Opera lovers new to the area will be pleased to know there’s no need to fly off to La Scala or Covent Garden to sate their musical appetites. Quality opera can be found on three sides of Tampa Bay, with established professional companies in Tampa, St. Petersburg and Sarasota. Opera Tampa, founded in 1996 by…
There’s an old chestnut tossed about by music-industry types paid to put butts in seats at classical concerts. It goes something like this:“People ask me what they need to know to enjoy classical music, and I always respond, ‘Not a thing — just come to a concert and let the music’s magic carry you along.’”…
Look up raconteur in the dictionary, and you just may find a picture of Michael Francis staring at you. Francis, music director of The Florida Orchestra, is a charming Englishman whose posh accent only serves to highlight a playful public-speaking style when holding forth on an evening’s music program or other musical matters. His enthusiasm…
A COMMUNITY OF MUSIC “Music is the soundtrack of your life” – Dick Clark In 2018, two musicians with a deep love for jazz and a shared commitment to making people feel good set out on a musical journey that would not only transform their lives but enrich the lives of countless others. David Busch,…
“Who am I”? This question reminds me of ‘Che gelida manina’, an aria from Puccini’s “La Bohème“, where the male protagonist, a poet, answers it with a glorious understatement, accentuated by an almost triumphant cadence. The poignancy lies in the understatement, juxtaposed with the ‘forte’ of the music. Now, what does this thought have to…
Since 2013, the Palladium’s audiences have had the opportunity to become intimately acquainted with some of the world’s finest chamber musicians that look forward to returning to the Hough Hall stage each year. They are welcoming back the renowned The Calidore Quartet performing works from their recently released Beethoven Quartet albums as well as Jessie…
MAGNETIC DUO WITH MELLOW BOSSA NOVA VIBE by Donna Sorbello Katharine Hepburn once said of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, “He gives her class, and she gives him sex.”, meaning, of course, sexual appeal. In the case of Nate Najar and Daniela Soledade, each, individually, has plenty of both. Together, however, they are a magnetic…
And why were there so many cars in the dusty parking area? A couple of old salts sat at the bar inside. The terse bartender said, “Around the back.” Was this the 1920s? Prohibition? We walked around the weathered clapboards to a yard filled with picnic tables, a small bar, twinkling lights, and serious dancers…
A lifelong Love of Music You can hear them nearly every Monday evening at the Hanger with the Al Downing Jazz Band. Three senior jazz musicians, for whom, as John Lamb succinctly says “There is only music. It’s all air.” And that’s how they sound, as easy as breathing, time standing still as the Hanger…