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Month: September 2016

REVIVAL OF AN ANCIENT TALE IN DANCE AND SONG

REVIVAL OF AN ANCIENT TALE IN DANCE AND SONG

Via Mark Morris’ Surprising Middle Eastern Foray BERKELEY—Over the past four decades in  Iran, dancing has been either prohibited or frowned upon by the governing powers. In dramatizing a tragedy in timeless Persian song and dance, Mark Morris and his dance group are injecting new life into an endangered species from halfway around the world. In his world premiere here, Morris co-created a 50-minute-long Persian-Azerbaijani work of song, music and dance, “Layla and Majnun,” based on one of the oldest…

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SMUIN’S DANCES LIVE ON

SMUIN’S DANCES LIVE ON

His ‘Stabat Mater’ Eloquently Marks the 9/11 Anniversary By Paul Hertelendy  artssf.com, the independent observer of San Francisco Bay Area music and dance  Week of Sept. 25-Oct. 2 , 2016 Vol. 19, No. 4 WALNUT CREEK, CA—It never fails–election year brings out inconsistencies galore. For instance, the Smuin Ballet, a Bay Area staple for more than 20 years, has now renamed itself the Smuin Contemporary American Ballet. And the first work on its fall season is choreographed by——an Australian, Stanton…

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CHANTICLEER FALLS IN LOVE

CHANTICLEER FALLS IN LOVE

Elite Men’s Chorus Dazzles in ‘Secret Heart’ Program By D. Rane Danubian artssf.com, the independent observer of San Francisco Bay Area music and dance  Week of Sept. 19-26,  2016 Vol. 19, No. 3 SANTA CLARA—The virtuoso singers of Chanticleer were ardently declaring their love for all parties concerned. Their “Secret Heart” program from many sources, languages and centuries will whisk them around Northern California with that heart-to-heart musical message. The 12 are as versatile as ever, performing classical men’s chorus…

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AN ARRESTING NEW AMERICAN-AND-CHINESE OPERA

AN ARRESTING NEW AMERICAN-AND-CHINESE OPERA

With the SFO’s “Red Chamber” World Premiere By Paul Hertelendy  artssf.com, the independent observer of San Francisco Bay Area music and dance  Week of Sept. 14-21 , 2016 Vol. 19, No. 2 The new Chinese opera-tragedy “Dream of the Red Chamber” offers high drama after a lengthy, opulent prologue, turning a classic novel into an opera that is closer to a musical feast than to consistent theater. The emigre Chinese composer Bright Sheng has created a rich, listenable score astutely…

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STEVE REICH CONQUERS SAN FRANCISCO

STEVE REICH CONQUERS SAN FRANCISCO

Surprise! A Living Composer Who Is a Hit Number By Paul Hertelendy artssf.com, the independent observer of San Francisco Bay Area music and dance Week of Sept. 12-19, 2016 Vol. 19, No. 1 Never forget that physics course you took. It can help you where you least expect it. When I interviewed composer Steve Reich here in 1965, I referred to his musical style as “phase-shift music,” using terminology encountered in the Theory of Oscillations in physics. He liked the…

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