MEMETERIA by Thomas May

Music & the Arts

February 15, 2026 • 11:23 am 0

Seattle Symphony’s ‘Iris Unveiled’ Offers Rich Immersion in Sonic World

The Seattle Symphony performs “Iris Unveiled” Feb. 12. (Jonathan Pendleton)

My Seattle Times review of this week’s Seattle Symphony concerts, marking music director Xian Zhang’s first with the orchestra in 2026:

On Thursday night, for the first time since early October, Seattle Symphony Music Director Xian Zhang returned to the Benaroya Hall podium, this time with a program of striking contrasts. The first half ventured into unfamiliar territory with a contemporary work for which she has been a leading advocate, while the second turned to one of the 20th century’s blockbuster symphonies….
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Filed under: review, Seattle Symphony, Seattle Times, Shostakovich, Xian Zhang

January 29, 2026 • 11:07 am 0

Tracing the Wheel of Time, Thomas Adès Leads the NY Philharmonic

Thomas Adès conducting the New York Philharmonic, with soprano Anna Dennis; photo credit: Chris Lee

Last week’s New York Philharmonic program under Thomas Adès, anchored in the newly expanded version of his America: A Prophecy, was one of the most thought-provoking, unusual, and compelling programs I’ve encountered in ages. My review for Musical America (sorry for the paywall):


NEW YORK—Thomas Adès was 28 when the New York Philharmonic first programmed his music on a major subscription concert. America: A Prophecy was commissioned as part of a series marking the threshold of a new millennium and received its premiere in November 1999 under Kurt Masur. At last week’s concerts, a new, expanded version of America anchored the program, this time with Adès himself on the podium. …

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Filed under: Charles Ives, Einojuhani Rautavaara, Musical America, New York Philharmonic, review, Saariaho, Thomas Adès

January 26, 2026 • 8:33 pm 0

‘The American Revolution: Music From The PBS Documentary’

I reviewed the The American Revolution: Music From The PBS Documentary, produced by Johnny Gandelsman for the excellent Ken Burns documentary series on PBS, in the February issue of Gramophone:

As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, providing the soundtrack to The American Revolution – a 12-hour documentary by Ken Burns, Sarah Botstein and David Schmidt – is no ordinary assignment, especially at a moment when the public institutions responsible for airing such work are themselves under attack …

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Filed under: Gramophone, review

January 23, 2026 • 5:44 am 0

Seong-Jin Cho in Seattle: A Flair for Freedom at the Keyboard

Seong-Jin Cho; (c)James Holt / Seattle Symphony

Some thoughts on Seong-Jin Cho’s recent Seattle recital:

The self-effacing persona Seong-Jin Cho projected from the Benaroya Hall stage throughout his solo recital stood in striking contrast to his musical confidence – a confidence grounded not only in extraordinary technical security but in an evident willingness to take risks. Cho’s sense of interpretive freedom made itself felt from the outset, in a program that invited close attention and repaid it generously…

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Filed under: Bartók, Beethoven, Chopin, Franz Liszt, pianists, review

January 20, 2026 • 10:11 am 0

A Rite of Spring Turned Inward: Strauss’s ‘Daphne’ at Seattle Opera

Daphne in concert at Seattle Opera; photo: Sunny Martini

My Bachtrack review:

Richard Strauss’ Daphne is among the works most plausibly suited to Seattle Opera’s recent turn toward including concert performances as part of its main-stage season. Written late in the composer’s career, Daphne belongs to the turbulent political and cultural climate of 1930s Germany….

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Filed under: review, Richard Strauss, Seattle Opera

January 12, 2026 • 8:36 am 4

Ioffe Conducts the Seattle Symphony in Varied Faces of Romanticism

Alevtina Ioffe conducts the Seattle Symphony; © James Holt | Seattle Symphony

A fine start to the new year at Seattle Symphony:

Romanticism has proved more adaptable than its obituaries suggested. Across the 20th century, composers continued to return to music grounded in subjective expression, even when critical fashion leaned elsewhere….

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Filed under: Leonard Bernstein, Rachmaninoff, review, Romanticism, Seattle Symphony

December 30, 2025 • 10:51 am Comments Off on Esa-Pekka Salonen’s SF Symphony Farewell

Esa-Pekka Salonen’s SF Symphony Farewell

An especially memorable performance in 2025: Mahler’s Second with the San Francisco Symphony and Esa-Pekka Salonen, which concluded his tenure as the orchestra’s music director:

SFS-June 2025-Salonen’s Powerful FarewellDownload

Filed under: Esa-Pekka Salonen, Mahler, review, San Francisco Symphony

November 26, 2025 • 3:32 pm Comments Off on Richard O’Neill and Jeremy Denk in Recital

Richard O’Neill and Jeremy Denk in Recital

Jeremy Denk and Richard O’Neill; photo: Jorge Gustavo Elias

Seattle Chamber Music Society presented Richard O’Neill and Jeremy Denk in a sold-out recital Sunday. Here’s my review for The Strad:

Seattle Chamber Music Society brought the inaugural season of its new Signature Series to a compelling close with this sold-out recital by violist Richard O’Neill – best known as a member of the Takács Quartet – and pianist Jeremy Denk.

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Filed under: Beethoven, review, Seattle Chamber Music Society, The Strad, viola

November 25, 2025 • 9:57 am Comments Off on Music For Saxophone Evokes Emotional Swirl Summoned By The Wind

Music For Saxophone Evokes Emotional Swirl Summoned By The Wind

Saxophonist Timothy McAllister, composer Steven Mackey, and conductor Lawrence Renes take bows; photo: Jon Pendleton

A wonderful new saxophone concerto by Steven Mackey featuring Timothy McAllister and some classic John Adams from Seattle Symphony – my review for Classical Voice North America:

SEATTLE – Rather than propose a grand narrative of American music, the Seattle Symphony’s all-American program on Nov. 20 with guest conductor Lawrence Renes set three sharply contrasting voices side by side: Copland’s atmospheric Quiet City, Steven Mackey’s brand-new saxophone concerto Anemology, and John Adams’ ever-astonishing Harmonielehre — a lineup that underscored how differently American composers have approached the orchestra over the past century….
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Filed under: American music, commissions, John Adams, review, Seattle Symphony

November 18, 2025 • 2:51 pm Comments Off on ‘The Monkey King’: Opera Now Review

‘The Monkey King’: Opera Now Review

Jusung Gabriel Park as Master Subhuti and Kang Wang as the title role in Huang Ruo and David Henry Hwang’s The Monkey King; photo: Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera

Huang Ruo and David Henry Hwang’s The Monkey King is a very palpable hit at San Francisco Opera. The rest of the run appears to be already sold out, but a livestream of tonight’s performance at 7.30 PT will be available here starting at 7.30 pm PT ($25); the stream will also be available on demand from 23 Nov at 10am PT to 25 Nov at 10am PT.

My review for Opera Now:

Just after singing what may be the most beautiful music in The Monkey King, the opera’s irrepressible hero promptly marks his territory with a triumphant stream of urine. It’s an indelible assertion of Monkey’s contradictions – and a characteristic example of Huang Ruo’s assured pacing. His underlying musical control gives this sweeping, adventure-driven tale cohesion, navigating its comic and sublime registers with unforced confidence. The transitions are so natural they scarcely call attention to themselves. …

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Filed under: new opera, review, San Francisco Opera

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