Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Divinas Palabras (Ramon del Valle-Inclan)
Centro Dramatico National production
Quarrel that develops between family members for a hydrocephalic dwarf good for begging.
Quarrel that develops between family members for a hydrocephalic dwarf good for begging.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Into the Little Hill (George Bejamin & Martin Crimp)
A lyric tale for two voices and ensemble (2006), preceded by Viola, Viola for two violas (1997) and Three Minatures for solo violin (2002).
Interesting music performed by excellent musicians.
This jewel of a narrative is based on the traditional tale of the Pied Piper, who brings music (to a town concerned about a rat infestation) with promises that he will rid the town of their problem. When the strange stranger is denied financial compensation for completing the task, he lures the children away.
Now there are many ways to consider this as an allegory, particularly appealing is the relationship between arts and politics in twenty-first century USA. Politicians want the arts to shape students to concervative values; however, because the arts are actually starved in our schools, the younger generation is denied an intellectually grounded education in the arts, and it turns to a more seductive, maybe even baser but certainly more rebelious form of the arts. Musically, not such a simple allegory: very spare. In works more vertically dense (but not overly so), the ear can hear/apprehend a lucious texture. In works more horizontally dense, that is more melodic, the ear can hear the melody. This work seemed spare in both ways, requiring an ear both better trained than the average ear and a mind curious enough to listen attendtively and repeatedly.
Highly recommend.
Interesting music performed by excellent musicians.
This jewel of a narrative is based on the traditional tale of the Pied Piper, who brings music (to a town concerned about a rat infestation) with promises that he will rid the town of their problem. When the strange stranger is denied financial compensation for completing the task, he lures the children away.
Now there are many ways to consider this as an allegory, particularly appealing is the relationship between arts and politics in twenty-first century USA. Politicians want the arts to shape students to concervative values; however, because the arts are actually starved in our schools, the younger generation is denied an intellectually grounded education in the arts, and it turns to a more seductive, maybe even baser but certainly more rebelious form of the arts. Musically, not such a simple allegory: very spare. In works more vertically dense (but not overly so), the ear can hear/apprehend a lucious texture. In works more horizontally dense, that is more melodic, the ear can hear the melody. This work seemed spare in both ways, requiring an ear both better trained than the average ear and a mind curious enough to listen attendtively and repeatedly.
Highly recommend.
Monday, July 23, 2007
The Full Monteverdi
I Fagiolini's unusual performance of Claudio Monteverdi's Il quarto libro de madrigali (Fourth Book of Madrigals).
Wow!
After 35 minutes sitting at cabaret-style tables drinking wine and eating cheese/fruit, a voice to my right began to sing, soon followed by six to eight others who were engaged with another at the table. It was like overhearing a very intimate conversation between a couple. I first thought that the guy to my right was embarrassed to be seated next to a singer, but it was soon clear that he was (as were the other 'partners') part of the performance.
There were no pauses between madrigals, but the music moved straight from one to the next. The ensemble relayed the music from one couple to the next, with each couple in different points entering the lover's quarrel.
The difficult of the music was compounded by the performers' movement and the distance which they were spread. Divided into pairs, they sung/acted the madrigals. Their virtuosity was demonstrated in their ability to overcome problems of tuning and coherence magnified by the space and spacing.
The venue provided good acoustics and fabulous views of midtown Manhattan.
Thus presented dramatic, it is easy to recognize how Monteverdi was the originator of Western opera. It would have been good, however, to have possessed translations in order to understand more fully the arc of the poetic narrative.
High recommend.
Wow!
After 35 minutes sitting at cabaret-style tables drinking wine and eating cheese/fruit, a voice to my right began to sing, soon followed by six to eight others who were engaged with another at the table. It was like overhearing a very intimate conversation between a couple. I first thought that the guy to my right was embarrassed to be seated next to a singer, but it was soon clear that he was (as were the other 'partners') part of the performance.
There were no pauses between madrigals, but the music moved straight from one to the next. The ensemble relayed the music from one couple to the next, with each couple in different points entering the lover's quarrel.
The difficult of the music was compounded by the performers' movement and the distance which they were spread. Divided into pairs, they sung/acted the madrigals. Their virtuosity was demonstrated in their ability to overcome problems of tuning and coherence magnified by the space and spacing.
The venue provided good acoustics and fabulous views of midtown Manhattan.
Thus presented dramatic, it is easy to recognize how Monteverdi was the originator of Western opera. It would have been good, however, to have possessed translations in order to understand more fully the arc of the poetic narrative.
High recommend.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Hokaibo (Heisei Nakamura-za)
This performance featured one of only two comic Kabuki and starred Nakamura Kanzaburo XVIII in the lead role. Wonderful and colorful sets and costumes were the backdrop to a drama that depended on physical humor and sexual double-entendres (that weren't always apparent in the English synopsis broadcast through the headsets). The morality of the play was rather dubious, and the rogue character ends up murdered (though he comes back to haunt his somewhat innocent nemesis).
The narrative occupied the first two acts performed before the intermission. After the intermission, the performance accorded more closely with my conceptions of kabuki: traditional Japanese music and dance.
Though predominantly performed in Japanese, the Kanzaburo frequently dropped into English, speaking directly to the audience. This gracious gesture, however, was not necessary for the large number Japanese speakers in the audience, who obviously were able to understand the jokes not apparent via the English synopsis.
The narrative occupied the first two acts performed before the intermission. After the intermission, the performance accorded more closely with my conceptions of kabuki: traditional Japanese music and dance.
Though predominantly performed in Japanese, the Kanzaburo frequently dropped into English, speaking directly to the audience. This gracious gesture, however, was not necessary for the large number Japanese speakers in the audience, who obviously were able to understand the jokes not apparent via the English synopsis.
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