Chris Botti. (Illustration by Pat Crowley)By Bill MeredithSouth Florida's creative jazz concert calendar is always a case of feast or famine, and there's usually more of a feast south of Palm Beach County.That's partly because there's a stronger jazz nightclub presence in the Fort Lauderdale and Miami areas than on the practically nonexistent West Palm Beach scene. And … [Read more...]
Music review: Sax legend Scott shows off rich catalog in Himmel show
Saxophonist Tom Scott.By Bill MeredithVeteran saxophonist Tom Scott has what amounts to a nice problem when he puts together set lists for his concerts. With 29 solo albums and more than 500 recording sessions, plus a vast array of compositions for TV and film, he has way more than enough material to choose from."I have most of it on my computer, so it's pretty easy to run down … [Read more...]
Theater feature: Dramaworks betting on classic Coward for summer
Noel Coward and Getrude Lawrence in the original Private Lives (1930).By Hap ErsteinPalm Beach Dramaworks is committed to producing modern classic theater, an ambiguous term that gets stretched even further in the summertime.Though the West Palm Beach company has succeeded with revues of work by Jacques Brel, Kurt Weill and Stephen Sondheim, this summer is it gambling on a move … [Read more...]
Music review: Seraphic Fire’s ‘Jew and the Gentile’ a compelling voyage of discovery
The title page of Salamone Rossi's Songs of Solomon (1622).By Greg StepanichWEST PALM BEACH -- The moment of true cultural collision for Seraphic Fire's latest concert came in the middle of a hot Thursday afternoon, as a cantor rolled melismatically over words of praise to the Most High while choristers in the balconies above held a drone and let him have his say.But the music … [Read more...]