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∙LEWISOHN STADIUM (June 25-Aug. 10) summer concerts, originally conceived as a form of recreation for World War I servicemen, quickly expanded to give all of New York's worn, huddled and hectic masses a tension-free oasis where they could drink in the cultural delight and pellucid serenity of music. Since its inception in 1918, the Lewisohn concert series has fulfilled that function with zeal and occasional distinction. Of late, the masses seem to be flocking to the concrete-tiered stadium with somewhat less enthusiasm, and several topflight performers (Rubinstein, Isaac Stern and others) now shun it. For one thing, these and other artists are loath to face the New York critics under less than ideal conditions (too little rehearsal time, bad weather, bad acoustics). Concerts have dwindled from 65 in 1939 to 24 in 1962, attendance from 375,500 in 1939 to 194,500 in 1962, while the cost of the cheapest tickets has gone up from 250 to 750. Outstanding musical personalities have drawn remarkable crowds: Pinza (27,500), Belafonte (25,000), Joan Sutherland (over 20,000). No one expects Van Cliburn's 1963 opening-night figure of 14,000 to be topped this season. The concerts run an annual deficit of $80,000 to $100,000, but that is a minor problem as long as Lewisohn's spiritual and financial godmother, Minnie Guggenheimer, taps her who's-who list of rich, civic-minded New Yorkers.
∙RAVINIA (June 27-Aug. 11), on the outskirts of Chicago, operates on the theory that variety is the spice of musical life. Pablo Casals conducting his own oratorio El Pesebre has been followed by Folk Songsters Peter, Paul and Mary conducting 13,934 folkniks into collective rapture. One night jazz holds court, with Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald; another night the classical reigns, as that 20th century master Igor Stravinsky conducts his own Petrouchka suite, the Two Little Suites and Scherzo a La Russe. To add the final touch of diversity, the New York City Ballet will appear Aug. 6-11, performing two of George Balanchine's latest ballets. The greatest U.S. prima ballerina, Maria Tallchief, has just rejoined the company. ∙ASPEN (June 26-Aug. 25) is the headiest of the festivals. To begin with, it is 7,900 ft. above sea level amid Colorado's breathtaking Rocky Mountain scenery. The nine-week music festival runs in tandem with the skull-stretching
Institute for Humanistic Studies, where one may attend two-hour discussions on Aristotle's Ethics or Herman Kahn's thermonuclear theories. The music is just as uncompromising. A typical program may consist of a Bach suite, a Mozart piano concerto, and a trio of demanding modern works by Darius Milhaud, conducted by the arthritically crippled composer from his wheelchair. All 40 of the visiting artists also teach, and among those present besides Milhaud this season are Met Opera Star Eleanor Steber and the renowned teacher of Van Cliburn, Rosina Lhevinne. By encouraging the festivaliant to start the day with a brisk half-hour hike up the Roaring Fork or Castle Creek for a couple of hours of trout fishing in crystalline, pine-shaded streams, Aspen fosters one of the great classic ideals: Mens sana in corpore sano.