The Rogovoy Report: Berkshire and Hudson Valley Cultural Preview
Jan 3-14, 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 …
KALETA BRINGS AFRO-FUNK to MASS MoCA
Kaleta, a singer/guitarist from the West African country of Benin, got his start in the late 1970s performing in church, where he discovered by iconic Juju master and world music pioneer King Sunny Ade, who took him to Lagos, Nigeria. A few years later Fela Kuti came calling, and Kaleta would go on to tour the world playing guitar for the King of Afrobeat in his storied band Egypt 80 through the 1980s and into the 1990s. Now based in New York City, Kaleta has been leading his Super Yamba Band since 2017, and he will bring the superhot Afro-funk outfit to Club B10 at MASS MoCA in North Adams on Saturday, January 7, at 8pm. Collectively, the members of Kaleta & Super Yamba Band have performed with a diverse range of artists, including Lauryn Hill and David Byrne as well as the kings of Afrobeat. With a kicking horn section, a healthy dose of jazz organ, and mind-blowing guitar riffs, Kaleta and the Super Yamba Band promise a high-energy dance party to heat up a cold January night. (Sat, Jan 7)
STANDUP COMIC NIKKI GLASER BRINGS ‘GOOD GIRL TOUR’ to THE EGG
Standup comedian Nikki Glaser brings her so-called “Good Girl Tour,” featuring her shockingly-honest, no-holds barred style of comedy, to the Egg in Albany for a two-night stand on Thursday and Friday, January 12 and 13, at 7pm. Nikki has multiple stand-up specials and late-night TV appearances in which she jokes about her most humiliating moments as a woman in the modern world. (Thu-Fri, Jan 12-13)
ALL-FEMALE ESTHESIS QUARTET REIMAGINES JAZZ STYLINGS
Jazz fans take note: the adventurous all-female Esthesis Quartet brings its original compositions and improvisations to Jazzstock at Senate Garage in Kingston, N.Y., on Thursday, January 12, at 7pm. Together, Denver-based pianist Dawn Clement, Swedish-born and New York-based flutist Elsa Nilsson, Chicago-based bassist Emma Dayhuff, and LA-based drummer Tina Raymond shake the preconceptions of traditional instrumental roles. Indeed, when I listen to the group I hear Nilsson’s flute playing the typical role of a guitar in the ensemble. (Thurs, Jan 12)
MARCO BENEVENTO BRINGS NEW JAMS to LEVON HELM STUDIOS
Keyboardist and all-around musical visionary Marco Benevento performs music from his most recent album, Benevento, at Levon Helm Studios in Woodstock, N.Y., for a two-night stand on Fri-Sat, January 13-14, at 8pm. On Benevento, Marco goes all Paul McCartney/Stevie Wonder on us as a one-man band and wizard of melody and rhythm, exploring the common ground between the ambient chill room and the hot, sweaty dance floor. Benevento’s music variously suggests the influence of 1970s jazz-fusion, 1990s jam bands, LCD Soundsystem, Big Audio Dynamite, and Gorillaz. (Fri-Sat, Jan 13-14)
CRESCENDO FEATURES RENAISSANCE MUSIC from LATIN AMERICA
The Crescendo music series presents A Story of Hope in the Voice of the New World, vocal and instrumental Renaissance music from colonial-era Latin America, featuring four soloists from Latin America, Europe, and the U.S., and an ensemble of period and folk instrument players. Concerts are at Trinity Church in Lakeville, Conn, on Saturday, January 7, at 5:30pm, and at Saint James Place, in Great Barrington, Mass., on Sunday, January 8, at 4pm. The music is a mixture of native folk music and Western European-style compositions, likely by indigenous composers. Performers are sopranos Rebecca Palmer (Vienna, Austria), and Jayne Segedy (Barcelona, Spain), tenor José Ignacio Lagos (Barcelona, Spain), and baritone José Sacín (Washington DC, Peru), with period violinist and percussionist Job Salazar (Boston, Mexico), charango, ronroco and viola player Carlos Boltes (Hartford, Chile), period harpist Christa Patton (New York), directed by Crescendo’s founding artistic director Christine Gevert on historic keyboards. (Sat-Sun, Jan 7-8)
Roll Call: Founding Members
Erik Bruun
Benno Friedman
Richard Koplin
Rhonda Rosenheck