Preview by Marc Shulgold Cynthia Katsarelis spoke with enthusiasm as she discussed her Pro Musica Colorado’s season-ending chamber orchestra concert. She gave particular emphasis to the concluding work – a rarely heard Symphony by a rarely heard French composer. Then, when a question about next season came up, she turned serious and delivered some unexpected […]
Passione with Pro Musica Colorado
Preview article by Betsy Schwarm Apply the word Passione to a musical program and thoughts may drift immediately to Romeo and Juliet. Those legendary lovers are absent from Pro Musica Colorado’s season opening program Passione, though passion in other forms is quite present. There is, of course, the ever-present passion for presenting top-flight performances of […]
Transfigured Night, and Mozart, too: Pro Musica Colorado
Preview by Betsy Schwarm For its season finale concert, set for Saturday, April 29, Pro Musica Colorado will offer a program linking to its mission to evoke “the full range of human expression.” In this case, that ideal is summed up in three works from three centuries, with two big names, one current name, and, […]
Timeless and Today in a Single Program: Pro Musica Colorado
Preview article by Betsy Schwarm The greatest music is timeless, still speaking to us generations later. The best of current music acknowledges that timelessness, while also bringing something new to the mix. Past and present can still co-exist: in Pro Musica Colorado’s upcoming January 28 concert, it’s Mozart, Haydn, and Caroline Shaw. The last of […]
Apotheosis of the Dance: Pro Musica Colorado
A preview by Betsy Schwarm Theoretically, to be the ‘apotheosis of the dance,’ dancers should be involved. Not in this case! It’s an all-instrumental concert to be presented November 19 in Boulder by Pro Musica Colorado. However, when the program includes Beethoven’s Symphony no. 7, which Richard Wagner famously described as the “apotheosis of the […]
Healing with Mozart and Pro Musica
Given the events and moods of the past two years, all of us could benefit from some healing. In its Boulder County concerts of February 4 and 5, the Pro Musica Chamber Orchestra provided exactly that: not merely healing, but also gracefully executed performances that soothed the soul. On the podium was conductor/music director Cynthia […]
Can Music Co-Exist With Social Relevance?
A preview by Marc Shulgold Cynthia Katsarelis acknowledges that the title of her orchestra’s season-opening concert offers a unifying, uplifting theme: “Rainbow Strings! A Concert of Hope.” But then she offers a caution. “This is not a social statement program.” Maybe, maybe not. Once it become apparent, there’s no ignoring the music’s subtext when her […]
Pro Musica in “Cyberspace”
A review by Marc Shulgold Cynthia Katsarelis could barely contain her joy, as she began the concert by her Pro Musica Colorado Chamber Orchestra on Saturday. “We are so, so excited to be playing music together,” she told the small crowd gathered in Broomfield Auditorium. Half her face was concealed by a Covid mask, yet […]
Achieving Zoomness: Performing Arts Online
A preview by Betsy Schwarm, January 13, 2021 It is at times like those of the past ten months that the performing arts can mean the most. Not only is it a chance to gather together in a shared artistic experience, it is also a reminder of the marvelous things that mankind can create, especially […]
Holiday Moods Sparkle with Pro Musica
Review by Betsy Schwarm The concerts offered this first weekend of December by the Pro Musica Chamber Orchestra bore the heading “Holiday Moods.” Admittedly, in this particular year, holiday moods are not quite what they have usually been. However, if one needed some reassurance that there is still joy to be found, Pro Musica’s programs […]
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