For four hours on Tuesday night, I was not an undergraduate student driven by pre-exam stress in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Teatro Regio Torino Orchestra and Chorus, coupled with phenomenal acoustics at Hill Auditorium, made me feel like I was in an opera house in Italy. It was one of the most memorable concert experience I have ever had.
Teatro Regio Torino Orchestra and Chorus hail from Turin, Italy, under the baton of Maestro Gianandrea Noseda. First led by Maestro Arturo Toscanini at the end of 19th century, they are one of the most historical and prestigious opera companies in the world. I was very excited when I found out that the entire opera company was travelling overseas to give a performance in Ann Arbor. (Fun fact: Teatro Regio Torino’s first-ever North America Tour included only 4 cities: Chicago, Toronto, Carnegie Hall in New York, and Ann Arbor.)
This was my first time seeing an opera performed unstaged, in concert setting. While it was sometimes difficult to follow the plot because they did not act or wear any costumes, I liked watching an opera this way because I got to observe everyone involved in the performance — orchestra, chorus, and soloists — react to each other’s music-making. The soloists were truly amazing, too. Special shoutout goes to Ms. Angela Meade, who played the role of Matilde. She has a resonant voice that fills up the large auditorium, expressivity that truly shows, and ability to do some crazy virtuosic passages with no difficulty at all. To all performers, “wow” is all I can say.
It was really unfortunate that the performance was on a Tuesday night during the last days of classes. I couldn’t help but notice many seats in the auditorium empty, while they totally deserved a full house. I hope they come back to Ann Arbor again with some other amazing operatic repertoires!
Now in its 135th season, the UMS Choral Union continues its tradition of performing the holiday classic, Handel’s Messiah, again with the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra and four amazing soloists. This oratorio is a good old friend for the Choral Union — some of the choir members have sung this for more than three decades with this ensemble! The most famous song from Messiah is the Hallelujah chorus, in which the audience will be welcomed to join in singing (if you dare!). This also marks the last time that Dr. Jerry Blackstone, who has conducted UMS Choral Union for many seasons, will be leading these Messiah performances with the Choral Union.
Also, if you have an ugly holiday sweater that you’re looking for an excuse to wear, join the UMS Student Committee’s Ugly Sweater Party on December 6 at 6pm, in Rackham Building! The admission fee for this event covers the ticket to that night’s performance of Handel’s Messiah as well. More details about this event can be found here.
Photo credits: Mark Gjukich Photography
When: Saturday, December 6 at 8pm -and- Sunday, December 7 at 2pm
Where: Hill Auditorium
Tickets: $10 and up for students; or use the Passport to the Arts to go for FREE!
You could see it from the way he enters the room, lightening up the cold weather mood with a smile. From his first “Aloha Ann Arbor.” From the way he collapsed his inner fingers in and stuck out his pinky and thumb to create the “hang loose” sign. From the way he bowed to the audience. From the way he fist-bumped his bass player after every song, as if it was the best time he’s ever played each song – consistently. You could see that Jake Shimabukuro is one of the nicest performers around, and has a unique talent.
When I entered Hill Auditorium, my eyes were filled with a startling haze that replicated what one might see at a rock concert or a smog-filled arena. On stage were four stalks of concert lights. I was wondering how Jake was going to fill the stage. Would he sit on a stool, Nirvana-esque, and we would listen? Would he be leaping about like Lindsey Stirling? The audience surrounding me had a good mixture of young children and families, college students, and surprisingly, a large community of white-haired folks. Could one musician cater to all people in this broad spectrum of ages?
And then Jake came on the stage, and the lights flared with vibrant colors, bouncing shadows off the walls. While his bass-player appropriately took the simple accompaniment lines and stayed stone still, Jake made up for his stillness by strumming right into an uplifting, high-energy ditty. It must be difficult to create kinetic intrigue, especially when holding such a small instrument as the ukulele. But Jake’s stage presence (although one in his position may feel awkward by the way he bopped his head and bent his knees in rhythm) became larger than himself and was quite necessary for the enjoyment of the show.
If happy had a sound, it would be the ukulele.
Jake is most well known for his covers of classic rock songs such as “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” which resonated with the older generation in the audience. While he played these two, as well as Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” (*sobbing*) and Ave Maria, he also played quite a few original pieces, which were terrific! He has a unique talent in that he is not solidified in one genre. He is a master of many styles, including flamenco, bluegrass, rock, Hawaiian, and Japanese folk songs! Although he has the skill and control over his flying fingers, his instrument is able to achieve different tones through the use of several effect pedals, as well as one which he can create a sound sample and then loop it and play with it in the background. He told us that many of his pieces are influenced directly from experiences in his own life, as art usually is. Past travels to Japan led him to write a piece called “Ichigo Ichie” which translates to “the once-in-a-lifetime crossing of paths with a person who you may never meet again.” His own childhood in Hawaii inspired a Hawaiian-style folk song. He told a tender story about his friend’s grandmother who, while in the hospital, hallucinated that blue roses were on the ceiling and were dropping their petals on her – a powerful image. This story inspired his elegiac song entitled “Blue Roses Falling.”
