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 Warm and sunny Memorial Day Weekend
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| Looking east towards Manhattan. 7:50 PM. Photo: JH. |
| Tuesday, May 31, 2011. Warm and sunny Memorial Day Weekend marking the beginning of summer for many New Yorkers. City very quiet. Monday morning thunderstorm brought a downpour for an hour, washing the streets and sidewalks. |
| Looking towards Pier 88, 48th St/West Side Highway. 7:45 PM. |
Before we get started: earlier this month Carnegie Hall celebrated its 120th anniversary with a special concert featuring the works of Beethoven, Dvorak, Ellington and Gershwin with special guests Yo-Yo Ma, Emanuel Ax, violinist Gil Shaham and Audra McDonald with the New York Philharmonic conducted by Alan Gilbert. This was a great concert, and if you missed it, it’ll be, in its entirety, on PBS tonight (check local listings).
Concerts there have an extra ingredient for me because of the history of the place – the great, now even legendary talents of the past two centuries who have played there. When you think of the performances that have graced its stage and filled the vast auditorium, and the New Yorkers (and all the distinguished visitors) who have attended those concerts, it’s impossible not to get a thrill being in, witnessing, hearing a concert in this historical New York monument that speaks to the world. |
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Having also watched many on Great Performances, I realize that the televised version gives you something that you don’t get at the “live” concert. You get to see what the performers see when they are standing on the stage -- the magnificence of the entire great hall itself – with its horseshoe rings rising up six stories. It also gives you the close ups of the Philharmonic musicians. You’re looking at tens of thousands of hours of concealed practice that has made them great, and all for the thrill of it.
Tonight’s anniversary program begins with Beethoven’s Triple Concerto in C major, Op. 56, a selection of Ellington songs sung by Miss McDonald – who never looked more beautiful and glamorous – including “Sophisticated Lady,” “Solitude,” “On a Turquoise Cloud,” and “It Don’t Mean a Thing if It Ain’t Got That Swing.” |
| Alan Gilbert, conductor of the New York Philharmonic, at the 120th Anniversary Concert on May 5th. |
Then the orchestra played Antonin Dvorak’s “Carnival Overture.” The Czech composer first played Carnegie Hall in 1892. His famous “New World Symphony” was first heard at a “public” rehearsal at Carnegie Hall on December 15, 1893.
The final piece on the anniversary program is George Gershwin’s “An American in Paris” which made its debut at Carnegie Hall on December 13, 1928. Gershwin had traveled to Paris earlier that year, then the zenith of Scott Fitzgerald’s “Jazz Age” when the city was the bustling center of modern art and culture.
Gershwin was by then a famous Broadway composer. He aspired to greater heights, however; and asked Maurice Ravel if he could study with him. Ravel suggested he study instead with Nadia Boulanger in Paris. Boulanger was famous (and still is) as the teacher of many great composers and performers (pianists) of the 20th century. |
| Audra McDonald singing Duke Ellington at the concert. |
In March, he went Paris where he had an appointment with Boulanger. After playing ten minutes of music at her request, she told him she had nothing to teach him.
From that Paris visit, however, came what he had in mind when he made the voyage – to write something that reflected the magic and allure of the city that so fascinated the Americans who were drawn to it: “An American in Paris.”
He later recalled that his “purpose was to portray the impressions of an American visitor in Paris as he strolls the city, listens to the street noises, and absorbs the French atmosphere.” And so it remains: just listen tonight, and it’ll take you there, guest of the composer. |
| Yo-Yo Ma, Emanuel Ax, and Gil Shaham. |
El Museo del Barrio held its annual Gala this past Thursday at Cipriani 42nd Street, and honored fashion photographer Mario Testino with a lifetime artistic achievement award celebrating his 30-year career.
600 attended and they raised $1,000,000 for the Museum. The glamorous fundraising benefiting New York’s leading Latino museum was chaired by Yaz and Valentín Hernández with Alex González and Raúl Martínez.
This is traditionally a very dressy affair. It is because Latin women (and men, for that matter) have a sharper, more festive sensibility about formal affairs. They enjoy the pageantry of the dress. With the best of them it is an art. With those who are less interested, they have a guide to reflect the tradition of “dressing” for the occasion. |
| 42nd Street and Vanderbilt Avenue looking east on Thursday night at 8:15. |
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However, fashion today in New York dictates anything goes and so anything (and everything) is what you see. Pageantry and pedantry, the designers’ confections are lively, dramatic, elaborate, pared down, gussied up, chic, and not-so. The wearers are covered, swathed, barely covered, uncovered, and often worn by – the dress. And so it goes mid-way through 2011.
