Classical,
Beyond expectations: "Tosca" is world-class
At its turn-of-the-century premiere, Tosca was perceived as particularly coarse and was criticized for a focus on ill-mannered tyrant types and for pervasive brutality (which included execution by firing squad and a suicide). It seems, though, that Kansas City opera goers do not mind such decadence: just as the opera did in Italy in 1900, Tosca opened to a packed house at Kansas City's Lyric Theater on Friday night.
Puccini was drawn to Victorien Sardou's play La Tosca for its potential: the story itself was compact, which left ample room for music. Fortunately, Puccini's librettists had a penchant for concision that aligned with the composer's urge to not overdo the arias; their collaboration yielded an opera where the music supports the drama without being superfluous. In fact, by definition Tosca is a melodrama, which implies that there is less of the "aria-driven" format so typical of Italian opera; dramatic integrity and the narrative sequence actually have a fighting chance. The resulting story was one that Sardou supposedly endorsed and one that Puccini thought was of course even better than his original inspiration. There remain a few subplots that churn throughout, but Puccini slights those to focus on his main characters, thus, the political undertones (relevant to revolution and Napoleon) remain subordinate. The audience is able to follow the romantic narrative of Tosca and Cavaradossi and the energy and suspense of all three main characters' eventual demise.
Much of the opera's appeal is naturally anchored in the well-developed characters: there is simply something very human about Puccini's version of Floria Tosca. He makes her a larger-than-life diva and a thoughtful religious devotee, but she also proves to be a woman with an intensely vulnerable side, seemingly as eager to be cared for and protected by Cavaradossi as she is to dominate their relationship. This role is a winner for a multi-faceted singer and actress like Lisa Daltirus, who commanded every layer that the persona offered. Her stylish treatment of Tosca made her work memorable.
Of course, Puccini saves Tosca's real drama for late in the story, so her initial entrance in Act 1 is appropriately dampened. She is at once delicate and demanding, and Daltirus admirably controls the character's fiery temperament. Here Tosca is pouty and jealous, but this sets up only one dimension of this smart woman-a character built by librettists Giacosa and Illica from Sardou's gentler, more docile personality. It is already clear, though, that the vocal acrobats the audience craves will be satisfying, as her remarkable range and facility are already obvious. Daltrius then expertly brings the audience along on the struggle between her devoted, disciplined self and the part of her who is relentless in getting what she wants.
As expected, Tosca comes to life later in the story, and "Vissi d'arte, vissi d'amore"- sung while sprawled on the chaise lounge in Scarpia's quarters-is superb. It is not long before this pious woman (decked out in borrowed Tivol jewelry) wills Scarpia to die with a fierce growl: "Morrir!," yet femininity still oozes from Daltirus, as she finally reveals the character's core strength. Tosca evolves even more by Act 3, where it is stalwart conviction that makes her sound different as she revels in the re-telling of Scarpia's murder.
Rafael Davila's opening recitative proved that easy does it. He delivers effortlessly Cavaradossi's lines, opting for a carefree attitude for this leading man. Puccini's signature soaring melodic lines were matched with the orchestra, which supported the florid vocal lines required here, and Davila's forward tone, careful vibrato, and welcome brightness made evident a versatile voice. The languorous ritardandos in "E lucevan le stelle" of Act 3 create a heavy yet luxurious moment as Mario recalls a simpler past. Overall, Daltirus elicited more spontaneous response from the audience, but Davila deserved the same lavish ovations.
Scarpia is motivated by power, acting without scruples toward villainous goals, and Greer Grimsley's interpretation of him was remarkable. At times, though, Grimsley shows some sensitivity, at least when Tosca, in Act 1, realizes her lover may indeed be with another woman. Scarpia helps her up from her knees, glances rather helplessly at her, not seeming to want to interrupt her personal grieving. His devout prayer, "Va Tosca," incorporates the sensational chorus, and Scarpia encroaches on Cavaradossi's territory in more ways than one when he scales up the painter's scaffold, prematurely reveling in his presumed victory over Mario's beautiful Tosca. Scarpia's almost reluctant sign of the cross here is telling, maybe revealing a personal conflict, and demonstrates that Grimsley takes a leap to afford Scarpia a certain weakness while offering the audience something unexpected, however fleeting.
Perhaps Grimsley is at his best when his Scarpia spews profundities from his own chaise lounge in Act 2. The scenery here, along with a muted orchestra and a composed villain, provides a bustling sense of anticipation, a nervous calm before the storm. Here the audience is treated to more ensemble writing, hearing but not seeing Tosca as her voice rises above the choir (situated outside during Scarpia's inquisition of Cavaradossi) with the sounds of his torture layered in. It seems Scarpia's vengeful, demonic side (which Grimsley so vividly projects via expression, posture, gestures, and vocals) is going to emerge in time to meet Tosca's real strength.
Since there is less narrative and musical "padding," this opera has momentum, even during recitative passages, where listeners are treated to unexpected bouts of lyricism and some displays of vocal agility; even with some peripheral events that distract, the audience remains most concerned with how those events are affecting the two lovers. Throughout, Puccini adds depth to the story by exploiting a certain simultaneity of sentiment: while one singer is delivering an aria, another might "whisper" something under his breath-that aids dramatic action, and those moments are richly rewarding for the audience. Puccini also weaves a web of recurring motives to aid in dramatic effect, like when the orchestral motive to which Tosca first enters in Act 1 recurs in Act 2 to bolster her resolve to get Scarpia out of the picture.
The Lyric production was expertly cast overall: the Sacristan was bumbling and loveably awkward, and he deftly concentrated so much personality into his limited time on stage. Harris delivered a resigned Angelotti in his robust bass. Grimsley's baritone was surely the kind of vocal complement Puccini would have approved of, as it countered so perfectly Davila's lighter tone. In fact, smart choices were made down to the smallest roles and at the start of Act 3, when the stage is bathed in gray and the moment is so static, the purity of Sarah Hennessey's voice as the Shepherd Boy is astonishing.
