Gershwin

Composer Cagematch! Round 4: Gershwin vs. Tchaikovsky

Oh now just what in the hell was that.

Seriously? SERIOUSLY? Brahms over STRAVINSKY? Whatever happened to Team Igor? I feel like I went in for the trust fall and you didn’t catch me, readership. Harrumph.

Well, fine. I have some devilish plans for Johannes in the future. For now, I must collect myself and announce that in this corner, he turned Verdi Blue! It’s

GEEEEEEEEEOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORGE GEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERSHWIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN

And in this corner, he serenaded Copland right out of the ring! It’s

PIOTR! ILYICH! TCHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIKOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVSKYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

Tchaikovsky discovers America, indeed.

Composer Cagematch! Round 3: Copland vs. Tchaikovsky

Triumph of the American spirit!

I’m not going to beat around the bush, so to speak — it was a tough fight, with both parties taking the lead at times, but ultimately Gershwin eeked it out over Verdi. People, THIS is what the Composer Cagematch! series is all about. I have seen Verdi listed on a number of top 10 great composer lists, and Gershwin none. If pressed, I bet even a lot of the Gershwin voters would admit that, technically, Verdi is the better composer. But Gershwin! Gershwin, it seems, is the composer you love. And that’s why he proceeds to the next round.

Well done, George, you scrappy little American, you. You’ve done your country proud. Can you brother in citizenship do the same? It’s time to find out, because in this corner, he pushed Britten over a cliff! It’s

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAROOOOOOOOOOOOON COOOOOOOOOOPLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAND!

And in this corner, he stabbed Rimsky-Korsakov with a spindle and sent him to bed! It’s

PIOTR! ILYICH! TCHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIKOOOOOOOOOOOOOVSKYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!

I don’t think anyone’s going to argue over who’s the better composer (although who knows?). But! Who. Do. You. Love?

Pulsating with Gershwin

Speaking of current contender Mr. Gershwin, remember that epically awesome post about the ”Rhapsody in Blue” segment of Fantasia 2000 I gifted to the world like two years ago? Of course you do; it was epically awesome. And now: here’s what it would look like as a live action sequence with the coiled sexual power of a jungle cat.

Composer Cagematch! Round 3: Verdi vs. Gershwin

Well. No one can say that wasn’t definitive.

In a contest that probably surprised precisely no one including those that voted for the other guy, Stravinsky took the first match of round 3 away from Bartok. Not that there wasn’t a lot of love for Bela! There was! Just not… y’know… enough. Whereas practically everyone on earth seems to be doodling “Mrs. Igor Stravinsky” in their notebook during study hall (do the kids still have study hall?), his vague rat-face notwithstanding. (Sorry, Igor, but I’m sure you know what you look like; and anyway, you WON, so chillax.) (Do the kids still say chillax?)

Hopefully this one will give you a bit more pause. Wait for it…

Wait for iiiiiiiiit…*

………….. In this corner, he CAN Handel it! It’s

GIIIIIIIIIIUUUUUUSEEEEEPPPEEEEE VEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERDIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

And in this corner, he gave Chopin the chop! It’s

GEEEEEEEOOOOOOOOOOORGE GERRRRRRRRRRRRRRSHWIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN

USA vs Italia, people!

UPDATE! I have exciting news! This CC! just got more interesting, because our own medalist of Violar Mr. Stephen P. Brown (Can Moo. Can You?) is offering one lucky winner 20% off the online viewing fee of the Tapestry Tampa Bay concert on March 23! All you need to do to win is comment on this post with the reasoning behind your vote (those who have already commented are automatically entered). One name will be selected at random as the winner, who will be announced along with the weekly viola joke on March 22. Ready? COMMENT!

* This can be a HIMYM reference OR a Psych reference. Dos deuces!

Composer Cagematch! Round 3: Stravinsky vs. Bartok

AHA! Finally I get a win!

