Tag: New York City

Golden Rabbit

June 18th, 2020 – In late February 1998, I made my last visit to New York City prior to moving here. One of my tasks on that trip was to arrange for a private mailbox down in The Village, where I would be living. I chose The Golden Rabbit, a small shop which is part of the White Horse Tavern building. The little store sells cards, souvenirs, lottery tickets; they have fax and copy service, and private mailboxes for $15 a month, which includes package service. The couple who’ve run Golden Rabbit for some 25 years are so nice.

After meeting Wei, two weeks after I moved here, I added his name to the mailbox. He became friendly with the owners of the store. When, after five years of living on Perry Street, we moved up to Inwood, we always kept the mailbox; Wei or I would stop in every three or four days to pick up the mail.

When the White Horse Tavern (a designated historic landmark) was bought recently by a new landlord, he wanted to drastically increase the rent for the Golden Rabbit. The owner and tenant were trying to iron things out when the pandemic struck and everything shut down.

The Golden Rabbit re-opened in late May with reduced hours, and it soon became apparent that they could not sustain the business in the current atmosphere. And so they are closing as of June 30th, 2020.

Having a West Village address was a big deal for me: I’d waited so long to move to New York City, and at the time the Village was still wonderfully Bohemian, relatively inexpensive, and an oasis of drugs, sex, and rock n’ roll. But today, when I went down to say goodbye to the couple, I realized how drastically things have changed. Restaurants and shops (mostly boarded up now) are for the most part unaffordable to mere mortals. Manatus closed years ago, as did the Chinese restaurant where we celebrated my 50th birthday. The piers where I used to sunbathe and misbehave have turned into a promenade for Latte-slurping, cellphone-addicted mothers wheeling double-wide baby strollers, whilst at the same time walking the dog.

So with the closing of the Golden Rabbit, it feels like a chapter of my life is coming to an end. I love it here in Inwood with its vastly diverse population, its beautiful park, great pizza and Chinese food, and laid-back atmosphere. But I’ll always think fondly of the days we lived on Perry Street, where my longtime dream of living in Gotham came true.

~ Oberon

June 17, 2020
Franz Mazura Has Passed Away

The great Austrian singing-actor Franz Mazura has passed away at the age of 96. Mazura made his operatic debut at Kassel in 1949, and went on to appear at numerous German theaters in a wide variety of roles. His career eventually took him to the great stages of Paris, Vienna, Bayreuth, and New York City.

Mazura was a stalwart at the Bayreuth Festival for fifteen summers, beginning in 1971. His most frequent Wagnerian roles were Alberich in the RING Cycle and Klingsor in PARSIFAL, but he also sang the Wanderer and Gurnemanz at the Wagner shrine.

Franz Mazura as Gurnemanz – Bayreuth 1973

At Bayreuth, he appeared in 1976 as Gunther in the controversial Pierre Chéreau centennial production of the RING Cycle: photo above, with Dame Gwyneth Jones as Brunnhilde.

In 1979, Mazura sang Doctor Schön and Jack the Ripper in the premiere of the completed version of Alban Berg’s LULU at the Paris Opéra, conducted by Pierre Boulez.

After making his Metropolitan Opera debut in 1980 in the Berg double-role, Franz Mazura went on to appear on The Met stage 175 times. In 1989, he was a magnificent Alberich in the RING Cycle, my first experience of seeing the Cycle in the span of a week. Earlier, in 1987, he had stepped in as Wotan in WALKURE, a performance my friend Paul Reid attended; Paul described Mazura as “…a cantankerous god.”

Franz Mazura’s final Met appearance was as Schigolch in LULU in 2002.

Here is a sampling of his extraordinary portrayal of Klingsor:

PARSIFAL – scene from Act II – Leonie Rysanek & Franz Mazura – Met bcast 1985(1)

Among the many roles Franz Mazura sang in his long career was the Spirit Messenger in DIE FRAU OHNE SCHATTEN:

Helga Dernesch & Franz Mazura – FRAU OHNE SCHATTEN ~ opening scene – C Perick cond – Met 1989

He displayed his versatility in such roles as La Roche in CAPRICCO, Pizarro in FIDELIO, Scarpia in TOSCA, the Doctor in WOZZECK, Creon in OEDIPUS REX, and the Speaker in ZAUBERFLOETE. His final operatic appearance was at Berlin as Schwarz in MEISTERSINGER on April 21st, 2019…the eve of his 95th birthday.

Franz Mazura appears in the film of Pierre Chéreau‘s 2013 production of ELEKTRA from the Aix-en-Provence Festival; he makes a touching effect as the Tutor of Orest.

