by Paul J. Pelkonen
The New York Philharmonic in Central Park.
Photo by Chris Lee © 2015 The New York Philharmonic.
The New York Philharmonic will follow the 2016 NY Phil Biennial with its Concerts in the Parks series. These events have experienced a revival in recent years under the baton of music director Alan Gilbert. The first concert is 15 on the Great Lawn, and will be followed by concerts in Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and a special indoor concert on Staten Island with concertmaster Frank Huang leading Vivaldi's The Four Seasons.
This year's pair of Central Park concerts feature two big programs. The first opens with Rossini's lilting Overture to the opera La Gazza Ladra, the Mozart Clarinet Concerto with soloist Anthony McGill and Richard Strauss' mighty Ein Heldenleben, a "musical autobiography" with a virtuoso violin part.
The second concert is June 16 and features Wagner's Prelude and Liebestod from Tristan und Isolde flanked by Beethoven classics. First up is the Overture from Beethoven's lone opera Fidelio. The evening ends with Beethoven's Eroica Symphony before the fireworks go boom.
For more of the concert schedule of the New York Philharmonic in the Parks, click here.
The Metropolitan Opera's free concert performances of complete operas is a thing of the past. Its substitute is this that takes the opera company around the five boroughs. The concert series gives listeners the chance to hear exciting young artists performing arias and duets from great operas, usually with piano accompaniment.
Wednesday, June 22 is the main event, a concert at the Central Park SummerStage located at Rumsey Playfield. On June 24, the show moves to Brooklyn Bridge Park. Concerts in July are in Staten Island, upper Manhattan, Queens and The Bronx. Repertory is to be announced.
For the complete schedule of the Metropolitan Opera's recital series click here.