Page 348 - Demo
P. 348


                                    n %u25a1 RESTAURANTn i^ S t f n T n V S ^LK2X2JU UUWe Will Be ChangingTo Our Hearty Winter MenuIn DecemberFresh Game Will Be FeaturedDinner Tuesday%u2014 SaturdayBrunch All Day Sunday448 Atlantic A ve., Brooklyn, NY 11217 237-2271OOP^peCAKL KOWOAM954 <%u00a3*QyCc Oh/uofovA wtvk.W6LIW F ToWQgySTuK IT , Suce IT. %u00a3r P\\JT\\T BAC*. OM f n t .H *iv \\S -T o o J-------------------------------. . aNew American and Regional Cuisine71 Seventh Ave., BrooklynEarly Fail MenuNow Sunday Dinner 4-9:30Different Menu each SundayFor Reservations 718-230-8450Cocktails %u2022 Steaks %u2022 Chops Seafood %u2022 Catering %u2022 All Baking Done on PremisesOnly 2 blocks from the Brooklyn Academy of MusicOpen 7 days%u20145:30am -M idnight; Fri., Sat. till 2am515 Atlantic Ave. (at 3rd Ave.) %u2022 625-0883 0984Since 1868Fine Cuisine in one of the oldest and most beautifully preservedHours. Wednesday thru Sunday 5 to ll pinM B H o y t S tre e t C o r n e r o( B erg en St reelReservations 875-9391L E O N . F A L E T LTD.FINE WINE & SPIRITS88 SEVENTH AVE(jeiween BERKELEY & UNIONMONDAY SATURDAYIO a v 9 p M '('718) 857-7008pwpMpt (ree local dslivERycklivEfty ittRouqkxji N.y.svia ups'Prosit m e cos**; beck soTMf w m kft.6Boerum Hill CafePage 16, THE PHOENIX, November 27,1986If YouCan W riteAbout TheArts, W e%u2019veGot SpaceFor YoutOver the past decade ThePhoenix has won moreawards for Its arts reporting and coverage thanany other newspaper intown. And with the booming growth of Brooklynbased arts activity we areconstantly challenged tomore and better coverage.That%u2019s why we are seekingto add new writers andcritics to our roster offree-lancers for the seasonahead, if you%u2019ve got thewriting skills and thecritical eye, we would liketo hear from you.We are particularly seeking people who havedemonstrated journalismabilities in: the areas ofclassical music and jazz;writing about dance; reporting and writing about thevisual arts; the indepsndent and experimental filmscene; book publishingand small press scene.If you want to be considered for free-lanceassignments on Brooklynstories in these fields,please send us a letterabout your backgroundand skills with somepublished samples of yourWriting.W rits to:Arts Editor,The Phoenix,395 Atlantic AvenueBrooklyn 11217(No Call* Pleas%u00ae)k r %u2014 ....................... - .............................w %u00a7P B %u2122 fIXEclectic Bru Plays At St. lamesContinued from Page 15and maybe a tad enviously %u2014 as the groupimprovises, laughs at musical inside jokesand digs into the music.Like a good taskmaster, Gloyd appreciates the value of humour and goodnatured teasing. He takes a few opportunities to scold Brubeck jokingly for actinglike someone special, or mocks his own pellmell style when the baritones point out inconsistent instructions and catch Gloydmomentarily dumbfounded. Once he callsfor a measure that includes the final note oftenor Mark Bleeke%u2019s solo. After a strongdelivery of his note, the singer sits andreceives mock applause from the chorus forhis powerful performance.As this final rehearsal draws to its dose,the levity is especially important to breakup, just for an instant, the frenzied pace.Brubeck stays at the piano to keep an eyeon things.%u201cIt%u2019s there,%u201d he remarks, pleasantly surprised at a particular choral passage,%u201cthank God ... I forgot I wrote it.%u201dWhile singers and conductor brainstormand experiment with delivery of a particular note, Brubeck suggests, %u201cthey couldhit it and come down.%u201d After one try, helooks up from the piano where his fingersshadowed what he wanted to hear over thekeys and exclaims, %u201cthat%u2019s it,%u201d with an infectious, child-like glee that sparks the performers.Gloyd relinquishes the musicians reluctantly %u2014 first the chorus departs, then thestrings, percussion, brass and finally thesoloists. %u201cIt%u2019s going to be sensational,%u201d heinforms me, stepping down from thepodium, %u201cthis is a wonderful group.%u201dHARD WORK PAYS OFFAs it turns out, he was right. The performance was, for the most part, sensational,m e program centered on two sacred piecesof Brubeck%u2019s, %u201cPange Lingua Variations%u201dand %u201cTo Hope! A Celebration.%u201d The musicblended medieval and classical styles ofsacred music with elements of jazz, Latin,modem and other influences. While admiring both the conception and execution of themusic, his command of sacred and secularstyles and his inventiveness in forging newones, Brubeck%u2019s music itself, however, didnot finally attain the inspirational heights towhich is aspired.