February is coming packed with cultural activities, to compensate for a very “dry” January, indeed! I saw two operas in one week: the first was The Champion, and the second was Rossini’s Cinderella, which I saw on Saturday. I never saw this opera performance, and never heard the music, and it was so different from the story of the glass slippers – and I loved it! Both the prince and Cinderella are real characters, with the sense of self-wort and determined to be in control of their lives; you know that it’s not the magic that brought them together, but their actions. The opera is very long, more than three hours, but I didn’t even notice it! When the intermission started and I looked at my watch, I was so surprised to see that almost two hours had passed! Beautiful in all possible ways :).
That’s the opera I wanted to write about. I went to see it the next day after I arrived. I didn’t know the opera, and I thought it could be interesting, but not more than that. And it so exceeded expectations!!!
It’s the real person’s story, but the opera synopsis does not exactly follow Emile Griffin’s life events. It was very difficult to watch for many reasons, but for me, the most heartbreaking were the scenes of older Emile living with dementia. I went on the Lyric Opera website to look for the videos, and I noticed that pretty much all advertising materials showed the young Emile, although think that the old Emile was the most moving.
I don’t know what else to say. I almost cried when I was in the Opera house, and I want to cry now, when I recall all the scenes. it’s a heartbreaking story.
Igor and I went to the City of Chicago fireworks, and I have nothing but good to say about how everything was organized this time. We should have come earlier and watched “The Best of the Art on the Mart,” but I was not sure that the CTA would deliver as promised (it did!), so we decided to come later and saw only a little bit:
On Friday, I took Naida to the CSO Christmas concert. We went to that concert last year, and at that time, I was surprised that Naida sat through the whole thing, even though I told her that we could leave during the intermission if she felt it was too much.
This season, since Anna could not come, and I would have both Nadia and Kira in my house, I asked her whether I should keep the tickets and find a sitter for Kira or return the ticket, and she said – the first one :).
So we went to the concert, and it was amazing! Probably the best concert since the time they stopped doing “stories” for these Christmas concerts.
We had first-row tickets right in front of the conductor. Thomas Wilkins was the best possible conductor for this concert, and Ashley Brown made it spectacular. Thomas Wilkins immediately noticed Nadia in her Sant hat and addressed her when he talked to the audience. Then he asked her to step forward for a second, and when she did, he snatched the Santa hat from her head but returned it right away.
The concert was perfect, with a mix of old and new melodies and a sing-along.
Santa arrived unannounced before the last two songs. They are doing Santa really well in the CSO! Nadia remembered each word Santa said last year, and she was pleased that he didn’t repeat himself. After the last song and applauses, Santa reappeared carrying a music stand, asking the maestro to play one more song, “which everybody from the audience wanted to hear” (audience burst into applause). He added that “although there are no words for this song in the program, everybody in the audience knew them.” Indeed, how could we not? I am so thankful to the CSO for keeping this tradition of “one more song, and we all know what song it is!”
(The recording is one of the previous years).
CHRISTMAS IN CHICAGO Christmas in Chicago is my kind of Christmas It’s just what Christmas ought to be Snowflakes fill the frosty air, skaters frolic on the square And on State Street dazzling windows are a beautiful sight to see Christmas in Chicago, as hearts fill with wonder Lights sparkle all along Magnificent Mile I love Christmas in Chicago, that’s my kind of Christmas At Christmas all Chicago wears a smile The City of Big Shoulders wears a robe of winter white The lion statues wear their wreaths of green Picasso’s sculpture wears a cheerful multicolored glow Reflected from the city’s Christmas tree Christmas in Chicago is music and laughter And singing carols here at Orchestra Hall I love Christmas in Chicago, that’s my kind of Christmas It’s like no other Christmas at all Christmas in Chicago is my kind of Christmas It’s just what Christmas ought to be We’ll make a trip to carol at the zoo in Lincoln Park We’ll sing for kangaroo and chimpanzee We’ll warm up with hot chocolate there and then we’ll go downtown To Marshall Field’s and sit on Santa’s knee Christmas in Chicago is my kind of Christmas It’s just what Christmas ought to be Sleigh bells ring on horsedrawn cabs near Water Tower Place Church bells peal from steeples ’round the town Salvation Army Santas add a joyful ring-a-ling The Loop is filled with happy Christmas sounds Christmas in Chicago is music and laughter And singing carols here at Orchestra Hall I love Christmas in Chicago, that’s my kind of Christmas It’s like no other Christmas at all Chicago’s kind of Christmas is a magic kind of Christmas It’s like no other Christmas at all –Music and lyrics by Gary Fry, Copyright 1996 Fry-By-Night Music (ASCAP)
This abbreviation is how a famous conductor, Michael Tilson Thomas, is referred to (and I believe he introduced it:)). I heard him conduct many times, and I greatly enjoyed his spark and liveliness, and even his habit of talking between musical pieces.
Last year, MTT returned to conducting after an extremely difficult battle with brain cancer, and on Tuesday, I attended his concert for the first time after his return. He is very frail, and it is very difficult to recognize him. He was helped on the stage. Yet, his performance was spectacular, and the audience gave him a standing ovation. Most importantly, he was visibly happy being in the environment, which has been the essence of his life for a half-century.
Copying from his website (that’s not like he looks now, but I will always remember him this way)
Dear Friends,
My return to performing these last months has been very special. The 20 concerts with the New York Philharmonic, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the San Francisco Symphony were heartwarming. Making music with these great artists and for so many friends in the audience felt like coming home, like coming back to life. I couldn’t have been happier.
