Schimmel Center Blog

The Schimmel floor boards are about to feel a rhythm like none other before! On Sunday, November 24, the Yamato drummers of Japan will thrill our patrons with their legendary Wadaiko drum show. The group was founded in 1993 by Masa Ogawa in Nara which is doubly known as “The Land of Yamato” as well as the “Birth of Japanese Culture”.

The performers make use of a special drum set known as Taiko. The Taiko is an entire range of percussive instruments that all have origins in Japanese culture. The drums are deeply seeded in all areas of Japanese heritage, including mythology, warfare, theatre and family life. The most common held mythology about the origin of the drum has to do with a sibling rivalry between the goddess of sunlight, Amaterasu and her brother, Susanoo, the god of the sea. Susanoo had made his sister, Amaterasu so angry that the goddess locked herself in a deep cave behind a very heavy boulder. The gods tried many different tactics to budge the boulder from the cave in order to bring sunlight back to the earth, but to no avail. Then the clever Shinto goddess, Ame no Uzume developed a plan to conjure her friend from her hiding place. Ame no Uzme emptied a sake barrel, turned it upside down and proceeded to jump rhythmically and repeatedly on the barrel. The other gods and goddesses were so captivated by her dance that they too emptied sake barrels and joined in with her splendid rhythms. Intrigued by the sounds on the other side of the boulder, and not wishing to miss out on the merriment, Amaterasu lifted the boulder and returned from her reclusive spot in order to bring sunshine to Japan once more.

The actual origins of the ancient instrument are very murky. Some scholars believe that the drum’s lineage may trace back to the sub-continent of India between the years of 400-600 CE. Archeological evidence of Taiko in Japan is a bit more recent. Archeologists have uncovered Haniwa statues (Japanese, terracotta burial figures) that date back as far as 300 BC. These figures are depicted playing Taiko drums. Further archeological evidence of the drums has been traced back as far as the Kofun period, which is the oldest recorded period in Japanese history. Durring Japan’s feudal era, the Taiko was used as a tool of motivation and communication among the nation’s troops in war. The Drum’s beat could set a marching pace and it could also be used to give orders in a special rhythmic code.Today the Taiko is still evident in Japanese culture as part of Kabuki plays and kumi- daiko performance groups.

“Rojyoh,” promises to be a celebration of Japanese heritage, rhythm, musical expertise and athleticism. Be sure to watch the video below to get a true understanding of what this remarkable event will be. Then secure your tickets for an astounding event  which promises to be a fun and exciting evening for the entire family!

ROJYOH, THE BEAT ON THE ROAD: Yamato the Drummers of Japan

November 24th at 7:30pm $45 | $35 | $25
20TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR!
For Tickets, visit schimmel.pace.edu or call (866) 811-4111

See You at the Schimmel!

Michael Torbet

2013-14 Pace Presents’ Blogger

To celebrate our collaboration with the Gelsey Kirkland Ballet, we are launching a new series entitled, “March To Opening Night!” Each episode will focus on a different aspect of the production process. For this premier episode, Pace Presents’ Blogger, Michael Torbet sits down to interview director/choreographer, Michael Chernov.

THE NUTCRACKER

On Saturday, November 23, the Black Rock Coalition Orchestra will take the Schimmel Stage under the musical direction and design of the superlative Toshi Reagon. The group assembles some of the greatest living black rock legends of our time to celebrate the “Deep Roots of Rock and Roll.” Today, Pace Presents’ blogger, Michael Torbet, is checking in with LaRonda Davis, President of the Black Rock Coalition, to give our readers a greater sense of what to expect from this momentous event.

The incomparable Toshi Reagon serves as the Artistic and Musical Director of “Deep Roots of Rock and Roll”

MT: Hi LaRonda. Can you first, give our readers a brief history of the Black Rock Coalition?

LD: Hi Michael. Of course. The Black Rock Coalition (or BRC) was founded in New York City in 1985 on the lofty idea that African-American artists, who had contributed so much to American music and culture, had as much right to succeed in the music industry as their White counterparts. Vernon Reid, Konda Mason and Greg Tate, with the Do-It-Yourself spirit shared by countless pioneers before them, organized a group of like-minded, culturally-active folk and set about challenging the market constrictions that attempted to limit progressive artists of color and too-narrowly define the audiences that would encourage, support and sustain their careers. We’re the only national, non-profit, member-supported, volunteer-run organization 100% dedicated to the complete creative freedom of the best and brightest in progressive Black musicianship. Basically, we’ve been in it for the love (and the truth) for the last 28 years.

