Some consider A Midsummer Night’s Dream to be one of William Shakespeare’s greatest tributes to love: both romantic and platonic. “Love looks not with the eyes but with the mind. And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.” Veronica Renner and Jamin Jollo At Shotgun Players, there is a lot of love for humanity in all […]
STRING THEORY Arnold Schoenberg‘s Verklärte Nacht (“Transfigured Night”), Op. 4, is a string sextet in one movement composed in 1899. Love him or hate him (some of his challenging later music is impenetrably inaccessible given his twelve-tone technique), there are times when Schoenberg’s system of composition can reach through your soul, creating an otherworldly sound. […]
ONE FOR THE NOTEBOOKS While specialty branded tissue boxes are sold for $5 at the merch stands, the ushers at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre should insert more in the playbill of The Notebook. Whether you have had a dear one suffer from conditions that affect memory and thinking, or if you are just a sucker for love […]
1974: THE YEAR THAT WAS Still haven’t heard of MUSE/IQUE, Los Angeles? I first discovered this prestigious outfit in 2012 on stage at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in a program called Ebony Meets Ivory, a celebration of the piano. Since then, I have thrilled at dozens of MUSE/IQUE events, and they just get more and […]
WOO-HOO, WOOTEN The idea behind this past weekend’s program at the Los Angeles Philharmonic was the influence of jazz on the orchestra, featuring three pieces that cover a span of nearly 125 years. For these two performances, the Phil brought in Thomas Wilkins, Principal Conductor of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, to conduct. First up was […]
FOR SOME, THIS GLASS IS HALF-EMPTY. MINE OVERFLOWETH. Although Philip Glass‘s works can be described as minimalist, he prefers to describe himself as a composer of “music with repetitive structures.” He also noted, “If I’m to be remembered for anything, it will probably be for the piano music, because people can play it.” He conceived […]
READY FOR A HOT BATH? Staged at The Flea Theater in Manhattan between the FBI building and an apocalyptic AT&T windowless high tower, Bathhouse.pptx — described as a “group project for perverts” by its creator Jesús I. Valles — comes with an intangible mysterious quality before it even starts. Sam Gonzalez as Presenter Lights go on, […]
FLY ME TO THE MOONDOG Kronos Quartet and the jazz-chamber ensemble Ghost Train Orchestra will perform Music of Moondog at The Town Hall on Tuesday, April 16 at 8 p.m. The concert will be the first time both ensembles collaborate to present their album Songs and Symphoniques: The Music of Moondog live in New York City. The performance will also feature David Byrne, and […]
LIGHTS! SOUND! MUSIC! Now in its eighth season, Celebrity Series of Boston offered four nights of innovative music in Somerville’s Crystal Ballroom with the Stave Sessions. Each evening offered a single intermission-free ninety minute performance. The first three evenings included virtuoso real-time performances of singing, flute, guitar, and keyboards mixed with impressive light shows, electronic […]
BLOW, BLACKHURST, BLOW! When Klea Blackhurst burst onto the stage at Chelsea Table & Stage on March 10 to perform Everything the Traffic Will Allow, one might have well imagined the original Ethel Merman had come to life. Then Blackhurst belted out her first note and it was hard not to be convinced the diva […]