In March, conductor Andrés Rivas led The Orchestra Now in a livestreamed, physically distanced performance of Bruce Montgomery‘s Concertino for String Orchestra at the Fisher Center at Bard. Former TŌN violinist Shaina Pan wrote that “[The] English composer wrote mostly choral and film music, but was also known for his classic crime novels and short stories which he wrote under the pseudonym Edmund Crispin. . . . Concertino for String Orchestra is [his] sole instrumental work. After its first performance, a review described the piece as ‘a graceful, flowing, three-movement work, well written, economical in notes and notable for a lyrical lento espressivo of imaginative warmth.’” You can read Shaina’s full notes on the piece by clicking here.

Last November, conductor Leon Botstein led The Orchestra Now in a livestreamed, physically distanced performance of the Chamber Symphony No. 1 of composer Arnold Schoenberg, who was born 147 years ago this week. TŌN clarinetist Matthew Griffith writes that “the Chamber Symphony No. 1 is a landmark at a distinctly pivotal moment in the history of classical music. . . . There are only 15 players on the stage, but the expressive range and intensity still sounds remarkably like a full orchestra.” You can read Matthew’s full concert notes on the work by clicking here.

In April, violinist Zongheng Zhang joined TŌN and conductor Leon Botstein for a performance of Leonard Bernstein‘s Serenade (after Plato’s Symposium) in a physically distanced concert that was livestreamed from the Fisher Center at Bard. TŌN timpanist Keith Hammer III writes that the piece is “based on Plato’s dialogue The Symposium. Plato’s work is a musical reflection of the impassioned, yet rancorous, speeches on the subject of love made by philosophers such as Aristophanes, Agathon, Phaedrus, and Socrates.” You can read Keith’s full concert notes on the Serenade by clicking here.

In February, TŌN’s associate conductor James Bagwell led the orchestra in a performance of Popcorn Superhet Receiver by composer and Radiohead musician Jonny Greenwood. TŌN bassist Tristen Jarvis writes that the piece was “notably featured in the 2007 Oscar-nominated film There Will Be Blood. Deeply influenced by experimental 20th-century composers Olivier Messiaen, György Ligeti, Krzysztof Penderecki, and Arvo Pärt, Popcorn is dominated by dissonant, anxiety-provoking, microtonal clusters (evoking static from the shortwave radio catalog of an actual superheterodyne receiver), an infectious groove-based middle section, and familiar contemporary art-music atonality with occasional bursts of consonance for stability.” You can read Tristen’s full concert notes on the work by clicking here.

Last October The Orchestra Now, conducted by Zachary Schwartzman, performed the 1938 Double Concerto of Czech composer Bohuslav Martinů, who passed away 62 years ago this week. In her notes on the concerto, TŌN violinist Esther Goldy Roestan writes that “The political climate in Europe was very hostile around this time, especially because Hitler was still in power, and this severely impacted Czechoslovakia, where Martinu had a lot of connections. This was the year of Kristallnacht, the Czech Crisis, and the Munich Agreement. In this concerto, Martinů clearly expressed how he felt during this difficult time, and we can hear anxiety, depression, and restlessness throughout the piece.” You can read Esther’s complete notes on the piece by clicking here.