San Diego Symphony Media Coverage: December 5, 2016 through January 5, 2017

The San Diego Union Tribune 12/22/2016

18 DEC. 22 – 28, 2016 UNION-TRIBUNE

BY G EO R G E VA R G A GEORGE.VARGA @SDUNIONTRIBUNE.COM (619) 293-2253

Copy Reduced to 73% from original to fit letter page

2 0 1 6 A S T R O N G Y E A R FO R J A Z Z

B E ST SA N D I EG O JA ZZ

RECOGNITION AND SUCCESS WERE SEEN IN SAN DIEGO AND NATIONWIDE

WERE HIGH IN QUALITY AND VARIETY

J

azz flexed its formidable muscles in welcome new ways in 2016, nationally and locally.

Visionary saxophonist and composer Henry Threadgill, 72, became only the third jazz artist — after Duke Ellington and Wynton Marsalis — to be awarded a Pulitzer Prize. One of his recent collaborators, trumpeter Stephanie Richards, 34, teaches music at the University of California San Diego and in August recorded two new albums that are set for 2017 release.

At the other end of the spectrum, young piano phenom Joey Alexander, 13, was the youngest jazz artist to perform in this year’s Grammy Awards telecast (he was 12 at the time). He also became the youngest jazz artist in Grammy history to earn a nomination, let alone two.

Alexander was initially scheduled to perform here at the Jan. 23 Jazz@The Jacobs concert with Eric Reed, Helen Sung and El Cajon keyboard wizard Joshua White, but dropped off the bill before it was announced. The concert was the second in the San Diego Symphony’s successful inaugural jazz series — which was curated by top trumpeter Gilbert Castellanos — and the best-attended.

In February, the tireless Castellanos, who leads weekly jam sessions at Panama 66 in Balboa Park, collaborated with the San Diego Ballet. White, who in 2011 earned second-place honors in the prestigious Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Piano Competition, was also a vital presence here this year. He won additional acclaim touring the world in sax great Rudresh Mahanthappa’s band.

In June, veteran jazz saxophone star Charles McPherson, a San Diego resident for more than 30 years, was presented with the prestigious Don Redman Heritage Award in West Virginia.

Closer to home, the star-studded Athenaeum Jazz at TSRI concert series celebrated its 20th anniversary in La Jolla. The Athenaeum also began staging concerts at its new Athenaeum Arts Center, housed at Bread & Salt in Logan Heights, while downtown saw the launch of Harbor Music Hall, which hosts live jazz performances each Thursday through Saturday.

CONCERTS OF 2016

CAROL FRIEDMAN

Piano phenom Joey Alexander, 13.

BEST JAZZ ALBUMS OF 2016

1. Henry Threadgill, “Old Locks and Irregular Verbs” (Pi) 2. Jack DeJohnette, Ravi Coltrane, Matthew Garrison, “Movement” (ECM) 3. Donny McCaslin, “Beyond Now” (Motema) 4. Wadada Leo Smith, “America’s National Parks” (Cuneiform) 5. Gregory Porter, “Take Me to the Alley” (Blue Note) 6. Andrew Cyrille Quartet, “The Declaration of Musical Independence” (ECM) 7. Mark Dresser Seven, “Sedimental You” (Clean Feed) 8. Carla Bley, Andy Sheppard, Steve Swallow, “Andando El Tiempo” (ECM) 9. The Claudia Quintet, “Super Petite” (Cunieform) 10. Joey Alexander, “Countdown” (Motema) 11. Logan Richardson, “Shift” (Blue Note) 12. Aziza, “Aziza” (Dare2) 13. Catherine Russell, “Harlem on My Mind” (JazzVillage) 14. Brian Lynch, “Brian Lynch presents Madera Latino, a Latin Jazz Perspective on the Music of Woody Shaw” (Holistic Musicworks) 15. Marquis Hill, “The Way We Play” (Concord Jazz) 16. Julian Lage, “Arclight / Live in Los Angeles” (Mack Avenue) Sadly, the very jazz-friendly Croce’s Park West in nearby Bankers Hill closed its doors in January, while the fall sale of 98 Bottles saw the discontinuation of its live jazz programming. And Dizzy’s — the all-ages jazz venue that celebrated its 16th anniversary in June — last month had to leave its Pacific Beach site and relocate to Bay Park, its fourth home since 2000.

