Anya M. Wassenberg's Blog: Art & Culture Maven, page 118
January 29, 2015
Single Release: Liz Graham - Charcoal on a Canvas (Indie - Jan 9, 2015)
Single Release:
Liz Graham - Charcoal on a Canvas
(Indie - Jan 9, 2015)
• Buy the single (name your price)
Liz Graham sold over 100,000 copies of her first album - called simply, Liz Graham - back in 1998. Despite charting on CMJ, Top 10 Women’s radio and Top 10 Music in the UK and Japan, touring with Lilith Fair and receiving a big label offer, life took a different turn in 2000 when a family member became ill.
She never stopped writing though and performed at small venues. iz co-wrote and sang the techno song, “Daylight”, in the 2013 Dreamworks thriller, The Fifth Estate. Now she's back with a new album in the works (scheduled for release later this year) and a new single - Charcoal on Canvas.
I said “we’re not art yet,I just don’t know what we are right now”
I say - you say is the back and forth motion that carries the sense of the song.
Don't you want to be in my gallery?
Don't you want you want somebody who can capture you on canvas..?
Charcoal on canvas
As someone who makes a nice chunk of my living from modeling for artists, naturally, a song about persuading someone to pose for you (nudge, nudge, wink, wink) is dear to my heart. The tune falls neatly into the adult contemporary pop genre with a nice pop-style swing to it and an upbeat tempo.
Liz' vocals are strong with a nice hard edge to the top end that she can use to good effect to contrast the little girl quality of the low end.
As she says herself about the song,
"Charcoal On A Canvas" is a song about wanting to get to know a person on a deeper level. I want to start by sketching him on my canvas because I am intrigued by his shadows (the things that he hides) and what his truths may be. As I continue to pursue him, he questions everything that I say and resists my advances. Perhaps he doesn't want me to really know him....?
Charcoal on a canvas by Liz Graham
January 21, 2015
TD Discovery Series Spotlights Toronto Jazz Musicians - March 25 to April 30 2015
From a media release:
The TD Discovery Series Presents Live Music and Educational Performances Year-Round
Upcoming Dates:
Wednesday, March 25, 2015 – Alexander Brown CD release, Lula Lounge
Thursday, March 26, 2015 – Robi Botos CD release, Jazz Bistro
Saturday, April 25, 2015 – Tom Richards’ Riverrun 12-Hour Music Marathon, Beit Zatoun
Thursday, April 30, 2015 – Alex Goodman CD release, Jazz Bistro
TORONTO – Bringing fresh jazz to the forefront of the city’s music scene, the new TD Discovery Series will present year-round live music and educational performances featuring some of the best talent in the Toronto scene. Designed by Toronto Downtown Jazz, producers of the TD Toronto Jazz Festival, with the
generous support of TD Bank Group, this new initiative encourages the creation, development, and presentation of unique, new programming by local jazz musicians.
“With the TD Discovery Series, we are excited to foster the development and growth of jazz in Toronto: emerging artists, perhaps unknown to a wider audience, who represent the next generation of outstanding jazz; established artists working on a new or special project; and the students – and their teachers – who will take jazz into the future as musicians, audience members and supporters,” states Artistic Director Josh Grossman.
The TD Discovery Series will include a showcase on Emerging Artists, highlighting upcoming and promising jazz musicians in Toronto. Featuring up close and personal interviews with the artists, these performances will introduce the latest local talents on the jazz scene.
Educational Programs, mainstays of the Toronto Downtown Jazz Society, aim to develop the art of jazz within the community while celebrating and nurturing Toronto’s next generation of jazz musicians and jazz supporters. These sessions, geared toward jazz students, fans and teachers alike, both promote the growth of new pathways in jazz music and solidify the tradition of mentorship in the jazz community.
The Special Projects Initiative provides marketing and public relations support, and awards a bursary to artists who bring original programming to the stage. Determined through a juried process, this year four outstanding recipients have been selected to participate: critically acclaimed pianist Robi Botos; Tom Richards’ Riverrun, who will perform a 12-hour music marathon; Juno nominated guitarist Alex Goodman; and Cuban trumpeter Alexander Brown.
"We're pleased to be supporting some of the outstanding jazz musicians who call Toronto home”, states Grossman. “Promoting an event is a big job and can be time-consuming for an independent musician - especially when preparing for a big show. With the TD Discovery Series Special Projects we're excited to help promote the events, and hopefully we're providing each musician with more time to prepare the music for his project."
All submissions for the Special Projects were reviewed by a panel of judges that included saxophonist, flutist and clarinetist Colleen Allen; Tracy Jenkins, Co-Artistic Director of Lula Music and Arts Centre; bassist, arranger, composer, producer and label owner Peter Cardinali; and musician, producer, artistic director, composer and radio personality, Andrew Craig.
All performances for the TD Discovery Series will be recorded for an engaging online audio-visual experience through www.TDMusic.com and other social media platforms allowing music-lovers to appreciate Toronto’s jazz artists through new and exciting media.
The TD Discovery Series Presents Live Music and Educational Performances Year-Round
Upcoming Dates:
Wednesday, March 25, 2015 – Alexander Brown CD release, Lula Lounge
Thursday, March 26, 2015 – Robi Botos CD release, Jazz Bistro
Saturday, April 25, 2015 – Tom Richards’ Riverrun 12-Hour Music Marathon, Beit Zatoun
Thursday, April 30, 2015 – Alex Goodman CD release, Jazz Bistro
TORONTO – Bringing fresh jazz to the forefront of the city’s music scene, the new TD Discovery Series will present year-round live music and educational performances featuring some of the best talent in the Toronto scene. Designed by Toronto Downtown Jazz, producers of the TD Toronto Jazz Festival, with the
generous support of TD Bank Group, this new initiative encourages the creation, development, and presentation of unique, new programming by local jazz musicians.“With the TD Discovery Series, we are excited to foster the development and growth of jazz in Toronto: emerging artists, perhaps unknown to a wider audience, who represent the next generation of outstanding jazz; established artists working on a new or special project; and the students – and their teachers – who will take jazz into the future as musicians, audience members and supporters,” states Artistic Director Josh Grossman.
The TD Discovery Series will include a showcase on Emerging Artists, highlighting upcoming and promising jazz musicians in Toronto. Featuring up close and personal interviews with the artists, these performances will introduce the latest local talents on the jazz scene.
