At 8 pm on Saturday, March 12, the Philadelphia Orchestra returns to Hill Auditorium for the second night of their two-performance residency!
Saturday evening’s program includes Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres) by Missy Mazzoli, Violin Concerto No. 1 in g minor, Op. 26 by Max Bruch, and Symphony No. 9 in C Major, D. 944 by Franz Schubert. The Bruch Violin Concerto will feature David Kim, concertmaster, on violin, and the performance will be conducted by Nathalie Stutzmann, principal guest conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Tickets for the Philadelphia Orchestra are available at the Michigan League Ticket Office or on the University Musical Society website. Students may purchase discounted tickets for $12 or $20 with valid student ID, or, for a free ticket, make use of the UMS Bert’s Ticket program!
Firstly– it’s great to be back reviewing for [art]seen! I’m looking forward to wrapping up my final semester chatting about some great art.
The Worst Person in the World is a Norwegian drama about understanding love and growing into one’s own self. It was nominated for the prestigious Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival and is now up for multiple Oscars. Besides that, the trailer looks equal parts genuine and hilarious. As our local theaters show nominees for award show season over the next month, I highly recommend taking advantage of so many showings of quality work!
The film is now showing at the State– if anything, you’ll be able to make plenty of absolutely awful jokes with a play on words of the title.
On Friday, March 11, 2022 at 8:00 PM, the Philadelphia Orchestra will return to Hill Auditorium for the first performance of a two-day residency. Friday’s program, which will be conducted by music director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, features Wynton Marsalis’s Tuba Concerto and Johannes Brahms’s Symphony No. 1 in c minor, Op. 68.
The Tuba Concerto is particularly exciting, because it will feature Carol Jantsch, principal tubist of the Philadelphia Orchestra, the first female tuba player in a major symphony orchestra, and University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance alumna! Jantsch performed the world premiere of the concerto in Philadelphia in December 2021.
Tickets for the Philadelphia Orchestra are available at the Michigan League Ticket Office or on the University Musical Society website. Students may purchase discounted tickets for $12 or $20 with valid student ID, or, for a free ticket, make use of the UMS Bert’s Ticket program!
It isn’t often that we are able to trace an artist’s entire stylistic journey in one room, yet the UMMA’s newest exhibit allows us to do just that. Though I was familiar with Bearden as an artist, like many others, this was solely through his collages that highlighted African American culture. The expansive room was set up perfectly, allowing me to wander through Bearden’s art in a chronological manner.
The exhibit begins with displaying the artist’s earliest works that experiment with watercolors and Cubism as Bearden was undergoing artistic training. The next phase of Bearden’s work is demonstrated by a small collection of untitled collages that created a shift in Bearden’s methods as he combined new and old techniques. The following period of abstract oil paintings makes up the majority of the exhibit. The curators of the exhibit did a wonderful job in explaining the how factors in Bearden’s life, such as his relationships, interests, and locations, affected his stylistic development. My personal favorite in this collection of abstractions was “Mountain of Heaven”, painted by Bearden in 1961. The experimentation in media is especially prevalent here, as he incorporates oil paint in a wholly unexpected way that creates a dramatic texture and suggests movement. The more natural shape of the oil paint is juxtaposed by the heavy blocks of color that make up the outer edges of the painting, resulting in a stunning effect.
The exhibition, though focused on promoting Bearden’s more unknown works, ends with displaying several of his famed collages. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the works that Bearden was known for, yet I had a greater appreciation of them after viewing his journey as an artist. Though he worked with new techniques, it is easy to see how Bearden’s earlier interest in bold colors and shapes shines through his later work. The exhibit was executed fantastically, allowing the viewer to view firsthand the transitions of Bearden’s work and the way that his own work inspires innovation. The exhibit is open until May 15, 2022.
Tomorrow night, March 10th, prance to the Michigan Union’s Rogel Ballroom for MA:E Magazine’s Perspectives Gallery, held from 6-8pm!
MA:E is a “publication and creative collective by and for the Asian Pacific Islander Desi American community.” To commemorate AAPI Heritage Month next month, they are collaborating with Stamps Student Life to “showcase an exhibition and celebration of the free expression and creative talent of the AAPI community at the University of Michigan.” Artwork in mediums including photography, paintings, illustrations, videos, clothing design, storytelling, and performances of poetry/ prose will be presented.The gallery also welcomes Alexa Borromeo, Stamps Class of 2016, as the night’s guest speaker. The dress code is semiformal. MA:E requests that you fill out this RSVP Form no later than Wednesday, March 9th if you plan to be in attendance:
As an Asian American creative, I’m excited to meet other Asian creators from both MA:E and the larger community of U of M. As someone constantly surrounded by writing, viewing visual art is always refreshing, relaxing, and sparks inspiration for my own craft. In comparison to writing, fine art is sometimes easier to consume, and quicker to get an immediate response to. My favorite thing about visual art is that two people can look at a piece together, simultaneously. Art is really cool because when it’s hung up somewhere, it defines that space. I really look forward to entering a space of culture and art that lifts and honors AAPI voices. And getting to enjoy each piece with the company of a friend.
I love the Ark. I love its hallway lined with black-and-white frames of the performers that have graced its stage in years past. I love that it’s run by volunteers who will always help you find the best seat. I love how the stage isn’t roped off or even that tall – if you’re sitting close enough you can kick back and rest your feet on the edge, feeling the vibrations of the band’s sound.
I also love the Toronto band Enter the Haggis. I found them by accident when I was in the 6th grade. I had been going through a strange Irish/Celtic rock music phase and was jamming along to my The Corrs radio station on Pandora when I first heard their song “To the Quick”. There’s something about the Highland bagpipe that is so gorgeous to me. Each note rings clear, louder than anything else surrounding it, and without any vibrato or chance to cover up what the note is. You can’t lie on the bagpipe! And the combination with fiddle and rock guitar is so interesting.
My favorite Haggis songs are “Musicbox” and “To the Quick” — two tracks off of their oldest album from 2005, and two of the few that have no lyrics. Coming to hear them live was a pretty magical way to experience those songs, but was also a great introduction to their more recent work. I could notice a few changes. I love it when bands experiment with their sound – I don’t think any creator deserves to be put in a box where they can’t change.
At the show everyone played a little bit of everything, it seemed. There were vocals and keys and guitar and drums and sometimes, spontaneous battles between the fiddle and harmonica! I sat up close to Craig Downie, who seemed to know how to play basically every music-producing thing on this planet. I do not kid when I say that Craig had his own little *table* with a spread of instruments that he would swap between at will. It was marvelous to watch him go from swinging around a giant set of bagpipes to a tiny little harmonica or piccolo to a moon-shaped tambourine. The band joked that they needed to set up a special “Craig Cam” just to follow his movements.
Craig Downie playing the Great Highland Bagpipe
Just before starting the last song on their set, the frontman turned toward my part of the room and said “This song is dedicated to this pair right here. They’re a mother and daughter, this is their 5th concert of ours in a row that they’ve come to – and they were late to our show tonight because they were getting MATCHING Haggis Head tattoos.” At that the pair both rolled up their sleeves to show the audience proof. It was wild. Someone to their right yelled “That there is COMMITMENT” and we rolled into the final song. Everyone in the audience was clearly there to support the band and to share that excitement with each other, and by the end nobody was standing still.
I hope that more artists find ways to play their music in smaller venues again. Big stadiums have their own kind of magic, but they can’t replicate that feeling of intimacy that comes with being so up close and personal.
