Now NPR has a regular music ‘critic’ to discuss pop releases. The ensuing drivel is clearly an infection passed on from the classical world. The need for quarantine has never been more clearly demonstrated.
What troubles the long-time observer of the music ‘talk’ world is the fact that soon all of the critics will be quoting each other. This would be fine if they they referred to the sources as people-with-a -smattering-of-knowledge on the subject matter. But in fact, music critics refer to each other as historical sources. Critics never shine brighter than when a musician dies. The obit writer jumps in with a barrage of quotes from critics during the musicians lifetime. If the “subject” himself ever thought he was above the criticism, the obit proves the contrary. The critic, even while calling black white, will prevail.
And now that pop music has a tradition of ‘criticism’, the amazing language that these folks use to second guess, praise, deify, question, or advise with will take on a life of its own. They will quote each other (”critics say…”) and weave their own web around the musical world that they and probably many of their adherents will worship as, um, relevant.
There is much to say on this subject, but I am reminded of a delightful conversation at the Hay Adams Hotel with Dan Schorr, his wife, and Mr. & Mrs. Isaac Stern. I referred to a nasty review I had just received. Isaac Stern himself had just received a buffeting from Washington Post writer Tim Page. Mr. Stern said, “Burnett, I was in Vienna recently and as usual was looking at all the statues of the greats, whether Bruckner or Strauss in the Stadtpark, Beethoven, Mozart, in other parts of the city. But you know, there was not a single memorial to a music critic.”
The coup de grace was the Woman’s National Democratic Club Inaugural Ball. Debra Tidwell rose to unprecedented heights and I must say, of all the 8 million times we’ve performed together, this was the best. The band was ready to play, and the 270 guests at WNDC were ready to dance and have a good time. Eric Wheeler, the workingest man in Washington, DC, laid down a solid bass all night long, not to mention the entire Inaugural festivities. Greg Twombley blew that tenor sax and Danny Villanueva played drums.Thanks to Rosemary Monagan for making this happen.
After the ‘hottest ticket’ party, it was off to the home of one of my colleagues where I slept for about two hours. We were 16 blocks from Union Station, where we performed at 10:00 a.m. on Jan. 20. This was a group of Maritime unions, Seafarers, various pipefitters, Firefighters, and other hardy souls. It was a very emotional crowd, and we felt like we were in the thick of it, albeit a half-mile from ground zero. We were blessed with a performance by Beau Williams of Houston, who sang the Star Spangled Banner to kick things off. I have included several photos of my colleagues and the guests at Union Station. These photos were taken around the time of the actual ceremony at noon. Thanks to Shera Thompson (see photo) for putting us all together. The band: Julie Hall, Eric Wheeler and the legendary Marshall Keys.
The Inaugural on Jan 20 was a 5 day drama, ordeal, celebration, depending on what your role was. If you were a military musician, it was an 18 hour day, most of it in 25 deg F with a stiff 15 mph wind in your face. A couple of members of the New Columbia Orchestra were actually on the reviewing stand. They offered the first report that Yo-yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman and Anthony McGill were lip-sync’ing, a fact that created quite a stir in the press. But they had no choice, since the weather would have destroyed their instrument in about 2 minutes.
For me, the work began on Friday, Jan 16, when I did the initial load-in for the a couple of our events. The load-in was completed Sunday and included a stop for a photo shoot at Ben’s Chili Bowl. You couldn’t get into the place because of the mob, but the mood was enthusiastic.
Our first event was on Jan 19 at the office of what may safely be described as a prominent Chicago law firm. The guests included Senator Durbin, numerous city mayors, and the about-to-become-governor Quinn, who was even then patiently awaiting the disintegration of Rod Blagojevich. It was Greg Twombley and Eric Wheeler for this one, and it was a good prelude for things to come. 
That evening we were at the Fairfax Hotel for what was billed as the hottest ticket in town. Bill & Hillary Clinton were there for most of the evening, as were Jessica Beal (why didn’t I get a photo of her?), Natalie Portman (in the photo with Hillary), Charlie Rose, both Woodward and Bernstein, Henry Kissinger, Tom Brokaw, etc. etc. 