Educational Programs, mainstays of the Toronto Downtown Jazz Society, aim to develop the art of jazz within the community while celebrating and nurturing Toronto’s next generation of jazz musicians and jazz supporters. These sessions, geared toward jazz students, fans and teachers alike, both promote the growth of new pathways in jazz music and solidify the tradition of mentorship in the jazz community.The Special Projects Initiative provides marketing and public relations support, and awards a bursary to artists who bring original programming to the stage. Determined through a juried process, this year four outstanding recipients have been selected to participate: critically acclaimed pianist Robi Botos; Tom Richards’ Riverrun, who will perform a 12-hour music marathon; Juno nominated guitarist Alex Goodman; and Cuban trumpeter Alexander Brown.
"We're pleased to be supporting some of the outstanding jazz musicians who call Toronto home”, states Grossman. “Promoting an event is a big job and can be time-consuming for an independent musician - especially when preparing for a big show. With the TD Discovery Series Special Projects we're excited to help promote the events, and hopefully we're providing each musician with more time to prepare the music for his project."
All submissions for the Special Projects were reviewed by a panel of judges that included saxophonist, flutist and clarinetist Colleen Allen; Tracy Jenkins, Co-Artistic Director of Lula Music and Arts Centre; bassist, arranger, composer, producer and label owner Peter Cardinali; and musician, producer, artistic director, composer and radio personality, Andrew Craig.All performances for the TD Discovery Series will be recorded for an engaging online audio-visual experience through www.TDMusic.com and other social media platforms allowing music-lovers to appreciate Toronto’s jazz artists through new and exciting media.
Soundstreams presents the Canadian premiere of THE WHISPER OPERA by David Lang February 26–March 1 2015 in Toronto
From a media release:
Canadian premiere: The Whisper Opera straight from NYC and Chicago
Soundstreams presents the Canadian premiere of
THE WHISPER OPERA
Words and music by David Lang
February 26–March 1, 2015
The Theatre Centre
The Pulitzer Prize-winning composer explores the tension between our private and online selves in an opera so intimate it can be experienced by just 52 people at a time.
Toronto – Soundstreams continues its 2014/2015 season with the Canadian premiere of American composer David Lang’s The Whisper Opera at Toronto’s newest live arts hub, The Theatre Centre, from February 26 to March 1. Straight from acclaimed performances in Chicago and New York, this extraordinary, contemplative, and haunting work will have a limited run of just six performances, and also marks the Canadian debuts of soprano Tony Arnold and New York’s International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE).
Inspired by the question “What if a piece were so quiet and intimate and so personal to the performers that you needed to be right next to them or you would hear almost nothing?” The Whisper Opera is David Lang’s response to the immediate accessibility of all music online. In fact, he specifies in his score that the work can
never be recorded, filmed, or amplified: “The only way this piece can be received is if you are there, listening very very closely.” Using a libretto compiled from search-engine responses to such prompts as, “When I think of you, I think of…” and “When I am alone, I always…,” Lang and his performers explore the tension between our private and online selves, encouraging the audience’s 52 members to bask in a soundscape of whispering, murmuring, humming, and movement.
Passionate, prolific, and complicated, David Lang is committed to music that resists categorization, constantly creating new forms. With his winning of the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for the little match girl passion, The New Yorker stated that the post minimalist enfant terrible had “solidified his standing as an American master.” Lang is currently Carnegie Hall’s Chair in Composition,
Professor of Composition at the Yale School of Music, and is co-artistic director and co-founder of New York’s legendary music festival, Bang on a Can.
Reprising their success at Lincoln Centre and Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art, soprano Tony Arnold and New York’s International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) make their Canadian debuts. The Chicago Tribune writes, “Anything sung by soprano Tony Arnold is worth hearing,” while The New York Times hails ICE as “one of the most adventurous and accomplished groups in new music.”
Related Events
ICE will follow their second performance of The Whisper Opera on February 28 with an intimate concert of chamber music at The Theatre Centre exploring the expressive breadth of contemporary music, from the 1960s to the present day. The concert will include a work by Canadian composer Sabrina Schroeder. Check it out herehttp://www.soundstreams.ca/performanc...
Soundstreams’ free Salon 21 at the Gardiner Museum on February 20 at 7:00 pm features an exploration of how we hear and the tricks our ears play on us when listening to music.
The Whisper Opera
Words and music by David Lang
Soundstreams presents an International Contemporary Ensemble production
February 26-March 1, 2015
Thurs Feb 26 at 8pm, Fri Feb 27 at 7pm & 10pm, Sat Feb 28 at 2pm & 7pm, chamber concert at 9pm, Sun Mar 1 at 2pm
The Theatre Centre, 1115 Queen Street West
Jim Findlay, director and designer
Karen Young, costume design
Kelly Moran, stage manager
Featuring:
Tony Arnold, soprano
International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE):
Claire Chase, flutes
Joshua Rubin, clarinets
Kivie Cahn-Lipman, cello
Ross Karre, percussion
Post-show chats will be held after each performance.
• Tickets to The Whisper Opera are $67.50 and are available through The Royal Conservatory Box Office at 416-408-0208 or online at soundstreams.ca.
• Tickets for the chamber concert on February 28 at 9pm are $18 in advance online, and $15 at the door for ages 30 and under or for those with a ticket to The Whisper Opera. General admission. Buy tickets online at soundstreams.ca or at the door.
Canadian premiere: The Whisper Opera straight from NYC and Chicago
Soundstreams presents the Canadian premiere of
THE WHISPER OPERA
Words and music by David Lang
February 26–March 1, 2015
The Theatre Centre
The Pulitzer Prize-winning composer explores the tension between our private and online selves in an opera so intimate it can be experienced by just 52 people at a time.
