Dave Read

Tony Bennett Lady Gaga throng swamps Tanglewood

July 1, 2015 Article by Dave Read

As Lady Gaga herself mentioned from the Koussevitsky Music Shed at Tanglewood early in her concert with Tonay Bennett June 30, 2015, it didn’t rain! But a steady drizzle and dreary skies did prevail all day long as a vast crowd assembled, causing miles-long traffic jams and overwhelming the usually efficient parking protocol at Tanglewood. With an hour to go before 8 pm showtime, Hawthorne St. was reduced to a single-lane parking lot – all the way back up Old Stockbridge Rd. to Lenox Town Hall. Tanglewood reported the audience a sellout of 19,000.

It seemed like a bigger audience than the 2012 James Taylor concert that included a guest appearance by Taylor Swift, but probably not equal to Taylor’s July 17, 2002 concert, with the Boston Pops, that set the Tanglewood attendacne record – 24,470, and which led to the B.S.O.’s agreement with the towns of Stockbridge and Lenox to cap ticket sales at 19,000.

Tony Bennett sings Cheek to Cheek with Lady Gaga

Altogether the concert included 31 songs in about two hours; duets included their grammy-winning Cheek to Cheek and Anything Goes, while Bennett did a set of Frank Sinatra songs, mentioning the Sinatra Centennial celebration later this year in Las Vegas. Ms. Gaga reminded us that Ole Blue Eyes called Bennett the greatest singer in the world. Besides all the costume changes and vamping, the highlight of her performance was a beautiful rendition of La Vie En Rose. They have taken the entertainment world by storm since teaming up a couple years ago, and this is no novelty act. Nearing 89, Tony Bennett simply sounds great – still. Nearing 30, Lady Gaga sure has chops, and it shouldn’t belong before she’s a great singer, too.

2015 A Prairie Home Companion at Tanglewood

June 19, 2015 performance reviewed by Dave Read

The sixteenth Tanglewood broadcast of A Prairie Home Companion, with Garrison Keillor, took place Saturday June 27, 2015; it was the penultimate show of their 2014-15 season, and probably the penultimate show in the series that began in 2000 when Keillor instituted an instant Tanglewood tradition at the place where he and his wife had their second date.

Chris Thile, mandolin player and member of Nickel Creek and the Punch Brothers, will co-host two shows with Keillor next season before succeeding him as host. Thile has performed at Tanglewood as a guest on the 2011 Prairie Home show and in 2013 with Yo Yo Ma’s Goat Radio Show.

We’ve had the pleasure of attending all but one of these broadcasts from the Koussevitsky Music Shed at Tanglewood, environs once occupied by Hawthorne, Melville, and Wharton. Besides an improbably diverse array of musical brilliance, such as the great Peter Rowan today along Sarah Jarosz, Sara Bareilles, and Nadia DiGiallonardo, the local shows almost always break new ground in the field of Berkshires literary archeology.

Garrison Keillor’s Berkshires literary archeology

An all-time favorite skit was Keillor’s account on the 2001 show of the most famous picnic in the history of American literature, the August 1850 picnic atop Monument Mountain, when Hawthorne and Melville met. Since nobody said Emily Dickinson wasn’t there, Keillor and the cast showed us how much fun the outing could’ve been if the Belle of nearby Amherst had made the trip. Erica Rhodes’ portrayal of a 19 year old Dickinson, eager for the affirmation of her literary elders, was a show-stopper.

The audience roared when she reached the closing lines of Dickinson’s beloved Time and Eternity, which begins, “Because I could not stop for death/He kindly stopped for me/…”

“The woods are lovely, dark with dew, Do-wacka-do-wacka-do-wacka-do.”

Today, the lighter side of Herman Melville was revealed by way of a quick exchange with Hawthorne that made him sound like a Borscht Belt comedian.

During an interview on Aspen Public Radio last week, Keillor said that to have Limericks he’s written “..be beloved among 10 year old boys twenty years from now” would be his “best stab at immortality.” With that in mind, we determined to compose one in his honor during Saturday’s show:

Tanglewood Limerick, for Garrison Keillor

The Tanglewood Shed sits near the mansion where
Boston bankers picnicked, and took care
Of Hawthorne, who’d got fired;
Now, rapt attention is required
When A Prairie Home Companion’s there.

