Someone walking right at you looking at their cell phone. They look up, catch your eye, squint in annoyance. Walking down the street, a man attacks a woman, screaming in her face, “You don’t know shit!” A bystander calls 911 and you wait to make sure. A motorcycle idles outside your bedroom window.
Chocolate. Leg room. Silence. Sitting, legs crossed, on a park bench in May. A friend is listening, you listen back, a bird hops around, pecks at a chip. A ceiling fan on low in a spacious room. Lunch with wine. A book arrives by mail. A rush ticket to the opera, row E, aisle.
I am talking about quality of life, of preferences, of pleasure (and its opposite), but in fact also about empirical results. I am talking about perfect pitch. Actual perfect pitch is the ability to name a note without a reference tone—you would know that the screeching wheels on a subway car are in, say, E flat, without playing a C on your iPhone app—but perfect pitch, in my imagination, is also a metaphor for a fine thing. I ask my friend, who has perfect pitch, if it benefits her at all. She says does not know if it benefits her, because she has never not had perfect pitch.
Science theorizes that it develops in infancy along with language, and can be taught, or at least encouraged, until age 4 (though some say its development is only possible within the first 8 months). Afterward, it can never be acquired, although relative pitch—the ability to reason from a reference tone—can be acquired, and most musicians have this skill. If, like me, you blame your parents for being ignorant, forgive them: since time immemorial it has been seen as a kind of gift from God, and concerted training is only now—this year, even—becoming more common.
I text my friend again. “What about listening to music?” and wait for her reply.
Is having perfect pitch like being able to identify subtle propaganda, to see the logic of the market surface in everyday matters, to change your own mind, to know how to look at a beer can or a wad of painter’s tape as an indispensable part of a sculpture? Is it like understanding the progression from exposition to coda?
Can you pimp perfect pitch? Will it make you rich or get you a job? Maybe, maybe not. But what about Bach’s Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor? Only a few recordings will show you, when a melody of single notes appears in a high register, a field of blinking lights. So much pleasure and understanding depends on others, on education, on money, on time. Yet there is low hanging fruit. Servants would wait outside the kitchen for scraps of food by Carême. I doubt the tea ceremony was derided by the Nuhi. Everyone likes rainbows and gold.
“The common notions of intellectually and emotionally colored music are a façade that must be torn down. What is called intellectual is usually just something that demands the work and effort of listening, the force of attention and memory, actually love: in other words, emotion; and what is called emotion is usually just a reflex of a passive mode of behavior that savors music as a stimulus without having any specific or, if you will, naïve relation to it, to what is heard concretely.” (Adorno, Difficulties)
How many other things in life demand love? Could choosing black ink over blue require love? What about a hinge that ever so quietly creaks at 30°, is that lovable? And of doors: does knowing to turn the doorknob as you close it so your lover does not wake require love? Could the desire to have a perfect moment with a friend, free of distraction and habit, require love? (Best to savor by the second.) And what about disgust?
My friend with perfect pitch finally responds, “It’s of no practical use to me.”
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Screenshots from Call Me By Your Name, dir. Luca Guadagnino, in which Elio plays a Liszt-like arrangement, then a Busoni arrangement of a Liszt-like arrangement, of part of Bach’s Capriccio sopra la lontananza del suo fratello dilettissimo (Capriccio on the departure of a beloved brother), BWV 992, followed finally by Bach’s original, for Oliver. Perfect pitch.
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Art
Gary Hume
I recommend…
Douglas Gordon: back and forth and forth and back, at Gagosian Chelsea, 21st St. A great show with a video of Hitchcock’s Psycho slowed down to 24 hours, but the smaller video monitor works are more satisfying. In particular, on a video monitor placed in a very dark, empty corner of the gallery, almost all that can be seen is a yellowish cat’s eye, blinking and moving slowly about. The sounds of a crackling fire, somewhat abstracted so that the crackles are very loud, echo in the gallery. One also hears the cawing of crows from across the room, where three stacked monitors show closeups of hopping crows in raking light. Watching it, I though to myself, have I ever dared to look at a crow before
Andre Koschmeider, Robert Gober, at Paula Cooper. A small show in Cooper’s tiny street level space with some very interesting objects: a few sculptural “brains” by Gober in a small vitrine, and some cardboard tubes made to look like radiator pipes by Koschmeider on the walls. The pipes are painted silver but are rough enough to suggest unmilled wood. They are stuck here and there with small images under tiny convex transparent losenges that made me think of wood knots. Moving closer, perception shifts from looking at the object—from trying to identify what it is—to looking at images of objects, which, here, do the work for you: they are images of water goblets. This change in perception may not be an unusual strategy but it is pulled off well here. It is quite noticeable and clearly intentional, and invites contemplation of what is required for looking at different things, for identification: it is almost like the difference between looking and reading. Once one has seen the goblets, filled to various levels with water, one cannot help but think of half-empty, half-full metaphors; but glasses of water are beautiful almost as a rule, which made me feel optimistic, even if the overall effect is elusive.
LA Invitational, a group show, at Gagosian on 24th, has a good Mark Grotjan, a good Jeff Wall, and a Mike Kelley Extracurricular Activity Project Reconstruction—the one with the goth girl singing about all things purple, among other works.
Thomas Hirschhorn, DE-PIXELLATION, at Gladstone Gallery on 21st St., through December 22. I am not sure what to think about this show of photo collages of images of mutilated bodies and—what I did not initially perceive because they are pixellated—fashion ads. One’s eye is forced from the arbitrary form of the pixellation to the images of the bodies, which are difficult to look at for long. A vitrine with visual material and didactics explains the strategy and Hirschhorn’s aesthetic and ethical concerns, complete with a print out of a New York Times op-ed about “facelessness” in online communication, specifically of that of “trolls.” In the corner of the L shaped vitrine is a curiosity: books of philosophy and social theory—and Bataille’s Story of the Eye—are laid out geometrically among hinges and escutcheons, as if Mr. Barnard, of Philadelphia’s Barnard Collection, renown for hanging his paintings among such well-wrought objects, had been an inspiration. As one might suspect, the images suggest a conflation of materialism and violence—à la Pan Em in The Hunger Games—that I found pedestrian, but Hirschhorn, with his interest in Bataille, may be referring to both as part of the “accursed share”—the “surplus energy” of civilization that must be expended somehow, the way heat is given off in a chemical reaction. Do these ideas gain anything by being adumbrated aesthetically? Not really. The images backfire: seeing them does not inflame the moral sense, because the violence is without context, and because they tend to de-sensitize viewers. Hirschhorn’s images are successful in that they demonstrate how pixellation moves the eye around an image—but whatever lesson they have to teach about violence, political power, abstraction, censorship, or image circulation in the contemporary world is better stated by the the didactics in the vitrine, which, I suggest, is nevertheless worth seeing.