Toronto – Soundstreams continues its 2014/2015 season with the Canadian premiere of American composer David Lang’s The Whisper Opera at Toronto’s newest live arts hub, The Theatre Centre, from February 26 to March 1. Straight from acclaimed performances in Chicago and New York, this extraordinary, contemplative, and haunting work will have a limited run of just six performances, and also marks the Canadian debuts of soprano Tony Arnold and New York’s International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE).Inspired by the question “What if a piece were so quiet and intimate and so personal to the performers that you needed to be right next to them or you would hear almost nothing?” The Whisper Opera is David Lang’s response to the immediate accessibility of all music online. In fact, he specifies in his score that the work can
never be recorded, filmed, or amplified: “The only way this piece can be received is if you are there, listening very very closely.” Using a libretto compiled from search-engine responses to such prompts as, “When I think of you, I think of…” and “When I am alone, I always…,” Lang and his performers explore the tension between our private and online selves, encouraging the audience’s 52 members to bask in a soundscape of whispering, murmuring, humming, and movement.Passionate, prolific, and complicated, David Lang is committed to music that resists categorization, constantly creating new forms. With his winning of the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for the little match girl passion, The New Yorker stated that the post minimalist enfant terrible had “solidified his standing as an American master.” Lang is currently Carnegie Hall’s Chair in Composition,
Professor of Composition at the Yale School of Music, and is co-artistic director and co-founder of New York’s legendary music festival, Bang on a Can.Reprising their success at Lincoln Centre and Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art, soprano Tony Arnold and New York’s International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) make their Canadian debuts. The Chicago Tribune writes, “Anything sung by soprano Tony Arnold is worth hearing,” while The New York Times hails ICE as “one of the most adventurous and accomplished groups in new music.”
Related Events
ICE will follow their second performance of The Whisper Opera on February 28 with an intimate concert of chamber music at The Theatre Centre exploring the expressive breadth of contemporary music, from the 1960s to the present day. The concert will include a work by Canadian composer Sabrina Schroeder. Check it out herehttp://www.soundstreams.ca/performanc...Soundstreams’ free Salon 21 at the Gardiner Museum on February 20 at 7:00 pm features an exploration of how we hear and the tricks our ears play on us when listening to music.
The Whisper Opera
Words and music by David Lang
Soundstreams presents an International Contemporary Ensemble production
February 26-March 1, 2015
Thurs Feb 26 at 8pm, Fri Feb 27 at 7pm & 10pm, Sat Feb 28 at 2pm & 7pm, chamber concert at 9pm, Sun Mar 1 at 2pm
The Theatre Centre, 1115 Queen Street WestJim Findlay, director and designer
Karen Young, costume design
Kelly Moran, stage manager
Featuring:
Tony Arnold, soprano
International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE):
Claire Chase, flutes
Joshua Rubin, clarinets
Kivie Cahn-Lipman, cello
Ross Karre, percussion
Post-show chats will be held after each performance.
• Tickets to The Whisper Opera are $67.50 and are available through The Royal Conservatory Box Office at 416-408-0208 or online at soundstreams.ca.
• Tickets for the chamber concert on February 28 at 9pm are $18 in advance online, and $15 at the door for ages 30 and under or for those with a ticket to The Whisper Opera. General admission. Buy tickets online at soundstreams.ca or at the door.
From Nacional Records:Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra Celebrates 25th Anniversary With Release of 'Ska Me Forever' (February 10, 2015)
From a media release:
From Nacional Records:
Iconic Band Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra Celebrates 25th Anniversary With Highly-Anticipated Release of 'Ska Me Forever' (February 10, 2015)
• Pre-order/Buy it here
Renowned Worldwide for Explosive Live Performances, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra’s International Following Continues to Grow Through Extensive Global Touring
After decades of performing sold-out shows in Japan and in over 26 countries, legendary band Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra celebrates their 25th anniversary with the U.S. release of their new album, ‘Ska Me
Forever” on vinyl and digital download on February 10th, 2015 with online pre-sale for the album going on now.
Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra’s 19th album boasts a dynamic blend of rock, jazz, ska and punk, and features the lead single “Wake Up!” with Asian Kung-Fu Generation. Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra also puts their playful and diverse spin on fan-favorite covers of Café Tacvba’s 'Eres,' Beethoven’s 'Symphony No. 9,' and the classic Mexican folksong, 'Cielito Lindo.’ Their new release 'Ska Me Forever’ marks a significant milestone for the ever-evolving band who continue to delight and surprise audiences with their music and exciting live shows.
Starting out in the late '80s as a ska revival group playing the streets and clubs of their hometown, the sharply suited Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra quickly became the flag-bearers for the Japanese ska scene. This movement gained popularity in the 1990s and included the arguably more "authentic" ska sounds of the Ska Flames (signed to Gaz Mayall's label in the U.K.) and the Determinations from Osaka. Like those two acts,
Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra's sound is largely instrumental, with powerful, punchy arrangements that re-create the jump-up energy of Jamaican ska originals such as the Skatalites. It's a sound as vibrant as any modern-day ska -- anywhere.
From their beginnings in the late 1980s club scene in Japan, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra rose to fame in their native country and have taken their acclaimed live show worldwide, performing to festival audiences in Europe, the United States and Latin America, including the Warped Tour, Glastonbury, Supersonico, Coachella and Vive Latino.
From Nacional Records:
Iconic Band Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra Celebrates 25th Anniversary With Highly-Anticipated Release of 'Ska Me Forever' (February 10, 2015)
• Pre-order/Buy it here
Renowned Worldwide for Explosive Live Performances, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra’s International Following Continues to Grow Through Extensive Global Touring
After decades of performing sold-out shows in Japan and in over 26 countries, legendary band Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra celebrates their 25th anniversary with the U.S. release of their new album, ‘Ska Me
Forever” on vinyl and digital download on February 10th, 2015 with online pre-sale for the album going on now. Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra’s 19th album boasts a dynamic blend of rock, jazz, ska and punk, and features the lead single “Wake Up!” with Asian Kung-Fu Generation. Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra also puts their playful and diverse spin on fan-favorite covers of Café Tacvba’s 'Eres,' Beethoven’s 'Symphony No. 9,' and the classic Mexican folksong, 'Cielito Lindo.’ Their new release 'Ska Me Forever’ marks a significant milestone for the ever-evolving band who continue to delight and surprise audiences with their music and exciting live shows.
Starting out in the late '80s as a ska revival group playing the streets and clubs of their hometown, the sharply suited Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra quickly became the flag-bearers for the Japanese ska scene. This movement gained popularity in the 1990s and included the arguably more "authentic" ska sounds of the Ska Flames (signed to Gaz Mayall's label in the U.K.) and the Determinations from Osaka. Like those two acts,
Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra's sound is largely instrumental, with powerful, punchy arrangements that re-create the jump-up energy of Jamaican ska originals such as the Skatalites. It's a sound as vibrant as any modern-day ska -- anywhere. From their beginnings in the late 1980s club scene in Japan, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra rose to fame in their native country and have taken their acclaimed live show worldwide, performing to festival audiences in Europe, the United States and Latin America, including the Warped Tour, Glastonbury, Supersonico, Coachella and Vive Latino.