~ Oberon

January 27, 2020
Table of Silence ~ 2019

Wednesday September 11th, 2019 – Today marked the annual Lincoln Center performance of Jacqulyn Buglisi’s Table of Silence, a danced ritual commemorating the 9/11 terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington DC. This year, it took on an even deeper resonance as a plea for reason and compassion in our dark and dangerous world.

As each day seems to bring ever more unsettling headlines, I am constantly put in mind of the words sung by the desperate wife and mother Magda Sorel in Gian-Carlo Menotti’s opera The Consul:

“To this we’ve come:
that men withhold the world from men.
No ship nor shore for him who drowns at sea.
No home nor grave for him who dies on land.
To this we’ve come:
that man be born a stranger upon God’s earth,
that he be chosen without a chance for choice,
that he be hunted without the hope of refuge.
To this we’ve come. And you, you too, shall weep.”

Table of Silence shines like a beacon of hope; each year, it seems more beautiful…and more meaningful.

~ Oberon

Note: some photos here.

September 10, 2019
Lydia Johnson Dance ~ Retrospective – Part IV

Above: dancers Blake Hennessy-York and Sarah Pon after a rehearsal

The 2016 season marked a transitional period for Lydia Johnson Dance: the roster of the Company was evolving. Their annual New York City performances took place in March rather than June.

The program featured repeats NIGHT OF THE FLYING HORSES (above: Laura Di Orio and Brynt Beitman)…

…and GIVING WAY (with guest artist Riccardo Battaglia and Blake Hennessy-York), plus a new jazz piece, HINDSIGHT, which quickly disappeared from the repertoire. Performance photos from the 2016 performance by Nir Arieli.

But the sad news was that the 2016 season marked the last performances with the Company of Sarah Pon and Blake Hennessy-York, who had decided to move to California. In their seasons with Lydia Johnson Dance, they made their mark in every ballet they danced in, and for their farewell they encored their outstanding performance in WHAT COUNTS.

Above: Blake and Sarah, rehearsing

The great outdoors: Brynt Beitman and Laura Di Orio in a pas de deux from NIGHT OF THE FLYING HORSES.

As rehearsals for 2017 began, the Company roster was much changed from when I first connected with Lydia Johnson Dance. But some surprises were in store:

Lisa Iannacito McBride (in black, rehearsing with Laura Di Orio and Katie Lohiya, above ) returned as a guest artist to dance the role she had created in CROSSINGS BY RIVER…

…and, incredibly, Blake and Sarah came in from the West Coast to dance the roles made on them in GIVING WAY.

This was an especially happy time to be part of the extended LJD family, and privy to rehearsals:

It was simply great to have Lisa back in the studio…

…and Chris Bloom, on a break from Ballet Hispanico, popped in…

…to dance with Katie Lohiya.

The partnership of Chazz Fenner-McBride and Min Kim developed in leaps and bounds…

…and they are always in good spirits during rehearsal.

Min Kim and Laura DiOrio in company class…

…and Laura rehearsing with Dona Wiley, who was just joining the Company.

The performances in June 2017 were given at New York Live Arts in Chelsea. The program was especially strong, with two new ballets: TRIO SONATAS, set to Handel, and This, and my heart beside… one of Lydia’s most personal works, to music by Philip Glass. The all-female CROSSINGS BY RIVER made a welcome return to the repertoire, and a repeat of the previous season’s GIVING WAY was handsomely danced.

Photos from the 2017 season by Nir Arieli:

CROSSINGS BY RIVER: Min Kim, Lisa Iannacito McBride, Dona Wiley, Laura Di Orio, Katie Lohiya

CROSSINGS BY RIVER: Katie Lohiya, Laura Di Orio, Lisa Iannacito McBride

GIVING WAY: Brynt Beitman and Blake Hennessy-York

GIVING WAY: Laura Di Orio and Brynt Beitman

TRIO SONATAS: Danny Pigliavento and Katie Lohiya

TRIO SONATAS: Chazz Fenner-McBride and Min Kim

This, and my heart beside…: Sara Spangler and Katie Lohiya. Sara, a young dancer from Lydia Johnson’s school, made a lovely impression in this ballet

This, and my heart beside…: guest artists Mary Beth Hansohn and Peter Chursin were spellbinding

This, and my heart beside…: Danny Pigliavento and Katie Lohiya. Their partnership has a poignant lyricism.

