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Post by Andorinha on Aug 5, 2009 12:02:18 GMT -6
The Electric Prunes -- 1966-67 -- "I had Too Much To Dream Last Night" -- still have the old 45 around here somewhere...
Troggs (short for troglodytes?), British invasion group, did soft love ballads like "With A Girl Like You," and "Love is All Around." -- "I feel it in my fingers, I feel it in my toes..."
LOL also did the harder-sound classic "Wild Thing."
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Post by Fredeghar Wayfarer on Aug 5, 2009 12:10:06 GMT -6
Freddie: I'm impressed! I didn't know you had acting and singing in your resumé! Too bad you didn't get to do at least one show as Rapunzel's Prince. I've never heard of Avenue Q or Into the Woods but the rest I've seen from your list and Ardo's list. Avenue Q, as I mentioned above, is basically a satire of Sesame Street. Many of the characters are puppets but it's a decidedly adult show, as they are singing about things like racism, homosexuality, porn, and other topics. Into the Woods is a fairy tale crossover. Little Red Ridinghood, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Jack and the Beanstalk, and various other stories all intersect in this. It's also a bit more adult, as Act 2 describes what happens after "happily ever after." It's by Stephen Sondheim, the guy who did Sweeney Todd. I was very shy in high school too (still am to an extent) but acting helped me get out of my shell a bit. I could play a different person and be wild and crazy (kinda like my role-plays as Fredegar on here). And yeah, if it had been fair, I would have gotten at least one performance as the Prince. But the school musicals at my high school were very clique-y. You had to be one of the drama teacher's favorites to get the good roles.
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Post by Ardo Whortleberry on Aug 5, 2009 17:59:26 GMT -6
Good Afternoon, Everyone! ~~~
Extremely gratified to see that my scribbled notations have inspired so much back and forth converstion! ---
I have heard a little bit of Steven Sondheim's musicals from time to time - ( about 35 years ago, I checked out an LP version of "A Little Night Music" from the library - and, in passing, I have seen bits of "Sweeny Todd" & "Into The Woods" [ like, on the Classic Arts Channel, or on PBS ] ) ---
I'm afraid I never did come to appreciate Mr Sondheim's style that much - it always seemed more like "Opera", instead of being in the traditional Broadway/Hollywood Musical tradition...
I did recently see him acting though - playing the part of the piano player, "Max", in a DVD transcription of a play: "June Moon" - a play about Tin Pan Alley in the 1920's, a young ( not the Sondheim character ) aspiring song-writer coming to the Big City ( New York, natch ) to try his luck at the song-writing game... Well, I did enjoy his acting!...
For me, there are some Musicals which I enjoy more for the plot-lines, the dialogue and the humor, rather than the songs, so much: "Guys & Dolls", "Damn Yankees", & 'Kiss Me Kate"...
I was in the chorus once, too - in my senior year at high school, when we did our production of "As You Like It" in the Spring... Not exactly a Musical, but it did have some songs in it... I never was a singer, but any deficiencies in my voice quality was absorbed by the other voices...
In the Summer, we did a "reprisal" of the play, only this time, we had been invited to put it on as part of the "Berkeley Shakespeare Festival" ( these days, it's called the "California Shakespeare Festival", and it moved out of Berkeley some years ago - to Orinda ) which was staged in the confines of John Hinkel Park - ( a great setting for the play )... I had a very small speaking bit in that run - one long line, but I still managed to botch it up, I'm afraid... When I was first drawn to the magicalness of "Theatre", at times I had delusions of being able to act well - ( or even superbly ) but I don't think I ever had any acting talent - or, at least, I always got too nervous on the stage, or when called upon to recite, and I never praticed my ( speaking ) parts enough - But I was also intrigued in designing stage sets ( or at least, conceptualizing them - drawing up the "proposals". or whatever you call them ) ---
"Smashing Pumpkins" is certainly an unusual name, but one that belongs more to the second ( or else the third, fourth, fifth, etcetera ) wave of unusual names - that came on in later, on down the road, with Punk, New Wave, Grunge, and all the various newer genres and admixtures of genres... Unusual names are more like the norm, now, rather than the exception... I just have to glance in the Entertainment section of the paper, to look up to see which bands are playing live ( mainly, over in San Francisco, which seems the place that has the most live music venues in the Bay Area ) and find all kinds of "outre" band names...