In the last match of the second round, you chose Gershwin over Chopin to advance. Handshakes all ’round, guys. Good show.

And that brings us to round three, everybody — we’re less than ten matches away from crowning a winner. But before we can get started, I’d like to tell you a story.

A few weeks ago I stayed for a bit after ballet class to practice a dance we’re learning set to Bartok’s Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta; absolutely amazing, amazing stuff.* After I had run through it a few times, a lady from class came up to me and said, “So does this music just drive you crazy?”

“Huh?”

“This music. It’s so… out there. Like Stravinsky just drives me nuts.”

I made some gentle protest in a nod-and-smile, nod-and-smile sort of way because anyone who doesn’t like Bartok OR Stravinsky should be happy to see those nice young men in their clean white coats, but whatevs. The point is… well, the point is that… the point is…

…that in this corner, he La Mer-dered Debussy! (All right, hot shot, YOU think of one.) It’s

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGOOOOOOOOOOOR STRAAAAAAAAAAVIIIIIIIIIIINSKYYYYYYYYY

And in this corner, he wrote Schoenberg a whole new set of compositional rules! It’s

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELAAAAAAAAAAA BARRRRRRRRRRRRRTOOOOOOOOOOOK

So tell me… how would you like to be driven mad?

*In the interest of fairness I should note that Stravinsky also wrote amazing, amazing stuff. Petrouchka, for example.

Composer Cagematch! Round 2: Gershwin vs. Chopin

In the immortal words of The Sandlot: You’re KILLING me, Smalls.

I threw Verdi into the ring with a wince, guilt-ridden over the fact that I had no one stronger to defend against the mighty Handel. And what does Giuseppe do? Grinds Georg into a pulp and bakes him into a pie like some kinda classical Titus Andronicus. A late pro-Handel rush narrowed the gap, so that takes away a bit of the sting, but still. Verdi wins. Drat. (Also, I would totally order Handel pie, if only for the pun.)

Let’s move on quickly, because there’s only one match left in round 2. They are an odd match, and I am determined to arrange the battle with no preconceived notions.

And so in this corner, who could ask for anything more? Well, Berstein could. It’s

GEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEORGE GEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERSHWIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN

And in this corner, he’s got a little Liszt! It’s

FREEEEEEEEEDEEEEERIIIIIIIIIC CHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN

I don’t know, guys. They’re the only two left. One of them is bound to show up on your iPod more often than the other, and get skipped less. Who is it?

Not Without My Concert Roundup

But first! A personal plea.

The nonprofit arm of my ballet studio, Performing Arts Repertory Company, is in a DC-area fundraising competition. For November 9 only, Give To The Max will track how much money is donated to PARC, as well as how many individuals donate. Depending on our ranking in both categories, we could win additional funds, which would go toward dance scholarships, workshops, and education and outreach programs, among other things. A noble cause — so you want to help, right? Donate now, before you forget — it’s tax-deductible!

I give you this concert recap in thanks for your donation. If you didn’t donate, I hope you feel really guilty right now.

• The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra likes to be in America — this week’s concert features Copland‘s Appalachian Spring, in addition to Old American Songs. A solid work, one people will come out for, except in this case what I’m sure they’re actually coming for is Gershwin‘s An American in Paris overture. Edward Collins‘ Tragic overture is also in the mix. Marin Alsop to conduct, William Sharp to baritonate; November 10 & 13 at the Meyerhoff.  [See it!]
• This week at the National Symphony Orchestra it’s The Return of Leonard Slatkin! On the conductor’s docket: Clyne, a Rachmaninoff symphony, and a Saint-Saen cello concerto performed by Gautier Capucon. November 10-12. [See it!]

Updated to add: Got this from Benevolent Dictator Jamie:

Emerson String Quartet
Baird Auditorium
Natural History Museum
November 19 at 6 PM

This concert offers an exclusive opportunity to hear the quartet
perform in an intimate setting with excellent acoustics.

