Music of Stephen Foster and Charles Ives

Trifecta of musical celebration for 2026 Fourth of July:

1. Stephen Foster (07.04.1826 – 01.13.1864) 200th birth anniversary. He was really born on Fourth of July ! His music was highly revered and heavily referenced by
2. Charles Ives (1874 – 1954), one of the truly original and revolutionary modern American composers. Orchestral works and songs conducted by 
3. Michael Tilson Thomas (12.21.1944 – 04.22.2026) who passed away earlier this year. 

Johann Bernhard Bach 350th Birth Anniversary. Orchestral Suites and Keyboard Music.

 

Happy Birthday Bach ! No, not that famous one, but his cousin. 

Johann Bernhard Bach (05.23.1676 – 06.11.1749) 350th birth anniversary. Orchestral Suites and Keyboard Music. 

Concert: Chicago Symphony Orchestra / Riccardo Muti (01/17/2026)

Muti guest conducts Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Hearing CSO live after more than 20+ years. 

Concert: Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra - Double Espresso (02/02/2024)

Phlharmonia Baroque Orchestra: Double Espresso. Richard Egarr joined by wife Alexandra Nepomnyashchaya on the J.S. Bach double harpsichord concertos. 

Concert: Voices of Music - Metamorphoses (03/30/2023)

Interesting fusion concert of Western early music and Chinese classical music, with dancers. Unfortunately, the performance was marred by bad acoustics of the venue.

Johann Sigismund Kusser: Composition de Musique (Musica Aeterna Bratislava)(Les Enchantants)

 

Composition de Musique, 6 French orchestral overtures by Johann Sigismund Kusser (c1660 - c1727), the earliest known published in Germany (1682).

「男子漢大丈夫，在這兒Kusser(哭啥)?!!」

Concert: Philharmonia Baroque (The Surprises of Love) (11/16/2022)

Emeritus conductor McGegan returning to conduct his 1000th concert with PBO.

Concert: Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra / Skip Sempe (03/12/2022)

Rimsky-Korsakov: Christmas Eve Suite (Armenian Philharmonic/Tjeknavorian)

Christmas Music from a Russian not named Tchaikovsky: Rimsky-Korsakov's Christmas Eve Suite. Merry Xmas Eve! 

A Telemann Companion (Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin/Rene Jacobs)

 

A Telemann Companion

More like, all previous Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin (Akamus) recordings of Telemann on Harmonia Mundi, with a serious math typo!

Massenet: Orchestral Suite (Ossonce)(Gardiner)

Massenet: Orchestral Suites

Graupner: Music for Chalumeaux (Mensa Sonora/Jean Maillet + Ars Antiqua Austria/Gunar Letzbor)

 

Music for chalumeaux by Graupner. Just thinking of Graupner brings back memories of the summer I spent at Darmstadt (court where Graupner worked at for the majority of his life).

「東西就在面前都沒看到，你是chalumeau(瞎了嗎)??!!」

Johann Christoph Pez: Ouvertures - Concerti (Les Muffati/Peter van Heyghen)

Overtures - Concerti by Johann Christoph Pez

「我老婆年輕時可是個美人Pez(胚子)！」

Concert: Voices of Music - As steals the morn (03/28/2019) (Amanda Forsythe + Thomas Cooley)

Johann Christian Schieferdecker: Musicalische Concerte (Elbipolis Barockorchester Hamburg)

Johann Bernhard Bach: Orchestral Suites (Freiburg Baroque Orchestra)

Concert: Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra + Masaaki Suzuki (12/13/2012)

Telemann: Darmstadt Overtures (Concentus Musicus Wien / Harnoncourt)

「Darmstadt」會讓我回想起2000年暑假到德國當交換學生的那段日子。當時透過大學母校University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign與Technische Universität Darmstadt(史上第一個成立電機系的學校)大學之間交換計劃，有幸到Darmstadt待一個半個月。如今再回憶來，那可能是我最懷念的暑假之一。

Roman: Drottningholmsmusiken (Drottningholm Baroque Ensemble / Nils-Erik Sparf)

2011年發生了不少事。動了幾個手術，回台灣和幾位網友正式見了面，去了巴黎，不過最重要的，是正式(法律上)告別單身生活。當時事情太多忙不過來，未能記載，或許改天能一一補上。新的一年，先用Johan Helmich Roman (1694 – 1758)的這張專輯上的音樂來代表這一年經歷對我最有意義的事情了。

Aufschnaiter: Serenades (from "Concors discordia" Op.2) (L'Orfeo Barockorchester / Michi Gaigg)

Benedikt Anton Aufschnaiter (1665-1742) 是巴洛克中期的奧地利作曲家，更是Georg Muffat過逝後在Passau宮廷音樂指揮(Kapellmeister)的接班人。他出生於奧地利西邊Tyrol郡的Kitzbühel，但似乎在維也納待了許多年。Aufschnaiter當時結識未來的顧主，Passau的采邑大主教(prince archbishop) Johann Philipp von Lamberg時，已經年近四十了。Passau采邑大主教後來換了人，Aufschnaiter仍繼續當他的音樂指揮直到他自己去逝為止。