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In this Issue:
Saturday, November 11, 8:00pm
Tickets are $17 for the general public, $15 for UW Faculty & Staff, Union
Members, and WAA
members, $10 for UW-Madison students.
From the Cafes of Hungary to Madison: Kálmán Balogh
Cimbalom Band Swings
the House
Starting a new tradition, one we think of as the "Madison World Music
Festival year-round,"
we're offering an intimate, though boisterous, performance by Hungarian Gypsies Kálmán Balogh and his cimbalom band.
Balogh exemplifies the urban café tradition of Romany music, defined and
refined in
Hungary over the last 200 years. His progressive attitude takes the tradition a big step further, by blending folk tunes with classical pieces--and
adding healthy doses of swing, jazz, and good humor.
Like the best virtuosi on any instrument, Balogh hammers out a complex set of
musical
emotions on the cimbalom, an instrument similar to the hammered dulcimer, only larger in scope. Something like opening the top of a grand piano and
playing directly on the strings. In his hands, the cimbalom simultaneously drives the band rhythmically while taking the melodic lead.
Kálmán Balogh is no stranger to Madison. The November 11 show will
mark his sixth
visit since his 1994 appearance with the Ökrös Folk Band at Edgewood College. More recently he performed with his Gypsy Cimbalom Band at
the Memorial Union in 2002, and he was musical director of Budapest Ensemble's "Gypsy Spirit" at the Oscar Mayer Theater in 2003. Each time he was
met by enthusiastic audiences and great reviews.
This show marks a new collaboration between the Wisconsin Union Theater and
other local music
presenters and UW campus groups. It is a joint presentation of the Wisconsin Union Theater, Madison's Village Dance House (a Madison area nonprofit
music and dance presenter), and the UW Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia.
Dan Talmo
For Youssou N'Dour, touring the world is not simply a nomadic activity but, rather, a journey with a purpose. His more than 25 year career has been
an exploratory adventure of different styles and ways of expressing himself. N'Dour explains that what he finds most exciting about making music is
the freedom he has in its creation, but he is careful to produce art that can be enjoyed by all. N'Dour has experimented with more traditional
African
music, as well as popular music.
Currently, N'Dour says, he is focusing on traditional music with a twist, enjoying the interaction that occurs when different strands of music are
blended
together so that they can be understood by the listener. It is particularly important to him, he says, that various audiences be able to appreciate
his music, his chief way of communicating. N'Dour firmly believes in the power that music possesses, and one of his goals is to teach the
world outside of Africa about his home country, Senegal.
"Music is a language, maybe the first language, and I use it to deliver a message because people can hear it and understand it first, quicker than if
they waited for a newspaper. I sing about reality, about my society, which is more than just Senegal or Africa. I sing about the world," he says.
Emily Semmelman
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Color, Poetry, and Harp: Yolanda Kondonassis and the Rossetti
String
Quartet
It is the first time ever that the theater presents a harpist as part of the Concert Series. And what a harpist! Described as a performer with
"powerful playing and musicianly energy" by the New York Times, Yolanda Kondonassis is regarded as one of the most prominent harp players in the
world, both as a soloist and a recitalist.
She made her debut with the New York Philharmonic at the age of 18, and has since appeared with numerous other major orchestras. She has performed at
many of the major music festivals throughout the United States, including Spoleto, Aspen, and Tanglewood. She has collaborated with flutists
Renèe Krismer and Eugenia Zukerman, violinist Chee-Yun, and the Vermeer, Guarini, and Rossetti string quartets.
The Rossetti String Quartet will join Kondonassis for this exciting concert. The quartet named
themselves after 19th century Pre-Raphaelite painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti, whose artistic ideals about the use of color, poetry, and naturalism are
embodied in the Quartet's musicianship. The Quartet has performed at Lincoln Center's Mostly Mozart Festival and San Francisco Performances, among
others, and went on tour in the Netherlands with pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet.
Kristine Rominski
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Parking: Not as Much of a Hassle as you Might
Think
Parking near the theater is not as limited and difficult as
some perceive, but it can be challenging at times. The following theater events
occur on the same day as men's basketball or hockey games, when parking is a
little trickier. We recommend that you buy a parking permit, ahead of time, for
the Helen C. White parking lot, right across from the theater. There is a
limited number per event and our Box Office,
608-262-2201,
sells them at cost,
for $5. See other parking choices here, and give
yourself a little more time to
find parking because these shows are worth it!
* Paquito D'Rivera, November 17, 2007
* Yolanda Kondonassis and the Rossetti Quartet, December 8,
2007
* Hugh Masekela's Chissa All-Stars, January 31, 2008
* Olympia
Dukakis: Rose, February
2, 2008
* Gretchen Parlato & Esperanza Spalding, February 15, 2008
Esty Dinur
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From the Archives
Are you anxiously awaiting Complexions Dance Company's
performance in March? The picture above shows dancers from the Murray Louis Dance
Company who were here this week in 1974 for a two-week residency. Louis
described using his body "like a comet."
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Newsletter staff:
Editor: Esty Dinur
Layout Designer: Claire Weissenfluh
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On Wednesday, November 7th, at 8pm, come check out the Idan Raichel Project, a journey through the ethnic music of modern Israel, at the
Wisconsin Union Theater. Out of the fires of a conflicted region, The Idan Raichel Project harmoniously blends Ethiopian folk music with Arabic
poetry, Yemenite chants with Caribbean rhythms, and ancient Biblical verses with modern sophisticated production techniques to become what Billboard
Magazine calls "one of the most fascinating titles to emerge in world music this year...a multi-ethnic tour de force."