January 8, 2015
Opera, Theatre, Dance & More - Spoleto Festival USA Announces 2015 Season
From a media release:
SPOLETO FESTIVAL USA ANNOUNCES 2015 SEASON
The 39th Season of America’s Premier Performing Arts Festival
is Scheduled for May 22 – June 7 in Charleston, South Carolina
2015 Festival Includes Three World Premieres and Three US Premieres
• Check out the line-up here
CHARLESTON, SC - Festival General Director Nigel Redden has announced the program for the 39th annual Spoleto Festival USA, taking place May 22 through June 7, 2015. Held in Charleston, South Carolina, the Festival includes the world premiere of the opera Paradise Interrupted composed by Huang Ruo and designed and directed by visual artist Jennifer Wen Ma, the American premiere and first performances in over 350 years of Francesco Cavalli’s baroque opera Veremonda, l’amazzone di Aragona, and the first US performances of a new production of Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare’s Globe directed by the company’s Artistic Director Dominic Dromgoole and Tim Hoare.
• Tickets are available January 20 at spoletousa.org or by calling 843.579.3100. A two-week donor pre-sale begins January 6.
Featuring artists from nine countries and across the United States in over 150 performances, the Festival will also present new works by choreographers Shen Wei and Pontus Lidberg and composer Mark Applebaum. New in 2015, the American Express Woolfe Street Series held in the Woolfe Street Playhouse will include the world premiere of What Moves You, an artistic collaboration between The Wall Street Journal Magazine’s 2014 Performing Arts Innovator of the Year dancer Lil Buck and cellist Ashley Bathgate.
Other highlights of the 2015 Festival include Scottish Ballet’s acclaimed production of Tennessee Williams’s A Streetcar Named Desire, performances of influential works by the Trisha Brown Dance Company and Shen Wei Dance Arts, family-friendly productions by Italy’s Carlos Colla Marionette Company and Vietnam’s Golden Dragon Water Puppet Theatre, and Spoleto Festival USA debuts by Australia’s Casus Circus with its acrobatic show Knee Deep and Canada’s 2b theatre company with the award-winning play When It Rains.
Music highlights include Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell in concert, an outdoor concert in the College of Charleston Cistern Yard by jazz singer Dianne Reeves, and the North American debut of Argentine pianist Carlos Aguirre. The Spoleto Festival USA Orchestra will perform a concert of works by Sibelius, Barber, and Tan Dun and will also perform film scores on stage for screenings of Charlie Chaplin’s City Lights and Bill Morrison’s Decasia. Seven-piece soul band St. Paul & The Broken Bones will headline the Wells Fargo Festival Finale at Middleton Place on June 7.
The 17-day Festival showcasing nationally and internationally acclaimed artists in a celebration of opera, theater, dance, physical theater, and music will be opened at noon on Friday, May 22 with a ceremony at
City Hall. The sixth annual Opening Night Fête featuring supper, live music, and dancing will be held at Cannon Green on Spring Street at 8:30pm.
For contributors of $100 or more, Spoleto Festival USA is offering a two-week donor pre-sale beginning January 6, providing exclusive access to tickets and premium seating for the 2015 season. Information on the donor pre-sale can be found at spoletousa.org.
On-site box office operations will again be located at the Charleston Visitor Center at 375 Meeting Street beginning Monday, March 16.
SPOLETO FESTIVAL USA ANNOUNCES 2015 SEASON
The 39th Season of America’s Premier Performing Arts Festival
is Scheduled for May 22 – June 7 in Charleston, South Carolina
2015 Festival Includes Three World Premieres and Three US Premieres
• Check out the line-up here
CHARLESTON, SC - Festival General Director Nigel Redden has announced the program for the 39th annual Spoleto Festival USA, taking place May 22 through June 7, 2015. Held in Charleston, South Carolina, the Festival includes the world premiere of the opera Paradise Interrupted composed by Huang Ruo and designed and directed by visual artist Jennifer Wen Ma, the American premiere and first performances in over 350 years of Francesco Cavalli’s baroque opera Veremonda, l’amazzone di Aragona, and the first US performances of a new production of Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare’s Globe directed by the company’s Artistic Director Dominic Dromgoole and Tim Hoare. • Tickets are available January 20 at spoletousa.org or by calling 843.579.3100. A two-week donor pre-sale begins January 6.
Featuring artists from nine countries and across the United States in over 150 performances, the Festival will also present new works by choreographers Shen Wei and Pontus Lidberg and composer Mark Applebaum. New in 2015, the American Express Woolfe Street Series held in the Woolfe Street Playhouse will include the world premiere of What Moves You, an artistic collaboration between The Wall Street Journal Magazine’s 2014 Performing Arts Innovator of the Year dancer Lil Buck and cellist Ashley Bathgate.
Other highlights of the 2015 Festival include Scottish Ballet’s acclaimed production of Tennessee Williams’s A Streetcar Named Desire, performances of influential works by the Trisha Brown Dance Company and Shen Wei Dance Arts, family-friendly productions by Italy’s Carlos Colla Marionette Company and Vietnam’s Golden Dragon Water Puppet Theatre, and Spoleto Festival USA debuts by Australia’s Casus Circus with its acrobatic show Knee Deep and Canada’s 2b theatre company with the award-winning play When It Rains. 
Music highlights include Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell in concert, an outdoor concert in the College of Charleston Cistern Yard by jazz singer Dianne Reeves, and the North American debut of Argentine pianist Carlos Aguirre. The Spoleto Festival USA Orchestra will perform a concert of works by Sibelius, Barber, and Tan Dun and will also perform film scores on stage for screenings of Charlie Chaplin’s City Lights and Bill Morrison’s Decasia. Seven-piece soul band St. Paul & The Broken Bones will headline the Wells Fargo Festival Finale at Middleton Place on June 7. The 17-day Festival showcasing nationally and internationally acclaimed artists in a celebration of opera, theater, dance, physical theater, and music will be opened at noon on Friday, May 22 with a ceremony at
City Hall. The sixth annual Opening Night Fête featuring supper, live music, and dancing will be held at Cannon Green on Spring Street at 8:30pm.For contributors of $100 or more, Spoleto Festival USA is offering a two-week donor pre-sale beginning January 6, providing exclusive access to tickets and premium seating for the 2015 season. Information on the donor pre-sale can be found at spoletousa.org.