%u201cPange Lingua,%u201d based on the Sixth Century Roman hymn, opened with a quartetdelivering the gorgeous, lilting lines ofGregorian chants. The solemn chantingreturned as a refrain between each of thesix variations, serving both to root and transition the more complex sections.The variations, while rooted in the tradition of sacred choral music, explored manydirections. In the first, shifting temposhinted at the jazz and modem tonalities thatcolored the mass-like structure. In another,a melancholy passage of chorus and stringsmelted into a relaxed rainy-day piano soloand mellow trio. In a third, sharp, martialpercussion gave way to a jazzy syncopationas the orchestra and chorus joined in.The moods and combination of playerswere diverse and continually shifting, yetthe overall feel of the piece was constrainedby Brubeck%u2019s often superficial and overlysentimental sensibilities. There were manyevocative and original moments %u2014 particularly the choral work %u2014 but they did notoutweigh the overall uncompelling aspirations.The jazz trio performance that closed thefirst half was much in the same vein %u2014 itoffered much to admire but was finally uncompelling. A rag-like piano openingbecame Gershwin%u2019s %u201cSummertime,%u201d whichthe trio cooked up into a relaxed swing.Chris Brubeck%u2019s bass solo, and his playingmuch of the night, was a highlight. Heworked that electric bass until it sung. Randy Jones%u2019 drumming was nearly impeccable, and in a solo during a martial variation on %u201cPange Lingua%u201d he packed all hecould, including some dazzling snare rolls,into that limited form.RICH AND INVENTIVE%u201cTo Hope! A Celebration%u201d is a rich andinventive, if still uninspiring, work. Hereeven the packed house could not keep thepercussion sounds from jumping out infront, nor the singing, piano and some otherinstruments from sounding as if they wereat the other end of a gym.%u201cTo Hope!%u201d did offer its share of gloriousmoments, though, and the players missedno opportunity to deliver the message. Interplay between the chorus and sections ofthe orchestra %u2014 the strings, brass and percussion, in turn %u2014 were especially strong.The diverse demands for percussion, fromThe ch o ra l w o rk was th e highp o in t o f th e p iece. B ru b eckp ro v id e d som e lo velypassages an d excepting a fe ww eak spots, th e chorusd e liv e re d m e m o ra b le m usic.maracas to chimes to xylophone, were metwith assurance and sensitivity. The orchestra played its role almost perfectly,molding its sound around the chorus andcoming into conspicuousness when it wascalled for.The choral work was the high point of thepiece. Brubeck provided some lovely andmonumental passages and, excepting a fewweak spots where acoustical problems gotthe best of performance problems, thechorus delivered some memorable music.The soloists, including tenor Bleeke,soprano Nadia Pelle and baritone KevinDeas, when heard, were enchanting.Brubeck deserves credit for breathingsome new life into the mass form. As he explains, %u201cthe piece remembers the Latin andthe Greek; it is Middle Eastern and MiddleEuropean; it is Native American andHispanic. It is a musical symbol of whatAmericans are. It is a hope rooted in livingfaith.%u201dMuch of this is true %u2014 the piece blends allthese musical elements and more, and it isa testament to the diversity of traditions.Yet the final feeling is more of a spectaclethan soulful inspiration, just as the feelingfrom his jazz is more fun and facility thanthe souful depths that make jazz so powerful. The Cathedral audience, totallyunaware of the 36-hour miracle that broughtthis music to life, found enough to be inspired to a rousing standing ovation.CHORAL CONCERT: Next on itsschedule, the Haydn-Mozart Chamber Orchestra will join the Grace Choral Societyfor performances of Bach%u2019s BrandenburgConcerto No. 3, Vivaldi%u2019s %u201cMagnificat%u201dand selections from Bach%u2019s B-minorMass. Performances are December 7, at4pm, at Grace Church, Hicks andJoralemon Streets; December 13, at7:30pm, at Old First Church, SeventhAvenue and Carroll Street; andDecember 14, at 4pm, at St. Jacobi%u2019sChurch, Fourth Avenue and 52nd Street.Tickets are $7 in advance, $8 at the door.For information, call 783-4235.Spoleto Founder Celebrates With BAMThe Brooklyn Academy of Music%u2019s annualChamber Music series will cross newborders this month, when it merges withthe international Spoleto Festival for%u201cSpoleto Comes to BAM.%u201d The series willopen this month on Dec. 13 with a salute todie 75iii uiruiuay of Spuieiu s founder, composer Gian Carlo Menotti, who will co-hostthe festivities.The connection between BAM and Spoletois more than a casual collaboration. Thefestival, begun in Spoleto, Italy, now takesplace in Charleston, South Carolina as wellFlutist Paula Robinson and her husband,violinist Scott Nickrenz, directors of%u201cSpoleto Comes to BAM,%u201d have been involved with programming and performingchamber music both in Brooklyn andwwi icduni.The BAM series will host seven chamberconcerts through May, 1987, running thegamut from baroque to minimalism. Thetribute to Menotti, as much a homecomingas a special event, will be December 13.
                                
   342   343   344   345   346   347   348   349   350   351   352