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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 19, 2004)
BY BRETT CAMPBELL Cozmic Pizza hosts Paul Prince's CD release celebration March 2. Naughty Monks and Tainted Jazz UO, WOW bring provocative music to town. I n 1935, composer Carl Orff encoun- tered a 13th-century manuscript con- taining secular poems by some Bavarian monks and decided to set them to music. But these poems weren’t the usual austere, ascetic hymns of divine praise. No, these frisky friars were a fun-lovin’ lot, and their poems celebrated sex, gam- bling, drinking — ideal material for 21st- century American college students. Accordingly, the UO’s University Singers and University Symphony join forces to present Orff’s ever-popular Carmina Burana , in Roseburg (Feb. 27), Florence (Feb. 28), and at 3 pm Sunday, Feb. 29 at in the EMU Ballroom on cam- pus. It’s not just the salacious subject matter that’s made Orff’s dramatic cantata so popular. Drawing on the model of some of Stravinsky’s earlier works, yet simplifying the music, Orff set the Epicurean ballads to tunes that were rhythmically propulsive and instantly catchy, so much so that one of them is still used in TV commercials. By turns bawdy, funny, raucous and occa- sionally tender, Carmina Burana isn’t the 20th century’s most profound music, but it’s a lot of fun. The university’s World Music Series has brought some of the most powerful sounds on the planet to Eugene, and some of the most transcendent have emanated from South India. On Friday, Feb. 27, the WMS hosts a mother-daughter team of vina virtu- osos. The vina is a large plucked lute, and Rajeswari Padmanabhan is a ninth-gener- ation master of the instrument, as well as a venerated university teacher. Her daughter, Sreevidhya Chandramouli , is carrying on the tradition. They’ll be accompanied on mridangam (South Indian classical double- headed drum) by Karthik Gopalaratnam . You’ve probably never heard of them or even their instruments, but every Indian musician I’ve heard in the WMS has been a jaw-droppingly amazing performer who produced moments of musical ecstacy, and this concert promises more of the same. One of the best things the UO has brought to town in recent years is profes- sor Marc Vanscheeuwijck , who’s imbued Baroque and earlier music con- certs with the latest discoveries about how live music every friday! hwy 58 • Dexter • 541-937-2770 • no cover happy hour mon.-sat. 4-7, free hors d'oeuvres that music was actually performed in its day, and on the instruments and in the col- orful tunings of the period. At 8 pm Saturday, Feb. 28, Vanscheeuwijck will play some of the most sublime music ever composed: JS Bach’s first three suites for solo cello at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church (13th & Pearl). The Oregon Mozart Players host the annual return of conductor Frank Graffeo to the town where he put on so many fine productions. The Candlelight Concerts on Feb. 27 and 28 at First Christian Church present a pair of perennial favorites: Vivaldi’s Four Seasons and movements from Mozart’s A Little Night Music, along with Haydn’s delightful Cello Concerto in D and more. At Cozmic Pizza on March 2, you can celebrate the release of Paul Prince ’s gor- geous new CD, Ocean Bells. But even if you can’t make the party, do score the disc — one of the most enchanting guitar albums I’ve ever heard, and one of the finest by an Oregon artist. Drawing on Zimbabwean mbira and kora (a beautiful lute) and Hawaiian slack key guitar tradi- tions, the former Thomas Mapfumo side- man has forged an eloquent and distinctive style that’s far more powerful than most so-called world music fusions. The show also features dancers from Wongai. Don’t miss Seattle all-star ensemble Skerik’s Syncopated Taint Septet show at the WOW Hall on Feb. 21. Given that Skerik has played with John Scofield, Charlie Hunter, and Medeski Martin & Wood, you’d expect a fair amount of funk, but Skerik calls his music punk jazz, draw- ing from Hendrix as well as Bird and Monk. The show would be worth the fare just to see the opening act, our own Eleven Eyes, a turntable- and horn-driven ensem- ble that’s blazing electric new trails in improvised music. This should be a wild night of hot music that appeals to jazzers and funksters alike. Unfortunately, it’s also the same night some of Eugene’s finest jazzers (saxman Craig Bender, trumpeter Tim Clarke, bassist Rob Kohler, drummer Brian West) convene at Luna under the auspices of the Gerry Rempel Jazz Syndicate — another strong recommen- ew dation. Feb. 20 - Bill Willie Bluz Feb. 27 - Forrest T. Black Coming Soon - J.C. Rico L ive!@ Julian Marley & the uprising Special guest: Norma Fraser Sunday, February 22nd Doors open at 7pm • 18+ welcomes TS K LE E NOW! C I T SA ON Indigenous Native American Roots Rock & Blues TIC KET S ON SAL E N OW ! PLUS SPECIAL GUEST Wednesday, February 25th B LUE O YSTER C ULT Wednesday, March 10th Doors open at 7pm • 21+ E N T OW S ! K C T I SALE ON Tickets on sale now at The Jungle, Joe's Bar & Grill, CD World, House of Records, Face the Music & all TicketWest locations. Call 338-9000 for info. 23 West 6th • Eugene • 338-9000 FEBRUARY 19, 2004 21
