Carnegie Hall Reflection

I wish I could have gone to Carnegie Hall with the rest of the class, however, I had a show myself that day and couldn’t make it. I went to Carnegie Hall instead a few days earlier since I had a project in another class in which I had to watch a classical music performance. So I went to watch the New York Pops, a renowned orchestra from NYC and led by Steven Reineke. I hadn’t been to Carnegie Hall in a few years but used to go on occasion for school trips or with my family when I was younger so the venue wasn’t a surprise to me. Not sure about the class but I was near the very back in the balcony and had “restricted leg room” seats, which were very uncomfortable and which I wouldn’t recommend.

The New York Pops were also accompanied that night by a large choir that performed alongside them on a few pieces. The first act of the night focused on European classical and romantic music from a few different composers, and even included some compositions from the opera “Carmen.” I was very impressed by the musicians and the conductors as they put on a great performance. They really knew how to use the space in Carnegie Hall to establish good dynamics and get a great sound. The second half of the set featured music from modern American composers including an orchestral piece by Reineke himself. Overall I really enjoyed the performance and felt it was very balanced.