Picks of the Week: May 14 – 19

By Don Heckman

Los Angeles

Brenna Whitaker

- May 15. (Wed.)  Brenna Whitaker.  She could have been a ‘30s platinum blond star.  But Whitaker doesn’t just look good; she can sing, too.  This time out she picks a set of tunes to enhance the birthday of Vibrato co-owner Eden Alpert.  Vibrato Grill Jazz…etc.   (310) 474-9400.

- May 15. (Wed.)  Lado B Project.  A lively evening of Brazilian music, featuring Otmaro Ruiz, piano, Larry Koonse, guitar, Edwin Livingston, bass, Aaron Serfaty, drums and Catina DeLuna, voice.  Brazilian music.  Vitello’s.    (818) 769-0905.

- May 16. (Thurs.)  Lisa Hilton. The ever adventurous pianist/composer Hilton continues her quest for new musical territories for her to explore. Catalina Bar & Grill.   (323) 466-2210.

- May 16. (Thurs.)  John Proulx.  Singer/pianist Proulx has begun to claim a position in the rare category of male jazz singer.  Proulx, like his musical role model, Chet Baker, brings the flowing phrases of his instrumental playing to his vocal interpretations.    H.O.M.E. (House of Music and Entertainment)   (310) 271-4663.

- May 17. (Fri.)  Jim Snidero Group.  Saxophonist Snidero’s lengthy resume reaches from his own numerous recordings to performances with everyone from Frank Sinatra to Frank Wess. The Blue Whale.    (213) 620-0908.

Melissa Manchester

- May 17 – 19. (Fri. – Sun.)  Melissa Manchester. She’s been producing memorable music since the ‘70s, including “Midnight Blue” and “Don’t Cry Out Loud.”  Here’s a chance to catch her in one of her rare club appearances. Catalina Bar & Grill.   (323) 466-2210.

- May 17 – 19. (Fri. – Sun.)  Larry Goldings, Peter Bernstein and Bill Stewart.  This is a stellar organ trio if ever there was one.  Each of the players is an influence in his own right.  Don’t miss them.  Vitello’s.    (818) 769-0905.

- May 17 – 19, 23 & 25. (Fri. – Sun., Thurs., Sat.)  Mozart/Da Ponte Trilogy.  The Marriage of Figaro. The second of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s three year trilogy of opera by Mozart and librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte.  The great comic opera is performed in a concert staged version by the Philharmonic, the Los Angeles Master Chorale and soloists.  Disney Hall.  http://www.laphil.com  (323) 850-2000.

- May 19. (Sun.)  Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.  Concerto Finale.  The LACO players offer a fascinating evening of concertos, including Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto, and an offbeat bassoon concerto performed with a 1927 silent film.  Add the Beethoven Coriolan Overture and anticipate an engaging program.   CAP UCLA at Royce Hall.   (310) 825-4321.

- May 19. (Sun.)  Deborah Voigt.  Critically acknowledged as one of the classical music world’s dramatic sopranos, Voigt – who roves freely from Wagner to Puccini – offers an intimate recital of works by Strauss, Tchaikovsky, Bernstein and more.  Valley Performing Arts Center.  (818) 677-8800.

San Francisco

Bela Fleck

- May 16 – 19 (Thurs. – Sun.)  Bela Fleck solo.  Banjo master Fleck has performed in every imaginable setting.  But he is especially compelling musically when he plays in the creative intimacy of a solo performance.  SFJAZZ Center Miner Auditorium.    (866) 920-5299.

Seattle

- May 14 & 15. (Tues. & Wed.)  John Hammond.  Praised by the likes of Tom Waits and T-Bone Burnett, Grammy-winning guitarist/singer/harmonica player Hammond keeps the blues alive in everything he plays.  Jazz Alley.    (206) 441-9729.

New York City

- May 14 – 18. (Tues. – Sat.)  Bossabrasil.  Featuring Dori Caymmi with special guest, Joyce.  Rio comes to Manhattan in the form of a pair of Brazil’s most versatile and gifted musical artists.  Birdland.    (212) 581-3080.

- May 14 – 19. (Tues. – Sun.)  The Gil Evans Project.  Directed by Ryan Truesdell.  An amazing week of music, featuring a large ensemble exploring the full range of Gil Evans’ extraordinary talents.  The selections for each night include Gil Evans’ music for the Claude Thornhill Orchestra, “Out of the Cool,” “New Bottle, Old Wine,” “Great Jazz Standards,” “The Individualism of Gil Evans,” “Miles Ahead,” “Porgy and Bess,” Check with the club for scheduling.  The Jazz Standard.    (212) 576-2232.

London

Roy Haynes

- May 15 & 16. (Wed. & Thurs.)  The Roy Haynes Fountain of Youth Band. The Fountain of Youth has had the biggest impact upon the leader, drummer and role model in this band.  At 88, Haynes is still playing with the imagination and energy of youth.  Ronnie Scott’s.   +44 20 7439 0747.

Berlin

- May 17 & 18.  (Fri. & Sat.)  Lee Ritenour.  He used to be called “Captain Fingers” in honor of his high-speed dexterity.  But guitarist Ritenour has a more lyrical side as well, often employing octave melody style of his favorite musical model, Wes Montgomery.  A-Trane.    +49 30 3132 ext. 550

Copenhagen

- May 15 & 16. (Wed. & Thurs.)  Mark Whitfield.  Dubbed the “best young guitarist in the business” by the New York Times, Whitfield performs with a trio of prime Danish jazz musicians: Henrik Gunde, piano, Kasper Vadsholt, bass and Rasmus Kihlberg, drums.  Jazzhus Montmartre.   +45 31 72 34 94

Milan

Anat Cohen

- May 18. (Sat.) Anat Cohen.  Clarinetist/saxophonist Cohen is in the forefront of an impressive generation of female jazz instrumentalists.  She’s backed by Jason Lindner, piano, Stefano Bellani, bass and Daniel Freedman, drums.  Blue Note Milano.    +39 02 6901 6888.