MT: You sure have assembled an All-Star, legendary cast of musical artists for this event. How did you go about doing this?

LD: The BRC Orchestra has been the official performance arm of the Black Rock Coalition since the beginning. The way it works is: we pick (or a venue commissions us to perform) an important canon of work. We then agonize over the perfect person to coordinate the musicians, flow, and set list to best bring that material to life for the audience. In this case, Toshi Reagon was the one. She’s perfect because, in her own work, she personifies the evolutionary arc of African-American music. Folk. Spirituals. Blues. Roots. Soul. Rock. Alternative…Toshi can nail them all. And everything she puts her voice to pays homage to the legacy of her ancestors. Because of this she has, not only our respect, but the respect of the amazing artists she’s assembled for this show. It’s really a testament to Toshi, the concept, and the BRC’s reputation that this show has shaped up as it has.

MT: I understand that one of the goals of this event is to build a bridge between the artists who started this movement of rock and roll and the artists who carry on their legacy today, such as the ones who will be performing on our stage. How does this event go about doing this?

LD: Well, the material is like a gateway. Everyone loves Chuck Berry, Muddy Waters, and Tina Turner. But what about the next great artists whose names you may not know? It makes it easier for people to discover Toshi Reagon or KimberlyNichole or Marc Anthony Thompson or Karma Johnson or Tamar-kali when they can see them in the context of something more familiar. The hope is that then they start to follow today’s artists and support them in their own original expression. It’s a way to connect historical significance to tomorrow’s musical evolution. It’s part of what the BRC is all about.

MT: There is a social justice issue at the very core of this event. During the mid 20^th Century, Rock became disassociated from its African-American roots. Can you describe this situation to our readers? Specifically, what role did marketing and radio DJ’s play in this issue?

LD: Well, Alan Freed is credited for creating the term to describe the music he was hearing from Black artists. But Black musicians of any caliber were not often welcome into mainstream homes in ‘50s and ‘60s America. So, while the music was clearly very powerful, no one really wanted to give Black folks that kind of power (or money). So Sun Records found Elvis Presley and demonstrated to the world that the style of music Black folk had created was indeed viable but, with a new lip-curling White face, could be ‘acceptable’ too. And very profitable. It was in the industry’s best interest to give consumers what they clamored for. Teenage girls could scream for Elvis, but if they screamed for a Black man he was likely to land himself in jail (ask Chuck Berry about the Mann Act). It seems that in the eyes of the powers that were, sexually-charged rock and roll had to be dissociated from Blackness. Payola made it easy for record labels to pull the two apart—playing the White artists’ versions of songs originally performed by their Black counterparts. Following this, Rhythm and Blues formats became the safe home for Black artists and Rock formats played primarily White artists. So, in order for Black artists to find success, they had to easily fit the format. Soon, like most forms of conditioning, the audiences started to make distinctions based more on race than music. We were used to hearing Black artists sound one way and only one way. And over time, R&B and soul actually became part of Black pride and identity. Rock was now considered White because we’d been told it was White. Even now, you can usually find Tina Turner and Prince in the R&B section of the few record stores that still exist. It’s all just proof that, even 50 years later, the blues roots of rock are buried deeper than ever.

MT: Do you think the “British invasion” had any play in this disassociation?

LD: Absolutely. Countless British artists modeled their sound after African-American blues and jazz artists. The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, The Kinks, Led Zepellin all freely admit what they owe to artists like Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Richard, etc. But because of race relations in the United States, those influences were downplayed and what resulted was the swagger of the blues without the heft of the experiences that created it. After that, the mop-tops and friends had carte blanche to evolve their sound in very public, very well-funded view while the people who inspired them were left to the Chitlin’ Circuit, financial obscurity, and race-based marketing.

MT: Can you tell us a little bit about how this concert will explore this issue?

LD: This concert will start in the fields, call and response, gospel, and blues, to establish the foundation of early rock. Throughout it all, Carl Hancock Rux will guide us through the societal conditions that gave rise to each stage of musical development. Around the halfway point there will be a foray into the British Invasion and how that reshaped the identity of rock and roll when it came back across the pond. From that point on, we’ll be showing how African-American artists have been attempting to reclaim our right to rock ever since.

MT: Who is your personal favorite rock artist and how did they shape the landscape of Rock and Roll?