Among the many photos from the rehearsal period for the 2017 season, this is a particular favorite of mine, though it’s not in the studio:

LJD Women: Min Kim, Lisa Iannacito McBride, Laura Di Orio, and Katie Lohiya

~ Oberon

January 24, 2019
Lydia Johnson Dance ~ Retrospective – Part IV

Above: dancers Blake Hennessy-York and Sarah Pon after a rehearsal

The 2016 season marked a transitional period for Lydia Johnson Dance: the roster of the Company was evolving. Their annual New York City performances took place in March rather than June.

The program featured repeats NIGHT OF THE FLYING HORSES (above: Laura Di Orio and Brynt Beitman)…

…and GIVING WAY (with guest artist Riccardo Battaglia and Blake Hennessy-York), plus a new jazz piece, HINDSIGHT, which quickly disappeared from the repertoire. Performance photos from the 2016 performance by Nir Arieli.

But the sad news was that the 2016 season marked the last performances with the Company of Sarah Pon and Blake Hennessy-York, who had decided to move to California. In their seasons with Lydia Johnson Dance, they made their mark in every ballet they danced in, and for their farewell they encored their outstanding performance in WHAT COUNTS.

Above: Blake and Sarah, rehearsing

The great outdoors: Brynt Beitman and Laura Di Orio in a pas de deux from NIGHT OF THE FLYING HORSES.

As rehearsals for 2017 began, the Company roster was much changed from when I first connected with Lydia Johnson Dance. But some surprises were in store:

Lisa Iannacito McBride (in black, rehearsing with Laura Di Orio and Katie Lohiya, above ) returned as a guest artist to dance the role she had created in CROSSINGS BY RIVER…

…and, incredibly, Blake and Sarah came in from the West Coast to dance the roles made on them in GIVING WAY.

This was an especially happy time to be part of the extended LJD family, and privy to rehearsals:

It was simply great to have Lisa back in the studio…

…and Chris Bloom, on a break from Ballet Hispanico, popped in…

…to dance with Katie Lohiya.

The partnership of Chazz Fenner-McBride and Min Kim developed in leaps and bounds…

…and they are always in good spirits during rehearsal.

Min Kim and Laura DiOrio in company class…

…and Laura rehearsing with Dona Wiley, who was just joining the Company.

The performances in June 2017 were given at New York Live Arts in Chelsea. The program was especially strong, with two new ballets: TRIO SONATAS, set to Handel, and This, and my heart beside… one of Lydia’s most personal works, to music by Philip Glass. The all-female CROSSINGS BY RIVER made a welcome return to the repertoire, and a repeat of the previous season’s GIVING WAY was handsomely danced.

Photos from the 2017 season by Nir Arieli:

CROSSINGS BY RIVER: Min Kim, Lisa Iannacito McBride, Dona Wiley, Laura Di Orio, Katie Lohiya

CROSSINGS BY RIVER: Katie Lohiya, Laura Di Orio, Lisa Iannacito McBride

GIVING WAY: Brynt Beitman and Blake Hennessy-York

GIVING WAY: Laura Di Orio and Brynt Beitman

TRIO SONATAS: Danny Pigliavento and Katie Lohiya

TRIO SONATAS: Chazz Fenner-McBride and Min Kim

This, and my heart beside…: Sara Spangler and Katie Lohiya. Sara, a young dancer from Lydia Johnson’s school, made a lovely impression in this ballet

This, and my heart beside…: guest artists Mary Beth Hansohn and Peter Chursin were spellbinding

This, and my heart beside…: Danny Pigliavento and Katie Lohiya. Their partnership has a poignant lyricism.

Among the many photos from the rehearsal period for the 2017 season, this is a particular favorite of mine, though it’s not in the studio:

LJD Women: Min Kim, Lisa Iannacito McBride, Laura Di Orio, and Katie Lohiya

~ Oberon

January 23, 2019
Ensemble Connect @ Weill Hall

Above: composer Gabriella Smith

~ Author: Brad S Ross

Monday October 22nd, 2018 – It was a cold night in New York City—one of those now all-too-often days where summer seems to have skipped fall entirely and moved straight into winter. Respite could be found for the audience at the Weill Recital Hall in Carnegie Hall, however, where the immensely talented players Ensemble Connect brought some much-needed warmth to a small percentage of classical music lovers.

Ensemble Connect is a two-year fellowship program with Carnegie Hall that comprises some of the finest young players in the United States. These musicians hail from some of the nation’s top music schools, including, as the program noted, the Curtis Institute of Music, the Juilliard School, the Peabody Institute, and the University of Southern California, among others. Indeed, there was not one sour note or poorly delivered phrase of the entire evening.