Tokyo

- May 14 – 16. (Tues. – Thurs.)  Benny Golson Quartet.  Tenor saxophonist/composer Golson is still, at age 84, a player with a lot of music to express.  Hopefully he’ll also play some of his jazz hits such as “Killer Joe,” “Whisper Not,” “Along Came Betty” and more.  The Blue Note Tokyo.    +81 3-5485-0088.

Live Music: Emily Bear in a Jazz Bakery Movable Feast at the Musician’s Institute.

By Don Heckman

“I just do it.”  That was the brief comment I received from young pianist/composer Emily Bear when I spoke to her after her Wednesday night performance at the Musicians’ Institute.

Four little words.  In response to my query about her orchestral composition “Santa Fe.”  How, I wondered, had she developed the skills to write so authoritatively for a full symphonic orchestra.

And she replied, “I just do it.”

Emily Bear

Which is probably the response that this remarkable eleven year old prodigy would have to all the other impressive accomplishments she has had with her music.

In case you haven’t been watching the Ellen DeGeneres Show lately, or haven’t stumbled upon her numerous film clips on YouTube, you may not be too sure about who Emily Bear is.  Suffice to say that she’s been receiving a lot of attention, with good reason.

Displaying musical talent on the piano at the age of two, she began to compose a year later.  At six, she performed at the White House, and she guested on the DeGeneres Show six times.  As she got older, her skills reached from pop and jazz and rock to classical music, often via performances with a full orchestra, performing in venues in the U.S. and Europe.

Emily Bear and Quincy Jones

Quincy Jones was so impressed when he heard Emily in action that he immediately made a deal to take over management of her career.

“She is the complete 360-degree package,” says Quincy, “and there are no limits to the musical heights that she can reach.”

All of which was amply clear in her Jazz Bakery performance.  In a single, hour and half set, she offered a sequence of all original works, performing with bassist Peter Slavov, drummer Kevin Kanner and, on a few works, cellist Zuill Bailey.

Emily Bear

The music covered a gamut of styles: lyrical, adagio-like classical melodies; briskly swinging bebop lines; an atmospheric flamenco-styled piece; some rhythmically energizing salsa; a theme that could easily have been the principal melody in an Italian film; and much more.

All of it was delivered in Emily’s warm engaging style, clearly enraptured within the music, communicating her creative intensity to the other players with captivating smiles and gestures.

Watching and listening to the utter musical authenticity of her playing, I couldn’t help but recall another illuminating remark from Emily, one that perfectly illustrates the creative reality of this impressive young artist:  “I have so much music in my heart,” she says, “that it just falls out.”

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Emily’s latest recording, Diversity(Concord/Qwest Records), was produced by Quincy Jones.  Her seventh album, it includes much of the material presented at the Jazz Bakery performance.  It’s the perfect introduction to the work of a very gifted, very young woman with – as Quincy has pointed out – “no limits to the heights she can reach.”

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Photos by Faith Frenz.

Opera: Rossini’s “La Cenerentola” (“Cinderella”) at the Los Angeles Opera

By Jane Rosenberg

From dancing rats to pink and yellow bewigged stepsisters to wine soaked courtiers, Rossini’s Cinderella (La Cenerentola), as performed by the LA Opera, is a musical, visual, and comedic delight.  And if Rossini’s sparkling music isn’t enough to induce you to spend an evening at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion with arguably the most beloved heroine of fairy-tale fame, then let me assure you there isn’t a moment that doesn’t entertain in this magical production.

Gioachino Rossini and his librettist, Jacopo Ferretti, conceived a more naturalistic version of the fairytale, convinced that audiences would prefer a more adult approach.  Though a pair of matching bracelets has replaced the glass slipper and there are no chimes at midnight, there are more than enough fanciful touches to captivate the youngest of children.  And as a writer and illustrator of opera stories for children, I urge you to bring your kids.  You might just develop in them a lifelong love of opera.

“La Cenerentola” (“Cinderella”)

Created as a co-production of the Houston Grand Opera, the Gran Teatre del Liceu, and two other companies, Joan Guillén’s inventive set and costumes are visual poetry.  Mr. Guillén gives us a Commedia dell’Arte universe of brilliant colors and exaggerated shapes – contemporary in execution but with baroque references.  His designs are aided and abetted by a crisp palette of lighting designed by Albert Faura.  Under the direction of Joan Font, this is a deeply considered and intelligent rendering of Rossini’s classic, gathering together human truths, hilarious acting, bel canto ardor, and subtle yet pitch perfect choreography by Xevi Dorca.  An ensemble of six rats prance and tumble through the scenes, adding another dimension to the unfolding action.  In an exceptional choreographic passage, Dorca created hand and arm movements for the famous Act II sextet, which enhanced the chaotic emotions of the ensemble as they remark on their mounting confusion.

James Conlon and the LA Opera orchestra presented all the intricacies of Rossini’s overture, from its impish bombast to its transparent delicacy.  And though there were one or two occasions in the evening involving a momentary disconnect between the orchestra and the ensemble singing, this was quickly repaired and will most likely resolve itself during the run of the production.  All in all, the orchestra propelled us through the ups and downs of the dazzling score with dexterity and quicksilver sound.

Kate Lindsey as Cinderella

As the beleaguered and abused Cinderella, and the most naturalistic character in the piece, the American mezzo, Kate Lindsey, alternates with the Georgian mezzo, Ketevan Kemoklidze. Rossini wrote the role for coloratura contralto and the part requires the astonishing agility and vocal power of a Cecilia Bartoli or Joyce DiDonato. With her sweet, agile voice, Lindsey was overshadowed in the ensembles but fared better in her solo portions – her strength seeming to lie in the higher registers.  It wasn’t until the second act finale that she conquered the house and opened up with all the power and articulation one could wish for in this most demanding of roles.