Read Susan Kepecs' review
Jenn Dunigan
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A Foot Atop the Jazz World:
Paquito D'Rivera Returns to the Theater
Named "Clarinetist of the Year" in both 2004 and 2006 by the Jazz Journalists Association, Paquito D'Rivera will be sure to thrill on Saturday,
November 17th at 8pm. D'Rivera was the first artist to win Latin Grammys in both Classical and Latin Jazz in the same year (2003), demonstrating what
Tom Strini of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wrote of him in 2002, "...Cuban reed player Paquito D' Rivera has a foot in the classical world
and
a foot in the jazz world--and each foot is atop its respective world."
Jenn Dunigan
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Turkeys, Rhododendron and Hollywood: It's The Pacific Coast,
Top to
Bottom
What do the Seattle Space Needle, Redwood forests, San Diego Zoo, Golden Gate
Bridge, and
Hollywood all have in common? Why, their proximity to the Pacific Coastline, of course!
On Monday and Tuesday, November 19th and 20th, join filmmaker Bob DeLoss as
he guides us on
the 12,000 mile journey through The Pacific Coast: Top to Bottom. The film explores both coastal cities and their surrounding natural wonders.
Don't forget the pre-film dinner which is a great opportunity to try the
Union's superb Fudge
Bottom Pie, in addition to other tasty Pacific Coast-themed entrees! See menu here.
To prepare you for this array of visual and culinary stimuli, here are a host
of Pacific
Coast facts to wow your friends and family:
• More turkeys are raised in California than in any
other state in
the United States.
• The Hollywood Bowl is the world's largest outdoor
amphitheater.
• Sequoia National Park contains the largest living
tree. Its trunk
is 102 feet in circumference.
• The Rhododendron is the Washington state flower.
• Seattle is home to the first revolving restaurant.
It was opened
in 1961.
• The Hazelnut is the Oregon State nut. Oregon grows
99% of the US
commercial hazelnut crop.
Now just imagine all the interesting and entertaining things you'll learn
coming to the
film!
Courtney Byelich
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Above: No, Ladies and Gents, this isn't Jeffrey Siegel "back in the day." It
is Claude
Debussy!
It's festive, French, and "fare" to say that the December 11th Keyboard Conversations with Jeffrey Siegel will feature some of France's most
celebrated composers. As always, the concert takes place at Mills Hall and begins at 7:30pm.
Siegel opens with Debussy's classic Clair de lune, giving listeners the opportunity to hear how the original differs from the derived and simplified
versions played by school children around the world. Other works Siegel is slated to perform include Oiseaux Tristes (Sad Birds) by Ravel,
Danse Macabre by Saint-Saens, and Impromptu in A-flat, Op. 34, No. 1 by Fauré. The festivities will conclude with Debussy's "L'isle joyeuse
(Isle of Joy)," a work inspired by Antoine Watteau's painting, The Embarkation for Cythera. Scholars continue to debate over what the scene truly
represents, and also how it relates to what Debussy was experiencing in his personal life when he wrote the piece.
Tickets for the show are still available and start at $22. UW-Madison student tickets are FREE! For more information, call the box office or buy
tickets online here.
Laissez le bon temps rouler!!!
Sarah Smogoleski
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Meet Our Friends:
Susan Kepecs: Writer, Arts Connoisseur, Food Gourmet, Archaeologist
You come to many of our shows. What do you love and why?
I shoot for everything on the World Music Fest and World Stage, the Isthmus
Jazz series, and
the dance events. I'm absolutely thrilled that WUT has gone out on a limb to bring in major post-Balanchine ballet companies -- Alonzo King in '05,
and Complexions this season.
In this brave new hip-hop era, promoting jazz is a little risky. It pays off
-- some of the
best shows I've seen in Madison in years come out of the jazz series, including Latin jazzer Eddie Palmieri and straight-ahead diva Diane Reeves.
In world music, this past year alone, I was especially delighted by Puerto
Plata, Estrella
Acosta, Dobet Gnahore and Louis Mhlanga. WUT's world music offerings are spectacular horizon-broadeners. High on my list of interesting music this
year were the Huong Thanh & Nguyen Le Quintet, Roberto Rodriguez and El Medioni and the NY Gypsy Allstars.
Such choices make Madison a more sophisticated city than it used to be. Mazel
tov.
Tell us about your writing. Who do you write for? What about?
I'm a freelancer. I am a very regular contributor to Madison's Isthmus,
writing mostly the
biweekly Table Talk--a Q and A with someone in the restaurant business. And I do a fair amount of previewing and reviewing in the arts, particularly
in the areas of dance, Latin and world music, and jazz.
I also contribute occasionally to Dance Magazine and Archaeology
Magazine -- both national /
international publications. I've done a few pieces for Mexican and European popular archaeology mags, too. I've written articles on Cuba, and also on
dance, for The Capital Times. Last year I had a piece about the UW-Madison's First Wave program in Wisconsin People and Ideas. And I've published
articles in academic books and journals. I have a couple of edited volumes on historical archaeology under my name, and I have several books in the
works. One's on new archaeology in Cuba; one on postcolonial Mexico. I'm also working on a photo book -- my pictures of Mexican markets, with text on
the clash between tradition and globalization.
What else do you do?
I just gave it away -- I take pictures, and I'm an archaeologist. I've been
doing archaeology
in Mexico for 25 years but have also worked in Belize, Guatemala, Cuba and the U.S. Southwest. Additionally, I do some academic editing and
translating (English/Spanish).
Which of our shows are you especially excited about this season?
Complexions Contemporary Ballet. I can't wait for Paquito D'Rivera's
show this month -- he
gives new meaning to the word genius. Hugh Masekela's one of my lifelong favorites -- he makes the most graceful music. Lila Downs' brand of
alt/ranchera songs sparkle.
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