The Best of the Beatles

What do you do with The Beatles?  "Best of" can be a misnomer as each listener has their own definition of "best" and their favourite tunes.  A fact that was not ignored and even acknowledged by a member of Rajaton saying that he hoped peoples favourites were included in the show.

But let's go back a step.  The TSO Pops season opened with Finnish guest vocal group Rajaton in an evening of Beatles music.  Known for their acappella work, Rajaton were mostly accompanied by the fine Toronto Symphony, except for "Lady Madonna" in the second half and "Eleanor Rigby" as an encore.  It seemed an odd choice for an encore as it's not a very happy ending to the evening.  Although as a vocal showcase it was impressive.  As it turned out, "Let It Be" was a second encore which actually concluded the evening.

Principal Pops Conductor, Steven Reineke's approach to the Beatles was to program the album Sgt.

Steven Reineke

Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band in its entirety as the first half.  The second half featured a selection of number one hits.  The Sgt. Pepper era is not my favourite of the Beatles music.  A lot of the songs from the album I don't know.  I enjoyed "When I'm 64" which was probably my favourite.  "With a Little Help from My Friends" will always remind me of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's 2009 performance at the National Arts Centre gala, a year after he won re-election with a minority government.  Not that I was there but it made the papers and, as with everything else, it's on youtube.

Features from the second half included "Yesterday" (interesting to hear with a slight Finnish accent), "Ticket to Ride", "She Loves You", "Penny Lane", "All You Need is Love", and "Hey Jude".  The transition between these last two was great with the trumpets picking up the "Hey Jude" tune.  I probably will never understand the appeal of that song, but it did get the audience singing.  Rajaton had tried to get us clapping along earlier and it worked briefly but then fizzled.

Rajaton

As always the orchestra wasn't left out.  The evening opened with what I believe was Reineke's arrangement titled "Ed Sullivan Welcomes the Beatles".  It was a medley of the five songs the Beatles played on his show in February 1964, "All My Loving", "Till There Was You" (apparently they didn't know this was Meredith Willson's song from The Music Man until much later and never sang anything from Broadway again), "She Loves You", "I Saw Her Standing There", and "I Want to Hold Your Hand".  The orchestra also opened the second act with "Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da".

There were some audience members who had also been at Maple Leaf Gardens when the Beatles played Toronto in September 1964.  50 years later, the appeal of their music has clearly not waned.

Starting the 14/15 Season with the TSO

Saturday night I attended my first concert of the  TSO season.  As Peter Oundjian explained, he decided to open the season with a program to showcase the orchestra, ie: no special featured soloist.  It was titled Arabian Nights.

The evening opened with one of my favourite pieces, which never fails to conjure up images of Torvill and Dean in my mind...yep, it was "Bolero".  Snare drum player John Rudolph was moved to a place of honour in the centre of the orchestra, rather than remaining at the back in the percussion section.  The orchestra started so quietly it was hard to tell that the piece actually had started.  It took a moment for people to stop fidgeting and strain their ears for that familiar beat.

Torvill and Dean Bolero Program
(http://debralschubert.blogspot.ca)

I've seen the TSO perform this before, but it's such a great piece to watch being played.  There are still times when I'm looking around asking myself, what instrument is that?   The extra saxophone player had the quickest instrument swap completing the melody on one sax then switching to the soprano sax and picking it right up again.  "Bolero" grows so subtly and smoothly that by the time it gets to the end it's just a fantastic climax.

The second piece was another I'd heard before, but really like.  As I hear it more the other sections are starting to grow on me, but I still love the finale.  This was 1919 suite of "The Firebird", shorter than the other suite Stravinsky also wrote from the ballet score.  As Mr. Oundjian said in his introduction it has the same pull to your feet as the Bolero.  I was more inclined to get to my feet after Bolero, but perhaps that's just a personal preference.

