“Re-Imagining Mahler – and Why His Brief New York Philharmonic Tenure Was Truly a ‘Failure’” is the topic of my talk at this Saturday’s Colorado Mahlerfest Symposium in Boulder. I’ll also address creative fiction as a vital tool for the cultural historian. I’ll be joined (from Vienna) by Thomas Hampson – who has recorded another excerpt from my new novel The … [Read more...] about “Re-Imagining Mahler” — A Colorado Mahlerfest Live-Stream this Saturday
Thomas Hampson Reads from “The Marriage: The Mahlers in New York”
Thomas Hampson, a singer long identified with the songs of Gustav Mahler, has kindly recorded a couple of excerpts from my new novel The Marriage: The Mahlers in New York – a book he calls “revelatory.” Here’s Tom reading my account of Gustav and Alma interacting in Gustav’s dressing room, following a rehearsal of Tristan und Isolde at the Metropolitan … [Read more...] about Thomas Hampson Reads from “The Marriage: The Mahlers in New York”
Mahler vs. Anton Seidl — “All the Things that Mahler Wasn’t”
Yesterday – the publication date for my novel The Marriage: The Mahlers in New York – I had an enthralling video exchange with Morten Solvik of the Mahler Foundation in Vienna. You can see it here. Some highlights: 3:24 – “You can’t understand the story of Mahler in New York without first understanding what went on there before … [Read more...] about Mahler vs. Anton Seidl — “All the Things that Mahler Wasn’t”
Mahler vs. Toscanini — and this Saturday’s “Mahler Hour” on Zoom
“How would you compare Mahler and Toscanini in New York?” asked Kenneth Woods, Artistic Director of Boulder’s Colorado MahlerFest, in a zoom conversation a few days ago about my new novel: The Marriage: The Mahlers in New York (the official pub date is this Saturday). You can see and hear my answer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXCgIWXRoqk You can also hear me in … [Read more...] about Mahler vs. Toscanini — and this Saturday’s “Mahler Hour” on Zoom
“Shostakovich in South Dakota” on NPR — A New Template for Orchestras
My NPR “More than Music” program “Shostakovich in South Dakota” can now be accessed here. I document the impact of a remarkable contextualized performance of Shostakovich’s Leningrad Symphony by Delta David Gier and his singular South Dakota Symphony last February – and ponder its significance for the future of embattled American orchestras … [Read more...] about “Shostakovich in South Dakota” on NPR — A New Template for Orchestras