Mélomanie at the DCCA with La Bernardinia Baroque Ensemble

Night Watch by Dan Jackson

A grey Sunday in February brought an overflow crowd to the DuPont 1 Gallery of the Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts. The big crowd was made to order to create the most wonderful acoustic effect in the small room with the cold hard stone floor, so that Mattheson’s Sonata in G Minor for two harpsichords played by Marcia Kravis and Tracy Richardson sounded clear, crisp, rounded and exciting. Swirls of sounds flew as they traded fast scales and flying double thirds.

After the harpsichord duo, guest artists La Bernadinia Baroque (Donna Fournier, Rainer Beckmann and Marcia Kravis) performed the Ciacona allegro, also a Baroque piece by Benedetto Marcello –Following this, the entire Mélomanie ensemble playing Menuet-Fantaisie – a modern musical interpretation of Baroque music with a recurring motif passed from instrument to instrument, which they had commissioned Anthony Mosakowski to write in 2012. The composer, who introduced the piece, seemed as pleased as the rest of the audience.

The delightful and melodic Allemande and Sarabande, from a different harpsichord duo suite by Mattheson, brought us back to Baroque comfort and lute stops until we were blasted into the 21st century by Tracy Richardson and Rainer Beckman in their interpretation of Liduino Pitombeira’s Sonata for recorder and harpsichord no. 2, Opus 156. Mr. Beckman, who knows Brazil and the composer, introduced the piece and showed that he can make the alto recorder leap forward a few centuries to create a sound reminiscent to honor Stravinsky, Boulez and Bartok.

And, following that tradition of lulling us with Baroque delights and then rocking us out of chairs with modern sounds on Baroque instruments, the two groups played a delightful rendition of a Vivaldi's Concerto in G Minor, RV 107 in which the alto flute (Kim Reighley), soprano and alto recorders (Rainer Beckman) and Baroque violin (Christof Richter) performed as soli and Doug McNames (cello), Donna Fournier (viola da gamba) and Tracy Richardson and Marcia Kravis on harpsichords performed the orchestral continuo.

After the raucous applause for the great sound of the Vivaldi, the larger ensemble played an encore of a Chaconne by Jean Baptiste Lully. The experience was heightened by the surrealistic art of Dan Jackson on display in the gallery – the faces in his works so photographically alive and vivid that they seemed to have been listening as well.

See melomanie.org.

The Warmth of Winter Winds

The Music School of Delaware took a defiant leap and presented a delightful menu of winds – which, in spite of the chilly title and weather, attracted quite an audience. The programming was surprising, refreshing and delightful and unexpected like an amaryllis opening in the middle of winter.

The first piece was Wind quintet No. 3 in F major by Giuseppe Maria Cambrini.  Although Cambrini did not make it to the standard repertoire as did his contemporary and teasing competitor, Wolfgang Mozart, his style is evocative of that era in its light classical lilt.  The interweaving themes and Mozartian style were a great vehicle for combining the dark sounds of horn (Anna Skrupky) and bassoon (Chuck Holdeman) and the filigree of clarinet (Jared Eastridge), oboe, (Susan Ritter) and flute (Melinda Bowman).

The Three Irish Songs by john Corigliano with Jessica Graae, soprano, and Lynn Cooksey, flute presented and intriguing combination with some harmonies that were rather surprising, but this could be due to the small auditorium and the big sound of diminutive Ms. Graae’s surprisingly strong voice.

And when was the last time you heard kettledrums in a chamber ensemble?  The Nightwatch: a dialog for horn, flute and kettledurms by Ellis B. Kohs was an amazingly delicate morsel.  The flute starts with a birdsong, the horn follows with a frog call and the kettledrum provides a beat and drone and then the flute and horn move into a duet and the kettledrum joins for a trio.

The Sonata for flute, oboe and piano by Madeleine Dring,  a British composer (1923-1977) --who,  by the way,  sounds surprisingly like Francis Poulenc-- is a fun romp.  Ms. Ritter and Ms. Bowman played the wild cadenza beautifully. 

Ms. Cheng, piano, was the backbone of the second half with her collaboration.  The Dance from “Ballade, pastorale, and dance” by Eric Ewazen for flute, horn and piano and the Tarantella for flute, clarinet and piano, Opus 6 by Camille Saint-Saens profited from her expertise.

The Concertino pour flute, opus 107  by Cécile Chaminade showcased a very talented student of Mindy Bowman,  Genevieve Hahn whose technique and poise were outstanding. 

The concert was topped off by the Sonata for horn, trumpet and trombone by Francis Poulenc which was played in a no-holes-barred romp by Anna Skrupky, horn, Katelynn Griess, trombone and Malcolm McDuffee, trumpet. 

Even on that grey winter evening, the winds warmed up the smiles in the audience.  Music School Dean Cheri Astolfi created a fantastic event to show off her wind staff.

Smokey Joe’s Café Ignites the Wilmington Drama League Stage!

By Charles "Ebbie" Alfree, III

Smokey Joe’s Café -- with songs by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller -- is a toe-tapping, hand-clapping stroll through a bygone era. The show doesn’t have a plot like most jukebox musicals of late; instead, Smokey Joe’s Café is a musical revue including 39 of Lieber and Stoller’s classic rock & roll and rhythm & blues songs, spanning the 1950s and 60s.

Director and choreographer Dominic Santos stages a seamless production that easily flows from one song to the next. Instead of depending on many set pieces, Santos uses projections by AV Designer Tony DelNegro to create atmosphere. He also houses the show’s outstanding band on the stage (led by Musical Director Anthony Vitalo), which enhances the exuberant performances.

The nine-member cast (Tonya "TS" Baynes, Tommy Fisher-Klein, Lauren Hope Gates, Corey Kelly, Chelsea Miller, Lyndie Moe, Mr. Santos, Dan Urdaneta and Jacob Bauer Zebley) gives electrifying performances. From the smooth four-part harmony of Fisher-Klein, Kelly, Santos and Urdaneta singing "Keep on Rollin’" and "On Broadway" to the take-charge attitude of Baynes, Gates, Miller, and Moe singing "I’m a Woman" to the rollicking good time of Bauer Zebley performing "Jailhouse Rock" (I LOVED his Elvis moves), there are no dull moments in the two-hour show.

Of course, there are few ballads sprinkled throughout the revue, such as "Spanish Harlem" and "I (Who have Nothing)," respectively performed Urdaneta and Fisher-Klein. While Urdaneta performs a gorgeous rendition of "Spanish Harlem," Moe dances the part of the girl who is on his mind. Fisher-Klein bares his soul and finds the anguish and sadness of the haunting "I (Who have Nothing)."

I can’t finish my review discussing ballads, so I have to mention the scantily clad Baynes' captivating performance of "Don Juan." The lady knows how to turn up the heat! She amazingly sings the seductive tune and works a boa like a true temptress!

Smokey Joe’s Café is great nostalgic fun. The show runs through February 1 at the Wilmington Drama League. Visit the website or call 302.764.1172 for additional information and tickets.

See Wilmingtondramaleague.org.