Scythian
Scythian emerged several years ago in Washington, DC, got audiences stomping and waving up and down the I-95 corridor, and then started appearing at the big outdoor roots music festivals like North Carolina’s MerleFest....
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The Eye of the Beholder
Visitors to the University of Michigan Museum of Art this month have the opportunity to see a stellar temporary exhibition of works on paper by some of the leading figures of the German and Viennese Expressionist movements of...
Read MoreGlobal Village
The day after Christmas, diners at Senor Lopez, the Mexican restaurant on West Stadium, were treated to an impromptu concert. A private party had gathered at one end of the dining room. Most of the guests appeared to be from...
Read MoreHolden in Heaven
In mid-February, forty people were waiting their turn to check out a 60-year-old novel from the Ann Arbor District Library. Of course it’s not just any novel–it’s the high school classic Catcher in the Rye. The...
Read MoreBroetzmann and Lonberg-Holm
European jazz truly came into its own in the 60s, when musicians in the Netherlands, England, and Germany, long inspired by models from the U.S., programmatically sought to develop indigenous forms of expression. The music they...
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Steve Shipps Is Back
When Steve Shipps stepped down as concertmaster of the Ann Arbor Symphony six years ago, he’d held the job for fourteen years and helped take the orchestra from amateur to professional status. He’d been with them...
Read MoreLoving New Orleans
Dr. John, born Malcolm John Rebennack Jr., and the four Neville Brothers have been making music in and away from New Orleans for about fifty years now. They’re not household names, but most people with an interest in...
Read MoreA State of Mind
Like Orwell’s 1984 come to life, Daniel Gordon’s 2003 film A State of Mind documents totalitarianism, complete with ascetic state housing, rations, daily power outages, censorship, and a heavy dose of propaganda....
Read MoreThe Heidelberg Pulls the Plug
The Heidelberg’s Club Above abruptly shut down its music operation in January, less than eight months after Claudia Leo took over the North Main Street club, spruced up the venue, and inaugurated an ambitious schedule of...
Read MoreSteve Nardella
Well into his third set at Guy Hollerin’s, Steve Nardella asked for a request from the still sizable audience, and someone yelled “Chuck Berry!” It was all Nardella needed to break into the familiar opening...
Read MoreThe Swan Thieves
Obsession. It is one of the great cultural themes. Most of us have probably felt some form of it, usually mild, for a person, our work, an art form, or an idea. When we recover our “normal” perspective, we may look...
Read MoreConcert4aCause
The format–an elevated musical variety show–matched the intent–the bringing together of artists, church people and social causes to their mutual edification, enjoyment, and endowment. In this case,...
Read MoreStar Outfitters
When the Swell Season–the Oscar-winning musical duo Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, made famous in the indie movie Once–performed at the Michigan Theater in early December, Hansard told the crowd how much fun...
Read MoreMutual Kumquat
There’s certainly no reason why social change and fun can’t go hand in hand–everyone loves a good demonstration, especially one with happy, finger-snappin’ music. Mutual Kumquat–an area band with an...
Read MoreChanneling Lincoln
Relax. That’s what modern dance choreographer Bill T. Jones tells audiences to do in his video Blog at billtjones.org. Don’t worry about it all making sense, allow what comes to you to come and see what you still...
Read MoreCarol Ann Duffy
They do things differently in Britain. British poets have always seemed more comfortable with received forms and with various kinds of reference than American poets. Here, our writers always work hard to establish the absolute...
Read MoreBen Jansson
When one thinks of great Michigan jazz, it is usually Detroit that comes to mind rather than cities like Ann Arbor. But this city has had a rich tradition of high school jazz instruction, perhaps best represented by Mike Grace,...
Read MoreReally, Really Big Show
Beethoven’s Ninth is big; Verdi’s Requiem is bigger. But the biggest show in classical music is Mahler’s Eighth Symphony. The “Symphony of a Thousand” requires an enormous orchestra, an off-stage...
Read MoreSari Brown
When I first heard Sari Brown’s “Blue Ribbon,” I thought it was a cover. Not that I assumed this young performer wasn’t capable of writing such a good song; it just was so catchy I was sure I’d...
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