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Also this issue: Fall guide Feeding Frenzy Gearing Up: Tara Keating Bittersweet Inspiration Wherever, Whenever Gearing Up: James Valenti Gearing Up: Sandra Blakely Down To Zero |
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September 19-25, 2002
cover story
One always scans notices of the coming season with the vague hope that some vivid, rebel thread will emerge. But trends may exist mostly in retrospect. It does seem this fall as if there’s a bit of a lean toward realism, while the “Image & Print” festival suggests a flamboyant steam-roller-brand of old-fashioned content. Outside of posters, printmaking is not traditionally revolutionary, to coin an oxymoron. Is a wave of explicit political art about to break -- not politically correct, not postcolonial, but politically engaged and challenging? Watch this space.
Through Oct. 6, The Clay Studio,139 N. Second St., 215-925-3453. With important exceptions, African-Americans remain more of a minority within the ceramics field than, say, in painting or sculpture. This exhibit introduces a group of ceramists who have never before shown at the Clay Studio. Paul Wandless is the sole Pennsylvanian. Curator Sandra Blakely included functional and sculptural work with historical resonance.
Through Oct. 12, More Gallery, 1630 Walnut St., 215-735-1827. The "Two Franks" are Galuszka and Hyder, familiar representational painters on the Philly faculty scene. Galuszka, though, has moved on to Santa Cruz, Calif., which inspired the lush, sparkly, coastal landscapes in his recent work. Hyder continues to explore interlocking linear patterns and multiple images.
Through Oct. 20, Moore College of Art & Design, 20th and the Parkway, 215-965-4052. Wow! A zillion fresh Philly artists have shed their chrysalises and spread their wings in the Galleries at Moore. The swarm of young to youngish "emerging" artists in "Greater Philadelphia" were selected by nine local curators. A few excellent but already well-exposed specimens, such as Daniel Heyman and Mark Shetabi, could have been eliminated as already fledged. Nevertheless, Moore is definitely the place to scope out new talent this season.
Through Nov. 9, various locations and the Print Center, 1614 Latimer St., 215-735-6090. Keep your mind on your driving and your hands on the wheel, if you can -- around town and at the Print Center you will catch glimpses of "IMPRINT: A Public Art Project," an exhibition of billboards, bus shelter posters and paper cups designed by six artists: John Coplans, Dotty Attie, James Mills, Susan Fenton, Kerry James Marshall and Virgil Marti. The goal is to put high art where low art (a.k.a. advertising) usually lurks and see what the public makes of it.
Through Nov. 24, Philadelphia Art Alliance Satellite Gallery, Rittenhouse Hotel, 210 W. Rittenhouse, third floor, 215-574-1418. Are David Foss' paintings as seductive as his postcard? The untitled work looks like a cross between a cheetah skin, a slab of amber and a wall in Lascaux.
Through Nov. 24, Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th St., 215-545-4302. Most everyone knows that artists need second jobs in order to keep making art. Many teach. This show at the Art Alliance introduces work from faculty members at five local schools. Work ranges from Linda Brenner's walnut and alabaster sculpture to Gerald Nichols' collage tribute to Frederic Church's Niagara.
Sept. 20-Oct. 19, Schmidt-Dean Gallery, 1710 Sansom St., 215-569-9433. In his brochure essay, Frank Galuszka writes of Anne Seidman's new paintings, "her work builds local awkwardness into overall grace," a neat description of Seidman's sophisticated yet refreshingly approachable abstraction at Schmidt-Dean. Showing concurrently, photographer Susan Fenton's moody, classic engagement with the human body is always effective.
Sept. 20-Oct. 30, Works on Paper, 1611 Walnut St., 215-988-9999. Fonseca's recent prints and gouaches at Works on Paper display his typically layered, formal/playful, positive/negative, diagrammatic sensibility.
Sept. 20-Nov. 16, Fabric Workshop and Museum, 1315 Cherry St., fifth floor, 215-568-1111. Flux is a key word for Doug Aitken's new installation premiering at the FWM. Videos of diverse "Interiors" will be projected onto architectural fabric structures through which visitors move. It sounds a bit like a cosmopolitan '60s happening.