The orchestra was a steady companion throughout, appropriately enhancing the recitative and aria sequence. Some adjustments were made to the ensemble's dynamic level after Act I, which created better balance for the singers (in Act I Scarpia was surprisingly a bit outdone by the brass-which was decisively dramatic and rich, but so loud that listeners lost some of his sinister monologue). R. Keith Brumley's set design makes an immediate impact as the first curtain goes up, where cavernous vaults meet geometric squares and a real sense of verticality and depth draw in the audience; the set for Act 1 is at once an artist's studio, a holy sanctuary, and a refuge for prisoners, and throughout, the stage direction took full advantage of the various "places" within a single set. The trio in Act 2 was admirably blocked, creating an intense physicality among the three main characters. The children's choir was appropriately mischievous and delightfully playful; they blended beautifully. The chorus, stacked with so many fine singers, provided depth and diversion to Act 1.
REVIEW:
Lyric Opera of Kansas City
Tosca
Wednesday, September 16 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, September 19 at 8:00 p.m.
Lyric Theatre
11th and Central Streets, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-471-7344 or online at www.kcopera.org.
COVER PHOTO: Lisa Daltirus as Tosca. Greer Grimsley as Scarpia in the Lyric Opera of Kansas City production of Puccini's "Tosca." Photo: Doug Hamer (c) Lyric Opera of Kansas City
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the STEADY, theSTEADY,
Quixotic: "Surface" walks on walls
The word is out. Quixotic Fusion doesn't put on shows or give performances, they stage events. So naturally these innovative and daring generative artists, led by artistic directors Anthony Magliano and Mica Thomas, would tackle something like this.
Rappelling down the sheer face of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Spinning, suspended in midair, backlit by the illuminated glass exterior of the Bloch Building. Installing a giant, four-legged aerial hammock that fit right in with the stone and metal denizens of the Sculpture Park.
On Saturday evening, September 12th, over three thousand people brought their blankets and folding chairs and camped out on the south lawn of the Nelson-Atkins to see the latest offering from the multi-disciplined art collective, a site-specific installation dubbed "Surface."
As I sifted through the crowd, I caught a word with Rick Willoughby, Quixotic's bassist and one of its composers. "Sit by 'The Thinker," he advised. "You'll catch all three perspectives."
Staged in the round, the audience was treated to a performance art display that was true to its theme, catering to and utilizing the physical surfaces and features of the Nelson-Atkins grounds.
Rappelling ropes hung down from the roof of the Nelson and pulleys stretched taut in front of the Bloch Building, lending an air of precarious anticipation-the potential for adrenaline and danger-that has become a trademark of Quixotic performances.
After the opening strains of a pretty string prelude, "Cartography," the ensemble marched down the museum steps in an impressionist promenade wearing barely-there techno-glam costumes accentuating the sleek lines and sinew of each dancer.
Throughout the evening, Quixotic highlighted the vast variety of styles and skills in their arsenal. The aerial hammock's single, translucent piece of fabric held its dancer like a cocoon womb and offered up a traditional aerial fabrics performance. A steel jungle gym positioned in front of the band gave center stage to contortionism, gymnastics, and stylish modern dance.
The band composed an original soundtrack for "Surface" that was consistently intriguing, reminiscent of the engaging sonic landscapes of artists such as Sigur Ros, Bjork, and Kid A-era Radiohead. Shane Borth's expressive violin work was featured throughout and Laura Scarborough's ethereal vocals were particularly highlighted.
Truly a collaborative effort, each band member contributed compositions for "Surface." Rick Willoughby cooked up an electro-funk groove to the frenzied ensemble piece, "Simple Thoughts."
Brandon Draper and Scarborough penned "All We Know," a piece that, sans dancers, showcased the musical talent of the group. Surrounded by stone and trees, Scarborough showcased her rich vibrato, singing a haunting song that strengthened the terrestrial theme of the evening. Laurel Morgan contributed a gorgeous violin solo.
The song best demonstrated the distinct identity of this performance, creating a much more organic, almost arboreal, atmosphere that distinguished itself from the stark and kinetic electronic rock of Quixotic's "Lux Esalare."
About forty minutes into the production, Chelsea Teel-Wilcox was flown up a pulley apparatus positioned in front of the Bloch Building. While the evening had been consistently enjoyable to this point, this marked the beginning of the moment we'd all been waiting for. Teel-Wilcox delivered with her self-choreographed "Renew," a dizzying display of aerial spinning and romantic suspension.
Soon afterward, the focus shifted to the face of the Nelson, a stone canvas for the most visually-arresting pieces of the evening. A video projection splashed aggressively across the surface of the building like a chemical mix of monochromatic Mondrian and Tetris on amphetamines.
Whetting the audience's appetite for the impending aerial display, the cinematic visuals softened into an aurora borealis night sky in the soundscape, "Paper Cranes," before transforming into almost mathematic waveforms for the finale, "Awakenings."
Scuttling down the side of the building, at first only visible due to the bioluminescent insect wings on their backs, Amanda Artigas and Jessie Fouts, flew through a series of runs, leaps, and acrobatics choreographed by E.J. Reinagel that at times made me wonder if they were truly on level ground and I was fastened to a grassy, earthen wall. Sunbursts exploded around the dancers, synchronized to Brandon Draper's tribal drumming and the band's insistent soundtrack.
It was the culminating act of sensory beauty that enveloped the audience in a fitting artistic statement: Quixotic used the surroundings at the Nelson-Atkins museum like sculptor's clay, raking away at the surface to reveal the art underneath.
Review:
Quixotic: "Surface"
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Sculpture Park at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
4525 Oak St., Kansas City, MO
For information visit online at www.nelson-atkins.org or www.quixoticfusion.com
Top Photo:
Maria Gonzalez
Theatre ,
Where the wild things are
At the beginning of the Inferno, Dante's narrator speaks of finding himself lost at middle age "in a dark wood"; in Maurice Sendak's picture book Where the Wild Things Are young Max, after spying his mother kiss a man who is not daddy, finds himself surrounded by all manners of mythic-like beasts, and in a way becomes one, too. Transformation links both these stories, separated by six hundred years and set apart by Freudian theory. Add music and lyrics, and one has the magnificent Stephen Sondheim-James Lapine musical Into the Woods, an adult fairy tale in which the forest of the unconscious hides the beasts within us that we meet at our own risk.
Freud is linked to Grimm in Into the Woods: such well-known tales as that of Cinderella, Rapunzel, Jack and the Beanstalk, Little Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty, and the Baker and His Wife are interwoven with an all-inclusive Wicked Witch and connected by a blonde-haired, British speaking narrator with vines threading outwards from his costume. The music is lithe and invigorating; the lyrics are as technically demanding as they are intellectually commanding. How Sondheim and Lapine find darkness in already dark woods without yielding to the unbidden rule to entertain is one more miracle of this show, one of Sondheim's most abstract musicals yet one of his most fulfilling.
