Tag Archives: Harry Potter

Year In, Year Out / Évvégére

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Year in, year out there is the mandatory food coma of the Christmas Holidays. No matter how hard one tries, family always wins over scale-scare. Hungarian cuisine is hard on your stomach even when it is not the most important Holiday of the year.

After conducting two shows with the Savaria Symphony on December 6&7 (it was an interesting Hungarian program with music by Bartók, Kodály, Viski including my own Duevoe for orchestra) I went into administration mode (lots to get done at the end of the calendar year), then into Holiday shopping/ family-visiting mode. Administration duties included several meetings related to a new and exciting opportunity, as I was asked to serve as the new Artistic Director of Hungary’s leading new music ensemble UMZE.
http://www.umze.hu
I am looking forward to working with the musicians, to planning the next season, and of course to conduct exciting concerts in Hungary and abroad.
As I am writing this (the new Royal Crown Lounge at the Amsterdam Airport is beautiful) I am on my way back to the US to wrap up 2018 with a fun NYE Pops show of music by John Williams at the helm of the Huntsville Symphony Orchestra.
http://www.hso.org
It is going to be exciting and challenging (as J.W. always is), and we will have many fun surprises for the audience as well.
On January 3 I will be on my way back to Europe. I am conducting the wonderful soprano, Emőke Baráth (last time I worked with her it was Bach’s Magnificat on the program) and a hand-selected expert ensemble in a video recording session (the videos will be available online as soon as possible) of two cantatas by a major Hungarian modern composer, Sándor Szokolay. Before the video recording sessions we will present the two works at the library of the Budapest Music Center as part of the Transparent Sound Festival
http://atlatszohang.hu

Soon 2018 is OUT, and 2019 is IN.
I wish all of my friends a Successful and Happy New Year, and lots of amazing musical experiences!

Most, hogy a tradicionális év végi túlzásba vitt evésen ismét sikeresen túl vagyunk, ideje visszatérni a zenei témákhoz. Még az ünnepek előtt, december 6-án és 7-én a Savaria Szimfonikusok élén vezényeltem egy érdekes magyar műsort, Bartók, Kodály, Viski darabjaival, illetve saját Dűvő című zenekari művemmel. Ez után, de még Karácsony előtt ért a megtisztelő felkérés, hogy legyek a UMZE együttes művészeti vezetője. Az erről (is) szóló interjú itt olvasható:
http://www.papageno.hu
Örömmel és izgalommal várom a művészeti vezetéssel járó feladatokat, és a zenészekkel való közös munkát.
2018-at John Williams zenéjével zárom majd, illetve egy olyan zenekari koncerttel, ahol a Huntsville-i közönséget a zenén kívül még számtalan más (az amszterdami reptéri lounge-ban ebben a pillanatban szólították a pulthoz a Keith Richard nevű utast… Hogy mik vannak!) meglepetés is várja.
http://www.hso.org
Január első két hetében Szokolay Sándor két kantátáját vezényelem majd az Átlátszó Hang fesztiválon. A koncert után videófelvételre is sor kerül majd a BMC-ben. A remek muzsikusokról és a projektről bővebben itt lehet olvasni:
http://atlatszohang.hu
Mindenkinek ez úton is Boldog és Sikerekben Gazdag Új Évet, és persze sok szép zenei élményt kívánok 2019-re is!

WOW Verdi

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Sure I know, Verdi was a genius. I have always known that. Everybody knows that. When you are studying one of his operas however it all just hits you again. I have not done a fully staged Verdi for years (I was fortunate to do ‘Un ballo in maschera’ at the Montreal Opera) but now it is time again. I will be conducting four performances of ‘Don Carlo’ at the Budapest Opera (Erkel Theater) at the end of November and first week of December. Amazing ideas, inventive harmonies, unparalleled characters, genius orchestration. I am having an amazing time just studying it.
Five Acts in three parts, over three hours of great music by Giuseppe Verdi.
http://opera.hu

I titled my blog post ‘WOW Verdi’ because I felt the urge to write about the way learning truly amazing music makes me feel. Talking about that, before I get in the pit of the Erkel Theater in Budapest I will be conducting another great, however completely different kind of show in Huntsville and will be even playing the clarinet.

On Friday, just 8 days from today Kirill Gerstein
http://kirillgerstein.com
will be joining the HSO in Beethoven’s Piano Concerto #4 followed by Bruckner’s Symphony #4 ‘Romantic’.
Kirill, pianist extraordinaire and a good friend has agreed to open our Casual Classics series as well just two days after he plays with the orchestra. This is where I pick up my clarinet and along with principal wind players of the Huntsville Symphony will perform Beethoven’s Quintet for Piano and Winds. The first Casual Classics of the season is called “Beethoven Conversations” and will be held at Roberts Hall of University of Alabama, Huntsville. Join us Sunday at 3:30PM if you are interested in hearing Kirill and I talk about Ludwig and about other composers and classical music related, exciting stuff as well. And of course, there will be music played by Beethoven. He was a genius. But everybody knows that.

Last Friday I conducted the HSO’s first concert in the Pops Series. We presented live magic acts with live symphonic music including pieces by Liszt, Saint-Saens, Berlioz, John Williams and others. Michael Grandinetti illusionists did an amazing job with our Halloween audience and let our orchestra shine in making music as well as in doing a mind reading trick with the audience. Want to know more? You are just going to have to check out Michael’s shows!
http://www.michaelgrandinetti.com