Classic Ross Amico

Tag: Philadelphia Orchestra

Fantasia’s 75th Anniversary Celebration

This week marks the 75th anniversary of the release of Walt Disney’s “Fantasia.” The film, of course, is made up of eight animated sequences, ranging from the comical to the visionary, set to a Chernobog’s handful of the world’s classics, performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra under the direction of Leopold Stokowski.

Tomorrow morning on WPRB, we mark the event with vintage performances of music presented in the film, alongside additional works, all conducted by Stokowski.

“Fantasia” was first rolled out as a 13-city theatrical roadshow on November 13, 1940. A curio and a money-loser at the time of its release, its artistic vision, episodic, often non-narrative structure, and expense, in terms of both production and the installation of special equipment during its initial tour (“Fantasia” was the first commercial film presented in stereophonic sound) ensured that it couldn’t possibly recoup its costs, especially during wartime.

However, subsequent decades have solidified the film’s stature as a cult classic, reissued many times, so that it now stands, when adjusted for inflation, as the 22nd most profitable film in U.S. entertainment history.

The creative marriage of Disney and Stokowski was bound to yield fascinating results. Disney envisioned “a new style of motion picture presentation” that would bring classical music to an audience (among which he included himself) that ordinarily “walked out on this kind of stuff.”

Stokowski would prove to be an ideal choice. The conductor’s ability to conjure unusual colors from one of the world’s finest orchestras was captured on eight optical sound recording machines over seven weeks at Philadelphia’s Academy of Music. This kind of thing simply wasn’t done in 1939!

The development of “Fantasound” pioneered simultaneous multi-track recording, overdubbing and noise reduction techniques, all processes still in wide use today.

I hope you’ll join me tomorrow morning from 6 to 11 ET, as we celebrate the 75th anniversary of “Fantasia,” on WPRB 103.3 FM and online at wprb.com. We vicariously shake hands with the Mouse, on Classic Ross Amico.

November 11, 2015
Ormandy’s Lost American Legacy

Eugene Ormandy, of course, was born in Hungary. His birth name was Jenő Blau. But he became a naturalized American citizen in 1927 and directed the Philadelphia Orchestra for 44 years.

In that capacity, he championed much contemporary music and works by his adopted countrymen –facts frequently forgotten next to his legacy as a superb interpreter of the 19th century classics.

In fact, much of his American legacy has dropped out of print. In the late 1990s, Albany Records briefly attempted to rectify the situation by reissuing some of Ormandy’s recordings of lesser-heard American music. In the event, the series only reached three discs, but each of them is a treasure.

This Sunday night on “The Lost Chord,” we’ll hear two works by Pulitzer Prize-winners, both of whose music has sadly fallen out of fashion. The first is William Schuman, the very first recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1943, for his “Cantata No. 2, ‘A Free Song.’” At the height of his fame, Schuman was also President of Lincoln Center.

We’ll hear music he composed in 1955, called “Credendum – Article of Faith,” which was written in response to the first ever commission by the U.S. government for a symphonic work.

Norman Dello Joio was the recipient of the Pulitzer in 1957 for his “Meditations on Ecclesiastes.” The concert suite from “Air Power” was adapted from 22 individual scores he composed for the CBS television series, about the history of aviation, which aired from November 1956 through spring of 1957. Its individual sections underscore the early days of flight, with its barnstormers and daredevils, followed by those of air battles and war scenes.

I hope you’ll join me for these rarely heard recordings of American music, conducted by Eugene Ormandy. That’s “All-American Ormandy,” tonight at 10 ET, with a repeat Wednesday evening at 6; or listen to it later as a webcast at wwfm.org.

November 8, 2015
Pope Francis, Philly, and Pontifical Pomp

With Philadelphia under martial law – I guess for the protection of Pope Francis – there’s plenty of time to stay indoors and enjoy some papal trivia.

Charles Gounod, perhaps most famous for that great devil opera, “Faust,” composed this “Pontifical March” in 1869 to mark the golden jubilee of Pope Pius IX’s priestly ordination. 80 years later, Pope Pius XII decided to make it the Vatican City’s official “hymn,” replacing Viktorin Hallmayer’s “Marcia trionfale” (composed in 1857). The first eight bars are played whenever the Vatican’s flag is raised.

