The Brooklyn Rail
Critical Perspectives on Art, Politics and Culture
MARCH 2009
Music
DIY Parties
by Megan MartinMusic
It’s no small challenge to get New Yorkers out of their living rooms, on the streets, and to an event in the dead of winter, especially with the additional chill of our economic times in the air.
Voice(s) of America Robert Ashley at La MaMa
by Fred CisternaMusic
Ashley's works aren't operas in any conventional sense.
Tired Soldiers of the Modern Age
by Jed LipinskiMusic
Thomas Mann once said, “Only the exhaustive is truly interesting.” That may be so, but exhaustive things don’t have to be exhausting.
Kim Kashkashian with Alessandro Cassin
by Alessandro CassinMusic
Kim Kashkashian has many voices. What makes this unique viola player stand out among contemporary musicians is her vocation as a substantial communicator.
“Flourishes of Things You Love” Beirut’s Zach Condon
by Kate CraneMusic
Sure, it’s 2:30 in the afternoon, but you’d be tired too: in the past week, Beirut has played five shows in the New York area, some with full orchestra. On Friday, the sixth, the band made its network television debut on Letterman. And this month marks the release of March of the Zapotec and Realpeople Holland, the follow–up to 2007’s chanson-inspired The Flying Club Cup.
Permission to Dance The Luminescent Orchestrii’s Sxip Shirey
by Linda LesemanMusic
The 74-person-maximum-capacity sign posted on the wall of Union Square Pool has been violated—probably several times over. The audience, populated in part by some of New York’s less-inhibited indie musicians, forms a spontaneous ring of folk-dancing; onlookers clap, kick up their heels, and partner with people they’ve never met before.
Outtakes
by Steve DalachinskyMusic
The new year has started off with a bang. We’ve got a new administration that rode in on a tide of new promises and old music by the likes of Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Itzhak Perlman, Yo-Yo Ma, and Aretha.
