“Song to the Seals” is one of those simple tunes that can create a magical aura. Tenor Robert (“Bobby”) White turned me on to it and gave me the music. The first time I programmed it was just after Lorraine Hunt Lieberson died in 2006. It tells the story of a woman who sings with so much power and feeling that all the creatures of the ocean gather around to hear her. Lorraine was that kind of musical enchantress too, casting spell after spell with her voice.
Read MoreTrawling through YouTube I found the recording Darius de Haas I and I made of Adam’s song “Hero and Leander,” from “Myths and Hymns.” If Fauré and Stevie Wonder had had a baby, this is the music that blessed child would have written.
Read MoreTchaikovsky could spin out melodies with the ease of Richard Rodgers (another composer on my desk this summer). This graceful song, which has the lilt of a ballet piece, also has a strange gravity. My brain can’t figure out where it comes from, but my soul feels it.
Read MoreWe’re commissioning Gabriel Kahane to write us a song cycle for a February premiere. I have had some great experiences playing Gabe’s music and I am thrilled he agreed to give us something new. He combines too-cool-for-school Brooklyn hipster with a sweet tenderness that I find endearingly old-fashioned.
Read MoreSteven Blier on the NYFOS@Caramoor Residency: March 14 I’m happy to report that the show went beautifully yesterday. I quarantined myself for about 70 minutes beforehand (a few intruders tiptoed around me) and had a serious talk with my hands. They had a few things to say to me too, but after practicing gently (but […]
Read MoreSteven Blier on the NYFOS@Caramoor Residency: Day 6, March 12 We’re ready. Well anyway, the cast is. Dress rehearsal went quite beautifully. We have the luxury of actual lighting (a rarity in my concerts, something I don’t get at Juilliard or in San Francisco), and the show flows quite well. We’re not quite sure how long […]
Read MoreSteven Blier on the NYFOS@Caramoor Residency: Day 5, March 11 Today was finish-the-staging day; work-with-the-props day; make-the-choice-about-who-is-playing-which-song day; work-with-the-lighting guy day; and (most of all) do-our-first-run-through day. In other words, the penultimate day of a week-long rehearsal period. It is usually a white-knuckle experience, fraught with “we won’t get done in time.” But today, somehow not. […]
Read MoreSteven Blier on the NYFOS@Caramoor Residency: Day 4, March 10 Today was a very satisfying day, Caramoor Rising Stars at its best. The tentativeness of the beginning of the week has melted away, and the place was really buzzing with energy. Everyone brings high quality eyes, ears, and minds to the project, and I was struck […]
Read MoreSteven Blier on the NYFOS@Caramoor Residency: Day 3, March 9 Wednesday is usually the last day of free exploration before the reality of Sunday’s performance starts to assert a kind of Realpolitik. Soon we’ll all start to see where the boundaries of our techniques and stylistic flexibility are, and we’ll cut whatever deals are necessary. But […]
Read MoreSteven Blier on the NYFOS@Caramoor Residency: Day 2, March 8 Today was the first time we got into the hall, after a morning spent doing musical work in two rehearsal spaces (boys with Mikey, girls with me). It felt kind of a bit roguish, going off with just half the cast to do private work. […]
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