The Rogovoy Report: Berkshire and Hudson Valley Cultural Preview
Jan 24-Feb 4, 2023
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 …
MIKAELA DAVIS BRINGS MODERN POP-ROCK SOUNDS to KINGSTON
Hudson Valley-based singer-songwriter Mikaela Davis and her band perform the second concert of a three-show residency at Tubby’s in Kingston, N.Y., on Wednesday, January 25, at 7pm. Raised in Rochester and currently based in Catskill, Davis is a classically trained harpist whose current style brings together elements of classic rock, 1960s and ’70s pop, rootsy Americana, and delicate modern singer-songwriter sounds. She and her band Southern Star have shared bills with such names as Bon Iver, Lake Street Dive, Christian McBride, and Circles Around the Sun. The group plays the last of its three-show residency on Wednesday, February 1. (Wed, Jan 25, and Wed, Feb 1)
MOZART’s MAGIC FLUTE GETS CONCERT PERFORMANCE at WILLIAMS
The Williams Opera Workshop presents a concert version of Mozart’s The Magic Flute in a free performance in Chapin Hall on the campus of Williams College in Williamstown, Mass., on Wednesday, January 25, at 7:30pm. (Wed, Jan 25)
DAN BERN BRINGS LITERATE PORTRAITS and INCISIVE WIT to CAFFE LENA
Singer-songwriter Dan Bern brings his incisive portraits and cutting wit to Caffe Lena in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., on Thursday, January 26, at 7pm. The sardonic Bern took on his most obvious forebears in his song, “Talkin’ Woody, Bob, Bruce, and Dan Blues.” (Thu, Jan 26)
THE ORCHESTRA NOW CELEBRATES CHINESE NEW YEAR at BARD FISHER CENTER
The Sound of Spring: A Chinese New Year Concert with The Orchestra Now takes place at the Bard Fisher Center on Friday, January 27 at 7pm. Celebrating the coming Year of The Rabbit, the Lunar Year concert, conducted by maestro Jindong Cai, has become an annual showcase highlighting the artistry and diversity of Chinese symphonic music. The program includes the beloved Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto featuring Na Sun, Prancing Dragons and Jumping Tigersfor Percussion and Orchestra, featuring percussionist Petra Elek, and King Chu Doffs His Armour Concerto for Pipa and Orchestra, featuring Gao Hong on pipa. (Fri, Jan 27)
AMERICAN MODERN OPERA COMPANY BRINGS NEW WORKS to THE CLARK
A new concert series at the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Mass., Concerts at the Conforti, kicks off on Saturday, January 28, at 3pm, with an afternoon performance of new classical music, followed by an evening show of electronic music at 7 pm. The American Modern Opera Company (AMOC) performs the afternoon concert, presenting works composed and arranged by AMOC musicians. Doug Balliett, Emi Ferguson, Jordan Dodson, and Keir GoGwilt create a unique blend of folk, baroque, and classical influences to tell musical stories about journeys across the Camino de Santiago, the Irish Sea, and the continental United States. Combining spoken narration, song, and virtuosic instrumental playing, the program tells compelling stories about the dreams, desires, and difficulties that draw folks away from home. (Sat, Jan 28)
SAM PREKOP and GREG DAVIS BRING ELECTRONIC SOUNDS to THE CLARK
Sam Prekop and Greg Davis headline the evening concert at The Clark. For more than twenty-five years, as a solo artist and as a part of The Sea and Cake, Sam Prekop has created a singular sound that is both inventive and warm. His distinctive vocals, guitar playing, and work on modular analog synthesizers are innovative and delicate, and always bear his signature sense of melody. Greg Davis is an internationally recognized electronic musician and composer who has been making records and playing shows since 2001. (Sat, Jan 28)
