Anya M. Wassenberg's Blog: Art & Culture Maven, page 34

Travel Japan: The Artful Craft of Japanese Pottery

From a release:

Travel Japan:
The Artful Craft of Japanese Pottery

Pottery is one of the oldest traditional arts in Japan and a uniquely valued attribute of Japanese culture. Japanese earthenware has been in continuous production for thousands of years, and heavily influenced by the aesthetic art of the tea ceremony. Each region of Japan has its own style renowned across the country with kilns and workshops to visit and make your very own ceramic art.

Echizen Yaki, Fukui

Among the rich variety, the most noteworthy are from The Six Ancient Kilns: Bizen-yaki in Okayama, one of the first to be used in tea ceremony; Seto-yaki in Aichi, the most produced Japanese pottery in Japan; Tokoname-yaki in Aichi; Echizen-yaki in Fukui; Shigaraki-yaki in Shiga; and Tamba-yaki in Hyogo.

Bizen-Yaki, Okayama

Some styles are more ornate, like Kiyomizu-yaki from Kyoto, beautiful and befitting the ancient home of the emperor. Satsuma-yaki in Kagoshima includes highly decorative Korean-influenced porcelain. 

There are also small, authentic pottery communities to visit, like Tokoname in Aichi, Imbe in Okayama, or Onta in Oita, a protected soundscape of Japan, where earth and water are sourced from the mountains and each piece of Onta-yaki is hand made without electricity and signed not by an individual, but with the insignia of the whole village community. 

The most widely practised style in Japan is Raku-yaki, made by hand, without a wheel, and fired at low temperatures for a rougher texture. 

What is so fascinating and beautiful about Japanese earthenware? It is the unpretentious quality, simple, humble, austere by design, its stone-like character splashed with a glaze as poetic as a haiku. 

Kiyomizu-Yaki, Kyoto

When visiting Japan, you can plan a whole trip around the countless opportunities to shop for local pottery, but also visit local kilns and make your own. The largest ceramics fair in Japan is the spring Arita Ceramics Fair in Arita, Saga, where hundreds of stalls line the streets to showcase the variety of local styles at bargain prices. Japanese pottery can be admired from local tea shops to temples. Galleries and museums across Japan are devoted solely to ceramics.

On your next visit, be amazed by the intricate craftsmanship of this ancient living tradition at the Aichi Prefectural Ceramic Museum, Arita Porcelain Park, Bizen Pottery Museum, Kyushu Ceramics Museum, the Museum of Oriental Ceramics in Osaka, and the National Museums in Kyushu, Kyoto, Nara and Tokyo, among others. 

Japanese pottery is an artful piece of Japan to admire, experience, craft and bring home.

Singer Songwriter: F-105 II: Side B (Meriläinen Müsic Inc. - March 23, 2021)

Singer Songwriter:
F-105 II: Side B
(Meriläinen Müsic Inc. - March 23, 2021)

Stream it on Spotify Stream it on Apple

Intimate and honest, F-105 II: Side B is the latest release for the artist also known as Din, formerly of The Soles. 

F-105 II: Side B is a departure for the artist, a loose acoustic album that delves into a more reflective and even meditative side. His self-titled previous release would more accurately be described as tight and melodic alt-rock. 

Recorded live-off-the-floor, the songs on F-105 II: Side B were written and developed live while he was on the road. After a two-year tour taking his music through North America and Europe, the COVID-19 pandemic came crashing down, and the music reflects that experience too.

The songs are reflective, and emotional, with a straightforward approach both musically and lyrically. If I Were About To Die incorporates intriguing vocal harmonies, and Finally Found A Way features a nice fat sound with acoustic guitar and harmonica playing a swingy groove. Bull Out Of The Gate has a country rock edge to it.

Evergreen is the lead track, a love song with a northern geography woven into the words. The song is not afraid to situate itself along the Canadian Shield or Muskoka Waters, like the steadfast evergreen of its title. 