Sept. 21-Oct. 19, Gallery Joe, 302 Arch St., 215-592-7752. Best known for her serene, large-scale female figures, Moore is showing editioned abstract metaphorical carbon steel "purses" with sly anatomical references at Gallery Joe. There will also be one full-size figure in carbon steel.
Oct. 13-Nov. 3, Rosenfeld Gallery, 113 Arch St., 215-922-1376. One of the best with a brush, Kanevsky is a realist, of course -- a PAFA grad, with an incisive sense of light, color and motion. He generally sticks to unpretentious genre subjects with an understated but deft aura of social observation.
Oct. 18-20, 33rd St. Armory, 33rd and Market sts., 215-972-0550. Once a year USArtists charges $12 for the opportunity to sample the offerings of over 50 commercial galleries. There is always more than enough excellent work-- mostly conservative, some museum quality -- to justify a visit. Wear walking shoes.
Nov. 3-Jan. 5, Philadelphia Museum of Art, 26th St. and the Parkway, 215-763-8100. Philadelphia's holiday treat will be surreal: "Giorgio de Chirico and the Myth of Ariadne" at the PMA. The famous series of eight paintings, executed between 1912 and 1913, was based on Friedrich Nietzsche's Dithyrambs of Dionysus. It has never been shown together. The subject is Ariadne, asleep on the island of Naxos. She has been abandoned by her lover Theseus, with whom she escaped from the labyrinth after he killed the Minotaur. No wonder she has weird dreams.
In Sam Shepard’s True West, two brothers are locked in fraternal combat; Austin says, as dawn breaks, “I love beginnings.” Lee replies, “I’ve always been kinda partial to endings myself.”
I’m with Austin on this one: The new theater season has some great beginnings--many of our theater companies are opening with big bang productions. And we’re getting more than our share of laughs, which we can always use. Here’s what looks promising to me:
Through Oct. 13, Wilma Theater, 265 S. Broad St., 215-546-STAGE. Claudia Shear’s Dirty Blonde, a recent N.Y. hit, surprises at nearly every turn; a hilarious, moving, gorgeous fandango about Mae West, love and costumes. Go up and see it sometime.
Through Nov. 3, Arden Theater Co., 40 N. Second St., 215-922-1122. The Arden boldly opens with this world premiere by David Davalos, a historical drama about Leonardo and the Borgias, with a cast of local faves.
Through Oct. 26, People’s Light & Theatre Co., 39 Conestoga Rd., Malvern, 610-644-3500. People’s Light opens their season of American drama with Lillian Hellman’s famous but rarely seen The Little Foxes, about a family of fierce connivers. More local faves--with a chance for Janis Dardaris to chew some serious scenery.
Through Sept. 22, Second Stage at The Adrienne, 2030 Sansom St., 215-563-4330. Theatre Catalyst presents this collection -- deeply Southern; rich, weird and funny language full of juice.
Oct. 1-26, Willow Theatre, 421 N. Seventh St., 215-413-1921. Crescendo Theatre presents a theatrical adaptation with music based on the late great Ginsberg’s immense poem.
Oct. 4-Nov. 17, Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival, 2111 Sansom St., 215-496-8001. Philly Shakes offers two tragedies this season; the first is Othello (with John Lumia cast as Iago--the blood runs cold to think of it), a study of jealousy, passion and scheming. Carmen Khan directs.
Oct. 11-Nov. 17, Philadelphia Theatre Co., 1714 Delancey St., 215-569-9700; Nov. 20- Dec. 15, Act II Playhouse, 56 E. Butler Pike, Ambler, 215-564-0200. PTC’s first show is a little off-Broadway one-man show that turned into N.Y.’s hottest ticket. A phone reservationist, who is an unemployed actor (what else?) in an immensely upscale restaurant, copes with stars and sheiks and out-of-towners trying to book tables, while dealing with his Midwestern father on one phone and the temperamental star-chef on another. Very funny. Book early.
Oct. 18-Nov. 17, InterAct Theatre Co., 2030 Sansom St., 215-568-8077. InterAct’s season begins with Going to St. Ives by Lee Blessing, a play which sounds stuffed with political concern, as per the company’s mission. We’re told the script takes on two women, a “profound moral dilemma and a bloody chain reaction.” Seth Rozin directs.
