Tant y a feme scet bon taire! Femme est dehors religiouse, Dedanz poignaunt e venimose . . . (When it comes to women, men, hold your tongue! On the outside she’s religious, On the inside keen and venomous . . .) — excerpt from “The Vices of Women,” 13th Century poem, used in the … Continue reading
This coming Sunday marks the final concert of the Los Angeles Master Chorale’s landmark 50th Anniversary Season. For the occasion, Music Director Grant Gershon has put together a typically forward-looking program of works by Shawn Kirchner, David Lang, Francisco Núñez, Gabriela Lena Frank, and – last but certainly not least – Esa-Pekka Salonen. All … Continue reading
For the past couple of months, Mystic Pete — KXLU radio personality, friend of All is Yar, and all-around man about town — has been trying to get me to back on the air at KXLU. For various reasons, I hadn’t been able to make it work on my end; however, when we all learned of the sad … Continue reading
If there is any doubt about the power of music, this story from composer Morten Lauridsen about conductor Paul Salamunovich, his dear friend and collaborator who just passed away, should erase all of it: When I spoke to Dr. Lauridsen a few weeks ago, one of the things we discussed was that he had recently visited … Continue reading
Sad news comes that Paul Salamunovich, legendary choral conductor, passed away last night. He was 86 years old. Born in Redondo Beach, he attended St. James Elementary School where he sang in the choir and got his first exposure to Gregorian chant. He eventually become a renowned expert in that vocal art form, and he … Continue reading
As part of their 50th Anniversary festivities, The Los Angeles Master Chorale is celebrating their long-running relationship with composer Morten Lauridsen this weekend. The partnership is, without a doubt, one of the most important between a composer and a chorus in the entire world. It began with a performance of Mid-Winter Songs during Roger Wagner’s last … Continue reading
“Bach’s B-minor Mass? Wow. That is the mountaintop,” says Grant Gershon. He should know. When it comes to choral music in Southern California, likely even the entire country, there isn’t a more prominent musician than the man who is both Music Director of the Los Angeles Master Chorale and Resident Conductor & Chorus Master of … Continue reading
Christmas, Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, and Festivus — all of their latest editions are now a distant memory. Perhaps it passed by and you didn’t get the CD you had secretly hoped for. Or maybe you’ve got an Amazon gift card and you’ve decided that you should really stop accumulating novels about forlorn vampires that … Continue reading
After the Los Angeles Master Chorale’s rousing season opening gala, Music Director Grant Gershon decided to trot out a familiar crowd-pleaser for its second weekend of concerts: Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana. For some, the cantata has worn out its welcome long ago, but for others — myself included — it remains an entertainingly addictive thrill-ride … Continue reading
Of all the resident companies at The Music Center, the Los Angeles Master Chorale is the one that truly sets LA apart from other big metros. Orchestras, opera and theatre companies, even ballets, are a dime a dozen in other performing arts centers, but no one else can claim an independent choir of such high … Continue reading
The setting for last week’s first classical music concert of the 2013 Hollywood Bowl season couldn’t have been more perfect: the temperature was a picnic-perfect low 70’s, cooling down just a little as the sun set; the sky was clear and cloudless, and a very slight breeze blew through the amphitheater. It was, as the great … Continue reading
I was very happy to see this very promising information show up in my inbox this afternoon: The Los Angeles Master Chorale announced their 2013/2014 season, a year which celebrates a pair of anniversaries: 50 years since it’s founding by the legendary Roger Wagner as one of the Los Angeles Music Center’s resident companies. 10 … Continue reading
As we reach the end of December, it’s traditionally time for a retrospective look at the year that is just completed. Since 2012 was the first full calendar year of All is Yar‘s existence, it’s an especially important one for me. I’ve been fortunate — dare I say “blessed” — to have been able to … Continue reading
The Los Angeles Master Chorale’s December dance card was a bit more full than usual: two concerts of holiday carols, a straight-up performance of Handel’s Messiah, providing soloists for a Messiah sing-along, and an evening of Vivaldi and Bach that was titled, “Rejoice!” I only had the opportunity to attend the Vivaldi/Bach concert, and judging from … Continue reading
Here are the Southern California musical events happening in the coming month which are grabbing my attention, and that should be grabbing yours too: Jacaranda’s holiday-ish “Winter Dreams” Concert this Saturday Yes, ’tis the season for Messiah and The Nutcracker, but if you’re looking for something a little different, the intrepid folks at Jacaranda offer up this mix of … Continue reading
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