My “manifesto for the future of American classical music,” in the current issue of The American Scholar, attempts in 7,000 words to present a viable blueprint for change. My main point of reference is a contextualized performance of Shostakovich’s Leningrad Symphony last February by the South Dakota Symphony – which I write “may plausibly be considered the most … [Read more...] about “Shostakovich in South Dakota — A Manifesto for the Future of American Classical Music”
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“The Jazz Threat” on NPR
In my book Dvorak’s Prophecy and the Vexed Fate of Black Classical Music, I call “an antipathy to jazz” one of the defining attributes of American classical music during the interwar decades. I’ve also written a lot about “the jazz threat.” In the US, jazz bore a Black taint; it was linked to brothels and nightclubs; it was declasse. Henry Ford’s … [Read more...] about “The Jazz Threat” on NPR
Pedro Carboné (1960-2023)
The pianist Pedro Carboné – who was one of my closest friends – died last night of a stroke in Alicante, Spain, where he resided. He was a peerless exponent of the formidable piano works of Isaac Albeniz and Manuel de Falla. He was only sixty-three years old. Pedro was born in Zaragoza. His first important teacher was Pilar Bayona – in the world of Spanish piano, a … [Read more...] about Pedro Carboné (1960-2023)
The Cultural Cold War — at a 30 % Discount
My brand-new website posts information on my brand-new book: The Propaganda of Freedom: JFK, Shostakovich, Stravinsky, and the Cultural Cold War. The pub date is September 26. You can order it now at a 30 per cent discount. Here’s a description: Eloquently extolled by President John F. Kennedy, the idea that only “free artists” in free … [Read more...] about The Cultural Cold War — at a 30 % Discount
Schubert Lieder on the Trombone (continued)
The 20-minute Mahler/Schubert song cycle Einsamkeit, which I have concocted with the bass trombonist David Taylor, maps a dire trajectory. Each song begins with a disappointed lover. Each discloses an ever more extreme state of “Einsamkeit” – of an existential solitude grown strange and inscrutable. The ineffability of late Schubert was brought home to me by an email … [Read more...] about Schubert Lieder on the Trombone (continued)