On a brighter note, radio station KSDS Jazz 88 was named JazzWeek’s 2016 Station of the Year, marking the fourth time it has received that honor since 2011. Equally notable, the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts Jazz Ensemble was the only California band to perform at the prestigious Essentially Ellington Jazz Band Competition, winning several awards.

1. Luciana Souza, March 17: Athenaeum Jazz at TSRI Auditorium 2. Joe Lovano & John Scofield Quartet, Feb. 24: UC San Diego Price Center Ballroom 3. Gregory Porter, May 7: San Diego Symphony Jazz@The Jacobs, Copley Symphony Hall 4. Myra Melford & Ben Goldberg, Feb. 4: La Jolla Athenaeum Music & Arts Library 5. Cecile McLorin Salvant, Aug. 18: San Diego Symphony Summer Pops 6. Paquito D’Rivera, Aug. 17: La Jolla Music Society Summerfest, Sherwood Auditorium 7. John Hollenbeck Claudia Quintet, June 25: La Jolla Athenaeum Music & Arts Library 8. Geoffrey Keezer & Friends, Sept.

24: Athenaeum Jazz at TSRI Auditorium 9. Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, featuring Wynton Marsalis, with the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts Jazz Ensemble, Oct. 6: Balboa Theatre 10. Joel Harrison Quintet, featuring Brian Blade, Oct. 17: Dizzy’s 11. Kenny Barron Trio, April 15: Athenaeum Jazz at TSRI Auditorium 12. Tito Puente Tribute, featuring Gilbert Castellanos, July 14: Summer Pops 13. Dorado Schmitt & The Django All-Stars, Nov. 29: Athenaeum Jazz at TSRI Auditorium 14. Joshua White, Eric Reed & Helen Sung, Jan. 23: San Diego Symphony Jazz@The Jacobs, Copley Symphony Hall 15. Aaron Goldberg, featuring Leon Parker, Feb. 18: La Jolla Athenaeum Music & Arts Library 16. Rhythm Future, June 17: AMSDconcerts

KIM FOX

Luciana Souza

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05–11 JANUARY

Weekly Entertainment Guide

NIGHT: ‘LES LIAISONS DANGEREUSES’ 13

DAY: HEALTHY DINING OPTIONS FOR 2017 18

San Diego Symphony celebrates ‘Our American Music’ throughout January

The Hilarious Comedy by Steve Martin Picasso at the Lapin Agile

By Steve Martin Directed by Barry Edelstein

February 4 – March 12

(619) 23-GLOBE (234-5623) www.TheOldGlobe.org

Night + Day | THE SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE | THURSDAY • JANUARY 5, 2017

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DEPARTMENTS RADAR.......................................4 COVER STORY ............................6 POP MUSIC................................9 THEATER .................................13 VISUAL ART .............................16 DINING ....................................18 BEER .......................................22 MOVIES ...................................24

L I ST I N GS MUSIC .....................................10 THEATER ..................................11 ART/CLASSICAL MUSIC ............15 EVENTS ...................................23 MOVIES ...................................25 MOVIE TIMES...........................26

I N FO R M ATI O N

BACK ONSTAGE Christopher Hampton’s 1985 play “Les Liaisons Dangereuses” is a “beast,” says star and co-director Richard Baird.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Michael Rocha, (619) 293-1724 michael.rocha@sduniontribune.com ADVERTISING Markey Daniels, Sales Manager (619) 293-1562 markey.daniels @sduniontribune.com MAILING ADDRESS: Night&Day, P.O. Box 120191, San Diego, CA 92112-0191 FAX & EMAIL: (619) 260-5082; night&day@sduniontribune.com GETTING LISTED Event information should be submitted to our online calendar at utsandiego.com/news/ entertainment/things-to-do at least three weeks before publication.

Limited space prevents printing all submissions, but we attempt to publish a representative sample.

NIGHT & DAY is published each Thursday.

ON THE COVER Illustration by Cristina Byvik • U-T

NATIONAL TREASURES The San Diego Symphony’s monthlong “Our American Music” explores orchestral, Americana, hip-hop, jazz and more.

ARTISTIC BOOKING San Diego artists explore the beauty of the book for collaborative work “Over the Moon.”