Oct. 22-Nov. 16, Mum Puppettheatre, 115 Arch St., 215-925-8686. Mum’s hotdog version of The Madwoman of Chaillot, going Giradoux’s classic text several better with a commedia dell’arte spin: puppets plus a tiptop cast of actors doing improv, wearing masks, juggling, carrying on. William Roudebush, who gave us Mum’s excellent Equus, directs.
Oct. 26, Kimmel Center, 260 S. Broad St., 215-925-7686. While Madwoman is happening on Arch Street, Mum Puppettheatre will perform their version of Swan Lake at the Kimmel Center, commissioned by the Philadelphia Orchestra for their Young Audiences series. A one-time-only event for families, with masks, movement and the Orchestra onstage with (big) puppets. (The Philadelphia Orchestra seems to be the theatrical collaborator this season -- see Stoppard show in November.)
Nov. 2-17, Prince Music Theater, 1412 Chestnut St., 215-569-9700. The Prince stages a revival of Pal Joey to celebrate the centenary of Richard Rodgers. The show’s 1940 tryout in Philly starred Gene Kelly, and although he’s not in this one, the songs are still there, like “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” and “Zip.”
Nov. 12-24, Villanova Theatre, 108 Vasey Hall, Villanova, 610-519-7474. Villanova takes on Euripides’ powerful tragedy, under the direction of James Christy in new -- and very fine --translation by Nicholas Rudall. A portrait of women and their conquerors, of slaughter and grief, this is an opportunity for some major acting.
Nov. 15-Dec. 15, Lantern Theater, 10th and Ludlow sts., 215-829-9002. David Mamet’s savagely funny indictment of Hollywood producers and the triumph of greed.
Nov. 20-26, Wilma Theater at the Kimmel Center, 215-893-9456. Wilma’s production of Tom Stoppard’s Every Good Boy Deserves Favor at the Kimmel Center with the Philadelphia Orchestra is likely to be the event of the season. Rarely produced because it requires a symphony orchestra as part of the cast, this much-ballyhooed, shortest run will be the toughest ticket in town.
Nov. 29-Dec. 29, The Adrienne, 215-592-9560. 1812 Productions replaces its vaudeville holiday show with this new tribute to the great nightclub comedians of the 1950s and ’60s: Nichols and May, Tom Lehrer and Bob Newhart among the many who made a generation laugh. This should be eye-moppingly fun.
The fall dance season is actually well underway, thanks to the Fringe Festival. But now the dance focus shifts from Old City to Center City, West Philly and beyond. This year marks the 30th year Randy Swartz’s Dance Affiliates has presented a touring company season, and if you think longevity is synonymous with stodgy, think again. And the season at Kumquat Dance Center, one of the pivotal places where new work is being done, proves that innovators and experimenters don’t disappear when the Fringe shuts down. Does anyone even remember the bad old days around here when everyone was saying dance was dying? The swan lives.
Philadanco, Sept. 19-21, Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine St., 215-925-9914. Annual evening where the dancers choreograph for and on each other. Always a sellout.
Group Motion, Sept. 21-22 and Nov. 9-10, Kumquat Dance Center, 3500 Lancaster Ave., 215-387-9895. Performance workshop on improvisation -- here's your chance to observe or participate. Try it.
Oct. 6, Painted Bride Art Center. The hip-hop artist absoluta doing a workshop.
Australian Dance Theater, Oct.15, Annenberg Center, 3680 Walnut St., 215-898-6701. Here's a new take on Swan Lake, created and performed by first-time visitors Australian Dance Theater, with dancers in shorts and T-shirts with character names (Swan) or emotions (Angry) splashed across them, a mix of industrial music (even a snippet of Tchaikovsky!), some video and a movement vocabulary seguing between handstands and pirouettes. One night only.
MOMIX, Oct. 17-19, Annenberg Center. A company that has managed to successfully institutionalize innovation. Founder Moses Pendleton brings his new evening-length Opus Cactus, with prickly cacti as inspiration and lizards as characters. Obviously MOMIX is up to its (un)usual hijinks.
Pennsylvania Ballet, Oct. 16-20, Merriam Theater, 250 S. Broad St., 215-551-7000. The Pennsylvania Ballet traditionally kicks off its season with an all-Balanchine program, honoring its artistic roots. This sweeping program goes from 1928's Apollo, to 1952's Scotch Symphony and on to 1963's Bugaku. Put another way: from cerebral early Stravinsky collaboration, to romantic-style Scottish tribute to just plain sexy Orientalism, the full sweep of Balanchine's enduring genius.
