Divamensch

I saw Heartbeat Opera's Orgy and Bess on Nov 7, 2025. Heartbeat is a scrappy chamber opera company here in town, I've seen a handful of their shows. Last year I saw their production of Salome which was scored for eight clarinet players and two percussionists. A fascinating experiment but not really a viable choice. Their scaled down Faust last spring was much more successful. They do a drag extravaganza every year, a mashup of opera excerpts and pop references, heavy on th

I heard Sybarite5 at Music Mondays on Nov 3, 2025. They're a string quintet - - two violins, viola, cello, and bass. I heard them in an online concert during lockdown n 2020. I just read that review and I appeared to enjoy the 2020 concert more than this latest one. Maybe I was more eager for a satisfying cultural experience? Or maybe it was just better. They opened with "Movement and Locations" by The Punch Brothers. It had a great energy but the cello solo at the beginning

I had a tribute to Wanda Jackson a few weeks ago. My brother Howard has a signed picture of her in his locker at work! I told him, "That's not Wanda Jackson, that's Lynn Redgrave in a bad wig." Bless her heart. Or in this case, rest her soul! OK now for this week's fierce rock and roll woman: the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, an American treasure. One of a kind, the world would not be the same without her. Can we all agree that this was one of the greatest moments in televi

I was saddened to read in The Times about the death of actor Diane Ladd at the age of 89. She had three Oscar nominations for Best Supporting Actress. First for playing Flo in Alice Doesn't Live Her Anymore. She really knew how to give A Performance, just what you want in a supporting actor. Here she is off the freaking rails in Wild At Heart. And doing something more measured and understated in Rambling Rose. The Times said she and her daughter Laura Dern were the first (ma

The 2023 Grammy for Best Pop Dance Recording went to Kylie Minogue for "Padam Padam." Diva: Minogue "Padam Padam" Mensch: Piaf "Padam Padam" I know, Edith Piaf is no one's idea of a mensch but Minogue and her team doing a song called "Padam Padam" seemed to imply a wink, a nudge, and a tip of the hat to the song by the same name by Miss Piaf. The unwritten (unintended?) tribute to Piaf is a mensch move.

I was saddened this morning to read about the death of Maria Riva. She died last week at the age of 100. She was an actress and producer but best known as the only child of Marlene Dietrich. I always describe Dietrich as "my first movie star" - - the Milwaukee PBS station used to show a week of old movies starring the same person in summer afternoons and I was maybe 12 or 13 when they showed a week of Dietrich movies. I was a goner. Riva wrote a startling biography of her mot

I saw a new production of Bellini's La Sonnambula at the Met on Oct 29, 2025. Bellini is one of the major masters of what's called bel canto, an opera style from the early 19th century - - the term literally translates as "beautiful singing," and while that's central to its identity, bel canto operas are also a deeply Romantic expression of all the big emotions. Audiences love these operas for their mixture of display and drama. This was the first Met production directed by

I heard Dreamers' Circus at Music Mondays on Oct 27, 2025. They're a trio that plays arrangements of Nordic folk music and original pieces. The three members are: Rune Tonsgaard Sørensen: he primarily plays the violin, played the piano a bit as well. Ale Carr: he had the most versatility - - he played guitar, violin, clog fiddle (more about that in a bit), bowed harp (more about that, too), Nordic cittern (ditto), and he also sang. Nikolaj Busk: he played piano, accordion, al

Here's Howard's description of Kim Gordon. You see what I mean about his writing being flavorful: NYC noise rockers Sonic Youth upended punk rock with their strange guitar tunings and sludgy but often melodic underground songsmithery. Bassist/vocalist and one time partner of SY guitarist Thurston Moore, Kim Gordon has since become an unlikely post-punk hero. Author of a tell-all autobiography and indie fashion stalwart, she now has a solo career full of collaborations with ot

Francesca and I heard the Estonian Festival Orchestra and the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir at Carnegie Hall on October 23, 2025. They were conducted by Paavo Järvi in an all Arvo P ärt program. I'd sung a few pieces of his and loved the texture of the writing and his distinctive voice as a composer, I was curious to hear more. Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten (1977, revised in 1980) - - 6 minutes Bell and strings I loved this piece - - it had an amorphous rhythm b

