Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Los Lobos lyricists mark 40-year collaboration with new recording

Check out this article on the new recording “The Long Goodbye” then reserve your seats to see this legendary band perform in a special acoustical setting this Friday night.

Though their latest CD is titled “The Long Goodbye,” David Hidalgo and Louie Perez, frontmen of East L.A. rock group Los Lobos, have no plans to take a final bow from the music industry.

The pair, who will perform in a 7 p.m. concert Sunday, Jan. 17, at Tupelo Music Hall in Londonderry, are celebrating a 40-year songwriting history by amassing a collection of previously unreleased recordings.

“We started this musical conversation back in about 1970, and we haven’t stopped talking,” said Perez, who began writing songs with Hidalgo when they were teenagers.

“They’re very cool songs,” Hidalgo added. “You do get the impression that you’re kind of looking at your graduation picture from high school, but there’s something very honest about it.”

In addition to duets, the pair’s Granite State show will feature stories about how the songs evolved, and the musicians will open up the floor to audience questions as well.

“...It’s important for us to explain how it’s done, to sit down and say, ‘Hey, this is us as songwriters, this is where it all starts,” Perez said.

Perez has been considering this acoustic outing for years, ever since he heard Steve Earle do a solo showcase at the famed McCabe’s Guitar Shop in Los Angeles. Perez was awed by the mood Earle created using just his rough-as-tree-bark voice, one wooden guitar and his memorable tunes.

On their own tour, Hidalgo and Perez will offer a range of fare, from acoustic American folk to classic country tunes. The duo’s laid-back show also will spotlight Hidalgo’s sons, David on percussion and Vincent on bass.

Meanwhile, Perez and Hidalgo have served as main lyricists for Los Lobos, with highlights including “Will the Wolf Survive?” from Los Lobos’ breakthrough album, 1984’s” How Will the Wolf Survive?” and “Kiko and the Lavender Moon” from 1992’s “Kiko.”

They also penned tunes for the Latin Playboys side project and soundtrack compositions, most notably for several of director Robert Rodriguez’s films.

Source

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Thursday, January 14, 2010

Moscow State Radio Symphony Orchestra visits the ASC Jan. 16

orchestra5

Moscow State Radio Symphony Orchestra's website

From the first notes played by the violas, one could predict that a special music event was about to start. And an evening of wonderfully played music was what the audience got at the Moscow State Radio Symphony Orchestra concert at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts —The Palm Beach Daily News

Sergey Kondrashev, Nadejda Tokareva, these names with which to conjure up musical magic. They are the powerful conductor, violin virtuoso with the Moscow State Radio Symphony Orchestra. This 160 member Russian national treasure opened the 54th Fort Myers Community Concert season at Mann Hall with an unforgettable Tchaikovsky Gala —The Islander

The Moscow State Radio Symphony Orchestra offered some of the best music heard all evening. The players were all consummate technicians who made the most difficult pieces seem easy —The Asheville Citizen Times

This Saturday, concert-goers will experience the beautiful music of Tchaikovsky performed by this renowned 160-member Russian orchestra. The Moscow State Radio Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1978 out of a need for the symphonic repertoire of the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries to be broadcast throughout Russia for the benefit of its citizens. Since its inception, the MSRSO has shared the beauty of music with hundreds of thousands of listeners in its home country and throughout the world. Nadezda Tokareva is an award-winning violinist who studied at the Moscow State Conservatory, where she now teaches.

Saturday, January 16th at 8p.m.

Battleworks Dance Company dances their way to the ASC this weekend!

BattleWorks



"Mr. Battle makes an audience sit up and take notice, marvel, even laugh. His work reaches over the edge of the stage and communicates with people." —New York Sun

As part of the 2010 Alabama Dance Festival, Battleworks Dance Company is coming by the ASC this weekend, with shows from Friday through Sunday!

Julliard-grad and Parsons Dance Company alum Robert Battle's seven-year-old dance company shows off his strong repertoire with vigor and technical virtuosity. Battleworks premiered at the World Dance Alliance's Global Assembly in Germany, where they were selected as the American representatives to the festival for their unique outlook on the future of modern dance. Since then the company has performed extensively including at American Dance Festival, Jacob's Pillow, Dance Theater Workshop, and the Joyce Theater.

Don't miss out on your chance to see this vibrant display of modern dance!

