focus on Chopin paying off in ways small and large Jan 18th 2013, 01:35 Diffidence is not a characteristic often associated with concert pianists. But Brian Ganz exudes a kind of thoughtful gentleness. He is at once tall, good-looking and unobtrusive, as if wanting not to impose too much on the attentions of others. These qualities make him a good teacher, a sensitive performer, and a perhaps indifferent careerist. "I've always felt that if I was actually making music; teaching, which I adore; and able to support myself, that was enough success for me," he says. "I chose quality over quantity a long time ago." Read full article >>   | |
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