Gilbert & George: The Beard Pictures, at Lehmann Maupin in Chelsea and downtown, through December 22. What is there to say? It’s Gilbert & George: disgust and attraction, humor and seriousness, intelligence and stupidity in equal measure. It is the best political art of 2017, but not yet a call for men to, finally, shave.
Michelangelo Pistoletto: scaffaldi, at Luhring Augustine, through December 22. Fantastic show of images of shelves holding various objects from food to hardware printed on mirrored surfaces.
Gary Hume: Mum, at Matthew Marks, through December 22. This typically luscious Hume show has fantastic painting of a strawberry (see above).
Jim Shaw, at Metro Pictures, through December 22. Very funny show of paintings and drawings in different styles, and a throw-away video. In one drawing in the style of Bosch, Hillary Clinton carries a basket full of small human “deplorables.” There is also a painting of an Apple laptop, cracked open to emit a holy glow onto three ecstatic housewives.
Wayne Thiebaud, at Allan Stone Projects, Chelsea, through December 23. Abstract landscapes mostly, and all good, as usual.
Still Need to See…
Streams and Mountains Without End: Landscape Traditions of China, at The Met, through January 6
Leonardo to Matisse: Master Drawings From the Robert Lehmann Collection, at The Met, through January 7
Art and China After 1989: Theater of the World, at Guggenheim, through January 7
Delirious–Art At the Limits of Reason, 1950-1980, at Met Breuer, through January 14
Is Fashion Modern? at MoMA, through January 28
Modigliani Unmasked, at Jewish Museum, through February 4
Edvard Munch: Between the Clock and the Bed, at The Met, through February 4
Michelangelo: Divine Draftsman and Designer, at The Met, through February 12
David Hockney, at The Met, through February 25
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Dance
New York City Ballet: George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, Lincoln Center, David H. Koch Theater, through December 31
Liz Gering Dance Company, at Joyce Theater, through December 3
New Dances: Edition 2017 The Sky Seen From the Moon, Bryan Arias, choreographer, 1st-year dancers This Silence, Gentian Doda, choreographer,2nd-year dancers 25 People, Roy Assaf, choreographer, 3rd-year dancers A Thousand Thoughts, Gustavo Ramírez Sansano, choreographer, 4th-year dancers
Juilliard, December 6-10
Danspace Project, at St. Marks Church Body Stories: Teresa Fellion Dance December 7-9
Chen Dance Center, “newsteps” Dances by Jenny Boissiere, Keith Comley, Nikki Theroux, Shannon Yu, Esme Boyce, and a collaboration of Alexandra Lockhart, Chelsea Hect & Emily McDaniel.
December 7-9, 7:30
Danspace Project, at St. Marks Church DraftWork: Jasmine Hearn / Angie Pittman Saturday, December 9, 3:00, FREE
Movement Research at Judson Church Malcolm-X El-Shabazz Betts, Anna Nowicka, Robin Prichard, Katarzyna Sitarz
Monday, December 11, 8:00pm – 9:00pm, FREE
Trisha Brown Dance Company, at Joyce Theater, December 12-17
Tesseract, at BAM, December 13-16. “Choreographic duo Rashaun Mitchell and Silas Riener present the fruit of their years-long collaboration with pioneering video artist (and fellow Merce Cunningham Dance Company alumnus) Charles Atlas.”
Isadora Duncan Masterpieces and Original Works Inspired by Duncan Principles Dance Visions, NY, at Speyer Hall, University Settlement
December 14-17
Movement Research, at Judson Church
Aeternus Dance Company, Stanley Gambucci, Julie Mayo, Mei Yamanaka Works
Monday, December 18, 8:00pm – 9:00pm, FREE
Dorrance Dance, at Joyce Theater, December 19-31
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Film
Andy Warhol’s Loves of Ondine
My Top Ten of 2017 (So Far)
I’ve seen over 50 films released this year, but missed some good ones (I never finished Marjorie Prime), and have yet to see December films, but these 10 were easy to select from around 20 good films. I watch a lot of junk. It excites me that the top two of these are films are about gay characters. Another gay film, Beach Rats, was also good. Three good gay films this year! And Twin Peaks: The Return, would be at the top, except it is technically “television.”
