By Terry Blain | Star Tribune Published: December 26, 2019 http://www.startribune.com/best-of-the-decade/566133041/?refresh=true#classical 10. “Candide” 2019-Philip Brunelle’s Vocal­Essence turned 50 with a joyful take on Bernstein’s operetta, brilliantly re-imagined as a 1930s radio broadcast by Peter Rothstein. 9. It’s Raining Grammys-Discs of Sibelius by the Minnesota Orchestra (2014) and Schubert by the SPCO (2018) won the ultimate…  Read More →

by Tom Weber weber@postbulletin.com | PostBulletin Published: December 10, 2019, https://www.postbulletin.com/life/lifestyles/twin-cities-ensembles-offer-christmas-concerts-in-rochester/article_08f28392-16ab-11ea-ad07-978e1f6ac6f9.html The Rose Ensemble will perform a concert of early American music Saturday in Rochester. (Contributed photo) Two of Minnesota’s iconic music groups, the Rose Ensemble and VocalEssence, will perform back-to-back holiday concerts this weekend in Rochester. In the case of the Rose Ensemble, which…  Read More →

By Terry Blain | Star Tribune Published: December 20, 2019 — 8:20AM http://www.startribune.com/the-10-concerts-that-shone-brightest-in-2019-on-minnesota-s-classical-scene/566373282/ 1. “Candide,” VocalEssence, March 21: Leonard Bernstein’s Voltaire operetta is tough to stage, but Theater Latté Da’s Peter Rothstein recast it brilliantly as a 1930s radio broadcast. VocalEssence made the music sparkle, with Bradley Greenwald narrating. 2. St. John Passion, Oratory Bach Ensemble,…  Read More →

By Pamela Espeland | MinnPost PUBLISHED: December 13, 2019 ww.minnpost.com/artscape/2019/12/all-is-calm-is-filmed-for-pbs-dog-act-at-gremlin-theatre/?fbclid=IwAR3d67FHcl0-DNebJRQ8ox8Jc32orIvL_NonUv7M8IDnM8Bi3snSwre2Vr0 Photo by Joseph Scheller Theater Latté Da spent part of this week with a film crew from New York Public Media (WNET). They were there to film Peter Rothstein’s award-winning “All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914” for national broadcast on PBS in 2020. For three days,…  Read More →

By ROB HUBBARD | Special to the Pioneer Press PUBLISHED: November 25, 2019 at 12:37 pm | UPDATED: November 25, 2019 at 6:37 pm https://www.twincities.com/2019/11/25/holiday-arts-guide-2019-classical-music-has-many-flavors-of-the-sounds-of-the-season/ Not one “Messiah,” but a few, including a bilingual version. Holiday fare sung in sweet harmony by ensembles of various sizes. And some carols that swing. That’s what’s in store for you as you head…  Read More →

By Terry Blain | Star Tribune Published: December 1, 2019 — 2:00PM http://www.startribune.com/a-hot-debut-and-a-bach-alternative-to-messiah-the-week-s-best-classical-concerts/565610352/ Alt-Bach Christmas inevitably means “Messiah,” and this week’s Minnesota Orchestra performances will please those who like an annual dose of Handel’s masterpiece. For a refreshing alternative, why not try Bach’s Christmas Oratorio? It covers many of the same biblical events, and the…  Read More →