Last Thursday (Dec. 30) at Volunteers Hall, the Harvard community was treated to a special musical event that reached levels of beauty, confidence, and professionalism usually reserved for a major concert hall. Justin Bartlett (piano) and Tyler Alderson (baritone) performed works of Mendelssohn, Schumann, Mozart, Vaughn Williams, and a lesser known, but stunning work of G. Finzi.
For those who remember the quintessential recordings of German lieder by Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and Gerald Moore, Thursday evening’s performance was on equal footing. The dexterity, tonality, expression, and musicianship—it was all there and it was simply amazing. Alderson and Bartlett are Bromfield graduates and are pursuing music careers. Alderson is a junior at Carnegie Mellon, and Bartlett, having graduated from Oberlin Conservatory this June, is now enrolled in a master’s program at Indiana University. One can only hope that this is the beginning of a new annual offering to delight our music-loving community. Perhaps a midsummer’s night dream team can be conjured up as well.
Charles Kronauer
Old Littleton Road
