Gathering Note

Notes from the concert hall

Month: October 2025

  • Medea delivers an unforgettable experience at the Lyric

    I had hoped to write something longer about Medea, which opened a week ago at the Lyric Opera. Time and circumstance have conspired against me, but this production demands to be acknowledged, even if briefly. Suffice it to say, the performance and production is not to be missed. Luigi Cherubini’s Medea remains one of opera’s…

  • Jordan and Hadelich lead the Chicago Symphony through its repertoire sweet spot

    Not long ago, while spending a week in New York, I found myself walking through Central Park after a concert by the New York Philharmonic, wondering which composers belong to which American orchestras. It is a parlor game without definitive answers – New York might claim Gershwin or Ives – but Chicago’s answer came to…