The soul of Kurotaro consumed every room he entered, and certainly the concert hall, known as "Space Zero," where the bulk of the P.E.N. presentations unfolded like beautiful, complicated origami.
It may be that the opening work, Rossini's "William Tell" Overture, was a nod to Mr. Fisch's operatic experience, although it is certainly a ubiquitous concert work on its own, with ample nonoperatic connections and consequent popular appeal.
While there is certainly room for more concerts exploring female composers, "Women" seemed set on a different path: revealing facets of women's personalities and lives.
It seems unlikely that even as charismatic a performer as Ms. Bartoli can renovate his reputation completely, but her recording and concerts are certainly a start.
Certainly the chasm between concert dance and commercial dance remains considerable.
Certainly from its opening concert on Thursday, Summertime Classics appears to have settled into a respectable middle age.
"This year's concert will certainly be remembered as a poignant celebration of his music by his friends, peers, and fans," a statement on the organisers' website said.
Leo Lorge, 7, was at the Living Room, a club on the Lower East Side, for a rock show — not for a children's concert, and certainly not for a plain old Coke.
While her Carnegie Hall concert was certainly wonderful, many of her performances are of the Al Jolson "You ain't heard nothin' yet" quality, with a vibrato that at times approaches parody.
The venue was certainly prepared for a concert: keyboards and monitors lined the stage under a massive flat-screen with images of deep gray storm clouds on continuous loop.