The concert began with György Ligeti’s Six Bagatelles for Wind Quartet—a set of six short movements adapted from his larger piano work Musica ricercata. Written in 1953 while the composer lived in Communist Hungary, the piece is a texturally rich and rhythmically adventurous foretaste of the polyphonic styles for which he would later come to fame with such works as Atmosphères and Lux aeterna. Six Bagatelles opens on an amusing Allegro con spirito followed by an attractively dissonant Rubato: Lamentoso, a warm and pulsing Allegro grazioso, a spirited Presto ruvido, a richly mysterious Adagio: Mesto (written in memoriam of the composer Béla Bartók), and an energetic Molto vivace that cheekily concludes the work. Performed with precision and zest by the members of Ensemble Connect, it was a delightful demonstration of mature musical humor—a rare quality in classical music.

Next was the New York premiere Anthozoa, a 2018 Ensemble Connect commission written for violin, cello, piano, and percussion by the young American composer Gabriella Smith. Anthozoa, as Smith explained in a brief pre-performance talk, was inspired by recordings that the composer made while scuba diving of sea life (its unique title derives from a class of marine invertebrates that encompasses corals and sea anemones). It opened on a colorful percussion solo that is quickly joined by prepared piano, sliding pizzicato cello, and unpitched strikes on the violin. Lengthy and propulsive soundscapes shifted throughout its twelve-minute duration revealing at times otherworldly sonorities. Dramatic piano chords gradually emerged underneath a rushing full-ensemble crescendo before receding into a somber, elegiac diminuendo that faded to a silent finale. Extended technique abounded in Anthozoa, which was as much fun to watch as it was to hear, and Smith received a well-earned ovation—perhaps the longest of the evening—before the concert paused for intermission. It’s a colorful and invigorating new work, one that will hopefully find many more performances in the future.

Above: composer Kaija Saariaho, photographed by Maarit Kytöharju

Following intermission was Light and Matter for violin, cello, and piano by the Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho. Saariaho, who by now must be counted among the finest composers alive, more than lived up to her reputation here as a master of the craft. Written during the autumn of 2014, Light and Matter was conceived, as the composer put it, “while watching from my window the changing light and colors of Morningside Park.” Menacing pulses open from the lower registers of the piano and cello before being joined by a belated violin. Once combined, they exchange a series of vivid textures and haunting atmospheres that cast a hypnotic spell for the piece’s twelve-minute duration. This aptly complimented the October evening of its performance.

The most warmth was brought to the proceedings with the final piece of the night, Johannes Brahms’s Clarinet Trio in A-minor. Composed in 1891, the trio marked Brahms’s return to composition after he considering retiring one year before. This is owed to his admiration of the clarinetist Richard Mühlfeld, whom Brahms regarded as “a master of his instrument.” Clarinetists may be forever grateful of this relationship, which also led to the composition of his Clarinet Quintet in 1891 and two Clarinet Sonatas in 1894. The Clarinet Trio, cast in four movements over approximately twenty-four minutes, comprises an inviting Allegro, a wistful Adagio, a buoyant Andantino grazioso, and an upbeat Allegro that sings the work to its final minor chord. The trio’s sweeping musical gestures and warm consonances were the very apex of Romanticism; this, combined with the relative coziness of the Weill Recital Hall, made for a sumptuous conclusion before players and audience retired into the chilly night air.

All of the musicians performed with the seemingly effortless mastery we’ve come to expect from such things, though it’s easy to forget sometimes just how much work and dedication got them there. Each deserves a mention, and to this end I will oblige; they were the hornist Wilden Dannenberg, the cellist Ari Evan, the pianist Tomer Gerwirtzman, the percussionist Sae Hashimoto, the violinist Jennifer Liu, the clarinetist Noémi Sallai, the flautist Leo Sussman, the oboist Tamara Winston, and the bassoonist Yen-Chen Wu. All should be cherished for their well-honed talents and can hopefully anticipate bright careers ahead.

~ Brad S Ross

October 26, 2018
Hamilton’s House

Wednesday September 19th, 2018 – Having lived in New York City for twenty years, and been a frequent Gotham visitor since the 1960s, it’s always fun to discover places here in town that I did not know existed. I happened upon Alexander Hamilton’s house – officially called Hamilton Grange National Memorial – one day in August while visiting a friend who was recuperating from surgery. The house was not open to visitors that day, but it looked so distinguished sitting there in its grassy park that I knew I wanted to return and investigate.

I was pretty sure my high-school friend Deb Hastings would be interested in this landmark; I suggested we head there the next time she came into town…which turned out to be today.

Hamilton’s house is located on 141st Street at Saint Nicholas Avenue in Manhattan. With the success of the musical HAMILTON, the house has become something of a tourist destination. Deb saw HAMILTON and loved it. Myself, it interests me not at all.

