It was a great music week for us.  On Thursday we saw the National SO,
under guest conductor Herbert Blomstedt, do Mozart PC 27 (Jonathan Biss,
soloist) and Bruckner 9.  On Saturday, we saw La Sonnambula in a hi-def
broadcast from the Met.  Natalie Dessay, wow, what a presence.  On Sunday,
we had the Brandenburg Concertos, done by the premiere band in the world
for that repertoire, the Academy of Ancient Music, Richard Egarr conducting
and at the harpsichord.

All of the above is not to brag or anything like that.  It just
illustrates something we've talked about for a few years.  These days
I would much rather spend my arts money on live performance than on
another CD (or several, given the price of tickets these days).  The NSO
proved they could excel in two completely different types of music in
live performance.  The Dessay Sonnambula -- with some very innovative
and effective staging by the Met, despite what you might have read in
the New York Times -- was far more memorable than even the best CD.  And
no CD would include Richard Egarr's interesting commentary on the
Brandenburgs.  Furthermore, the Academy's authentic instruments in the
rather large Concert Hall of George Mason University did not put out a
wall of sound.  Which was good!  Because there is no way I would have
listened as closely to a CD as I did yesterday.

I'm still a CD collector, but if there is a choice in the expenditure
of entertainment dollars, make it live performance for me.

Mitch Friedfeld

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