George Grella

New York

Critic & Journalist; Financial Times, Bandcamp, The Wire, NYCR, &c; @thebrooklynrail music editor, @333books author—freelance and available for writing/editing

Articles

Jazz 2025: The Mid-Year Report

1 week ago | killyridols.substack.com | George Grella

Music can’t change the world, but it might be able to save it. Music making is a social activity and in my firm opinion the original way for people to communicate and come together across language and cultural barriers. Maybe you can’t talk with each other—yet—but you can sing and dance with each other. And so we have civilization. And to paraphrase John Waters, if you meet people who don’t sing, dance, or listen to music, get the fuck away from them.
Dudamel’s season-closing Mahler bridges Philharmonic’s past and future

1 week ago | newyorkclassicalreview.com | George Grella

For the past four seasons, the New York Philharmonic has been in a kind of limbo. The orchestra has played well—extremely so this season—but with a parade of guest conductors until Gustavo Dudamel takes over as the new music director in the fall of 2026. Even with the high quality, there has been no sense of strategic direction or of what the future might promise.
Kissin and friends explore Shostakovich sonatas at Carnegie

1 week ago | newyorkclassicalreview.com | George Grella

At Carnegie Hall, the month of May is coming to a close with Shostakovich and Evgeny Kissin. The pianist is leading a series of concerts of the composer’s music. The second one, Wednesday night, was dedicated to the instrumental sonatas for cello, violin, and viola.
Unsubtle lead a wild card in potential winning hand for Met’s “Queen of Spades”

2 weeks ago | newyorkclassicalreview.com | George Grella

Tchaikovsky’s The Queen of Spades, which opened Friday night as the final production of this season, has a short but notable history at the Metropolitan Opera. Its premiere house performances were conducted by Gustav Mahler, and this 1995 Elijah Moshinsky production was the Met debut for Dmitri Hvorostovsky and the final American performances from Leonie Rysanek. Notable in this season’s run is the house debut of tenor Arsen Soghomonyan as the gambler Hermann.
The Triumph of Intellect and Romance Over Brute Force and Cynicism

2 weeks ago | killyridols.substack.com | George Grella

“Never be cruel and never be cowardly. And if you ever are, always make amends.”When my daughter was a newborn, her mother and I split shifts on taking care of her through the night. I would stay up to about 4 a.m., reading a book in one hand while she slept draped across my forearm (she was a little premature and very small).
Dudamel kicks off Philharmonic weeks with bracing American music, old and new

2 weeks ago | newyorkclassicalreview.com | George Grella

Gustavo Dudamel won’t become the New York Philharmonic’s official music director until the start of the 2026-27 season, but he’s already substantially involved with the orchestra. He is leading concerts for the next several weeks, including the free ones in city parks in early June. If the Thursday night subscription concert in David Geffen Hall was any indication, the future is already in mid-stride.
New York Classical Review

2 weeks ago | newyorkclassicalreview.com | George Grella

New York Philharmonic Gustavo Dudamel, conductor Kate Soper, soprano Stravinsky: Symphony in Three Movements Kate Soper: Orpheus Orchestra Opus One (world premiere) Philip Glass: Symphony No. 11 2 p.m. David Geffen Hall nyphil.org Metropolitan Opera Tchaikovsky: The Queen of Spades Sonya Yoncheva, Brian Jagde, Igor Golovatenko, Violeta Urmana Keri-Lynn Wilson, conductor 7:30 p.m. Metropolitan Opera House metopera.org Heartbeat Opera Gounod: Faust Orson Van Gay II, Rachel Kobernick, John...
Art of Darkness

2 weeks ago | killyridols.substack.com | George Grella

“When I was in jail I heard a lot of stories … about different junk they’ve had, how good it was, and about big scores they’ve made. They’d pull a robbery and instead of buying a gram or a quarter they’d buy a piece or two … and sell a little bit and lay up and just fix and not have to go out on the street. So now, what I wanted was to find somebody to help me pull an armed robbery. I wanted to go in with a gun, get the money, score, get away from the scene, and cool it.
Neuma Records is a Home for Unexpected Sound

2 weeks ago | daily.bandcamp.com | George Grella

LABEL PROFILE Neuma Records is a Home for Unexpected Sound By George Grella · May 19, 2025 Neuma Records has had two lifetimes. The first began in 1988, when the label issued collections of classic and new electroacoustic compositions, and albums of new music by composers who were mainly (though not exclusively) exploring that field.
Juilliard415 closes Music Before 1800 season with joyful “Corelli in Chiquitos”

2 weeks ago | newyorkclassicalreview.com | George Grella

Introducing Music Before 1800’s season finale Sunday afternoon at Corpus Christi Church, artistic director Bill Barclay remarked that “world music is early music.” This is clear through the range of what is typically thought of as European music, up through the end of the 18th century. But world cultures have been interconnected and mixing together since long before the age of electronic communications, much less train travel, and Barclay’s programming has consistently brought this to life.