[ A few years ago, one of my daughter's favorite groups to listen to was called: "Bare Naked Ladies" - now, back in '66-'67, that name would have probably been considered to be too far out & too risque - but it's the kind of name that people nowadays would hardly bat an eyelash at - they would just think it was a humorous name ( which it is! ) ]
Oh - and Andorinha - "The Electric Prunes" -- That definitely must have been one of the names that we saw and that my mom and I were laughing at, way back when!...
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Post by Fredeghar Wayfarer on Aug 5, 2009 18:57:41 GMT -6
Yeah, Sondheim has a very distinct musical style. His stuff is complex, fast-paced, and often difficult. I appreciate some of it for that complexity and sophistication but I agree that it's not as catchy as good old fashioned showtunes.
Into the Woods will always have a special place in my heart though. I love fairy tales and crossover stories. When I was a kid, my parents directed a children's theatre program that did a series of "fractured fairy tales." My sister and I even got to write the script for the last one. Into the Woods, with its mix of characters and slightly skewed take on the genre, brings back memories of that program.
You may have enjoyed some Sondheim without realizing it though, Ardo. Did you know he wrote the lyrics for West Side Story and Gypsy? And the songs in the Dick Tracy movie?
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Post by Ardo Whortleberry on Aug 6, 2009 0:23:55 GMT -6
Greetings, Fredegar! ~~~
If ( at one time ) I ever knew that Sondheim wrote the lyrics for "West Side Story" & "Gypsy" - I had forgotten it! I must have ( at the back of my mind - I must have seen his name on a "WSS" album cover, at least ) known about the "WSS" connection... - but the "Gypsy" connection really comes as a surprise to me!
"Gypsy" was never one of my biggest favorites - but I did like that song: "Everything's Coming Up Roses"
When I was young, I thought songs like: "Maria" and "Tonight" & "Somewhere" were quite beautiful...
Were those "Fractured Fairy Tales" anything like the ones they used to have on "The Rocky & Bullwinkle Show"?
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Post by Fredeghar Wayfarer on Aug 6, 2009 2:14:21 GMT -6
It was news to me too. I had checked Wikipedia to see if I was remembering correctly about West Side Story and saw he had worked on Gypsy too. Not one of my favorites either but I thought it was worth mentioning.
Yes, the stories were in the vein of the old Rocky and Bullwinkle "Fractured Fairy Tales" cartoons. I used that phrase so you'd have an idea of the style we were using. Lots of tongue-in-cheek humor, pop culture references, and anachronisms. For example, Little Red Ridinghood carrying a basket from Whole Foods, the Frog Prince singing "A Kiss to Build a Dream On," narrators breaking the fourth wall, that sort of thing.
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Post by Stormrider on Aug 6, 2009 5:39:55 GMT -6
Andorinha commented:I remember that song. It was pretty good. And Wild Thing was one of the songs Desi's Dare Devils Equestrian Stunt Drill Team used last year! I think they should use Suicide Blond by INXS next year.
Sondheim seems to be pretty diverse with all these examples of his influence. I liked the Johnny Depp movie of Sweeney Todd. It was very bazaar. I had to put on the English subtitles for hearing impaired to catch everything they said since it had that odd accent and they sang so fast! Cracked me up!
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Post by Ardo Whortleberry on Sept 4, 2009 17:49:45 GMT -6
Way back on page One of this thread, I erroneously reported that Jean Phillipe Rameau was the author of the easily recognized Masterpiece Theatre theme music -- Almost as soon as I had written that down, I had a funny feeling that that was not quite right - I finally found out that the music was actually written by a Jean-Joseph Mouret ( & was originally written for the court of King Louis XV of France ) ---
{ an interesting aside to the history of this piece leading up to it's inclusion in the Masterpiece Theatre series ( stop me if you heard this one before ) is that it was previously being used as the "call to breakfast" music for people staying at Club Med }
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Post by Ardo Whortleberry on Dec 9, 2009 22:36:10 GMT -6
Hello, Once More! ~~~
My wife & I were able to go to see ( & hear! ) the Berkeley Symphony Orchestra at Zellerbach Hall on the UC Campus last week ( we had won a pair of free tickets from KDFC, the local Classical Radio Station )...
