Discoveries: Arts and Culture

This orchestra in its 34th year never ceases to amaze.   Having been on tour to Europe, and to Carnegie Hall in New York, this year, it is as bright and intelligent, but never pedantic, as ever. McGegan was educated at Cambridge and Oxford universities and has an OBE from the Queen in 2010 "for services to music overseas." Various recordings have won Grammy nominations, and best in the Classical music world  The orchestra plays in Palo Alto for the Stanford community as well as at Berkeley, and in San Francisco.  McGegan will play in Baltimore January 2-4 and again on February 12-15 with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra as well as in St Louis and Dallas.    Dominique La Belle sang beautifully, the Hayden, Ave Regina Coelorum in A major , with the Chorale directed by Bruce Lamott.  Then, she sang the Antonio Vivaldi(1678-1741)  Dixit Dominus (Psalm 109) in D Major, RV 807, and Jan Dismas Zelenka's Missa Nativitatis Domini  both with Christoph...

  Sarah and Mamoru Fujieda viewing Bess's work at BAM opening, September 12, 2014 The charming pianist, daughter of James Cahill, and the composer Mamoru Fujieda     The Japanese composer Mamoru Fujieda has written an extraordinary set of pieces called "Patterns of Plants" (1996-2004 ).He hooked up an apparatus called a Plantron to read the bio-electric fluctuations of various plants, to try and understand their "voices".  Then he transformed the sonic data into the melodical  patterns of these beautiful pieces which are dedicated to Lou Harrison.   Sarah had been performing all over the country (Freer Gallery, Spoleto Festival USA, Lincoln Center) for about four years when the composer wrote to her.  He invited her to the first Pacific Crossings Festival in Tokyo in the summer of 2004 to play his own music along with Lou Harrison, Terry Riley, Pauline Oliveros and others.  Then a month later, he presented another con...