Palm Beach Atlantic University has merged its School of Music and Fine Arts and School of Communication and Media to form a new College of the Arts. The college is headed by Jason Lester, a professional opera singer who formerly was dean of the School of Music and Fine Arts, and in recent months was acting dean for the School of Communication and Media. The Communication … [Read more...]
Casella work stands out on chamber fest’s challenging final concert
The Italian composer Alfredo Casella was a major figure in European music right up until his death in 1947, but his work rarely if ever gets a hearing today, at least on these shores. All the more reason for a tip of the hat to the organizers of the Palm Beach Chamber Music Festival, who programmed Casella's Serenata (Op. 46), written in 1927 for a quintet of … [Read more...]
Cohesion hard to come by in chamber performances
Two intimate works vied for contention with one of extrovert character Friday night as the third week of Palm Beach Chamber Music Festival concerts opened, but precious few of either kind of moment were satisfying for long stretches of time. The best performance of the concert at Palm Beach Atlantic University's Persson Hall came right at the beginning, with Carlos … [Read more...]