Silver Streetcar

File this under me getting soft in my old age, but it occurred to me yesterday that if one persuades a friend who is not radically inclined toward the new music to attend a concert of the new music with hopes of increasing said friend's inclination toward the new music, one may consider avoiding those concerts that include Lucier's masterpiece (...Lucier's 20 min. + continuous forte roll masterpiece...) for triangle and electronics. I'm not saying *I* didn't enjoy the piece, or that I didn't enjoy the concert, and I most definitely did enjoyed the Feldman that followed, and frankly, I love the ai ensemble...I'm just saying that if you talked a friend OUT of hearing a concert of Beethoven piano trios, a concert that said friend would actually really truly enjoy - that is to say a friend with what you might call a more delicately constituted musical sensibility - and INTO coming to a concert of the new music ...Lucier may not be the best choice. I mean really. It makes Sam Pluta's music (a distinct highlight on tonight's Columbia Composer's concert at The Tank) seem downright melodic.

In other news, the long awaited dell'arte Opera Anna Bolena goes up this weekend.
Here're the vitals:

Anna Bolena
by Gaetano Donizetti
January 29 (8 pm) & January 31 (3 pm)
Theater 80 St. Marks.

I'm pretty sure Donizetti never wrote a 20-minute amplified triangle roll, so this is probably suitable for all ages and musical sensibilities.

(n.)