Hi everyone — I’m just back from the massive Bonnaroo music festival, held every year in Tennessee, where I must admit I didn’t see any classical music performed. Not that there was any, unless you count Iceland’s wonderful Sigur Rós, whose music has “classical elements” according to their Wikipedia entry. Classical or no, the group performed a spectacular late-night set, accompanied by a string section, a quintet of costumed, drum-pounding women and a white-clad brass section that paraded around the stage. What a show.
On to other, squarely classical matters. As I was on my way home, the television version of From the Top, a show that spotlights young performers of classical music, began its second season on PBS. A release about the show says that this season From the Top at Carnegie Hall will have a different focus. “Last
year we produced a show about classical music played by kids,” says Executive Producer Don
Mischer. “This year we are making a show about kids, all of whom play
classical music.” So the show will feature documentary-style bits about the kids who perform, visiting them in their hometowns. Note that From the Top at Carnegie Hall offers video podcasts via its website.
Meanwhile, the Boston Globe profiles Jerry Slavet, creator of From the Top (which began as a radio show nine years ago and continues in that format as well). I’ve met Jerry and can second the impression conveyed by this article — he is quite the dynamo.