Tim Mahon wrote:

>The National Symphony Orchestra is running a Percussion Festival at the
>Kennedy Center, featuring the following concert programs:

(details snipped - they're in Tim's original post)

>Quite an ambitious program, it seems to me, and it will be very interesting
>to see how successful they are in filling the available seats.

Very ambitious, and I hope they will be very successful.  Perhaps Tim will
be able to let us know? If possible I would do my best to get to all of
them, but unfortunately I live on the wrong side of the Atlantic Ocean . . .

>knowing only about a fifth of the music above, it remains for me to put my
>money where my mouth is and decide which of these concerts to go to.  Any
>help or recommendations gratefully accepted!

A fifth seems pretty good to me!

I wouldn't miss the April 8 one.  Don't know the Wallace or the Masson but
the idea of a snare drum concerto is intriguing - not least as it's written
by someone who appears to know the difference between a snare drum and a
side drum (confusion of these names is always guaranteed to get me worked
up, and there are many composers and critics in the CM world who should
know better than they do).  The Schwantner is a great showpiece - not the
most musically satisfying of percussion concerti, but one of the most
enjoyable for soloist and audience (the percussionist who won the last BBC
Young Musician competition played it in the final round).  April 9 must
depend mainly on how you feel about Bolero.  As for April 10 - Rouse's
"Alberich" had a critical hammering after a London performance some months
ago, and I wasn't overwhelmed by it.  It tends to encourage Glennie's worst
feature (I assume she's the soloist) - her tendency to use the music to
promote herself ("Aren't I wonderful?") rather than using her considerable
talents in the service of the music.  The Max piece is good fun, and may
perhaps expose another side to Evelyn's abilities.  The April 14 concert
promises plenty to enjoy, but possibly not too much real substance.

I'd be interested to know the soloists for April 8 and 10. Is Glennie doing
the Stephens? I've never thought that timps were a very strong area for her.

Ian Crisp <[log in to unmask]>