And Yet Another List

Below is a chronological listing of orchestral concerts Andrew and I attended within the last year.

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Minnesota Orchestra
Orchestra Hall
Minneapolis

Osmo Vanska, Conductor
Simone Dinnerstein, Piano

Milhaud: La Creation Du Monde [Complete Ballet]
Ravel: Piano Concerto
R. Strauss: Ein Heldenleben

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Minnesota Orchestra
Orchestra Hall
Minneapolis

Osmo Vanska, Conductor
Midori, Violin

Britten: Four Sea Interludes From “Peter Grimes”
Sibelius: Violin Concerto
Debussy/Caplet: Claire De Lune
Debussy/Molinari: L’Isle Joyeuse
Debussy: La Mer

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Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Ordway Center
Saint Paul

Douglas Boyd, Conductor
Jeremy Denk, Piano

Brahms: Serenade No. 2
Dean: Pastoral Symphony
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 1

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Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Ordway Center
Saint Paul

Christian Zacharias, Conductor And Soloist

Martin: Etudes For String Orchestra
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 3
Beethoven: The Creatures Of Prometheus [Incidental Music]

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Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Ted Mann Concert Hall
Minneapolis

Christian Zacharias, Conductor And Soloist

Haydn: Symphony No. 42
Stravinsky: Danses Concertantes
Weber: Konzertstück
Haydn: Symphony No. 100 (“Military”)

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Minnesota Orchestra
Orchestra Hall
Minneapolis

Osmo Vanska, Conductor
James Ehnes, Violin

Brahms: Haydn Variations
Brahms: Violin Concerto
Brahms: Symphony No. 3

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Minnesota Orchestra
Orchestra Hall
Minneapolis

Osmo Vanska, Conductor
Minnesota Chorale

Brahms: Hungarian Dances Nos. 4, 5, 8, 11 and 14
Brahms: Nänie
Brahms: Schicksalslied
Brahms: Serenade No. 2

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Minnesota Orchestra
Orchestra Hall
Minneapolis

Andrew Litton, Conductor
Vadim Gluzman, Violin

Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No. 2
Shostakovich: Symphony No. 7 (“Leningrad”)

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Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Ordway Center
Saint Paul

Ludovic Morlot, Conductor
Dawn Upshaw, Soprano

Mozart: Symphony No. 31 (“Paris”)
Debussy: Le Livre de Baudelaire
Ravel: Five Greek Folk Songs
Ravel: “Mother Goose” Suite

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Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Ordway Center
Saint Paul

Rossen Milanov, Conductor

Shostakovich: Two Pieces From Scarlatti (“Pastorale And Capriccio”)
Shostakovich/Barshai: Chamber Symphony For String Orchestra
Prokofiev: Overture On Hebrew Themes
Korngold: Violin Concerto

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Minnesota Orchestra
Orchestra Hall
Minneapolis

Courtney Lewis, Conductor
Ingrid Fliter, Piano

Elgar: In The South (”Alassio”)
Schumann: Piano Concerto
Walton: Symphony No. 1

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Minnesota Orchestra
Orchestra Hall
Minneapolis

Osmo Vanska, Conductor
Christian Tetzlaff, Violin

Sibelius: Symphony No. 4
Szymanowski: Violin Concerto No. 1
Kodaly: Dances Of Galanta

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Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Ordway Center
Saint Paul

Thomas Zehetmair, Conductor
Kim Kashkashian, Viola

Schubert: “Alfonso And Estrella” Overture
Olivero: Neharot, Neharot
Schubert: Symphony No. 9 (”Great”)

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Minnesota Orchestra
Orchestra Hall
Minneapolis

Stanislaw Skrowaczewski, Conductor

Bruckner: Symphony No. 8

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Minnesota Orchestra
Orchestra Hall
Minneapolis

Mark Wigglesworth, Conductor
Minnesota Chorale

M. Berkeley: Oboe Concerto
Ravel: Daphnis et Chloé [Complete Ballet]

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Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Ordway Center
Saint Paul

Roberto Abbado, Conductor

Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 1
MacMillan: Veni, Veni, Emmanuel
Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 5 (“Reformation”)

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Minnesota Orchestra
Orchestra Hall
Minneapolis

Osmo Vanska, Conductor
Yevgeny Sudbin, Piano

Prokofiev: Symphony No. 1 (“Classical”)
Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 24
Sibelius: Symphony No. 1

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Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Ordway Center
Saint Paul

Hans Graf, Conductor
Jeffrey Kahane, Piano

Varese: Octandre
Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 25
Varese: Density 21.5
Mozart: Symphony No. 40

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The only work we heard twice last season was Brahms’s Serenade No. 2, a composition seldom programmed. (Oddly, both local ensembles had also programmed last season the infrequently-heard Brahms Serenade No. 1.)

Last season I heard my third live Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 3 and my third live Schumann Piano Concerto.

Last season I heard the following works live for the second time: Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 1; Brahms’s Nänie, Schicksalslied, Symphony No. 3 and Violin Concerto; Bruckner’s Symphony No. 8; Mozart’s Piano Concerto No.25; Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 2; Ravel’s “Mother Goose” Suite; and Sibelius’s Violin Concerto.

Every other work I was hearing live for the first time.

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By my calculation, Andrew and I attended eighteen orchestral concerts last season: ten subscription concerts of the Minnesota Orchestra and eight subscription concerts of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. In effect, we caught 40 per cent of the Minnesota Orchestra subscription programs and 30 per cent of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra subscription programs.

We heard nothing but local orchestras last season. Next season, things will improve: we intend to hear two concerts by the Chicago Symphony, one concert by the Milwaukee Symphony, one concert by the New York Philharmonic, and one concert by London’s Philharmonia Orchestra, on tour in the U.S. next season.

The Minnesota Orchestra needs to upgrade its roster of guest conductors. For the last several seasons, the Minnesota Orchestra has offered a tired array of guest conductors. Next season is not an improvement.

The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra needs to engage a music director. The orchestra’s playing is clean and neat, but faceless and impersonal.

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By my count, Andrew and I have attended sixty-six orchestral concerts since February 2006, an average of eleven orchestral concerts per season.

I last updated this list on July 13, 2011.