Simon Rattle’s new Ring Cycle at the Aix-en-Provence Festival hasn’t been much of a hit with the critics. “Rattle’s Wagner as yet lacks that veteran conductor’s inexorable sense of drama. The momentum started and stopped and frequently dragged… The overall effect was soporific. Perhaps Rattle was as bored as the rest of us by what he saw on stage.”
Tag: 07.23.06
Why “Congestion Pricing” Wouldn’t Work With Klimt
“Congestion pricing” for access to the Neue Gallerie to see the newly-acquired Klimt painting might have had the reverse effect its owners wanted. “The plan to raise prices on Wednesdays from $15 to $50 was rapidly abandoned after visitors took exception to such naked elitism, but it’s unlikely the plan would have worked anyway.” Make something expensive and elite, and more people, not fewer, would have clamored to get in.
When Gould And Bernstein Clashed
A recording of a famous confrontation between Glenn Gould and Leonard Bernstein over a performance of a Brahms piamo concerto in 1962 is about to finally be released. It’s the kind of performance that never would happen today, writes Norman Lebrecht…
A Music Center’s Success Is Based On… Proximity?
South Florida is about to get a big new performing arts center. What will that do for the nearby Broward performing arts center? “To be sure, there are hardcore music fans who will journey far afield to hear the finest visiting artists and local groups available. But for the majority of the region’s classical audiences — comprised of a heavily senior-skewing demographic — convenience and proximity take precedence over considerations of artistic merit.”