Another in the long line of Timeless Themes here at Benevolent Order
for Music of the Baroque headquarters. It was way back in the 1970s. A bunch of us band dorks were sitting around the band room contemplating life, the
universe, music, and how as Flute-and-Clarinet-Toting Band Dorks
we would most likely never get a date. The only guys in the band
who did get dates were the guys who played percussion, and, clearly,
size did matter. Bass drum or the marching tom-tom set would be the
preferred way to go. But not the snare drums. No, those guys
were just as nerdy as the rest of us.
How can we make our lives more exciting? was a question we brought
up but could never answer. Then it hit us: what would happen if
there were a piece for solo flute or clarinet that was nothing
but 64th notes in cut-time? It would no doubt produce
Smoke and Blisters for the player and instrument,
cause an audience to explode into thunderous applause,
and the player who managed to pull off such a piece would
certainly get a date, if not three.
Well, the 70s ended, the 80s and 90s came and went, and now,
here in the 2000-2001 season, we've all realized that nothing has changed.
The packaging is different but the product is still the same. Our
instruments have fewer gadgets on them, the real name for Cut Time
is Alla breve, and playing pyrotechnic concertos is
an exciting experience for the audience, the players involved
have a real gas in the process, and NO ONE in the band will get a date,
not even the married guys.
So, this year in addition to the usual fun and excitement and
intellectual stimulation, we are giving you the woman's compositional
perspective, not to be PC but because we can. Part of our mission
is to play music that deserves to be played but which for some reason doesn't.
We descriminate in one way: we only play great music. We don't care
who wrote it.
The Rundown
Multiple cadences, articulation fu, flying spiccato,
big musical gestures, blazing woodwind passage work,
high school prodigy fu, exploding recorders, WITH fireball, amazing continuo playing, death-defying finger board hire-wire acts, and WACKY SOCKS.
Drive-In Early Music Academy Awards to David "Swift Turtle" Wilson for his Seattle premier of Il grosso mogul, Stephen "Blind Lemon" Creswell for furthering the cause of solo baroque viola music, Rachel Berkowitz for not backing down from the old guys, and to the Benevolent Order for Music of the Baroque for doing it the Drive-In way. 4 stars. El Gato says check it out.