TA L K TO U S James Hebert > Twitter: @JimHebert Facebook: UTTheater

Pam Kragen> Twitter: @pamkragen Facebook: San Diego Theater Critics Circle

Michele Parente> Twitter: @sdeditgirl Facebook: U-T Entertainment

George Varga > Twitter: @GeorgeVarga Facebook: sdutpopmusic

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4 JAN. 5 – 11, 2017 UNION-TRIBUNE

SATURDAY 01.07

American icons

San Diego Beer Fest Noon to 4 p.m. Saturday. NTC Park at Liberty Station, 2455 Cushing Road, San Diego. $45-$55 (includes unlimited beer tastings). sandiegobeerfest.com Another year of craft beer festivals kicks off Saturday with the seventh annual San Diego Beer Fest at Liberty Station. Beer enthusiasts will sip through more than 60 breweries, including locals like La Jolla Brewing Co. and North Park’s Thorn Street Brewery, plus out-oftowner Big Sky Brewing Co. from Montana. The 21-andover fest also includes some of San Diego’s best food trucks (food sold separately) and live music. Proceeds will benefit Southern California Golden Retriever Rescue.

OUR EXPERTS RECOMMEND THE BEST EVENTS

CAROLINA GUSMAN • U-T

FRIDAY 01.06 & SUNDAY 01.08 San Diego Symphony presents “Americans and Paris”

>>

8 p.m. Friday; 2 p.m. Sunday. Copley Symphony Hall at Jacobs Music Center, 750 B St., downtown. $20$96. (619) 235-0804 or sandiegosymphony.org The San Diego Symphony devotes the entire month of January to American music, and this weekend, the orchestra — with Andrew Gourlay conducting and Inon Barnatan on the piano — pays homage to American composers Aaron Copland and George Gershwin.

Themed “Americans and Paris,” the two-concert weekend will feature Copland’s Suite from “Billy the Kid” and Gershwin’s “An American in Paris.” Both concerts will also showcase a new piano concerto by Andrew Norman, a young American composer, called “Suspend.”

MICHAEL JAMES ROCHA • U-T

THROUGH SUNDAY 02.12 “Beau Jest” 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays; 2 and 7:30 p.m.

Wednesdays; 8 p.m. Fridays; 4 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. Through Feb. 12. Lamb’s Players Theatre, 1142 Orange Ave., Coronado. $24-$72.

(619) 437-6000 or lambsplayers.org Lamb’s launches the year with a return to the James Sherman comedy, which centers on mistaken identity and romantic subterfuge. The piece, which plays off the title of the adventure novel (turned movie classic) “Beau Geste,” was last staged at the Coronado theater in 1998.

JAMES HEBERT • U-T

6 JAN. 5 – 11, 2017 UNION-TRIBUNE

BY G EO R G E VA R G A GEORGE.VARGA @SDUNIONTRIBUNE.COM (619) 293-2253

CLAY PATRICK MCBRIDE

Multiple-Grammy-winning musician Rosanne Cash will perform a celebration of American roots music with her band on Jan. 12.

S O N G S O F A N AT I O N SAN DIEGO SYMPHONY’S ‘OUR AMERICAN MUSIC’ EXPLORES ORCHESTRAL, AMERICANA, HIP-HOP, JAZZ AND MORE

C “OUR AMERICAN MUSIC” >

When: Tonight through Jan. 29; times vary.

Where: Joan and Irwin Jacobs Music Center’s Copley Symphony Hall, 650 B St., downtown Tickets: Prices for each concert are shown on Page 8.

Phone: (619) 235-0804 Online: sandiegosymphony.org/ouramericanmusic

hubby Checker and Misty Copeland won’t be performing as part of the San Diego Symphony’s “Our American Music” series, but there will be some exciting twists and turns regardless.

The concert lineup includes at least one gifted dancer, Cartier Williams, who co-starred in the touring production of the hip-hopfueled “Bring in ’da Noise, Bring in ’da Funk.”

“We all know that music has the power to bring people together, to unite us and to connect us, and we have created this festival in that spirit,” said San Diego Symphony CEO Martha Gilmer.

Aptly billed as “a monthlong celebration of music inspired by America,” the 15-concert program opens tonight and concludes Jan.

29. It will include a number of unexpected firsts for the San Diego Symphony, which is California’s oldest orchestra, having launched in 1910.

How unexpected? Let us count some of the ways.