1. BPM (120 Battements par minute), dir. Robin Campillo
2. Call Me By Your Name, dir. Luca Guadagnino
3. Get Out, dir. Jordan Peele
4. Faces Places, dir. Agnès Varda 5. Columbus, dir. Kogonada
6. Personal Shopper, dir. Olivier Assayas
7. Meyerowitz Stories, dir. Noah Baumbach
8. Lady Bird, dir. Greta Gerwig
9. A Ghost Story, dir. David Lowery
10. Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold, dir. Griffin Dunne
Out Now
The Square, dir. Ruben Östlund, starring Elizabeth Moss and Claes Bang
God’s Own Country, dir Francis Lee, another gay first love story
Last Flag Flying, dir. Richard Linklater, with Steve Carrell and Laurence Fishburne
Lady Bird, dir Greta Gerwig, with Saoirse Ronan and Laura Metcalf
My Friend Dahmer, dir. Marc Meyers, with Ross Lunch
Newness, dir. Drake Doremus, with Nicholas Hoult and Laia Costa
Murder on the Orient Express, dir. Kenneth Branagh, star-studded cast
Thelma, dir. Joachim Trier, a Norwegian lesbian supernatural thriller
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, dir. Martin McDonagh, with Frances McDormand
Sweet Virginia, dir. Jamie M. Dagg, with Jon Bernthal and Christopher Abbott
Call Me By Your Name, dir. Luca Guadagnino, with Timothée Chalamet and Armie Hammer
Tom of Finland, dir. Dome Karukoski
Coming in December
The Disaster Artist, dir. James Franco, starring same and Co. (eye roll)
The Other Side of Hope, dir. Aki Kaurismäki
The Shape of Water, dir. Guillermo del Toro, with Sally Hawkins
Wonder Wheel, dir. Woody Allen, with Kate Winslet
I, Tonya, dir. Craig Gillespie, with Margot Robbie
All the Money In the World, dir. Ridley Scott, with Marc Wahlberg and Michelle Williams (and Kevin Spacey)
Downsizing, dir. Alexander Payne, with Matt Damon
Crooked House, dir. Gilles Paquet-Brenner, with Glenn Close and Max Irons (streaming now)
Happy End, dir. Michael Haneke, with Isabelle Huppert
Hostiles, dir. Scott Cooper, with Christian Bale
Phantom Thread, dir. Paul Thomas Anderson, with Daniel Day-Lewis
Film Stars Don’t Die In Liverpool, dir. Paul McGuigan, with Annette Benning and Jamie Bell
The Post, dir. Steven Spielberg, with Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep
In the Fade, dir. Fatih Akin, with Diane Kruger
Antonioni’s Zabriskie Point
Repertoire: Series, Retrospectives, and Short Runs
Series: The Contenders 2017, through January 12, MoMA, films from 2017 that “resonate”
Retrospective: Michelangelo Antonioni, through January 7, MoMa
Women in Love, dir. Ken Russell, December 1-7, Metrograph
Umbrellas of Cherbourg, dir. Jacques Demy, December 1-7, Metrograph
Series: Goth(ic), December 1-31, at Metrograph, featuring Tomb of Ligeia, Rosemary’s Baby, The Cure’s Show, The Craft, Lost Highway, Possession, etc.
Retrospective: The Complete Studio Ghibli, at IFC, December 1 to January 11
La Belle Noiseuse (1991), dir. Jacques Rivette, through December 7, at Quad
Series: Roman Hollywood: American Movies go to Hollywood, December 6-21, Film Forum
Rules of the Game, dir. Jean Renoir, December 13-17, Anthology Film Archives
Annie Hall, dir. Woody Allen, December 22-28, at Film Forum
A Matter of Life and Death, dir. Powell & Pressburger, December 29-January 4, at Film Forum
Series: You Are Now One of Us: Film at Club 57, MoMA, through February 28
Special Screenings Calendar
Saturday, December 2
Loves of Ondine, dir. Andy Warhol, 4:00, MoMA
Letter From an Unknown Woman, dir. Max Ophuls, with Joan Fontaine, 7:45, Metrograph (with Noah Baumbach in person)
December 3
Conversions, dir. Vito Acconci, 5:15, Anthology Film Archives
December 5
Conversions, dir. Vito Acconci, 9:00, Anthology Film Archives
Thursday, December 6
Loves of Ondine, dir. Andy Warhol, 7:00, MoMA
Friday, December 8
Two Weeks in Another Town, dir. Vincente Minelli, with Kirk Douglas, 3:00 & 7:00, Film Forum (part of Roman Hollywood series)
Saturday, December 9
Breaking the Frame, dir. Marielle Nitoslawska, 3:30, Metrograph (with Nitoslawska and Carolee Schneeman in person)
Vinyl, dir. Andy Warhol, 4:00, MoMA
Thursday, December 14
Stromboli, dir. Roberto Rossellini, with Ingrid Bergman, 1:00, 4:00, 8:35, Film Forum (part of Roman Hollywood series)
Saturday, December 16
Beat the Devil, dir. John Huston, with Humphrey Bogart and Jennifer Jones, 12:30, 4:50, at Film Forum (part of Roman Hollywood series)
The Barefoot Contessa, dir. Joseph L Mankiewicz, with Humphrey Bogart and Ava Gardner, 2:20, 6:40, Film Forum (part of Roman Hollywood series)
Auntie Mame, dir. Morton Dacosta, in 35mm, 7:00, Metrograph (introduced by Bianca del Rio)
Tuesday, December 19
Two Weeks in Another Town, dir. Vincente Minelli, with Kirk Douglas, 4:45, Film Forum (part of Roman Hollywood series)
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Music