In 1949, Antonio Allegra, an organist at St. Peter’s Basilica, provided an Italian text to be sung to the anthem. In 1991, Raffaello Lavagna, a Catholic priest from Savona, composed Latin lyrics for four-part choir.

Here it is, in all its pontifical pomp:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FDB6JZXfZQ

If you’re interested, here’s Hallmayer’s original, which I imagine would sound really great on a calliope:

You can learn more about the “Pontifical Anthem” here:

http://www.vaticanstate.va/content/vaticanstate/en/stato-e-governo/note-generali/inno.html

Naturally, as the city’s premiere musical institution, the Philadelphia Orchestra will be getting in on the act, performing at two events during Francis’ visit. The orchestra will appear as part of a massive concert on the Ben Franklin Parkway, which will take place tonight from 5:30 to 9:45. Andrea Bocelli will be there. So will Aretha Franklin. The orchestra will perform from about 7:30 to the end.

Then tomorrow, the orchestra will participate in an open air Papal Mass. It will deliver a musical prelude at 3. During the Mass, which begins at 4, the orchestra will provide relevant musical interludes. And then, beginning at around 6:10, the orchestra will perform a postlude. The Mass will include a 500 member choir. Since you’ll never be able to get close, you might as well be thankful for the streaming, which you can enjoy by way of the links provided here:

https://www.philorch.org/blog/news/watch-philadelphia-orchestra-festival-families-concert-and-papal-mass#/

Here’s the playlist for the Papal Mass. Quite a hodgepodge, if I do say so myself.

http://wrti.org/post/performing-pope-francis-and-world-moment-history-philadelphia-orchestra#stream/0

I wonder what the Pope thinks of it all. In private, he turns out to be a rather cultivated figure:

http://www.wqxr.org/#!/story/pope-reveals-his-tastes-classical-music/

It’s interesting to see Caravaggio on his list of favorites. Pope Paul V issued a death warrant for the artist after the fatal castration of one of his foes during a street brawl. Then again, by all accounts Wagner wasn’t such a nice guy, either.

For the past few weeks my thoughts have been flashing back to Pope John Paul II and Father Guido Sarducci. Am I the only one who remembers this, I wonder?

PHOTOS: Jolly Charles Gounod (left) and Pope Francis

September 26, 2015
Philadelphia Orchestra on WRTI Today

Tune in this afternoon to WRTI for the first of my Philadelphia Orchestra interviews. As part of the intermission features on this week’s concert broadcast, conductor-in-residence Cristian Măcelaru, born in Romania, will talk about his great composer-compatriots George Ensecu and György Ligeti.

Ligeti, born in Transylvania, will be represented by his rarely-heard “Concert românesc” (hear Măcelaru talk about the interesting use of the horns in the piece). Măcelaru concludes the concert with a roof-raising performance of Enescu’s “Romanian Rhapsody No. 1.” He comments that it has always been his dream to perform the work with The Philadelphia Orchestra.

Sarah Chang will be the soloist in Dvořák’s Violin Concerto. The program will also include Beethoven’s Symphony No. 1.

The broadcast begins at 1 ET. Listen in the Philadelphia area at 90.1 FM, search for additional frequencies at wrti.org, or avail yourself of the station’s internet streaming.

Other commitments this afternoon? Listen to the interview (already posted) here:

http://wrti.org/post/philadelphia-orchestra-concert-wrti-sarah-chang-soloist-sunday-july-5-1-pm

Also on the website: Susan Lewis’ interview with Sarah Chang. Gregg Whiteside is the producer and host of the Philadelphia Orchestra broadcasts.

July 5, 2015
Orchestra Turns Flight Delay into Concert

When life gives you lemons…

Confronted with a flight delay, musicians of the Seattle Symphony perform an impromptu concert:

Video: Orch musicians start playing on delayed US flight

Here’s a quartet, which calls itself Port City Sound:

Perhaps best of all, the Philadelphia Orchestra held up in Beijing:

PHOTO: Philly musicians, with barely enough room to swing a cat(gut).

BTW, did you know that violin strings were never actually made out of cat? Learn the truth, with this pleasant bit of lunchtime reading:

Violin Strings Were Never Made Out of Actual Cat Guts

“Is it not strange that sheep’s guts could hail souls out of men’s bodies?”

― William Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing

February 11, 2015

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