Music Archives - phindie

Music

MADAME BUTTERFLY (Opera Philly): A dilettante at large review

Toby Zinman April 30, 2024 1 Comment

with so many opportunities to put a political foot wrong, MADAME BUTTERFLY is a minefield. Opera Philadelphia has sidestepped the obvious dangers.

Music Reviews

THE RAPE OF LUCRETIA (Academy of Vocal Arts): A dilettante at large review

Toby Zinman February 23, 2024 No Comments

DAL continues her musical education with this stunning chamber opera at the Academy of Vocal Arts.

Music Reviews

Music of the Earth (Curtis Ensemble 20/21): A place in the natural world

Michael Fisher November 27, 2023 No Comments

Music’s relationship to the natural world is an unsteady one. On one hand, it seems contradictory to celebrate nature using artificial instruments that are, after…

Music

Spectacular Strauss (Curtis Symphony Orchestra): Germanic overtures

Michael Fisher October 26, 2023 No Comments

Is it possible for a composer to be too German? Sure, the deeply problematic Wagner has long cornered the market on gratuitous Teutonic mythmaking, but it’s his…

Dance Interviews Music

Making Music: Interview with Philadelphia Ballet Orchestra’s Beatrice Jona Affron

Debra Danese September 27, 2023 No Comments

Beatrice Jona Affron is celebrating her 30th year with the Philadelphia Ballet (formerly Pennsylvania Ballet.) The music director and conductor joined the company in 1993…

Music Reviews

10 Days in a Madhouse (Opera Philly): This is not a time for quiet art

Michael Fisher September 24, 2023 No Comments

Director Joanna Settle wants you to know that 10 Days in a Madhouse is not just an opera. It is an “announcement … almost a…

Music

Philadelphia heavy quintet Quiet Man release debut single

Elijah Bliss June 27, 2023 No Comments

Philadelphia sludge outfit Quiet Man recently released their first single, “Set to Boil is the New Standard”, from their upcoming debut, The Starving Lesson. Quiet…

Music

A Music Video to Make You HAPPY

Christopher Munden June 12, 2023 1 Comment

Friend of Phindie Josh McIlvain and his band Casual Fantastic released a new video for their song “Happy (You Make Me)” from recently released album…

Music

THE PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA’S GREAT STAGES GALA: A Dilettante at Large review

Toby Zinman May 18, 2023 No Comments

DAL is pleased to report that this gala was more fun than glam. Oh, there was the occasional gown and a sprinkling of black ties,…

Music

La Bohème (Opera Philadelphia): Time’s arrow

Michael Fisher May 1, 2023 No Comments

Of Yuval Sharon’s reverse-chronology retelling of Puccini’s La Bohème, the Wall Street Journal says, “It’s not just a gimmick—it works.” Of course, if you have…

Music

DON GIOVANNI (AVA): A dilettante at large review

Toby Zinman May 1, 2023 No Comments

Mozart’s Don Giovanni is the greatest opera ever written. Don’t take my word for it—what do I know, I’m a dilettante—but that was the opinion…

Music Reviews

Perry, Schumann, and Mahler (Curtis Symphony Orchestra): Season-closing performance

Michael Fisher April 18, 2023 1 Comment

Kurt Vonnegut once wrote that there are two types of writers. And because he’s Kurt Vonnegut, he gave them both silly names. First you’ve got…

Music Theater

DON PASQUALE (AVA): A Dilettante at Large review

Toby Zinman February 17, 2023 No Comments

Our dilettante at large reviews Academy of Vocal Arts’ South Philly themed production of Donizetti’s comic opera

Music Reviews

Carmina Burana + Credo (Opera Philly): A dilettante at large review

Toby Zinman February 6, 2023 No Comments

The Dilettante at Large is at large again, writing about the culture as an enjoyer rather than an expert. Her latest pleasure was Opera Philly’s…

Music Reviews

OTELLO (Opera Philadelphia): A dilettante at large reviews

Toby Zinman September 26, 2022 1 Comment

This is one for the life list if you’re an opera fan.

Music Reviews

The Musical Legacy of Charles V: Piffaro Founders’ Finale

Margaret Darby May 14, 2022 No Comments

The final concert for Piffaro founders Joan Kimball and Bob Wiemken is far from a somber affair as they celebrate a thriving Renaissance band as their legacy.