The show would have suffered, I think, without Jake’s conversational interlude. He brought us closer, knitted a connection between him and the audience in this moment of ichigo ichie. We were able to listen and appreciate his music in a different way, because we understood how his head worked. We could empathize with the way he felt when he was composing the piece. He probably paid homage to the wonderful venue of Hill Auditorium five times during the night, revealing that he was awe-inspired by the beautiful structure we walk past every day (this parallels how amazed we are by the instrument that he plays daily). Jake is a performer who not only wants to entertain, he wants to inspire, he wants to uplift, and bring good cheer to the world. He gave a quick fatherly preach to the younger generation in the audience : “to choose whatever they’re passionate about and go out into the world and do it.” He followed up with “And you don’t need drugs. I’ve been drug free my whole life. You don’t need them.” Although perhaps a little overdone, I know that he meant well. He believes in “music education,” which got the entire auditorium applauding. After a little research on him, I am pleased to find out that the 38-year-old has created his own music education non-profit organization called “The Four Strings Foundation,” proof that he does not just talk, but follows his own advice.
Aloha Jake. We hope you come back to Ann Arbor and bring your sound of happy with you.
The San Francisco Symphony Orchestra took a residency in Ann Arbor this weekend, with two performances at Hill Auditorium and numerous master classes being given around town (Gil Shaham’s violin master class being one of them). This artistic residency would not be possible without the help of the University Musical Society, which coordinates functions such as these several times a season.
Michael Tilson Thomas received great applause as he first stepped on the stage at Hill this Thursday, raising his baton before a close-to-capacity crowd. With no hesitation, he gave a downbeat to start the nocturnal stroll in the park that is Mahler’s seventh. The SFSO played at a very high level, albeit with some faults that only the musically inclined would have caught. Michael Tilson Thomas, however, put on a show. From stomping his foot at the apex of the fourth movement to his fluid body movements in the andante portion of the work, MTT was definitely a sight to see. It must be noted, as well, that MTT is known for playing Mahler well, and Thursday’s performance was a testament to that notion.
Something must also be said about the choice to play Mahler’s seventh in a college town such as Ann Arbor. Mahler was the product of the late German romantic period, meaning that his works (along with Bruckner and late Brahms) involved some form of intricacy and musical abstractionism that only veterans of the symphony could appreciate. Now, the brand of the SFSO definitely attracted a lot of patrons to Hill, but the ambient-nocturnal nature of the particular piece was not captivating enough for much of the student body. The students that were in attendance, however, were either symphony fans or die-hard Mahler fans. Fortunately, the author is both.
Discrepancies aside, the SFSO played a wonderful show Thursday night. From what I heard, Friday night was also a spectacular performance (they played Mephisto Waltz!). The SFSO received grand standing ovations both nights, and have been very well received throughout their residency here in Ann Arbor.
“If everyone played the ukulele, the world would be a happier place,” Jake says in his 2010 Ted Talk.
And for those of us who have not picked up the underdog of all stringed instruments, perhaps we’ll just be happier watching Jake turn contemporary jams, such as Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep” and Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” into perfectly plucked tunes with a uniquely island breeze about them.
Who: Jake Shimabukuro, the YouTube Ukulele Extraordinaire (part of the UMS season)
When: Wednesday, November 19 at 7:30 pm
Where: Hill Auditorium
How Much?: $16-$25 for students (in the Mezzanine section only…you’ll still have a good view!)
While you wait for the show to begin, watch Jake perform the song that sent him to stardom: The Beatles’ “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” … or should we say, Ukulele?
What would you do if you were a director of a play and six unknown figures show up on your stage, claiming to have been abandoned by their author, and beg to be characters (not actors) in your play? If you are already confused, then you are reading it correctly. Italian playwright Luigi Pirandello has written a “staged inception” where reality and fiction are constantly in battle, and seem almost interchangeable at times. The French theatre company Theatre de la Ville has taken Pirandello’s literary genius and has brought it to life with a full throttle of energy. The choreography between scene changes was fluid, almost balletic. The characters (played by the French actors) were expressive and experienced. They knew how to use their whole voice and body in every motion, every projection. For me, it almost didn’t matter how ridiculous the play in front of me was becoming – I was entranced by the beauty of the French and the collective imagination.
Although the play itself is quite innovative, experimental and sometimes difficult to follow, that was quite expected from simply reading the playbill synopsis, which was written as if it was a script itself. It was like we, the audience, had become characters cast in Pirandello’s piece to play the role of “AUDIENCE.” Yes…whoa…my exact thinking.
The only problem was the logistics of the subtitles. Because the play was performed solely in French, English subtitles were very necessary to even attempt to understand what Pirandello was trying to get across. But, unlike a movie, where your eyes can flutter peripherally from scene to text, the electronic marquis was so far above the stage that you couldn’t focus on both stage and screen at the same time. I always felt like I was missing either one or the other, and therefore, could not appreciate fully the humor and wit of the dialogue, nor the theatrical skills of the actors. Because this specific play is both visually and linguistically dependent, it would be beneficial for UMS to consider alternate placements for the subtitles in order to achieve maximum audience enjoyment and understanding. And UMS should not let language barriers or a little bit of absurdist literary theory stop them from trying again, because pushing the boundaries of the arts is what UMS does best. Just not pushing them too far that we can’t see the subtitles!
