Aisle Be Seeing You

Orchestra R/Evolution on the future of orchestras

Arturo Toscanini, orchestra guy

The League of American Orchestras has created a forum, chat room, salon, writer's colony and blog-o-rama called Orchestra R/Evolution to discuss the future of the orchestra in any and all its dimensions. Being League members who have presented orchestras since the Roosevelt administration (the NBC Orchestra, with Arturo Toscanini conducting, was our first, in 1938), we have more than a passing interest in this discussion and we suspect many of you will as well.

Check out Orchestra R/Evolution.

Forum at The Boston Foundation this Thursday

Take note of this forum at The Boston Foundation, Performance and Participation: The Art of Audience Engagement tomorrow morning at 8:30 a.m.

Savion Glover on 60 Minutes, part 1

This goes back a bit, but Savion Glover is always worth a look. Savion Glover's "SoLo in TiMe" is worth a look, too. And it's coming to The Boston Opera House January, 2011 in a Celebrity Series of Boston co-presentation with World Music.

Savion Glover on 60 Minutes, part 2.

Lynn Redgrave (1943-2010)

Actress Lynn Redgrave died May 2 at her home in Connecticut.

Viewed through the lens of the Celebrity Series of Boston: Ms. Redgrave made one appearance on the Celebrity Series in March 21, 1993 when she brought her one woman play, "Shakespeare for My Father" to Symphony Hall for one performance.

We leave the more exhaustive biographical entries to the press and videographers:

The Washington Post

Los Angeles Times

The New York Times

BBC NewsConversations: Lynn Redgrave with Justin Tuck (video)

Guest appearance on The Muppet Show (video 1 of 3)

Sir Ian McKellen remembers Lynn Redgrave (video)

Thomas Quasthoff's encores from May 2 recital

Here are - admittedly a bit late - Thomas Quasthoff's encores from his May 2 recital at Jordan Hall (his first Celebrity Series recital since 2002):

Brahms
Auf dem Kirchhofe Op. 105

Schubert
Seligkeit

Brahms
Unuberwindlich

Quasthoff recital reviewed in Boston Globe

Thomas Quasthoff brought his truly remarkable voice to Jordan Hall for a much-anticipated recital on Sunday afternoon. Though he sang as beautifully as ever, he was especially talkative this time around. Between his stellar singing and timely witticisms, Quasthoff has the audience eating out of his hand. Here is a snippet of Jeffrey Johnson's review:

"During a break, Quasthoff drew the audience’s attention to two oval windows on a pair of entrance doors in Jordan Hall. He could see through them to the street doors, and every time someone opened those, it seemed to him as if the hall doors were winking. "I thought I was on drugs or something," quipped Quasthoff, "or that I had drunk Boston water!"

Then after a brief introduction to the next cycle he lunged back into drama with Frank Martin’s “Sechs Monologe aus 'Jedermann.'" We were left at intermission to absorb this masterpiece of sustained intensity and existential struggle."

Read all of Quasthoff offers lightness amid dark.