On-site box office operations will again be located at the Charleston Visitor Center at 375 Meeting Street beginning Monday, March 16.
Canadian Stage announces Molly Parker to star in Harper Regan directed by Matthew Jocelyn March 1 - 22, 2015
From a media release:
Canadian Stage announces
Molly Parker to star in Harper Regan
directed by Matthew Jocelyn
March 1 - 22, 2015
• Get Tickets
Toronto, ON – Canadian Stage today announced that film and television star Molly Parker (Deadwood; House of Cards) will take to the stage for the Canadian premiere of Harper Regan at the Bluma Appel Theatre (27 Front St. E.) from Mar. 1 to 22. Parker will play the title role, with direction by Canadian Stage
artistic & general director Matthew Jocelyn whose most recent production THIS (2013) was called, “one of the best plays of this or any other season” by NOW Magazine. Internationally renowned for portraying unconventional characters in both film and acclaimed television programs, this will be Parker’s first live theatre role in 18 years.
Harper Regan is written by English playwright Simon Stephens, known for his Olivier Award-winning adaptation of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and the gritty dramas, Punk Rock and Port. While Stephens’ plays are performed internationally, the production at Canadian Stage will mark the first performance of his work on a main stage in Canada.
Harper Regan follows a woman’s struggle to balance the difficulties of her personal and family life. One autumn evening, after learning of her father’s illness, Harper Regan (Parker) walks away from her job, her home, her husband, her daughter, and doesn’t look back. Harper tells no one where she’s going or whether she’s coming back, putting everything she’s ever worked for at risk. Her journey explores the relationship between death and sexuality, the meaning of loyalty and the bonds of family.
Additional casting for Harper Regan will be announced soon. Tickets from $30 to $99 are available online, by phone at 416.368.3110 or in person at the box office. For additional details visit canadianstage.com.
Website: canadianstage.comTwitter: @CanadianStage; #csHarperRegan
Canadian Stage announces
Molly Parker to star in Harper Regan
directed by Matthew Jocelyn
March 1 - 22, 2015
• Get Tickets
Toronto, ON – Canadian Stage today announced that film and television star Molly Parker (Deadwood; House of Cards) will take to the stage for the Canadian premiere of Harper Regan at the Bluma Appel Theatre (27 Front St. E.) from Mar. 1 to 22. Parker will play the title role, with direction by Canadian Stage
artistic & general director Matthew Jocelyn whose most recent production THIS (2013) was called, “one of the best plays of this or any other season” by NOW Magazine. Internationally renowned for portraying unconventional characters in both film and acclaimed television programs, this will be Parker’s first live theatre role in 18 years.Harper Regan is written by English playwright Simon Stephens, known for his Olivier Award-winning adaptation of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and the gritty dramas, Punk Rock and Port. While Stephens’ plays are performed internationally, the production at Canadian Stage will mark the first performance of his work on a main stage in Canada.
Harper Regan follows a woman’s struggle to balance the difficulties of her personal and family life. One autumn evening, after learning of her father’s illness, Harper Regan (Parker) walks away from her job, her home, her husband, her daughter, and doesn’t look back. Harper tells no one where she’s going or whether she’s coming back, putting everything she’s ever worked for at risk. Her journey explores the relationship between death and sexuality, the meaning of loyalty and the bonds of family.
Additional casting for Harper Regan will be announced soon. Tickets from $30 to $99 are available online, by phone at 416.368.3110 or in person at the box office. For additional details visit canadianstage.com.Website: canadianstage.comTwitter: @CanadianStage; #csHarperRegan
Joe Driscoll & Sekou Kouyate On Tour in the US & Canada - Tour Begins January 29, 2015
From a media release:
Joe Driscoll & Sekou Kouyate
On Tour in the US & Canada - Tour Begins January 29, 2015
• Preview tracks & Buy the CD
• For updates, visit www.cumbancha.com/events
Joe Driscoll & Sekou Kouyate return to North America on the heels of a triumphant debut in 2014. After the release of their acclaimed album Faya by Cumbancha Discovery and a successful tour in the summer of 2014, Driscoll and Kouyate, backed by bassist John Railton and drummer James Breen, bring their electrifying collaboration to venues across
the US and Canada starting January 29th.
The well-worn and often overblown expression "music is a common language" has never been more apropos in the case of Joe Driscoll & Sekou Kouyate. Driscoll contributes the rapping, looping, beatboxing and songwriting talents he developed growing up in Syracuse, New York and during his own successful recording career. Kouyate, already a phenomenon in African music circles, has blown minds and ears with his hypersonic electrified riffs on the kora, bringing the exalted West African harp into the 21st Century with use of distortion peddles, effects and previously-unimagined technical prowess.
"A gloriously accessible collision of styles. It's an unlikely collaboration that works, magnificently.” - The Guardian
2015 TOUR BEGINS JANUARY 29th
Joe Driscoll & Sekou Kouyate
JANUARY
29 Boston, MA Johnny D's
30 Burlington, VT Arts Riot
FEBRUARY
01 New York, NY Joe's Pub
05 Montreal, QC Le Ballatou
06 Ithaca, NY The Haunt
07 Syracuse, NY The Lost Horizon
08 Toronto, ON Lula Lounge
12 Dayton, OH University of Dayton
13 Bowling Green, OH Grounds for Thought
14 Cedar Rapids, IA Legion Arts
15 Minneapolis, MN The Cedar Cultural Center
16 Chicago, IL Mayne Stage
APRIL
23 - 27 Lafayette, LA Festival International
28 Brooklyn, NY BRIC House Stoop Series
MAY
17 Joshua Tree, CA Joshua Tree Music Festival
31 Redway, CA Summer Arts and Music Festival
Joe Driscoll & Sekou Kouyate
On Tour in the US & Canada - Tour Begins January 29, 2015
• Preview tracks & Buy the CD
• For updates, visit www.cumbancha.com/events
Joe Driscoll & Sekou Kouyate return to North America on the heels of a triumphant debut in 2014. After the release of their acclaimed album Faya by Cumbancha Discovery and a successful tour in the summer of 2014, Driscoll and Kouyate, backed by bassist John Railton and drummer James Breen, bring their electrifying collaboration to venues across
the US and Canada starting January 29th.The well-worn and often overblown expression "music is a common language" has never been more apropos in the case of Joe Driscoll & Sekou Kouyate. Driscoll contributes the rapping, looping, beatboxing and songwriting talents he developed growing up in Syracuse, New York and during his own successful recording career. Kouyate, already a phenomenon in African music circles, has blown minds and ears with his hypersonic electrified riffs on the kora, bringing the exalted West African harp into the 21st Century with use of distortion peddles, effects and previously-unimagined technical prowess.
