BOWIE BY GLASS WITH FILHARMONIE BRNO AT CARNEGIE HALL
Editors ChoiceFor more than four decades, Dennis Russell Davies has championed and presented the first performances of Philip Glass’ symphonies and operas. Now, with Filharmonie Brno, Davies presents the New York premiere of Glass’ Symphony No. 12, featuring the astonishing vocal virtuosity of Angélique Kidjo.
With Symphony No. 12 “Lodger,” Glass caps off his trilogy inspired by the famous “Berlin” albums—Low, Heroes (both 1977), and Lodger (1979)—of rock icon David Bowie. The Los Angeles Times declared that it goes “where no symphony has gone before.”
The concert also features works by two Czech masters: Taras Bulba, a showpiece of Brno’s famed musical citizen, Leoš Janáček, who helped establish the Filharmonie 150 years ago, and the delightful scherzo, Thunderbolt-P47, by Bohuslav Martinů.
Wednesday, February 8 • 8:00pm
Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall
Filharmonie Brno
Dennis Russell Davies, Chief Conductor & Artistic Director
Angélique Kidjo, vocalist
Christian Schmitt, organ
MARTINŮ Thunderbolt-P47
JANÁČEK Taras Bulba
PHILIP GLASS Symphony No. 12 “Lodger” from lyrics by David Bowie and Brian Eno
(New York Premiere)
https://www.carnegiehall.org/calendar/2023/02/08/filharmonie-brno-0800pm
Mr D Bowie….such a big part of my youth. When we should have been doing homework, me and my brother were testing each other on the lyrics of Mr Bowie, which to this day I can parrot better than any chemistry formula….Life on Mars anyone?
Now THAT’s the kind of program you should bring to Carnegie Hall. And the Brno Philharmonic is a fine orchestra.
If you’re a touring orchestra, you should look at this as a model. Original programing makes your concerts distinctive. Do we really need to hear Tchaikovsky’s 5th another time? Of course, there is financial risk but there is potential reward, too.
Oh wow, I could come hear the Martinu and the Janacek, leave, and still have enough time at home to watch “The Lodger” – Hitchcock’s very first movie (1927)
Glass dismissed.
Since I didn’t know the work, I listened to Thunderbolt-P47 by Martinů. Classical music being classical music, it didn’t sound like a machine with an 18-cylinder radial engine, but more like a fast trot in a horse and buggy. Ah well…
Or a Boeing 777 with a mighty GE90 engine!!? Much contemporary music doesn’t sound as good to me as those GE90’s during rotation anyway.
They brought Vaughan Williams, Martinu’s cello concerto, Janacek and Dvorak to St David’s Hall last October. They are indeed a very good orchestra.
Davies is a joy.