Archive for January 2011
Albéric Magnard's Bérénice
Albéric Magnard’s Bérénice 01/30/2011 at 02:00 PM – Carnegie HallThis dramatic tour de force, considered by many to be the best of the French Wagnerian operas, tells of the dramatic love affair between the Queen of Judea and Titus, heir to the Roman Empire. It explores contrasts between East and West, romantic and classic, female…
Read MoreOn Behalf of Albéric Magnard
On Behalf of Albéric Magnard By Leon Botstein Written for the concert Bérénice, performed on Jan 20, 2011 at Carnegie Hall. The conductor Wilhelm Furtwängler defended his tendency to play particular works from the past over and over again, stating that as a musician he was not “a curious wanderer” or driven by “a scholarly…
Read MoreAlbéric Magnard, Bérénice
Albéric Magnard, Bérénice By Steven Huebner Written for the concert Bérénice, performed on Jan 20, 2011 at Carnegie Hall. “Noble melancholy” . . . Thus did Jean Racine describe the tone he sought to create in Bérénice (1670). In a preface to the play, Racine further explained his aesthetic predilections: uncomplicated plots, heroic characters, roiling passions. A…
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