Luciano Berio
Music Calendar
Recommended concerts are highlighted in red
Friday, December 1
Alexi Kenney, violinist
Renana Gutman, pianist
Bach: Violin Partita No. 3
Crumb: Four Nocturnes (Night Music II)
Schubert: Fantasy in C Major
Salonen: Lachen verlernt
Respighi: Violin Sonata in B minor
7:30 p.m. Weill Recital Hall/Carnegie Hall
AXIOM Jeffrey Milarsky, conductor Berio: Sequenza I Berio: Folk Songs Berio: Sequenza XIV Berio: “points on a curve to find…” 7:30 p.m. Alice Tully Hall, FREE
New York Philharmonic
Edo de Waart, conductor
Emanuel Ax, pianist
Bent Sørensen: Evening Land (world premiere)
Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 2
Brahms: Symphony No. 2
8:00 p.m. David Geffen Hall
Metropolitan Opera
Bellini: Norma
Angela Meade, Joseph Calleja, Jamie Barton, Matthew Rose
Joseph Colaneri, conductor
8:00 p.m. Metropolitan Opera House
Ekmeles
Christopher Trapani: End Words
Saariaho: Nuits Adieux
Cage: Four Solos for Voice
8:00 p.m. 450 W 37th Street
Saturday, December 2
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Truls Mørk, cellist
Handel: Water Music Suite No. 2
Shostakovich: Cello Concerto No. 1
Shuying Li: Out Came the Sun (world premiere)
Stravinsky: Pulcinella Suite
7:00 p.m. Carnegie Hall
Momenta Quartet
Mark Adamo: Excerpts from Little Women, Becoming Santa Claus, Lysistrata, The Gospel of Mary Magdalene, Aristotle
Kara Duggan, Daniel T. Curran, Jarrett Ott, Matt Boehler
7:00 p.m. National Sawdust
New York Philharmonic
Edo de Waart, conductor
Emanuel Ax, pianist
Bent Sørensen: Evening Land (world premiere)
Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 2
Brahms: Symphony No. 2
8:00 p.m. David Geffen Hall
Curtis 20/21 Ensemble David Ludwig, conductor Chen Yi: Shuo Chang Chen Yi: Three Bagatelles from China West Chen Yi: Happy Rain on a Spring Night Chen Yi: Qi Chen Yi: Sparkle Chen Yi: Near Distance 8:00 p.m. Miller Theater
Yarn/Wire Klaus Lang: molten trees (world premiere) Michelle Lou: Different Fur 8:00 p.m. First Unitarian Congregational Society, Brooklyn Heights
New York Master Chorale
Thea Kano, director
James Kennerley, orgsnist
Finzi: In Terra Pax
Schoenberg: Friede auf Erden
Bach: “Donna Nobis Pacem” from B minor Mass
8:00 p.m. St. Jean Baptiste Church
Sunday, December 3
Conrad Tao, pianist Bach: Chromatic fantasia and fugue in D minor Jason Eckardt: Echoes’ White Veil Rachmaninoff: Études-tableaux in A minor Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 31 11:00 a.m. Walter Reade Theater
Vienna Boys Choir “Christmas in Vienna” 2:00 p.m. Carnegie Hall
The Orchestra Now
Leon Botstein, conductor
Kristen Chambers, soprano
Schoenberg: Erwartung
2:00 p.m. Metropolitan Museum of Art
Ursula Oppens, pianist Carter: 90+ Stravinsky: Sonata Carter: Two Diversions Rachmaninoff: Études-tableaux, Op. 33, Nos. 2, 7, 4, 5 Carter: Retrouvailiers Debussy: Images Book I Carter: Catenaires 2:00 p.m. Bargemusic
New York Philharmonic Ensembles
Klein: String Trio
Beethoven: Octet for Winds, Op. 103
Shostakovich: Piano Quintet
3:00 p.m. Merkin Concert Hall
Brentano String Quartet
Dawn Upshaw, soprano
Mozart: String Quartet, K.465, “Dissonance”
Respighi: Il tramanto
Schubert/Webern: Five Minuets D. 89/Six Bagatelles Op. 9
Schoenberg: String Quartet No. 2
3:00 p.m. 92Y
London Handel Players
Handel: Trio Sonata, Op. 2, No. 4
Telemann: Sonata for Violin and Continuo, TWV 41:A6
Handel (arr. Brown): Arias from Semele
Telemann: Sonata for Recorder and Continuo, TWV 41:C5
Handel: The Harmonious Blacksmith
Telemann: Quartet for Flute, Violin, Cello, and Continuo, No. 6
4:00 p.m. Frick Collection
Parthenia Viol Consort
Malcolm Merriweather, baritone
“Nothing Proved: New works for viols, voice and electronics”
Kristin Norderval, Tawnie Olson, Frances White, Richard Einhorn
4:00 p.m. Picture Ray Studio, 245 W. 18th Street
Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
Handel: Concerto grosso in D Major, Op. 6, No. 5
Couperin: Concert Royal No. 4
Bach: Concerto in A minor for Violin, BWV 1041
Vitali: Ciaccona from Varie partite del passemezo, ciaccona, capricii, e passagalii, Op. 7
Telemann: Concerto in G Major for Viola
Vivaldi: Concerto in F Major, RV 551
5:00 p.m. Alice Tully Hall
Sejong Soloists
Christophe Dumaux, countertenor
Paula Zahn, host
Vivaldi: Concerto for Two Violins
Augusta Read Thomas: Murmurs in the Mist of Memory
Vivaldi, Handel: selected Arias
7:30 p.m. Zankel Hall
Sandro De Palma, pianist
Marco Marchettini, clarinetist
Giorgio van Straten, narrator
Gluck: Dance of the blessed spirits from Orfeo ed Euridice
Muzio Clementi: Sonata in G minor, Op. 50, No. 3
Silvia Colasanti: Rumbling Gears
Liszt: Ballade No. 2
Silvia Colasanti: Orfeo. Flebile queritur lyra
