Dave Read

Mount Greylock State Reservation

Mount Greylock is the highest point in Massachusetts, with an elevation of 3,491 feet. It spans the Berkshire county towns of North Adams, Adams, Lanesborough, Cheshire, Williamstown and New Ashford, dominating the Berkshire landscape; from the summit, dramatic views of 60-90 miles distant may be seen. It became Massachusetts’ first wilderness state park, acquired by the Commonwealth in 1898, to preserve its natural environment for public enjoyment. Wild and rugged yet intimate and accessible, Mount Greylock rewards the visitor exploring this special place of scenic and natural beauty.

From Wikipedia: “The summit of Mount Greylock is located in Adams, but the mountain spreads into the towns of North Adams, Williamstown, Cheshire, New Ashford and Lanesborough. Mount Greylock is composed of a north-south oriented central ridge: Saddle Ball Mountain 3,247 ft (990 m); Mount Greylock, the high point (3,491 ft (1,064 m); Mount Fitch (3,110 ft/950 m); and Mount Williams (2,951 ft/899 m); flanked by two subordinate ridges: on the west by Mount Prospect (2,690 ft/820 m) and Stony Ledge (2,560 ft/780 m), and on the east by Ragged Mountain (2,528 ft/771 m). (Photo from Wikipedia, used according to GNU license.)

“Prior to the arrival of Europeans the Mahican people were closely associated with this region. The traditional trade route connecting the tribes of the Hudson and Connecticut River Valleys (today, Route 2, known as the Mohawk Trail) passes beneath the northern flank of Mount Greylock. The mountain was known to eighteenth century English settlers as Grand Hoosuc(k). In the early 19th century it was called Saddleback Mountain because of its appearance (Saddle Ball, the name of the peak to the south, still reflects this).

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“The origin of the present name of Greylock and its association with the mountain is unclear. It first appeared in print about 1819, and came into popular use by the 1830s. It may be in reference to its appearance, as it often has a gray cloud, or lock of gray mist upon his head, or in tribute to a legendary Native American chief, Gray Lock. Gray Lock (c.1670-1750) was a Western Abenaki Missisquoi chief of Woronoco/Pocomtuc ancestry, born near Westfield (MA). Gray Lock distinguished himself by conducting guerrilla raids into Vermont and western Massachusetts in the conflict variously known as Dummer’s War, Three Years War, Lovewell’s War, The War with the Eastern Indian or Father Rasle’s War. Although it is not clear whether he was actually ever personally associated with the mountain, perhaps in tribute to his notoriety the mountain came to bear his name.”

Remembering Dave Brubeck

Dave Brubeck in the Berkshires, Pittsfield CityJazz Festival, Oct. 17, 2009; photo: Dave Conlin Read.

We’re re-posting material in the wake of Dave Brubeck’s death Dec. 5, 2012, the day before his 92nd birthday. Dave Brubeck performed in the Berkshires throughout his legendary career, from the 1950s at the fabled Music Inn in Lenox to a 2009 Pittsfield CityJazz Festival performance at the Colonial Theatre.

Mr. Brubeck’s last performance in the Berkshires was a presentation of BerkshiresJazz.org, which afforded us the opportunity, as a member of the organization, to shoot some video during the afternoon rehearsal, where he prepared for his duet with high school student Sam Landes on Duke Ellington’s Take the A Train.

Dave Brubeck rehearshing “Take the A Train”

Dave Brubeck at 2002 Tanglewood Jazz Festival

September 1, 2002 performance review by Dave Conlin Read.

Three tunes into his 2½ hour 2002 Tanglewood Jazz Festival concert, Dave Brubeck said, “I like to introduce new stuff when I play here because the audience is so kind.” Makes you wonder if “here” referred to the seven year old Ozawa Hall where tonight’s gig was, or the Koussevitsky Music Shed, which opened when he was 18 in 1938, or just hereabouts, which would include the site of the fabled Music Barn and the Lenox School of Jazz, where he performed and taught during the 1950s. Regardless, what a treat it was to be in the audience while Dave Brubeck is introducing new material!

