Reviewing Anne Sofie von Otter, Bengt Forsberg, and Brad Mehldau.
Boston Globe, February 17, 2009.

Seriously, “Att angöra en brygga”—a celebration of the ability to park a boat, from the ultimate cinematic expression of man’s struggle to simultaneously possess booze and crayfish—is my new favorite song. Here’s the original, sung by Monica Zetterlund.

Reviewing the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
Boston Globe, February 16, 2009.

Reviewing Dominique Labelle and Michael Chance with the Sarasa Ensemble.
Boston Globe, February 10, 2009.

Reviewing Schola Cantorum of Boston.
Boston Globe, February 10, 2009.

A master of music’s complexities. Remembering Lukas Foss.
Boston Globe, February 7, 2009.

The Globe asked for an appreciation of Foss, so this is kind of a slightly more formal version of last Monday’s post (but only slightly). It’s a testament to Professor Foss’s entertaining nature that there’s not very much overlap—though I reserve the right to tell that Katharine Hepburn story for the rest of my life.

Reviewing the Lydian String Quartet.
Boston Globe, February 3, 2009.

Reviewing the Discovery Ensemble.
Boston Globe, January 27, 2009.

The Psychology of Power. Watching Simon Boccanegra with Marshall Ganz.
Boston Globe, January 25, 2009.

The final paragraph was cut for space—it’s not absolutely necessary, but I liked the comparison:

“In opera buffa, it usually ends when all the falsity is discovered,” Ganz goes on, “like the end of ‘Figaro,’ where everything is revealed, and all is happy.” But in “Simon Boccanegra,” falsity and division have done too much damage. “The truth is all revealed here, too, and I guess it’s redemptive, but it’s too late for a truly happy ending. It’s part of the price,” Ganz says. “And that’s also part of the truth of the story.”

In addition, one off-topic story: at one point, the discussion got sidetracked into a discussion about The Godfather, which, as it turns out, the entire executive board of the United Farm Workers went and saw one night when it first came out. “For about a year afterwards,” Ganz recalled, “every executive board meeting was mostly just acting out scenes from the movie. César [Chávez] used to end every discussion by saying, ‘We’ll just make them an offer they can’t refuse.'”

Reviewing the Musicians of the Old Post Road.
Boston Globe, December 23, 2008.

A nice little musical pun from this one: in Telemann’s Abscheuliche Tiefe des großen Verderbens!, some rapid-fire flute runs to accompany the words “Fluten brausen”—raining floods.

Reviewing pianist Paavali Jumppanen.
Boston Globe, December 16, 2008.

Published, I notice, on Beethoven’s birthday—it’s weird to have a sense of occasion even when you’re not trying.