7:30 p.m. Weill Recital Hall
Ensemble SD
George Lewis: New work
Oxana Omelchuk: New work
Johannes Kreidler: Charts Music
8:00 p.m. Roulette
Monday, December 4
Juilliard Orchestra
Emmanuel Villaume, conductor
Ravel: Menuet antique
Debussy: La mer
Ravel: L’enfant et les sortileges
7:30 p.m. Alice Tully Hall
American Classical Orchestra and Chorus
Thomas Crawford, conductor
Katherine Wessinger, soprano
Nola Richardson, soprano
Kate Maroney, alto
Clifton Massey, alto
Andrew Fuchs, tenor
Nils Neubert, tenor
Gene Stenger, tenor
Timothy McDevitt, bass
Edmund Milly, bass
C.P.E. Bach: Magnificat
Handel: Messiah (Christmas Portion)
8:00 p.m. St. Ignatius of Antioch Church
Tuesday, December 5
Ensemble Connect
Schnyder: Brass Trio
Janacek: Mládí
Tchaikovsky: Piano Trio in A minor, Op. 50
7:30 p.m. Weill Recital Hall/Carnegie Hall
Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
Handel: Concerto grosso in D Major, Op. 6, No. 5
Couperin: Concert Royal No. 4
Bach: Concerto in A minor for Violin, BWV 1041
Vitali: Ciaccona from Varie partite del passemezo, ciaccona, capricii, e passagalii, Op. 7
Telemann: Concerto in G Major for Viola
Vivaldi: Concerto in F Major, RV 551
7:30 p.m. Alice Tully Hall
Metropolitan Opera
Bellini: Norma
Angela Meade, Joseph Calleja, Jamie Barton, Matthew Rose
Joseph Colaneri, conductor
7:30 p.m. Metropolitan Opera House
Argento Ensemble Michel Galante, conductor Sharon Harms, soprano Wolf/Grisey: Wolf Songs Sang Song: Scars (world premiere) Bartók: Romanian Folk Dances Du Yun: When a Tiger Meets a Rosa Rugosa Taylor Brook: Arhhythmia (world premiere new version) 7:30 p.m. St. Peter’s Church
New York City Classical Guitar Society
David Leisner, guitarist
Tara O’Connor, flutist
Jess Mills, violinist
Mark Holloway, violist
Raman Ramakrishnan, cellist
Beethoven (arr. Matiegka): Serenade, Op. 8. for violin, flute, and guitar
Pierre Jalbert: Sonatine for violin and guitar
Vivian Fine: Canciones y Danzas for flute, cello, and guitar
Diabelli: Serenata Concertante, Op. 105, for flute, viola, and guitar
7:30 p.m. Symphony Space
Jeremiah Cymerman, clarinetist
Patrick Holmes, clarinetist
Matt Bauder, clarinetist
Aaron Novik, clarinetist
Brian Chase, percussionist
Russell Greenberg, percussionist
Jeremiah Cymerman: Systema Mundtitotius
8:00 p.m. Roulette
Wednesday, December 6
New York Philharmonic
Alan Gilbert, conductor
Lian Wang, oboist
Anthony McGill, clarinetist
Judith LeClair, bassonist
Richard Deane, hornist
Weber: Oberon Overture
Mozart: Sinfonia concertante for Winds
Beethoven: Symphony No. 5
7:30 p.m. David Geffen Hall
Metropolitan Opera
Mozart: Le Nozze di Figaro
Adam Plachetka, Christine Karg, Rachel Willis-Sørensen, Luca Pisaroni, Serena Malfi
Harry Bicket, conductor
7:30 p.m. Metropolitan Opera House
Bach Collegium Japan Masaaki Suzuki, conductor Sherezade Panthanki, soprano Jay Carter, countertenor Zachary Wilder, tenor Dominik Wörner, bass Bach: Frou Cantatas from Weihnachts-Oratorium 7:30 p.m. Alice Tully Hall
Tallis Scholars Peter Phillips, conductor Josquin: Gaude virgo; Stabat mater; Absalom fili mi; Inter natos mulierum Gombert: Lugebat Absalom; Regina caeli a 10 Isaac: Optime divino; Tota pulcra es Browne: Stabat juxta 8:00 p.m. Church of St. Mary the Virgin
Thursday, December 7
Janine Jensen, violinist
Lucas Debargue, pianist
Martin Fröst, clarinetist
Torleif Thedéen, cellist
Bartok: Contrasts
Szymanowski: Mythes
Messiaen: Quartet for the End of Time
7:30 p.m. Zankel Hall/Carnegie Hall
New York Philharmonic
Alan Gilbert, conductor
Lian Wang, oboist
Anthony McGill, clarinetist
Judith LeClair, bassonist
Richard Deane, hornist
Weber: Oberon Overture
Mozart: Sinfonia concertante for Winds
Beethoven: Symphony No. 5
7:30 p.m. David Geffen Hall
American Symphony Orchestra
Leon Botstein, conductor
Grazyna Bacewicz: Music for Strings, Trumpets, and Percussion
Martinu: Symphony No. 6, Fantasies symphoniques
Grazyna Bacewicz: Violin Concerto No. 7
Schnittke: Symphony No. 5
8:00 p.m. Alice Tully Hall
Orchestra of St. Luke’s
Berbard Labadie, conductor
Augustin Hadelich, violinist
Kraus: Olympie Overture
Mozart: Symphony No. 41, “Jupiter”
Beethoven: Violin Concerto
8:00 p.m. Carnegie Hall
Simone Dinnerstein, pianist Awadagin Pratt, pianist Dan Tepfer, pianist Philip Lasser, pianist Ensemble Brooklyn Bach: Gottes Zeit ist die allerbeste Zeit, BWV 106 (arr. Kurtag) Bach: Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland, BWV 62 (arr. Busoni) Bach: Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, BWV 140 (arr. Busoni) Bach: Concerto in C minor for Two Pianos, BWV 1060 Dan Tepfer: Algorithmic Improvisation on B.A.C.H. Bach: Concerto in C major for Two Pianos, BWV 1061 Bach: Concerto in F minor for Piano, BWV 1056 Bach: Concerto in D minor for Three Pianos, BWV 1063 Philip Lasser/Bach: Intermezzo and Fugatine on the E major Prelude and Fugue from The Well-Tempered Clavier Bk. 1 Bach: Concerto in A minor for Four Pianos, BWV 1065 8:00 p.m. Miller Theatre
