In the mix

THOMAS W. MORRIS

Artistic director, Ojai Music Festival

I actually have a vivid best, the touring performance of Osvaldo Golijov’s “Ayre,” with Dawn Upshaw and Eighth Blackbird, which came through Cleveland. It was one of the most refreshing and real concert experiences of the year.

As for “worsts,” I can’t think of a performance this year that says “dog” all over it. But the reaction of people who program concerts when they say, “I’ll have to check that with marketing” -- I’m hearing a lot of that -- drives me crazy.

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JEFFREY KAHANE

Pianist and music director, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra

Best? That’s easy.

I had the opportunity to hear one of the first performances of “Doctor Atomic,” John Adams’ opera, with San Francisco Opera, which was not only one of the best experiences of the year, it was one of the great theatrical and musical experiences of my life.

I’ve also been listening to some recordings. Some standouts were the Brad Mehldau Trio in “Day Is Done,” one of the great jazz albums of our time. His playing has reached a whole new level. The other album, on the classical side, was Josh Bell’s new recording of the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with the Berlin Philharmonic and Michael Tilson Thomas. It isn’t often that a piece you’ve heard all your life takes your breath away.

Worst? I’m having a terrible time thinking of anything.

There is a trend that concerns me, though.

I find that as an artist and someone who grew up with an old-fashioned and romantic view of art, it never occurred to me to think about art or music in terms of marketing. That’s become so pervasive that, against my will, I have to think of programming and recording in terms of marketing.

Particularly in the world of classical music, we are not in a position to take risks we should take or want to take. That is a disheartening trend.

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ANDREAS MITISEK

General and artistic director, Long Beach Opera

A best? I would definitely name “Doctor Atomic,” which I think really proves that the art form is living and not dying. I think it’s a wonderful combination of taking real events and transposing them into a new medium that works beautifully.

Which brings me to my negative view:

Presenters in the arts are too repetitive in their efforts to sell tickets. You see all these productions coming back again and again, which is a deadly repetitive cycle that will mean the downfall of the arts.

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ROBERT HURWITZ

President, Nonesuch Records

Full disclosure: Understandably, many highlights were performances of musicians we work with. Three theater pieces were especially important to me this year: Adam Guettel’s “Light in the Piazza” (which we recorded), John Doyle’s production of Sondheim’s “Sweeney Todd” (the recording of which we are finishing), and “Doctor Atomic” (which we will record next year).

Concerts, opera, music theater: Arcade Fire at Webster Hall, “Pacific Overtures” at Studio 54, Takacs’ Beethoven quartet cycle at Alice Tully Hall, Paul Taylor’s 50th anniversary season in New York, Peter Sellars’ “Tristan” at the Paris Opera, Jon Brion at Tonic, Nickel Creek at Nokia Theatre, the Lee Friedlander show at MoMA (which included many of his great musician photographs).

Recordings: Gidon Kremer “Bach Sonatas and Partitas” (ECM), Osvaldo Golijov/Dawn Upshaw “Ayre” (DG), “Thelonious Monk Quartet With John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall” (Blue Note), the Decemberists’ “Picaresque” (Kill Rock Stars).

Some new things may not particularly interest me, but it is hard to express disappointment at people who work so hard at their craft and are willing to expose it to public scrutiny.