The Kansas City Repertory Theatre's presentation of Into the Woods under guest director Moisés Kaufman's God-like execution, which opened September 18th at the Spencer Theatre, brings to light the show's bedazzling interplay between the story and the songs. It is not too high praise to say that the intermission is needed so the audience can catch its breath for the second act which builds to its famous finale. Kaufman has cast wisely: many of the performers have worked in Sondheim's productions on Broadway or in national tours, though all of them register in their characters as snugly as their colorful costumes fit them (courtesy of Clint Ramos). The Spencer stage is, as Goldilocks would say, just right. The sets, by Narelle Sissons, fill the area like Rousseau paintings come to life, with a child's bedroom configured in the middle of the stage surrounded by tall trees that come and go; in the opening number "Prologue: Into the Woods," some characters (like Riding Hood, the show-stopping Dana Steingold) make their entrances through a C.S. Lewis-like open closet. Trees ascend and characters descend, just as they sometimes disappear below the stage floor. Indeed, with Japhy Weideman's sharply etched lighting, the collective staging recalls one of the Metropolitan Opera's sweeping productions.
The first act first presents the characters' problems and then finds their happy endings--or so we assume. The Baker (Zachary Prince) and his Wife (Brynn O'Malley) wish to have a child, but some spell on their house by the Witch (Michele Ragusa) prevents them. Cinderella (Lauren Worsham) has her familiar story, as does Jack (KC Comeaux) whose mother (Tina Stafford) insists he sell his one friend, his cow (whose mechanical facial reactions are worked by the great puppeteer Paul Mesner). The songs--"Cinderella at the Grave," "Maybe They're Magic," "Hello, Little Girl," the last sung to Riding Hood by the Wolf (Claybourne Elder)--gradually reveal the sadness and the uncertainty behind the characters' adventures. Sondheim's songs, routinely at odds in what they mean versus how buoyantly they are sung, gradually take over the stories. By the end of the first act, the Wolf is dead and Riding Hood is safe, the Baker and his Wife have followed the Witch's commands and been given a son; Cinderella, Rapunzel and the rest all seem happy, and the Witch is transformed into an evening-gowned socialite. Yet the ensemble song "Ever After" rings hollow. This is, after all, Sondheim, not the therapeutic-lite Shrek or even Wicked.
The ritual Sondheimesque twist comes in act two, as the assembled fairy-tale characters begin to doubt their happiness. The second half perversely reprises the first, in the manner of an earlier (still more conceptual) Sondheim-Lapine musical, Sunday in the Park with George. Jack's descent from the beanstalk (which caused the death of the giant, so that his angry widowed giantess begins to trample the countryside), in a neat psychoanalytic metaphor, sets off everyone else's descent into guilt and mutual recrimination. It is the other boot coming down on the guilty and the innocent alike, reminiscent of the last-act barber's killings in Sweeney Todd, in which victims are murdered indiscriminately and Mrs. Lovett sends them down the chute, merrily singing all the while.
The unfailing coldness of the musical's unfolding--one senses had Sondheim written, say, The Sound of Music the von Trapp family would have been massacring Nazis while singing "Edelweiss"--is elemental to Sondheim's style. The opening notes, those three piano chords played with insistent march-like determination, announce the show's tone. But it is always a treat to hear the various song threads diverge and combine and recombine, with performers singing over one another; yet, if done right, heard just precisely enough to draw together the emotions rather than spread them apart. Sondheim's songs are composed more like logarithms than with lyrics. The technical unwinding in songs like "First Midnight" and "No One is Alone" demands that the actors truly work together. Their expressiveness in finding the heart of these songs is the key to unlocking the ardency hidden within. For few other composers in any medium can reach so far into themselves, in short pithy rhymes or in soaring ballads. As dark as Into the Woods is, it ends on a note of pessimistic optimism.
For the Rep's production, Moisés Kaufman has reinterpreted the show here and there (he turns one verse of one of the Witch's solos into a rap version that is unnecessary but adds a contemporary touch, and makes up for the Wolf just like Hugh Jackman's Wolverine) without meddling overall. On Broadway, the Witch was the star (Bernadette Peters, Vanessa Williams); here, an ensemble feel makes all the characters compelling. If certain performers stand out more, such as Cinderella's Prince whom Claybourne Elder plays with a nod to Steve Martin's comic vanity and Brynn O'Malley whose Baker's Wife's sadness is sung so sweetly, the Opening Night audience fell completely under the sway of Dana Steingold. Her Riding Hood is petite, tough-minded, and seems to be not merely singing the songs but singing them for the first time. Steingold's timing is Rolex-perfect. It is one of the theatre's magic nights when an audience meets an unknown performer and knows something special is happening. All the wild things in the dark forest remain by the show's end: but for the moment, at least, they are banished from the theatre.
REVIEW
The Kansas City Repertory Theatre
Into the Woods
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Book by James Lapine
Directed by Moisés Kaufman
Runs September 11-October 4 (reviewed September 18)
NOW EXTENDED thru October 11
Spencer Theatre at UMKC
4949 Cherry St., Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-235-2700 or online at www.kcrep.org
Top Photo:
Michele Ragusa (Witch), Lauren Braton (Rapunzel)
Classical,
Lang Lang electrifies the Folly
Last year an estimated audience of over 5 billion watched pianist Lang Lang perform during the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics. On Tuesday the 15th, a somewhat smaller audience at the Folly Theater watched him open the Harriman Jewell Series season with a recital of Beethoven, Albeniz and Prokofiev.
In the first half of the program, the talented young pianist tackled, and I do mean tackled, two Beethoven sonatas, the Op. 2. No. 3 from the composer's early career, and the Piano Sonata No. 23 in F Minor, the so-called "Apassionata," dating from a much later period.
A player of undeniable technical skill, the young Chinese virtuoso attacks the piano as if it were an opponent to be conquered. Thumping the bass keys, pounding at the treble keys, and taking every advantage to emphasize rhythm and syncopation, he has a mannered, almost violent interpretation of every piece. His dynamic range consists of extremely loud crashing chords, suddenly juxtaposed with a soft touch, especially during upper key trills, which he plays with an airy finesse.
Watching Lang Lang perform is almost as much a feast for the eyes as for the ears. During melodic moments his face beams with pleasure, and at other times his brow becomes knotted as his hands and arms come crashing down on the keyboard. During rapid passages his hands become a blur, and at other times he draws his arms back to bring them thundering down on the keys, his head and hair flying.