There were multiple player switch-outs in the winds and brass for various pieces.   It was nice to see a lot of familiar faces in one evening.  Congratulations to the newest brass player, Steven Woomert, winning the Associate Principal Trumpet position and replacing his father Barton who retired last season.

"Scheherazade" by Rimsky-Korsakov, the teacher of Stavinsky, closed the program.  This piece seems to be programmed often, yet I've never gone to see it.  This time though it was accompanied by two others I new I liked, so there was no doubt it wouldn't be a great evening of music.  Concertmaster Jonathan Crow played the violin solo sections beautifully.  The very high note near the end, that slightly misplaced could have been very cringe worthy, was of course perfectly placed and sustained.  In all the pieces there were brief solos in the sections which I always enjoy.  An arrangement of the third movement, "The Young Prince and Princess" I've played before in quite a small ensemble.    It was thrilling to hear that theme as it was meant to be, played by 30 violins in perfect pitch.  "The Sea" section of the final movement is so cool.  I had no idea what the section was called but was thinking, wow this really sounds like the sea.  Kudos to the crash cymbal and bass drum players.  Timing the wind up and impacts seems like it could be pretty stressful.  Having not read the program, but knowing that it was somewhat based on the 1001 Nights, I was sucked into a story through music.  It doesn't get any better than that.

Crazy for You at the Stratford Festival

All photos from Stratford site

I've never had an easy answer to the "what is your favourite musical?" question.  However,  I think I'd probably say Crazy For You.  Scratch that, I know I'd say Crazy For You.  After seeing it again today (for the 3rd time and if time or ticket deals allow I'd go again without hesitation) I'm confident in that.  The music of Gershwin, a fantastic story with a happy ending, and high energy dancing, it doesn't get any better than that.  Each time I see it, there's something else I notice.  Maybe the cast is adding things or making small changes to keep it fresh for themselves, but if the moments really weren't there before it's wonderful since it keeps it fresh for the audience too.  Moments like Bella going to pour a drink and opening his hand to show there's no glass there, or the banter between Bobby and Polly in "I Got Rhythm" like the line "Show me what you got" as they have a mini dance off, are perfect.

Franklin in New York

Josh Franklin is wonderful as Bobby Child.  I first saw him as Billy Crocker in Anything Goes last summer in Toronto.  He's also played Bob Gaudio in Jersey Boys (and got to perform a set from that show in A Capitol Fourth!).  There seems to be a trend with him playing characters who have names starting with 'B'.  Perhaps Bobby in Company is next on his to do list?

I first saw Crazy for You when it was in Toronto 20 years ago (oh my, was it really that long ago?).  That production I saw at least twice, maybe three times.  Camilla Scott starred as Polly Baker, and maybe I'm biased because she was the first I saw so I draw comparisons, but I think I preferred her to Natalie Daradich.  Natalie is good, has a great voice, and lovely dancing, I just have fond remembrances of Scott in the roll.

"Naughty Baby"

While I am comparing productions, there were a few things I missed in Stratford's.  "Stiff Upper Lip" had no pointe shoe tap dance section that I still remember clearly along with the climbing chairs stacked on the table.  The reference in the Stratford production to Les Mis by mentioning the stacked chairs looked like the French Revolution helped make up for it, but alas there was no climbing on them.  Lank (played by Shane Carty) and Irene's (played by Robin Hutton) "Naughty Baby" number didn't seem sleazy enough.  I know, it's a family show musical, but Irene in a satin nightgown helped add that element, in a somewhat subtle way, to the Toronto production.  Lank certainly got his distain for Irene across with his line delivery though.

The performance I think I had trouble buying into the most was Lally Cadeau as Mrs. Child.  I'm not sure why, maybe subconsciously to my mind she'll always be Janet King (sorry Ms. Cadeau), and so I didn't find it believable.

