A singer’s love of language: Luciana Souza comes to Royce Hall
It’s been a recurring pleasure to chart the creative arc of Brazilian singer and songwriter Luciana Souza through her SoCal appearances over the years. We remember Jazz Bakery evenings where she held the room spellbound with a tempered vocal delivery on jazz-rooted arrangements and musical interaction. Souza’s clear soprano uses volume judiciously: she can send ...
Mazowsze, the Polish folkloric dance troupe inspiring ‘Cold War’
Director Pawel Pawlikowski‘s visually beautiful and emotionally gripping Cold War, which opens December 21, rises from the ruins of post-war Poland where is set a seemingly impossible love story. Cold War earned Pawel Pawlikowski the Best Director award at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival. In the film produced by Amazon Studios, two fictional lovers meet ...
Gloria Cheng’s garlands for new music in Los Angeles
Nov
12
2018
Ed. note: The great and gracious pianist Gloria Cheng is a guest contributor to the blog, with an excerpt from an essay she herself penned recounting the scene for new music in Los Angeles. “Only in Los Angeles?” was originally published by NewMusicBox and is excerpted with kind permission. Writes Gloria Cheng: It could be ...
Pharrell Williams: ‘Cease and desist, Mr. President’
In a cease and desist letter sent Monday, October 29, 2016, Pharrell Williams‘ attorney Howard King called on the President of the United States to stop playing the singer’s “Happy” during events. In an act of disgusting insensitivity, the song was played at a rally over the weekend just hours after a gunman killed 11 ...
Susan Graham’s make-believe witchcraft
Ed. note: arts·meme is delighted to excerpt an interview with L.A. Opera guest singer Susan Graham. The interview, conducted by Gary Murphy, was first published by the Opera League of Los Angeles. After nearly 25 years performing on world stages, mezzo-soprano Susan Graham still finds the thrill of new challenges. Her opera repertoire spans four ...
Rat Pack-ish: Chris Walden Big Band at The Wallis
Chris Walden is the most ubiquitous musician you’ve never heard of, but whom you’ve heard everywhere. He’s one of the busiest of the current Hollywood composer-arrangers, and just a sampling of his recent album credits includes Michael Bublé, Jessie J., Michael Bolton, and Celine Dion. His film and TV writing is voluminous (your kids hear ...
John Scofield jazz combo at cozy Theatre Raymond Kabbaz
Oct
5
2018
John Scofield, the creative, distinctive and versatile guitarist and composer first burst on the scene playing with greats like Charles Mingus, Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock and Billy Cobham in the late ’70s . Possessed of a distinctive sound and stylistic diversity, Scofield is a masterful improviser whose music falls between post-bop, funk edged Jazz, and ...
Disney Hall, in living color, as L.A. Phil turns 100
Wow, wow, wow. This is fabulous. Our symphony orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic (founded in 1918), is blasting into its centenary season in high style. It is converting its Frank Gehry-designed building, a happy pile-up of undulating stainless-steel surfaces, into a huge projection surface. Disney Hall will pop with crazy purples, blues, pinks and other psychedelic ...
Jimmy Webb, in Pepperdine season opener, to honor Glen Campbell
Sep
11
2018
Legendary Grammy-winning songwriter Jimmy Webb (with hits including “Wichita Lineman,” “MacArthur Park,” “Up, Up, and Away,” and “Highwayman”) will perform in a prestigious season opening night at the intimate Smothers Theatre, one of our favorite places to attend concerts and performance. In a touching tribute to Webb’s close friend and artistic partner, the late Glen ...
Vijay Iyer/Teju Cole ‘Blind Spot’ syncopates jazz, photography, text
The intriguing image above represents the visual component for “Blind Spot,” a much-anticipated live performance soon presented by CAP UCLA at The Theatre at Ace Hotel. The collaborative effort showcases two artists at the top of their respective fields: jazz pianist/composer Vijay Iyer and writer/photographer Teju Cole. A familiar face on the covers of Downbeat ...