Beethoven has never been performed with more drama, and at the end of the first half several in the audience noted to this reviewer that they were already exhausted. (So was the new Steinway instrument he was playing, as it required retuning during the interval.)
Lang Lang saved his most expressive pianism for three selections from Albeniz's Iberia, Book I, to open the program's second half. Focusing on the rhythm of the work, the pianist gave a powerful and staccatoed interpretation of the piece. Of sensitivity and gentle touch there was none; his performance struck this reviewer as Impressionism without its shimmer. What would the composer have thought?
In Prokofiev's Piano Sonata No. 7 in B Flat Major Lang Lang found a composition more suited to his style. Full of the angst and anguish of World War II, Prokofiev's work contains many rapid and tortured passages of music. Lang Lang was more than up to the task, displaying his technical mastery to the hilt. The aggressive and almost deafening crescendo at the work's conclusion was played for all it was worth, and the piece ended with booming chords and flailing arms.
The Prokofiev brought the audience to its feet with a quick standing ovation. No doubt Lang Lang's pure power and force of personality won over some, but this reviewer wonders if perhaps more than a few audience members were applauding the performer's substantial publicity machine rather than the artist himself.
Somehow, his bombastic performance led this listener's memory to return to another, very different recital we heard in this same Folly Theater space last season, when the elegant and refined pianist Ivan Moravec gave a splendid and nuanced performance under the auspices of The Friends of Chamber Music. Between the two artists one could not possibly draw stronger contrasts. For this taste, I'll take Moravec and leave Lang Lang to his enthusiastic admirers, of which there is no shortage.
REVIEW
Harriman Jewell Series
Lang Lang, piano
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Folly Theater
12th and Central, Kansas City, MO
www.harriman-jewell.org
Theatre ,
Primordial oohs...and ahhhs
I learned a lot this past weekend at the Metropolitan Ensemble Theatre's season opener, Seascape, not the least of which being that I am more of a big, green lizard than I realized; and that getting in touch with one's evolutionary, rather than biological, clock can be surprisingly therapeutic. Naturally, I expected to relate to the humans (Charlie, played by Paul E. Orwick, and Nancy, played by Marilyn Lynch) - but I quickly recognized a surprising simpatico with the lizards (Sarah, played by Katie Ligon, and Leslie, played by Sam Wright). In fact, both sets of mirror-image characters are struggling to come to terms with their relationships and their mortality. Together they form an unlikely partnership brought together by the whimsical nudge of natural - or maybe unnatural - selection.
The driving human element in Seascape immediately intrigued me: a long-married couple, enjoying a sand dune picnic, "in the throes of midlife facing the rest of their lives with each other." Written in 1975 but set in the "now", the play's timelessness has allowed a wide and varied demographic to identify with the characters. Young couples, still decades from their own "throes", may marvel in disbelief that this is what relationships can come to; couples on the cusp or in the midst of the process will relate all too well, and probably uncomfortably so; and older couples in the "been there, done that" category likely sit amused, giving each other the occasional knowing smirk, and reminiscing about having already paid those dues. Healthy relationships, like lizards (and theatres!), must evolve. The fit ones survive; the weak ones fizzle into the black hole of Darwinism. All too often, relationships that start out like picnics slowly deteriorate into stagnant tidal pools that no one wants to swim in, but in the midst of such throes the tricky part is that nobody can tell which couples are going to be which. Ironically, it is Leslie - one of the non-humans - who waxes philosophical at the dilemma faced by Charlie and Nancy, observing the very human realization that one must "make your nest and accept a whole array of things".
For me, the clear standout of the evening was Paul E. Orwick as Charlie, who delivered a finely nuanced character, deftly moving through a range of subtle emotions. He does a particularly fine job conveying the complexities of Charlie's non-verbal emotional transitions. I found myself drawn in as he moved effortlessly between willing engagement and indifference at Nancy's incessant prodding; whimsical reminiscence about boyhood fixations with the relaxing, underwater solitude into which he often escaped; and sensitive emotional distress as he struggles to come to terms with the revelations being unleashed on him by Nancy. Orwick's well-honed comedic timing lent further credibility to the overall effect.
Marilyn Lynch's Nancy, whom I felt took some time to solidify and synchronize with Orrick's Charlie, eventually managed to energetically provide the critical ebbs and flows that drove the couple's highly charged emotional interactions. Together they portrayed a believable and, yes, very human partnership.
That said - and despite having no reptilian theatrical performances to compare to - I found Katie Ligon and Sam Wright's characters to be equally well executed. It probably goes without saying that it requires confident thespian skills to deliver believable performances while on "all-fours" in green lizard suits. Wright, in particular, quite successfully becomes his character, in part by adopting a subtle physical posturing that enhances the viewers' willingness to reasonably suspend disbelief and embrace the (intentional) absurdity.
Lighting Design, by Kyle Shelley, was static, yet appropriately functional for the setting. Sound Design, by Donna Miller, added to the shoreline mood via a subtle, ambient soundscape. The show's production standouts were the whimsical reptilian costuming - the term lizard leotards kept popping into my head - smartly designed by Jan Chapman. In addition to directing, Karen Paisley also wore the Set Design hat, which included overseeing the approximately 200 man-hours dedicated to its construction - complete with an impressive tonnage of "beach".
The on-stage achievements in both acting and production reflected outwards to shine the metaphorical spotlight on the unique strengths that characterize this warm and inviting theatre experience. I should think that the worst criticism for a large, flashy, and endlessly funded theatre is to put on grand performances that, in the end, fall short despite the critical mass (and, oftentimes, the under-deserved critical acclaim) that sustains them. Similarly, the greatest compliment a small (but growing), unpretentious, productions-on-a-shoestring theatre could hope for is to know that it exceeds its objectives and, in many instances, reveals the potential to outshine its leviathan contemporaries.
This opening night performance of Seascape marks the beginning of MET's fifth season and its third venue - evidence of its growing success and stability in the very healthy, but unforgiving, Kansas City arts community. It strikes me as no small coincidence that the undercurrents which impel Seascape's plot - "mutate or perish" - similarly represent the formula for success that is the driving force behind MET's increasing visibility. In that ongoing effort to become and remain more prominent, the one characteristic that captured my attention more than any other was the palpable sense of pride and accomplishment over the recent installation of MET's very first signage, and I find myself referring to Paisley's Director's Notes to describe its symbolism: the dedicated people responsible for MET's success "[are] not vagrants anymore. There is a sign out front that says we're here."