You can listen to this show (and others), and read scripts at PrairieHome.org.

Upper Goose Pond, Appalachian Trail, near Becket, MA

May 18, 2008 Article by Dave Read

Here are photos taken Sunday, May 18, 2008, during a mid-day hike along the section of the Appalachian Trail that crosses the MA turnpike near Becket and leads to Upper Goose Pond. On a cool, overcast day, the highlights of the hike included several red-spotted eastern newts (Notophthalmus viridescens), and the placid Upper Goose Pond itself, which displayed reflections of the surounding hills in stunning Impressionistic fashion. Goose Pond Reservation, a property of the Trustees of Reservations, is located at Cooper Creek Road, Lee, MA 01238. See our list of the Trustees Berkshires section.

Photos of Upper Goose Pond, Appalachian Trail Berkshires section

Brian Wilson to perform Pet Sounds at Tanglewood

Dec. 15, 2015 Article by Dave Read

Brian Wilson performing Pet Sounds on Tanglewood schedule June 19, 2016[/caption]Brian Wilson is scheduled to perform Pet Sounds at Tanglewood on Sunday, June 19, 2016. Pet Sounds is the 1966 album that Wilson wrote and produced for the Beach Boys and which was ranked the 2nd best album by Rolling Stone. Beach Boy singer Mike Love, who appeared at Tanglewood in 2014 with a version of the band that didn’t inlude Wilson, is reported to have said “Who’s gonna hear this shit?” when Wilson turned him on to the material that would become the album. Although it wasn’t critically esteemed when it was released, the album has acheived almnost sacred status in the succeeding decades. Hit singles from the album include Wouldn’t It Be Nice, Caroline No, and the very cool Sloop John B.

This is a most welcome addition to the popular artists part of the 2016 Tanglewood schedule, which already included performances by Chris Botti on June 24, A Prairuie Home Companion, with Garrison Keillor on June 25, James Taylor on July 4 & 5, the Chich Corea Trio on Julky 31, and Silk Road ensemble with Yo Yo Ma on Aug. 7.

2016 Tanglewood tickets

Tickets for the 2016 Tanglewood season, $12-$124, go on sale January 24 starting at 10 a.m. through Tanglewood’s website, www.tanglewood.org, SymphonyCharge at 888-266-1200, and at the Symphony Hall Box Office at 301 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston MA. Tanglewood brochures with complete programs and information on how to order tickets will be available in early February by calling 617-638-9467. For further information, please call the Boston Symphony Orchestra at 617-266-1492 or visit www.tanglewood.org. 2016 Tanglewood schedule – PDF.

Tanglewood grounds map

Here is a dynamic map of the Tanglewood grounds, with photos and information for such points of interest as Aaron Copland Library, Highwood Manor House, The Glass House, and The Lion’s Gate.

How to get to the Berkshires

Follow this link for Berkshires travel information, including public transportation within Berkshire county and Amtrak and Peter Pan bus schedules.

Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time

2015 Jacob’s Pillow schedule

April 1, 2015 Article by Dave Read

Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival
358 George Carter Road
Becket, MA 01223
Phone: 413.243.9919
Fax:413.243.4744
Web: jacobspillow.org

Jacob’s Pillow 2015 schedule is highlighted by Martha Graham Dance Company’s 90th Anniversary, including a world premiere by eminent choreographer Mats Ek; a pre-Festival dance and radio stage production hosted by Ira Glass; the return of Nederlands Dans Theater 2; the U.S. debut of the German groupGauthier Dance//Dance Company Theaterhaus Stuttgart; the world premiere of American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Daniil Simkin’s INTENSIO; Cuban contemporary ensemble Malpaso Dance Company, performing with pianist and composer Arturo O’Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra. Tickets went on sale April 1.

Three Acts, Two Dancers, One Radio Host – June 13 and 14, Ted Shawn Theatre

The venerable Ira Glass, host of public radio’s This American Life, hosts this new stage production which will appear at Jacob’s Pillow for two special pre-Festival performances. Glass is joined by dancers Monica Bill Barnes and Anna Bass of contemporary dance ensemble Monica Bill Barnes & Company in an evening of dance and storytelling.