"I Got Rhythm"

The choreography was great!  Huge shout out to Donna Feore.  Her use of the stage was fantastic.  It was also fun to recognize some steps that were taught in my tap class this year.  "I Got Rhythm", the closing to Act I, didn't have the spoons, dancing on corrugated tin, or playing a saw like a violin from the Toronto production, but honestly I didn't miss it by the second viewing.  It's different, but there's SO MUCH going on and so many amazing dance feats showcasing the fantastic cast, what's not to like?

Overall the use of the stage was well done.  The sets were varied and easily gave the New York City and Deadrock Nevada feel.  The big white ball, appropriately lit as the sun or moon, was fun too.

Green tutus

Most of the costumes were also great.  The show girls in pink were perfect, exactly what I expected for "Nice Work if You Can Get It".  For a moment I was a bit worried when the opening had Bella Zanger's girls in these green, funky, flat, tutu things, but it got better.  Josh Franklin even pulls off Bella's pink suit with style.  Although he's handsome enough to pretty much look good in anything.

I had forgotten some of the dialogue and the wit that is interspersed throughout the show and found myself burst out laughing when Bobby takes a large step away from Lank when Lank says to him,  "You are close to an idiot" :)

The interaction between Franklin and Tom Rooney (who plays Bella) in "What Causes That" was absolutely hilarious.  The audience was in stitches.

The sound levels were also perfect.  For a while I thought the singers might be unamplified and had to look really hard to find the mics.  They are getting so small these days!  Franklin's was almost completely hidden in his side burn and most of the ladies I couldn't see at all. I assume they were hidden in or under their wigs.  The sound was always pure and never over powering.  Taps were amplified when needed (such as Bobby's dancing solos) but mostly just showed the dancers skill in having clean and precise sounds.  They made it look easy.

The cast recording is now available and I expect it's really good especially if they used or augmented the 20 or so musicians who were already in the pit.  Even 20 is a large number compared to what tours with a Broadway show these days, so it was super nice to hear the richness of the Gershwin score.  Unfortunately the orchestra was back to being hidden behind the stage unlike in 42nd Street a few seasons ago where they were visible on a balcony.

Finale - the happy ending!

I always use the speed at which the audience gets to their feet as a gauge of how much they enjoyed the performance.  Standing ovations were almost immediate.  It was also nice to see genuine looks of appreciation from the actors.  I hope they had as much fun doing the show as I have had watching it.

10th New Creations Festival

A many months late, Happy New Year!  It was a slow winter for my attendance at musical events, and the first concert I went to was the opening of the 10th annual New Creations Festival with the TSO.  The concert, titled Adams: Doctor Atomic, included the title work as this years featured composer was American John Adams.  Unfortunately he wasn't on hand to do the conducting honours, but was schedule to arrive in time for some of the later concerts.

I don't know what was different this year, but I found myself liking the music.   All of it, even the opening lobby entertainment by The Glenn Gould School of New Music Ensemble, was enjoyable.  "My Twentieth Century" the pre-concert Ensemble piece was different, sure, but the mixture of poetry and music worked for me.

Kevin Lau
(www.sneakpeekorchestra.com)

The concert began with a new work by affiliate composer, Kevin Lau, "Down the Rivers of Windfall Light".  It's based off the Dylan Thomas poem Fern Hill, about a child escaping into their imagination. Maybe it was the premise or the fact I was listening to the cast recording of Alice in Wonderland on my drive down, but it reminded me of that story.  I didn't find it weird, but programmatic with an overarching story that was understandable.  The brass was exquisitely used and one five note theme reminded me of the theme from Close Encounters of the Third Kind.  It had some interesting instrumentation in the percussion section, even a rain stick.