CLOUD CIRCUIT, JESSICA PAVONE, GREG DAVIS, SAM PREKOP BRING NEW SOUNDS to AVALON LOUNGE
Greg Davis and Sam Prekop show up again in our region the following day, Sunday, January 29, when they perform alongside Cloud Circuit and Jessica Pavone at the Avalon Lounge, in Catskill, N.Y. (Sun, Jan 29)
LURRIE BELL UPDATES CHICAGO BLUES at THE LINDA
Son of famed blues harmonica player Carey Bell, Lurrie Bell picked up his father’s guitar at age five and taught himself to play. Since 2007, he has received multiple Blues Music Award nominations as Best Guitarist and Best Traditional Male Blues Artist by the Blues Foundation. Lurrie Bell brings his personal style of Chicago blues to The Linda, WAMC’s Performing Arts Studio, in Albany on Saturday, January 28, at 8pm. (Sat, Jan 28)
SCHUBERT BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION in SHEFFIELD
A Sheffield Schubertiade, celebrating Franz Schubert’s 226th birthday, takes place at Old Parish Church in Sheffield, Mass., on Sunday, January 29, at 2pm. Artistic director and violinist Jorge Ávila has programmed an assortment of works by Schubert, including works for violin and piano; piano trios; and the lieder that Schubert is so well known for. (Sun, Jan 29)
BOBBY PREVITE BRINGS IMPROV QUARTET to THE AVALON
Bobby Previte’s Art for Now Quartet is in residence at the Avalon Lounge in Catskill, N.Y., performing its new sounds every Sunday at 6pm. Players include saxophonist Keith Pray, trombonist Joe Fiedler, pianist John Esposito, bassist Nick Edwards, and bandleader Bobby Previte on drums. (Sun, Jan 29)
PAMELA MEANS SALUTES POWER of MUSICAL PROTEST at BECKET ATHENAEUM
Singer-songwriter Pamela Means offers a salute to the Power of the Protest Song at the Becket Athenaeum in Becket, Mass., on Thursday, February 2, at 7pm. Part-performance and part-presentation, this family-friendly event will explore the origin stories and lineages of protest songs, how their meanings and impacts continue to transform through time and space, and how they have inspired--and continue to inspire--movements and cultural shifts within the realms of racial and social justice. Means’s outspoken songs and “kamikaze guitar style” often draws comparisons to Ani DiFranco. (Thu, Feb 2)
CABARET MEETS CUMBIA at MASS MoCA
Cabaret meets cumbia in Broadway en Spanglish, a musical project by husband-and-wife duo Florencia Cuenca and Jaime Lozano—who was deemed Broadway’s “next big thing” by Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda—that delivers Mexican interpretations of musical theater classics accompanied by New York’s acclaimed ensemble Mariachi Real de Mexico de Ramon Ponce, New York City’s premier mariachi band. The program, which sold out Joe’s Pub in the city last October, comes to Club B10 at MASS MoCA in North Adams on Saturday, February 4, at 8pm. (Sat, Feb 4)
JOHN PIZZARELLI and JESSICA MOLASKEY BRING RADIO DELUXE LIVE to THE EGG
Adorable husband-and-wife duo John Pizzarelli and Jessica Molaskey bring their Radio Deluxe Live! program to The Egg in Albany on Saturday, February 4, at 7:30pm. Guitar virtuoso John Pizzarelli and his wife, vocalist Jessica Molaskey get together every weekend on the airwaves for “Radio Deluxe,” playing records and sharing their experiences in collaborating with a wide variety of jazz, cabaret, and pop artists. At The Egg the duo – along with John’s jazz trio and guitarist Matt Munisteri and violinist Aaron Weinstein – will present “Radio Deluxe Live” – a special edition to be recorded and broadcast on stations across the country. The Egg concert is presented in cooperation with WAMC Northeast Public Radio. (Sat, Feb 4)
Roll Call: Founding Members
Anonymous
Erik Bruun
Benno Friedman
Richard Koplin
Rhonda Rosenheck