Thanks to that plucky resilience, Kansas City's arts community will be all the more vibrant for it...
REVIEW:
Metropolitan Ensemble Theatre
Seascape
By Edward Albee
Directed by Karen Paisley
Runs September 10 - October 4 (Reviewed Friday, September 11, 2009)
MET Space
3614 Main Street, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-569-3226 or online at http://www.metkc.org
Top Photo:
Sam Wright and Latie Ligon. Photo by Jack Clifford
Classical,
Minimal to the maximum
Twenty-five years ago as a staunch, know-it-all classicist, I foolishly dismissed new forms of classical music as "weird" - as I considered it at the time - and much to my detriment. During a composition lesson, I once complained to my professor that I didn't want to write something that sounded "like two cats fighting on tin foil". To this he responded, in a very matter-of-fact tone: "What would be wrong with a piece that sounded like two cats fighting on tin foil?"
Fresh out of cats and tin foil, I didn't have a good answer.
It was with these prior shortcomings in mind that my 16-year-old daughter and I went with eager anticipation to newEar Contemporary Chamber Ensemble's second of two "Music and Minimalism" concerts, performed September 12th at the Bell Cultural Arts Center on the campus of MidAmerica Nazarene University.
Tom Johnson's Twelve for solo piano opened the evening. Pianist Robert Pherigo deftly navigated the non-tonal landscape, punctuated by more traditional minimalist architecture such as long periods of "composed" silence. I purposely avoid the word "atonal" because Twelve's overall gestalt manages to evade an atonal aural experience, and I am always mindful, historically, that Schoenberg despised this mislabeling of his early 20th century departure from tonality. With a gracious nod to the twelve-tone technique (the term much preferred by Schoenberg), Johnson created this work using mathematical tonal groupings over a series of 12 short pieces intended to be performed in 12 minutes.
Phill Niblock's Tow by Tom for fixed media was left out of this performance.
Barbara Benary's Sun on Snow, for soprano and mixed ensemble, presented an open-format, five-movement score, giving performers improvisational freedom within a loosely-structured melody that accompanied soprano Sylvia Stoner's interpretation of a "word cube" (five rows of five words) to be read in either of two directions. With creative pausing, logical poetic sense could be preserved. With its sparseness, the poetic effect was reminiscent of Japanese haiku. The repetitive nature of minimalist music often leads the listener to focus on only a small part of the musical interplay that happens to capture their unique frame of mind at that moment. In the fourth movement the saxophonist joined Stoner, and the randomizing word-play found me transfixed by the rhythms that were the result of vocal fricatives emerging from the words "sun," "snow," "shine,", "frost," "tears," "roads," "earth," "makes," "us," "seek," and "path." Of the five movements, the 1st was most interesting with its curious combination (at least to my ear) of Medieval and Asian tonalities, and the 4th equally interesting for reasons already cited above. The middle movements did not strike me in any favorable way and I found my mind wandering away from the music rather than to it. The 5th movement, described in the program as being "a calm denouement", seemed anti-climactic, leaving me musically unfulfilled.
The hyperbolic ARIOS for cello (Lawrence Figg) and piano (Robert Pherigo) by Valdimir Tosic opened with a cello theme consisting of a few harmonic-series notes, while the piano created a sonic "canvas" upon which it projected itself. With the introduction of more harmonic tones the complexity gradually increased and began to intersperse non-harmonic tones which jumped out as a refreshing tonal oasis, propelling the piece towards its more energetic mid-section where the piano interacted vigorously with the expanding thematic elements. The piece devolved as it had built up, with harmonic and thematic diminution and the piano's return to its baseline "canvas." ARIOS was a relaxing journey.
Terry Riley's Autumn Leaves for ensemble felt hollow, but still left me with interesting territory to explore. I began to challenge myself to find subtle "familiarities." In doing so, I heard interesting, albeit fleeting, similarities to Philip Glass, Stravinsky, and even film and TV composer Lalo Schifrin. As the piece evolved I also became aware of a faint, inexplicable, hint of a loosely classical (little "c") structure (I chuckled to myself as I imagined this as "Glass-ical" music). To its credit, Autumn Leaves provided a minimalist landscape with something for everyone.
Next came avant pop composer Jacob Ter Veldhuis' ("Jacob TV") The Body of Your Dreams, for piano (Robert Pherigo) and boombox. Admittedly skeptical as I watched the stage preparation with the placement of the piano followed by a boombox and microphone, all reticence vanished within the first handful of notes after which I was thoroughly mesmerized amidst a blazing interplay between recorded medium and piano counterpoint; it turned out to be my and my daughter's favorite piece on the program. Throughout the performance, a solitary analytic thought emerged that provides a fitting conclusion to this paragraph: visionary.
Narayana's Cows, another Tom Johnson work, closed the program with its arrangement of narrator and ensemble. I try to avoid painting any experience with too broad a brush, but have to admit that I just did not like this piece. The music is constructed to interpret the narrator's recitation of the 14th century mathematician's brainteaser that asks how many cows will be produced after 17 years based on a prescribed formula. For the listener yet to be indoctrinated to any form of minimalism, this piece represents the genre as cliché: repetition, repetition, repetition. In summarizing the experience, I cannot do any better myself than to quote my daughter, being that she was adventurous enough to accompany me to this concert in the first place: "I wanted music, not a math problem!"
Minimalism, at its core, is meant to transcend the norms that most people would cite in describing music, forcing them to approach the experience in ways that challenge the ear, the mind, the psyche and - in some very rare instances - time and space. I was eager to observe my daughter's reactions to her first exposure to "weird" music. In your own exploration of minimalism I would encourage you to consider taking someone you love and helping them break from that sonic prison that held me back so many years ago. You may never again think of cats and tin foil the same way.
REVIEW:
newEar Contemporary Chamber Ensemble
Music and Minimalism
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Bell Cultural Events Center
MidAmerica Nazarene University
2030 East College Way, Olathe, KS
For information on upcoming performances visit www.newear.org
Classical,
Honoring Millicent: present and future pay tribute to the past
Under the silver spiral of the Community of Christ temple in Independence, New York Polyphony joined the Young MAIsterSingers for the MAI 30th Anniversary concert this past weekend. The performance was more than just beautiful voices resonating in a brilliant space; these young people had been touched by the careful tutelage of the late Millicent A. Daugherty. It was in her honor that the performance was dedicated.
