REVIEW: Mahaiwe, John Pizzarelli Big Band

Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, Great Barrington, MA

www.mahaiwe.org

December 7, 2019

by Lisa M. Covi

John Pizzarelli

John Pizzarelli Big Band packed the Mahaiwe for what is an annual show. Pizzarelli vocalized with his jazz guitar while fronting a 16-piece orchestra that performed fresh takes on classic, but wide-ranging selections. A consummate entertainer, Pizzarelli connected with familiar fans and new audience members via stories of his distinguished career, amusing patter and even a vaudevillian “spit-take.” His repertoire, customized arrangements of American songbook classics, conveyed his group's mastery of swing, call and response, and tight improvisations.

Some featured performers included Andy Fusco, a saxophonist who previously played with Buddy Rich, John Mosca on trombone, and Konrad Pazkudzki on piano. Pizzarelli's wife, Jessica Molaskey, who appears with him on his weekly “Radio Deluxe” show and contributed lyrics to his arrangement of Tizo's “Perdito,” was unfortunately home with a cold and did not appear. Pizzarelli dominates with his personality and performance, but he is also quick to credit contribution and skill to his band.

Aside from the novelty selection “I Like Jersey Best,” little of the music was composed less than 50 years ago. Another exception, “Nat King Cool” from the 2019 album, “For Centennial Reasons,” is the third tribute he's released to the iconic jazzman that inspired Pizzarelli. At the top of the show, Sinatra-style vocals on “Love is Here to Stay” was a little slow for my taste, but I was swept away by Brandon Lee's soulful trumpet solo and the sweet quote at the end of the song. The first set ended with Holiday selections such as Leroy Anderson's “Sleigh Ride,” substituting rhythmic horn bleats for the famous whip crack. The second set started with several Johnny Mercer pieces including a particularly expressive performance of “Come Rain, Come Shine.” During a pause in Duke Ellington's “C. Jam Blues,” toe tapping in the audience was audible.

Improvisations tended to be note-heavy and fast in tempo. During several call and response passages, the musicians seamlessly passed the solos back and forth. Each instrument was separately amplified and the mixer let us hear the highlighted musicians with only a few slips. Pizzarelli's voice was a bit nasal at first but within the first few numbers opened up as he demonstrated his mastery of scatting the notes he plays with technical proficiency. Overall, the evening was dependably and vastly enjoyable entertainment by dynamic performers who brought New Jersey charm with stylistic big band flair. The energy, enthusiasm, and swing of Pizzarelli's Big Band made timeless songs relevant and real.

REVIEW: Hartford Symphony Orchestra, Chopin, and Franck

Hartford Symphony Orchestra, Hartford, CT

www.hartfordsymphony.org

December 6-8, 2019

by Michael J. Moran

For the third Masterworks program of the HSO’s 76th season, guest conductor Laura Jackson, Music Director of the Reno Philharmonic, selected three nineteenth-century masterpieces with strong musical connections to Paris, France.

The concert opened with the best-known work by lifelong Parisian teacher and composer Paul Dukas, “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.” Based on a poem by Goethe and dating from 1897, the 11-minute symphonic poem was featured in Walt Disney’s movie “Fantasia,” where Mickey Mouse memorably portrayed the hapless title character. The gracefully kinetic Maestra and her musicians played the colorful score with brilliance and conviction.

Daniela Liebman

This was followed with a captivating HSO debut by seventeen-year-old Mexican pianist Daniela Liebman in an elegant performance of Chopin’s second piano concerto. Though written by the nineteen-year-old composer in 1829, a year before he left his native Warsaw for Paris, it reflects both his Polish heritage and the delicacy of French musical style. Combining technical finesse with remarkable interpretive maturity, Liebman brought majesty and vigor to the opening “Maestoso” movement, tenderness to the lyrical “Larghetto,” and jubilance to the mazurka-like closing “Allegro.” Conductor and orchestra offered full-bodied support throughout.

An enthusiastic standing ovation brought Liebman back to the keyboard for a generous encore, Chopin’s 8-minute third Ballade, in a dazzlingly intense rendition. An overhead camera helpfully projected her finger work in both pieces on a large screen behind the stage of the Bushnell’s Belding Theater.