Season Opening Gala – June 20, Ted Shawn Theatre

The exclusive Gala performance will include American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Daniil Simkin, New York City Ballet principal dancer Sara Mearns and soloist Russell Janzen, the legendary Martha Graham Dance Company, and the dancers of The School at Jacob’s Pillow Ballet Program in a world premiere by BalletX co-founder and co-Artistic Director Matthew Neenan.

Ballet BC – June 24-28, Ted Shawn Theatre

From Vancouver, Canada, Artistic Director Emily Molnar and the dynamic dancers of Ballet BC work with top contemporary choreographers from across the globe. They open the Festival with William Forsythe’s intricate Work Within Work; Cayetano Soto’s Twenty Eight Thousand Waves with music by David Lang and Bryce Dessner; and the U.S. premiere of Gustavo Ramírez Sansano’s interpretation of The Rite of Spring, score by Igor Stravinsky.

New York Theatre Ballet in Cinderella – June 24-28, Doris Duke Theatre

New York Theatre Ballet opens the Doris Duke Theatre season with Donald Mahler’s popular version of the classic story ballet, Cinderella. Cinderella is a treat for all ages, with skilled dancers, beloved Sergei Prokofiev music, and imaginative costumes and sets. $10 youth tickets are available for every family-friendly performance.

Dorrance Dance, Toshi Reagon, BIGlovely in The Blues Project – July 1-5, Ted Shawn Theatre

Jacob’s Pillow Dance Award winner Michelle Dorrance and Dorrance Dance return with The Blues Project, which premiered here in 2013. The Blues Project cast includes co-choreographers and soloists Derick K. Grant and Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards, and the production features music composed by renowned singer-songwriter Toshi Reagon, performed live by Reagon and her band BIGLovely.

BODYTRAFFIC – July 1-5, Doris Duke Theatre

Based in Los Angeles, BODYTRAFFIC was founded in 2007 by dancers and co-directors Lillian Barbeito and Tina Finkelman Berkett. Program features Dust by Israeli choreographer Hofesh Shechter; Once again, before you go by Victor Quijada of RUBBERBANDance Group; and The New 45, a jazzy duet by Richard Siegal.

Nederlands Dans Theater 2 – July 8-12, Ted Shawn Theatre

NDT2, second company of Nederlands Dans Theater, presents a program with Sara by Sharon Eyal and Dai Behar of Israel, and Schubert and Shutters Shut by Spanish-British choreographic duo Sol León and Paul Lightfoot. Plus I New Then by Swedish dancemaker Johan Inger, danced to songs by Van Morrison.

Big Dance Theater in Alan Smithee Directed This Play: Triple Feature – July 8-12, Doris Duke Theatre

In 2007, Big Dance Theater co-directors Annie-B Parson and Paul Lazar were the inaugural recipients of the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Award, given to visionary dancemakers. In their latest work Alan Smithee Directed This Play: Triple Feature the company samples films and novels including Doctor Zhivago, the film Terms of Endearment, and the 1970 French thriller Le Cercle Rouge.

Alonzo King LINES Ballet – July 15-19, Ted Shawn Theatre

Artistic Director Alonzo King presents a program with King’s Concerto for Two Violins, Men’s Quintet, and the East Coast premiere of a collaboration with natural soundscape artist Dr. Bernie Krause, author of The Great Animal Orchestra, and composer Richard Blackford.

Sébastien Ramirez and Honji Wang in Monchichi – July 15-19, Doris Duke Theatre

Sébastien Ramirez is a French dancer of Spanish origin who started out as a virtuosic b-boy. Honji Wang is a German dancer of Korean descent, with a rich background in ballet, contemporary, and urban dance styles. The duo questions interculturality within a couple in Monchichi, a show that combines hip-hop, contemporary dance, and unique set design.

Daniil Simkin’s INTENSIO – July 22-26, Ted Shawn Theatre

American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Daniil Simkin is joined by fellow dancers of ABT Isabella Boylston, Alexandre Hammoudi, Blaine Hoven, Hee Seo, Calvin Royal III, and James Whiteside, plus special guest Céline Cassone of Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal. In INTENSIO, a Jacob’s Pillow co-commission, they perform four world premieres by choreographers: Nederlands Dans Theater 2 associate choreographer Alexander Ekman of Sweden, American dancemaker Gregory Dolbashian, resident Boston Ballet choreographer Jorma Elo of Finland, and Colombo-Belgian artist Annabelle Lopez Ochoa.

