By Benjamin Ivry
The Polish Jewish pianist Ignaz Friedman may not be a household name, but his majestic artistry, honored by a brilliantly researched new biography, “Ignaz Friedman: Romantic Master Pianist” makes him of urgent interest to anyone who loves piano music.Read More
By Will Friedwald
In jazz terminology, it’s known as “call and response”: The trumpet section plays a few notes, which are answered immediately by the saxophones. Or, a soloist will give out with a four-bar phrase and then hear it echoed back at him by the full ensemble. Call and response is as essential to big band swing as the idea of “theme and variations” is to classical music.
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By Adam Sacks
Success has been easy for Asher Roth, but respect is proving more elusive. A 21st century MySpace star, Roth owes his success almost entirely to the Internet. Hailing from suburban Morrisville, Pa., Roth — and his educated flow, was first discovered on MySpace by the producer Steve Rifkind. Without a song on radio or a video on TV, Roth had a widget of his infectious song “I Love College” downloaded 2.7 million times.Read More
By Jordana Horn
The idea that Raichel would become a de facto ambassador of Ethiopian music to Israel seems somewhat incongruous. The fact that he’s taken that role one step further to become an ambassador of Israeli music to the world, in contrast, seems comparatively logical.
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By Benjamin Ivry
In a showbiz world, where backbiting and hissy fits are a way of life, Arthur Laurents, who has directed a revival of “West Side Story” that opens on March 19 on Broadway, stands apart. Laurents, who wrote the original book of “West Side Story,” among many other plays and screenplays, will be 92 on Bastille Day (July 14), but he is no patriarch in the sere and yellow leaf.
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