Skip to main content

December extravaganza, part 1

As a precursor to a busy December and something of an impromptu idea, we attended U of O School of Music's Wind Ensemble concert on 25th November, featuring Victor Herbiet on saxophone. Wind ensembles are something of a rarity in our (classical) concert calendar, so it was interesting to find that most of the programme was 20th century. To suit the Friday evening mood, the first piece performed was Edward Gregson's Festivo, with it's jaunty edge - almost like the opening movement to a classic film. Much of the evening's performance was of exciting, engaging music. True to Steven Mazey's pre-review, Herbiet's solo in Claude T Smith's Fantasia for Alto Sax was superb, with a 'sax solo' interlude reminiscent of (or maybe inspiring) electric guitar solos. A high level of musicianship all round and on this basis, much of the 2011-12 season should be very good! A forthcoming concert that has caught my attention is the School of Music's Piano Duets and Duos evening on 7th December.

December 1st brought Polaris winners Karkwa to Ritual, along with support bands Parlovr and I Spell It Nature. I bought 'Les Chemins de Verre' last year on the strength of an Ottawa Xpress interview; many months of listening later and this show was a definite on my list! A full Ritual was first treated to local post-rock band I Spell It Nature. On a first listen, their sound is very interesting. Having listened to a fair amount of bands in the broad vein of Mogwai, Sigur Rós, Ólafur Arnalds, the concept was familiar; I Spell It Nature retained their own flavour as well as a hint of (to my ears) 'Canadian indie' sound. Their new album 'A Story Of...' is available now and can be heard on their bandcamp site. I Spell It Nature's excellent set was followed by the unoriginal sounds of Parlovr. Whilst their musicianship was pretty solid, the cumulative sound was a poor imitation of lots of different bands and styles with very little in the way of original content. Anyone who isn't familiar with classic punk and early grunge would probably find the combination exciting.

In contrast, Karkwa get an 11. A set full of sing-along tracks (not just from Les Chemins de Verre, either) and excellent live adaptation along with a good dose of stage banter made for a great evening. Like many bands, their sound seemed more raw, somehow deeper 'in the flesh'.  Full setlist (courtesy of setlist.fm):

Karkwa 011211
Le pyromane
Échapper au sort
Les chemins de verres
L'acouphène
Le compteur
L'épaule froide
Marie tu pleures
Le bon sens
Oublie pas
Encore:
Le coup d'état
La façade 

Definitely one of the standout gigs of my 2011 musical year - to date...

   
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Music, Poetry and Cake (Gateshead and Lanchester)

Piano at the ready! (by M) After a good few months prep, the concert Piano Music and Poetry (organised through the Gateshead Piano Workshop folks) came around pretty quickly. As one of the participants, I was excited and also a little nervous about the prospect of a Paying Audience. The work paid off, as all the performers were excellent! Well appreciated by the compact audience. The format was in relation to National Poetry Day which was on 2nd October. Each performer chose a poem either in direct or indirect relation to their piece. A summary of the programme: Alan - Liszt Consolation No 4 and Mozart Adagio in B minor Graeme - Chopin Nocturne Op. 62 No. 2 with 'Uncertainty' by Adam Mickiewicz me - Clara Schumann, andante con sentimento with 'Clara Wieck und Beethoven' by Franz Grillparzer Jim - R Schumann Kinderszenen 1 and 7 with 'My child, we were just children' by Heinrich Heine Ernie - Debussy Clair de lune with excerpt from 'Fêtes g...
Post a Comment
Read more

Pigeon Funk

Notes on a very random purchase. Earlier today I acquired Venetian Snares 'Rossz Csillag Alatt Sz ü letett ' purely on the basis of the language and artwork. Its certainly something different - and most definitely not pop. After a bit of searching: Venetial Snares is, according to Wikipedia, the performing name of Aaron Funk, who seems to specialise in experimental tracks in odd time signatures. Article here . The sleeve notes for this album (whose title is Hungarian for 'Born under a bad star') poses the question: what if, for just a day, we could both be pigeons? Interessant. Apparently this concept (a day in the life of a Hungarian pigeon) is non-typical of Venetian Snares sound, but one could ask, does Mr Funk do 'typical'? On first listening, the sound of this CD mixes classical/traditional Hungarian sounds and breakbeats. but aside from that? Definitely a 'listen for yourself' artist; try the website , fan site or myspace .
4 comments
Read more

From Black Rose to Buena Vista

Two very different but equally impressive live experiences this last weekend. First up, our long overdue homage to the late, great Phil Lynott as Limehouse Lizzy returned to the Point on Friday 2nd March. Certainly on form (and not just lead singer Wayne Ellis, mmmm!) After a late doors, the band came on for a 2 hour set. They started off with Jailbreak (with added pyro), the rest of the main set comprising known songs like Dancing In The Moonlight, Warrior, Emerald, Johnny the Fox, Are You Ready, Killer On The Loose, Cold Sweat, Do Anything You Want To, Out In The Fields, Cowboy Song, Rosalie, The Boys Are Back In Town plus at least 1 early track. The encore included 1 verse/1 chorus from Sarah, Black Rose, Whisky In The Jar and another track. Excellent atmosphere, the place was sold out. The boys are back at the Point in December. Next on to crowd pleasers of a very different sort. M and I managed to get tickets for the sold-out Buena Vista Social Club show at Wales Millennium Centr...
Post a Comment
Read more