The personnel were Pete Barenbregge, Rick Lillard, Ken Rittenhouse, Eric Wheeler and Phil Matthieu. All but Phil are in the photo which shows Yo-Yo Ma doing the limbo while Bob Woodward holds the trumpet. Photo: Vernon Jordan with the band.
Chinese Erhu virtuoso Yang Ying appeared at Planet Arlington over the weekend with her ensemble. Yang Ying is among the finest erhu artists around, and what made her additionally standout was the skill and authority with which she played her jazz and rock’n'roll tunes. Her ensemble is comprised of superb performers at every instrument: flute, piano/synth, double bass, drums, and guitar.
The problems inherent in playing Thelonious Monk’s Round Midnight were exquisitely overcome by Yang. Artistry and intonation prevailed. Moving around repertoire outside the traditional Chinese musical language is dangerous water for the erhu player. Yet Yang Ying seems to easily override the problems that other erhu solists have in this area, notably in intonation. I highly recommend listening to her performance of Sanmen Gorge Capriccio and her own pieces at her MySpace site. Her music includes intricate unison figures, remisicent of the ‘fusion’ era, and her colleagues pull it off in startling fashion.
The Dept. of Interior and the White House jointly hosted an awards ceremony and reception for our nations’ most visible volunteers today. My good friend Katie Loovis, exec. director of Take Pride in America, brought me in with my colleagues, bassist Bhagwan Khalsa, and clarinetist Marty Nau to assist in their annual awards ceremony. Secretary Kempthorne did far more than offer welcoming remarks. He wanted to connect to the assembly of volunteers from around the country, and he wanted them to connect with each other as well. It was really quite moving, and we enjoyed coloring it all in with tunes ranging from our extemporaneous arrangements of “Grand Old Flag” to “How Much is that Doggie in the Window” (…that’s a long story).
The Mughal India exhibit at the Sackler Gallery is a tough one to decipher. Unless, of course, you get the tour from Smithsonian docent Roshna Kapadia. At that point, the context, symbolism, politics and artistic content come alive. In fact, I will make a point of catching all of Roshna’s tours and recommend that all of you do the same. She has deep understanding and passion for the subject.
Muraqqa’ Imperial Mughal Albums from the Chester Beatty Library
Say “Mughal India ,” and the first image to pop up in anyone’s mind is the Taj Mahal. Currently on view at the Sackler Gallery of Art in Washington DC , you can see miniature paintings from the ateliers of Emperor Shah Jahan (who had the marmoreal mausoleum built), his father, Jehangir, and grandfather, Akbar among other royal notables. This collection, on loan (more…)
I first met pianist Steven Beck when he was 16 or so. Martin Goldsmith was hosting a book event for Fred Starr, author of Bamboula, the bio of Gottschalk. Martin enlisted me to play some Gottschalk excerpts, and I in turn recruited Steve to play part of the Grande Tarantelle, which he was about to perform with the National Symphony Orchestra. For his reward, I gave him my copy of the book.
So 14 years later Steve is about to unleash all 32 of the Beethoven sonatas at Barge Music starting July 16, 2008. This is an effort that I simply cannot imagine myself doing, and is the domain of the rare pianist. The last time I attended such a marathon was when Wilhelm Kempff performed them to an exclusive audience at the Brahmssaal in Vienna in 1974. Kempf was at the very end of his career and the audience was worshipful to say the least. Every pianist and teacher was there, including John O’Connor, Dieter Weber, Noel Flores, etc.
So I am confident there will be a crowd of the cognoscenti lurking at Barge Music. I will attend on July 20 when he does opus 10 nr. 1, opus 22, 26, and 109.
Yes, we finally have an excellent cafe in the neighborhood, Pastry Xpo. Beautiful French delicacies and cakes, and superb coffee. I just hope it lasts. They offer samples every morning, and I could sustain myself on those alone. It is a very high end pastry shop, and a real treasure for the neighborhood… Just have a look at the rave from the Washington Post this week.