The program closed after intermission with a blazing account of the once popular but now rarely heard (as Jackson lamented in brief introductory comments – this was also the HSO’s first-ever performance of it) Symphony in D minor by Belgian-born, Paris-based teacher, organist, and composer Cesar Franck. Written in 1888, the distinctive lush harmonies of its three lengthy movements all grow out of a three-note motif that opens the symphony.

Jackson’s pliant baton lingered over quiet slow passages between dramatic peaks in the opening “Lento-Allegro,” led HSO principal harpist Susan Knapp Thomas and principal horn Barbara Hill through a radiant duet in the alternately lilting and scurrying “Allegretto,” and threw caution to the winds in a joyous “Allegro” finale.

The appreciative audience made it clear that this animated and resourceful conductor would be welcomed back to Hartford anytime.

REVIEW: St. Michael’s Players, Oliver!

St. Michael’s Players, East Longmeadow, MA

https://stmichaelsplayers.wixsite.com/stmichaelsplayers

through November 24, 2019

By Stuart W. Gamble

Attending the performance of Lionel Bart’s treasured musical adaptation of Charles Dickens’ novel, Oliver Twist” is truly a community event.

Directed with professional panache by Frank Jackson along with Assistant Director/Producer Rose Stella, this familiar story and staple of the musical theater is brought to vivid life by an extremely enthusiastic and talented cast.

The oft-told tale of Oliver Twist (terrifically sung and acted by Gavin Grout) takes the audience through the young boy’s episodic childhood starting as an orphanage inmate (beige prison-like uniforms and grey-brick walls were reminiscent of a workhouse prison).

Ultimately rescued by the Artful Dodger (scrappy Emma Linehan), Oliver is tutored in the art of pick pocketing by the sly Fagin (wonderfully played by Peter Hicks) and eventually finds a loving home with the wealthy Mr. Brownlow (John Laviolette).

St. Michael’s Players gives such fresh life in their interpretation of “Oliver!” that it felt like it was a brand-new show, despite its over 50 -year existence. The well-played and sung roles are to be commended. The jaunty, on the beat entrance of the young orphans singing their hearts and empty stomachs out for “Food” starts the show with a bang.

Peter Scully’s deeply resonant bass and Sue McNary’s lilting soprano make a comic duo. Melissa Butcher’s sensitive portrayal of the tragic Nancy powerfully belts out “As Long as He Needs Me,” “It’s A Fine Life,” and rousing “Oom Pah- Pah” – the latter with beer hall denizens that were true showstoppers.

Peter Hicks’ Fagin earns a well-deserved ovation for his eleventh-hour soliloquy “Reviewing the Situation.” AJ Berube’s intense Bill Sikes adds just the right menacing tone and the most authentic cockney accent in the cast.

The more than 50 cast members fill the stage for “Consider Yourself” and “Who Will Buy?” aided by the simple, yet clever choreography of Courtney Normand and the steady underscoring of the seven-piece orchestra led by Frank Jackson. Karen Bonci’s colorful and authentic Victorian costumes might benefit dirtied-up to create gritty atmosphere. Sue Maciorowski and Jackson’s set designs are the perfect backdrop with bits of London’s St. Paul’s Cathedral peeking out.

Despite the obvious warmth and sentimental love infused into the musical, themes of child exploitation and human trafficking are just as disturbing now to contemporary audiences as they were for readers in Dickens’ time.

The theatre posts a sign that a portion of “Oliver!” proceeds will go to Christian’s House for Battered Women. St. Michael’s truly walks the walk.

REVIEW: Hartford Symphony Orchestra, Brahms and Haydn

Hartford Symphony Orchestra, Hartford, CT

www.hartfordsymphony.org

November 15-17, 2019

by Michael J. Moran

While familiar works by Brahms and Haydn were played in the second Masterworks program of the HSO’s 76th anniversary season and Carolyn Kuan’s 9th season as their Music Director, the centerpiece of the program was actually a new work by Christopher Theofanidis. The Maestra’s canny sense of programming connected the three pieces in unexpected but enlightening ways.

The concert opened with a vibrant account of Brahms’s “Variations on a Theme of Joseph Haydn.” Research after its 1873 premiere suggests that the theme that opens and closes the work was not even written by Haydn, but it has retained its title as one of Brahms’s most popular works. Kuan and the orchestra drew strong contrasts among the varied moods and tempos of the eight variations, culminating in a jubilant triangle-tinged closing outburst of color.