René Barbera as Prince Ramiro made his LA Opera debut.  His warm tenor soared, navigating Rossini’s highs and lows with bravura coloratura technique, a firm legato line, and reaching the back of the hall without a hint of strain, as if the house were an intimate toy theater.

Rene Barbera as Prince Ramiro, Vito Priante as Dandini

In the plum part of the Prince’s valet, Dandini, who is disguised as the Prince for most of the opera, Vito Priante was as foppishly hilarious as he was musically adept.  Articulating every phrase, singing with sprightly vigor, he embodied the swaggering Captain of Commedia dell’Arte fame crossed with the willfulness of a cagey Harlequin.

The Italian baritone, Alessandro Corbelli, has made a prominent career in the bel canto repertory worldwide.  A seasoned performer, his Don Magnifico, Cinderella’s stepfather, struck the right notes of humor and malevolence.   One of the pleasures of Rossini’s version is the substitution of a stepfather, which lends more coherence to the story and allows for one of the most delightful moments in the opera (and there are dozens): the Don’s drunken display atop a wine barrel with the wonderful LAO men’s chorus accompanying him.

Cinderella’s step sisters

As portrayed by Stacey Tappan and Ronnita Nicole Miller, the stepsisters, Clorinda and Tisbe, were an adorable duo.  From the moment they appeared in their overstuffed underwear and bright wigs, through every resonant note sung, they inhabited their characters with divine silliness.  Soprano Tappan vocalized with agile grace; and Miller, recently heard as the Nurse in LAO’s Flying Dutchman, has a powerful and versatile voice, singing both bel canto and Wagnerian roles successfully.

Bass Nicola Ulivieri was an imposing Alidoro, the Prince’s tutor and Rossini’s stand-in for the fairy godmother.  Rich and commanding of voice, his tutor was the character who sets the events in motion and allows the Prince to make the wise choice of a bride in Cinderella.

In the ensemble singing, which is at the core of Rossini’s brilliance, the cast and orchestra conveyed the composer’s staccato phrasing and verbal pyrotechnics. As we approached the apex of the opera, a storm raged and we saw a miniature royal coach collapse outside Don Magnifico’s house.  The Prince and Dandini entered, soon to be followed by the climactic E flat ensemble (Questo è un nodo avviluppato).  With its rolling Italian r’s, it’s one of Rossini’s spellbinding achievements.  One by one, each singer broke away to sing of their bewilderment at the turn of events.  Last night’s rendition was satisfying, if a bit light on the fluttering r’s.

The grand finale takes place at the wedding banquet.  Having induced the Prince to forgive the cruelties of her insufferable family, Cinderella rejoiced. We experienced the final enchantment of the evening, as silver confetti rained down like mirrored snow.  If only we could revisit this fairytale world every year – make it a holiday institution like Balanchine’s Nutcracker.  One can dream.

Photos by Robert Millard.  Stepsister drawing by Jane Rosenberg.

To read more reviews and posts by Jane Rosenberg click HERE.

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Jane Rosenberg is the author and illustrator of  SING ME A STORY: The Metropolitan Opera’s Book of Opera Stories for Children.  Jane is also the author and illustrator of DANCE ME A STORY: Twelve Tales of the Classic Ballets.

Live Opera: “The Flying Dutchman”

by Jane Rosenberg

A cursed sea captain doomed to sail the world without rest, an ill-fated Norwegian girl lost in her obsessive desire to become his means of salvation.  Add to this already explosive mix a father willing to sell his daughter for the captain’s riches and a faithful hunter trying desperately to hold on to his deluded love, and you have a fantastic scenario of German Romanticism, as potent as Goethe’s Faust or one of E.T.A. Hoffmann’s macabre tales.  With Richard Wagner’s deeply melodic and moving score, evoking the watery wanderings of a soul in torment, one would think little more is needed for a successful production than a top-tier orchestra, great Wagnerian voices, and a gorgeous set.  Much of this was accomplished on Saturday evening when Los Angeles Opera’s The Flying Dutchman opened at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in a shared production with The Lyric Opera of Chicago and The San Francisco Opera.

Matthew Plenk and members of the Los Angeles Opera Chorus

The Los Angeles Opera Orchestra, conducted by Maestro James Conlon with his usual sensitivity and intelligence, beautifully conveyed the drama’s sublime immersion in music.  From the overture, which contains all the leitmotifs and embodies the entire score, to the final, closing chords, the orchestra delivered the turbulence and subtle shadings of Wagner’s music.

The drama unfolded within Raimund Bauer’s effective minimalist set, which conjured the inner workings of a ship.  Unfortunately, here is where the confusion set in.  The production, conceived by Nikolaus Lehnhoff, created a conflicting array of dramatic and visual allusions.  Inventive though they were, the costumes of Andrea Schmidt-Futterer did little to advance the narrative – more often they confused and impeded the drama.  Were the sailors of Act I samurai astronauts from the future?  Was Captain Daland, with hair like a hedgerow and round spectacles, a comic book mutant from outer space?  And the Dutchman?  He appeared out of the mists like Nosferatu in a German Expressionist film.

Tomas Tomasson

The dramatic tension in “Dutchman” has a lot to do with the juxtaposition of the real and the unreal, the material and immaterial, the rational and irrational: Erik, the hunter, Mary, the nurse who raised Senta, and Captain Daland with his greed for gold, represent the rational, material world.  Their costumes should be rooted in their characters.  The Dutchman, his ghostly crew, and Senta represent the metaphysical and uncanny. When the distinctions blurred, the audience, unable to evaluate the nature of the characters, was lost in confusion.

