To celebrate the 150th birthday of Richard Strauss, the Gewandhaus Orchestra (Gewandhaus ticket hotline +49 341 1270 280) in Leipzig, Germany, will perform a series of Strauss works from April 3, 2014, until the special birthday concert on June 11.
The Leipzig Opera will perform the Strauss operas “Elektra,” “The Knight of the Rose” and “The Woman Without a Shadow.” Contact the Gewandhaus and the Leipzig Opera (Opera ticket hotline +49 0 341 12 61 261).
I read the letters from people who had traveled to countries, listened to music and later sought that music out (Aug. ’13, pg. 56). As someone who received her degree in ethnomusicology, I have a few suggestions that might help travelers find recordings of the music they’re seeking.
If you know the name of the act (person or group), check to see if they may have something on YouTube.com. So many performers these days utilize this platform to promote their music.
After we printed a number of letters about the recorded music they picked up while traveling (Jan. ’12, pg. 48 & Feb. ’12, pg. 42), a few more subscribers wrote in. We present their finds here.
We like to purchase CDs to bring home to remind us of our travels. Two are our particular favorites.
We’re wrapping up our series on attending concerts, recitals, stage productions or music or dance performances outside of the US. The goal was to learn how travelers find out about and obtain tickets to any special events that are taking place and to, perhaps, inspire you to attend a performance of some sort in whatever country you’re visiting.
This is the 60th summer that the Dartington Hall Estate in Devon is holding music classes at the Dartington International Summer School (Dartington Hall,Totnes, Devon, England, TQ9 6EN; phone +44 1803 847077).
Five groups of week-long classes, July 27-Aug. 31, 2013, each have a theme, with courses suitable for beginners, advanced musicians and children.
10 days/9 nights, Nov. 2-11, 2013. Highlights: Daily yoga and meditation sessions/Pura Luhur Uluwatu temple/legong dance show at Ubud Palace/cycle through Ubud rice paddies/Don Antonio Blanco Museum/walk through rainforest and swim under Les Waterfall/West Bali National Park/snorkel at Menjangan Island/Ulun Danu Temple. Land, $1,995. Single supp., $650. Sacred Earth Journeys, Ltd. (Burnaby, BC, Canada; 877/874-7922).
I was going to be in Beijing in June ’11 with some time to spare. What to do? I have always been interested in Buddhist monasteries and had visited most of the important ones in Tibet (Gandan, Sera, Drepung and Tashilhunpo of the Yellow Hat sect) but not two elsewhere in China: Labrang and Ta’er Si (aka Kumbum). They are quite near each other, but I felt I had time to see only one, so I chose Labrang, near Xiahe, in Gansu province, northwest China.
(Second of two parts on Italy)
While passing through Buenos Aires, I went to an expensive tango show performed in the dance style they use for competitions and professional entertainment. For a February ’11 visit several years later, I decided that, instead of being a spectator, I wanted to go to a milongas del barrio (neighborhood tango club) to tango with the locals.
(Part 1 of 2 on Italy)