Anthony Brandt urges his composition students at Rice University to keep an open mind about the musical styles that influence them. “I often say, ‘Don’t put a fence around yourself. Feel the joy of having an open field around you, and discover what you might love that you didn’t know you would,’” he explains....
When Seth Knopp plans out the Soundings new-music series for Dallas’ Nasher Sculpture Center, he likes to leave audiences free to spot resonances and parallels among each season’s concerts....
A 50th anniversary deserves a celebration. But what kind? Houston Ballet’s leaders looked back across the company’s history, starting before the 1969 debut of the company as we know it today. ...
The project could hardly have a catchier title: 20x2020. But the Apollo Chamber Players faced the challenge of bringing it off. With only six years to go, could the group choose and commission 20 composers to create works it could premiere by 2020?...
Don’t hold your breath waiting for Houston’s River Oaks Chamber Orchestra (ROCO) to anoint a conductor as its music director. Being player-driven is in ROCO’s DNA. ...
Once Texas’ summer torpor hits, escaping the heat may be priority No. 1. If you’re looking for a reason to flee to a higher, cooler altitude, Santa Fe Opera (June 28-Aug. 24) offers a world premiere, the company’s first staging of a 20th-century classic, and new productions of two perennial favorites. ...
Thanks to his boundless optimism, the hero of Porgy and Bess is one of opera’s most lovable characters. Porgy needs all the hope he can summon, because he often contends with the weaknesses and errors of others--especially those of his beloved Bess....
