The Disposable Musicologist

  Wilhelm Stenhammar (1871-1927) Whenever Alan Gilbert comes to town to lead the Boston Symphony Orchestra, one can always expect a few surprises.   His program with the BSO, heard Sunday afternoon at Tanglewood's Koussevitzky Shed, paired a little-heard Schumann gem with a beloved Mozart concerto. Yet it was Stenhammar's Serenade, the concert's closer, that continues to linger in the memory.   Wilhelm Stenhammar (1871-1927) was perhaps Sweden's most iconic composer, though his music remains largely unheard outside of his homeland. He was versatile, producing two completed symphonies, several concertos and string quartets, as well as choral works. It's a wonder why his Serenade remains unknown.   Completed in 1902 during a visit to Italy, the stirring score combines sounds of bucolic serenity with moments of mystery.   Gilbert described the piece as the "love child of Strauss and Sibelius." Indeed, the work, with its colorful orchestration and ...

  Thomas  Adès and Kirill Gerstein performed Stravinsky's Concerto for Piano and Winds at Tanglewood. Photo: Hilary Scott Kirill Gerstein and Thomas Adès continue to share a fruitful musical partnership. The pianist-conductor duo drew international acclaim two seasons ago, when Gerstein premiered Adès's Piano Concerto with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. With Adès conducting, the performance of the blazing and haunting score seemed to capture in music a friendship connected by a similar artistic vision.   That was the sense conveyed Saturday night, when Adès and Gerstein tackled Stravinsky's Concerto for Piano and Winds with the BSO at Tanglewood's Koussevitzky Shed. The performance once again showcased Gerstein's technical prowess and searching expressivity. And Adès, who proved a technicolor conductor, led the way.   Stravinsky's thorny score dates from 1924 while the composer was exploring classical and baroque forms. His previous works—the Symphonies ...