By Jane Rosenberg I approached Robert Wilson and Mikhail Baryshnikov’s latest collaboration, Letter to a Man, with great expectations. A music and movement based theatre piece exploring the diaries of Vaslav Nijinsky, Letter to a Man is a one man show delving into the mad mind of that tortured genius of early twentieth century dance… Read More Baryshnikov in “Letter to A Man” at Royce Hall
By Jane Rosenberg With enough Juggling stunts to rival Cirque du Soleil, Philip Glass’s opera, Akhnaten, tumbled into town from London in a new staging co-produced by English National Opera and LA Opera. It was a night to remember, both for its failings and for its strengths. When Glass’s meditation on the life of Akhnaten… Read More Opera: Philip Glass’s “Akhnaten” at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
By Don Heckman It’s not every night that one has a chance to hear the extraordinary music of Jennifer Leitham. But it will be on full display Wednesday night at The Blue Whale. In a world of too much forgettable repetition, Leitham’s music — instrumentally and vocally — is a memorable pleasure. A highly praised,… Read More Highlight of the Week: The Jennifer Leitham Trio at The Blue Whale
By Don Heckman Oct. 1 – 4. (Thurs. – Sun.) IMMORTAL BEETHOVEN. Gustavo Dudamel conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic in a remarkable, four night tour de force program devoted to all nine of the Beethoven symphonies: #1 and #2 on Thursday; #3 and #4 on Friday; #5, #6, #7 and #8 on Saturday; and a… Read More Highlights of a Long Weekend: Oct. 1 – 4 in Los Angeles
By Roger Crane, the Song Scout BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION Admittedly I lose objectivity when discussing the song “Laura.” In fact, I love the song so much that a friend once recorded eighty-three versions (yes, 83!) for me, ranging from trumpeter Clifford Brown to the Four Freshman to saxman Sonny Stitt. Of course, my… Read More Keeping the GAS (Great American Songbook) Flame Burning: “Laura”
By Brian Arsenault Ken Bruen’s newest installment in the Jack Taylor series, Green Hell, arrived in that neat little Amazon box a couple days ago and I’m about halfway through it. I could have finished it by now because his writing enters the eyes and brain as easily as breath enters the lungs. But… Read More Brian Arsenault Takes On: Ken Bruen’s “Green Hell ” and Erik Larson’s “Dead Wake” (The Sinking of the Lusitania)
By Don Heckman The music of Frank Sinatra was in the air Saturday night in the amiable environs of the Paschal Winery. The music, that is, which Ol’ Blue Eyes vividly brought to life in his long career as an entertainment world icon. The music of the Great American Songbook. The performers celebrating the… Read More Live Music: Celebrating Frank Sinatra with Leslie Kendall & Friends at the Paschal Winery
Jazz pianist/singer Carol Welsman introduces the arrival of her latest album. I’m so excited to announce that my new album, ALONE TOGETHER, is now available to download on iTunes, and the CD will be released and available for purchase on September 18. I hope you enjoy this recording. It’s my truest to the jazz art… Read More New Release: Carol Welsman’s “Alone Together”
By Devon Wendell For many occasional jazz listeners there are only 3 great trumpeters that come across their minds and lips, and they are of course Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie and occasionally Louis Armstrong. For those of us obsessed with the music’s many genres and glorious history (like myself) the list is much longer and… Read More Doc Wendell’s Prescription For Fat Girl: Fats Navarro Memorial No. 2: Nostalgia (Savoy)
By Brian Arsenault Claude Bolling’s Suite for Flute and Jazz Piano Trio (Steve Barta Music) Arranged by Steve Barta But (Not Too) seriously, folks. I am pretty far over my head reviewing Steve Barta’s new arrangement of Suite for Flute and Jazz Piano Trio. For one thing, I don’t know Claude Bolling’s 1975 original… Read More Record Rack: “Suite for Flute and Jazz Piano Trio” and “Ode to Thinking”
The International Review of Music 