Grace Coddington was there with her flaming tresses pulled back from her beautiful face. Ms. Coddington’s fashion is basic integrity. Her colleague, Ms. Wintour, fashion’s ultimate salesforce to the masses, was dressed for a chic summer night in New York, looking glamorous and certain.
Hollywood actresses today, while beautiful, or shapely or sexy or sweet, do not have Ms. Wintour’s glamour or certainty. Nor Ms. Coddington’s integrity. But then, they’re movie stars, so who needs it? Kate Winslet, simply stellar in her presence, presented El Museo’s lifetime achievement award to Mr. Testino, and gave a charming speech proclaiming the friendship of the photographer with his subjects. |
| Kate Winslet arriving. |
Anna Wintour, with Billy Norwich, waiting. |
| Grace Coddington. |
Sharon Hoge, Paola Rosenshein, Felicia Taylor, and Ivana Lowell. |
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The award, created by Asprey of London, was a sterling silver tray engraved with the signatures of 35 of Testino’s friends and colleagues including Christopher Bailey, Hamish Bowles, Naomi Campbell, Graydon Carter, Lucinda L. Chambers, Grace Coddington, Francisco Costa, Oscar de la Renta, Victoria Fernandez, Tom Ford, Alex Gonzalez, Tonne Goodman, Yaz Hernandez, Carolina Herrera, Elizabeth Hurley, Michael Kors, Andre Leon Talley, Blake Lively, Raul Martinez, Sienna Miller, Demi Moore, Julianne Moore, Sarah Jessica Parker, Sasha Pivovarova, Candy Pratts Price, Julia Roberts, Narciso Rodriguez, Carine Roitfeld, Claudia Schiffer, Alexandra Shulman, Charlize Theron, Donatella Versace, Natalia Vodianova, Kate Winslet, and Anna Wintour.
In accepting the award, Mr. Testino said, “They say that a prophet is never recognized in his own land but an award from El Museo is like saying I am recognized by my own community .... My profession is all about who you work with—editors, actresses, stylists, models—people who understand what they are going to give you. Anna Wintour gave a party for me and it was like the ad, ‘Before it’s in fashion, it’s in Vogue.’ Well, before I was in fashion, I was in Vogue. She decided I was a good photographer and it took thirty years to prove that. Thank you for this award.” |
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| Pre-dinner. |
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| Dinner in full swing. |
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Attending guests included Hamish Bowles, Sharon Bush, Claudia Cisneros, Jackie Weld with Angel Sanchez, Alexandra Loeb and Tom Driscoll, Fe and Alessandro Fendi, Stephen Gan, Sylvester and Gillian Miniter, Cat Greenleaf, Agnes Gund, Prabal Gurung, Sharon Handler and Ambassador John L. Loeb, Josh Hartnett, Lazaro Hernandez, Alexandra Lebenthal and Jay Diamond, John Legend, Courtney Love, Carolyn Murphy and Jeremy Diamond, Felicia Taylor, Jack McCollough, Tamara Mellon, Susan Magrino and Jim Dunning, Nicole Miller and Kim Taipale, Enrique Norten, Matt Raimo, Alexandra Richards, Carine Roitfeld, Alejandro Santo Domingo, Joan Smalls, Candice Swanepoel, Carmen Ana and Joseph Unanue, Donatella Versace, Allegra Versace, Diane von Furstenberg.
Additional attendees included U.S. Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez, New York State Senator William Perkins, New York State Senator José Gustavo Rivera, New York State Assembly Member Robert Rodriguez, Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer, New York City Comptroller John Liu, New York City Council Member Melissa Mark-Viverito, and Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico Pedro R. Pierluisi. |
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| Mario Testino. |
Guests danced to music provided by DJ Alexandra Richards, daughter of Keith, and the band Spam Allstars, which blended improvisational electronic elements and turntables with latin, funk, hip hop, and dub.
