A familiar-sounding new commission and an unusual approach to Beethoven

By Thomas May, 18 April 2014

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“A mood of Sibelian melancholy dominates”

Reviewed at Benaroya Hall, S Mark Taper Auditorium, Seattle on 17 April 2014

MacMillan, The Death of Oscar

Beethoven, Piano Concerto no. 3 in C minor, Op.37

Rachmaninov, Symphony no. 2 in E minor, Op.27

Seattle Symphony

Stéphane Denève, Conductor

Paul Lewis, Piano

A rite of spring turned inward: Strauss’ Daphne at Seattle Opera

Thomas May, 16th January

Presented without staging, Seattle Opera’s concert Daphne places Strauss’ extreme vocal demands and saturated orchestral writing in sharp relief, offering a high-risk encounter with a rarely heard late opera.

****1

Ioffe conducts the Seattle Symphony in varied faces of Romanticism

Thomas May, 8th January

Barber and Bernstein shine in this program exploring sharply contrasting faces of 20th-century Romanticism under guest conductor Alevtina Ioffe.

****1

Ivars Taurins leads the Seattle Symphony in Baroque feast

Thomas May, 16th October

A lean Seattle Symphony under guest conductor Ivars Taurins brings stylish energy to Baroque orchestral theater by Telemann, Hasse and Handel.

****1

Morlot returns to lead Seattle Symphony’s season-closing showcase

Thomas May, 19th June

Two rhapsodies anchor a program that ranges from brass-driven bravura to Ravel’s iridescent orchestral color. Seattle Symphony closes its season with breadth, nuance and elegant command from emeritus Ludovic Morlot.

****1

Peter Oundjian bridges the centuries in Seattle

Erica Miner, 15th March

The Seattle Symphony co-commissions a new work, Jan Lisiecki plays Mozart with religious fervor, and Stravinsky's Sacre still creates an uproar.

***11

Mozart meets Vaudeville in Seattle's silent movie Magic Flute

Erica Miner, 22nd February

Eye-popping, hand-drawn animation melds with Mozart's fantastical world and the silent film era to create a colorful and energetic new-to-Seattle production.

***11

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Thomas May

Thomas May is a writer and translator based in Seattle. His books include Decoding Wagner and The John Adams Reader, and he blogs about the arts at memeteria.com. He has written for The Washington Post, Gramophone, Listen, Symphony magazine, OPERA America, crosscut.com, and many other publications.