by Kenneth Woods | Mar 8, 2022 | A view from the podium
Several years ago, I met a composer named Donald Fraser. Arranger Donald Fraser and conductor Kenneth Woods following the world premiere of the Piano Quintet, a 2015 Classical Music Magazine Premiere of the Year It turns out his wife Bridget was the executive...
by Kenneth Woods | Jun 8, 2021 | A view from the podium
4th June 2021 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: eso@eso.co.uk What: ESO Digital Concert – Composer Portrait: Adrian Williams When: 7:30pm GMT Friday 11th June 2021 Where: www.eso.co.uk/composerportrait-adrianwilliams ...
by Kenneth Woods | May 10, 2021 | A view from the podium
Ken speaks to the legendary David Matthews, ESO “John McCabe Composer-in-Association” 2017-9 about his orchestration of the Elgar String Quartet, the art of arranging and orchestration, Mahler and his own music. The performance of the Elgar premieres on...
by Kenneth Woods | May 8, 2021 | A view from the podium
5th May 2021 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: eso@eso.co.uk What: ESO Digital Concert – Elgar String Quartet When: 7:30pm GMT Friday 14th May 2021 Where: www.eso.co.uk/elgar-reimagined-2 English Symphony Orchestra...
by Kenneth Woods | Mar 28, 2021 | A view from the podium
I once conducted a concert which started with Dvorak’s great orchestral triptych- Nature, Life and Love. It reminded me of what is wrong with classical music. Dvorak wrote the 3 parts of this work as a carefully interconnected whole- together, they form a sort...
by Kenneth Woods | Mar 18, 2021 | A view from the podium
James Levine was not a great man with a single tragic flaw. He was an almost completely horrible person, with a single, tragic talent. Ever since I heard the news, I’ve had a voice on one shoulder screaming “don’t write about James Levine.” And on the other shoulder,...
by Kenneth Woods | Mar 15, 2021 | A view from the podium
If you love Elgar, you’ll want to catch the English Symphony Orchestra’s Virtual Concert with Raphael Wallfisch, Elgar Re-Imagined. Available from the 19th of March here. This essay was commissioned by Erato for the recently released recording of these...
by Kenneth Woods | Feb 21, 2021 | News and Reviews
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by Kenneth Woods | Feb 16, 2021 | A view from the podium, Piano, pianists and pianism
Gunnar Johansen was a legendary figure in my home town of Madison, Wisconsin. He retired from the University of Wisconsin in 1976, when I would have been seven, so he was practically the stuff of legend throughout most of my youth (we never met). He died in...
by Kenneth Woods | Jan 17, 2021 | A view from the podium
Why 7 is the symphony’s lucky number? While there are far fewer 7th symphonies than 2nds or 3rds, one very rarely encounters a sour seventh. Perhaps it’s just a result of the fact that with six previous attempts, most would-be composers of 7ths have either given up or...
by Kenneth Woods | Jan 3, 2021 | News and Reviews
KENNETH WOODS NAMED 2020 MEAD WITTER SCHOOL OF MUSIC DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI American conductor Kenneth Woods has been selected as recipient of the 2020 UW-Madison Mead Witter School of Music Distinguished Alumni Award. Woods was nominated for the award by James Smith,...
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