LD: I, of course, have a maaaaany. But since I’m a child of the ‘80s, I’ll narrow it down to Prince, Living Colour and Nina Simone. Prince, because he was the first Black rock star of the video era. While everyone knew and loved Jimi Hendrix, we didn’t have the benefit of having his brown face on TV every hour on the hour shredding his guitar. Prince gave us that. Living Colour, because they were a Black rock band—each one stunningly skilled at his instrument and undeniable in their solidarity as a collective.  They showed that Black people rocking wasn’t an anomaly—here you had four guys on the same wavelength to express themselves through rock and it was massive. Lastly, Nina Simone because she was just a bad-ass. If she were White, there would be no question she was rock and roll. Because of the color of her skin, people disregard her range. But I contend that because she tapped into the roots of her Blackness in whatever genre she chose, she transcended categorization. And the BRC shares my belief that all musicians of color should be afforded the same latitude.

MT: Thank you very much for your time, LaRonda! We look forward to the concert!

“Deep Roots of Rock and Roll” features Vernon Reid, Nona Hendryx, Corey Glover, Marc Anthony Thomas aka Chocolate Genius, Matt Whyte, Tamar-kali, Kimberly Nichole and Jason Walker

For tickets visit schimmel.pace.edu or call (866) 811-4111

The Deep Roots of Rock and Roll/ Black Rock Coalition/NewYork Premiere/ Saturday, November 23rd? 7:30pm/$35

See you at the Schimmel

Michael Torbet

2013-14 Pace Presents’ Blogger

On Sunday, November 3, Pace presents will welcome the inaugural performance of the Voce at Pace recital series. The series is a rare opportunity for New York audiences to see rising opera stars in an intimate recital setting. It is curated by Matthew A Epstein. We are very excited to have Jamie Barton kick off this intriguing new series. Ms. Barton is the winner of the 2013 Cardiff Singer of the World competition and only the second American singer to do so in the thirty year history of the competition. She also recently received rave reviews for her role in the Metropolitan Opera House’s latest production of “Norma.” Pace Presents blogger, Michael Torbet recently sat down with the young star to discuss her upcoming recital and her career thus far.

MT: Jamie, Can you describe your musical background growing up to me? How did this musical background lead you to your passion for opera?

JB: Well… (laughs). My musical background wasn’t in classical music at all. Actually, my parents loved music but it was more Grateful Dead and blue grass music and that sort of thing. I grew up in a household with a lot of music appreciation. We went to church and sang a lot of hymns, that kind of thing was very popular where we’re from. What led to my appreciation for classical music was when my parents put me in piano lessons; that’s where I heard classical music for the first time. I’d also have to say, teenage rebellion. Growing up on a farm with hippie parents, I kind of wanted to do something opposite from what I grew up with. Classical music is just about as far off from blue grass music and The Grateful Dead as you can get.

Jamie Barton

MT: It was an opposite rebellion in some ways.

JB: The worst rebellion idea ever but it worked out well for me in terms of life. I really started getting into listening to Chopin, listening to musical theatre, listening to a little bit of opera but not a ton. After a few years I was reintroduced to opera and I fell in love. It was sort of a very odd line to it.

MT: The Voce at Pace series is exciting because it’s one of the rare opportunities for New York audiences to experience rising opera stars such as yourself in an intimate recital setting. Can you speak about the differences in performing a recital as opposed to playing a part in a fully produced opera?

JB: Oh yeah, absolutely. There are some similarities, you are still performing but when you are on stage in a costume you are set into one story. You know, you’ve got that one story that you are telling over the course of two plus hours, for the night. With a recital it’s much more of a kind of “tapas” version, as I like to say. Its many stories, many more flavors over the course of a much shorter evening. As a performer I really like that I get to tell all of these different stories. It’s challenging in a way because you have to be engaged the entire time. In an opera you aren’t singing the entire hour straight trough. In a recital you are. It is a vocal challenge but at the same time, for me it is very rewarding to do a recital. I am a storyteller, first and foremost. Starting in musical theatre and then going on to where I am in opera, that’s the element that I still fall in love with. When I go see an opera, if I don’t have friends in it or I don’t know the production, what is going to get me interested? What is going to get me hooked? For me, it’s the story telling; it’s the truth within what the performers are portraying in their characters. It’s the same way in a recital, if I ‘m going to see one, what’s going to keep me engaged for an hour? It’s a person up there screaming at me for an hour. It better be very interesting and beautiful screaming for me to want to be there for the hour. I have to think about these things. This is my job, to consider the audience. This isn’t their job. They are here to be entertained and I am the entertainer. I try to find ways of keeping them engaged.

MT: Are there any artistic advantages to the recital format that you don’t get performing in an opera?

