The Opera Tattler

Reviews of Performances and their Audiences

Recent posts

Category: New Century Chamber Orchestra

  • Colleen Quen Interview

    Couturière Colleen Quen (pictured left with her work, photograph by David Law) has collaborated with New Century Chamber Orchestra (NCCO) on a multimedia piece that debuts on Thursday, May 27 at 12pm. The work opens NCCO’s new film venture entitled the Resonance Series, which explores Bay Area artists from different disciplines alongside particular chamber music…

  • NCCO Plays Philip Glass’ Piano Concerto, No. 3

    * Notes * Pianist Simone Dinnerstein (pictured left, photograph by Lisa Marie Mazzucco) gave the West Coast premiere of Philip Glass' Piano Concerto No. 3 with New Century Chamber Orchestra last night in Berkeley. The piece is sedate and dreamily meditative, written for Dinnerstein, her sensitive and unflashy playing certainly suits it well. She was…

  • NCCO and Ailyn Peréz

    * Notes * Dazzling soprano Ailyn Peréz (pictured left, photograph by Paul Marc Mitchell) replaced Susanna Phillips in New Century Chamber Orchestra's 2015-2016 season opener last night in Berkeley, traveling to the Bay Area between her performances of La Bohème at La Scala and the world premiere of Jake Heggie's Great Scott in Dallas. The…

  • NCCO plays Grieg, Zwilich, Schoenberg, Heidrich

    * Notes * New Century Chamber Orchestra end the 2011-2012 season with a world premiere by Ellen Taafe Zwilich (pictured left). The Berkeley performance last night began with Grieg's Fra Holbergs tid, which was played with much vim. The likeable Zwilich piece, Commedia dell'Arte, followed. Music Director Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg was soloist, and stood surrounded by…

  • NCCO plays Bloch, Mendelssohn, & Shchedrin

    * Notes * New Century Chamber Orchestra began the 2011-2012 season with a program entitled “Carmen Revisited,” including works from Bloch, Mendelssohn, and Shchedrin. The first performance last night in Berkeley commenced with Bloch’s Concerto Gross for String Orchestra with Piano Obbligato, the pianist in this case being Miles Graber. Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg and the rest…

  • New Century Chamber Orchestra’s 20th Season

    * Notes * On Tuesday New Century Chamber Orchestra (pictured left, photograph by Kristen Loken Anstey) held a press luncheon in honor of the ensemble's 20th Anniversary Season. Executive Director Parker E. Monroe, Board President Paula Gambs, and Music Director Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg all spoke about how things have been going for the ensemble of late. Ticket…

  • NCCO plays Elgar, Bridge, O’Connor, Schnittke

    * Notes * New Century Chamber Orchestra ends the 2010-2011 season with a world premiere of Mark O'Connor's Elevations. The performance in Berkeley yesterday evening began with two Elgar pieces, the Larghetto from Serenade for Strings in E minor, Op. 20 and the Introduction and Allegro for Solo Quartet and Strings. The pieces sounded florid,…

  • NCCO plays Bach, Schubert, Mendelssohn

    * Notes * New Century Chamber Orchestra opened a series of performances entitled "Mastery of Schubert" in Berkeley yesterday evening. They began with Bach's Violin Concerto in E major, with NCCO's music director, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, as soloist. Salerno-Sonnenberg has a very peculiar motor pattern, and seemed to be brimming with energy. The piece was played…

  • NCCO plays Prokofiev, Shostakovich, Tchaikovsky

    * Notes * New Century Chamber Orchestra gave a series of performances featuring Russian composers. The first half of the evening began with Prokofiev’s Visions Fugitives, with soloist Anne-Marie McDermott at the piano. The brief piano pieces were rather romantic and impressionistic, the string orchestra arrangement by Rudolf Barshai worked well. McDermott launched directly into Shostakovich’s Piano…