Rebecca Malcom-Naib, Oct. 24-25, Painted Bride Art Center. A modern dancer and Bryn Mawr prof, Malcom-Naib combines a vision of aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart with the primary elements of the universe -- just a teeny little theme.
Merián Soto, Oct. 25-26, Temple University, Conwell Dance Theater, Broad St. and Montgomery Ave., 215-204-7476. A work in progress from a talented and well-known resident choreographer.
Nov. 1-2, Temple University, Conwell Dance Theater. Surreal aerial choreography.
Compañia Nacional de Danza de España, Nov. 7-9, Annenberg Center. A first-time visit by the Spanish troupe, presenting the Bach-inspired Multiplicity: Forms of Silence and Emptiness, a production so big it requires the depth of the stage to be extended. Nacho Duato, company choreographer, learned his stuff choreographing and dancing for Nederlands Dans Theater, one of the world meccas of dance innovation.
Donna Uchizono Company, Nov. 14-16, Painted Bride Art Center. This New York-based company presents a dance blending traditional styles of the Tobas Indian Tribe with ... the tango. Wow.
Nov. 15-17, Kumquat Dance Center. Showcases member troupes Group Motion, Bald Mermaids and Rennie Harris. Put a star here.
Nov. 21-23, Kimmel Center, 260 S. Broad St., 215-893-1999. The full company dancing its heart out in this beautiful home space.
CityDance Ensemble, Dec. 5-7, Painted Bride Art Center. This D.C. group was just selected one of the 25 companies to watch in America by Dance magazine; this eager young troupe came through town with a demo, and if they show the heart in full costume that they displayed in practice leotards at the PAB rehearsal studio, they're something not to miss.
Paul Taylor Dance Company, Dec. 5-7, Annenberg Center. Showcasing the big bad stock market crash of 1929, using Depression-era music ("Sittin' On a Rubbish Can"); thematically more appropriate to our own era than we might like.
Pennsylvania Ballet, Dec. 13-31, Academy of Music, 1420 Locust St., 215-551-7000. The Big One on the Big Stage, with a cast of what seems like hundreds and probably is. Casting notices and audition times went up late summer down at the Rock School of Ballet.
Group Motion, Dec. 21-22, Kumquat Dance Center. Yup, these folks do regular choreography (well, sort of regular) as well.
This will be a very abbreviated opera season, as it was last fall. Let’s just chalk it up to scheduling oddities; the spring roster is bursting with exciting productions. The Opera Company of Philadelphia has the most lopsided schedule, with only one production left in 2002, as it begins its first complete season as the lead tenant in the Academy of Music, the nation’s oldest opera house, with Saturday evening performances for the first time. There is other activity on smaller stages, so if you have not yet enjoyed a production from one of the area music schools, this may be as fine an opportunity as any.
Nov. 8-24, Opera Company of Philadelphia, Academy of Music, Broad and Locust sts., 215-732-8400. Let's face it, there is a reason that warhorses become warhorses. Carmen is one of the most famous operas in the repertoire, vying with La Bohème as the most popular of all. The story hits all the right buttons, with plenty of sex, jealousy, betrayal, social turmoil and a solid dose of violence. But that describes a lot of other operas. It is the genius of the young Bizet that blazes through this score, and carries it into the realm of the sublime, with an incredibly diverse trove of great melodies.
Nov. 9-23, Academy of Vocal Arts, 1920 Spruce St., 215-735-1685. The title role in Donizetti's operatic version of the Sir Walter Scott tale is one of the great vehicles for the coloratura soprano. This AVA production also includes tenor James Valenti as Edgardo, the winner of the 2002 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.
Nov. 22-24, Temple University Opera Theater, Tomlinson Theater, 13th and Norris sts., 215-204-1122. By all means, bring the kids to this story-book classic, which, not incidentally, will be sung in English. But adults should be delighted by this rustic, tuneful work as well, as nearly any production by Temple's ebullient opera department is self-recommending.
