Sue Conley, co-founder of Cowgirl Creamery
@ National Harbor
Q:What's your favorite food TV show or host?
A:"John Shields of 'Chesapeake Cooking.' He was a deep appreciation for local foods."
THIS WEEKEND: The CityDance ensemble will be part of an unlikely team when it joins forces with technology company DANTE for "Carbon." DANTE has created a dance routine from a program originally produced to predict eruptions and save lives. More specifically, the musical score for two of the dances is structured on melodies created out of seismic data from three volcanoes on three continents. And, no, we are not kidding. This bizarre collaboration is onstage for two nights only, so be sure to catch it this weekend.
» Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, Sat. and Sun., March 14 and 15, $20; 301-581-5100. (Grosvenor)
Written by Express' Nathan Martin
THIS WEEK: Nerve-racking, high-flying acrobatics combined with the music of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra makes for a delightfully terrifying night. Avoid the mushrooms and take a chance with BSO and the Cirque de la Symphonie.
» Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, Bethesda; Thurs., Feb. 5, $30-$85; 301-581-5100. (Grosvenor-Strathmore)
Written by Express' Nathan Martin.
WEDNESDAY: Classical music is gorgeous, and never more so than when it's played by Joshua Bell and Jeremy Denk, who are giving a concert at Strathmore tonight.
OK, so maybe half the audience will be composed of women who just think Joshua Bell is gorgeous. God, anything that gets people into classical music is good, and I don't see you complaining about that troupe of gorgeous women that plays Beethoven.
The fact that Joshua Bell is a hunky dreamboat doesn't mean he can't also be a great violinist — and help the Post win a Pulitzer Prize. Thanks, Josh!
» The Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda; Wed., Feb. 4, 8 p.m., $47-$105; 301-581-5100. (Grosvenor)
Photo courtesy Business Wire
THE MAN WHO brought the National Philharmonic Orchestra to prominence is celebrating a birthday. Piotr Gajewski is turning 50 and will conduct the Phil through various pieces he has found significant in his career. Join the celebration of a renowned conductor this weekend.
» The Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane., North Bethesda; Sat., Jan. 10, 8 p.m.; Sun., Jan. 11, 3 p.m., $29-$79; 301-581-5100. (Grosvenor-Strathmore)
Written by Express' Eric Anderson
THE SOWETO GOSPEL CHOIR may be a Christian group from South Africa, but you need not be saved to enjoy its music.
"We don't only perform for Christians," said Shimmy Jiyane, assistant music director and choreographer. "You don't have to be a Christian to enjoy our show; you just have to come to our show and enjoy yourself."
After all, South Africans been forced to figure out ways to get along despite the many different ethnicities, religions and cultures that comprise the nation.
"In our country, we have 11 different official languages, and we have 20 to 40 cultures that are different," Jiyane said. "We mostly sing a capella, but we're open to any other kind of culture to bring their culture into our culture."
Continue Reading "Songs of Unity & Love: Soweto Gospel Choir" »
IF YOU WERE a child watching television in the first half of the 1990s, you remember Rockapella. They were poets of the generation, and here is their magnum opus. It is "Howl" for the '90s, if you will:
Well she glides around the globe and she'll flimflam every nation,
She's a double-dealing diva with a taste for thievery,
Her itinerary's loaded up with moving violations,
Tell me where in the world is Carmen Sandiego?
So when you hear that Rockapella is turning its talent to traditional holiday music, your heart may leap. Perhaps in their hands Santa Claus will become an international criminal, stealing landmarks and monuments as he flies around the world on his nuclear powered sleigh.
Or maybe they'll just sing a capella arrangements of Christmas songs. Which is OK too.
» The Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda; Tue., Dec. 9, 8 p.m., $21-$55; 301-581-5100. (Grosvenor)
Photo by Sean Deren
THIS FRIENDLY, folk art-style marmalade cat may appear larger on the page. That's because Natasha Beshenkovsky's sculpture and every other work in Strathmore's 75th Annual International Exhibition of Fine Art in Miniature is a tiny slice of heaven.
» The Mansion at Strathmore, 10701 Rockville Pike, Bethesda; through Jan. 3; 301-581-5200. (Grosvenor-Strathmore)
Photo courtesy The Mansion at Strathmore
FOR MORE THAN 30 YEARS, Arlo Guthrie has been far from soft-spoken about his thoughts on social activism. After all, who could forget "Alice's Restaurant Massacree", an 18-minute track from the folk singer's 1967 debut album in which he asked young listeners to stand up to authority, dodge the draft and skip out on the Vietnam War.
Since Guthrie is an outspoken Ron Paul supporter, he just might be a little disappointed with the current state of political affairs in America. But if history is any indicator, the 61-year-old should still have plenty to say when he brings his social musings and vintage bluesy style to Strathmore Hall on Friday night, including songs from his latest album (and first in 12 years), "Lost World."
» Strathmore Hall, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, Bethesda; Fri., Nov. 7, 8 p.m., $25-$55; 301-581-5200. (Grosvenor-Strathmore)
Written by Thomas Floyd/Express
Photo by Peter Hayes
ONCE UPON A Thursday dreary, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra decided to throw a killer birthday party for Edgar Allan Poe. John Astin, right, recites while the BSO plays Leonard Slatkin's musical setting of five Poe poems.
» The Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane; Thu., Nov. 6, 8 p.m., $25-$80; 301- 581-5100. (Grosvenor-Strathmore)
Written by Express' Nathan Martin
Photo by David Colwell
ALL OF RAY LAMONTAGNE'S tracks sound like they were produced one rainy afternoon after he wandered into a studio with a guitar and poured his soul into a microphone.
Based on his first two albums, it would seem that the unvarnished intimacy of his songs is at its best in a solo setting, but then he decided to make his lineup distinctly more colorful: the result is the surprisingly brilliant "Gossip in the Grain" (RCA).
In fact, "Gossip" is to LaMontagne what "The Shepherd's Dog" was to Iron and Wine in terms of musical diversification, proving that "man with guitar" is great, but "man with guitar plus extremely talented backup" can be, if not an improvement, at least a viable contrasting outlet for musical brilliance.
Continue Reading "CD Review: Ray LaMontagne, 'Gossip in the Grain'" »
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