Even with his unfortunate costume and make-up, James Creswell as Daland sang with a sumptuous tone and effortless grace.  As directed by Daniel Dooner, he played the greedy Sea Captain with an odd comic touch, subverting the tragedy of a father who, unthinking, offers his daughter for a pot of gold.  Matthew Plenk, the Steersman, rendered his very human song of Act I, with warmth and nuance. Tómas Tómasson, as the satanically cursed Dutchman, arrived on shore with a steely dignity.  Tentative at first, his voice seemed to grow and blossom as the evening wore on, particularly in his duets with Daland and Senta.

Julie Makerov

The surprise of the evening was the last minute appearance of Los Angeles native Julie Makarov, substituting for an ailing Elisabete Matos. Fortunately for the audience, she flooded the hall with her powerful soprano.  After the joyful spinning song of Act II, adroitly performed by the women’s chorus, garishly dressed in what looked like steel hoops over black taffeta, and grooming themselves like a pack of flying monkeys from “The Wizard of Oz,” Senta sang her ballad.  With its howls and halloings, the song delivers us more forcibly into the drama and Senta’s obsession with the Dutchman.  No neurotic schoolgirl, Makarov’s Senta is a woman accepting her fate – to break Satan’s curse and conduct the Dutchman to everlasting peace.  Also of note, Ronnita Nicole Miller’s portrayal of Mary, Senta’s nurse, beautifully sung and well acted.  More problematic was Corey Bix in the role of Erik.  Stiff and plodding, both in voice and mien, one wished he had delivered a more lyrical rendition of Erik’s plight and pain.

Throughout the acts a scrim was lowered at the front of the stage, unfortunately distancing us from the action.  If used sparingly it could have been effective, as in Act II when it displayed the Dutchman’s massive silhouette.  While Senta stared, hypnotized by his portrait, we saw her gazing upward, as the shadow hung over her, a constant reminder of his mythic presence in her life both past, present, and future.

Act III was rife with visual confusion.  Sailors who looked more dead than alive swarmed the stage.  It was difficult to keep in mind that they were the living crew of Daland’s ship, not the ghostly riders of the Dutchman’s vessel.  Their taunting song was robustly performed, however, driving us towards the disembodied answer of the Phantom Song by the Dutchman’s crew and propelling us towards the awaited end: the Dutchman’s departure and Senta’s self-sacrifice.

Yet, in spite of the mixed metaphors and failed symbolism, this “Dutchman” lingers in the mind.  At two hours and twenty minutes and without intermissions, the curious production entertained, leaving an appreciative audience in its wake.

To read more reviews and posts by Jane Rosenberg click HERE.

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Jane Rosenberg is the author and illustrator of  SING ME A STORY: The Metropolitan Opera’s Book of Opera Stories for Children.  Jane is also the author and illustrator of DANCE ME A STORY: Twelve Tales of the Classic Ballets.

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Live Music Theatre: John Adams’ “The Gospel According to the Other Mary” at Disney Hall

A Musical Tidal Wave of Surprises!  

By Norton Wright

New Yorker Magazine’s jazz critic Whitney Balliett in 1959 shorthanded a definition of jazz as “the sound of surprise.”  So today, when so very little in the arts genuinely surprises, the shock and awe generated by contemporary composer John Adams and director/librettist Peter Sellars is the real deal. They truly have “jazz hearts” as their The Gospel According to the Other Mary proves.

In their 2-hour oratorio, performed at Walt Disney Concert Hall Friday night by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Los Angeles Master Chorale, and a singer-dancer cast of nine, Adams and Sellars have created a musical show rife with conflict, death, injustice, labor strife, faith, doubt, romance — and miracles. Yes, it’s the account of Jesus’ arrest, crucifixion, and resurrection.  But the action is set in the contemporary slums of Los Angeles and the story is told from the viewpoint of Mary Magdalene, a young woman chafing at the cruelty and injustice of the skid-row life in which she and so many others live.

Given that the giant musical mosaic that Adams has composed (Johnny Richards’ jazz orchestra of yesteryear comes to mind as do the Lydian chromatic tonalities of George Russell), you might easily be swept away from the story by Adams’ pulsing melodic lines, modal harmonies, jazzy tempos and syncopations.  As well as the exotic instrumental orchestrations (including cimbalom, almglocken, gongs, chimes, bass guitar, three thundering percussionists, three featured singers, a trio of powerhouse countertenors singing in the high stratosphere, with brass, woodwind, and string sections delivering a chromatic spectrum from the muscular to the ethereal). So to clarify and balance the story and the musical score, the singers’ libretti were projected like sub-titles onto a screen above the stage to help the audience track the fast and free-wheeling plotline.

Spoiler Warning per the upcoming story synopsis:

The major story beats unfolded as follows –

1) Mary Magdalene and her sister Martha run a sanctuary for homeless women in a Los Angeles slum. A young man, Jesus, comes to live with them and help with the center.

2) Mary realizes Jesus is of a spiritual origin and though she comes to care for him deeply, she struggles with faith and the act of praying.

3) Mary and Martha are overcome with grief when their brother, Lazarus, dies… Compassionate Jesus miraculously brings Lazarus back to life, and the grateful Mary realizes that she has fallen passionately in love with Jesus.

4) In his resurrection of the dead Lazarus, Jesus signals that he is anticipating his own death and resurrection.

5) The police arrest Jesus in Mary and Martha’s homeless center.

6) Mary, Martha, and women friends protest Jesus’ arrest and are themselves brutalized by the police.

7) As Jesus is arraigned before Pilate, another protest by empowered women in California is unfolding. Praying for survival, Dolores Huerte and Cesar Chavez overcome crushing police brutality in a reminder of their 1996 “people’s march” to Sacramento to establish The United Farm Workers Union.

8) Jesus is crucified and buried. Mary mourns — and prays — for him.