Dec. 3-4, Academy of Vocal Arts. This is the 200th anniversary of the birth of Berlioz, and so the music from his grandiose and often exotically beautifully operas will be the star attraction of this program.
Dec. 6-7, The Curtis Opera Theater, Centennial Hall, Haverford, 215-893-7902. Gian Carlo Menotti was still on the Curtis faculty, not long after his graduation (in the same class as Leonard Bernstein), when he completed The Consul in 1950. This modern melodrama of political repression and desperate refugees was deemed too topical by some early critics, but alas, it speaks of sinister situations we still know all too well.
Dec. 17-18, Academy of Vocal Arts. This popular annual event usually features songs, but this year the emphasis is on the very rich and too-seldom heard operatic heritage of Russia, featuring arias from works by Glinka, Rimsky-Korsakov, Borodin and Tchaikovsky.
Every art form has undergone a journey from the old to the new, usually with many a bump along the road, but the world of music is distinguished by a nearly catastrophic disconnect. The road came perilously close to a dead-end when once-attentive music lovers started abandoning new music that was in the throes of atonality and experimentation. The situation is not so bleak as it was a generation ago, and many more now recognize that it is possible to love Mozart, Brahms and Penderecki at the same time, not to mention Crumb, Higdon and Wright, among so many local practitioners. Our city is blessed with a vibrant new music community that extends from the grass roots up into the most vaunted institutions. Support and attend this work, for the alternative is to watch passively as a great culture withers away and dies.
Sept. 21-22, Prince Music Theater, 1412 Chestnut St., 215-569-9700. One of the city's sturdiest new music ensembles returns to its Dadaist roots with a program of music written for film, as classic black and white footage rolls. The Sonic Cinema program is a collaboration with Film at the Prince.
Orchestra 2001, Oct. 5, Trinity Center, 22nd and Spruce sts., 215-922-2190. This is a family affair: world premieres by pater George Crumb, a locally based Pulitzer Prize-winning composer of immense power, his son, David Crumb, also a composer, and performance by Ann Crumb, soprano, also an offspring.
Oct. 6, Centennial Hall 450 W. Lancaster Ave., Haverford, 215-204-1122. New music by Richard Brodhead and Maurice Wright. Consider this a sort of satellite to the Festival of Philadelphia Composers later this season, featuring the work of two superb composers and teachers.
Oct. 20, Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center, 260 S. Broad St., 215-893-1999. Conductor Andrew Manze is also one of the most extraordinary violinists on the scene today. He is a baroque specialist, but there is nothing pedantic about his astonishingly expressive playing. He takes on double duty for this concert.
Oct. 21, Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center, 260 S. Broad St., 215-893-1999. The principal draw of this meat and potatoes program is the solo turn of violinist Aaron Rosand, who is, in the world of the classical violin, a legend in his own time. He will play the haunting Sibelius Concerto in D minor.
Oct. 26, Philadelphia Ethical Society, 1906 S. Rittenhouse Sq., 215-848-7647. Composer John Corigliano is brilliantly eclectic, producing works of cohesion when so many spout musical babble. In addition to the music played at this annual benefit, catch the Philadelphia Orchestra performance of his blistering Symphony No. 1 in November.
Oct. 30, Perelman Theater, 215-735-6999. As an iconoclastic and brilliant violinist, but also as an innovative impresario, Gidon Kremer is something of a force of nature. Astral Artistic Services presents this program of music by Brahms, Enescu and others.
Nov. 5-24, Independence Seaport Museum, Penn's Landing, 211 S. Columbus Blvd., 215-569-8080. Philadelphia Chamber Music Society presents a major showcasing of this city's abundance of compositional talent, and bravo to PCMS for the courage to make this tremendous commitment. Featured composers include Crumb, Rochberg, Barber, Wolpe and Persichetti, as performed by a world-class roster of artists; in all, 65 works by 32 composers.
Nov. 10, Field Concert Hall, 1726 Locust St., 215-893-7902. Rich, beautifully expressive piano-playing from an early student of the legendary Horszowski. Luvisi will play the sublime final three of the Beethoven Sonatas, music that combines the heart and mind of the artist on the most exalted level.
Nov. 23, Church of the Holy Trinity, Rittenhouse Square, 215-893-1999. Julianne Baird, a great local favorite, brings a contemporary emotional sensibility to baroque music, without sacrificing any sense of appropriate style and erudition.
