Alfred Nobel (1833-1896), the inventor of dynamite, was a chemist, engineer, businessman and, most memorably, philanthropist; he was also a scholar, fluent in Russian, French, English and German. Above all, he loved poetry.
Had composer and conductor Oliver Knussen not died in Suffolk last year at the age of 66, he would have presided over this year’s Tanglewood Festival of Contemporary Music. It seemed fitting as well that the first sounds to put the new hall to test were Knussen’s stunning 'Prequel to Opening Signal.'
Although one must be wary of the word “definitive” when describing any musical performance, overenthusiastic critics (there are a few) must be forgiven if they use such language to describe the orchestra’s widely praised Shostakovitch performances.
For decades a Stockbridge police officer stood that corner assuring the safety. Now, drivers navigate without assistance. Some say it is too dangerous for a policeman to stand that post.
From the genesis, the “advancement and material gain to the Berkshires” was the first concern of the Berkshire Symphonic Festival, with classical music a means rather than an end.
I have never seen such a beautiful setup in my life. I’ve been conducting the orchestra every morning & I’m playing my first concert tomorrow night. Kousss gave me the hardest & longest number of all – the second symphony of Randall Thompson. 30 minutes long – a modern American work – as my first performance, and Kouss is so pleased with my work.
-- Leonard Bernstein
“Throughout my life I have envisioned the establishment of a great music and art center in the world. The United States of America can and are destined to have such a center. American freedom is the best soil for it.”
-- Serge Koussevitzky
Yes, indeed, there are rules of ghost etiquette; who knew. They are predicated upon the human/ghost social hierarchy that states without apology that the living are superior to the dead.
Eighty years ago, Tanglewood concerts were outdoors -- in a tent. At one performance, an all-Wagner concert, with Koussevitsky conducting, a storm rendered the music inaudible.