9) Mary returns to the garden where Jesus has been buried and is stunned to discover that his body is not there and that he has risen from the dead.  Jesus, disguised as a gardener tending the grounds, comes to Mary and in a sudden and touching moment of recognition, she realizes that Jesus is alive both spiritually and in her heart.

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John Adams

The recounting of Jesus’ passion (suffering) has always made for compelling drama, but in their Gospel of the Other Mary, Adams and Sellars create eye-opening and ear-opening surprises as they contemporize the tale into a heartrending love story of a firebrand young  woman and her man of mystery.

Casting the lovely, young mezzo-soprano Kelly O’Connor as “Mary,” the soulful Tamara Mumford as “Martha,” and the imposing tenor, Russell Thomas, as “Lazarus” is a coup.  As “Narrators,” the countertenor trio of Daniel Bubeck, Brian Cummings and Nathan Medley sing with high head tones and otherworldly sonorities worth the price of admission.  Dancers Michael Schumacher, Anani Sanouvi and Troy Ogilvie are strong and inventive, and Sanouvi’s take on Lazarus coming back to life is marked by his breathtaking martial-arts choreography. Life is tough, but returning to it even tougher.

As always, the Los Angeles Philharmonic amazed in its ability to master the most complex of John Adams’ scores, the 50-person Los Angeles Master Chorale (all dressed in raggle-taggle skid-row-like clothes) was equally at home both singing and physically acting out the show’s riot scenes.  And in the Friday night performance, Chorale director Grant Gershon was faultless in replacing conductor Gustavo Dudamel, who had just been called to Caracas to conduct at the memorial service for president Hugo Chavez.

The Gospel of the Other Mary is now headed for performances in Europe and NYC.  But the next time it is performed in L.A., whether you are a jazzhead or a classicist, don’t miss it. It is truly “the sound of surprise.”

To read more posts by and about artist/writer Norton Wright, click HERE.

Picks of the Week: Feb. 5 – 10

By Don Heckman

Los Angeles 

Sally Kellerman

- Feb. 6. (Wed.)  Sally Kellerman.  The inimitable Ms. Kellerman is back, this time with an evening of Valentine’s Day songs in a program titled, appropriately, “Love.”  Don’t miss it.  Vitello’s.    (818) 769-0905.

- Feb. 7 – 10. (Thurs. – Sun.)  Robben Ford. Guitarist Ford, who moves easily across boundaries from blues to jazz and beyond, celebrates the imminent release of his new album, Bringing It Back Home.  Catalina Bar & Grill.  (223) 466-2210.

- Feb. 8. (Fri.)  Bill Cunliffe Big Band.  “Bach to the Future.”  Grammy-winning and Grammy-nominated pianist/composer/arranger Cunliffe leads his big band in his jazz imagining of Bach’s Goldberg Variations.  Later, starting at 9:30 p.m., pianist John Campbell will perform in a new Vitello’s weekly event – Piano Night in the downstairs dining room.   Vitello’s.   (818) 769-0905.

- Feb. 8 & 9. (Fri. & Sat.)  Rhythm of the Dance.  Irish step dancing in all its colorful variations, delivered by an expert company of dancers.  Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts  (562) 916-8501.

Wayne Shorter

- Feb, 9. (Sat.)  Wayne Shorter Quartet with Esperanza Spalding and the Los Angeles Philharmonic.  Saxophonist/composer Shorter presents the world premiere of a work for Esperanza and the L.A. Phil, commissioned by the Philharmonic.  Disney Hall.  (323) 850-2000.  www.laphil.com

- Feb. 9. (Sat.)  Rob Lockhart Quartet.  Versatile saxophonist Lockhart, an A-list sideman, steps into the spotlight.  He’s backed by pianist Josh Nelson, bassist Pat Senatore and drummer Mark Ferber.  Vibrato Grill Jazz…etc.   (310) 474-9400.

- Feb. 9 & 10. (Sat. & Sun.)  The Russian National Ballet Theatre. One of Russia’s finest ballet companies presents a pair of classics.   Sat.: Sleeping Beauty.  Sun.: Cinderella.  Valley Performing Arts Center.    (818) 677-3000.

- Feb, 10. (Sun.)  Ann Hampton Callaway.  “The Streisand Songbook”  Pianist/singer Callaway, who moves easily from jazz to pop to cabaret, offers a program of songs associated with Barbra Streisand.  Disney Hall.  (323) 850-2000.

San Francisco

- Feb. 7 – 10 (Thurs. – Sun.).  Dave Holland.  Bassist Holland displays his far-reaching musical versatility in four unique programs.  Thurs: Solo.  Fri.: Duo with Kenny Barron.  Sat.: Quintet.  Sun.: Dave Holland Prism.  SFJAZZ at Miner Auditorium.     (866) 920-5299.

Washington D.C.

Joshua Redman

- Feb. 7 – 10 (Thurs. – Sun.)  Joshua Redman.  The always adventurous, Grammy-nominated saxophonist stretches the musical genre-boundaries in search of new and compelling improvisational ideas.  Blues Alley.   (202) 337-4141.

New York City

- Feb. 5 – 9.  (Tues. – Sat.)  Lou Donaldson Organ Quartet.  He’s one of the still active iconic jazz saxophonist, performing this time in the grooving environment of an organ quartet.  Birdland.    (212) 581-3080.

- Feb. 5 – 10. (Tues. – Sun.)  Ron Carter Quartet.  Carter is not only a brilliant bassist and composer, he’s also a stimulating leader who knows how to assemble an imaginative jazz group.  This time out, he’s with pianist Renee Rosnes, drummer Payton Crossley and percussionist Rolando Morales-Matos.  The Blue Note.    (212) 475-8592.