S.E.M. Ensemble Petr Kotik, conductor, flutist, vocalist Kamala Sankaram, Jeffrey Gavett, Jake Ingbar, Adrian Rosas, Nathan Repasz, vocalists Chrisotpher MacIntyre, William Lang, trombonists and vocalists Cage: Song Books I, II Kotik: There is Singularly Nothing Julius Eastman: Macle 8:00 p.m. Paula Cooper Gallery, $15, $20 at door
Friday, December 8
New York Philharmonic
Alan Gilbert, conductor
Lian Wang, oboist
Anthony McGill, clarinetist
Judith LeClair, bassonist
Richard Deane, hornist
Weber: Oberon Overture
Mozart: Sinfonia concertante for Winds
Beethoven: Symphony No. 5
2:00 p.m. David Geffen Hall
ICE
Anthony Roth Costanzo, countertenor
Suzanne Farrin: La Dolce Morte
7:00 p.m. Metropolitan Museum of Art
Jed Distler, pianist
Thelonious Monk: Complete Works
7:00 p.m. Bargemusic
American Composers Orchestra
George Manahan, conductor
Tim Fain, violinist
Pauchi Sasaki, electronics and Speaker-Dress
Pauchi Sasaki: GAMA XVI (world premiere)
Bryce Dessner: Réponse Lutoslawski
Glass: Violin Concerto No. 2, “The American Four Seasons”
7:30 p.m. Zankel Hall/Carnegie Hall
Andrei Bondarenko, baritone
Gary Matthewman, pianist
Fauré, Tchaikovsky, Ibert, Ravel, Saint-Saëns, Duparc
7:30 p.m. Weill Recital Hall/Carnegie Hall
Ensemble Pi
Marianna Martines: Sonata for Piano in E Major; Sonata for Piano in E Major: Sonata for Piano in G Major
Haydn: A Major Sonata Hob. XVI:12
Mozart: Sonata for Piano Four Hands K. 358; “S’altro che lagrime” from La Clemenza di Tito
Haase: “Se mai più sarò geloso” from Cleofide
7:30 p.m. Sheen Center
Juilliard415
Robert Mealy, violinist and conductor
Handel: Concerto grosso in G Major, Op. 6, No. 1
Arne: Concerto No. 5 in G minor
Festing: Concerto in G Major, Op. 3, No. 9
Handel: Concerto grosso in B-flat Major, Op. 6, No. 7
Handel: Suite in F Major from Water Music
7:30 p.m. Alice Tully Hall
Metropolitan Opera
Bellini: Norma
Angela Meade, Joseph Calleja, Jamie Barton, Matthew Rose
Joseph Colaneri, conductor
8:00 p.m. Metropolitan Opera House
Philadelphia Orchestra Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor Hilary Hahn, violinist Adés: Powder Her Face Suite Bernstein: Serenade Sibelius: Symphony No. 1 8:00 p.m. Carnegie Hall
New Amsterdam Singers
Clara Longstreth, conductor
Carol Barnett: World Premiere
Blow, Bach, Buxtehude, Jacob Handl, Monteverdi, Mozart, Argento, at al
8 p.m. Advent Lutheran Church
Saturday, December 9
Janine Jensen, violinist
Alexander Gavrylyuk, pianist
Torlief Thedéen, cellist
7:30 p.m. Zankel Hall/Carnegie Hall
Early Music NY
Frederick Renz, conductor
“Burgundian Christmas: Renaissance in the Low Countries”
7:30 p.m. First Church of Christ, Scientist
New York Philharmonic
Alan Gilbert, conductor
Lian Wang, oboist
Anthony McGill, clarinetist
Judith LeClair, bassonist
Richard Deane, hornist
Weber: Oberon Overture
Mozart: Sinfonia concertante for Winds
Beethoven: Symphony No. 5
8:00 p.m. David Geffen Hall
Jeremy Denk, pianist
Mozart: Rondo in A minor, K.511
Prokofiev: Visions fugitives
Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 30
Schumann: Symphonic Etudes, Op. 13
8:00 p.m. 92Y
Dennis Russell Davis, pianist
Maki Namekawa, pianist
Glass: Les Enfants Terribles Suite
Glass: “The Chase” from Orphée
Glass: Interlude from The Voyage
Glass: “Stokes”
Glass: Four Movements for Two Pianos
8:00 p.m. Roulette
The Knights
Angélica Negrón, accordionist
Miz Jade, drag queen
Dvorak: “Nocturno” from Brass Quintet
Respighi: Il tramonto
Shawn Conley: Yann’s Flight
Schubert (arr. Kahane): Suleika 1
Angélica Negrón: World Premiere
8:00 p.m. BRIC House Ballroom
New York Repertory Orchestra
David Liebowitz, conductor
Inbal Segev, cellist
Kabalevsky: Cello Concerto No. 1
Stephen Rosenhaus: The Inspector General: Overture (world premiere)
Schumann: Symphony No. 3, “Rhenish”
8:00 p.m. Church of St. Mary the Virgin
ICE
Anthony Roth Costanzo, countertenor
Suzanne Farrin: La Dolce Morte
9:00 p.m. Metropolitan Museum of Art
Sunday, December 10
The Knights
Angélica Negrón, accordionist
Dvorak: “Nocturno” from Brass Quintet
Respighi: Il tramonto
Shawn Conley: Yann’s Flight
Schubert (arr. Kahane): Suleika 1
Angélica Negrón: World Premiere
2:00 p.m. BRIC House Ballroom
Early Music NY
Frederick Renz, conductor
“Burgundian Christmas: Renaissance in the Low Countries”
2:00 p.m. First Church of Christ, Scientist
George London Foundation
Marjorie Owens, soprano
Quinn Kelsey, baritone
Myra Huang, pianist
Tchaikovsky, Strauss, Copland
Verdi: “Ciel! Mio padre!”