That new song was Crescent City Stomp, and it was built around an infectious beat established by drummer Randy Jones, a beat Brubeck said you hear all over New Orleans. Bobby Militello’s saxophone was the featured instrument after the drum intro and Brubeck himself was the most enthused member of the audience for a while, as he would be throughout the evening, whenever his bandmates took their many solos.

Rounding out the quartet, all dressed smartly in dinner jackets and black slacks, was bassist Michael Moore, who plucked and bowed several eloquent passages from his bass, which his languid body fairly enfolded. There were times when you’d think Moore was a ventriloquist for the cleanly enunciated lines he drew from his instrument, but an inartful one because all the while you could see his lips moving! (Read comprehensive bios of the band, from Hedrick Smith’s PBS show “Rediscovering Dave Brubeck.“)

Introducing the evening’s first tune, Brubeck said that for fifty years he started concerts with St. Louis Blues, but tonight would start with the title tune from his current release, “The Crossing.” He told about a trans-Atlantic jazz cruise with about 100 musicians aboard the QE II, which got underway on the Hudson, passed the Verazzano Narrows and into the Atlantic, ” – and we worked up a head of steam, which I hope we do tonight.”

They did.

The tune was some piece of magical mimicry; it was easy to imagine a grand ship honking and chugging away from the pier and soon enough finding its way into rough waters evoked by churning bass notes, then Brubeck took the helm playing long melodious lines, the ship rocking smoothly through eddies and swells.

In telling us that on September 21, he’ll celebrate his 60th wedding anniversary, Brubeck introduced the next tune, All My Love, a translucent ballad that had him hunched over the keyboard, his eyes only inches away from his hands playing so few notes that you could count them.

After The Crossing, came the haunting Elegy, an intimate composition that Ozawa Hall was designed for, where it seems to become part of the ensemble. Continuing in that vein, Brubeck introduced Don’t Forget Me with a few minutes of distant romantic lines that suddenly turned immediate and raucus with another of Militello’s expansive sax solos, and then had Brubeck’s hands flying all over the keyboard before he returned to the lonely little melody that he began with.

This was a very special evening of jazz, a million miles away from being a museum piece, every tune imbued with freshness and vigor. Brubeck’s age was apparent only when he stepped over to the mic, which he did several times to introduce tunes during the first set, which was probably pre-arranged as opposed to the second which I think he made up from the bench as he went along.

It began with Pennies From Heaven, dedicated to the people on the lawn who were being rained upon lightly. Brubeck played out the celestial theme in the next two tunes, Somewhere Over the Rainbow, and Sunny Side of the Street, developing each while the band listened to hear where they were going. Militello’s flute solo on – Rainbow was ineffably sublime. Sunny Side – was rollicking, and at one point Brubeck pointed toward Moore and drew a circle in the air, indicating another round of solos for all.

The audience responded to the celestial set with thunderous applause, which the quartet accepted graciously and which Brubeck seemed overwhelmed by, his grin so broad as he looked into the audience and then around to his band to spread out the acclaim. After his fans got quiet again, he mischievously noodled a few lines from Singing in the Rain then broke into the first notes of Take Five, the Paul Desmond composition from “Time Out,” the world’s first million-selling jazz record.

It was a thrilling rendition, featuring Militello’s slow reinterpretation of the theme before returning it to a rambunctiousness that Brubeck brought to a gleeful level which Randy Jones exploded with a virtuoso display of drumming. Brubeck brought the tune back to earth and then Jones laid down the tastiest little drum coda for the ultimate punctuation to this landmark of jazz.

Sustained applause brought these giants back on stage, Brubeck played a few notes of Brahm’s Lullabye to everybody’s amusement before the quartet re-loaded for Take the A Train, which was a rumbling jam session, the sea cruise of two hours earlier long over. It went on until Brubeck, answering a questioning look from Militello, raised his hands from the keyboard, turned them into pistols and fired a volley into the air.

This performance was a slice of jazz for the ages, delivered by the ageless gentleman genius Dave Brubeck and his virtuoso sidemen, each of whom was brilliant tonight.

