In an impassioned hour of music, cellist Ben Solomonow and pianist Christopher Goodpasture played a wide-ranging selection of music from Ludwig van Beethoven to Rita Strohl.
1921 was a pivotal year in Italian opera. Enrico Caruso died at age 48, and Franco Corelli and Giuseppe Di Stefano were born. Italy's greatest opera theater marks the centenary of these events with a free virtual exhibit.
"I will put all my passion at the service of the Monte Carlo Opera. Taking over the direction of the Monte Carlo Opera is a new stage, but also the realization of a dream," the Italian singer averred.
Thompson's 2015 piece brings to light an issue that hits close to home in Chicago and countrywide: the killing of unarmed African American men. Thompson parallels Haydn’s Seven Last Words of Christ; using the liturgy as a guide, he weaves a piece that prompts conversation about race and social injustice.
The recorder may call to mind tortured performances of "Hot Cross Buns" or "Jingle Bells" from your elementary school days, but these pieces make use of the instrument's virtuosic potential.
