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THE SCENE Operatic treats including Don Giovanni in Houston and Die Meistersinger in Chicago; world premieres by Elliott Carter and Wayne Shorter; centenary tribute to John Cage

HOUSTON Houston Grand Opera Don Giovanni (January 25 – February 10) It will be fascinating to hear what Sir Trevor Pinnock does in his HGO debut, conducting Mozart’s Don Giovanni. A harpsichordist and conductor, Pinnock is one of the pioneers of the period-performance movement and has focused his energies on the Baroque and Classical periods, tending towards brisk tempos and clarity of texture. This HGO production of Don Giovanni is a revival of the popular staging by the late Swedish director Göran Järvefelt. A youthful cast of singers includes Austrian baritone Adrian Eröd, making his debut here as the world’s most unrepentant playboy, bass-baritone Kyle Ketelsen as Leporello, and sopranos Rachel Willis-Sørensen and Veronika Dzhioeva as Donna Anna and Donna Elvira. houstongrandopera.org

MIAMI New World Symphony Centennial Tribute to John Cage (February 8 10) There’s a lot more to the composer John Cage than four minutes and 33 seconds of silence, as the musicians of the New World Symphony show in a series of three concert programmes celebrating this in luential and provocative artist. Over the course of three weekend evenings, the NWS – with artistic director Michael Tilson Thomas – chart the composer’s early career (when he made musical choices) to the middle and end, when he pioneered indeterminacy in composition, which challenged de initions about what makes music. This is a multimedia event, with screenings, panel discussions and moderndance choreography by Merce Cunningham (whose radical innovations in modern dance were ired by Cage’s music). A stellar roster of guests includes vocalist Meredith Monk, soprano Jessye Norman and pianist Marc-André Hamelin. nws.edu/JohnCage

SEATTLE Seattle Symphony Elliott Carter: Instances (February 7, 9 & 10) Hitting 100 did nothing to dampen Elliott Carter’s commitment to composition. From 2008 until his recent death at 103,

EVENT OF THE MONTH

NEW YORK Carnegie Hall Orpheus CO with the Wayne Shorter Quartet (February 1) This season marks the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra’s 40th anniversary and showcases its ecumenical taste with worldpremiere arrangements of compositions by legendary jazz saxophonist Wayne Shorter, including Prometheus Unbound and a new work called Lotus. The concert opens with Beethoven’s Overture to The Creatures of Prometheus, followed by Charles Ives’s Symphony No 3, The Camp Meeting. orpheusnyc.com he produced at least 14 works (according to his publisher Boosey & Hawkes). Well, here’s another one – commissioned, and being given its world premiere, by the Seattle Symphony – titled Instances. Carter wrote this new work as a special gift to Ludovic Morlot to celebrate Morlot’s new role as music director of the orchestra this season. Also on this programme, Schumann’s Piano Concerto performed by the American pianist Nicholas Angelich, and Brahms’s Symphony No 4. seattlesymphony.org

CHICAGO Lyric Opera of Chicago Wagner: Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (February 8 – March 3) Lyric Opera of Chicago presents Wagner’s only foray into comedy, Die Meistersinger, a lavish co-production with Glyndebourne and San Francisco Opera. It’s another typically big sing for soloists and chorus, running at ive-and-ahalf hours. This production features powerhouse voices in the lead roles: James Morris as Hans Sachs, Johan Botha as Stolzing, Amanda Majeski as Eva and Bo Skovhus as Beckmesser. The original production is by Sir David McVicar – recently knighted – and leading from the pit is Sir Andrew Davis. lyricopera.org

ST LOUIS St Louis Symphony Orchestra Lupu plays Beethoven (Feb 8 10) Romanian pianist Radu Lupu performs Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No 4 conducted by David Robertson. It’s one of the highlights of this musical trip around central Europe, which begins on the river with a performance of Johann Strauss’s On the Beautiful Blue Danube, via Beethoven, and ends up in the pastoral setting of Brahms’s Symphony No 2. stlsymphony.org

NEW YORK New York Philharmonic Tchaikovsky’s Pathétique and Brahms’s Piano Concerto No 2 (Feb 14 16) Maestro Alan Gilbert leads the Philharmonic in two monumental works. Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No 6, Pathétique, which Gilbert considers to be one of the composer’s ‘most intimate, profound, personal statements’. Gilbert promises he won’t scold enthusiastic audience members if they applaud after the vivacious third movement. Also on the programme, Brahms’s Piano Concerto No 2, performed by Austrian pianist Rudolf Buchbinder. nyphil.org

Previews by Damian Fowler gramophone.co.uk

GRAMOPHONE JANUARY 2013 VII