Journalism, features, and cultural commentary on classical music
One of the most frequent complaints folks have about composer Richard Wagner's epic four-opera cycle based on the old Germanic legends of Der Ring...
The music, art and architecture of a given time often present a mirror image of the mood and mores of that time. As a potent example of this thesis,...
Is grand opera composed of great music to which some words have been added? Or is it good drama set to appealing tunes? According to Maestro David...
Richard Kagey, the stage director for the Merola Opera Program's upcoming world premiere of Thomas Pasatieri's new opera, Hotel Casablanca, was...
Can high-tech and fine art coexist? Evidently, yes. But just to make sure, check out the Oakland East Bay Symphony Orchestra's performance tonight at...
FUNNY thing, time. What was once new and exciting often becomes old and ' uh, well ' dull. But if you wait just a few more years, the tables turn and...
A couple of classical music organizations will present concerts to add some flash and dash to the Bay Area's Fourth of July celebrations this coming...
Babies like Bach. They also like Mozart, Vivaldi, and a bit of Brahms. Since the birth last week of James, my first grandchild, I have found that...
Now I'm convinced. Valery Gergiev, the Moscow-born Ossetian conductor, is a genuine musical phenomenon. Although I'm still struggling through the...