Balance and Expression
Classical Review
Levy presented arresting contrasts and colors: bubbling fountains of sound, plaintive melancholy, athletic leaps and scales, ethereally birdlike ornaments, the vocal tone of a great singer, and mesmerizing soft playing. All he does is enveloped in refined taste, sensitivity, devotion to the composer's intentions, and a marvelously satisfying grasp of phrase. This quintet is among many works written for the legendary 19th century clarinetist Heinrich Baermann. After years of hearing Todd Levy make art of every line he plays with the orchestra, and extraordinary solos such as this, I can't help but wonder at the unanswerable: how does Levy compare to Baermann?
Edo de Waart, who will become music director next fall, is a formidable musician and conductor. The concert began with John Adams' The Chairman Dances (premiered by MSO in 1986), about an imaginary 1930s seduction of Mao Tse Tung. This evolved minimalism-evoking the 1980s as surely as any remnants of the era-requires highly disciplined conducting and playing. De Waart and the orchestra delivered a razor's edge, acutely balanced performance that did not sacrifice expression: the odd wooziness of this music was hypnotic.
De Waart approached the sprawling score of Dvorak's Symphony No. 9 ("From the New World") with the same rigor, yet gave it the long line and expanse of the romantic style. The danger of mushy thickness in this symphony was avoided with crisp clarity and transparent textures. The orchestra performed so remarkably well that a side effect result emerged: the few spots and stretches not up to the highest level of playing stood out in sharp contrast. I began to think of them as a road map of De Waart's likely future work with MSO.Also in Classical Music/Dance:
- Thu
8 - Fri
9 - Sat
10 - Sun
11 - Mon
12 - Tue
13 - Wed
14
Live! Interactive! Improv Comedy For the Whole Family!
Bring the kids, bring Grandma, heck, even bring the dog! Come see the longest running comedy Show in Milwaukee.
The American political drama that began in the upheaval of the 1960s reached its climax with the Watergate scandal and ended in 1974 with the resignation of Richard Nixon. An epilogue was added to the story when Nixon emerged from seclusion in 1977 for an
In 1964, the time of Doubt, no one spoke of pedophile priests, even if the Roman Catholic Church was already riddled with them. Directed by John Patrick Shanley from his own play, one of the most provocative recent productions on a Broadway that has surre
Although the wacky, anonymous, eyeball-mask-wearing members of The Residents make a point of labeling it a collection of "pop songs," The Bunny Boy isn't simply a pop album. It's also a cryptic Internet series that "inspired" the album, a live performance
Steve Grimm's place in Milwaukee music history remains secure for having fronted one of the city's most prominent bands to make it to a major label. It's been a while since Bad Boy was a happening entity, but Grimm remains vital-if inextricably linked to
Mitchell Street was once known as the Polish Grand Avenue, the main drag for Milwaukee’s large Polish-American community. The Poles began moving away in the 1970s, making way for new chapters in the city’s immigrant story. Mitchell Street has
Little touches set it apart: the twist of lime on the rim of a glass of cranberry juice, the faux modern paintings on the wall… Ten years after it opened, Metro Bar & Cafe, just off the lobby of Hotel Metro (411 E. Mason St.), remains a timelessly
