United States Maneval and Wernick: Charles Abramovic (piano), Daedalus Quartet, Field Hall, Curtis Institute, Philadelphia, 23.9.2016. (BJ)
Bernard Jacobson
A New Vision of Stravinsky’s Firebird
United States Firebird: Reimagined: Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Handspring Puppet Company, Nolan Williams, Jr. (festival artistic director), Andrew Lawson and Zeek (baritones), Janni Younge (director), Jay Pather (choreographer), Philadelphia Orchestra, Cristian Măcelaru (conductor), Mann Center for the Performing Arts, Philadelphia, 20.6.2016 (BJ)
Faccio’s Amleto: A Serious and Absorbing Opera Brought Back to Life
United States Faccio, Amleto: Soloists, Opera Delaware, Anthony Barrese (conductor), Grand Opera House, Wilmington, Delaware. 20.5.2016. (BJ)
Shostakovich’s Piano Quintet Crowns a Challenging Season with Consummate Quality
United States Drozdov, Haydn, and Shostakovich: Ignat Solzhenitsyn (piano), Aizuri Quartet, Benjamin Franklin Hall, American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia, 18.5.2016. (BJ)
Young Singers Offer Lovesong Waltzes and Other Treats
United Kingdom Purcell, Schumann, Britten, Liszt, Schubert, Grieg, Obradors, and Brahms: Hyesang Park (soprano), Sara Couden (contralto), Miles Mykkanen (tenor), Yunpeng Wang (baritone) Cecile Licad and Ken Noda (piano), Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, 17.5.2016. (BJ)
Three Novelties, One of Them a Palpable Hit
United States Di Vittorio, Mendelssohn, Brossé, DiBeradino, and Mozart: Lana Trotovsek (violin) Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, Dirk Brossé (conductor), Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, 16.5.2016. (BJ)
Hope Springs Eternal with Lang Lang—Imperfect Pleasures with Mahler
United States Rachmaninoff and Mahler/Cooke: Lang Lang (piano), Philadelphia Orchestra, Yannick Nézet-Séguin (conductor), Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, 14.5.2016 (BJ)
For Something Old and Something New, a Happy Hunting Ground
United States Mozart, Elgar, Jalbert, and Britten: East Coast Chamber Orchestra, Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, 13.5.2016. (BJ)
Mozart: Adagio and Fugue in C minor, K. 546
Elgar: Serenade in E minor for String Orchestra, Op. 20
Jalbert: String Theory (commissioned by the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society through support from the William Penn Foundation–world premiere)
Britten: String Quartet No. 2 in C major, Op. 36 (arr. ECCO)
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United States Beethoven, Krzywicki, and Brahms: Clarosa Quartet, Benjamin Franklin Hall, American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia, 15.5.2016 (BJ)
Beethoven: String Trio in C minor, Op. 9 No. 3
Krzywicki: Quartet for Piano and Strings (commissioned by the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society–world premiere)
Brahms: Piano Quartet No. 2 in A major, Op. 26