Guthrie Center

Article by Dave Read.

Arlo Guthrie founded the Guthrie Center in 1991, housing it in the former Trinity Church made famous by the song The Alice’s Restaurant Massacree and the movie Alice’s Restaurant. It is located on Van Deusenville Road in Housatonic, a census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Great Barrington, MA. Established as an Interfaith Church, “dedicated to all those around the world who believe that there is one truth and infinite ways to approach it.”

Arlo Guthrie providing a place to bring together individuals for spiritual service, as well as cultural and educational exchange founded the Guthrie Center, an Interfaith Church, in 1991. The Trinity Church where the song “The Alice’s Restaurant Massacree” began and where the movie “Alice’s Restaurant” was filmed, continues to service the local and international community.

Originally built as the St. James Chapel in 1829, the structure was enlarged in 1866 and renamed Trinity Church. Ray and Alice Brock purchased the property in 1964 and made it their home. The building has had several owners since the early 1970s.

Guthrie Center contact info.

2 Van Deusenville Rd,
Great Barrington, MA 01230
Phone:(413) 528-1955
Web: guthriecenter.org

Wynton Marsalis Quintet Christian McBride Trio at Tanglewood

August 20, 2012 Article by Dave Read

Wynton Marsalis Quintet and Christian McBride Trio performed one set each in Ozawa Hall at Tanglewood and then assembled for a mashup that looked to be as much fun for the musicians to do as it was exciting for the audience to see and hear. If there were an equal number of musicians and instruments, we would’ve called it a jam session, but with only one bass, one piano, and one drum kit on stage but two musicians for each, their playing was more in concert than what you’d expect to hear during a typical jam session.

Wynton Marsalis and drummer Ali Jackson, Jr, Ozawa Hall Tanglewood , Aug. 20, 2012; photo:Hilary Scott.

Built around Cherokee, it was called by Wynton Marsalis after he recounted an episode from his early days on the road, when the legendary Pearl Bailey surprised him with a gift and told him to do likewise once he’s a headliner. Declaring that the chance to imrovise with other musicians is a jazz musician’s best gift, he invited McBride, pianist Christian Sands, and drummer Ulysses Owens, Jr. to join himself and pianist Dan Nimmer, bassist Carlos Henriquez, saxophonist Walter Blanding and drummer Ali Jackson, Jr. for the rousing finale.

Marsalis said that it requires good manners and being a good listener to be a good musician – so that you know when to play high or low, when to play loud or soft. He didn’t say anything about being a good dancer, but the several transitions between Christian McBride and Carlos Henriquez were so smooth that they coud’ve been choreographed.

essential element of jazz

Wynton Marsalis performs with his quintet, Ozawa Hall Tanglewood , Aug.20, 2012; photo:Hilary Scott.

Tonight’s performance put jazz in perspective in a way that made its European antecedent seem a bit stiff, at the very least. Beyond the equal parts of artistry to be found in the compositional and instrumental components of both European and jazz music, the latter has it all over the former by virtue of its allowance for improvisation, which cedes back to the musician some of the responsibility (credit and/blame) otherwise held by the composer alone.

Wynton Marsalis + Tanglewood

THe 50 year old Marsalis has a long history with Tanglewood; at 17, he was the youngest student admitted to the Tanglewood Music Center, (before enrolling at Julliard), and in 1995 he had the use of the still un-opened Ozawa Hall for the production of Marsalis on Music, an educational series along the lines of Leonard Bernstein’s Young People’s Concerts, which featured Seiji Ozawa, Yo-Yo Ma, and Tanglewood Music Center students.

One of the most exciting concerts we’ve attended was the one in 1999 at the Koussevitsky Music Shed when Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra shared the stage with Seiji Ozawa and the Boston Symphony Orchestra for a program that alternated between Peer Gynt Suite being played by the BSO and the Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn arrangement being played by the LCJO.

