Year: 2022

At Analog at the Hutton

“This Is Just A Story”: Chatterbird and Insomnia’s My Closest Friend

“This is just a story. You’ll understand it if you listen,” says Tavius Marshall in the new work Insomnia’s My Closest Friend with text by Marshall and music by JoshuaRead More

At the Schermerhon

The Pastoral and La Malinche

On the third weekend of November 2022, the Nashville Symphony gave a marvelous performance of two very different pieces: Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68Read More

At the Frist

A Brief Intro to Nōhgaku: Ancient Japanese Drama

Some years ago, I witnessed traditional Japanese theater live in Japan. After years of teaching world and Asian music courses that featured the rich traditions of Japanese theater, a fellowshipRead More

From the Mabry Concert Hall at Austin Peay

Fisk Jubilee Singers: History Repeats Itself 150 Years Later

As we live in roiling tumultuous times, as hatred and violence grow, as we question the fellowship of our fellow citizens, we sometimes need respite, some way of seeing signsRead More

From the Nashville Symphony

Another Wonderful Night at the Schermerhorn

On the last weekend of October, 2022 the Nashville Symphony performed Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s 6th Symphony “Pathétique” Op. 24 (1893), along with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Concerto for Flute, Harp andRead More

Voices Behind the Gauze: Nashville Opera’s The Medium

You really feel the passion when Nashville Opera’s Artistic Director, John Hoomes, pleads the case for the operas of Gian Carlo Menotti. In his program note for the Nashville Opera’sRead More

From TPAC and OzArts:

Meow Meow: “Kamikaze Cabaret” in the War Memorial Auditorium

Some years ago, I attended two productions of the esteemed Houston Grand Opera. One was the lesser-known Verdi opera, Macbeth; the other Handel’s Ariodante. Both suffered the same fate: directorsRead More

At the Carl Van Vechten Gallery at Fisk University

African Modernism in America: Fisk University’s Historic Role in African Art

Two roosters are frozen in an almost comically surreal cockfight. But their feathers, soaked in brilliant red blood, and the darker blood splotches against a black background belie any humor.Read More

On the Silver Screen:

Look Out Hollywood, Y’all!

Introduction Nashville is no stranger to star-studded premieres or huge flocks of songwriters and artists in one place, but the first weeks of fall in Music City make for aRead More

At the Schermerhon

The Nashville Symphony Enters Orbit!

The Nashville Symphony audience has finally broken the stigma about only clapping in the “appropriate” spots during a concert. And Thursday night gave the audience plenty of reasons to clap.Read More