Completely switching gears, Adams' "Doctor Atomic Symphony" was up next.  It's a 25 minute, single movement work based on his opera of the same name

(www.scena.org)

about the making of the atomic bomb.  The scenes evoked are of the test site: the electrical storm that occurred a few hours before the test, a ritual "corn dance" by Tewa Indians, and the poem "Batter my heart, three person'd God" that inspired the naming of the site "Trinity".  At times it was bombastic and at others excruciatingly longing.  Andrew McCandless played the trumpet solo beautifully, as did the other brass soloists on the horn, trombone, and tuba.  In the percussion section were some things I hadn't seen before.  There was a huge set of chimes that had a set of stairs up to them, two thunder sheets, and cymbals being played by running a bow along the edges.

Magnus Lindburg
(symfonieorkest.be)

The last piece was "Piano Concerto No. 2" by Magnus Lindberg, featuring guest soloist Yefim Bronfman, who didn't look very much like his picture in the program.  Moments reminded me of "Rhapsody in Blue", and there's no doubt he's a powerful pianist.  Perhaps it was because of where I was sitting, but it sounded like the orchestra overpowered the piano at times.  The cadenza, written very late in the composing process, was impressive.  It was not my favourite piece of the night, but got a rousing ovation and multiple curtain calls.

For an analysis by a real critic, try the National Post.

Ashley Brown Joins the TSO for Christmas

The TSO Pops Christmas is a tradition that helps get everyone in the holiday spirit.  This year Ashley Brown joined the celebration as the guest vocalist.  There aren't enough adjectives to describe how great she is and how well she hosted the concert.  Apparently it's a program she jointly created with TSO Pops conductor Steven Reineke, well at least the vocal parts.  Ashley mentioned collaborating a year ago on creating medleys and introducing Steven to a new song, a feat she was particularly proud of given his vast knowledge of the music world.

One of the collaborations was the "Holiday Hits Medley" which closed the first half.  It was a mix of popular songs from the radio that are rarely heard in a concert setting.  Backed with a strong percussion section, Patricia Krueger on piano, and the rest of the orchestra Ashley demonstrated her pops singing style.  The medley started with Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas is You", moved to "Hard Candy Christmas" delivered with a twinge of Dolly Parton twang, and finished with the always popular "Feliz Navidad".

I can't believe I missed
her red shoes in this photo!

Shifting back to earlier in the program, Ashley brought a Judy Garland swing sound to "Winter Wonderland Medley" and even wore shiny ruby slippers :)  Cindy Lou Who's version of "Christmas, Why Can't I Find You" from The Grinch and "The Secret of Christmas" (popularized by Ella Fitzgerald, this was the song Ashley introduced to Steven) were touching and tender.

There were also multiple times where Ashley was just herself as she talked about her family, the meaning songs held for her, and sang in her beautiful clear voice.  One of my favourites was "Yes, Virginia" which is from a
musical created in partnership with Macy's based on the popular letter to the editor of the New York Sun.  It's a great song and she's clearly no stranger to interacting with children as she invited kids from the audience to join her on stage as she sang.

Ashley's final song, "O Holy Night", proved there was no need to visit Yuletide Celebration with the Indianapolis Symphony this year.  She sang the same arrangement I expect Yuletide host Sandi Patty did and it was fantastic!

Santa getting in on the
conducting action!

The orchestra wasn't left out and showed their skill with steadfast tempos and dynamic variations in "Little Bolero Boy" (one of my favourites), and got swinging to show off the brass in "Jingle Bell Rock".

Yet another wonderful Christmas concert with everything except "Sleigh Ride" (which I heard someone else comment on when leaving).  But that's okay because dropping it every now and again leaves room for some new music, and I thoroughly enjoyed the new pieces I hadn't heard before that were included this year.  Merry Christmas!

Beethoven and Strauss

In my quest to hear all the Beethoven symphonies live, I attended the Toronto Symphony concert that included Symphony #4 on Nov. 20.  That was what I went for, but as usual found some other hidden gems.  The conductor for the occasion was Sir Andrew Davis, conductor laureate of the TSO.

