There Stands the Glass

2. Joyce DiDonato at the Folly Theater

3. Little Joe y La Famalia at the Guadalupe Center

4. Logan Richardson + Blues People at the Ship

5. Blackstarkids at recordBar

6. Angela Winbush, Men at Large and Levelle at Juneteenth KC

7. Godspeed You! Black Emperor at the Roseland Theater (Portland)

8. Samantha Ege at the Folly Theater

9. Sparks at the Crystal Ballroom (Portland)

10. Flatland Cavalry at the Truman

11. Daniil Trifonov at the Folly Theater

12. Lucibela at Old Church Concert Hall (Portland)

13. Show Me the Body, Soul Glo, Wifi Gawd, Ebony Tusks and Piss Kinks at recordBar

14. FKJ and Ohma at the Midland theater

15. Livia Nestrovski and Henrique Eisenmann at the 1900 Building

16. Salvation Choir at Theis Park

17. Algara, P.S.Y.W.A.R. and New Obsessions at Farewell

18. Sheku Kanneh-Mason and Isata Kanneh-Mason at the Folly Theater

Instagram photo.

19. Animal Collective and Spirit of the Beehive at the Truman

20. Adam Larson, Clark Sommers and Dana Hall at Westport Coffee House

21. Porridge Radio and Blondshell at Doug Fir Lounge (Portland)

22. Black Crack Revue at Westport Coffee House

23. High Pulp at recordBar

24. Escuela Grind at Farewell

25. Phillip Greenlief, Midwestern and the Extemporaneous Music and Arts Society at Bushranger Records

26. Steve Cardenas, Forest Stewart and Brian Steever at recordBar

27. Terence Blanchard with Turtle Island Quartet at Atkins Auditorium

28. Arnold Young and the RoughTet at the Ship

29. Marin Alsop and Orchestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo at Helzberg Hall

30. John Hiatt and Lyle Lovett at the Uptown Theater

31. Bob Bowman and Peter Schlamb at Second Presbyterian Church

32. Mspaint at Nightjar

33. Babehoven at Farewell KC

34. UMKC’s Conservatory’s “Cosi Fan Tutte” at White Recital Hall

Instagram photo.

35. Live Skull and Still Ill at recordBar

36. Crystal Gayle at Ameristar Casino

37. Evan Verploegh and Ben Baker at World Culture

38. Keefe Jackson, Jakob Heinemann and Adam Shead at Black Dolphin

Instagram photo.

39. Cuong Vu and Ted Poor at Jack London Revue (Portland)

40. Ozomatli at KC Live

41. Gorillaz and EarthGang at the Moda Center (Portland)

42. Escher String Quartet at Polsky Theatre

43. Damien Sneed at the Folly Theater

44. John Waite at Ranch Mart Shopping Center

45. William Baker Singers at Grace & Holy Trinity Cathedral

46. Raven Chacon at Agnes Arts

47. Rod Fleeman at Green Lady Lounge

48. Ducks Ltd. at the Green House

49. Billy Cobham at Dolores Winningstad Theatre (Portland)

50. Roger Waters at the T-Mobile Center

William Brownlee

September 23, 2022

Book Review: Dvořák’s Prophecy and the Vexed Fate of Black Classical Music, by Joseph Horowitz

William Brownlee

September 23, 2022

Original image by There Stands the Glass.

I almost dismissed Dvořák’s Prophecy and the Vexed Fate of Black Classical Music after taking a cursory glance at the index. How could author Joseph Horowitz properly address the subject without referencing Ornette Coleman, Miles Davis or Wynton Marsalis? I’m glad I overcame my initial aversion.

Horowitz, a refreshingly combative scholar of classical music, inhabits an entirely different world from my own. I learned a great deal from his new study inspired by Antonín Dvořák’s faulty prediction that the music developed by Black Americans would become the basis for the country’s classical music.

But was Dvořák wrong? I’m inclined to believe that jazz is the true classical music of North America. Horowitz doesn’t entertain the premise, but he’s not averse to jazz. He repeatedly mocks traditionalists who feared a “jazz threat.” Instead, he traces the evolution of European classical music in the new world. Often straying from his theme, Horowitz’s disparate ramblings are consistently interesting.

A passionate champion of Charles Ives, Horowitz introduced me to the startling Concord Sonata. For that alone, I’m in his debt. He also has a curious obsession with the role of critics. Horowitz clearly relishes dismantling the reputation of the Kansas City native Virgil Thomson.

Depictions of the “racial minefield” related to analyses of “Porgy and Bess” are valuable, as is an assertion that the Metropolitan Opera is responsible for diminishing opera from a popular form of music among Americans into “an aloof, elitist playground for the very rich.” And I enjoyed learning about the intercine rivalries among American composers.

These themes are amplified in a series of illustrative videos. A portion of my enthusiasm for Dvořák’s Prophecy is likely due to recency bias. I just took in the PBS broadcast of “Black Lucy and the Bard,” a compelling ballet by Caroline Randall Williams and the accomplished polymath Rhiannon Giddens.

Samanthe Ege’s piano recital astounded me four months ago. Horowitz shares Ege’s enthusiasm for the neglected composer Florence Price. And in ten days I’ll attend a concert overseen by Terence Blanchard, the composer of the 2019 opera “Fire Shut Up in My Bones”. Dvořák’s prophecy might yet be fulfilled.

William Brownlee

May 24, 2022

May 2022 Recap: A Monthly Exercise in Critical Transparency

William Brownlee

May 24, 2022

Screenshot of soprano Sara Blanch in the trailer of the Donizetti Opera Festival’s staging of Gaetano Donzetti’s La fille du régiment by There Stands the Glass.

Top Ten Albums (Released in May, excluding 5/27 titles)

1. Mary Halvorson- Belladonna

2. Ches Smith- Interpret It Well

My review of the companion album.

3. Bad Bunny- Un Verano Sin Ti

Summer soundtrack sorted.

4. Leikeli47- Shape Up

Fit.

5. John Scofield- John Scofield

Sublime solo set.

6. Shabaka- Afrikan Culture

Hushed Hutchings.

7. Daniel Villarreal- Panamá 77

International Anthem indeed.

8. Mary Halvorson- Amaryllis

9. Andris Nelsons- Strauss

10. Kendrick Lamar- Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers

The transformation of King Kendrick into Captain Obvious is a hard pill to swallow.

Top Ten Songs (released in May)

1. Charles Stepney- “Daddy’s Diddies”

My favorite sound.

2. Tank and the Bangas with Lalah Hathaway and Jacob Collier-

“Where Do We All Go”

Fulfillingness’ second finale.

3. Becky G- "Kill Bill"

Dead.

4. Dougie B- “I’m Back”

Bumpin’ me against the wall.

5. Flee Lord with Mephux- "Out the Mud"

True grit.

6. Hollie Cook- “Happy Hour”

Red Stripe special.

7. Ty Segall- “Saturday Pt. 2”

A stroll in Itchycoo Park.

8. Belle and Sebastian- "Do It for Your Country"

Ask not.

9. Flora- "Hey"

Ya.

10. Kevin Morby- “A Coat of Butterflies”

Hallelujah.

Top Ten Performances of May (and the last weekend of April)

1. Little Joe y La Familia at the Guadalupe Center

2. Samantha Ege at the Folly Theater

3. Logan Richardson + Blues People at the Ship

4. High Pulp at the recordBar

5. Isata and Sheku Kanneh-Mason at the Folly Theater

My Instagram snapshot.

6. The Lyric Opera of Kansas City’s “Tosca” at Muriel Kauffman Theatre