RSS 2.0 FeedApril 20, 2011, Cover Stories, Classical, Jazz
Polycultural conversations
What do a banjo player, classical bassist, and Indian tabla player have in common? A lot of talent, for starters. Béla Fleck, Edgar Meyer and Zakir Hussain presented a concert full of jaw-dropping technique, impressive improvisatory chops and universal appeal.
It could be the beginning of a bad joke: what do a banjo player, classical bassist, and Indian tabla master have in common? Well it turns out to be quite a lot, including jaw-dropping technique, impressive improvisatory chops, and universal appeal that each as an individual performer would not be able to convey. Such was the case for the Johnson County Community College Performing Arts Series Saturday night performance of Béla Fleck, Edgar Meyer, and Zakir Hussain.
Each is an undisputed master of their milieu and this performance showcased their concerted efforts creating an India-meets-Appalachia-in-a-smoky-jazz-club vibe. The timbral similarities between the percussive plucking of Fleck’s banjo and Hussain’s melodic tabla playing were rife for exploration on which the two wisely capitalized. Meyer’s bass, whether bowed or plucked, served as the glue holding it all together.
The most successful of the pieces from across the two sets were Fleck’s Happy Drum Drum Monkey Girl, Meyer’s Em (whether or not that meant “E minor” or “Edgar Meyer” was jovially debated onstage) and In Conclusion. The two encores were equally fun; the first for banjo six-hands (Fleck on the melody, Hussain tapping out patterns on the banjo’s body, and Meyer plucking out tonic and dominant on the lowest strings) and the second was the most tuneful of the evening. Happy Drum Drum Monkey Girl contained Hussain’s first solo which demonstrated his adroit handwork playing a dizzying array of patterns. Em began with off-kilter injections that would be a welcome companion to any Tom Waits track. Beginning and ending as a theme and variations on an ascending scale, In Conclusion’s middle section was the most raucous of the evening, akin to early Bang on a Can.
In their three unaccompanied solos, the trio showcased their heritages. Hussain’s was particularly astounding in that he could mimic all of Fleck and Meyer’s inflections through various drumming techniques. The amount of timbral variety he elicited from a single three-inch tabla was incalculable. Meyer’s solo was a performance of one of the Bach cello suites. Considering that bass tuning differs from that of the cello and that the notes are spaced so much further apart made this sublime performance a master class in subtly.
The major fault of the concert was that, aside from the solos, each piece had the same form: start slowly and/or sparsely, add in more components until the texture is fuller, solo, then end as the piece began. Because of this, a layer of predictability encased the entire show. A new piece by Meyer, which set up a series of metric modulations, was over-composed, underwhelming, and sloppy—the only composition to bear those dubious distinctions in the concert.
REVIEW:
Johnson County Community College Performing Arts Series
Béla Fleck, Edgar Meyer, Zakir Hussain
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Carlsen Center
12345 College Blvd, Overland Park, KS
For more information, call 913-469-4445 or visit www.jccc.edu/performing-arts-series.
Editor-in-Chief; Traditional and New Classical Contributor
Lee Hartman holds degrees from the University of Missouri-Kansas City (D.M.A., M.M.) and the University of Delaware (B.M.). At the University of Delaware, he received a Dean's Scholar position enabling him to pursue an individually designed academic program combining music education and composition. At the University of Missouri-Kansas City he served for three years as the Assistant Director to Musica Nova, the conservatory's new music ensemble, while teaching a variety of composition classes.
In 2007 he was invited to both the Iceland Academy of the Arts in Reykjavík, Iceland and the Sichuan Conservatory in Chengdu, China to give lectures and master classes in composition. In the summer of 2009, Hartman served as an orchestra manager for the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble and Aspen Opera Theater Center for various performances. He serves on the National Executive Committee of the Society of Composers, Inc. as Submissions Coordinator. His primary composition instructors include James Mobberley, Chen Yi, Zhou Long, Paul Rudy, John Beall, and Jennifer Margaret Barker. He currently teaches music theory at the University of Central Missouri and general music classes at Park University having previously taught at UD (2007–08) and UMKC (2006–07).
His compositions can be found at http://www.leehartmanmusic.com
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