JB: Well artistically, I get to stretch my legs in many different directions. I get to try out different languages. I get to try out different stories. In this recital I get to sing in Swedish. How many times to you get to do that on opera stages? It happens, but not very often. Also, when you are in an opera, you are hired in to do this one role. You have your preparation vocally, text wise…. Hopefully someone coming in has a good idea what they are going to do with their character. But so very often, because there is a team of people hired to create this show…… you’re going at the suggestion of the conductor and of the director…

MT: Its more collaborative.

JB: Exactly, (opera) is more of a team sport while (recitals) are more solo. In a recital format, you have to make the decisions. You get to make the decisions. It’s really wonderful, actually. I like it.

MT: Can you tell me about your favorite piece that you picked for this performance?

JB: Oh gosh….. (laughs). Well the first thing that I hope people know is that this entire program is based off of music that I picked for Cardiff Singer of the World Competition, this past summer and won with. So all the groups within the show are built on something that I did there. That being said, picking the stuff for Cardiff, I was literally picking through my favorite stuff. It’s really hard to choose a favorite piece.

MT: Almost like picking your favorite baby?

JB: Right? (laughs) It’s really, really hard to choose. I am a sucker for the Ives group. The newest one to me is “The Housatonic at Stockbridge”. It is just a gorgeous piece. Charles Ives was just an incredible American composer, unlike any other American composer that I can think of. He took all of these hymn tunes and other popular tunes of his time and weaved them throughout his compositions, so its really cool when you listen to his music because you are familiar with it in some way. You may have never heard his music before but you are hearing a quote from something else. In all these songs you are getting these little snip bits of all these quotes and it’s really cool to hear. “The Housatonic,” when Brad plays it, you can hear the river. It’s about a river. It sounds like a river. It sounds like the swirling calm spots and the tumbling rapids. You really get a sense of the beauty and the nature of the river. It’s just really, really cool and it’s one of my favorite compositions for sure. But I could go down the list of every piece in this recital and tell you why I love it.

MT: How does the repertoire that you picked for this performance reflect on who you are as an artist right now?

JB: Well, some of this rep is what I have done for years, so from the very early age of singing and discovering. Some of it is stuff that I have just now picked up, closer to where I am now as an artist. It’s really eclectic. I really prefer that, I really love going into recitals or listening to recordings where you get surprised by something that is just stunning and you didn’t know it before. In the Brahms group you get some standards in there. You get some very, very popular tunes and they’re all fantastic. But with this Purcell piece I’m doing, not only is it a very popular Purcell piece, but this particular version was realized by Benjamin Britten. So you get this Benjamin Britton flavor on top of this Purcell piece. Its really, really cool.  I’d say the Sibelius group and the Elgar “Sea Pictures” are really the newest to me, in a way. Though with the “Sea Pictures” I’ve been doing, “Where Corals Lie” since the time I was a very young singer. I’ve just discovered the rest of that group. I’d say that this is a fairly thorough screen shot of my artistic line from the time of just beginning to now, actually.

MT: That’s great. So our audience will really get to see a clear picture of where you are now and where you’ve been. As you mentioned earlier, you recently won Cardiff Singer of the World. Is this a goal that you have had for a long time or is it something that just came to you as a result of your career?

JB: In a way it’s been a goal.  You have to be very, very lucky to be nominated to audition to become a part of the competition. There are several different steps before you are even selected to compete and then when you are picked to compete, you are representing your country. This is a big honor all the way throughout. In my world, it’s kind of known as or thought of as the “Opera Olympics”. There are actually a lot of similarities in the fact that you are representing your country and that it only happens every two years. It’s something that I had heard about from grad school on. I knew of it. It came into my life when Nicole Cabell had won the big prize. She was the last American to win the award before me. I kind of thought at that point, “I really want to try for this.” It just gave me a good feeling.

Jamie Barton performing at the Cardiff Singer of the World Competition.

MT: It’s been around for 32 years now?

JB: Actually, 30. I won the thirtieth year.

MT: And you were the second to win both categories?

JB: Yes, correct. I suppose with good results and good reason, I had a good feeling about (the competition.) I’m really glad that I got to do it this year because, honestly, I was on the upper edge of the age scale, so it was either do it this year or don’t get to do it. It’s something I definitely wanted to do for a while and I’m really, really excited that I got to participate in the first place.

MT: Where would you like to see your career in the next five years?

JB: Well….. up and up and up. (laughs)

MT: Who wouldn’t? I’m sure it’s going to be.

JB: What I would like to see in the next five years, five years is a small time gap for opera singers. I’m waiting ten years to sing some of the things that I’m going to be singing. In the next five years I would love to see myself working on projects that I’m really excited about. Learning roles that I’m really in to; with the character, with the music. That sort of thing.