Wagner: “Wie aus der Ferne”
4:00 p.m. Morgan Library
Semplice Players
Alexander Filterstein, clarinetist
Mark Peskanov, violinist
Haydn: String Quartet No, 53, “Lark”
Mozart: Clarinet Quintet K. 581
8:00 p.m. Bargemusic
New Amsterdam Singers
Clara Longstreth, conductor
Carol Barnett: World Premiere
Blow, Bach, Buxtehude, Jacob Handl, Monteverdi, Mozart, Argento, at al
4:00 p.m. Advent Lutheran Church
Richard Tucker Gala
Nadine Sierra, soprano
Stephanie Blythe, Mezzo-Soprano
Javier Camarena, Tenor
Tara Erraught, Mezzo-Soprano
Vittorio Grigolo, Tenor
Rachel Willis-Sørensen, Soprano
Ekaterina Semenchuk, Mezzo-Soprano
Sir Bryn Terfel, Bass-Baritone
Tamara Wilson, Soprano
Members of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra
New York Choral Society
Nicola Luisotti, conductor
6:00 p.m. Carnegie Hall
Monday, December 11
Metropolitan Opera
Bellini: Norma
Angela Meade, Joseph Calleja, Jamie Barton, Matthew Rose
Joseph Colaneri, conductor
7:30 p.m. Metropolitan Opera House
Orion Weiss & Anna Polansky Piano Duo
Tchaikovsky: Nutcracker Suite
Liszt: The Christmas Tree selections
Schubert: Andantino variée
Schumann: Pictures from the East 18’
Hartke: Piano Sonata for Four Hands
7:30 p.m. Advent Lutheran Church, FREE
Tuesday, December 12
New York Philharmonic
Andrew Manze, conductor
Joèlle Harvey, soprano
Jennifer Johnson Cano, mezzo-soprano
Ben Bliss, tenor
Andrew Foster-Williams, bass-baritone
Westminster Symphonic Choir
Handel: Messiah
7:30 p.m. David Geffen Hall
Metropolitan Opera
Mozart: Le Nozze di Figaro
Adam Plachetka, Christine Karg, Rachel Willis-Sørensen, Luca Pisaroni, Serena Malfi
Harry Bicket, conductor
7:30 p.m. Metropolitan Opera House
Wednesday, December 13
New York Philharmonic
Andrew Manze, conductor
Joèlle Harvey, soprano
Jennifer Johnson Cano, mezzo-soprano
Ben Bliss, tenor
Andrew Foster-Williams, bass-baritone
Westminster Symphonic Choir
Handel: Messiah
7:30 p.m. David Geffen Hall
Thursday, December 14
New York Philharmonic
Andrew Manze, conductor
Joèlle Harvey, soprano
Jennifer Johnson Cano, mezzo-soprano
Ben Bliss, tenor
Andrew Foster-Williams, bass-baritone
Westminster Symphonic Choir
Handel: Messiah
7:30 p.m. David Geffen Hall
Metropolitan Opera
Lehár: The Merry Widow
Susan Graham, Paul Groves, Andrianna Chuchman, David Portillo
Ward Stare, conductor
7:30 p.m. Metropolitan Opera
Friday, December 15
New York Philharmonic
Andrew Manze, conductor
Joèlle Harvey, soprano
Jennifer Johnson Cano, mezzo-soprano
Ben Bliss, tenor
Andrew Foster-Williams, bass-baritone
Westminster Symphonic Choir
Handel: Messiah
11:00 a.m. David Geffen Hall
Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
Bach: Brandenburg Concertos BWV 1046–1051
7:30 p.m. Alice Tully Hall
Metropolis Ensemble
Taipei Philharmonic Choir
Him Sophy: Bangsokol: A Requiem for Cambodia
7:30 p.m. BAM
Metropolitan Opera
Mozart: Le Nozze di Figaro
Adam Plachetka, Christine Karg, Rachel Willis-Sørensen, Luca Pisaroni, Serena Malfi
Harry Bicket, conductor
8:00 p.m. Metropolitan Opera House
Elicia Silverstein, violinist
Westhoff: Suite No. 1
Ljova: Greenway
Biber: Passacaglia, “The Guardian Angel”
Berio: Sequenza VIII
Bach: Partita No. 2, BWV 1004
8:00 p.m. Bargemusic
ICE
Wojtek Blecharz: Music for Invisible Places (world premiere)
8:00 p.m. Abrons Arts Center
Saturday, December 16
New York Philharmonic
Andrew Manze, conductor
Joèlle Harvey, soprano
Jennifer Johnson Cano, mezzo-soprano
Ben Bliss, tenor
Andrew Foster-Williams, bass-baritone
Westminster Symphonic Choir
Handel: Messiah
7:30 p.m. David Geffen Hall
Metropolis Ensemble
Taipei Philharmonic Choir
Him Sophy: Bangsokol: A Requiem for Cambodia
7:30 p.m. BAM
Metropolitan Opera
Lehár: The Merry Widow
Susan Graham, Paul Groves, Andrianna Chuchman, David Portillo
Ward Stare, conductor
8:00 p.m. Metropolitan Opera
Early Music NY
Frederick Renz, conductor
“Burgundian Christmas: Renaissance in the Low Countries”
2:00 p.m. First Church of Christ, Scientist
David Adam Moore, baritone
Beth Morrison, narrator
David T. Little: Chapter Sand (world premiere)
4:00 p.m. National Sawdust
Constantinople
“Metamorfosi—Baroque Impressions”
4:00 p.m. Corpus Christi Church
Gary Levinson, violinist
Baya Kakaouberi, pianist
Debussy: Sonata for Violin and Piano
Faure: Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 1
Schedrin: In the Style of Albéniz, Op. 52
Paganini: La Campanella
4:00 p.m. Bargemusic
Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
Bach: Brandenburg Concertos BWV 1046–1051
5 p.m. Alice Tully Hall
Trinity Youth Chorus
Melissa Attebury, conductor
Britten: Ceremony of Carols
8:00 p.m. St. Paul’s Chapel/Trinity Wall Street
Monday, December 18
Jamie Barton, mezzo-soprano
Kathleen Kelly, pianist
Haydn: Arianna a Naxos
Iain Bell: Of You (world premiere)
Libby Larsen: Love After 1950
Ravel, Debussy, Schoenberg, Strauss
7:30 p.m. Zankel Hall/Carnegie Hall
Metropolitan Opera
Humperdinck: Hansel and Gretel
Tara Erraught, Lisette Oropesa, Gerhard Siegel
7:30 p.m. Metropolitan Opera
Oratorio Society of New York
Kent Tritle, conductor
Kathryn Lewek, soprano
Sara Murphy, mezzo-soprano
Lawrence Jones, tenor
Dashon Burton, bass
Handel: Messiah
8:00 p.m. Carnegie Hall
Tuesday, December 19
Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