The program opened with "Overture to The Consecration of the House".  The title struck me as familiar, yet I can't say I recognized any of the music.  Doing a bit of research I discovered I'd heard it as part of Jorma Elo's ballet Pur ti Miro performed by the National Ballet of Canada in 2010.  It's one of the few overtures Beethoven wrote that was meant to be a stand alone piece and is pretty impressive, not to mention great ballet music.

I can understand why Beethoven's 4th symphony doesn't seem to be performed all that often.   It doesn't have the same draw of #5 or scope of #9.  It's good music, but I think I needed to read more of the notes or know more about the form to deeply appreciate it.  I did like the opening where the rich chords jump keys and don't give you any idea where it's going.

Guest soprano Erin Wall joined the orchestra for "Seven Early Songs", by Alban Berg.  The songs had a nice variety with a love theme throughout.  The English translations were a welcome addition to the program.  I'm not usually a poetry person, but this series I actually read again.

Erin Wall (photo by Josh Clavir)

The evening ended with "Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche" (or "Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks") by Richard Strauss.  This was probably my favourite of the evening.  Till Eulenspiegel was a quick witted prankster, and apparently a real German peasant who died around 1350.  What jumped out at me  was the horn solo which I'm familiar with from its use in one of my favourite versions of the "12 Days of Christmas" by the Indianapolis Symphony.  There's a story in this piece of music as well that I should have read the notes for in advance to fully appreciate.  Lessons learned for the next concert.

Professional review of the concert can be found here.

Disney Strikes Again with Aladdin

I recently saw the new Disney production of Aladdin, subtitled "The New Musical".  Getting tickets was a bit last minute so there wasn't a lot of anticipation, but I did have "A Whole New World" running through my head all day.

The story line is roughly the same as the movie, and doesn't take itself too seriously.  A new addition are three friends of Aladdin (Babkak, Omar, and Kassim) who act as narrators, reprising "Arabian Nights" with various verses to advance the story.  The lyrics are quite humourous even pointing out that they're going to use the split stage effect to keep the action flowing.  One funny line that may play better when the show gets to Broadway was somthing like "they're tourists, they'll clap for anything".  I didn't hear so much as a giggle.  But then it's likely the majority of the audience were locals and not tourists, something I expect may be different in NYC.  Adding these storytellers is an interesting technique and generally it works.  What I'm not sure works though is the literal personification of Iago.  He comes across more like LeFou from Beauty and the Beast than Jafar's evil sidekick with his own agenda.  Likewise the three friends supplant the faithful sidekick Abu, and the magic carpet doesn't show up until needed for the all important flight of wooing (the Genie provides it as part of Aladdin's wish to become a prince).  All understandable changes given the difficulty of turning animated objects into real elements on a stage.

Aladdin in the market

The sets were impressive.  Agribba grew out of the desert with swirling buildings that were able to give various sky lines including one looking out over the city as Aladdin and Jasmine escape to his loft.  There they sang an extra duet "A Million Miles Away" which is a really nice song, that may be new or maybe was cut from the original movie.  Another extra song was "Proud of Your Boy", movingly sung by the handsome Adam Jacobs as Aladdin.  It appeared in several different reprises and I believe was one that was cut from the film.

I was anxiously awaiting what they were going to do with the Cave of Wonders and sort of expected to be disappointed.  Never underestimate Disney and production numbers.  Wow!  That scene worked on all levels.  The outside was impressive, then as Aladdin entered the cave, and our viewpoint switched as well, the sets were staggered as they flew in from the sides giving the impression of moving deeper inside and everything started to shimmer gold.  He gets trapped of course and rubs the lamp to read what's written on it and the Genie swirls up from the ground!

