c:n joined actor Michael Burnham, who delivered a compelling portrayal of Arnold Schoenberg using the composer’s own words to describe his music, philosophy, aesthetics and life experience. Vocal works were performed by soprano Meng Chun Lin and solo piano works by Steven Cahn.
The standing room only audience of 125 at concert:nova’s lower Reading Road basement space heard a wide range of Schoenberg works, interwoven with Burnham’s performance. These included:
- Pierrot Lunaire: No. 1 Mondestrunken; No. 5, Valse de Chopin; and No 12, O alter Duft
- Cabaret Songs, Galathea, Mahnung and Aria aus dem Spiegel
- Serenade op 24, Lied Sans Parole / Tanzscene
- Op 23 Piano Pieces: No. 1, Sehr lagnsam and No. 2, Sehr rasch
- The Book of the Hanging Gardens: No.3, Als Neuling Trat Ich In Dein Gehege
No. 4, Da meine Lippen Reglos Sind Und Brennen
No. 10, Das Schone Beet Betracht Ich Mir Im Harren
- Chamber Symphony No. 1.
Critical response to the program included:
"...concert:nova, a groundbreaking ensemble of musicians, set the music of Schoenberg in a striking new light."
– Janelle Gelfand, Cincinnati Enquirer, April 6, 2009
"It was a tour de force that simply must become a permanent part of C:N's repertoire."
– Mary Ellen Hutton, Music in Cincinnati, April 6, 2009
“If I were a stranger in town and someone told me that a concert of Schoenberg’s music in Cincinnati attracted a SRO crowd to a hip venue and elicited a standing ovation, I’d probably dismiss them as being nuts – but that’s exactly what happened.”
– Michael Fiday, CCM, May 21, 2009
For complete more critical highlights and complete “Demystifying Schoenberg: reviews, click here.
