ballet
-
Saxophone Mythbusters: Ibert’s Concertino da Camera is NOT Bebop
In the saxophone world, I sometimes hear saxophone professors proclaim ideas that are based on questionable knowledge of the history of saxophone literature and performance practice. After recently hearing from not one professor, but two, that Jacques Ibert’s Concertino da Camera is bebop I feel the need to provide a quick refresher of the relationship…
-
The Jazz Influences in Shostakovich’s The Golden Age
Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) is one of the most celebrated composers of 20th-century symphonic works. Despite that reputation, his ballets receive less attention and that is a major oversight in music history. His failure on the ballet stage has nothing to do with the quality of the music in the ballet, but around the volatile political…
-
Watch the saxophone solos in Léo Delibes ballet, “Sylvia”
In 2019, the Wiener Staatsoper ballet staged Sylvia by Léo Delibes. This classic Romantic styled staging harkens back to the premiere of the ballet at the Palais Garnier in its opening season 1876. The ballet was poorly received when it premiered, but with the strength of its score and new stagings and choreography, the ballet…
-
Discover Günter Raphael’s ballet, Jabonah
Günter Raphael’s (1903-1960) life was surrounded by war and upheaval. Born into a musical family in Germany, he entered the Hochschule für Musik in Berlin in 1922. In 1926 he became professor of composition and theory at State Conservatory and at the Kirchenmusikalisches Institut, Leipzig in 1926. But this was short lived. When Nazis assumed…
-
Publisher Bill Holab Music is now in the database, discover works by Michael Daugherty, Michael Torke, and Jake Heggie
Bill Holab Music’s catalog is now listed in the database. Bill Holab publishes works by American composers like Michael Torke and Michael Daugherty. Daugherty was already listed in the database with his opera, Jackie O, published by Boosey & Hawkes. Here are some featured works from Bill Holab’s catalog. Date: 2012 Ballet: Labyrinth of Love…
-
The Operatic Saxophone turns one year old—celebrate it by watching opera
Two years ago when everything shut down due to Covid, I started watching the daily streams of the Metropolitan Opera. My interest in opera started before then, but with all the free time and the Met’s high production value, this was the perfect opportunity to dive into the world of opera. Outside of the knowledge…
-
Listen to the Saxophone in Ambroise Thomas’s 1889 ballet, La Tempête
In 1889 Paris hosted the Exposition Universelle, a centennial celebration of the French Revolution. This was a showcase of the latest engineering marvels—the Eiffel Tower, technological advances—the telephone, and a showcase of the best of French culture. The Paris Opéra was slated to premiere Saint-Saëns’s newest opera, Ascanio, but the opera was not ready for…
-
Another Romantic ballet featuring the saxophone: Discover Ambroise Thomas’s La tempête
Recently I went through the Metropolitan Opera’s archives to see if they have any works for saxophone in their performance history that I have yet to find. During this search, I discovered Ambroise Thomas‘s Hamlet was performed for their inaugural season in 1883-84. Did they use the saxophone in the finale of the 2nd act…
-
The Voxman Project: Kenneth Tse features theatrical works by Weill and Milhaud
During the darkest days of the pandemic, good art was hard to find. Opera houses, once bustling with activity were empty. Gone were the spectacles of Verdi, Puccini, and Wagner. Fortunately, this pause in the usual fare allowed new voices and new musicians to fill the silence. At the University of Iowa, alto saxophonist Kenneth…
the Operatic Saxophone 