Paris

Marianne Faithfull

- Feb. 9. (Sat.)  Marianne Faithfull and Bill Frisell.  It’s a fascinating combination.  Pop star/actress Faithfull has been an iconic figure since the ‘60s.  Versatile guitarist Frisell seems determined to try something new in every outing.  The combination should be intriguing.   New Morning.   01 45 23 51 41.

Copenhagen

- Feb. 7 & 8. (Thurs. & Fri.)  Leszek Mozdzer/Lars Danielsson Duo.  The names may be unfamiliar to English-speaking jazz fans, but pianist Mozdzer and bassist Danielsson play together with a spirit of jazz togetherness that reaches beyond the limits of languages. Jazzhus Montmartre.    (+45) 70 263 267.

Milan

- Feb. 7 – 9.  )Thurs. – Sat.)  Billy Cobham. Veteran drummer Cobham has assembled a band of players from France and England into a collective of true international jazz.   Blue Note Milano.    02.690 16888.

Tokyo

Monty Alexander

- Feb. 8 & 9. (Fri. & Sat.)  Monty Alexander: The Harlem-Kingston Express.  It’s a perfectly named band, with Jamaica-born pianist Alexander blending his impressive jazz playing with the traditional sounds and rhythms of his roots. Blue Note Tokyo.   03-5485-0088.

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Sally Kellerman, Wayne Shorter and Joshua Redman  photos by Tony Gieske.

Ballet: The Joffrey Ballet “The Rite of Spring,” “Son of Chamber Symphony,” and “After the Rain”

by Jane Rosenberg

It’s hard to believe that one hundred years have passed since Igor Stravinsky, Vaslav Nijinsky, and Sergei Diaghilev’s Ballet Russes premiered Le Sacre du Printemps. As famously reconstructed by Millicent Hodson and Kenneth Archer (under the artistic supervision of Robert Joffrey) and in performance by the Joffrey Ballet at the Dorothy Chandler through February 3, “The Rite of Spring” remains startlingly modern and vivid – a breathtaking evocation of pre-Christian Slavic man – still working its magic in the twenty-first century.

Diaghilev, Nijinsky and Stravinsky

By now, dance and music lovers are well aware of the notorious 1913 premiere in Paris, branding “Rite” as one of the most controversial and important works of art of any century.  The music, with its complex rhythms and pounding dissonances, and the choreography, the antithesis of classical ballet with its hunched postures, bent arms, and turned in feet, enraged the audience, eliciting boos and fistfights in the aisles. By most accounts, Stravinsky was in despair. Diaghilev, however, was delighted with the scandal, while poor Nijinsky had to count out the rhythms over the roar of the jeering crowd because the dancers were unable to hear the music.

Seated with a respectful and enthusiastic audience Friday evening, I couldn’t help but reflect on the arc of modernism and its integration into our contemporary vocabulary.  No longer are dance audiences shocked by quaking bodies or the sexual implications of dancers writhing on stage. No longer do music audiences balk at percussive dissonances and polyrhythms.  And no longer are dancers unable to follow offbeat accents and shifting time signatures (as Nijinsky stated, while in rehearsal he had to pound a floorboard so the dancers could feel the cues.).  After all, we’ve absorbed and assimilated Stravinsky’s musical achievements and Nijinsky’s groundbreaking choreography.  Yet when one thinks of what the work must have represented in 1913 – how shocking and advanced it was – it only adds to our appreciation of this seminal piece of art.

Thanks to Archer and Hodson’s exhaustive research, not only does the stage come alive with Nijinsky’s genius, but also with Nicholas Roerich’s sparkling backdrops and costumes.  An archaeologist, folklorist, and painter, Roerich worked closely with Stravinsky on the scenario for the ballet. The result is the perfect marriage of music, visual art, and dance, which stands at the summit of artistic achievement.

The Joffrey Ballet

Under the baton of the Joffrey Ballet’s music director, Scott Speck, the orchestra –composed mainly of L.A. Opera musicians — did full credit to Stravinsky’s iconic score.  First, the plaintive bassoon wove its spell, then as other instruments joined in, the curtain rose on Roerich’s verdant landscape.  As the insistent pulse of the music gained momentum, the dancers, dressed in white, red, and ochre began the foot stomping choreography that so enraged Parisian audiences.  The men, crouched and bent, exploded into motion, their movements emanating from their hips and stomachs; the women raced in with their legs flying and then quickly reverted to flat feet with toes turned inward, their heads slanted on necks like rag dolls.  As I watched Act I, “The Adoration of the Earth” unfold, I felt as if I was witnessing early man’s encounter with the mysteries of existence.

Act II, “The Sacrifice,” features a circle of young girls trudging counter-clockwise in a fatal march towards destiny.  As the music grows ominous, the sacrificial maiden, dubbed The Chosen One, is forced into the center of the circle.  Men, dressed in bearskins, lumber onto the stage and surround her, pawing the earth with their feet like feral creatures.

The Joffrey Ballet

In a bravura performance, Erica Lynette Edwards danced an uncanny range of emotions, cycling from fear to supplication to anger, her body bursting into bent knee jumps, her hands chopping air, her arms flailing, her fists pounding the earth.  With knees shaking in terror, she spasmed into violent arcs and mad spinning – a dance to exhaustion and imminent death.

If the measure of a ballerina’s dramatic abilities in the nineteenth century repertory is Giselle and her mad scene, then surely the twentieth century standard should be the agonized terror of The Chosen One. Here we have a ballet for all time, a moment when sophisticated Western civilization meets the roots of man’s consciousness.

Opening the evening was Stanton Welch’s “Son of Chamber Symphony” with music by John Adams followed by Christopher Wheeldon’s “After the Rain” with music by Arvo Pärt from “Tabula Rasa” and “Spiegel im Spiegel.” Both dances were an intelligent pairing with “Rite of Spring” bringing the radical artistic lessons of the past into the minimalist present.