I just have one week left on the Grammy theme and I feel it's time to make a confession. I sometimes have a hard time finding a mensch in the list of winners and nominees. There are a couple reasons for this: I have very slight knowledge of the music scene in recent years. By "recent" I mean since the mid-90s. So I see a name like Doja Cat (for example) and that name does not conjure up music in my brain. I see a name like Glenn Miller or Carole King or The Violent Femmes, I

Two English actresses have left us. Samantha Eggar died last week at the age of 86. I first noticed her in an amazing William Wyler movie called The Collector. SUPER CREEPY, it's so good and she's fantastic in it. She got an Oscar nomination for Best Actress. And if you think that was creepy, try another movie on her list, David Cronenberg's The Brood. I don't want you to think that was all she did so I'll throw in this commercial. And Prunella Scales just died yesterday at t

I was saddened to read in The Times about the death of soprano Benita Valente at the age of 91. I was lucky to have turned pages for two recitals for her back in Wisconsin - - a shared recital with her beloved friend Tatiana Troyanos and a solo recital a year or so later. She was an exceptionally gifted singer, a lovely voice used in the service of the music. She worked consistently but didn't really hit the big time. Her obit said she never got the recognition she deserved f

Wanda Jackson was a name I hadn't noticed before - - I'm sure she came up in the Ken Burns country music series, or I might have seen her name at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but she didn't really stick with me. She was a country or rockabilly singer with a coarse quality to her singing that wasn't typical for a country singer at the time, that's why she's seen as a rock and roll pioneer. This video has a bonus of The Collins Kids singing "Sugar Time." The little boy looks

I heard Baroklyn on October 21, 2025. They're a string-and-piano ensemble led by pianist Simone Dinnerstein. Their name is a clever combo of Baroque and Brooklyn. I heard them playing an all-Bach program, some more or less original Bach and some thoughtful arrangements. They opened with an arrangement of a chorale prelude, "Herr Gott, nun schleuss den Himmel auf." It was moody and intense with Dinnerstein getting a rich sound out of the piano. They had only the slightest vari

The 2021 Grammy for Best Music Film went to Questlove's documentary Summer of Soul. Did you see it? It was extraordinary. He put together footage from the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival and paired it with people talking about the event and the performers themselves thinking back on it. Diva: the performers Mensch: the film itself The performers are all superdivas: Nina Simone, Sly and the Family Stone, Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Mahalia Freaking Jackson, it go

Soprano Roberta Alexander just died at the age of 76. She sang 85 performances at the Met and was based in The Netherlands, way back to the start of her career (she moved there when she was 23). Here she is singing Samuel Barber's lovely song "Sure On This Shining Night."

I heard The Gesualdo Six on Oct 18, 2025. They're a group of six men who specialize in the music of 16th century composer Carlo Gesualdo. This concert was half Gesualdo and half his contemporary Palestrina. The sextet has two counter tenors, two tenors, a baritone, and a bass. They have exactly the sound I want in early music: clarity coupled with warmth and expression. Also immaculate intonation and a good blend. The program was thoughtfully put together: three sacred works

Whoa that woman was FIERCE. Leiber and Stoller wrote "Hound Dog" for her, which became a big hit for The Pelvis - - she wrote "Ball and Chain," which became a signature song of Janis Joplin. Typical tale for a Black person in the 50s. She invariably wore men's suits so she's also seen as a trailblazer in gender expression.

My brother Howard alerted me to the death of D'Angelo. I'm such a rube - - this is how it played out via text: HIM: D'Angelo RIP ME: Beverly? HIM: Lol, no. The R&B singer silly. I was sad to hear that D'Angelo had died at the much-too-young age of 51 but honestly I was relieved to learn that Beverly D'Angelo was still alive. At the still-too-young-to-die (but more appropriate) age of 73. I asked Howard to send me a couple notable songs by D'Angelo. And WOW.