Gauthier Dance//Dance Company Theaterhaus Stuttgart – July 22-26, Doris Duke Theatre

Gauthier Dance//Dance Company Theaterhaus Stuttgart presents a program including PACOPEPEPLUTO by Hubbard Street Dance Chicago resident choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo, Alexander Ekman’s Two Become Three, the solo Ballet 101 by Artistic Director Eric Gauthier, and other dances.

Daniel Ulbricht & Stars of American Ballet – July 29-August 2, Ted Shawn Theatre

New York City Ballet principal dancer Daniel Ulbricht and soloists from New York City Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Boston Ballet, and Houston Ballet present a program that includes In the Night by Jerome Robbins, Distractions by New York City Ballet’s Justin Peck, and Les Lutins by Johan Kobborg.

Jessica Lang Dance in The Wanderer – July 29 – August 9, Doris Duke Theatre

Jessica Lang returns for a two-week run of a new evening-length ballet, The Wanderer, which was created in part during a Creative Development Residency at the Pillow. The ballet is set to Franz Schubert’s famous song cycle Die schöne Müllerin, which will be performed live at the Festival. Set designed by Mimi Lien, costumes by fashion designer and former Mark Morris Dance Group company member Bradon McDonald, and lighting by Nicole Pearce.

Malpaso Dance Company with Arturo O’Farrill and Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble – August 5-9, Ted Shawn Theatre

Despedida, choreographed by Artistic Director Osnel Delgado, is a new work for ten dancers with an original score composed by pianist/composer Arturo O’Farrill and performed by O’Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble, the resident ensemble of the nonprofit Afro Latin Jazz Alliance. Despedida takes inspiration from the eponymous poem by Argentinian writer Jorge Luis Borges. The second work on the program, co-commissioned by Jacob’s Pillow and The Joyce Theater, will be created by ever-popular contemporary ballet choreographer Trey McIntyre, whose dance ensemble Trey McIntyre Project gave its final performances at the Pillow last season.

The Sarasota Ballet – August 12-16, Ted Shawn Theatre

The Sarasota Ballet, directed by Iain Webb, performs Sir Frederick Ashton’s iconic, artful trios Monotones I and Monotones II, Christopher Wheeldon’s The American set to the Dvoák music of the same name, and a world premiere by Brazilian resident choreographer and company member Ricardo Graziano.

La Otra Orilla – August 12-16, Doris Duke Theatre

From Montréal, Canada, La Otra Orilla embodies a deep mastery of traditional flamenco dance and the music of Andalusia, married with a contemporary twist. Myriam Allard, soul-stirring vocalist Hedi Graja, and a cast of vocalists, guitarists, and percussionists present a world premiere full of flamenco and contemporary dance, multimedia and video effects, and live music.

L.A. Dance Project – August 19-22, Ted Shawn Theatre

In their Pillow debut, L.A. Dance Project, founded by Benjamin Millepied, perform Murder Ballades by New York City Ballet’s Justin Peck, Millepied’s new ballet Hearts and Arrows, and the U.S. premiere of Roy Assaf’s II Acts for the Blind.

Liz Gerring Dance Company in glacier – August 19-23, Doris Duke Theatre

Liz Gerring’s contemporary dance, glacier, is a 65-minute work features set design by Robert Wierzel and is danced to an original score by company resident composer Michael J. Schumacher, whose piece “Glacier” originated during a summer stay near Colorado’s Glacier Lake.

Martha Graham Dance Company – August 26-30, Ted Shawn Theatre

Martha Graham, Erick Hawkins and the Martha Graham Dance Company in Martha Graham's "Appalachian Spring" Courtesy of the Library of Congress — Martha Graham, Erick Hawkins and the Martha Graham Dance Company
in Martha Graham’s “Appalachian Spring”
Courtesy of the Library of Congress

The legendary modern dance company launches its 90th Anniversary, celebrating a pioneering past and trail-blazing future. This spectacular program includes Martha Graham’s dramatic classic work Embattled Garden, Echo by choreographer Andonis Foniadakis, Depak Ine by Nacho Duato, and the world premiere of AXE, by Mats Ek.