James Monroe Iglehart, the Genie, sounded a bit like Robin Williams at times when he reached the

Genie in the Cave of Wonders

higher register of his voice, and a few of the gags from the movie were included.  So now that Aladdin has met Genie: Cue production number!  It had waiters appearing from the back and the wings, a table magically producing food, dancing girls stepping out of gold pillars, Aladdin disappearing and an energetic tap number that I think surpassed "Be Our Guest".  The Genie was phenomenal.  He delivered magic tricks (pulling a special Mouse out of a hat), and a medley of Disney songs that was awesome!  Whoever re-wrote "Friend Like Me" deserves a prize.

Jasmine in the market

Jasmine was beautiful, although to be nitpicking I found the swinging, dangling earrings somewhat distracting.  Courtney Reed has a great voice and as if sneaking out to the market wasn't enough to show her independence she gets a solo number ("Call Me a Princess") showing her spunkyness at refusing her suitors.  No animal sidekick for her either though; pet tiger Rajah was replaced by the much easier to train ladies in waiting.

The second half peaked with "A Whole New World".  Disney learned from Mary Poppins: The New Musical in regards to the creation of a night sky.  The garden walls pulled back as Aladdin and Jasmine flew in front of a large moon and sky that twinkled and swirled in the background.  Moving larger lights then appeared as actors, almost completely hidden in the dark, gave the sky depth and the carpet flew closer to the front of the stage.

In the garden pre flight

The stars switched to planets which weren't quite as effective in hiding the actors twirling them, but added more colour.  The carpet provided a surface for a few spot lights to illuminate Aladdin and Jasmine while still remaining quite dark itself.  Ending back on the balcony garden, they dismounted and shared a first kiss...cue "awww" moment :)

The "awww" is short lived though, as Jafar appears and drags Aladdin off for trespassing in the Princess's quarters.  Jonathan Freeman as Jafar had the voice from the movie picture perfect.  And why shouldn't it?  He was the voice in the movie!  I haven't seen the film in years and wouldn't have picked it out though.  It was the cackle that triggered recognition.

Sultan, Iago, Jafar
(http://tardisdelorean.tumblr.com)

It was nice to see a Sultan less bumbling than the animated one.  Another plus was that he didn't have enough stage time to make me frustrated enough to want to shake him out of Jafar's spell.  Clifton Davis played the Sultan in a way that though blinded to Jafar's selfish ambition, there was still hope he'd be capable of fighting Jafar if he recognized what was going on.  Jafar's evil was toned down, maybe a bit too much.  His reveal of Aladdin's true status of street rat to the palace didn't seem like a particularly big deal.  The Genie, now fulfilling Jafar's wishes, arrived and granted the wish to make him Sultan.  Jafar's black robe "magically" becomes white matching everyone else (most of the cast was on stage for the wedding already wearing fine white clothes).  Maybe there were technical difficulties, but the platform Jafar was on only rose about a foot, so he really wasn't all that imposing.  There was no snake, and the snake staff didn't even have glowing eyes (surprising given the ease of using LED lights these days).  Aladdin didn't have to fight Jafar, and Jafar's wishing to be the most powerful genie was almost too easy.  His decent into the lamp though was well done.

The final dance number had the whole cast getting a chance to strut their stuff with a few Bollywood style dance moves thrown in to some snippets of "A Whole New World".  The Genie appeared decked out in Hawaiian shirt and small suitcase ready to travel the world.  Unfortunately he didn't say he was headed for Disney World :)

On the way out I overheard someone say the sets were good, the orchestra played the songs well (there were 18 players in the pit, a good size, and the three trumpets were great!), but they ruined the rest.  I completely disagree.  There may be room for improvement, some tweeking perhaps to a rather long battle of Babkak, Omar, and Kassim's with the palace guards in their attempt to rescue Aladdin.  But it's accompanied by the good song "High Adventure" and some funny schtick.  Besides, this is the purpose of out of town tryouts, to figure out the best show possible.  I think it will only get better, but check it out and form your own opinion.  It's in town until the beginning of January before heading to Broadway.  May it have a long run and tour again, because it's worth going to see twice.

Photos from Mirvish.com unless otherwise indicated