As the liner material notes, “Side B” will be the second half of F-105 II. The first half, F-105 II: Side A, will be recorded and released at a later date. The decision to release B before A comes simply because of instrumentation - a full band will be working on the next/first part. 

After a listen or two, you'll find yourself humming along.

New Federal Theatre Presents: Ma Rose - Free Online March 20-22 2021

From a media release:

New Federal Theatre Presents:
Ma Rose

Premieres Saturday, March 20, 2021 – 7 PM,
Streaming ends, Monday, March 22 @ midnight

More at the link

Free. RSVP Required. Donations Welcome.

rsvp@newfederaltheatre.org

Is the life and mind of Ma Rose, the aging matriarch of a Midwestern African American family, slipping away? She considers her wandering mind and her contact with ancestors an opportunity to gain wisdom and make amends. The family doesn't agree.

Her daughter and son want to take over the family dynasty, but Ma Rose furiously defends her independence. Her favorite granddaughter Rosa is caught in the battle of wills when she is called home from New York, where she is a successful executive, to help convince Ma Rose to accept intervention. 

Ultimately, Ma Rose is awakened to the nostalgia of old memories and confronted with the haunting secrets of her childhood and her family's wounded past. Rosa emerges from the trauma with renewed strength and a legacy of love.

written by Cassandra Medleydirected by Eileen Morrisstage manager: John Scutchinsnarrator: Beethoven Odencostumes: Kathy Robersontechnical director/editor: Bill Toles

Featuring: Denise Burse, Elain Graham, Nambi E. Kelley, Lizan Mitchell , Kim Sullivan

Premieres Saturday, March 20, 2021 – 7 PM,Streaming ends, Monday, March 22 @ midnight

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Americana: New Single By Nancy Wenstrom - Vintage Tears (WCM Records / 12 February 2021)

Americana:
New Single By Nancy Wenstrom - Vintage Tears
(WCM Records / 12 February 2021)

Listen on Spotify

Jangling guitars and harmonica introduce the swingy beat of Vintage Tears. Nancy Westrom's voice is plaintive, with just the right edge for the sad bits, and a sweet high edge for the chorus.

Vintage tears...
I've been storing them up for years.

It has a real flavour of the old West, and a sense of heartbreak, but also release. It's a theme that will run through her next album.

Vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter Nancy Wenstrom was born in Houston Texas, and has been working as a guitarist in the Bay Area for decades. She's been on stage wiht major stars like the Grateful Dead's Bob Weir, Chris Isaac, Grace Slick (American Bandstand), Big Brother and the Holding Company, Norton Buffalo, Maria Muldaur, Mark Hummel, and has opened for Huey Lewis, Joe Cocker and Elvin Bishop. 

She's also an established songwriter who's written for Marty Balin of Jefferson Starship (Rock Justice, EMI records) abd Zakiya Hooker (Next Generation of the Blues) recorded Nancy's song Angel of the Blues.

In her own words:

"My newest release, Vintage Tears, was inspired when texting with a friend about his situation with a woman who cared more for him than he did for her. We came up with the lyric idea of a storm that starts brewing when one has the realization that a love affair isn't going to work out. The song is about the moment one faces these fears, and then the acceptance signified by the release of tears that have been stored up a long time."

The song is the first single from an upcoming album of 10 tracks to be titled Inside Story. all of the songs share a thread of letting go, with rock and blues influences musically. 

The song and album were recorded just before and during the 2020 pandemic at San Francisco's Studio on the Hill with engineer/co-producer Joel Jaffe (Huey Lewis, Sheryl Crow, Bonnie Raitt, Maria Muldaur, Ringo Starr).