“Son of Chamber Symphony,” with Adams’ winning score, was securely handled by the orchestra.  The ballet displayed the beauty of classical dance coupled with the geometric abstraction of bodies in space, defined by the elegant lines of legs and arms and the sharply spherical tutus that bounced and swayed, taking on a life of their own.

“After the Rain” mesmerized, particularly when the female corps, exhibiting a strong technique, crouched in a row, each rotating a single leg in unison.  The movement seemed to refer to the hands of a clock, circling the dial, as time and the music flowed on.  The reverence on display in Pärt’s music was at its height in “Spiegel im Spiegel,” when, against a rose colored background, Victoria Jaiani and Fabrice Calmels danced a stirring pas de deux.

With “Rite of Spring” and these two additions to their repertory, the Joffrey dancers once again prove a company worthy of the treasures of the world’s most interesting choreographers.

To read more reviews and posts by Jane Rosenberg click HERE.

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Jane Rosenberg is the author and illustrator of  SING ME A STORY: The Metropolitan Opera’s Book of Opera Stories for Children.  Jane is also the author and illustrator of DANCE ME A STORY: Twelve Tales of the Classic Ballets.

To read more iRoM reviews by Jane Rosenberg click HERE.

Live Music: Alfredo Rodriguez at Vibrato Grill Jazz…etc.

By Don Heckman

Bel Air, CA.  Herb Alpert’s Vibrato Grill Jazz…etc. seems to have become a musical home base for pianist Alfredo Rodriguez.  On Tuesday night the Cuban-born pianist made yet another of a continuing string of appearances in the elegant Bel Air room, reaching back to his much-heralded arrival in Los Angles in 2009.

This time, however, there was a compelling sense of change in the air.  Rodriguez’s early performances – at Vibrato, as well as the Playboy Jazz Festival – immediately established him as a brilliant talent, gifted with inventive skills and virtuosic technical ability.

All that and much more was present from the very beginning, when a smiling Rodriguez, wearing a bold-striped t-shirt, strode on stage.  Awaiting him, Vibrato’s grand piano stood alone, the absence of a drum set, bass or other instruments making it clear that this would be a solo performance.  But the unexpected presence of a Moog synthesizer and keyboard, positioned over the piano keys, suggested that the journey would travel beyond the territory of acoustic piano alone.

As it did.

The set-up Rodriguez was working with – which was actually more than a synth –allowed him to sequence spontaneous patterns of melody and rhythm.  Laying them down, one track at a time, he built what were essentially compositions on the fly, one element at a time.  In some cases, after establishing expansive, ostinato synth patterns, often employing surging bass rhythms, he soloed above the orchestral-like textures he had created as a foundation.

The results were extraordinary, underscoring Rodriguez’s remarkable ability to apply his brilliant improvisational skills to full scale compositions.  At times he did so, amazingly, by controlling the Moog’s melodic and rhythmic functions via his iPhone (and a Moog controller app).

But there was more.  In addition to his complex, multi-layered synth and piano works, he also offered a few pure acoustic piano pieces.  Several were boleros – “Quesas, Quesas, Quesas” among them — interpreted by Rodriguez with the rich emotional expressiveness of his rapidly maturing talent.

In an earlier review I wrote about his Vibrato appearance in 2009 I made references to Bill Evans youthful work with George Russell and the melodic inventiveness of Keith Jarrett – all of it filtered through Rodriguez’s fertile imagination. All of that, and more, were still present in this remarkable performance.

So, too, was a growing sense of creative maturity.  Playing now with a broader dynamic overview than was often apparent in his earlier appearances, he now displays the musical presence of an artist who has found the fullness of his creative abilities.

From the very beginning of his U.S. performances, Rodriguez’s playing was often a blend of extraordinary abilities combined with the promise of much more to come.   Now, four years later, he’s delivering on that promise.

Photos by Faith Frenz.

Picks of the Week: Jan. 30 – Feb. 3

By the iRoM Staff

Los Angeles

Don Williams

- Jan. 31. (Thurs.) The Don Williams Group.  Percussionist Williams, a busy studio musician (not the country singer), takes a break to lead an all-star collective featuring saxophonist Bob Sheppard, trumpeter Carl Saunders, trombonist Bill Reichenbach, pianist Christian Jacob and bassist Dave Stone.  Vitello’s.    (818) 769-0905.

- Jan. 31. (Thurs.) The Miro Quartet.  The award-winning Miro quartet performs a program dedicated to three far-ranging Beethoven string quartets: Op. 18, , Op. 95 and Op. 131.  The Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts.   (562) 916-8501.

- Jan. 31. (Thurs.) Frank Petrilli.  A protégé of the late jazz accordionist Frank Marocco, Petrilli also emphasizes the rich musical potential of an instrument not always appreciated for what it can do.  He’s backed by guitarist John Chiodini, bassist Pat Senatore and drummer Enzo Tedesco.  Vibrato Grill Jazz…etc.   (310) 474-9400.

- Feb. 1 – 3. (Fri. – Sun.)  Stanley Jordan Trio.  One of the true jazz guitar innovators, Jordan has spent a great deal of time as a solo performer, emphasizing his tapping technique.  But here he performs in a more musically diverse trio setting.  Catalina Bar & Grill.  (223) 466-2210.

Branford Marsalis

- Feb. 2. (Sat.) An Evening with Branford Marsalis. One of the high visibility members of the high achieving Marsalis family of New Orleans, saxophonist Marsalis makes a rare Southland appearance, backed by pianist Joey Calderazzo, bassist Eric Revis and drummer Justin Faulkner.  The Valley Performing Arts Center.    (818) 677-3000.

San Francisco

- Feb. 3. (Sun.)  Vieux Farka Toure.  The son of the great Malian guitarist/singer Ali Farka Toure, the younger Toure continues to carry the torch for a contemporary blend of blues, funk, rock and traditional rhythms.  Also on the bill, American blues artist Markus James.  Yoshi’s San Francisco.   (415) 655-5600.