MADBOOTS DANCE – August 26-30, Doris Duke Theatre

MADBOOTS DANCE was founded in 2011 by Austin Diaz and Jonathan Campbell. Their program will include work created during a February Creative Development Residency at Jacob’s Pillow.

Further programming announcements will be made in April for more than 200 free events, including Inside/Out performances, PillowTalks, and exclusive exhibits.

Jacob’s Pillow map and directions

[mappress mapid=”157″ width=”100%” height=”400″ adaptive=”true”]

Annual exhibits in four venues throughout the Pillow’s National Historic Landmark grounds display photographs, video, artifacts and other engaging visual material that enrich the visitor’s experience of dance. The Archives, documenting dance and Pillow history from 1894 to the present, welcome both the general public and artistic and scholarly researchers to view videos of recent performances or historic films from years past, and browse dance or related art and history books. The full resources of the Archives are available to the public free of charge on a drop-in basis Tuesdays through Sundays, from noon until final curtain.

PillowTalks are brief Pre-Show Talks which introduce audiences to the performance they are about to attend, and Post-Show Talks with the artists just after they step offstage. All talks are free and open to the public. PillowTalks take place in Blake’s Barn, Thursdays at 5pm and Saturdays at 4pm, providing varied opportunities to gain insight from dancers, choreographers, musicians, filmmakers, visual designers, historians, and other experts.

Free guided tours of the 163-acre Jacob’s Pillow campus leave from the Welcome Center every Friday and Saturday at 5:30pm, and patrons can pick up a self-guided tour map anytime to explore the grounds on their own. Patrons are also welcome to visit The School at Jacob’s Pillow and observe renowned artist faculty working with emerging professional dancers, either on a drop-in basis or pre-arranged for groups larger than four.

Jacob’s Pillow offers many dining options including the Pillow Café, a full-service open air restaurant on The Great Lawn; the Pillow Pub, offering casual fare, ready-to-go picnics, and a full bar; and the Coffee & Ice Cream Bars. Many visitors bring a picnic lunch or dinner from home and dine on The Great Lawn or while taking in a performance on the Inside/Out stage.

Watching Andris Nelsons conduct

Dec. 6, 2014 Article by Dave Read

Reading the New Yorker is always an entertaining and edifying activity, and sometimes more, such as when I got a rush of sympatico from an article by Alex Ross in the Dec. 1, 2014 issue, Brushfires; Andris Nelsons energizes the Boston Symphony. The caption of the accompanying illustration reads, “On the podium, Nelsons, a galvanic young Latvian, lunges about uninhibitedly.” It remined me of my effort to describe Maestro Nelsons during his first Tanglewood concert since being named BSO Music director, the July 11, 2014 program featuring Anne-Sophie Mutter performing Dvorak’s Violin Concerto.
“There was a moment toward the end of the Violin concerto, with Ms. Muter at rest, when he almost stepped off the podium, crouching and reaching toward the violins to draw forth a soft passage. He left footprints and handprints all over the podium, like an animal marking territory.”

lexicon of the music critic

Being totally unschooled in the lexicon of the music critic, I’m pretty much left to write about the appearance of a concert, leaving the cognoscenti to describe how the music sounds in relation to how they think it should sound. Orchestras such as the Boston Symphony project a uniform, practically static image, which makes it easy for the conductor to be the focus of my attention, as he (and sometimes she) articulates his musical directives by way of gestures. And this gesticulation can range from eloquent to akward, from geriatric to gymnastic, from martial to manic.

In his New Yorker article, Ross says that “… Nelsons lunges about uninhibitedly, violating textbook rules about the wisdom of minimizing one’s gestures. I imagine that Boston players have already mastered imitations of his signature moves: the Backward Lean, the Extreme Crouch, the Trapeze Grab, the Across-the-Table Ice-Cream Scoop.”

So it is good to know that a respected music critic deems a conductor’s gesticulations worthy of more than a passing mention, and that the lexicon needn’t be staid. It feels like getting permission to be playful even while writing about highbrow stuff! Thanks to Alex Ross, I’ll take a stab at adding to the lexicon when Nelsons returns to Tanglewood next July.

[bctt tweet=”Watching Andris Nelsons conduct.”]