"A gloriously accessible collision of styles. It's an unlikely collaboration that works, magnificently.” - The Guardian
2015 TOUR BEGINS JANUARY 29th
Joe Driscoll & Sekou Kouyate
JANUARY
29 Boston, MA Johnny D's
30 Burlington, VT Arts Riot
FEBRUARY01 New York, NY Joe's Pub
05 Montreal, QC Le Ballatou
06 Ithaca, NY The Haunt
07 Syracuse, NY The Lost Horizon
08 Toronto, ON Lula Lounge
12 Dayton, OH University of Dayton
13 Bowling Green, OH Grounds for Thought
14 Cedar Rapids, IA Legion Arts
15 Minneapolis, MN The Cedar Cultural Center
16 Chicago, IL Mayne Stage
APRIL
23 - 27 Lafayette, LA Festival International
28 Brooklyn, NY BRIC House Stoop Series
MAY
17 Joshua Tree, CA Joshua Tree Music Festival
31 Redway, CA Summer Arts and Music Festival
New from Smithsonian Folkways: New Orleans Brass Bands: Through the Streets of the City (out January 27 2015)
From a media release:
New from Smithsonian Folkways: New Orleans Brass Bands: Through the Streets of the City (out January 27 2015)
• Get an early listen
• Preview/buy
For more than a century, the signature sound of New Orleans has been the brass band — at once a source of celebration, collective expression, and community pride. On January 27th, Smithsonian Folkways will release the newly-recorded collection New Orleans Brass Bands: Through the Streets of the City, bringing together for the first time in one recording three musical generations that represent three dominant styles of
brass bands. Featured are the classic sound of the Liberty Brass Band, the modern-yet-traditional Treme Brass Band, and the funk, rap, and “bounce” influenced Hot 8 Brass Band.
With the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina approaching in 2015, album producer and Liberty Band leader Dr. Michael White believes that the renewed interest in brass band music is due in part to a wider audience appreciating and preserving the history and culture of the region after the natural disaster. Though many musicians lost their lives, instruments, and personal archives in the storm, this album is a testament to the sheer will of these groups to continue despite hardship.
The oldest group on Through the Streets of the City is the Liberty Brass Band, formed in 1985. The six songs they contribute, including the 1911 jazz march “Panama” and one of the best-known traditional jazz songs, “Paul Barbarin’s Second Line,” keep alive the spirit of the early brass bands.
Named after what Dr. White considers one of the oldest traditionally African American neighborhoods in America, Treme Brass Band, founded in 1991, bridges the old and new, ripping though parade favorites like the infectious “Give Me My Money Back,” among others.
For the past 15 years, Hot 8 Brass Band has been one of the most popular and visible funk-style brass bands in New Orleans. Like most of the younger bands, Hot 8’s style blends influences from the Dirty Dozen and Rebirth, with elements from contemporary rhythm & blues, rap, and its local variation, “bounce.” Merging out of two former Fortier High School Groups, the members of Hot 8 grew up together and maintain strong, family-like ties.
While Hot 8 has seen both local and international success and acclaim, they have also experienced serious tragedy. Four original members of the group lost their lives due to street violence and illness, and the band was displaced and scattered across the country during Hurricane Katrina. Upon returning to the city, the band regrouped and continues to maintain a heavy touring schedule, as well as a regular residency in New Orleans.
Hot 8 Brass Band prove why, since forming 15 years ago, they’ve remained arguably the most popular funk-style brass band, with original numbers like hometown ode “New Orleans (After the City)” and the aptly titled “Keepin’ It Funky.”
This recording is the seventh release in the Smithsonian Folkways African American Legacy Series, co-presented with the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
New from Smithsonian Folkways: New Orleans Brass Bands: Through the Streets of the City (out January 27 2015)
• Get an early listen
• Preview/buy
For more than a century, the signature sound of New Orleans has been the brass band — at once a source of celebration, collective expression, and community pride. On January 27th, Smithsonian Folkways will release the newly-recorded collection New Orleans Brass Bands: Through the Streets of the City, bringing together for the first time in one recording three musical generations that represent three dominant styles of
brass bands. Featured are the classic sound of the Liberty Brass Band, the modern-yet-traditional Treme Brass Band, and the funk, rap, and “bounce” influenced Hot 8 Brass Band.With the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina approaching in 2015, album producer and Liberty Band leader Dr. Michael White believes that the renewed interest in brass band music is due in part to a wider audience appreciating and preserving the history and culture of the region after the natural disaster. Though many musicians lost their lives, instruments, and personal archives in the storm, this album is a testament to the sheer will of these groups to continue despite hardship.
The oldest group on Through the Streets of the City is the Liberty Brass Band, formed in 1985. The six songs they contribute, including the 1911 jazz march “Panama” and one of the best-known traditional jazz songs, “Paul Barbarin’s Second Line,” keep alive the spirit of the early brass bands.
Named after what Dr. White considers one of the oldest traditionally African American neighborhoods in America, Treme Brass Band, founded in 1991, bridges the old and new, ripping though parade favorites like the infectious “Give Me My Money Back,” among others.
For the past 15 years, Hot 8 Brass Band has been one of the most popular and visible funk-style brass bands in New Orleans. Like most of the younger bands, Hot 8’s style blends influences from the Dirty Dozen and Rebirth, with elements from contemporary rhythm & blues, rap, and its local variation, “bounce.” Merging out of two former Fortier High School Groups, the members of Hot 8 grew up together and maintain strong, family-like ties.While Hot 8 has seen both local and international success and acclaim, they have also experienced serious tragedy. Four original members of the group lost their lives due to street violence and illness, and the band was displaced and scattered across the country during Hurricane Katrina. Upon returning to the city, the band regrouped and continues to maintain a heavy touring schedule, as well as a regular residency in New Orleans.
