The University SMTD Opera Studio is putting on The Barber of Seville by this weekend at the Power Center! The cast is made up of Doctor, Graduate, and Upperclassmen voice students. The plot is super funny, involving disguises, and trickery! Student tickets are only $10 at the Power Center ticket office.
You don’t want to miss this one!
Thursday 11/14/13 7:30 PM Power Center
Friday 11/15/13 8:00 PM Power Center
Saturday 11/16/13 8:00 PM Power Center
Sunday 11/17/13 2:00 PM Power Center
James Blake came into my auditory life about a year ago through a friend who’s taste in music I hold in high regard. After adding Blake’s music to some play lists and burning a couple CD’s for car trips (yes, I still make mix ‘tapes’) Blake became a staple. It wasn’t until this past summer that I started learning more about this phenomenal musical talent.
Blake released his first EP “Air and Lack There of” in 2009, at the ripe age of 21. It was picked up by BBC Radio 1 where he was later asked to come in and do some mixes. In 2010 Blake’s single cover of Feist’s “Limit to Your Love” was released and made 47 on the UK Singles Chart. After this rating Blake received nominations for awards in the UK as well as increasing interest from the press. His self titled album was related in February 2011, later that year he collaborated with Bon Iver. His second album “Overgrown” was released in April 2013. This album awarded him with the UK’s Mercury Music Prize for best new album, Blake has previously been nominated for this award in 2011. This past Summer Blake toured Europe and entered the states to continue his tour in October.
Which brings us to his performance on Monday night at the Michigan Theater, sponsored by UMS. Michigan Theater has beautiful acoustics. It was an interesting choice for this type of music because of the permanent seats, which aren’t very conducive to ‘grooving’ to the music. However, the audience compromised by standing in their rows or clustering against the lip of the stage.
Nosaj Thing (http://www.nosajthing.com/) opened with an excellent DJ set whilst people were milling about the lobby sipping beer and wine. He could hardly be seen as a black silhouette illuminated by a strikingly blue light.
When James Blake and his fellow musicians Ben Assiter on drums and Bob McAndrews on guitar and sampler, the light show began and the crowd was captivated for the next two and a half hours. James Blake’s music isn’t just something you listen to, it is something you experience. I have never said this about any other musical talent I have had the pleasure to witness live; Blake’s music goes inside your body and captures you in an entirely unique way. The beats he uses in his music reverberate through your bones, his smooth, versatile voice slides into your ears and activates something within you. Seeing Blake live was a visceral and emotional experience. I have never been so affected by a performance in my life. In addition to the sound, this performance had the added sensory experience of Chris Bushell’s lighting design. Light of red, orange, white, blue and purple flickered in rhythms and patterns. They reflected off the walls, the audience and the atmospheric fog blown on to the stage. The musicians were alternately lit from above, behind and from all sides creating beautiful silhouettes and visual landscapes.
James Blake is by far the most talented musician I have ever seen perform live. This performance completely blew my mind.
Do yourself a favor and go listen to him immediately. If you are able to buy one of his albums on vinyl and put it on a decent sound system you will be much happier than digital. Barring that, hook your i-whatever up to some speakers and ride the wave.
A night of premieres and a night of transitions, the Women’s Glee Club fall concert was fantastic. As a celebration of Hill Auditorium’s 100th anniversary, each song the club sang was composed or arranged in the year 2013, and the styles ranged from classical to operatic to pop.
The song choices were not the only demonstration of range in this concert, however, because there were little kids! Little, elementary-aged kids from the Ann Arbor Youth Chorale Descant Choir; older, middle school-aged kids from the Ann Arbor Youth Chorale Concert Choir; and even older, high school-aged girls from the Ann Arbor Huron High School Bel Canto Choir. It was a shocking, adorable transition when the Women’s Glee Club left the stage after a few opening songs and the tiny Descant Choir entered. Their first song, “The Path to the Moon”, remains one of my favorites of the concert because they all looked and sounded so adorable on the massive Hill Auditorium stage.
Each choir took the stage—getting progressively older, taller, and more mature voices—until we were back to the Women’s Glee Club, which proceeded to add another level to their program in the second act. A graduate student in the school of Music, Theatre, and Dance, the immensely talented Elizabeth Galafa joined the club as a soloist for a beautiful piece titled “BeNevel Vekinor”, which was composed by University of Michigan doctoral student Asaf Peres.