Former young lion Christian McBride

Christian McBride, 40, who also studied at Julliard, talked about arriving where his mother had long-ago told him he would, when he no longer is a “young lion,” and expressed his delight in employing the young Sands and Owens. Sands’ mentors include Billy Taylor and Oscar Peterson, who were represented in the set by Easy Walker and Hallelujah Shout. McBride dedicated his set-closing number, The Most Beautiful Girl in the World, to Phyllis Diller, telling the audience that she’d died that day “with a smile on her face.”

McBride’s set was so thoroughly satisfying that it seemed as if his trio format must be the essential and sufficient blueprint for jazz. We held onto that assessment with confidence during intermission and until about five bars into Marsalis’ set, when we could only laugh at how wrong we were. Easy to get carried away trying to describe the addition of trumpet and sax to piano, bass, and drums in a jazz band, but here goes: from the ability to laugh/cry to the ability to tell funny/heart-breaking stories.

John Williams’ 80th birthday celebration at Tanglewood

August 18, 2012 performance; Dave Read.

Tanglewood rung up another glittering gala celebration, honoring the 80th birthday of Boston Pops Laureate Conductor John Williams with no less a musical luminary than soprano Jessye Norman serving as M.C. But to refer to John Williams as Boston Pops Laureate Conductor is like referring to Bob Dylan as a former Minnesotan.

Williams’ compositions, especially those written for movies, have global appeal and place him in the pantheon of popular art. As pointed out by Leonard Slatkin, who conducted several segments of tonight’s program, John Williams may have surpassed Beethoven in writing the world’s most familiar musical motif. Slatkin first sounded the four notes that open Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, then declared that Williams beat him by two with the oh-so-familiar two notes from his Theme for Jaws.

Steven Speilberg, whose local ties include service on the board of the Norman Rockwell Museum, took the stage and noted that their collaborations have spanned half of Williams’ life. Other encomia were presented, fittingly, via the big screen. The festivities began with anchorman Brian Williams, no relation, appearing to do a fake newscast about Williams’ 80th birthday being celebrated at an “unknown location,” before zooming in via Google earth on Tanglewood. Another movie titan, George Lucas, also added his best wishes from a remote location.

Photos of John Williams’ 80th birthday celebration at Tanglewood

The initial musical salvo was delivered, in dramatic fashion, by the US Army Herald Trumpets, flanking the stage with their director conducting from the center aisle, playing Williams’s Olympic Fanfare and Theme, along with the Boston Pops under the baton of Keith Lockhart.

The big screen unfurled again and there was President Obama adding his accolades, on behalf of a grateful nation. Aslo “live via videotape” were Gustavo Dudamel and Deborah Borda from Williams’s “hometown orchestra” the Los Angeles Philharmonic. His orchestral work Soundings was performed at the opening of their new home, Walt Disney Concert Hall in 2003, and also performed at Tanglewood a few years ago.

Video greetings from the Boston Red Sox entertained Williams and the huge audience returning to their seats, blankets, benches, and lawn chairs after intermission followed by Fanfare for Fenway, Williams composition for the ballpark’s 100th anniversary.

Another screen drop and here was Seiji Ozawa, filmed with a Red Sox tapestry in the background, looking and sounding fairly good considering his condition. With a heartfelt tribute to his friend, the Maestro seemed to be asking forgiveness for being absent, leaving his legion of fans hopeful for his eventual return to Tanglewood.

75th Tanglewood anniversary season

Whereas the Boston Pops hasn’t missed a beat since Williams handed the baton to Lockhart in 1995, the Boston Symphony Orchestra hasn’t been so lucky in the wake of Ozawa’s 29 year tenure. For all you can tell from the audience, though, that may be purely an administrative matter, because this 75th Tanglewood anniversary season has been a beauty.

The way this program progressed, patrons were guessing who’d appear the next time the video screen dropped. Some expected the Queen of England herself! Why not – given Williams’ Olympic Fanfare, London 2012, and her own Jubilee…? After all, a member of her court, Sir Paul McCartney, made a video appearance at James Taylor’s 60th birthday party at Tanglewood a couple summer’s ago. Nope, no Queen; but Bill Clinton did chime in, remember him?

