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To•Day

DIARY: Wednesday, April 22, 2026

by Daniel Hathaway

HAPPENING TODAY:

Two free events begin at 6 pm today. Piano Cleveland Live presents Cleveland International Piano Competition medalists Ran Dank & Soyeon Kate Lee at Forest City Brewery, and the Cleveland Museum of Art hosts young musicians from the Cleveland Institute of Music for Chamber Music in the Atrium.

TODAY’S ALMANAC:

by Mike Telin

Today we honor the births of four musical luminaries. On this date in 1916, violinist, conductor, and teacher Yehudi Menuhin was born in New York City. In 1922, jazz bassist Charles Mingus entered the world in Nogales, Arizona, and 22 years later in 1944, conductor and musicologist Joshua Rifkin also made his personal debut in New York City.

However — today let’s turn our attention to a true maverick of the music world, Dame Ethel Mary Smyth. [Read More…]

Pre•Views & Features

Les Délices presents Starstruck: music by a young George Frideric Handel

by Mike Telin

When you think of music by George Frideric Handel, the first works that come to mind are likely to be his large-scale oratorios such as Messiah, Israel in Egypt, and Solomon.

“People think of Handel’s Gloria as a showpiece for soprano and small ensemble,” Les Délices artistic director Debra Nagy said. “But Silete venti, which is not often heard, is an extraordinary showpiece for a soprano and I think it’s going to be a real thrill to play.”

On Friday, April 24 at 7:30 pm at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Akron, Les Délices will present Starstruck. The all-Handel program highlights the composer’s brilliant chamber music along with dramatic early cantatas brought to life by the magnetic soprano Hannah DePriest. The program will be repeated on Saturday at Heights Theater and Sunday at West Shore Unitarian Universalist Church. Both concerts begin at 4:00 pm, and tickets are available online.

This week’s concerts coincide with the release of the ensemble’s newest CD, Arcadian Dreams, featuring Hannah De Priest. “The CD is officially out, so these concerts are our Cleveland release celebration,” Nagy said.

[Read on…]

Andrew Staples shares his thoughts about Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem

By Mike Telin

Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem, first performed on 30 May 1962, was commissioned to mark the consecration of the new Coventry Cathedral, which was built after the original 14th-century structure was destroyed during a World War II bombing raid.

Britten, a pacifist and conscientious objector, chose to interleave the traditional Latin Mass for the Dead with poems by Wilfred Owen that were written during World War I.

On Thursday, April 23 at 7:30 pm in Mandel Concert Hall Klaus Mäkelä will lead The Cleveland Orchestra, Chorus, Children’s Chorus, and soloists soprano Tamara Wilson, tenor Andrew Staples, and baritone Ludwig Mittelhammer in Britten’s monumental work. The program will be repeated on Saturday at 7:30 pm and Sunday at 3:00 pm. Tickets are available online.

We caught up with Andrew Staples by phone and began our conversation by asking him to share his thoughts on the work.

[Read on…]

Cleveland Orchestra to present Britten’s War Requiem: a conversation with soprano Tamara Wilson

by Mike Telin

Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem, first performed on 30 May 1962, was commissioned to mark the consecration of the new Coventry Cathedral, which was built after the original 14th-century structure was destroyed during a World War II bombing raid.

Britten, a pacifist and conscientious objector, chose to interleave the traditional Latin Mass for the Dead with poems by Wilfred Owen that were written during World War I.

On Thursday, April 23 at 7:30 pm in Mandel Concert Hall, Klaus Mäkelä will lead The Cleveland Orchestra, Chorus, Children’s chorus, and soloists soprano Tamara Wilson, tenor Andrew Staples, and baritone Ludwig Mittelhammer in Britten’s monumental work. The program will be repeated on Saturday at 7:30 pm and Sunday at 3:00 pm. Tickets are available online.

[Read on…]

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