This one concert told a tale of the passion for singing that can span across decades of life. It just might be that some of the children who performed that night and heard the college students sing will be inspired to pursue music. Perhaps the next U of M graduate student studying voice or the next composer was sitting in the seats tonight after performing with his or her school choir. Concerts like this are important not just for the students who participate in them, but for the community to see and hear the talent that surrounds them.
Also, I can’t end this without saying that these women did a kick-ass version of the Bellas Final from Pitch Perfect. I mean it. Top notch.
Moral of the story: check out a Women’s Glee Club concert sometime, you guys.
Who: James Blake
What: British electronic music genius.
Where: Michigan Theater
When: Monday 11 November 7:30pm
How Much: $20-$44 (http://ums.org/jamesblake)
This 25 year old man is an amazing musician, combining hauntingly beautiful vocals, piano and electronic beats and sounds.
Blake began his music career in 2009. This year, after his second nomination, Blake won the British Mercury Music Prize, a prize for best album in the UK and Ireland, for his second album “Overgrown.” He has been touring the world this year, to much international success.
This concert is a thrilling opportunity to experience this amazing young talent!
Even if you are unable to attend this concert, do your self a favor and listen to his music!
Who: University of Michigan Women’s Glee Club
What: U of M Women’s Glee Club Fall Concert 2013: A Night of Premieres
When: Saturday, November 9 at 8:00PM
Where: Hill Auditorium
Why you should be there(!): The University of Michigan Women’s Glee Club is an organization composed of fantastically talented young women. The combination of beautiful voices and unique song choices always leads to musical performances that are definitely worth hearing. (This is apparent in their performance of “Frobisher Bay” in a 2012 concert, and no I am not biased just because I was in it.)
This concert will feature many songs written specifically for the Women’s Glee Club, as well as special performances from local youth choirs. Tickets for this event are $5 for students, or free when you use a Passport to the Arts! Check out the Facebook event page for even more details.
Last Tuesday, October 29th, The Head and The Heart performed at the Royal Oak Music Theatre with opening bands Thao & the Get Down Stay Down and The Quiet Life. The Royal Oak Music Theatre only offers general seating, which is bad news for anyone arriving minutes before the main act. However, for those willing to stand packed tightly right in front, this venue is for you! Unfortunately, those opting for this option (as my friend and I ultimately did) would have had to listen to almost three hours of openers before The Head and The Heart graced the stage.
Though the first band, The Quiet Life, only started around 7:30 pm, they fed the crowd what we all wanted: some good lively music. With a sound that I can only describe as upbeat country, members of The Quiet Life played like they weren’t performing for another venue on the tour, but as if they were playing in some practice room for fun. In other words, they were up on stage just having an experience with each other.
The second opening act, Thao & the Get Down Stay Down, brought with them a completely different environment that definitely changed things up. What was most remarkable about this band was the ease at which they changed their vibe from song to song. With electric energy, leader singer Thao Nguyen danced about the stage singing passionately starting their performance off big…that is, until the mood drastically changed with the next song. Here, the melodies turned darker and the lyrics harsher. Instead of predictable, building tempos, Thao & the Get Down Stay Down would usually play consistently slow right up until the chorus. Here the music burst with palpable energy, lead singer whirling around the stage. Thao & the Get Down Stay Down had just one slow tempo song, but this one was my favorite because it didn’t have any harsh undertones and wasn’t startling. After the performance I looked up this band and it really seems to me that the quality of their music is significantly better off their album. I would definitely recommend buying their album off iTunes, but perhaps would not elect to see them live again.
By the time The Head and The Heart actually started to play, it was 10 pm. I’d gotten there on time, so it had been three hours at that point and I was tired, pretty thirsty, and getting impatient. However, what was truly impressive was that as soon as they got on stage, none of it mattered. They brought with them such an uplifting vibe that from the second they began playing, all pain from waiting was forgotten and the crowd was completely recharged.
What’s really great about this band is that unlike most other groups, the lead sound in each song comes from someone different, each as talented as the last. They switch singers from song to song, alternating between Josiah Johnson, Jonathan Russell, and the only female band member Charity Rose Thielen.
They highlight different instruments in each song as well, often the guitar is most prominent, sometimes only the piano, and even the harmonica. The Head and The Heart had an amazing performance, cutting through the audience with their genuine spirit and utter joy. This band is the epitome of the kind of sound you want to hear in person, they are no less impressive than in their music videos or straight off their iTunes album. The only difference is, live, you get to feel their energy with them. To add to their playful stage presence, their between-song commentary was witty and entertaining. To be at this concert, to be a member of the audience, to see these characters in person…it was just fun.