Personnel:
Nancy Wenstrom/ composer, acoustic & electric guitars, lead vocals, BVs; Joel Jaffe/ electric slide guitar, BVs; Marc Levine/ bass; Billy Johnson/ drums; Hardy Hemphill/ harmonica

Stay in touch:

Official Website: https://www.nancywenstrom.com/Facebook: https://www.facebook/nancywenstrommusicTwitter: https://www.twitter.com/badswedesongsInstagram: NancyWenstromCatania

New Jazz CD: Bob Salmieri Bastarduna Quintet ...and Mama was a belly dancer (Cultural Bridge - March 7, 2021)

New Jazz CD:
Bob Salmieri Bastarduna Quintet
...and Mama was a belly dancer
(Cultural Bridge - March 7, 2021)

During the COVID pandemic, jazz saxophonist and composer Bob Salmieri put together a new project, the Bob Salmieri Bastarduna Quintet, adding organ, trumpet and vibraphone to his usual instrumentation. 

The results are melodic, and as the liner notes point out, occasionally bluesy. But, "the Mediterranean Culture has had its own Blues for Centuries, in many different shapes and forms: Rebetiko, Neapolitan, Flamenco, Jewish and Arabic music are full of intrinsic “Blues” atmosphere."

Salmieri's sax is the star of the title track, with an appropriately sensual groove that disguises an intriguing series of chord changes. There's a definitely Middle Eastern tinge to the melody and rhythms. 

Going by the titles of the tracks, it's a bit like instrumental storytelling. The vibraphone comes into the fore in the balinese dancer, its pure bell-like tones adding an ethereal layer that contrasts with the jazzy sax and drums. 

madame oculus is a track with driving syncopations and a gorgeous piano part. It's a dramatic piece that showcases the trumpet in a solo. the flying devils is hypnotic, weaving melodies together in a slower mode.

mr thunder is a standout track, a trippy venture into pure jazz. The organ is set against splashy cymbals and unobtrusive bass to open the dwarf's lover with a showcase for keyboard before the horns come in. 

It's a collection of tracks with a warm soul.

Personnel:
ginevra JOYCE: Performer; bob SALMIERI - Sax tenore; giancarlo ROMANI - Tromba;  vincenzo LUCARELLI - Organo Hammond, Rhodes piano; maurizio PERRONE - Contrabbasso; massimiliano DE LUCIA - Batteria

Street Food Hong Kong: Curry Fishballs

Street Food Hong Kong:
Curry Fishballs

Hong Kong is home to too many restaurants to count, including Michelin-starred establishments. Yet, no trip to the city can be considered complete without sampling its famous street food scene. 

Hong Kong street food scene by Michael Kopp from Pixabay

The street food of choice in Hong Kong is always going to be up for debate, but curry fishballs has to be one of the most ubiquitous. It's sold by most of the street stalls you'll find in Causeway Bay, Tusen Wan, Mong Kok, or Sham Shui Po, or any of the neighbourhoods where you'll find the best street snacks at places like the Tung Tat Food Shop (172 Fa Yuen Street, Mong Kok). 

They've actually compiled the stats, and it's said that more than 55 tons of fishballs are consumed in the city every day. The humble fishball - typically served by the skewer and dipped in curry sauce - is also symbolic of the city's Cantonese roots. 

Essentially, the fish is made into paste, and then mixed with starch to make the balls. They're fried, and then cooked in the curry sauce. They're cheap and delicious. 

Public domain image

The dish comes originally from the Chiu Chow and Fujian provinces, and spread through Southern China during the Qing dynasty (1644 to 1912). The original recipe called for the plain fishballs to be served boiled with a noodle soup. It's not known who started frying them for a crispy finish and better flavour, but that's how the street hawkers first began to catch on to the dish. The fishballs are also served on rice with the sauce on top. 

So symbolic has the fishball become of the city that, during anti-government protests back in 2016, police harassment of fishball hawkers in the Mong Kok area sparked bloodshed.

Since we can't travel right now, if you're not near Hong Kong, you can check out how to make them at home:

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra New Album SKA=ALMIGHTY

From a media release:

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra
New Album SKA=ALMIGHTY

LISTEN TO "SKA=ALMIGHTY" HERE

Since their beginnings in the Japanese club scene, TSPO has risen to fame worldwide thanks to their powerful live shows. They have performed at festivals in Europe, the US, and Latin America, including Glastonbury, Supersonico, Lollapalooza,  SXSW, Coachella, and Vive Latino.