Nov. 15, Verizon Hall, 215-893-1999. The Keystone State's other internationally renowned orchestra hits the turnpike with the superb Latvian-born, Russian-trained conductor Mariss Jansons on the podium.
Nov. 20-26, Verizon Hall, 215-893-1999. "Every Good Boy Deserves Favor," an innovative joint effort by the Orchestra and Wilma Theater, bringing to life a joint effort by composer André Previn and playwright Tom Stoppard.
Dec. 9, Academy of Vocal Arts, 1920 Spruce St., 215-438-4027. Two big-boned, heady works from Schoenberg and Schubert, "Verklärte Nacht" and "Death and the Maiden," respectively. Strong performances of these pieces, and we expect nothing less from this wonderful ensemble, should leave audiences melting in their seats.
You’ll drive yourself crazy picking and choosing from the season’s events, but you’ll also relearn two valuable lessons. First, you’ll never get to all of them, and second, we are blessed to live in an area which has always celebrated musical diversity and continues to do so.
Sept. 22, Cherry Tree Music Co-op, 3916 Locust Walk, 215-386-1640. Since his earliest days, Massengill's sharp sense of social justice has been prominent in his poetic, personal vignettes. Songs like "My Name Joe" are all the more poignant in these post-WTC days. He's but one of a seasonful of talents on Sundays at the Cherry Tree.
Sept. 26, Twentieth Century Club, 84 S. Lansdowne Ave., 610-622-7250, www.folkclub.org. Can't remember when the last time Nelson's rich, full and low blues voice was heard around here, so it's a coup for the Lansdowne Folk Club to snag her and her five-piece band.
Sept. 26, Green Willow Folk Club at New Castle County Irish Society, 1301 S. Rodney St., Wilmington, Del., 302-798-4811, www.greenwillow.org. Hot as an Irish band can get. Ceili dancers leap to their feet and try to keep up while the rest of us bounce in our seats. Lead singer Ciarán Ó Gealbháin has won all imaginable distinctions in Ireland for his ballads in the old (sean-nós) style.
Sept. 27-28, Warmdaddy's, Front and Market sts., 215-627-2500, www.warmdaddys.com. The kind of blues that launched the second wave of rock. All those Brits wished/tried to imitate Slim's ragged edges and his salty but sweet straight-ahead drive. His sound is so emblematic of Chicago, that if you don't already know the Haggard tune on his latest CD, Blue Magic (Blind Pig Records), I defy you to pick it out without checking the credits.
Oct. 4, Keswick Theatre, 291 Keswick Ave., Glenside, 215-572-7650. The Keswick has numerous blockbusters planned, but the season really gets going when the Blind Boys seek to reprise last fall's triumph. This year they team with the pride of New Orleans, Dirty Dozen Brass Band.
Oct. 23, Keswick Theatre. The man who popularized bluegrass banjo first in Monroe's band and then with Lester Flatt will make a very rare appearance.
Nov. 5-6, Tin Angel, 20 S. Second St., 215-928-0770. He deserves all his "Mellow Yellow" mystique. Gracious and glowing, Donovan was one of the first to weave British Isles traditions into rock, always maintaining the gentler, positive side.
Nov. 8, Keswick Theatre. Acoustic guitar fanatics will rejoice when finger stylist/flatpicker Doc Watson joins resonator guitar legend, Jerry Douglas, the King of Slides.
Nov. 10, Philadelphia Folksong Society, Germantown Academy Arts Center, Morris Rd., Fort Washington, 215-247-1300. Every second Sunday the Folksong Society presents a reasonably-priced (and free-to-members) concert, and the Faire Winds Tour show is one of the most interesting. Their billing it as "Three stunning voices, from three different cultures," summing up their American, Irish and Welsh influences nicely.
Nov. 20, Philadelphia Art Museum, 26th St. and the Parkway, 215-763-8100. Last seen in these parts paired with Dick Gaughan, Lowe now returns with the Bad Pennies, to do what he does best: Tell the rough 'n' tumble stories of working-class life in a place where the work is all drying up. Jez is from northern England, but the tales ring true around the world.