This was my first visit, as far as I can recall, to see an actual professional symphony orchestra in full performance... ( we had just been to see the Young People's Orchestra not that long ago, but that is not exactly the same thing, as well as those kids did play )...
I'm afraid we arrived a bit late ( it seems like we are always late for almost everything ) but we got to sit inside the lobby & grab a quick cup of coffee for the remainder of the first half of the show..,
After we got all situated for the second half, we listened to a very short excerpt from Steven Stuckey's "Elegy", & then h listened to Stravinsky's "Firebird Suite"...
The "full treatment" of the experience was pretty much like I had anticipated it to be, although I still have to confess to becoming quickly "intoxicated" by the sight of the orchestra spread out down below on the stage in their fine dark clothes, & the glint off of the shiny brass instruments, and of course the sweep of the music being played, once it began...
I was happy that we were seated way up high in the balcony, actually - I think I would rather be there than too close up to the stage & any loudspeakers, but I still regret I do not have the keener eyes that I did have when I was younger, instead of my now near-sighted ones, which can not pick out all those minute details from afar anymore, even with the aid of my eye-glasses...
I still felt like I like could pick out the orchestra member who was stationed at the big kettle drums at the top and the back of the set-up - he mostly had to do a lot of patient waiting to do his "bit" - & he reminded me of the "Mr Fogarty" character out of the "Lu Ann" comic strip...
The composer of "Elegy" ( Steven Stuckey ) was present at the performance, and he gave a brief explanation prior to the playing of that excerpt from his work - as to how the music was inspired by events that unfolded one day in 1964, events that would have tremendous consequences for America into the future - the disappearance of the three Civil Rights workers down in Mississippi, & the decision by LBJ to escalate the War in Vietnam...
Mr Stuckey at one point said that this music could be considered to be sort of a "dirge" - although it wasn't necessarily clear just who ( or what ) it was a "dirge" for, exactly, although he added, if it was to be for anyone or anything specific, it could be thought of as being dedicated to the memory of those young, slain Civil Rights workers...
I'm ashamed to admit it, but about halfway through the piece ( which, as explained, was very short, being just an excerpt ) I couldn't help thinking: "This would make great background music for another LOTR movie, for the scenes where Frodo & Sam are crossing the bleakness of the desolation of Mordor..."
Anyway... Then they moved on to the "Firebird Suite", and I have to confess, as I closed my eyes at one point, where the music was moody & dreamy & soft, & had almost nodded off into a sleep myself - or, at least, some kind of meditative reverie, when all of a sudden all the instruments blared out at once in a thunder of noise, which startled me awake...
I think I kept my eyes mostly open during the rest of the performance, although sometimes I sort of squinted at what I was watching - which made everything all dark & blurry, but where I could still make out the shapes of the orchestra, & follow the movement of the instruments - all those bows on violins & other stringed instruments, for instance, and the way this movement seemed to "sway" back & forth from one side to the other& up & down as the music flowed along, becoming more intense or less intense, and so on...
The orchestra was being conducted by a young woman named Joana Carneiro... I'm sure she did an excellent job, I just wasn't used to her style of conducting, which was highly enthusiastic & vibrant - and it seemed like she used her whole body more than most conductors do - not that conductors never use their whole bodies - simply that it usually seems like most of the energy is focused "up front" - with the arms & hands & torso & the expressions on the face... Now, I couldn't see the expressions on Ms Carneiro's face, although I'm sure there were plenty - but it often seemed like she was almost dancing about in the conductors podium, which ( to me ) gave the impression that, instead of being in "complete control" of the orchestra and it's momentum, she was trying to simply "maintain control", like the orchestra, when in full swing, was an explosion of energy blasting out towards the audience, & she was trying mostly just to regulate that flow of energy, instead of being able to manipulate it to her will - in the way that the more "imposing" kind of conductor might...
But it was all still an enjoyable experience, of course, & I'm eager to go back for more - perhaps to hear some Classical Music in one of the less modern styles...
( 19th or 18th Century pieces, for instance )...