Mexico is their second biggest market outside of Japan!

Tokyo Ska's popularity with Latino fans has resulted in several key collaborations with renowned artists like Inspector, Los Auténticos Decadentes, iLe, Monsieur Periné, and Emicida, as well as stellar covers of Mexican classic "Cielito Lindo" and Cafe Tacvba's "Eres”. 

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra are kicking off 2021 with the release of their first album in 2 years, SKA=ALMIGHTY. On this album, mosh pit energy collides with epic horns and high-energy ska. The result is a joyful album that dares you not to get up and skank.

Multiple Exposure:
 
The new album shows off the almighty power of Ska with collaborations with Japanese artists Yoohei Kawakami and Hakushi Hasegawa and one of Latin America’s leading Ska acts, Chile's Moral Distraída, who are featured on "Ribbon", a Spanish-language remake of the Japanese-language song (with 2 million streams) of the same name on 2019's Tokyo Ska-lorful Collage. 
Miss You:

Indie Music: Lyndol Descant - Let It All Krumble (Independent / 18 August 2020)

Indie Music:
Lyndol Descant - Let It All Krumble
(Independent / 18 August 2020)

Stream/Buy It

Composer, singer and pianist Lyndol Descant has crafted an interesting and quirky pop track in Let It All Krumble. She's got a distinctive voice with a sweet high end and a soulful mid-range, and a sense of expression and phrasing that's perfect for the poetic lyrics.

The arrangement ranges from spare keyboard/vocals, intercut with an upbeat tropical-pop sound with irresistible rhythms. 

According to the liner notes, Lyndol is a philosopher and student of metaphysics, her music reflects great depths of love and wisdom. After studying Jazz Piano and Composition in Paris from 2006-2010, she has played and taught music full time in NYC.

The message of the song is about positive acceptance once you let go of the idea of failure. 

Our hearts will feel the change,
Because the truth we will no longer fight...

Stay in touch:

Official Website:   https://lyndol.comFacebook:  https://www.facebook.com/LyndolMusicTwitter:  https://twitter.com/LyndolDescantInstagram:  https://www.instagram.com/lyndoldescant/

Comic Book Legend Jack Kirby's Story Comes Alive In Acclaimed King Kirby Audio Drama

From a media release:

Co-Creator of Captain America, The Avengers, X-Men, Iron Man, Thor & more
Comic Book Legend Jack Kirby's Story Comes Alive
In Acclaimed King Kirby Audio Drama Starring Steven Rattazzi

Find it starting February 10, 2021 at BPN.FM/KingKirby 

NEW YORK, NY; February 10, 2021: Six time Best Selling New York Times author Fred Van Lente and four-time New York Times Critics’ Pick playwright Crystal Skillman, in association with the Broadway Podcast Network, are pleased to announce the premiere of their four-episode mini-series audio drama King Kirby, based on their hit Off-Broadway show by the same name. 

Photo of Jack Kirby taken by Susan Skaar during a session in the studio at Jack's home in Thousand Oaks, CA. The photos were later published in The Art of Jack Kirby (Blue Rose Press, 1993). (CC BY-SA 3.0)

A true-life story about Jack Kirby, the man who co-created the Marvel universe, King Kirby is an epic comic book story of the most famous cartoonist you never heard of. This audio drama features original music composed by award-winning Bobby Cronin (whose other works with Skillman include Mary and Max, Rain and Zoe Save the World, and Concrete Jungle.). The podcast premieres on Wednesday, February 10th exclusively from the Broadway Podcast Network and wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. Find it at bpn.fm/KingKirby.

Heroes aren’t born, they’re made. Born in the Lower East Side slums, a veteran of the battlefields of France, Jack Kirby co-created CAPTAIN AMERICA, THE AVENGERS, THE X-MEN, IRON MAN, THOR, and many other legendary characters. But Kirby had his biggest fight after his comic books became an international sensation: He had to fight for his name, and the recognition he was denied.