A Kansas City boy, New York Polyphony tenor Scott Dispensa had been a student of Millicent Daugherty. It was through her encouragement that he credits his ability to go to the Westminster Choir College. There he met counter-tenor Geoffrey Williams from Springfield, Missouri. Together with bass, Craig Phillips and tenor Geoffrey Silver, New York Polyphony was founded. Since 2006, the group has been actively performing for audiences around the country and in Ireland. This tour takes them through the Heartland.
Opening with Sicut lilium by Renaissance composer Antoine Brumel , their voices slid into the program with silky sensitivity. The acoustics in the Temple allowed the audience to hear every nuance of this melodically complex piece, warming their tone and sending it spinning up to the spire.
Not necessarily a choral sound, theses four adult male soloists function more like a string quartet. They perform without a conductor, as is the custom, so they must be highly aware of every breath and the slightest movement in order to stay together. Sometimes they sounded like a quartet without a viola, sometimes without a violin. Meeting the needs of the music required them to re-organize the pieces in different keys and ways to fit their voices. For polyphony purists, they lacked the bell-like ping of soprano and alto voices bouncing off of each other. Yet, the final result was elegant and stylish with a mellower timbre like brandy and burnished leather.
Polyphony is notorious for insanely long melodic lines where singers in the chorus will "cheat" breathe at different times to sustain the energy through the phrase. Throughout Absalon Fili mi by Josquin Desprez and the Lamentation of Jeremiah by Thomas Crecquillon, the group seemed to be able to miraculously finish the phrases in one breath: a testament to excellent technique. They were able to nourish the end of each line gently as they linked to the next musical thought. They passed the "ball" carefully.
A jaunty bass and baritone duet began the Ave Maria Mater Dei by William Cornysh. It was refreshing to hear the lower voices make strong statements. Stella Caeli by Walter Lambe was once piece where this reviewer longed to hear the mournful alto line soaring through the thick harmonic texture. The final chords were lovely.
Taking the stage, The Young MAIsterSingers looked elegant in their black gowns and miniature tuxedos. They sang the famous Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring (BWV 147) and Wir eilen mit schwachen (BWV 78) by J.S. Bach. They sounded amazingly polished for a concert so early in the season and singing the pieces in the original German was equally impressive.
The MAI, Music/Arts Institute of the Millicent A. Daugherty Community School of the Arts, forwards the musical education of private students in grades 4-8. The students in the choir come from all over the metropolitan area. Thirty young singers make up the choir which has served as the Children's Chorus for special KC Symphony performances.
New York Polyphony continued the program with the beautiful and effective Notre Pere Opus 14 by Maurice Durufle. The pitch perfect unison proved that this group can sing easily as one voice. The luscious modern harmonies sound fresh even in the 21 century.
The Quatre petite priers de Francois d'Assise by Francis Poulenc have a surprising choral chromaticism. The thick chords slid up and down and around as they twisted up to the spiral rafters. The tonal center changed between prayers, the second and third featuring tenor, Geoffrey Silver. He communicated the text sincerely and the group attacked the short, jazzy phrases with precision. Only the fourth prayer sounded a little like a barbershop quartet but the piece was written at a time in history when that nostalgic harmony was popular. Unfortunately, the audience began clapping just as the group began to sing their final chord. It created an awkward ending to an otherwise sublime set.
The final piece featured Scott Dispensa singing Panis angelicus by Franck with the Young MAIsterSingers. Finally able to sing in his full, lush baritone, Dispensa filled the resonant Temple with the song his mentor had assigned to him as a high school student. Behind him, the hopeful young faces of future famous singers echoed his phrases like the ghost of his childhood. The future supported the present in honor of the past.
Millicent Daugherty had programmed this concert a year ago but circumstances beyond her control prevented it from being sung during her lifetime. Witnessing this important tribute made me feel sad that I had never had the pleasure of meeting Mrs. Daugherty; but seeing the fruits of her labor, ripen on stage it was evident that her legacy is in good hands. Her influence on the musical arts here and throughout the country will be felt for many, many years to come.
REVIEW:
New York Polyphony and the Young MAIsterSingers
MAI 30th Anniversary Concert
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Community of Christ Temple
Independence, MO
Film,
"World's Greatest Dad"
Imagine having the most repulsive, disrespectful, moronic, perverted and dishonest teenager that has possibly ever lived in modern history. Now imagine that teenager is your son and you're a single parent whose feelings of loneliness and professional rejection make you feel like a punching bag. For Robin Williams, he doesn't have to imagine it, he has to live it as that father in the dramatic comedy World's Greatest Dad.
Superbly written and directed by standup comedian/actor Bobcat Goldthwait, World's Greatest Dad begins by introducing us to Lance Clayton (Williams), a private high school poetry teacher who dreams of achieving wealth and fame as a published author. The problem is that no one wants to publish him, or enroll in his poetry class.
Then there's Kyle (Daryl Sabara, the Spy Kids trilogy). He's the kind of boy no one likes at school, except one lonely friend named Andrew (Evan Martin), but the ill feeling goes both ways. Kyle, who's addicted to watching pornography, treats everyone like they're an idiot, especially his father who still tries to reach out to him and covers for him when he gets in trouble.
When an unsettling tragedy occurs, Lance manipulates his difficult situation initially with nothing but pure and honorable intentions. However, as events unfold, Lance begins to seize upon the chance for his long-awaited fame. While this, for example, causes his phony girlfriend Claire (Alexie Gilmore), the school's art teacher, to finally go public with their relationship, it doesn't cause Lance to feel satisfied. In fact, he learns that there are other avenues to happiness other than celebrity or money.
Maybe it's just me but the cinematic attempts by Williams to pull off comedies have worn thin over the years. This includes his "crazy" antics during late night interviews, which have become almost boring. However, the role of Lance Clayton is a perfect fit for him. Goldthwait allows him to have an extremely nice balance of subtle, understated humor while also pushing him to his dramatic limits when he must display emotion at its rawest intensity.
The solid, mostly unknown supporting cast is led by Sabara who magnificently pulls off being perhaps the most unlikable, unsympathetic teenager ever portrayed on the silver screen. Goldthwait's script is fresh and his directing style leaves one with the impression that this won't be his last attempt. Lastly, after seeing World's Greatest Dad, I'm actually kind of glad that I won't have to raise any teenagers any time soon.
