The Rogovoy Report: Berkshire & Hudson Valley Cultural Preview
May 8-12, 2024
With so much going on culturally speaking in our greater Berkshires/Hudson Valley region, this is my highly selective, curated snapshot of some of the most promising upcoming events …
RICKIE LEE JONES BRINGS POP-FOLK BLEND to THE EGG
Two-time Grammy Award-winner Rickie Lee Jones -- best known for her 1979 top 5 hit, “Chuck E.’s in Love” -- brings her unique blend of pop, folk, soul, and jazz to The Egg in Albany, N.Y., on Wednesday, May 8, at 7:30pm. Jones won the 2024 Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album for Pieces of Treasure, featuring covers of pre-rock pop standards by the likes of Comden and Green, Harold Arlen, Sammy Cahn, and the Gershwins. (Wed, May 8)
GABRIEL KAHANE and PEKKA KUUSISTO BRING ‘COUNCIL’ DUO to MASS MoCA
American singer-songwriter Gabriel Kahane and Finnish violinist Pekka Kuusisto bring their newly formed duo collaboration, Council, to Club B10 at MASS MoCA in North Adams, Mass., on Thursday, May 9, at 8pm. Kahane and Kuusisto will perform an evening of intimate and sonically varied songs and chamber music, with stories of individual and collective grief, of nostalgia, adolescence, and memory play; and of the joy, wonder, and perplexity of fatherhood in an era of global instability. The program is rounded out with music by, among others, J.S. Bach and Nico Muhly. (Thu, May 9)
LYLE LOVETT & LISA LOEB BOOKEND REGION on JOINT TOUR
Singer-songwriters Lyle Lovett and Lisa Loeb will share their gifts of well-crafted original compositions and casual storytelling in two duo concerts in the greater region, at the Mahaiwe in Great Barrington, Mass., on Friday, May 10, at 8pm, and at UPAC in Kingston, N.Y., on Saturday, May 11, at 8pm. Coupled with his gift for storytelling, Lyle Lovett has broadened the definition of American music by fusing elements of country, swing, jazz, folk, gospel and blues in a convention-defying manner that breaks down barriers. Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Lisa Loeb, known for such hits as “Stay (I Missed You)” and “Do You Sleep?”, continues to craft irresistible pop songs for the 21st century. (Fri, May 10; Sat, May 11)
CHICANO BATMAN BRINGS NEO-PSYCHEDELIC SOUL to MASS MoCA
Los Angeles quartet Chicano Batman brings its singular blend of psychedelic soul to the Hunter Center at MASS MoCA in North Adams on Saturday, May 11, at 8pm. The group sources their high-spirited alternative synthesis from Tropicália, West Coast psychedelia, and late-’60s/early-’70s soul by the likes of Curtis Mayfield and the Delfonics. The group has warmed up audiences for Jack White, Alabama Shakes, Vampire Weekend, and Portugal. (Sat, May 11)
LOUISE BICHAN BRINGS SCOTTISH FIDDLE MUSIC to THE FOUNDRY
Fiddler Louise Bichan brings her blend of traditional Scottish and classical fiddle music to the Foundry in West Stockbridge, Mass., on Saturday, May 11, at 7:30pm. Growing up in the culturally rich Orkney islands gave Louise a solid grounding in music: she started playing fiddle at the age of 7. Since then she has honed her craft at Glasgow’s renowned session scene while studying at the city’s Art School, before winning a scholarship to Berklee College of Music in Boston. Bichan will be accompanied by Conor Hearn on guitar, Brendan Hearn on cello, and Ethan Setiawan on mandolin. (Sat, May 11)
FISHBONE’S ANGELO MOORE BRINGS FUNK-METAL to EGREMONT BARN
Angelo Moore, best known as the exciting frontman, keyboardist, and saxophonist for ska and funk-metal band Fishbone, brings his eclectic sounds to the Egremont Barn in South Egremont, Mass., on Saturday, May 11, at 7:30pm. When he isn’t making music, Moore is also a poet and spoken-word artist who goes by the name Dr. MadVibe. (Sat, May 11)
TAN DUN to CONDUCT STRAVINSKY, TAN DUN at BARD
Tan Dun will conduct the Bard Conservatory Orchestra in a program of works by Igor Stravinsky, including Fireworks and Song of the Nightingale, as well as several of Tan Dun’s own compositions, including Concert for Five and Passacaglia: Secret of Wind and Birds, at Bard Fisher Center in Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y., on Saturday, May 11, at 7pm. Often programmed by the world’s leading orchestras, opera houses, festivals, and broadcasters, Tan Dun’s music has been played by the likes of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, China National Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, and many more. (Sat, May 11)
Also of note:
Berkshire native Diana Quetti brings her original pop-cabaret songs to the Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield, Mass., on Friday, May 10, at 7:30pm.
Satirical singer-songwriter Carsie Blanton brings her jazzy, pointed pop songs to the Linda, WAMC’s Performing Arts Studio, in Albany, N.Y., on Friday, May 10, at 8pm.
Singer-songwriter Cliff Eberhardt brings his catchy pop-folk melodies, intimate lyrics, and witty repartee to Becket Arts Center in Becket, Mass., on Saturday, May 11, at 7pm.
Singer-songwriters Simone White and Scott Matthew perform a double-bill at Race Brook Lodge in Sheffield, Mass., on Saturday, May 11, at 7pm.
Pablo Shine brings his Latin Jazz Band to Spencertown Academy in Spencertown, N.Y., on Saturday, May 11, at 8pm.
James Bagwell conducts professional soloists, chorus, and Baroque orchestra in two settings of Magnificat by father and son — J.S. Bach and C.P.E. Bach — in a presentation by Berkshire Bach Society at the First Congregational Churchin Great Barrington, Mass., on Saturday, May 11, at 4pm.
Berkshire singer-songwriter Simon McTeigue brings his homespun original compositions to Park Theater in Hudson, N.Y., on Saturday, May 11, at 8pm.
Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas Duo brings traditional Scottish sounds to the Ashokan Center in Olivebridge, N.Y., on Sunday, May 12, at 3pm. The duo will be joined by fiddler Emerald Rae and cellist Summer McCall, as well as Ashokan Music and Dance Camp founders Jay Ungar and Molly Mason.
Hey, did you like this edition of The Rogovoy Report? If so, please consider clicking on the “LIKE” button at the very end of this message. It matters to the gods of Substack.
Roll Call: Founding Members
Anne Fredericks
Anonymous (7)
Susan Bang
Erik Bruun
Nadine Habousha Cohen
Fred Collins
Fluffforager
Benno Friedman
Amy and Howard Friedner
Jackie and Larry Horn
Richard Koplin
Paul Paradiso
Steve and Helice Picheny
David Rubman
Spencertown Academy Arts Center
Elisa Spungen and Rob Bildner/Berkshires Farm Table Cookbook
Julie Abraham Stone
Mary Herr Tally