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Post by Stormrider on Dec 10, 2009 6:51:13 GMT -6
***sigh*** I have never had an opportunity to go see a live performance from an orchestra (small or large). Ardo, thank you so much for sharing your experience with us--loved your descriptions.
I really don't like going to downtown Chicago but Rockford had renovated and reopened the Coronado Theater a few years ago so I should keep my eyes open there and see if anything interesting would be playing that I might be interested in seeing.
My husband is not interested in theatrical performances but I know my cousin, Tom, would be interested in accompanying me. The two of us went to see Jethro Tull at the Coronado when it first reopened. That was wonderful (I used to play flute in 3rd and 4th grade and could kick myself for not keeping up with it so I could play like Ian Anderson of J Tull). It was nice spending some time with my cousin, too.
Hmmm....I'm going to go off and look at their website now and see what's coming up.
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Post by Stormrider on Dec 10, 2009 7:11:19 GMT -6
Looks like I might be in luck! The Rockford Symphony Orchestra plays at the Coronado quite a bit. Below is their calendar of events and I wouldn't mind seeing the bolded shows. I've already sent off an email to my cousin to see what he would like to see.
2009 December 19 Rockford Symphony Orchestra - Holiday Pops 20 Rockford Symphony Orchestra - Holiday Pops 2010 January 16 Rockford Symphony Orchestra - Bonfiglio: Harmonica Virtuoso 22 Bob & Tom Comedy All-Stars 31 The Drowsy Chaperone February 5 Menopause the Musical 6 Menopause the Musical 9 Philharmonia of the Nations 13 Rockford Symphony Orchestra - Mendelssohn's "Scottish" 24 The Wedding Singer March 6 Rockford Symphony Orchestra - Broadway Today! 19 Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago 20 Rockford Symphony Orchestra - "God Save the King" 26 Four Bitchin' Babes: Diva Nation 27 Cheech & Chong: Get It Legal 29 Avenue Q April 9 Sergio & Odair Assad & Friends 24 Rockford Symphony Orchestra - Pictures at an Exhibition May 8 Rockford Symphony Orchestra - Beethoven's 9th: 75th Anniversary Concert
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Post by Fredeghar Wayfarer on Dec 10, 2009 23:22:21 GMT -6
Avenue Q! Yay! I highly recommend that show. But theatre tickets can be pricey so you should go with what appeals to you. EDIT: Hey, just noticed my user rank is Dunadain! Sweet! But wait...isn't it spelled Dunedain?
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Post by Ardo Whortleberry on Dec 11, 2009 5:07:56 GMT -6
Looks like I might be in luck! ... Rockford Symphony Orchestra - Mendelssohn's "Scottish" Cheech & Chong: Get It Legal [/b] Rockford Symphony Orchestra - Beethoven's 9th: 75th Anniversary Concert [/b] [/quote] Beethoven's 9th has been my all-time favorite piece of Classical Music for years, although it sometimes feels like I may have "worn it out" on my ears a bit, from too many listenings... Still, as an all around great piece of music, it's hard to beat... I have come to appreciate Mendelssohn's music more & more in recent years - I have probably heard the "Scottish" Symphony before, but I'm more familiar with his "Hebrides ( Fingol's Cave ) Overture"... Cheech & Chong back together again? I thought Cheech Marin had become property of Disney Inc. & it might soil his now wholesome, squeaky-clean reputation to associate himself openly again with reprobate Tommy Chong, but I'd be interested to see what kind of show & with what material they are putting on these days...
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Post by Stormrider on Dec 11, 2009 5:25:33 GMT -6
Hmmm....Avenue Q is a puppet show?
Cheech is also doing a few spots on the TV show Lost! as Hurley's dad. It would be funny to see them together on stage.
errr...yes, I guess you are correct! better see if I can change that.
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Post by Stormrider on Dec 11, 2009 5:34:04 GMT -6
Ardo:
hmmm...I corrected the spelling for Dúnedain and noticed that you had to have 300 posts to achieve that ranking. When I came back to see if it corrected the spelling, you were back to Dwarf. Have you posted 300 times?
Not only that, I noticed that Proboards has given us 5 more spots to give rankings now. If I change that, your ranking will change again.
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