On a letter grade scale from A being excellent to F for failing, World's Greatest Dad receives a B+.
World's Greatest Dad is rated R and has a running time of 99 minutes.
Now showing through September 24 @
Tivoli Cinemas
Westport Manor Square, 4050 Pennsylvania, KCMO
Visit www.tivolikc.com or call 913-383-7756 for showtimes.
Glenwood Arts
9575 Metcalf, Overland Park, KS
Visit fineartsgroup.com or call 913-642-4402 for showtimes.
Theatre ,
Times, they are a-changing
A resounding theme of transition permeates the performance on a personal level and more subtly on a national level in Joe R. Fox III's production "Church Basement Ladies 2 - A Second Helping" and is, in fact, exclaimed in harmonic chorus numerous times by the performers, "times, they are a-changing" - as if the audience might forget.
New Theatre Restaurant patrons obviously did not forget the highly-acclaimed prequel of the same name and the house was sold out last Friday night. Written by Greta Grosch with music and lyrics by Drew Jansen and Dennis Curley, "Church Basement Ladies 2" presents the age-old examination of the juxtaposition of life's joys and sorrows through the eyes of one Lutheran pastor and four church basement ladies.
The evening begins with the breaking of bread - for the audience, anyway. As promised, a 5-star dinner kicks off the night's festivities, and though ultimately the production turned out a tad on the bland side, the menu certainly did not. Known for his outstanding creations, New Theatre's Executive Chef, Mark Webster presented a beautiful and savory fall harvest buffet loaded with seasonal vegetables cooked to imaginative perfection with tantalizing yet subtle spices. Other highlights included a rich, cheesy garlic polenta and tender, juicy pork entrée with a flavorful cream sauce.
As the aromatic reminder of dinner settled onto the audience, the curtain rose. It is quickly clear this production will be a bit campy and somewhat predictable in its choice of comfortable and familiar themes of love, acceptance, and growth. This everyman, or more aptly put, everywoman, story takes place in an unnamed small Midwestern town outside of "The Cities" in Minnesota during 1969-70. It is a tale of personal and national growth and of discovery told through the lives of Pastor Gunderson, played by Barry Williams (a.k.a Greg Brady), and the four ladies who run the church kitchen.
Williams doesn't disappoint with his easy smile, strong voice, and just-off timing, which gives Pastor Gunderson what one imagines, an authentic Lutheran pastor quality. He exudes the acceptance his character preaches convincingly and energetically portrays a sensitive, soulful man on the road of self-discovery.
Julie Marie Taylor returns to New Theatre after performing in the original Church Basement Ladies as Beverly Signe Hauge, daughter and up-and-coming church basement lady. She adds a bright splash of youth and vigor to the stage, captivating the audience with her sincere performance and powerful voice.
UMKC's Jennifer Mays portrays Beverly's mother, Karin. She struggled a bit with her vocals but offered a heartfelt performance and good balance to the other church basement ladies.
Audience members gasped out loud again and again at the antics of Vivian Snustan, the stereotypical close-minded widow played by Janet Paone, who is transformed seemingly against her will by her blossoming love. And who, in the end and quite as expected, cannot help but succumb.
Barry Williams may be billed as the star of the show, but veteran Debra Bluford (as Mavis Gilmerson the sensible farmer's wife who isn't afraid to express her love of her fellow church basement ladies) rose above with her brilliant comedic timing To top it off, Bluford's vocal strength reinvigorated the cast and audience when the scene length began to drag a bit.
Scenic Director, Scott Herbst, set the stage in a proverbial church basement for duration of the performance and included a deep freeze, a pantry, a butcher's block table, and an accordion partition separating the basement from the rest of the church. While the set reinforced the never-changing look and feel of church basements across the country, it proved a drab backdrop by the second Act.
However, the psychedelic lighting, orchestrated by Randy B. Winder and capturing the rock-n-roll feel of late 1960s America, worked well with the music, and added a dynamic visual to an otherwise plain set. This energy combined with that of the actors kept the scenes moving along and engaged the audience throughout the performance.
Though this is not a groundbreaking play, the upbeat tunes and talented cast kept the audience tapping their feet and laughing along the way. "Church Basement Ladies 2" is suitable for the entire family and provides a wholesome theme told from a comedic and good-natured Midwestern perspective with a lot of Lutheran flair - all served with a dinner not to be missed.
REVIEW
New Theatre Restaurant
Church Basement Ladies 2 - A Second Helping
Runs September 2 - November 29 (Reviewed: September 11, 2009)
9229 Foster, Overland Park KS
For tickets call 913-649-7469 or online www.newtheatre.com
Top photo:
Barry Williams, Debra Bluford and Julie Marie Taylor in New Theatre Restaurant's "Church Basement Ladies 2: A Second Helping"
theSTEADY, the STEADY,
Giggin' on theSTEADY
See you at the show...
Alacartoona
Thursday, September 17 at 5:30 p.m.
Jardine's Restaurant and Jazz Club
4536 Main St., Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-561-6480 or online at www.jardines4jazz.com or www.alacartoona.com
Sons of Brasil
Friday, September 18 at 6:00 p.m. @ 8:00 p.m.
Jardine's Restaurant and Jazz Club
4536 Main St., Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-561-6480 or online at www.jardines4jazz.com or www.stantonkessler.com
Angela Hagenbach
Saturday, September 19 at 6:00 p.m. & 8:00 p.m.
Jardine's Restaurant and Jazz Club
4536 Main St., Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-561-6480 or online at www.jardines4jazz.com or www.amazonrecords.com
Jeff Harshbarger presents an
Alternative Jazz Series
Sunday, September 20 at 7:00 p.m.
Record Bar
1020 Westport Rd., Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-753-5207 or online at www.therecordbar.com or www.jeffharshbarger.com
Shay Estes & Trio ALL
Wednesday, September 23 at 7:30 p.m.
Jardine's Restaurant and Jazz Club
4536 Main St., Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-561-6480 or online at www.jardines4jazz.com or www.marklowreymusic.com
City Classics,
Music and Dance through September 30
UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance
Conservatory Wind Symphony
Thursday, September 24 at 7:30 p.m.