 From the Jewish ghetto of New York's Lower East Side to the battlefields of France to the Senate hearings of the 1950s, King Kirby is the heartbreaking yet inspirational story about a man who pours his quintessentially Twentieth Century life into his comics, only to make the fateful mistake that sends him into obscurity while his creations become known to every person on Earth.
The audio drama stars Steven Rattazzi (the voice of Dr. Orpheus from Cartoon Network’s The Venture Bros and Broadway’s  Indecent, Marie Antoinette at Soho Rep, Galileo at CSC, and Stunning at Lincoln Center) as Jack Kirby, Amy Lee Pearsall as his wife Roz, Joseph Mathers as his business partner Joe Simon, Timothy McCown Reynolds as Martin Goodman, and Nat Cassidy as Stan Lee.
Steve Rattazzi as Jack Kirby
Written by the award-winning husband-and-wife team of Skillman and Fed Van Lente (whose previous teams-ups include Webtoon’s Eat Fighter), this is a story for comics fans of the man they never knew behind their favorite superheroes, and for those who have been waiting for Jack Kirby’s story to get its due. A modern-day American Amadeus, King Kirby asks what happens when an artist doesn't own his own legacy? Can he ever get it back? 
Mr Miracle #09 by Jack Kirby (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
The series allows King Kirby to be heard by new listeners all over the world since after its wildly successful New York run in 2016, the play has gone on to win worldwide acclaim:

“Entertaining as it is enlightening.” — Calgary Herald "...An engrossing bio-play." -- Seattle Times, Critics Pick "A pop-culture Death of a Salesman."  -- Smash Pages “One of the best plays I’ve seen all year.” — MD Theatre Guide “Who could guess that a play about the life of the renowned comic book artist, Jack Kirby would be filled with so much humor, pathos, and fact-dropping narrative?” -  DC Metro Arts  "Not only was Crystal Skillman and Fred Van Lente’s “King Kirby” a supple, knowing account of the life of the influential comic artist Jack Kirby, but it was also a fine showcase for Steven Rattazzi, poignant in the leading role.” - The New York Times, Best of Year Review

Instagram: @kingkirbyplay
The Podcast is Available on Apple/iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeart, TuneIn, Deezer, Player.FM, Pocket Cast, Podcast Addict and everywhere else you listen to podcasts.

New Music Video: Nonviolenze - Mirror (Independent/Ahimsa Creations LLC 18 January 2021)

New Music Video:
Nonviolenze - Mirror
(Independent/Ahimsa Creations LLC 18 January 2021)

Mirror is an atmospheric track with a new video from solo artist Nonviolenze. The moody song is lit up by vocal gymnastics, and at times reminds a little of classic Pink Floyd - all anguish and emotion.

Nonviolenze is a solo act - aka Shri Baratan, who has been a musician since his early teens, often combining his music and visual art. In his native India, he was lead vocalist with a pop band, and has worked in musical theatre. He's based on Houston, Texas these days.

The lyrics are best explained by the artist himself (in a media release):

"The Cosmos is a Mirror that reflects the body (gross matter), mind (thought vibrations) and feelings (radiation). You cannot hide from the Cosmic Mirror for it knows your innermost feelings. Everything you perceive is a reflection of you. That which you exhibit ricochets right back to you. Give love and get love. Display fear and it returns as vampires. The Mirror continuously assorts the field of feelings bringing like-characters together. The happy hang out with the happy. The Angry gather and resent together. What a wonder this Cosmic Mirror. What's inside's, Outside."

The single comes from his album Ghosts of War (October 2020), an eclectic collection of songs that cover the singer songwriter gamut from the classic acoustic guitar of the title track to Tree, a song that could come from musical theatre.

Nonviolenze's three-octave voice and its fluid elasticity is the focal point of the release, with a flair for drama and theatricality coming in second.

Social Media:

Official Website: www.nonviolenze.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/nonviolenzeTwitter: https://twitter.com/nonviolenzeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/nonviolenze/