Even by the usual fall standards, this is a remarkable season for jazz in Philadelphia. Programs have resumed in earnest at Penn, the Art Museum, the Kimmel Center and the Painted Bride. The Ars Nova Workshop has augmented its Tritone events with concerts at Slought and beyond. And clubs like Ortlieb’s, Chris’, St. Jack’s and North by Northwest keep it coming year-round. Space constraints prevent many worthy shows from making this list, so keep it tuned to CP for weekly updates.
Sept. 20-21, Zanzibar Blue, Broad and Walnut sts., 215-732-4500. With Traveling Mercies, his sophomore effort for Verve, the saxophone whiz wanders dark roads (and Rhodes) in service of a deeper groove. His quartet comprises longtime compatriots Kevin Hays, Scott Colley and Bill Stewart.
Sept. 21, Tritone, 1508 South St., 215-545-0475; Sept. 22, Houston Hall, 3417 Spruce St., 215-898-6533. Philly’s most vibrant jazzfest returns. Every performance is a highlight -- from Bobby Zankel’s Warriors (with David Liebman) the first night to Tim Motzer’s Fuzzbase (with Ursula Rucker) the second.
Sept. 28, Annenberg Center, 3680 Walnut St., 215-898-3900. His latest, Fantásia Cubano (Blue Note), is a brilliant solo recital: a mess of classical motifs, jazz inflections and Latin folk undercurrents. A must-see.
Sept. 30, Tritone. He’s the world’s greatest improvising French horn player (not by default) -- and, as he proves again on Second Communion (OmniTone), also a fine composer. His quartet with saxophonist Tony Malaby manages to salute the late Don Cherry with not only reverence but also invention.
Oct. 4, Annenberg Center. The film was a small wonder; the soundtrack was a gem. Here we have the honor of welcoming some of its central figures, including saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera, pianist Bebo Valdés, flutist Dave Valentin and percussionist Giovanni Hidalgo, among others.
Oct. 7, Tritone. This left-coast bassist has admirable chops and an even sharper pen. And how about the company he keeps: saxophonist John Tchicai, trumpeter Paul Smoker and drummer Barry Altschul.
Oct. 11, Tritone. John Hollenbeck’s CQ is a thoughtful amalgam of ethnic sensibilities, jazz ideals and evocative textures that in lesser hands might be described as atmospheric. Members include reedist Chris Speed, vibist Matt Moran, accordionist Ted Reichman and bassist Drew Gress.
Oct. 17, Slought, 4017 Walnut St., 215-746-4239. Eskelin’s band with accordionist Andrea Parkins and drummer Jim Black is one of the longest surviving institutions on the downtown scene -- and one of the most consistently engaging.
Oct. 18, Philadelphia Museum of Art. The loss of such piano masters as Tommy Flanagan and John Lewis has rendered players like Bill Charlap all the more valuable. His trio with the Washingtons (bassist Peter and drummer Kenny, no relation) is one of the finest of its kind.
Oct. 21, Houston Hall. The free-jazz event of the fall is an all-legends trio session with pianist Dave Burrell, bassist William Parker and drummer Rashied Ali. Full-blown is right; transcendence doesn’t begin to describe the vibe.
Oct. 25, Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center, 260 S. Broad St., 215-893-1999. At 81, Brubeck is a minor miracle of forward momentum. Although he rarely gets credit for it, his sound has in fact evolved considerably since the famous ’50s.
Nov. 1, Annenberg Center. Herbie playing acoustic. Need we say more?
Nov. 2, Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center. Blanchard’s the erstwhile trumpet wunderkind; Moran’s the pianistic equivalent today. Both have mastered jazz tradition and reached beyond it, with intelligence and grace.
Nov. 7, Slought. Saxophonist Berne and bassist Formanek have a long-standing relationship; in duo format it gets free rein, yielding subdued but spectacular results.
Nov. 11, Houston Hall. The former is the percussive third of Medeski, Martin and Wood; the latter provides rhythmic drive for the harmolodic set. They’ve crossed paths before (2000’s Percussion Duets, on Amulet), so this’ll be more throw-down than showdown.
Dec. 12, Slought. Brown’s explosive-yet-nuanced drumming has been a major factor in David S. Ware’s recent renaissance, and his Soul at the Hands of the Machine (Thirsty Ear) proved that he has his fingers on the pulse (and the PowerBook). This solo recital should be fascinating.