El Museo del Barrio, New York’s leading Latino cultural institution, welcomes 250,000 visitors annually to discover the artistic landscape of Latino, Caribbean, and Latin American cultures. Their richness is represented in El Museo’s critically acclaimed exhibitions and wide-ranging collections, film, literary, visual and performing arts series, cultural celebrations, and educational programs. A dynamic artistic and community gathering place, El Museo is a center of cultural pride on New York’s museum mile. For additional information, go to www.elmuseo.org. |
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| Alenis Sosa |
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| Kara, Yoly, and Mark Davis |
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| Josh Hartnett |
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| Alexandra Lebenthal, Alexis Clark, Yaz Hernandez, Gillian Miniter, Claudia Lebenthal, and Matthew Moneypenny |
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| Jorge Vergara, Angelica Fuentes, and Carlos Seco |
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| PJ Pascual and Satya Twena |
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| Agatha Ruiz de la Prada |
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| Donatella Versace |
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| Raul Martinez and Martha Christiana |
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| Michel and Omar Heredia |
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| Jacqueline Weld Drake and Angel Sanchez |
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| Tracey and Phillip Riese |
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| Jessica and Frederico Garza |
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| Lauren Dudley |
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| Tamara Mellon |
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| Paola and Arnold Rosenshein |
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| Marife Hernandez and Joel Bell |
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| Fabiola Arias and Jieun Wax |
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| Andy Unanue and Marie O'Mara |
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| Encarnita and Robert Quinlan |
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| Crystal Renn |
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| Kiki Rocha |
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| Rolando Santana and Natasha Huang |
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| Felicia Taylor and friend |
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| Prabal Gurung and Joan Smalls |
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| Agnesa Foygel and Peter Navey |
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| Hanaa Ben Abdesslem |
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| Astrid Redmond and Maria Eugenia Arria |
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| Barbara Regna and Chele Upton Chiavacci |
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| John Legend |
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| Suzanne Diaz, Brad Kroenig, and Harley Viera-Newton |
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| Stephen Gan and friends |
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| Lucy and James Danziger |
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| Alejandra Cicognani |
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| Nazira Handal |
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| Lee Fryd and Robin Cofer |
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| Juan and Patricia Ruichealy |
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| Tony Bechara and Yaz Hernandez |
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| Jay Diamond and Alexandra Lebenthal |
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| Luigi Tadini and Carolina Andraus-Batista |
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| Caio Fonseca and Andre Balazs |
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| Esther Herrero Gaffron and Eduardo Gaffron |
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| Michelle Harper |
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| Blair Husain |
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| Christian Cota |
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| Courtney Love and Mario Testino |
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| Noah Mills, Karmen Pedaru, Heidi Mount, and Simon Nessnan |
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| Paula Carlotti, Lauri Salermo, and Tamaris Vazquez |
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| Chris Griesel and Agnesa Foygel |
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| Whitney, Louis, and Sarah Wolfe |
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| Nazira Handal and Vilma Brennan |
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| Emily Smith and Paul de Leon |
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| Lisa Yom and David Lipke |
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| Michael and Anna Safir |
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| Josh Harnett, Courtney Love, and Sophia Lie |
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| Sharon Handler, John Loeb, and Tom and Patricia Shiah |
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| Kara Davis, Michelle Harper, and Yoly Davis |
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| Carly Cushnie and Michelle Ochs |
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| Eleanora Kennedy |
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| Alessandra Codinha |
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| Carlos Campos and Eglantina Zingg |
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| Hamish Bowles and Ana Wintour |
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| Federick Anderson, Sharon Bush, and Douglas Hannat |
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| Maria Ferrer and Carmen Unanue |
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| Joan Smalls and Hanaa Ben Abdesslem |
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| Emily DiDonato |
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| Jim and Susan Magrino Dunning |
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| Argie and Oscar Tang |
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| Peter and Barbara Regna |
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| Raul Suarez and friends |
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| Kelly Talamas and Sarah Gore Reeves |
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| Benjamin Le Hay, Tia Walker, and Jacob Spies |
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| Grace Coddington |
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| Tom Techeux and Carine Roitfeld |
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| Courtney Love and Josh Harnett |
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| Bennett Marcus and Alexis Clark |
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| Christine Cachot and Fuad Sawaya |
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| David and Jieun Wax |
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| John and Darcy Rigas |
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| Patricia Hartenek and Laura Koch |
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| Tony Beshara and Yolanda Santos |
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| Maria Eugenia Arria, Irene Zingg, and Astrid Redmond |
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| Sylvester and Gillian Miniter |
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| Donatella Versace |
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| Carmen and Joseph Unanue |
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| Fe Fendi and Alessandro Fendi |
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| Maria Luisa Ferre and Carlos Betancourt |
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| Alexander Shoong and Candice Swanepoel |
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| Laura and Luis Pardo |
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| Elizabeth Kabler and Jeffrey Laurence |
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| Chuck and Candy Pratts Price, and Alex Gonzalez |
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| Tarajia Morell and Sebastian Sergeant |
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| Kate Winslet and Mario Testino |
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| Anna Wintour and Mario Testino |
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