Percussion Collective

That triangle was not among the huge array of percussion instruments showcased in a brilliant performance of Yale music professor Theofanidis’s compulsively listenable “Drum Circles.” Co-commissioned by the HSO, the 2019 piece features a solo percussion quartet and three percussionists from the orchestra. Four members of the Percussion Collective – Svet Stoyanov, Doug Perry, Ayano Kataoka, and Victor Caccese – played a range of instruments focused around bells, marimbas, and drums.  

Five short movements with thought-provoking titles like “Sparks and Chants” and “How Can You Smile When You’re Deep in Thought?” evoked a glittering range of sounds from the agile soloists, who were in almost constant motion from one instrument to another throughout the 25-minute piece. An arrangement by composer Garth Neustadter of a tango by Astor Piazzolla was an imaginative and crowd-pleasing encore.

The concert closed after intermission with a joyous rendition of Haydn’s next-to-last symphony, No. 103. Dating from 1794, its opening drum roll (the source of its nickname), dramatically played by HSO principal timpanist Eugene Bozzi, made it sound much newer to an audience with “Drum Circles” still ringing in its ears. While missing the Haydn theme used by Brahms, the variations on two folksongs in its “Andante” second movement echoed the form and feeling of the Brahms opener. An expressive opening “Allegro” movement, a lilting “Menuetto,” and a jubilant finale closed a smartly integrated program on a high note.

REVIEW: The Bushnell, Hello, Dolly!

The Bushnell, Hartford, CT

www.bushnell.org

through Nov. 17, 2019

By Stuart W. Gamble

Photo by Julieta Cervantes

Eager theatergoers braved frigid temperatures to be wowed by the warmth of Jerry Herman’s joyous score and Michael Stewart’s farcically fun story, that is Hello, Dolly. By evening’s end, the orchestra swayed the audience out of the house, re-iterating the score to the accompaniment of impromptu singing and humming. Even the trumpeter who rattled out the title tune in front of the theater made viewers forget the cold night air and take in the joie de vivre that is the essence of this perennial favorite.

This reviewer was fortunate to have enjoyed the recent Broadway revival featuring Bette Midler and the Boston show with Betty Buckley. This marathon tour stars multiple Tony nominee Carolee Carmello, who ably fills their shoes. Carmello’s Dolly is funny, ebullient, and a songstress without equal. Her Dolly smiles and connives her way into the hearts of both the audience and especially the crusty, half-a-millionaire Horace VanDerGelder (John Bolton), who is a perfect match for Carmello. Other cast members of note include Analisa Leaming as Irene Malloy, whose thrilling soprano matches her natural beauty and her comic flair. Sean Burns as Barnaby Tucker is a phenomenal performer: he sings, dances, and clowns around with astronautic zeal. Burns and Daniel Beeman’s Cornelius Hackl work in comedic tandem doing double and sometimes triple takes to the audiences’ delight.

Hello, Dolly! Is the kind of show in which one recalls memorable moments, due to its episodic dramatic structure.  There is the joyous “Put on Your Sunday Clothes” number at the Yonkers’ Train Station, with the ensemble seeming to float across the stage, twirling their parasols and tipping their bowler hats costumed by Santo Loquasto, looking like violet, yellow, aqua, pink, and blue dyed Easter eggs. The grandiose and off-kilter courtroom, also designed by Loquasto features Cornelius and Irene’s tender 11th hour ballad “It Only Takes a Moment.” Also of note is the cotton candy pink Molloy’s Millinery where Cornelius and Barnaby frantically outwit Vandergelder with the help of Irene, Minnie, and Dolly. Finally, there is, of course, the dazzling title number featuring raven-gowned and diamond-studded Dolly and the prancing and leaping wait staff at the Harmonia Gardens, whose whirling dervish-like spectacular dancing earned a minute-long audience ovation.

This staging of one of musical theater’s most beloved shows is indeed a memorable one. Though ably supported by the incredibly talented cadre of singers, dancers, and comedians, it belongs to the titular star. Carolee Carmello is that rare performer who can touch our hearts when singing the rousing anthem “Before The Parade Passes By” and tickle our funny bone when clownishly devouring a turkey leg and slurping and gargling gravy while popping down a dozen dumplings at the elegant Harmonia Gardens. This extended scene is priceless, as is the entire production.

