OPERA Headliners of the Year
Amadigi
Photos:
Sarah Connolly.
Sarah Connolly sings the title role in a concert performance of
this Handel rarity. Sarah
Connolly was born in County Durham, England. The English mezzo-soprano Sarah
Connolly studied piano and singing at the Royal College of Music and continues
her studies with Gerald Martin Moore. Her concert engagements have included
Bach's B Minor Mass (BWV 232) at the Berlin Philharmonie with Philippe
Herreweghe Elgar's Dream of Gerontius at the Sydney Opera with Edo de
Waart, Turnage's Twice through the Heart with both Markus Stenz and
Oliver Knussen throughout Europe. Her operatic appearances have included
Händel's Solomon with Ivor Bolton, D'Amico's Rime d'Amore with
Giuseppe Sinopoli, Berlioz's Damnation of Faust with Jeffrey Tate,
Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier with the Welsh National Opera, Händel's
Ariodante with the New York City Opera, and regular performances with the
English National opera of which she is a member.
Elliott Carter Quartets
Not for the faint-hearted, but this is an event new to Britain, unique to
Edinburgh and one of those bold gestures that help make a festival
distinctive. Elliott Carter, at the age of 96 America's senior composer, wrote
his five string quartets over a period of nearly five decades, from 1950 to
1995. The Pacifica Quartet has been earning plaudits in the US for its playing
of the cycle, and this opportunity to experience the ingenuity of Carter's
musical language is not to be missed.
Born in New York City on 11
December 1908, Elliott Carter began to be seriously interested in music in
high school and was encouraged at that time by Charles Ives. He attended
Harvard University where he studied with Walter Piston, and later went to
Paris where for three years he studied with Nadia Boulanger. He then returned
to New York to devote his time to composing and teaching.
With the explorations of tempo relationships and texture that characterize his
music, Carter has been one of the prime innovators of 20th-century music. The
challenges of works such as the Variations for Orchestra Symphony of
Three Orchestras, and the concertos and string quartets are richly
rewarding. Elliott Carter has been recipient of the highest honors that a
composer can receive: the Gold Medal for Music awarded by the National
Institute of Arts and Letters, the National Medal of Arts, membership in the
American Academy of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and
Sciences, and honorary degrees from many universities. He has received two
Pulitzer Prizes and commissions from prestigious organizations.
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Photo:
Dawn Upshaw.
Three concerts by this sleek orchestra, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen in programs embracing Berlioz, Stravinsky, Sibelius, Esa-Pekka Salonen, the tenth conductor to head theLos Angeles Philharmonic, began his tenth season as Music Director in October 2001.He made his American debut conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic in November 1984 and has conducted the orchestra every season since. Salonen signed an exclusive recording contract with Sony Classical in 1985, and he has since built an extensive and remarkable catalogue of recordings for the label, principally featuring music of the 20th century. His latest release is his first for Sony Classical as composer as well as conductor – LA Variations featuring the title work, which celebrates the virtuosity of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and four other pieces. Salonen’s extensive discography includes award-winning recordings of the music of Bartók, Dallapiccola, Debussy, Lutoslawski, Mahler, Messaien, Nielsen, Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff, Sibelius, Stravinsky and Takemitsu, among others. Salonen also conducted composer John Corigliano’s Oscar-winning score for Sony Classical’s best-selling soundtrack of the film The Red Violin. In the last decade, Salonen’s tenure at the Los Angeles Philharmonic has been highlighted by a strong commitment to new music. His activities with the orchestra have included world premieres of new works by composers John Adams, Bernard Rands, Rodion Shchedrin, Steven Stucky and Salonen himself, critically acclaimed festivals of music by Ligeti and Stravinsky, and appearances at the Ojai Festival. During the 2001-2002 concert season, Salonen will conduct 12 weeks of subscription concerts with the Philharmonic, followed by a two-week tour of Japan in May 2002. In August and September 2002 they return to Europe for a three-week tour of summer festivals. In January 2001, Salonen returned to his Philharmonic post following a one-year composing sabbatical. New Salonen works premiered during 2000 include Mania (a cello concerto) and Dichotomie (a two-movement work for solo piano). Mania was given its world premiere by the Ensemble Avanti! in Porvoo, Finland. Dichotomie, written for pianist Gloria Cheng, premiered at a Green Umbrella New Music Concert in Los Angeles. Salonen has led the Philharmonic in eight critically celebrated international tours since 1992. Before assuming the post of Music Director in the fall of 1992, he and the Philharmonic enjoyed praise from the international press during their month-long residency at the 1992 Salzburg Festival. In 1993, Salonen conducted his first European appearances as the Philharmonic’s Music Director at the Lucerne Easter Festival (Switzerland). Three tours in 1994 took them to Japan and Taiwan, to six European festivals and to Mexico. They were in residence at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris for a series of opera and concert performances in the fall of 1996, and returned to Europe for a successful visit to the Canary Islands Music Festival and Spain in early 1997. They undertook their last tour of European festivals in the summer of 1998, returned to New York City’s Lincoln Center for critically acclaimed concerts in March 1999 and March of 2001, and performed two concerts in Mexico City in September of 1999. Salonen’s most recent Sony Classical recording is a disc featuring the recording premiere of three works by the acclaimed Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho featuring performances by violinist Gidon Kremer and soprano Dawn Upshaw.