Dec. 14, Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine St., 215-925-9914. Osby’s new Inner Circle (Blue Note) is a compelling look at what was cooking a few years ago (it was recorded in 1999). His quartet with Jason Moran has since solidified into one of the most unrelentingly forward-seeking outfits in modern jazz.
Ah, autumn. Our sated hearts drift slowly away from the breezy, listless days of summer and peer forward into the breezy, listless, globally-warmed winter. A transitional period? Yes, but one with many joys to partake of as we journey. And this will be the soundtrack. Let’s listen.
Sept. 19, The Balcony, 10th and Arch sts., 215-922-LIVE. Sporting banjos and occasionally Muppet-like singing voices, Wright and co. recreate Pink Floyd's The Wall semi-faithfully as a bluegrass record. It's only a travesty if you were the dork with the Dark Side tapestries puttied to your dorm wall.
Sept. 24, The Khyber, 56 S. Second St., 215-238-5888. Mike Kennedy, who rocks hard and fast on drums with Lefty's Deceiver, calms down a little and picks up an acoustic guitar with this cool little Beatles-influenced side project. It's pop music for the glass-half-empty set. This show celebrates the release of Audible's split EP CD with another local softy-at-heart, Adam Arcuragi, on Father records (also on the bill, of course).
Sept. 27, The Khyber. A fun little mess. This band is all clangy, awkward guitars and a singer who does that Gordon Gano-pleading thing.
Oct. 1, The Khyber. Frighteningly loud and perfectly motionless, Amber Valentine stands before a wall of amps and tries to knock your head off with melodic thunder and a ridiculous outfit of some kind. Simultaneously scary and funny, like when goth kids fight.
Oct. 2, North Star, 27th and Poplar sts., 215-684-0808. Call it refugee rock. Singer-songwriter Sharp (formerly of Weezer and The Rentals) and crafty guitarist Brown (ex-Cake) are apparently making sparse, ambient rock together these days. On this tour they'll be dusting off some Rentals tunes (and searching for an acoustic Moog).
Oct. 4, First Union Center, 3601 S. Broad St., 215-336-2000. If you feel at anytime that it is getting too hot in here, please consider, as a remedy, the removal of your clothes. Nelly just wants you to be comfortable. And nude.
Oct. 6, Electric Factory, 421 N. Seventh St., 215-336-2000. This band is kind of like Northern Liberties. Everybody keeps saying it's the latest cool, trendy thing, long after it's not a secret or interesting anymore. When's the big payoff?
Oct. 9, First Unitarian Church Sanctuary, 2125 Chestnut St., 800-594-TIXX. Wielding some intriguing political ideas and a healthy Cassandra complex, the ex-Dead Kennedy will rant about Clear Channel and 9/11, but won't be, you know, playing any music.
Oct. 11, North Star. According to Spin, The Hives (or was it The Vines?) have saved rock 'n' roll, and I feel bad because I think that was what J. was going to get around to doing.
Oct. 12, Liacouras Center, 1776 N. Broad St., 215-204-2400. Every once in a while, Adam Duritz remembers how to write one of those catchy little nostalgia trip-songs that made the first Crows record so memorable. The title track off this year's Hard Candy is like that, all moving music and words, but the LP is mostly bland. The solution is obvious: Duritz should write catchy little nostalgia trip-songs about the first record.
Oct. 16, Electric Factory. This may surprise you, but Scott Weiland is still alive.
Oct. 19, Trocadero. "Hey look it's time to pledge allegiance/ Oh god I love my dirty Uncle Sam/ Our country's marching to the beat now/ And we must learn to step in time/ Where is the questioning where is the protest song?/ Since when is skepticism un-American?" The message is cool and all, but the most amazing thing is that Sleater-Kinney makes these lyrics catchy.
Oct. 22, Electric Factory. Rock critics usually like to argue, but everybody agrees that Yankee Hotel Foxtrot is the finest album in American rock history and Jeff Tweedy should be, like, elected God.
Oct. 29, Keswick Theatre, 291 Keswick Ave., Glenside, 215-336-2000. Fashionably Late indeed. Thompson's first record in 17 years is a beautiful specimen of British folk music, all witty and earnest tales of heartache, death and bleakness that are only uplifting because they're happening to someone else.
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