Cleveland Museum of Art CIty Stages Archives

DIARY: Wednesday, August 10, 2022

August 10, 2022 by Stephanie Manning

by Stephanie Manning

IN THIS EDITION:

•Cimafunk brings Afro-Cuban funk fusion to City Stages this evening

•Is the age of the printed program over?

•Almanac: the Proms at the Royal Albert Hall, then and now

HAPPENING TODAY:

Tonight at 7:30, Afro-Cuban fusion artist Cimafunk will perform as part of the Cleveland Museum of Art’s upcoming City Stages event. The concert, which includes his nine-person band from Havana, will take place at Transformer Station — 1460 W. 29th St. in Cleveland. Admission is free, but seating is limited, so consider bringing your own. Read Noah Auby’s interview with the artist here.

[Read more…]

CMA’s City Stages to present Cimafunk

August 2, 2022 by Noah Auby

by Noah Auby

In the last few years of touring his brand of Afro-Cuban funk fusion, Cimafunk has been all over the world and yet, he looks forward to visiting Cleveland for the first time this month. While he’s on his visit, Cimafunk and his live band will perform at the Cleveland Museum of Art’s upcoming City Stages event.

Cimafunk’s performance for the series will take place on Wednesday, August 10th around 7:30 pm at Transformer Station — located at the corner of Church Avenue (1460 W. 29th St. Cleveland, OH 44113). Seating will be limited, so bringing your own might not be the worst idea. The event is free and open to the public.

While he was visiting Germany, I had the chance to have a chat over Zoom with Cimafunk about the anticipated performance as well as the relationships he’s been fortunate to form by virtue of doing music professionally. [Read more…]

Cleveland Orchestra’s holiday concerts return with plenty of festive cheer (Dec. 11)

by Stephanie Manning

This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio — If the twinkling lights, leafy green garlands and festive poinsettias didn’t already clue you in, the holidays have arrived at Severance Music Center. ‘Tis the season for annual traditions — including The Cleveland Orchestra’s holiday concerts, which began on Wednesday evening.

Running through December 22, the programs feature plenty of seasonal classics plus some potential new favorites. The first performance proved that this mix is a delightful recipe for festive cheer.

“Look at you all, out on a school night!” conductor Sarah Hicks proclaimed joyfully from the podium. Just as many concertgoers donned red outfits to get into the spirit, Mandel Concert Hall was also decked out with decorations and stage lighting effects.

[Read on…]

Oberlin Conservatory convincingly tells Omar’s story (Dec. 8)

by Stephanie Manning

The Cleveland premiere of Rhiannon Giddens’ and Michael Abels’ Pultizer Prize-winning opera Omar on December 8 at the Maltz Performing Arts Center proved that concert productions of opera can succeed without sets, elaborate costumes and extensive staging. Indeed, the Oberlin Conservatory presentation offered more than enough to keep the audience in the crowded house enthralled.

The Opera, which was also presented at Oberlin’s Finney Chapel two days earlier, is based on the 1831 autobiography of Muslim scholar Omar ibn Said, the only such work written by an enslaved person during their enslavement, and the only such document written in Arabic.

Rhiannon Giddens’ brilliant libretto chronicles the life of ibn Said, beginning in present-day Senegal and following him through his capture, journey via the Middle Passage, and enslavement in North and South Carolina. [Read on…]

Kirill Gerstein is captivating on piano as Cleveland Orchestra recital series continues (Dec. 4)

by Daniel Hathaway

This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio — There’s no dearth of first-class piano performances to enjoy in Northeast Ohio, but Kirill Gerstein’s contribution to the collective wealth Wednesday night was extraordinary both in concept and execution.

Playing as part of the Cleveland Orchestra’s ongoing recital series at Severance Music Center, Gerstein wove an overarching narrative from the 21 little masked ball portraits in Robert Schumann’s “Carnaval.” Then he helped composer Francisco Coll blow up the idea of the waltz in two striking, brand new pieces written for Gerstein and joined Maurice Ravel in redefining that most civilized of dances in a cataclysmic performance of “La valse.”

[Read on…]

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