MT: What are your juiciest dream roles?

JB: It’s hard to say. It really is. It really depends on the day. Amneris (From Verdi’s Aida) is absolutely one. Any of the Verdi heroines, I would love to get a stab at, some day. I mean, I would love, LOVE to get a stab at. There are a lot of roles that I have always been very interested in, Carmen. It’s a very popular opera. You go to it and it sounds like you are listening to the greatest hits of opera in one show. There’s something about that, that I absolutely love. I also feel like I could sing the heck out of it. I’m not exactly the body type for Carmen but the music really makes me want to do it. There’s a lot of Wagner. I don’t know how far into the Wagner I’ll be going. I am starting a fairly large role this year with Fricka in the “Ring” (Wagners’ Ring Cycle) but I don’t know if Kundry is down the road.  In the next five years, I’d just like to explore more. I’m still learning about the whole opera thing. I’d just like to dive in headfirst and just see what I discover.

MT: If it weren’t for your opera career is there any other career you could see yourself in?

JB: Totally, totally. I would love to be a chef. I love cooking. In fact, it is on the bucket list of my life. If fame happens to happen at any particular point in this career, I would love to use it to become a guest judge on “Iron Chef” or something like that. (laughs) I mean, I’m such a foodie and a wonderful perk of this career is being able to travel and really taste all of the cuisines all around the world. That is number one. If I happen to not be an opera singer anymore I would love to become a chef.

VOCE AT PACE: Rising Opera Stars In Recital/ Jamie Barton/ Sunday, November 3rd/ 3:00pm/ All Tickets $35

For tickets visit schimmel.pace.edu or call (866) 811-4111

See you at the Schimmel

Michael Torbet

2013-14 Pace Presents Blogger

I have noticed a trend lately creeping into the American theatre, the tribute show. Within the last few months on Broadway you could go and experience a night with the Beatles or Janis Joplin. Even though two out of four of the boys from Liverpool and the famous queen of soul have passed on, their music lives on through talented performers who channel them nightly. Several years ago a group of savvy producers came together and built a Tony Award winning musical around a tribute to Frankey Valli and the Four Seasons. Jersey Boys is still playing to sold out audiences years later. On November 1^st and 2^nd, Pace Presents will bring another tribute show to the Schimmel Stage. “Edith” is a tribute to the late, great French chanteuse, Edith Piaf.

Jil Aigrot rose to international acclaim after prviding the singing voice for Marion Cotillard in “La Vie En Rose”

There is one key factor that sets this event a part from your average tribute show, Jil Aigrot. “But who is Jil Aigrot?” you ask. You may have missed her name (and face) but you have probably heard her voice. Jil Aigrot was the singing voice for Marion Cotillard in the award winning Piaf bio pic, La Vie En Rose. Ms. Cotillard even won the 2008 Oscar for portraying the great diva and I would venture to say that a part of that award also belongs to Ms. Aigrot. After all, half of the performance was the music and it was Piaf’s musical gift that brought her to international attention.

How did this relatively unknown concert performer become the voice of Edith Piaf? As Jil Aigrot would explain herself, it was sheer luck. A popular cabaret singer in her home city of Cannes, Jil Aigrot was used to requests from Piaf’s famous repertoire. She decided to put together a concert of Piaf’s hits and discovered in her research that there was to be a book signing of a biography on Piaf’s life. Intrigued by the fact that the book was penned by Piaf’s close friend, Ginou Richer, she decided to attend the event and have the book signed. While meeting Richer, Aigrot decided to tell her of her upcoming concert tribute to Piaf. Richer asked her to sing something on the spot. When she was through with her song, Richer proclaimed, “You have something of her!” While Aigrot was pleased with the compliment, she didn’t think much of it until a few months later when she was personally contacted by Richer and was invited to audition for the movie.

Although she was never seen in the movie, playing the voice of Edith Piaf became the role of a lifetime and was a major career changer for Aigrot. She is now an internationally recognized voice and her concert has received world-wide acclaim! Aigrot attributes her recent success to, “faith, luck and a trip to the book store” but I would have to add one other element to that list and that is her undeniable talent. She not only has incredible pipes but she has the ability to become Piaf. You surely won’t be able to find a better tribute anywhere else.

Edith Piaf is perhaps France’s best known voice of the 20th Century.

Edith Performed by Jil Aigrot/Friday and Saturday, November 1st and 2nd/7:30pm/ $45/$35/ $25

For Tickets, visit schimmel.pace.edu or call (866) 811-4111

See you at the Schimmel!

Michael Torbet

2013-14 Pace Presents Blogger