It takes strength to meet the demands of the music and to collaborate on the highest level with the remarkable musicians who so generously welcomed me. I now see that it is time for me to consider what level of work and responsibilities I can sustain in the future.
I have not publicly discussed my medical diagnosis. I have Glioblastoma Multiforme, a type of aggressive brain cancer. I had an operation to remove what was visible and had radiation and chemotherapy. Currently the cancer is in check. But the future is uncertain as Glioblastoma is a stealthy adversary. Its recurrence is, unfortunately, the rule rather than the exception.
I’m taking stock of my life and will be reducing my administrative responsibilities. I have decided that, after 34 years, I will be stepping down as the Artistic Director of the New World Symphony. This organization, which I co-founded with Lin and Ted Arison, has been and will continue to be a vital and ever-growing resource for musicians. I’m proud of what we have accomplished and very proud of our 1,200 alumni. I will soon assume the role of Artistic Director Laureate and will dedicate myself to working with the NWS Fellows and Alumni on adventurous projects that have long been close to my heart.
I look forward to my work the remainder of this season with orchestras in the United States and Europe and to the many musical collaborations planned for next season. I intend to stick around for a bit. Creating and collaborating to make great music is what it’s all about for me. Every moment on stage with my colleagues is memorable. I want to thank all who have been supportive during this time, especially my husband Joshua Robison. He has always been by my side and is, as ever, my hero.
I will continue to compose, to write, and to mull over your thoughts and mine. I’m planning more time to wonder, wander, cook, and spend time with loved ones – two legged and four. Life is precious.
Another opera I never heard about – Janacek’s “Jenufa.”
It’s not that common that you come to the opera and are captivated by the twists of the plot, trying to catch each and every single word said on stage, and that was the case with Jenufa. It’s anything but simplistic: no heroes and no villains, clashes of the characters, horrible decisions, and life-long regrets…
Last weekend, I ended up doing three different outings with my mom. I already wrote about two of them: the Aquarium Member’s Night and the visit to the Christkindle market. The third event – the CSO concert – was on Sunday.
I am glad that this season, there are some Sunday matinee orchestra concerts- last season, they only had piano concerts on Sundays (and that’s the only time I can take my mom to the concerts).
Philippe Jordan was a conductor. It was the first time I heard him, and now, that I read about him, I am wondering how this was even possible!
The program included the original score of Mussorgsky’s Saint John’s Night on the Bare Mountain, Szymanowski’s Violin Concerto No 2, and Stravinski’s The Rite of Spring – all pieces very emotional and powerful.
After the concert, we attended the Subscriber’s appreciation coffee with musicians. That time, this event hosted the CSO librarian and one of the violas, and we learned quite a bit of interesting things! The librarian explained how they order notes for the whole orchestra for each new piece (it differed whether the music is in the public domain or is still copyrighted) and how they often need to make their own copies of the pages if there is no rest at the end of the page or at the beginning of the next page, and why the music publishers do not pay attention to that (saving paper). Somebody asked about using iPads and the pedal page turner, and both the librarian and the musician replied that it might be good for practicing but that the iPad is difficult to share on the music strand, and anyway, they will always perform in a traditional way.
Remembering the concert we attended in Helsinki in the Church in the Rock, where most of musicians were using iPads with pedal page turner, I am wondering how long will it take until it become a common practice 🙂
What they did this yea was the best. They didn’t have a sit-down dinner with fishes staring at you from all sides. They didn’t have speeches in the Oceanarium theater and they didn’t have performances. Instead, they just let people come and enjoy the museum without big crowds. It was amazing how close you could get to everything! I loved it!
Mom forgot that she had been to the Aquarium before, and she forgot what corals are, but she liked everything she saw, which was the most important thing.
I am inserting my Instagram posts just so that I won’t need to save videos one more time 🙂
I am really happy we made it, even though it was a very long Uber ride home (it was Friday night, and everybody was out, and both Columbus Drive and Lake Shore Drive were jammed)
Did you ever hear about Donizetti’s The Daughter of the Regiment opera? If you did’ good for you, but I only learned about this opera when I saw it in the Lyric Opera calendar. I have to admit that my knowledge of the operas was naturally limited to Russian operas and a relatively small number of “all others,” while I was growing up. That’s not an excuse for not exploring what else is out there, but it is what it is.
I had so much fun! I am thinking about last night and smiling. I copied all the video clips I found on the Lyric Opera website because if I just post the links, they will be gone by the end of the season. Just play the clips, and you’ll see for yourself how awesome it was! The only other thing I wish they would have would be a picture of the last scene with a tank breaking into the Marquise’s castle:).
I love both leads: Lisette Oropesa as Marie and Lawrence Brownlee as Tonio. Both have unimaginably beautiful voices and brilliant acting. I almost want to go one more time :).
The week is almost over, but it feels like it was just yesterday: I went to Theo to see a performance of Assassins with my long-time friend who is very much into musical theater.
That was a perfect outing for us! The first time I saw a show at Theo, I loved it but realized I wanted to be at the table. Then, I subscribed for a table sitting, and it was awesome. This time, I added a ticket for my friend and dinner for both of us. I didn’t want to add a dinner just of myself, and I was not sure whether I wanted to spend an extra hour and a half in the theater before the performance. With my friend, however, everything was just perfect!
We both liked the food, and we had enough time for a long conversation, and she liked the show, and she liked the whole cabaret idea (and I liked it, too!).
Today, I was finally able to find a show clip, which I am happy to post.
And here is more reading about the musical. It is running for five more weeks! (And I just can’t believe I am so fortunate to have several amazing theaters so close to home)
Hettie's Reflections 