White Recital Hall, UMKC Campus
4949 Cherry, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-235-6222 or online at www.umkc.edu/conservatory.
The Conservatory Wind Symphony will open its concert season with works by Holst, Iannaccone, Vaughan Williams, Sousa and Steven Bryant. The titles of the works on this concert include Sea Drift, Sea Songs, Ecstatic Waters, and Hands Across the Sea, among others. Get the drift?
Kansas City Symphony
Bronfman Plays Brahms
Friday, September 25 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, September 26 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, September 27 at 2 p.m.
Lyric Theatre
11th and Central Streets, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-471-0400 or online at www.kcsymphony.org.
The Kansas City Symphony opens its classical series of concerts this year with esteemed pianist Yefim Bronfman, who has made many appearances here in Kansas City with The Friends of Chamber Music and the Symphony. Bronfman is one today's leading keyboard artists and is renowned for his sensitive and romantic interpretations as well as for outstanding technique. In this concert he will be featured in the magisterial Brahms Piano Concert No. 2, as romantic a concerto as you are likely to hear (some think that it was a disguised love letter to Clara Schumann). Bronfman should be the perfect interpreter for this Romantic classic.
Also on tap for the season's opening concert under Michael Stern's baton are the Symphony No. 49 of Franz Joseph Haydn (called La Passione) and Rapture by contemporary composer Christopher Rouse.
The Haydn symphony comes smack in the middle of the composer's impressive career, and is considered the high point of that period of Haydn's life where he was making a concerted attempt to insert dramatic and romantic flavor to his symphonies, earlier examples of which were in a somewhat more formal and "classical" style. According to Haydn biographer Karl Geiringer, "the work displays, particularly in its second movement in F minor, a feverish fierceness of expression that few musical or poetical works of the eighteenth century surpassed."
Christopher Rouse, now 60, is one of today's most often performed orchestral composers. Educated at Oberlin and Cornell, he has written a wide variety of instrumental works. While his catalog includes a number of chamber and ensemble works, he is best known for his orchestral writing. His music has been played by every major orchestra in the U.S. and numerous ensembles overseas including the orchestras of Berlin, London, Sydney, Melbourne, Stockholm, Zurich, Lisbon, Vienna and Moscow. He has won a Pulitzer Prize and was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He was named Musical America's 2009 Composer of the Year and teaches at Juilliard.
Rouse's Rapture was written in 2000 for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and, according to the composer, the eleven-minute piece depicts "a state of spiritual bliss, religious or otherwise."
Harriman Jewell Series
Stefan Jackiw, violinist
Saturday, September 26, 8:00 p.m.
Folly Theater
12th and Central, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-415-5025 or online at www.harriman-jewell.org
Stefan Jackiw, only 24 years old, is already making his third appearance on the Harriman Jewell series. It may be a record for an artist this young. A brilliant technician who also plays with rapt feeling, Jackiw is considered one of today's most brilliant violinists. He has performed with the Boston Symphony, the Chicago Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, and the orchestras of Baltimore, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Minnesota, Nashville, Oregon, Rochester, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Luke's, and Utah, among many other ensembles, and also has an extensive recital career, as Kansas Citians can already attest.
Reviewing a Jackiw recital in July in which the violinist performed a Brahms sonata, Jeremy Denk of the Seattle Times wrote that "the violinist played the sonata with the artlessness of a child, caressing the notes with such authentic joy that merely watching him was enough to inspire pleasure. His natural, unforced fluidity in phrasing and expression made the music seem an extemporaneous creation rather than the polished product of practice."
The Harriman Jewell publicity doesn't tell us what compositions Jackiw will be performing in this concert, but given his reputation for excellent artistry it might not make much difference. Anything he plays is likely to be brilliant.
Kansas City Wind Symphony
KC Wind Symphony with James Cockman, piano
Saturday, September 26 at 7:30 p.m.
Bell Cultural Arts Center
Mid America Nazarene University
2030 E. College Way, Olathe, KS
For tickets call 913-971-3636 or online at www.mnu.edu/bellcenter
The Kansas City Wind Symphony begins its new season on the 26th with a performance featuring pianist James Cockman in the iconic Romantic piano concerto, Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2. The Rachmaninoff is almost everybody's favorite piano concerto (well, make it everyone's favorite Russian piano concerto), and is a sure-fire crowd pleaser.
A William Jewell College graduate, Cockman served on the University of Kansas faculty and is a noted local piano instructor. He performs throughout Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and neighboring states as a soloist with a variety of music organizations, and his previous performances with the Kansas City Wind Symphony have been well received.
Topeka Symphony Orchestra
Mozart & More
Saturday, September 26 at 7:30 p.m.
White Recital Hall
Washburn University Campus, Topeka, KS
For tickets call 785-232-2032. For more information visit www.topekasymphony.org
Conductor John Strickler and the Topeka Symphony Orchestra open their season on Saturday, September 26 with a program featuring the music of Mozart and a couple of much more modern composers, Copland and Honegger.
The concert features two Mozart entries, the Overture to his early opera Lucio Silla, composed at the tender age of 16, and then the majestic Symphony No. 41, his final expression in that form, created along with two others in a frenzy of symphonic composition in 1788, less than three years before his death.
The Lucio Silla overture, an underperformed masterwork which is a welcome addition to the concert season, shows the teenage composer at his most dramatic, setting the stage for a tempestuous opera to come, depicting one of the most bloodthirsty rulers of the ancient Roman Empire. In the Symphony No. 41, nicknamed the Jupiter because of its size (!), Mozart was beginning to transform the classical orchestra of Handel and Haydn to a much more expressive instrument, and many musicologists feel that the composer was paving the way for the much more thunderous and expressive symphonies to follow from the pens of his successors such as Beethoven and Schubert.
American favorite Aaron Copland is represented by his evergreen Appalachian Spring suite of 1944, one of his crowd pleasing ballet scores, and the Swiss composer Arthur Honegger will be heard through his composition Pastorale d'ete of 1920, an early eight-minute symphonic poem which represents a musical impression of a peaceful early morning in the Swiss alps.
William Baker Festival Singers
Benefit Concert and Hymn Sing
Sunday, September 27, at 6:00 p.m.
Colonial Presbyterian Church
9500 Wornall, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 913-638-5211 or online at www.traditionsinworship.com
The first William Baker Festival Singers outing of the year is a benefit concert and hymn sing for the CottageCare Widows and Orphans Relief Fund, a ministry in Rwanda, Africa. The event is sponsored by Traditions in WorshipTM. The Singers will be accompanied by a 30-piece orchestra including members of the Kansas City Symphony.
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