Of course James Taylor was on hand, to sing You’ve Got a Friend, in a duet with BSO cellist Owen Young, and to speak of his affection and gratitude for Williams, who invited Taylor to play his first gig with the Pops 20 years ago. Williams also introduced him to “the love of my life, Caroline.”

Besides Ms. Norman’s rendition of This Song is You, a musical highpoint was the performance of Williams’ composition for the Obama inauguration, Air and Simple Gifts, performed by Yo-Yo Ma, cello, Gil Shaham, violin, Gabriela Montero, piano, and Anthony McGill, clarinet. Another was Three Concert Pieces conducted by Shi-Yeon Sung, former BSO assistnt conductor, which was made up of one movement from each of 3 concerti by Williams: for Oboe, with Keisuke Wakao soloing, for Horn, with James Sommerville soloing, and for Tuba, with Mike Roylance soloing.

Fitting tribute to the Wiliams’s genius in scoring movies came by way of Yo-Yo Ma and the Pops on Going to School from Memoirs of a Geisha; Gil Shaham and the Pops performing the Theme for Schindler’s List, and finally, the Main title from Star Wars, all conducted by Leonard Slatkin.

The grand finale of John Williams’ 80th Birthday Ceebration at Tanglewood was his own Happy Birthday Variations, with the Pops very ably augmented by the brass and woodwind players of the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra. That piece is great fun, seemng to sample the most memorable and exciting motifs from the composer’s oeuvre. Then a loud POP and streamers and confetti rained on the audience, as they stood to applaud Mr. Williams, now onstage with his friends and colleagues, having the time of his life.

Chris Botti at Tanglewood

Chris Botti put on a tremendous show in Ozawa Hall, which was packed to the rafters with lawn patrons given refuge from the rain. Botti is a versatile trumpeter, playing plenty of straight ahead jazz but also pop, rock, and classical in this genre-agnostic show that featured two guests along with a very impressive band. He’s pretty loquacious, too, unlike his hero Miles Davis, whose LPs Kind of Blue and Sketches of Spain were the sources for two numbers that were highlights of tonight’s program. In addition to Botti’s own virtuosity, they showcased the brilliance of Brazilian guitarist Leonardo Amuedo. Everyone in the band had plenty of opportunities to display their artistry: Billy Childs on piano, Tim Lefebvre on acoustic and electric bass, Billy Kilson on drums, and Andy Ezrin on keyboards and sythensizer. (Lefebvre and Ezrin are Massachussetts natives.)

Serena McKinney and Lisa Fischer perform with Chris Botti, Ozawa Hall, Tanglewood, Aug. 5, 2012. — Serena McKinney and Lisa Fischerperform with Chris Botti, Ozawa Hall, Tanglewood, Aug. 5, 2012; Hilary Scott photos.

The special guests were Lisa Fischer, longtime vocalist with the Rolling Stones, and the young classical violinist Serena McKinney, each of whom added exciting and beautiful facets to the show (while wearing high heels that could pierce your heart!).

Botti is more engaged with his audience than any musician we’ve seen at Tanglewood, more so even than James Taylor and Garrison Keillor. Not only did he descend from the stage to play in the aisle, in a duet with Ms. Fischer, who sang The Very Thought of You while seated in the lap of a patron, but also he invited a young girl on stage to play drums on the final number, Nessun Dorma, the aria from the last act of Puccini’s Turandot.

In this celebratory 75th anniversary season at Tanglewood, the first in over a decade not to be followed by a Labor Day weekend jazz festival, jazz fans have not been overlooked! Even before the arrival of the BSO, there was Diana Krall in the Shed folowed the next night by the very jazzy Silk Road Ensemble with Yo Yo Ma in Ozawa Hall. Next up will be another Ozawa Hall jazz concert bill headlined by the Wynton Marsalis Quartet, with opening act Christian McBride Trio on Aug. 20, followed on Aug. 26 by the Chick Corea and Gary Burton Hot House Tour, with the Harlem String Quartet.