Month: February 2011
Norman Shapiro’s enthusiasm as a translator is felt not only in the versions themselves but also in his introduction and notes. He relishes finding equivalents for Jacques Prévert’s rhyming, which induces him to take some justifiable liberties in regard to the original. The volume is a true labor of love. Préversities: A Jacques Prévert Sampler…
Read MoreTwo recent productions of Shakespeare, one a heralded London staging at the Donmar Warehous heading to New York in April, the other an Actors’ Shakespeare Project presentation in Davis Square, provide examples of the strengths and weaknesses of tackling the Bard without frills.
Read MoreIt’s the 200th birthday of Franz Liszt, and there are concerts, conferences, and projects devoted to the pianist/composer going on all over the world this year. Lisztomania at New England Conservatory is one of a number of parties in the Boston area. The Boston Conservatory is also puttin’ on the Liszt. By Bill Marx In…
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The second half of February offers warm-ups for Mardi Gras, an evening of musical tributes by the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra, and more guitarists than you can shake a pick at.
Read MoreBoomers: part 1 By Harvey Blume. ** He lay there watching names scroll by in his head. Credits on screen, white on black background. Last Waltz Boomers Class Reunion Names. He thinks of names of dogs he had known, also cats, goats, ex-lovers. Most things ex by now, most everything ex. Ex-bladder control. Ex-cardiac tissue.…
Read MoreIn 2002, Iron & Wine debuted with The Creek Drank the Cradle, a brilliant Simon & Garfunkel-meets-Bob Dylan synthesis that caused many to proclaim a folk revival. Since this success, however, I&W’s singer-songwriter Samuel Beam has steadily drifted from his organic folk roots. Kiss Each Other Clean by Iron & Wine. Warner Brothers. By Michela…
Read MoreAlthough its interior says 21st century, the Shalin Liu Performance Center has a homespun, American 19th-century facade that made me think of Mark Twain and the provincial opera houses of the California Gold Rush. Care was taken to reference the original Haskins Building that once housed a clothing store called Madras and the local yacht…
Read MoreAs long as the wizardly spell of dramatist Mark O’Rowe’s creative versification stays strong, Terminus holds you firmly in its slip-slimy grip. The nimble verse is rappy and snappy, a sort of slangy, obscene, sing-song rhyme (with some breath-taking vocal syncopation) that accentuates rather than undercuts the dark doings of the play, at least for…
Read MoreWith Returnal, Daniel Lopatin proves that noise can be beautiful and original. The album is a piece of (Neo?) New Age psychedelia, taking cues from the electronic experiments of the Berlin School. Returnal by Oneohtrix Point Never. Editions Mego By David Cooper In Returnal, Oneohtrix Point Never (OPN), aka Daniel Lopatin, advances the stagnant noise…
Read MoreUPDATE: Either/Orchestra’s 25th anniversary concert comes to New York—an unforgettable confluence of talent revisiting more than two decades of memorable compositions and arrangements.
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Music Commentary: New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Fest versus French Quarter Fest