Show times:
Friday, January 15th: 7:30pm
Saturday, January 16th: 7:30pm
Sunday, January 17th: 2:30pm

Monday, January 11, 2010

Songs That Have You Singing Along


I can remember being a little girl, probably 5 or 6, and dancing around my grandmother's beauty shop singing "...If you feel like loving me, If you got the notion. I second that emotion. Said, if you feel like giving me a lifetime of devotion, I second that emotion..."  The shop never had a shortage of willing back up singers, grandmas in big rollers, Farrah wanna-bes getting frosted tips, and teens in the chair for their first perm (ah the 70s, but I digress.)

That's the thing about the music of Smokey Robinson, it's cross-generational and timeless.  Last week I was going back and listening to a lot of his music in preparation for our gala announcement.  It's crazy, I think I know the words to every single song.  Just think of all the hits:

Cruisin'
Being with You
Tears of a Clown
I Second that Emotion (already established as my fav)
The Tracks of My Tears
You've Really Got a Hold on Me
Ooo Baby Baby

The list could go on and on.  I bet you too have a favorite Smokey song.   If so, tell us about it and why it's your pick.  One lucky respondent will win a pair of tickets to see this musical icon LIVE at the ASC!

And, it should be quite a live show!  The Florida Theatre presented a performance by Smokey last fall and the director and staff there still haven't stop talking about what an incredible evening it was.  You know it's something special when your peers in the busy go ga-ga over a show.

The Alys Stephens Center is proud to present SMOKEY ROBINSON as our featured artist for the VIVA HEALTH STARLIGHT GALA on Saturday, April 24th.  Two package are available and tickets are currently onsale at AlysStephens.org and 205.975.2787.  All proceeds from the gala benefit the programming and educational outreach programs of the ASC.  So, you get to see an amazing performer and you are helping the community!

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Come On Birmingham, Let's Embrace Our City

Of course we appreciate John Archibald's recent column because it mentions the ASC, but we also whole heartedly applaud its sentiment.

Archibald: Birmingham's civic complex


By John Archibald -- The Birmingham News


January 06, 2010, 5:53AM

Late last week, a visiting football fan walked into a store near Southside and asked: "Where does one go for fun in this town?"

And people just stared.

There was hemming and hawing, but no real answer.

"Sorry," a lady piped up. "This is Birmingham."

It was an apology. And I blame myself. Because I just stood there.

I'd come from the gym, after all, dirty and tired. I was on vacation, my hoodie pulled around my ears. I was full of excuses. I was ...

I was part of the problem. Because I said nothing. I just accepted it, like everyone else.

Sorry. This is Birmingham.

Shoot. We thought we needed a dome to cure our ills, but we already have a big ol' civic complex. A big civic inferiority complex, that is.

Josh Klapow, a clinical psychologist and associate professor at UAB's School of Public Health, said he sees the parallels between the city and one who suffers such a complex.

"When someone has low self esteem they filter through a negative screen," he said. "Line up all the things they have, and they focus on what they don't."

And that sounds a lot like Birmingham, where we can line up a lot, but we fail to see it. Think about it:

Five Points really can come alive at times, and Lakeview is a hop away.

Downtown's Second Avenue has taken root like wild wisteria, and Reed Books is like a literary amusement park. Restaurants -- from hot dogs to Hot and Hot -- hold their own with the best. The Alabama Theatre is a marvel, and The Alys Stephens Center a joy.

And our Birmingham, face it, is not just Birmingham. Shop in Hoover, or Trussville, or Mountain Brook. Take the kids to McWane Center, or just go yourself. Tell all who ask that they simply must see the Civil Rights Institute. Point to the zoo, the botanical gardens and the museum of art, the parks, the golf.

That, Klapow said, is the start of our complex cure. We must -- bam, bam, bam -- spot the good qualities and point them out, over and over again.

"Collectively, we have to change our way of thinking," he said. "It is absolutely up to each of us to spread the word about Birmingham."

To read more, visit http://blog.al.com/archiblog/2010/01/archibald_birminghams_civic_co.html.

Monday, January 4, 2010

Los Lobos - One of 2009's Best Shows



The Aspen Times recently named Los Lobos as one of 2009's Best Live Shows.  Check out the full list at http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20100103/ASPENWEEKLY/912319989/1077&ParentProfile=1058.

Then, reserve your seats to catch this incredible band live at the ASC in 2 weeks (Friday, January 22)!