Metro Stop: Federal Triangle
Walk south on 12th Street, and cross Constitution Avenue to the Natural History
Museum on the left. (NOT on the National Mall side.)

Ticket prices for students: $10*
Rush tickets are available for purchase starting at
5:30 p.m. on November 19th at the door.
*Valid student ID required when purchasing and redeeming tickets.  Two tickets per student ID, per concert.  No refunds or exchanges available.  Subject to availability.

Concert Roundup: The Revenge

Let’s see what the musicians are up to this week, shall we?

• If you happen to be hopping about in D.C., the National Symphony Orchestra will be performing Mussourgsky‘s Night on Bald Mountain. So already you want to come. In addition, Gidon Kremer will perform the Sibelius violin concerto, plus Liadov‘s The Enchanted Lake and Nielsen‘s fifth symphony. That’s October 6 through 9. See it!
• Alternatively, if you happen to be hopping about Trafalgar Square, London (and why not?), @LMAorchestra tells me that The Gershwin Family (yes, some relation) will be performing a program of classical music from the movies, including Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Bach, Debussy, and a bunch more. It all goes down on October 6. See it!

Remember, if you have a concert coming up next week, you should let me know.

Composer Cagematch!: Handel vs. Haydn

Well, someone finally did it. A composer finally garnered only ONE vote in his match. And it was Leonard Bernstein. I never would have expected that!

Gershwin CRUSHED Bernstein an embarrassing degree, which is why I think so few people bothered to vote — why weigh in on a sure thing? So rather than belabor this point, let’s just say Gershwin won and move along. (Crazy thing is, I think Bernstein really is beloved, just not… as much… I’m not really helping, am I?)

Anyway, I’m not sure if there’s any logic to this particular match up. I don’t know when or why it came to me. They don’t quite make sense as adversaries. Maybe it’s about how they were both brilliant but had the misfortune to be born at the same time as a great genius. Maybe it’s the simple fact that both should have strong enough followings for a decent fight this time. Maybe I’m easily wooed by alliteration. Just remember — it’s not about who’s the better composer, it’s about who you love.

And so in this corner, HALLELUJAH! It’s

GEEEEEEEOOOOOORG FRIIIIIIEDRIIIIIIIIICH HAAAAAAAANDEEEEEEEEL

And in this corner, SURPRISE! It’s

PAAAAAPAAAAAA JOOOOOOOSEEEEEEEEF HAAAAAAAAAAYDNNNNNNN

Best of luck in this one, guys. You’ve got some serious oratorios to think about, not to mention ALL the symphonies. If all else fails, you can always vote based on your preference of Brits vs. Hungarians.

Composer Cagematch!: Bernstein vs. Gershwin

I’m not surprised that Schoenberg won his bout. I mean, he’s kind of a big deal. I had a fantastic time touring the Schoenberg museum, with its little music clips and interviews with Schoenberg’s kids and of course a video demonstration of his chess alternatives (oh, man, I should so make that my Monday video!).

I must say, though, I’m a little disappointed that we won’t be seeing Berg again, because now I have to drop my looks-just-like bomb at his goodbye-party instead of preceding his triumphant return. Ah well. He looks just like Dan Stevens as Matthew from Downton Abbey plus ten years. Twenty years? An older version. Cool. Thanks for playing, Berg.

Okay. And now I’m just gonna do it. They told me not to; they tried to dissuade me with other, more “appropriate” matches, but I don’t care. In style they may not be a perfect setup, but in time and place and Americana they are both quintessential. So:

In this corner, he’s a Jet, and a Jet all the way! It’s

LEEEEEEEEEONAAAAAAAAAARD BEEEEEEEEERSTEEEEEEEEEIN*

And in this corner, he dressed up Jazz and took her to the concert hall! It’s

GEOOOOOOOOOOOOOORGE GERRRRRRRRRRRRSHWIIIIIIIIIIIIIN*

Yeah I went there.

* Interesting fact: neither one used their birth name.