SITE GUIDE
REVIEWS
FEATURES
NEWS
Etcetera and
Short Term Listings
LISTINGS
Broadway
Off-Broadway
NYC Restaurants
BOOKS and CDs
OTHER PLACES
Berkshires
London
California
DC
Philadelphia
Elsewhere
QUOTES
On TKTS
PLAYWRIGHTS' ALBUMS
LETTERS TO EDITOR
FILM
LINKS
MISCELLANEOUS
Free Updates
Masthead
Writing for Us
A CurtainUp 
Berkshires Feature
Berkshires FeatureTanglewood Music Festival Tips -- Summer 2008
INDEX OF TIPS
Updated July 10, 2008.
Sad News: After leading the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra in a performance of Dvorak's Eighth Symphony at the first of the season Monday night student concerts -- and then the BSO, a cast of international soloists, and the Tanglewood Festival Chorus in a triumphant two-part presentation of Berlioz' monumental Les Troyens (July 5 and 6) Maestro Levine announced that his health necessitated his departure from all Festival activities. The reason, the necessity of a kidney operation requiring a 6-week recovery period.This page is updated annually, with additions made throughout the summer, including write-ups of some events. Here are some insider tips to help first-time visitors to the Tanglewood Music Festival to experience the very best and still have money to spare to take in the area's other sights and sounds. Before browsing the headings below, a word about choosing which main stage or Shed concerts to take in: The Index: Family Concerts. . . Festival of Contemporary Music . . . . . . Friday Nights are Inside-Outside Nights . . . Free Guided Tours . . . Saturday Morning Rehearsals . . . Sunday Morning Chamber Music . . . String Quartet Marathons . . . Student Orchestra Concerts (TMC)-*updated July 10, 2008 . . . Student Orchestra Concerts (BUTI)--updated May 28, 2008 . . . Talks and Walks . . . Tanglewood On Parade . . Check CurtainUp's Berkshire News Page for breaking news of special events and tips for other Berkshire area attractions. Check CurtainUp's Main Page for links to reports and reviews. Check Berkshire Archives for past stories. See Send Berkshire Season Index for Links to Visiting Musicians' websites. . . feedback to esommer@curtainup.com |
Friday Nights Inside-Outside Events. Here's what you do. Buy a lawn ticket (or, if the weather looks threatening, the least expensive inside seats -- the green benches along the rear of the shed will protect you from the elements for just a couple of bucks more than a lawn ticket.). Then pack a picnic and get there by 5:30 or 6 o'clock for the open seating preview concerts held in the pristine Ozawa Hall (go here for details)). These preludes feature players from the Boston Symphony, the John Oliver Chorus and, sometimes, one of the weekend's soloists in the Shed. Seeing and hearing these musicians in this more intimate space is a rate treat, as well as a super bargain.You'll have an hour in between the Prelude and the 8:30 concert to enjoy your picnic and wander around the lawn to admire some of the elaborate spreads brought by gourmet picnickers. Note: That this year Saturday concerts are also preceded by prelude concerts in Ozawa Hall
Special Note for Students: Students aged 12 and up with valid ID can purchase tickets to the evening concert at 50% off the box office price.
Saturday Morning Rehearsals. If you can't make the Friday prelude-plus-concert, go over to the Tanglewood Shed at 10:30 on a Saturday morning. Earlier is even better since there's often a lecture before the rehearsals. The musicians will be wearing t-shirts and loafers, the conductor interrupts the playing periodically, and people tend to wander in and out at will. If you like your concerts in a very informal atmosphere, these open rehearsals may be just your musical brew. Best of all, there are no reserved seats and admission is the same as for a lawn ticket. Special note for families with young children: Lawn tickets are FREE for children under 12!.
Sunday Morning Chamber Music. For those who prefer tennis, golf, swimming or going to tag sales on Saturday mornings, the student chamber music concerts at Ozawa Hall (go here for details) offer an intimate alternative. Besides the regularly scheduled Sunday morning recitals, there are numerous others each week. Check the Tanglewood programs.
Student Orchestra Concerts(TMC) These performances, at much lower ticket prices than the Tanglewood Shed concerts, and featuring the talented students of the Tanglewood Music Center or the younger BUTI Young Artists are no longer quite the well-kept secret they used to be. In fact, the evening TMC concerts have metamorphosed into the worst kept secret, with tickets snapped up so that those with advance reservations should keep their fingers crossed for good weather so that they can sit on the lawn. On a nice night, this is quite wonderful, especially since the Ozawa Hall lawn, unlike that surrounding the big Shed, is sloped so that you can have a good view of the musicians. The popularity of these concerts is well-deserved with the student musicians playing magnificently, even early in the season when they've had little time to play together.
Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra concerts in Ozawa Hall. Concerts. Other commitments prevented me from attending the first Monday night concert featuring Maestro Levine at the podium. But if the July 7th concert of Mozart, Debussy and Strauss are an indication, this year's TMC musicians are as gifted and energetic as ever. The bombastic but beautiful Alpine Symphony by Richard Strauss brought the evening to a rousing conclusion. Led by Dutch conductor Bernard Haitnik the lengthy tone poem inspired by an Alpine walk was gorgeous. One of Haitnik's former students, Leo McFall of London and Erik Nielson a second year TMC fellow led the Mozart and Debussy pieces respectively—both without using a score. While always popular, this concert was packed to the rafters, with every seat fille, including the second balcones all around the hall. No wonder. These concerts are a not to be missed part of the Tanglewood experience.
TMC youth concerts have become annual events.
The String Quartet Marathon.
3 2-hour concerts are at Seiji Ozawa Hall beginning at 10 am, with the 2007 event scheduled for July 2nd. -->
Student Orchestra Concerts (BUTI)—updated The BUTI concerts by the high school aged student musicians are among this reporter's own favorites. Full orchestra performances are on three Saturday afternoons at 2:30 p.m. and feature an outstanding conductor. There's something about sitting in Ozawa Hall with the afternoon sun streaming in and this young musicians making music that is indescribably enchanting. Unlike the evening concerts featuring the TMC orchestra which have become a bit too much of a hustle and bustle, must-see event, these concerts, at least for now, retain their sense of "summer time and the living is easy".. Some of these concerts are repeated during the wall-to-wall music events that make up the daytime festivities at Tanglewood on Parade. The dates for Summer 2008 are July 12 and 26, and August 9th.
Tanglewood Music Center's Annual Festival of Contemporary Music which has its followers and detractors but even those who find new music difficult ought to investigate at least one of the programs offered during this event. The 2008 Festival is an Elliott Carter Centenary. It runs from July 20-24:.
Tanglewood on Parade. For one of the summer's best buys for the whole family, there's the annual wall-to-wall (or should we say tree-to-tree, hall-to-hall musical treat known as Tanglewood on Parade. It features all the musicians, hot air balloons, and in my experience, almoslt always good weather. The festivities begin at 2:30 in the afternoon and end with a two-orchestra concert and fireworks to climax the "1812 Overture." Picnics at this event are often something to behold, with some of the revelers dressed up in costumes. Summer 2008 Tanglewood on Parade date is Tuesday Aug. 5, with performances by the Boston Symphony, Boston Pops, and Tanglewood Music Center orchestras, under the batons of James Levine, Keith Lockhart, John Williams, Sir Andrew Davis, and Andre Previn. This year's program includes Britten's Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes, as well as the traditional performance of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture followed by fireworks over the Stockbridge Bowl. And yes, it all ends with fireworks.
Talks and Walks. If you happen to be in Lenox on a Thursday morning, one of the nicest things you can do is to sit in on a rehearsal of one of the weekend programs. Pack a sandwich and grab a seat on one of the green benches at the side of the Shed (free). At twelve, walk over to the Hawthorne Tent (near Seiji Ozawa Hall) to see if you can nab a ticket for the "Talks and Walks" which are hosted by the Tanglewood Association of the Boston Symphony Association of Volunteers. The bring-your-own-lunch events (beverages and deserts can be purchased in the Tent) feature talks, beginning at 1 pm, by guest artists and members of the Tanglewood family Guest lecturers. While advance reservations are available only to Tanglewood Friends, you can usually get a bench seat or wait until shortly before the talk begins to sit at a table. A nice way to meet some of the locals.
Free Guided Walks .
If you like your guided walks without lunches and lectures, no problem You can join a free public walk-up tour each Wednesday mornings starting at 10:30 a.m. and Saturday afternoons starting at 1:30 p.m. Sunday afternoon BSO concert ticket holders can also get a pre-concert tour at 12:30. All walk-up tours begin at the Visitor Center on the Tanglewood grounds.
For Theater Reviews, see our Berkshire Main Page
For the season's entire Theater Schedule go here
For previouss summer season reviews, go to our Berkshire Archives .
For periodic new items, check our Berkshire News Page
For all CurtainUp reviews from New York, London, and elsewhere,
see our A-Z Index of All Reviews
For CurtainUp's Main Page Go Here
Try onlineseats.com for great seats to
Wicked
Jersey Boys
The Little Mermaid
Lion King
Shrek The Musical
Wicked
Jersey Boys
The Little Mermaid
Lion King
Shrek The Musical
