Last weekend's performances of Michael Gordon and Bill Morrison's Decasia brought some lively reactions from non-specialist corners of the blogosphere. Felix Salmon, an old friend of Noise, was so entranced on Friday night that he went back to see both shows on Saturday. He wisely writes: "I think that one of the reasons why contemporary classical music has difficulty gaining traction among many people is precisely the need to listen to any given piece more than once, and the difficulty of doing so." For Gabriel Roth it was "one of the most powerful musical experiences I've ever had." Wild Koba judged the show to be "pretty friggin' spectacular," and marveled at the attractiveness of the crowd: "I was completely unaware that such banging hotness would be all over something as out as this." Wild Koba's readers should be warned that scoring at contemporary-music concerts is generally a dicey proposition, although it's a trend worth monitoring. There was even a modicum of hotness at last night's NY Phil premiere of the Esa-Pekka Salonen Piano Concerto — a brilliant, wild, startlingly Romantic piece, about which more later. Note the E-P Hear & Now event on Tuesday.