After strolling around the exterior…

…we went into the visitor’s center for our “un-guided” tour, which started at noon. Only another woman and her teenaged son were in our ‘group’…the boy reminded me so much of my first lover, TJ.

Films shown at such landmarks are not always of great interest, but the two we watched here were excellent: the first about Hamilton’s life (and death) and the other about the incredible feat of moving the house to its present location from a couple of blocks away.

We climbed a steep, narrow staircase to the main floor, where three period rooms are open to the public:

The dining room…

…sitting room…

…and Hamilton’s small study, with a little writing table, above…

…and a large desk.

More images from our visit:

Sitting room carpet detail

Though our tour was not guided, a woman from the National Parks Service was on hand, and she answered Deb’s questions in detail. We then walked up the hill to Amsterdam Avenue and had a delicious lunch at the Grange Bar and Eatery.

{The statue shown in the photo at the top of this article stands in the churchyard at St Luke’s Episcopalian, adjacent to where Hamilton’s house was located prior to its being moved to the current location.}

~ Oberon

September 19, 2018
Hamilton’s House

Wednesday September 19th, 2018 – Having lived in New York City for twenty years, and been a frequent Gotham visitor since the 1960s, it’s always fun to discover places here in town that I did not know existed. I happened upon Alexander Hamilton’s house – officially called Hamilton Grange National Memorial – one day in August while visiting a friend who was recuperating from surgery. The house was not open to visitors that day, but it looked so distinguished sitting there in its grassy park that I knew I wanted to return and investigate.

I was pretty sure my high-school friend Deb Hastings would be interested in this landmark; I suggested we head there the next time she came into town…which turned out to be today.

Hamilton’s house is located on 141st Street at Saint Nicholas Avenue in Manhattan. With the success of the musical HAMILTON, the house has become something of a tourist destination. Deb saw HAMILTON and loved it. Myself, it interests me not at all.

After strolling around the exterior…

…we went into the visitor’s center for our “un-guided” tour, which started at noon. Only another woman and her teenaged son were in our ‘group’…the boy reminded me so much of my first lover, TJ.

Films shown at such landmarks are not always of great interest, but the two we watched here were excellent: the first about Hamilton’s life (and death) and the other about the incredible feat of moving the house to its present location from a couple of blocks away.

We climbed a steep, narrow staircase to the main floor, where three period rooms are open to the public:

The dining room…

…sitting room…

…and Hamilton’s small study, with a little writing table, above…

…and a large desk.

More images from our visit:

Sitting room carpet detail

Though our tour was not guided, a woman from the National Parks Service was on hand, and she answered Deb’s questions in detail. We then walked up the hill to Amsterdam Avenue and had a delicious lunch at the Grange Bar and Eatery.

{The statue shown in the photo at the top of this article stands in the churchyard at St Luke’s Episcopalian, adjacent to where Hamilton’s house was located prior to its being moved to the current location.}

~ Oberon

September 18, 2018
Audrey Stottler Has Passed Away

September 15th, 2018 – I’ve learned of the death of Audrey Stottler (above), who I met in 2003 when she was in New York City to cover – and sing a single performance of – the Dyer’s Wife in FRAU OHNE SCHATTEN at The Met.

Audrey came in the opera room at Tower Records where I was working at the time, and my boss Bryan and I chatted her up. Bryan had seen her as Turandot at Virginia Opera in 1993. and I’d seen her 2002 Met Turandot – a role she sang worldwide – and we were looking forward to the FRAU. She was most gracious during our long conversation.

Audrey had a notable success as the Dyer’s Wife; I recall being especially impressed by her juicy upper tones, the unusual richness of her lower range, and the sense of lyricism in her singing.

This scene from WALKURE displays her vocal attributes quite well:

Audrey Stottler – Die Walküre ~ Der manner sippe

And this is thrilling, grand-scale Wagner singing:

Audrey Stottler – Tristan und Isolde ~ Isolde’s Narration & Curse

At the time of her unexpected death, Audrey was running a popular voice studio in Minneapolis.

Bryan took this photo of me with Audrey the day we met her. There are some lovely tributes to her on Norman Lebrecht’s blog.

~ Oberon

September 14, 2018
Twenty Years in Gotham

March 28th, 2018 – Twenty years ago today, I moved to New York City. This was the first photo taken of me after I settled in at the studio on Perry Street.

Around 1995, I had started to lay definite plans for leaving Hartford and living in my dream city; my goal had been to do it prior to my 50th birthday, and I made it with three months to spare. About three weeks after I’d moved here, I met Wei…and the rest is history.

March 27, 2018