IT seems like everyone who saw Justin Faulkner's performance with Branford Marsalis out here has told me personally that we have to look out for this kid. Faulkner started that association on his 18th birthday, while still a high school senior.This week, as a ripe old man of 20, Faulkner spoke to me about his development as a jazz listener and drummer after cutting his teeth on R&B and gospel. … [Read more...]
The Roots of Christopher O’Riley
THE eclectic pianist O'Riley came to my attention a few years ago for his interpretations of music by Radiohead, Elliott Smith and Nick Drake. He's recently teamed up with Matt Haimovitz, the wild-man cellist who cam render Bach and Hendrix with equal skill. (In '05 or so, Haimovitz put on a radical and memorable show at a restaurant in LA in which a fight nearly broke out.)O'Riley, who comes to … [Read more...]
The Classical Violin and Heavy Metal
RACHEL Barton Pine walks both sides of the fence -- a classical violinist who plays a 1740s instrument but also rocks out to Black Sabbath and Guns N Roses. I get into her wide range of musical passions in the latest of my Influences column in the Los Angeles Times.The violinist, by the way, plays this Sunday at one of the most amazing places I've ever seen chamber music -- UCLA's Clark Library in … [Read more...]
Philip Glass With the New York Philharmonic
COMPOSER Philip Glass is making his debut this week at the New York Philharmonic. Yes, you heard that right. Let's move on -- it's awkward for everyone involved. But he's glad to be there now.Glass's appearance is with his own ensemble and the orchestra itself, playing behind Godfrey Reggio's film Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance, the score for which may be the composer's best-known work. (I … [Read more...]
The Hell of Freelancing – or is it Purgatory?
FOR some people, going it alone is a blast, and lucrative as well. Advocates of the "free agent nation" see it casual, flexible, energetic -- a way to tap into your real talent and potential.Free agent Reggie JacksonThey say we've moved beyond the stodgy, gray-flannel-suited Organization Man of mid-century, who was all about conformity and corporate loyalty.But for many writers, artists, musicians … [Read more...]
Violinist Ray Chen Nods to Elvis
Ray Chen is a young classical violinist who's got both a golden tone and the kind of catholic taste I find all too infrequently in conservatory trained musicians.Chen is the latest subject of my Influences column: Here he talks about his love of J.S. Bach, Yo-Yo Ma and Elvis Presley.The Taiwan native also wrote to me about his love of friends and family, food and drink, and exercise. For a touring … [Read more...]
The Roots of Philip Glass
THE minimalist composer is the latest subject of my Influences column in the Los Angeles Times.We spoke about his teacher Nadia Boulanger, sitar player Ravi Shankar, composer/philosopher John Cage, Gandhi and Allen Ginsberg, who Glass got to know well.I mentioned to Glass before we started to talk for real that I had a new respect for anyone who wrote music since I'd started a very amateur study … [Read more...]
The 5 Browns on the Piano
Photo Andrew SouthamA GROUP of cherubic, Julliard-educated young people came to Irvine this weekend to play 5 pianos in tandem. This could be heaven or it could be hell, but this group of siblings is good.HERE is my interview with the band in the LA Times. There is more to the story than met the eye when I accepted this piece -- their backstory is a bit complicated. I enjoyed talking to two of the … [Read more...]
The Roots of Bobby McFerrin
IS there a more annoying song from the 1980s than "Don't Worry Be Happy"? Maybe -- a lot of bad childhood memories are now flowing back, some of them involving George Michael -- but not one of my favorite number from that low dishonest decade.Debut LPHERE is my brief LA Times exchange with the man who helped revolutionize jazz singing and has made an impact in the classical world as well. (He also … [Read more...]
New Music Festival in Venice
PLEASE NOTE: This is a post that went up last month; Blogger has misdated it. Trying to fix. Don't go to First Lutheran this weekend unless your aim is to praise the Lord.The Calder QuartetTHIS Saturday sees two programs of contemporary music, by composers well known and obscure, that tries to take the measure of the classical scene in 21st century Los Angeles. It's called Hear Now and includes … [Read more...]