13 responses so far ↓

• 

  Maria // November 27, 2007 at 7:22 pm

  Welcome to DC, Anne. Now if they could only send some good dance critics our way…

• 

  writingariel // November 27, 2007 at 9:25 pm

  I wish I were more familiar with the dance critics in Washington! I hope your prayers are answered!

• 

  Maria // November 28, 2007 at 3:35 am

  You are not familiar with our dance critics because we don’t have any! Ok, that’s unfair, but the Post’s dance coverage is totally disappointing and mediocre. There was a recent forum (unfortunately, I was out of town at the time), that another blogger took good notes of here http://bourgeononline.com/?p=124. The message seemed to be that they believe they are writing for an audience that doesn’t know much about dance, so their purpose is to inform, not go much in-depth. Apparently Washingtonians only care about politics.

• 

  Dan M // January 25, 2008 at 11:09 pm

  I read with horror and amazement Anne Midgette’s recent review, in the Washington Post, of a concert featuring chamber works by Brahms. In it, this pathetic excuse for a critic notes a “cadre” of music lovers who supposedly hate Brahms, whose works she describes “neurotic”. She also says his music never took with her, while the music of Mahler, et. al., did. (Brahms is neurotic, but Mahler is not? What’s next? Wagner is too concise but Webern drones on and on?).

  Eventually, she grudgingly acknowledges some merit to Brahms’ music, but attributes it largely to the high-class performances she was privileged to hear.

  Oy vay. I’ve been involved with classical music for 35 years, in various capacities — I was even a reviewer for the Post for a little while — and I have yet to meet an individual music lover, much less a cadre of them, who hate Brahms. If you don’t like Brahms, you don’t like classical music, and you have no business writing about it. Go make Britney Spears your third “B”, and keep your musical cretinism to yourself.

  Over the years, I often disagreed with the supremely erudite Tim Page. Even so, I always knew that he wrote from a deep knowledge of, and insight into, the art of music. I wrote to him on occasion to express my difference of opinion, but I respected his erudition and sensitivity. I never insulted him, since he gave no reason for insults: the man knows his stuff, and writes manificnetly.

  Not so with Ms. Midgette, whom I cannot welcome to the Washington cultural scene. I ardently hope the Post will dismiss her soon, and obtain a qualified individual, with discerning ears, to fill her position.

  On the other hand, maybe they’re looking for a Shakespeare-hater to review plays, a loather of ballet to review dance, and a despiser of Michelangelo and Picasso to tell us about the local art scene.

  Tim, come back! We need you! H-E-L-P!Save us!

• 

  George S, New York // February 14, 2008 at 2:16 pm

  One positive thing is that New the York Times managed to shed this petty, grandiose and often ignorant critic from its roster. Anne Midgette’s reviews at NYT had consistently been viewed the most insulting, ungenerous and often irrelevant, by me and many other individuals in the field. As a musician in this city, I feel relieved to see her go, and concerned for the fellow musicians in D.C.

• 

  writingariel // February 14, 2008 at 2:26 pm

  You must of not read my post George–Anne Midgette is a friend of mine, so I disagree strongly with your comments.

• 

  Brenda // February 16, 2008 at 9:45 am

  Here’s a link to the article in question. It seems just as much a critique of Anne herself as of Brahms. And Anne didn’t say that Brahms was neurotic, she quotes Helen Radice. Musicians don’t like Anne because she speaks her mind and is smart. Read the article, if you haven’t. Think for yourself.
  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/21/AR2008012102394.html

• 

  The little comment-war that was. « // February 16, 2008 at 2:42 pm

  [...] Just in case you weren’t aware, there’s an argument going on about Anne Midgette on my post about her gig as interim chief music critic at the Washington Post. Anne is a friend, but I’m staying out of it as much as possible and not censoring the [...]

• 

  JohnR(VA) // February 19, 2008 at 4:21 am

  My wife and I are moving back to D.C. after 11 years of easy living in the halcyon Northern Neck of Virginia.

  In preparation for the move, I have been reading up on the current state of the National Symphony, and find the reviewer is one Anne Midgette–new to me. Clearly she is a critic of broad experience and a keen mind–not what Washingtonians are used to, that’s for sure. She reminds me of Claudia Cassidy of the Chicago Tribune of years ago (another redhead).

  I go back to the days of Howard Mitchell as the conductor of the NSO, so when I read Midgette’s recent report that the symphony’s brass “sabotaged” the finale of a Mahler Sixth, I know I will be feeling right at home. The NSO brass were not good way back when and clearly little has changed.

  What Ms. Midgette is doing is writing from the viewpoint of a critic who will hold the NSO to a high performance standard–London, Berlin, New York. That means there will be a lot of blood on the floor as the NSO’s shortcomings are hung out to dry. This is unpleasant for those in the line of fire. I’m sure the Kennedy Center bigwigs will be after her scalp, if they are not already.

  The Post is going to have to support its new “interim” critic. If Ms. Midgette is allowed to continue in the job for some years, her work may actually help raise the level of performance at the Ken Cen. However, from the sound of things, it will not be long before it’s back to criticism as usual.

• 

  JohnR(VA) // February 19, 2008 at 12:36 pm

  In re: Claudia Cassidy.

  Ms. Cassidy had somewhat more to work with in the late 1950s–Carol Fox was the Chicago Opera’s director (Turandot with Nilsson, DiStefano and Moffo) and the great Fritz Reiner was the conductor of the Chicago Symphony. ‘Nough said.

  Each summer, Ms. Cassidy would visit, and report from, Salzburg, Glyndebourne and Bayreuth. I doubt if the Post’s editors can even spell Glyndebourne.

• 

  Mark McConnell // March 18, 2008 at 3:25 pm

  Interesting article by Anne Midgette on Alfrend Brendel 3/18/08.

  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/17/AR2008031702866.html?hpid=sec-artsliving.

  She writes “Brendel’s repertory was not always focused on classical Vienna, although he won renown fairly early in his career as the first-ever pianist to record all 32 Beethoven sonatas (he has recorded the cycle twice since).” Brendel’s cycle was 1958-64. Hasn’t Anne heard of Schnabel? What about the four other pianists who beat Brendel to the whole 32: Kempff, Nat, Gulda, Backhaus (all of of them finished mono cycles by 1958)? Brendel was the sixth. That’s not real informed journalism. I thought every musical lover knew something about Schnabel at least.

• 

  Bob A. // March 26, 2008 at 9:11 pm

  Midgette has a small critic talent to match her name. She needs a class in opera. She praised the Virginia Opera for their “Eugene Onegin”. I have reviewed them for 15 years and praised them highly for their productions…this one was terrible. Yet she claimed the the tenor (the finest singer in the opera) used only his middle range…not true at all…maybe she should get the hearing aids offered at the venue. Now with “The Flying Dutchman” she said the title lead sang well in “legato”…the singer broke every note in choppy style…he better be careful he doesn’t go into tremolo! And the tenor used a “pinched” style in his upper range which she didn’t note at all. Please go back to the New York Times.

• 

  Mike B. // March 31, 2008 at 6:21 am

  Bob A. , Dan M. and Mark Connell all make important points… there are, safe for Daniel Ginsberg, the rarely writing Joe Banno, and - sometimes… a woman, I forget her name, no more decent reviewers at the Post. Much less a critic to deserve this name.

  Anne writes fine and readable English… but a Music Critic she is not.

Leave a Comment