On Jan. 14, top San Diego trumpeter Gilbert Castellanos will lead a specially assembled band in an orchestra-free West Coast jazz tribute that will feature classics by Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck, Gerry Mulligan, Chet Baker and others.

On Jan. 13, veteran rapper Talib Kweli will perform the first hip-hop concert ever presented by the symphony, although he’ll be accompanied by his own band, not the orchestra. Because of his sometimes blunt lyrics about everyday life, Kweli’s performance is the first symphony-sponsored concert to be

LISA MARIE MAZZUCCO

Violinist Itzhak Perlman will perform Jan. 21 in a program titled “Bernstein, Perlman, Hollywood”

7 THURSDAY • JANUARY 5, 2017 | THE SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE | Night + Day HUMBERTO HOWARD

La Santa Cecilia will perform its exuberant, borders-leaping songs without the orchestra on Wednesday. billed as “recommended for mature audiences only.”

On Jan. 12, multiple-Grammywinning Rosanne Cash — the oldest of country music pioneer Johnny Cash’s seven children — will perform a celebration of American roots music with her band.

On Wednesday, fellow Grammy winners La Santa Cecilia will perform its exuberant, bordersleaping songs, also sans orchestra.

Coming just nine days before the inauguration of presidentelect Donald Trump, this eclectic Los Angeles group’s concert should have added resonance.

After accepting La Santa Cecilia’s 2014 Grammy for Best Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album, band

co-founder José “Pepe” Carlos — a native of Mexico — disclosed to reporters backstage that he was an undocumented worker.

“The band further solidified our identity as bicultural people and as children of immigrant parents, and what that all means and continues to mean to us,” La Santa Cecilia percussionist Miguel Ramirez told the UnionTribune in a late-2014 interview.

Megan Swan, who in June became the San Diego Symphony’s associate director of artistic planning, booked La Santa Cecilia, Cash and Kweli for the “Our American Music” series.

She chose them specifically to help reflect the diversity of homegrown American music. She also

had direct discussions with all three artists to explain the goals of the monthlong series and explore how each fits in.

Should their inclusion help draw listeners who don’t usually attend San Diego Symphonyrelated concerts — or lure longtime symphony attendees to their first hip-hop or Americana music performance — so much the better.

“American music is a melting pot that reflects our community,” said Swan, who previously worked as the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s collaborative learning manager.

“So many styles of music have been born in this country because of the mix of people in America from so many different places and

ideologies who talk to each other and interact. Once we started looking at that bigger picture of what American music is, and how diverse it is, we knew we wanted to represent as many genres as we could. Something that rings very true about La Santa Cecilia, Talib Kweli and Rosanne Cash is that they each have a very authentic voice.”

The orchestral concerts in “Our American Music” will showcase a similarly broad range of styles and approaches, often within the course of a single performance.

To cite one example, the Tuesday concert by Art of Élan, conducted by La Jolla Symphony & Chorus music director Steven

Schick, will include the world premiere of Hannah Lash’s “Tree Suite for Harp.” It will also feature Aaron Copland’s stirring “Appalachian Spring” and visionary minimalist composer Steve Reich’s instrument-free “Clapping Hands.”

Even more intriguing is the same concert’s inclusion of “I will not be sad in this world,” a composition for bass flute and electronically treated voice by Michiganborn maverick Eve Beglarian. It is based on the haunting 18th-century ballad “Ashkharumes Akh Chim Kashil” by Armenian troubadour Sayat Nova, which was popularized around the world in 1989 by Armenian duduk virtuoso SEE MUSIC • PAGE 8

Night + Day | THE SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE | THURSDAY • JANUARY 5, 2017

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MUSIC FROM PAGE 7 Djivan Gasparyan.

Another example of the scope of “Our American Music” within a single performance comes with the Jan. 20 and 22 concerts titled “LA/NY.” Among the four pieces that will be performed are expatriate Russian composer Igor Stravinsky’s “Symphony in Three Movements,” which he completed in 1945 as his last work for full orchestra, and John Adams’ “City Noir.”

Adams has accurately described his piece as “jazz-inflected symphonic music” that is inspired, in part, by French composer Darius Milhaud. By coincidence, in the 1940s Milhaud taught future jazz piano legend Dave Brubeck, whose work will be performed as part of “Our American Music” at the Jan. 14 “Birth of the Cool: A West Coast Jazz Salute” concert.