Seattle

- Jan. 31 – Feb. 3. (Thurs. – Sun.)  Dr. John and his All-New Band.  There’s never a boring moment when Dr. John leads his new band in a definitive display of the rich, rhythmic gumbo of New Orleans music at its best.  Jazz Alley.    (206) 441-9729.

New York

John Pizzarelli

- Jan. 31 – Feb. 2. (Thurs. – Sat.)  John Pizzarelli Quartet. Always engaging, guitarist/singer Pizzarelli has done a convincing job of following in the footsteps of such iconic artists as Nat “King” Cole, George Benson and others, while maintaining his own appealing style.  Birdland.    (212) 581-3080.

- Jan. 31 – Feb. 2. (Thurs. – Sat.)  The Patricia Barber Quartet. Pianist/songwriter Barber has thoroughly established herself as one of the jazz world’s rare singer/songwriters. Click HERE to read a current iRoM review of Patricia Barber’s new CD, Smash.   Jazz Standard.    (212) 576-2232.

- Feb. 1. (Fri.) Orpheus Chamber Orchestra with the Wayne Shorter Quartet.  A classic evening of far-ranging music, one of many scheduled in various parts of the world to celebrate Shorter’s 80^th birthday in August.  The program features three Shorter original works, along with Beethoven’s Overture: Creatures of Prometheus, and Charles Ives’ Symphony No. 3.  Carnegie Hall.  (212) 247-7800.

Berlin

Lily Dahab

- Jan. 31 – Feb. 1  (Thurs. – Fri.)  Lily Dahab.  Argentine singer Dahab has lived in Berlin, Madrid and Barcelona.  Along the way, she performed as a jazz singer and a musical theatre artist, defining one of contemporary world music’s most uniquely interpretive styles. A-Trane.    030/313/25 50.

Live Music: The New West Symphony at Barnum Hall

By Don Heckman

Santa Monica, CA.  The New West Symphony may not be the highest visibility orchestra in the Southland.  But they’re rapidly becoming one of the most intriguing music presenters, with programs performed in Oxnard, Thousand Oaks and Santa Monica.  And the NWS performance at Barnum Hall Sunday night was an impressive example of the creative range of this stellar ensemble.

Norman Krieger

The program, the third in the New West Symphony’s 2012/13 Masterpiece Series,  was devoted to a pair of works.  The initial one, George Gershwin’s Concerto in F Major for Piano and Orchestra, showcased the piano soloing of Norman Krieger.  Given Gershwin’s involvement with the emerging jazz scene of the ‘20s when he wrote the F Major Concerto, the work demands a performance in which orchestra and soloist come together with the sort of rhythmic jazz accents that Gershwin clearly seems to have intended.

To their credit, Krieger and the NW S, largely – although not always – did precisely that.  Despite its occasionally uneven aspects, however, the Gershwin piece was an appropriate choice, a musical vision of America in the ‘20s, and the perfect lead-in to the highlight composition of the evening, Visions of America: A Photo-Symphony.

Roger Kellaway and Joseph Sohm

What, you might ask, is a “Photo-Symphony?”  A mixed-media musical event of some sort is the first description that comes to mind.  And the media was indeed mixed, based upon the images and personal reminiscences of photographer Joseph Sohm, read as a voice-over by Clint Eastwood, combined with a symphonic score by pianist/composer Roger Kellaway, and highlighted in five memorable songs by the lyrics of Alan and Marilyn Bergman and the melodies of Kellaway.  All of it held together by Sohm’s far-ranging imagery, first published as a book, underscoring a thematic vision of American life – from small towns and family snapshots to epic photos of America in the splendor of its great cities and its memorable landscapes.

Marcelo Lehninger

The work was performed by the New World Symphony under the baton of its new (as of May 2012) conductor, Marcelo Lehninger, with Kellaway playing piano, and songs delivered by singers Judith Hill and Steve Tyrell, backed by the lush harmonies of the New West Symphony Chorus.

There’s no denying the multi-layered emotional appeal of Sohm’s visual images, which succeeded admirably in accomplishing his desire to “photograph an idea (i.e., democracy).” The narrative, however, despite the familiar timbres of Eastwood’s voice, was at its best in its efforts to illuminate the words and philosophic thoughts of the founders, less intriguing when it veered into personal recollections.

But ultimately it was Kellaway’s score, his songs with the Bergmans, the focused conducting of Lehninger, and the warm expressiveness of the NWS players that brought Visions of America vividly to life.  Like Gershwin, Kellaway balances significant jazz credentials with a far-reaching orchestral vision.  And I’d wager that his score – performed with or without the mixed media, photographic imagery – will receive many performances as an impressive contemporary work, beautifully tinged with the jazz elements of the Bergman/Kellaway songs.

The concert concluded, there was still more to come in this immensely entertaining evening.  Following the orchestral performance, many in the audience gathered at the nearby Sheraton-Delfina Hotel for a Gala honoring the Bergmans in the form of a celebratory fund-raising auction and performance.

Marilyn and Alan Bergman

The auction, humorously and successfully led by KNBC-TV weathercaster Fritz Coleman, was followed by a brief music segment.  Alan Bergman sang a deeply intimate, utterly captivating version of his (and Marilyn’s and Michel Legrand’s) “Windmills of Your Mind” followed by a poignant “The Way We Were.”  Tyrell added a jaunty rendering of the Bergman’s classic for Frank Sinatra, “Nice and Easy.”  And Kellaway sang “I Have the Feeling I’ve Been Here Before,” written with the Bergmans.

It was the perfect ending to a memorable evening of music, imagery and song.  The sort of imaginative musical experience that characterizes the offerings of the New West Symphony.  Expect to hear much more as the NWS Masterpiece series continues to unfold into 2013.