REVIEW: Opera House Players, Matilda

Opera House Players, Enfield, CT

www.operahouseplayers.org

through November 24, 2019

by Tim O’Brien

One of the pleasures of reviewing is the occasional ability to contrast professional productions with those of community theater groups. I was fortunate to review a touring production of Roald Dahl’s “Matilda – The Musical” at Hartford’s Bushnell in 2016. And thus, it was not far from my mind for the Opera House Players’ opening night.

In a word, my 6th-grade daughter and I were delighted to see how well a non-professional presentation of this charming script could be executed by a cast of gifted amateurs.

For those unfamiliar with the plot, budding 5-year-old genius Matilda must find a way to rise above her own family of dullards and a school ruled by a monstrous headmistress while coming to terms with her own prodigious intellectual gifts.

The troupe of students hit the opener “Miracle” with great energy, and we settled back happily, knowing this would be a treat. And we weren’t disappointed: across the board, director Becca Coolong, musical director Devon Bakum, and choreographer Krista Leigh Brueno have molded their mostly young actors into a solid, versatile unit. The staging for “Matilda’s” signature “Quiet” is particularly impressive.

Standout performances: young Camille Dziura nails the title role with a perfect blend of winsome and naughty and handles the heavy load of lines and lyrics like a pro. Erin Dugan (Miss Honey) is earnestly sweet and shows the best voice of the cast. Trish Barry (Miss Trunchbull) – while a physically smaller person – nonetheless rules the school with an iron fist.

The few flaws are technical and easily forgiven on an opening night. Set changes could have been crisper overall. The talented band’s volume was frequently too loud for the performers’ lyrics to come through clearly, and Mark Proulx (Mr. Wormwood’s) body mic often scratched intrusively against his face.

“Matilda” is an engaging, enduring story of identity and finding oneself, and the Opera House Players have done Roald Dahl proud.

REVIEW: Springfield Symphony Orchestra, Passionate Performances

Springfield Symphony Hall, Springfield, MA

www.springfieldsymphony.org

November 2, 2019

by Michael J. Moran

In his “Reflections” on the second concert of the SSO’s 76th season and his own 19th season as their music director, Kevin Rhodes cites no other unifying theme for the three pieces on the program than perhaps the best one of all – the “passion” of the performers to play them.

Continuing the orchestra’s ongoing series of works by American women composers, the evening began with Missy Mazzoli’s “Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres),” a 2016 piece which the young New York-based composer calls “music in the shape of a solar system.” Featuring harmonicas played by brass section members to make the ensemble sound, in Mazzoli’s words, like “a makeshift hurdy-gurdy flung recklessly into space,” the SSO and Rhodes made it nine minutes of shimmering, playful adventure.

Viktor Valkov

In a smashing SSO debut, rising Bulgarian-born pianist Viktor Valkov next gave a brilliant account of what Rhodes calls Tchaikovsky’s “unduly neglected” but “absolutely amazing” second piano concerto in its own first SSO performance. Conceived on a grand scale, the 47-minute 1880 piece opens with a commanding fanfare, and the vigorous “Allegro” first movement includes a huge (six-minute) solo piano cadenza. In the luminous “Andante,” concertmaster Masako Yanagita and principal cellist Emily Taubl eloquently soloed with Valkov as a piano trio. He played throughout, including the short and fleet finale, with dazzling technique and interpretive depth, forcefully backed by orchestra and conductor.  

The program closed after intermission with Brahms’s magisterial fourth and last symphony. Rhodes calls this 1885 masterpiece “perhaps the most perfect of works by the man who has no single measure which is not perfect.” From an autumnal opening “Allegro” through a quietly reflective “Andante” and a surprisingly exuberant scherzo to a somber closing series of variations over a ground bass theme, the maestro and his musicians presented a powerfully convincing rendition.

One reason why Rhodes is so beloved in Springfield was on particular display tonight. His engaging and informative spoken introduction to the Mazzoli piece, including brief snippets played by selected orchestra members, and his clear explanation of the ensemble’s new seating arrangement, kept the capacity audience at rapt attention all evening long.