Bach: Brandenburg Concertos BWV 1046–1051
7:30 p.m. Alice Tully Hall
Metropolitan Opera
Mozart: Le Nozze di Figaro
Adam Plachetka, Christine Karg, Rachel Willis-Sørensen, Luca Pisaroni, Serena Malfi
Harry Bicket, conductor
7:30 p.m. Metropolitan Opera House
Wednesday, December 20
Metropolitan Opera
Lehár: The Merry Widow
Susan Graham, Paul Groves, Andrianna Chuchman, David Portillo
Ward Stare, conductor
7:30 p.m. Metropolitan Opera
Thursday, December 21
JACK Quartet Georg Friedrich Haas: String Quartet No. 9 7:00 p.m. National Sawdust
Musica Sacra
Kent Tritle, conductor
Kathryn Lewek, soprano
Samantha Hankey, mezzo-soprano
Joshua Blue, tenor
Adam Lau, bass
Handel: Messiah
8:00 p.m. Carnegie Hall
Friday, December 22
Metropolitan Opera
Humperdinck: Hansel and Gretel
Tara Erraught, Lisette Oropesa, Gerhard Siegel
8:00 p.m. Metropolitan Opera
Sunday, December 24
Julian Schwarz, cellist
Marika Bournaki, pianist
Bach: Sonatas for Viola da Gamba and Harpsichord, Nos. 1–3
5:00 p.m. Bargemusic
New York String Orchestra
Jaime Laredo, violinist and conductor
Pamela Frank, violinist
Vivaldi: Concerto in A minor, Op. 3, No. 8
Mozart: Sinfonia Concertante, K. 364
Haynd: Symphony No. 103, “Drumroll”
7:00 p.m. Carnegie Hall
Jeewon Park, pianist
Bach: Goldberg Variations
7:00 p.m. Bargemusic
Monday, December 25
Early Music NY
Frederick Renz, conductor
“Burgundian Christmas: Renaissance in the Low Countries”
2:00 p.m. First Church of Christ, Scientist
Early Music NY
Frederick Renz, conductor
“Burgundian Christmas: Renaissance in the Low Countries”
8:00 p.m. First Church of Christ, Scientist
Tuesday, December 26
Metropolitan Opera
Humperdinck: Hansel and Gretel
Tara Erraught, Lisette Oropesa, Gerhard Siegel
7:30 p.m. Metropolitan Opera
Wednesday, December 27
New York Philharmonic
Bramwell Tovey, conductor
Yefim Bronfman, pianist
Smetana: The Bartered Bride Overture
Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 2
Mussorgsky/Ravel: Pictures at an Exhibition
7:30 p.m. David Geffen Hall
Metropolitan Opera
Lehár: The Merry Widow
Susan Graham, Paul Groves, Andrianna Chuchman, Taylor Stayton
Ward Stare, conductor
8:00 p.m. Metropolitan Opera
Katya Grineva, pianist
Bach/Hess: Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring
Gounod/Bizet: Ave Maria
Mozart: Twelve Variations on Ah vous dira’je, Maman
Schubert/Liszt: Swan Song
Liszt: Waldesraushen
Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 48, No. 1; Nocturne Op. 9, No. 2
Chopin: Polonaise in A-flat Major, Op. 53
Tchaikovsky (arr. Pletnev): Nutcracker Suite
Kent (arr. Duckwall): “I’ll Be Home For Christmas”
De Falla: “Ritual Fire Dance”
Gershwin: 3 Preludes
8:00 p.m. Carnegie Hall
Thursday, December 28
Metropolitan Opera
Humperdinck: Hansel and Gretel
Ingeborg Gillebo, Maureen McKay, Gerhard Siegel
1:00 p.m. Metropolitan Opera House
New York Philharmonic
Bramwell Tovey, conductor
Yefim Bronfman, pianist
Smetana: The Bartered Bride Overture
Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 2
Mussorgsky/Ravel: Pictures at an Exhibition
7:30 p.m. David Geffen Hall
New York String Orchestra
Jaimie Laredo, conductor
Richard Goode, pianist
Gabriela Lena Frank: Elegia Andina
Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 20, K. 466
Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 3, “Scottish”
8:00 p.m. Carnegie Hall
Friday, December 29
Metropolitan Opera
Mozart: Le Nozze di Figaro
Ildar Abdrazakov, Nadine Sierra, Ailyn Pérez, Mariusz Kwiecien, Isabel Leonard
Harry Bicket, conductor
7:30 p.m. Metropolitan Opera House
New York Philharmonic
Bramwell Tovey, conductor
Yefim Bronfman, pianist
Smetana: The Bartered Bride Overture
Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 2
Mussorgsky/Ravel: Pictures at an Exhibition
8:00 p.m. David Geffen Hall
Saturday, December 30
New York Philharmonic
Bramwell Tovey, conductor
Yefim Bronfman, pianist
Smetana: The Bartered Bride Overture
Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 2
Mussorgsky/Ravel: Pictures at an Exhibition
8:00 p.m. David Geffen Hall
Saturday, December 31
Mark Peskanov, violinist
Semplice Players
Vivaldi: Four Seasons
Bach: Violin Concerto, BWV 1041
Vivaldi: Concerto for Violin and Cello, RV 547
5:00 p.m. Bargemusic
Clarion
PaTRAM Institute Singers
Steven Fox, conductor
“Russian New Year’s Program”
5:00 p.m. Cathedral of the Holy Trinity
Metropolitan Opera
Puccini: Tosca
Sonya Yoncheva, Vittorio Grigolo, Sir Bryn Terfel
James Levine, conductor
6:30 p.m. Metropolitan Opera
Great Music in a Great Space Cathedral Choir of St. John the Divine Kent Tritle, conductor Jamet Pittman, soprano Arthur Fiacco, Jr., cello Judy Collins, Jason Robert Brown, Harry Smith, guests Rupert Lang: “Earth Teach Me” Frank Ticheli: “Earth Song” Lucas Wiegerink: “See the Wretched Strangers” Haydn: Te Deum Bernstein: Selections from Mass 7:00 p.m. Cathedral of St. John the Divine
Mark Peskanov, violinist
Semplice Players
Vivaldi: Four Seasons
Bach: Violin Concerto, BWV 1041
Vivaldi: Concerto for Violin and Cello, RV 547
7:00 p.m. Bargemusic
New York Philharmonic
Bramwell Tovey, conductor
Annaleigh Ashford, vocalist
Christopher Jackson, vocalist
Laura Osnes, vocalist
Aaron Tveit, vocalist
“New Year’s Eve: Bernstein on Broadway”
8:00 p.m. David Geffen Hall
Gary Hume
Luciano Berio
Tovey's List 