1. "Her Story": A Powerful Ode to Women’s Resilience at the Kennedy Center
The recent performance of Julia Wolfe’s Her Story at the Kennedy Center was a stirring reminder of the enduring strength of women in the face of misogyny and oppression. Performed by the National Symphony Orchestra, the Lorelei Ensemble, and conductor Marin Alsop, this oratorio-like piece for women’s chamber choir and orchestra is a poignant blend of history and artistry. Drawing on the words of Abigail Adams and Sojourner Truth, Her Story paints a vivid, unflinching portrait of the struggles women have faced in America, from the fight for suffrage to the ongoing battles for equality.
What makes Her Story particularly striking is its timeliness. Premiering in 2022, the piece was initially met with enthusiasm as part of a broader movement to highlight works by and about women and underrepresented groups. However, its performance at the Kennedy Center on March 1 took on added significance following the sudden leadership changes at the institution, including the ousting of President Deborah Rutter and the appointment of President Trump as chairman. The timing underscored how art can serve as both a reflection of and a response to societal shifts.
The performance itself was nothing short of breathtaking. The 10 singers of the Lorelei Ensemble delivered a seamless blend of voices, their intensity and emotion capturing the suppressing forces women have long faced. The choir’s dramatic gestures—covering their mouths or gasping for breath—underscored the piece’s themes of struggle and resilience. While the National Symphony Orchestra didn’t always match the singers’ vividness, the percussion section stood out, delivering a fiery drumbeat after Abigail Adams’s warning to her husband, “Remember, all men would be tyrants if they could.” The performance was a testament to the power of music to amplify women’s voices and stories.
2. Wynton Marsalis: Bridging Jazz and Classical Traditions
Wynton Marsalis has long been a champion of blending jazz and classical music, and his recent performances with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra have showcased this commitment. While the season has focused on American styles, Marsalis’s approach remains eclectically inclusive, weaving together works from the jazz-classical hybrid movement known as Third Stream and innovative arrangements of classic pieces like Gershwin’s “Summertime.”
One particularly memorable moment came during a performance of Joseph Brackett’s Shaker song “Simple Gifts,” a tune famously adapted by Aaron Copland in “Appalachian Spring.” Marsalis commissioned a new arrangement of the piece from Jason Hainsworth, featuring saxophonists doubling on flute and clarinet. The result was a seamless transition from folk simplicity to post-bop experimentation, with soprano saxophonist Abdias Armenteros delivering a strikingly innovative solo. The concert, titled “Jazz Americana,” is available for streaming on the orchestra’s platform, Jazz Live, and it’s a thrilling reminder of Marsalis’s ability to connect diverse musical traditions.
Marsalis’s work isn’t just about technical virtuosity; it’s about fostering connections—between genres, eras, and audiences. By embracing such a wide range of influences, he creates performances that feel both rooted in tradition and refreshingly original.
3. Third Coast Percussion Honors Zakir Hussain’s Legacy
Zakir Hussain, the legendary tabla virtuoso, left an indelible mark on music before his passing in December 2023. One of his final projects was “Murmurs in Time,” a composition for tabla and percussion quartet commissioned by Third Coast Percussion. The piece received its New York premiere at Zankel Hall on February 27, performed by Third Coast Percussion and Hussain’s former student, the tabla player Salar Nader.
The performance was a brilliant tribute to Hussain’s artistry and the humanistic values he embodied. “Murmurs in Time” is a two-movement work that culminates in a dazzling display of cross-rhythms and sound colors. However, the first movement, “Recitation,” was particularly striking. It wove together spoken rhythms and percussive textures, creating a sense of primal, elemental communication. The piece’s technical complexity was matched by its emotional depth, making it a fitting celebration of Hussain’s legacy as a bridge-builder between musical traditions.
Hussain’s father once whispered rhythms into his newborn son’s ear, beginning a lifelong journey in music. “Murmurs in Time” feels like a continuation of that journey—a testament to the power of rhythm to connect us across boundaries of culture and time.
4. Igor Levit’s Piano Performance: A Reflection on Resilience
Pianist Igor Levit recently delivered a powerful recital at Carnegie Hall, pairing Bach’s Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue in D minor with Brahms’s Op. 10 Ballades and a jaw-dropping transcription of Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony by Franz Liszt. Levit’s technical brilliance and emotional depth have always been awe-inspiring, but this performance was particularly poignant due to its context.
Just before the concert, Levit had been an honorary fellow at the Thomas Mann House in Pacific Palisades, California, where he watched from a safe distance as wildfires engulfed the region and threatened the historic home. Unable to act, he responded in the only way he could—as musicians often do—through music. After the formal program, he returned to the stage for an encore: Ferruccio Busoni’s transcription of Bach’s “Nun Komm, der Heiden Heiland” (“Now Come, Savior of the Heathens”).
The performance was not one of anguish or anger but of reflective serenity. Levit’s delicate touch and the music’s forward-moving persistence seemed to offer both a prayer for the present and a hope for the future. It was a reminder of music’s unique ability to transcend time and circumstance, offering solace and strength in moments of uncertainty.
5. Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony: A Test of Skill and Emotion
The piccolo solo in the Scherzo of Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony is one of classical music’s most thrilling moments. It’s a fleeting passage, but it encapsulates the movement’s mood of joking joviality teetering on the edge of mania. After the strings’ soft, murmuring pizzicato introduction, the winds trade tipsy, then increasingly martial lines, before the piccolo enters with a fleeting nod to a marching band’s fife. The moment is both a technical marvel and an emotional whirlwind, capturing the joy and danger of Tchaikovsky’s music at its best.
For piccolo players, this passage is a challenge like no other—fast, high, and awkwardly fingered. But when executed flawlessly, it becomes a highlight of the symphony, encapsulating the physical and emotional extremes that make Tchaikovsky’s music so unforgettable.
6. The Universal Language of Music
What unites these performances is their ability to transcend boundaries—whether between genres, cultures, or the personal and the universal. From the raw emotion of Her Story to the boundary-pushing fusion of Marsalis, the cross-cultural elegance of Third Coast Percussion, the reflective brilliance of Levit, and the technical fireworks of Tchaikovsky, each performance speaks to music’s unique power to connect us.
In a world fraught with division and uncertainty, these artists remind us of the enduring importance of creativity. Whether it’s a prayer for the future, a celebration of resilience, or a technical tour-de-force, their music invites us to listen, reflect, and feel together. Dear readers, what performances have moved you lately? Share your favorites in the comments.
