I'm ensnared in a Teachoutesque jungle of work — among other things, working on my Esa-Pekka Salonen / LA Philharmonic piece (to appear April 30) and preparing for an April 1 lecture at the 92nd Street Y on Mallarmé, Debussy, Stefan George, and Schoenberg (party!). Stepping in for me next week will be guest-blogger Justin Davidson. Expect shocking revelations, convulsive hilarity, ageless wisdom.... The Rambler amusingly sums up the state of classical music, a topic that has become tiresome. When my desk is overrun with new recordings, when I can't decide which of ten new-music concerts to attend on a given night, to talk about the death of anything is ridiculous. I've sworn off before, though.... New York Times subscribers should be reading The Score, a bloggy symposium involving such major maverick composers as Michael Gordon, Annie Gosfield, Alvin Curran, Glenn Branca, and, not least, Steve Reich.... The consensus is that Alan Gilbert made a powerful impression with his latest appearance at the New York Philharmonic.... In April, the Utah Symphony gives its first performance of Messiaen's From the Canyons to the Stars, as part of an ambitious American Horizons festival. I dream of one day hearing the piece live in Zion Park, with Reinbert de Leeuw conducting.... Noted on MySpace: Ryan Francis's Woman, Bird and Star.... Is it just me or is there a reference to Sibelius's Fifth at 0:34 of Sinatra's "Angel Eyes"? Not to mention the Schoenbergian fourth-plus-tritone at the beginning of "It's a Lonesome Old Town." Nelson Riddle in excelsis.
Pictured: Teachout, not Davidson.
