One of the oddities of this concert was that no one in it had ever performed Candide before - not even the conductor! So there is unfortunately quite a lot of heads-in-the-score performing, whereas for the Bernstein La Boheme, all the singers were memorized.
OMG ! This is so wonderful! The leading singers are glorious - Legends of Opera. It makes me almost weep to see them in their glory. Times have so changed..... but, have they? In 2020 disease, death and poverty not to mention COVID are well with us. Nothing has really changed in this "best of possible worlds".
Johannes Brahms's withering assessment of a music critic: "He likes his Bach in Offenbach." Leonard Bernstein was a serious musician; but his "serious music" is almost all boring. His forte was musical comedy -- West Side Story, Our Town, Candide. I saw its 1970s revival in New York; and it is indeed a charming, popular work. I doubt Brahms would have liked it.
West Side Story is American verismo, what with three murders, gang violence, sexual assault, and vicious racism. Not sure I'd call it a musical comedy exactly-but it is certainly a masterpiece, and I never could tire of it!
With Bernstein, the popular and learned are often combined in his music. For instance, the fugue in 'Cool' from West Side Story, a musical, is brilliant on any terms. One of the most abstract and serious of his works would have to be the jazz informed 'Prelude, Fugue, and Riffs', one of the greatest fusions of classical music and jazz. That said, for me there are boring works in the Bernstein canon (the opera 'A Quiet Place' comes to mind). But the ballets Fancy Free, Facsimile, Dybbuk, the mini opera Trouble in Tahiti, the Suite from On the Waterfront, the Serenade for Violin and Orchestra, the symphony The Age of Anxiety, Mass, Songfest, Halil, Missa Brevis, the Clarinet Sonata, Seven Anniversaries, Four Anniversaries, Five Anniversaries, Touches, all for piano - some of the more serious works of Bernstein, all combining the serious and the learned - I would hardly call boring.
Some of this is naturally quite good, but the piece itself is far from perfect, so much of this is wearing, but some of it is great, such as “Glitter and be Gay.” But overall, the staged performance by John Mauceri , with Lenny in the audience seems about the best overall. Even that is perhaps too long. Maybe Voltaire’ s funny little book just doesn’t make a good operetta?
Thank you so much for this. From the bottom of my heart, my sincerest gratitude.
Welcome. I've also uploaded a version with English subtitles, btw.
One of the oddities of this concert was that no one in it had ever performed Candide before - not even the conductor! So there is unfortunately quite a lot of heads-in-the-score performing, whereas for the Bernstein La Boheme, all the singers were memorized.
The Theory of Harmony!!!! so grateful for this!!
Excellent! Best ever!
OMG ! This is so wonderful! The leading singers are glorious - Legends of Opera. It makes me almost weep to see them in their glory. Times have so changed..... but, have they? In 2020 disease, death and poverty not to mention COVID are well with us. Nothing has really changed in this "best of possible worlds".
Grandios , unic .
Splendid pointe
in spite of all these great artists, it was better in San Diego at the old theater in the park....
Daraus könnte man auch ein Comic machen .
Johannes Brahms's withering assessment of a music critic: "He likes his Bach in Offenbach." Leonard Bernstein was a serious musician; but his "serious music" is almost all boring. His forte was musical comedy -- West Side Story, Our Town, Candide. I saw its 1970s revival in New York; and it is indeed a charming, popular work. I doubt Brahms would have liked it.
West Side Story is American verismo, what with three murders, gang violence, sexual assault, and vicious racism. Not sure I'd call it a musical comedy exactly-but it is certainly a masterpiece, and I never could tire of it!
I don't think Bernstein's ballet Dybbuk - an extremely serious work - is boring.
@@muslitRight. Neither is his "Mass".
With Bernstein, the popular and learned are often combined in his music. For instance, the fugue in 'Cool' from West Side Story, a musical, is brilliant on any terms. One of the most abstract and serious of his works would have to be the jazz informed 'Prelude, Fugue, and Riffs', one of the greatest fusions of classical music and jazz. That said, for me there are boring works in the Bernstein canon (the opera 'A Quiet Place' comes to mind). But the ballets Fancy Free, Facsimile, Dybbuk, the mini opera Trouble in Tahiti, the Suite from On the Waterfront, the Serenade for Violin and Orchestra, the symphony The Age of Anxiety, Mass, Songfest, Halil, Missa Brevis, the Clarinet Sonata, Seven Anniversaries, Four Anniversaries, Five Anniversaries, Touches, all for piano - some of the more serious works of Bernstein, all combining the serious and the learned - I would hardly call boring.
Some of this is naturally quite good, but the piece itself is far from perfect, so much of this is wearing, but some of it is great, such as “Glitter and be Gay.” But overall, the staged performance by John Mauceri , with Lenny in the audience seems about the best overall. Even that is perhaps too long. Maybe Voltaire’ s funny little book just doesn’t make a good operetta?