Hot 8 Brass Band prove why, since forming 15 years ago, they’ve remained arguably the most popular funk-style brass band, with original numbers like hometown ode “New Orleans (After the City)” and the aptly titled “Keepin’ It Funky.”
This recording is the seventh release in the Smithsonian Folkways African American Legacy Series, co-presented with the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Recently Released: Dave Plaehn - Radio Sister (Independent - December 8, 2014)
Recently Released:
Dave Plaehn - Radio Sister
(Independent - December 8, 2014)
• Buy the album
Radio Sister is a recent release by veteran musician Dave Plaehn. Dave has been a working musician since the 1970's, eventually ending up in Oregon where he now makes his home. Dave has released three albums
as a solo artist since 2008 and plays acoustic blues with slide guitarist, Jeff Hino, as a duo. He's played in a number of blues, rock and reggae bands and all of those stylistic influences show up on this release, his follow up to 2013's critically acclaimed Amos Got Soul.
The album begins with the laidback reggae vibe of I Want Love, a song lit up by a strident sax line. Dave's vocals are languid and sexy on this track - just what's needed along with great backing vocals that nicely contrast his voice. The tracks continue in a jazzy thread with Nothing's Got A Hold On You.
He pays attention to the hooks and has been at the game long enough to make his music harmonically and rhythmically interesting. Dave's lyrics are observations of life and love with a hook at the chorus - the usual territory of songwriters.
Radio Sister by Dave Plaehn
The title track Radio Sister adds a folky element, very melody oriented - his voice here nimbly climbs up and down to a sweet falsetto. The songs enter into standard radio rock territory on tracks like Is Anybody Listening? and Coming To You. On Hello, Melinda and Give me Lovin he returns to tropically infused rhythms to talk about love. Better Things To Do has a bit of a retro rock feel with a straight ahead edge reminiscent of the early 1970's while Soda Fountain reaches back again to an energetic punk/pop core. Love
And Truth slows down with a churchy organ to back up his soulful vocals.
He goes back to his own to blues roots with the Leadbelly Medley, where his voice gains a kind of gravity I would have liked to hear on other tracks. Stranger Blues finishes the collection with his original take on the old school 12-bar blues idiom - complete with a howling harmonica line. (BTW - In 1997 Dave was endorsed as a harmonica player by Hohner, Inc.)
He's an accomplished musician and songwriter whose influences range from blues/roots to reggae and calypso, taking a detour into radio-friendly adult contemporary rock territory. There's enough variety to keep it interesting and enough catchy hooks that'll stick in your head.
Websites:
www.plaehnmusic.com
https://www.facebook.com/PlaehnHino
https://artistecard.com/plaehnhino
All songs except “Leadbelly Medley” were written by Dave Plaehn © 2014 Plaehn Music, BMI
Leadbelly Medley: Looky, Looky, Yonder (Huddie Ledbetter, John A. Lomax, Alan Lomax) / Linin Track (Huddie Ledbetter) / Black Betty (Huddie Ledbetter). All three published by Folkways Music Publishers, Inc.
Radio Sister by Dave Plaehn
Dave Plaehn - Radio Sister
(Independent - December 8, 2014)
• Buy the album
Radio Sister is a recent release by veteran musician Dave Plaehn. Dave has been a working musician since the 1970's, eventually ending up in Oregon where he now makes his home. Dave has released three albums
as a solo artist since 2008 and plays acoustic blues with slide guitarist, Jeff Hino, as a duo. He's played in a number of blues, rock and reggae bands and all of those stylistic influences show up on this release, his follow up to 2013's critically acclaimed Amos Got Soul.The album begins with the laidback reggae vibe of I Want Love, a song lit up by a strident sax line. Dave's vocals are languid and sexy on this track - just what's needed along with great backing vocals that nicely contrast his voice. The tracks continue in a jazzy thread with Nothing's Got A Hold On You.
He pays attention to the hooks and has been at the game long enough to make his music harmonically and rhythmically interesting. Dave's lyrics are observations of life and love with a hook at the chorus - the usual territory of songwriters.
Radio Sister by Dave Plaehn
The title track Radio Sister adds a folky element, very melody oriented - his voice here nimbly climbs up and down to a sweet falsetto. The songs enter into standard radio rock territory on tracks like Is Anybody Listening? and Coming To You. On Hello, Melinda and Give me Lovin he returns to tropically infused rhythms to talk about love. Better Things To Do has a bit of a retro rock feel with a straight ahead edge reminiscent of the early 1970's while Soda Fountain reaches back again to an energetic punk/pop core. Love
And Truth slows down with a churchy organ to back up his soulful vocals.He goes back to his own to blues roots with the Leadbelly Medley, where his voice gains a kind of gravity I would have liked to hear on other tracks. Stranger Blues finishes the collection with his original take on the old school 12-bar blues idiom - complete with a howling harmonica line. (BTW - In 1997 Dave was endorsed as a harmonica player by Hohner, Inc.)
He's an accomplished musician and songwriter whose influences range from blues/roots to reggae and calypso, taking a detour into radio-friendly adult contemporary rock territory. There's enough variety to keep it interesting and enough catchy hooks that'll stick in your head.
Websites:
www.plaehnmusic.com
https://www.facebook.com/PlaehnHino
https://artistecard.com/plaehnhino
All songs except “Leadbelly Medley” were written by Dave Plaehn © 2014 Plaehn Music, BMI
Leadbelly Medley: Looky, Looky, Yonder (Huddie Ledbetter, John A. Lomax, Alan Lomax) / Linin Track (Huddie Ledbetter) / Black Betty (Huddie Ledbetter). All three published by Folkways Music Publishers, Inc.