“We’re not trying to answer any questions with this festival,” stressed the symphony’s Swan. “But we are posing questions. What is American music? Is there an American music? What makes American music different? These are questions we want people to go through and recognize for themselves. These concerts will provide a pathway to these questions and an avenue to explore.”

HOWARD LIPIN U-T

Gilbert Castellanos will lead a West Coast jazz tribute that will feature classics by Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck and more.

“Our American Music” schedule (* indicates concerts without the San Diego Symphony) 7:30 P.M. TODAY “Art Connection: What Is an American Composer?”

Discussion with American composers Gabriela Lena Frank and Andrew Norman, San Diego Symphony CEO Martha Gilmer and Chicago Symphony Orchestra programming advisor Gerard McBurney, moderated by James Chute.

Music by Frank and Norman will be performed by San Diego Symphony musicians. Free, but online reservations are required: sandiegosymphony.org/ ouramericanmusic 8 P.M. FRIDAY AND 2 P.M. SATURDAY “Americans and Paris” Program: Andrew Gourlay, conductor; Inon Barnatan, piano; San Diego Sym-

phony. Program: “Piano Concerto” and “Billy the Kid Suite” (Aaron Copland), “Suspend” (Andrew Norman), “An American in Paris” (George Gershwin). $20-$96.

8 P.M. SATURDAY “Our American Music – Festival Highlights and Musical Surprises” Program: The San Diego Symphony features musical highlights of works that will be performed throughout January as part “Our American Music.” Free, but online reservations are required: sandiegosymphony.org/ouramericanmusic 7:30 P.M. TUESDAY Art Of Élan: “Our American Chamber Music” * Program: World premiere

of “Tree Suite for Harp” (Hannah Lash), plus “I will not be sad in this world” (Eve Beglarian), “Clapping Hands” (Steve Reich) and the original 1944 version of Copland’s “Appalachian Spring” for 13 players, conducted by Steven Schick. $35.

7:30 P.M. WEDNESDAY La Santa Cecilia * Program: Will be announced from the stage. $24-$40.

7:30 P.M. JAN. 12 Rosanne Cash * Program: A celebratory performance of her tripleGrammy-winning album “The River and the Thread.” $35-$65.

8 P.M. JAN. 13 Talib Kweli *

Program: Will be announced from the stage. $25-$40 (concert is recommended for mature audiences only).

8 P.M. JAN. 14 “Birth of The Cool: A West Coast Jazz Salute” * Program: The music of Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck, Paul Desmond, Chet Baker and Gerry Mulligan, performed by Gilbert Castellanos, Chuck Berghofer, Charlie Shoemake, Jeff Hamilton, Graham Dechter, Tamir Hendelman and others. $20-$65.

8 P.M. JAN. 20 AND 2 P.M. JAN. 22 “LA/NY” Program: Cristian Macelaru, conductor; Andrea Overturn, English horn; Micah Wilkinson, trumpet;

San Diego Symphony.

Program: “Symphony in Three Movements” (Igor Stravinsky), “City Noir” (John Adams), “Quiet City” (Aaron Copland), “Symphonic Dances” from “West Side Story” (Leonard Bernstein). $20-$96.

8 P.M. JAN. 21 “Bernstein, Perlman, Hollywood” Program: Cristian Macelaru, conductor; Itzhak Perlman, violin; San Diego Symphony. Program: “Symphonic Suite” from “On the Waterfront” (Leonard Bernstein), “The Sea Hawk” (Erich Wolfgang Korngold), Hollywood Scores: “Perlman Plays Hollywood” (arranged by John Williams). $20-$96.

8 P.M. JAN. 27 AND 2 P.M.

JAN. 29 “American Riffs and Rhapsodies” Program: James Gaffigan, conductor; Cartier Williams, dancer; San Diego Symphony. “Hymn, from Hymn and Fuguing Tune No. 2” (Henry Cowell), “Rhapsodies” (Steven Stucky), Symphony No. 1, Op. 9 (Samuel Barber), “Prelude, Fugue and Riffs” (Leonard Bernstein), “Tap Dance Concerto” (Morton Gould), “Harlem” (Duke Ellington). $20-$96.

8 P.M. JAN. 28 “Beyond the Score: Things Our Fathers Loved” Program: James Gaffigan, conductor; members of the San Diego Symphony.

“Symphony No. 2” (Charles Ives). $20-$96.