Radio Sister by Dave Plaehn
December 31, 2014
The Journey Charts The Remarkable Musical Voyage Of Saxophone Bebop Legend Charles McPherson (Capri Records Feb 17 2015)
From a media release:
The Journey Charts The Remarkable Musical Voyage Of Saxophone Bebop Legend Charles McPherson
• CD to be released February 17, 2015 on Capri Records
• Pre-order on iTunes
"Bebop, sharp and driving." - Nate Chinen, The New York Times
"Alto saxophonist/composer Charles McPherson has been playing masterful bop and its extensions for several decades." -Michael G. Nastos, AllMusic
One of the last authentic practitioners of bebop saxophone, Charles McPherson remains at the top of his game. On his new album The Journey, McPherson demonstrates all the vigor, inventiveness, technical dexterity and expressive warmth that drew attention to this brilliant alto stylist during his formative associations with Charles Mingus, Barry Harris, Pat Martino and Art Farmer. The vitality, wit and sheer power of his playing on The Journey belie the fact that McPherson has been in the public eye since the early 1960s. His lyrical and virile improvising throughout the recording asserts that the career upswing that began for McPherson when he added passionate alto statements to the soundtrack of Clint Eastwood's 1998 Charlie Parker bio-pic, Bird, followed by the excellent all-star albums that came in the film's wake, remains in motion. Working with a Denver-based contingent of estimable musicians including saxophonist Keith Oxman, pianist Chip Stephens, bassist Ken Walker and drummer Todd Reid, McPherson demonstrates his laudable command of the bebop idiom, transforming original tunes, songbook standards and bop classics into fresh, invigorating fare.
The origins of The Journey can be traced to a fortuitous meeting that occurred at a musical clinic, featuring McPherson among others, at the Denver, Colorado jazz club Dazzle. There he met the saxophonist and high school instructor, Keith Oxman. Musical encounters with Oxman and local musicians Stephens, Walker and Reid, were so successful that the veteran saxophonist encouraged a recording to document the obvious connection that the five musicians had so quickly established. The April and May 2014 sessions produced a strikingly comfortable blend of standards ("Spring Is Here," "I Should Care"), McPherson originals ("Manhattan Nocturne," "The Journey," "Bud Like"), work from both Oxman and Stephens, and a shout out to McPherson's deepest influence, Charlie Parker ("Au Privave").
Thoroughly comfortable with the intricacies of bebop, Oxman and each of the rhythm team display élan as confident soloists, as an indivisible unit, and as a rock-solid foundation for McPherson. The star altoist - as fluent as ever on brisk bop performances and lyrically pointed on ballads (hear his lovely duet with Stephens on "I Should Care," a standard favored by Parker) - sounds as robust and bursting with ideas as his
devotees, drawn to the authenticity and communicative power of McPherson's characteristic playing, have come to expect.
The presence of another saxophonist adds harmonic and tonal color to the ensemble and further stimulates McPherson's creative juices. Oxman's own "Tami's Tune" is a feature for the tenor saxophonist on which McPherson graciously absents himself, better to train the spotlight on this fine improviser. As McPherson states, "Keith is extremely creative and in possession of a really good technique. But most importantly he has spirituality in his playing, and a depth of feeling that is rare. He should definitely be heard more!" As should McPherson, who, as The Journey clearly exhibits, remains in peak form as he continues his lifelong musical voyage.
http://caprirecords.com/
http://www.charlesmcpherson.com/
The master at a club date early in 2014:
The Journey Charts The Remarkable Musical Voyage Of Saxophone Bebop Legend Charles McPherson
• CD to be released February 17, 2015 on Capri Records
• Pre-order on iTunes
"Bebop, sharp and driving." - Nate Chinen, The New York Times
"Alto saxophonist/composer Charles McPherson has been playing masterful bop and its extensions for several decades." -Michael G. Nastos, AllMusic
One of the last authentic practitioners of bebop saxophone, Charles McPherson remains at the top of his game. On his new album The Journey, McPherson demonstrates all the vigor, inventiveness, technical dexterity and expressive warmth that drew attention to this brilliant alto stylist during his formative associations with Charles Mingus, Barry Harris, Pat Martino and Art Farmer. The vitality, wit and sheer power of his playing on The Journey belie the fact that McPherson has been in the public eye since the early 1960s. His lyrical and virile improvising throughout the recording asserts that the career upswing that began for McPherson when he added passionate alto statements to the soundtrack of Clint Eastwood's 1998 Charlie Parker bio-pic, Bird, followed by the excellent all-star albums that came in the film's wake, remains in motion. Working with a Denver-based contingent of estimable musicians including saxophonist Keith Oxman, pianist Chip Stephens, bassist Ken Walker and drummer Todd Reid, McPherson demonstrates his laudable command of the bebop idiom, transforming original tunes, songbook standards and bop classics into fresh, invigorating fare.
The origins of The Journey can be traced to a fortuitous meeting that occurred at a musical clinic, featuring McPherson among others, at the Denver, Colorado jazz club Dazzle. There he met the saxophonist and high school instructor, Keith Oxman. Musical encounters with Oxman and local musicians Stephens, Walker and Reid, were so successful that the veteran saxophonist encouraged a recording to document the obvious connection that the five musicians had so quickly established. The April and May 2014 sessions produced a strikingly comfortable blend of standards ("Spring Is Here," "I Should Care"), McPherson originals ("Manhattan Nocturne," "The Journey," "Bud Like"), work from both Oxman and Stephens, and a shout out to McPherson's deepest influence, Charlie Parker ("Au Privave").Thoroughly comfortable with the intricacies of bebop, Oxman and each of the rhythm team display élan as confident soloists, as an indivisible unit, and as a rock-solid foundation for McPherson. The star altoist - as fluent as ever on brisk bop performances and lyrically pointed on ballads (hear his lovely duet with Stephens on "I Should Care," a standard favored by Parker) - sounds as robust and bursting with ideas as his
devotees, drawn to the authenticity and communicative power of McPherson's characteristic playing, have come to expect.The presence of another saxophonist adds harmonic and tonal color to the ensemble and further stimulates McPherson's creative juices. Oxman's own "Tami's Tune" is a feature for the tenor saxophonist on which McPherson graciously absents himself, better to train the spotlight on this fine improviser. As McPherson states, "Keith is extremely creative and in possession of a really good technique. But most importantly he has spirituality in his playing, and a depth of feeling that is rare. He should definitely be heard more!" As should McPherson, who, as The Journey clearly exhibits, remains in peak form as he continues his lifelong musical voyage.
http://caprirecords.com/
http://www.charlesmcpherson.com/
The master at a club date early in 2014:
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