i
CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA
lfyou were going to set up a fantasy league of the world‘s top orchestras. there‘s no doubt the Cleveland Orchestra would be pushing hard for the championship. Under the leadership of George Szell. and more recently Christopher von Dohnanyi. they have built up a formidable reputation for both individual virtuosity and their ensemble playing. Their readings of Beethoven‘s Emica and Mahler‘s Firs! .S‘vmphonv promise to be electrifying. but it‘s a shame they aren't bringing any contemporary repertoire — we'll have to be content with Stravinsky‘s Violin Concerto and lves‘ Central Park In The Dark. I wonder if they had rnuggers in his day? (Peter Cudmore)
I Cleveland Orchestra (lntemational Festival) Usher Hall. 225 5756. 3l Aug—2 Sept. 8pm. £5—£24.
IEIEEEEEHEI!
JOANNA 'MAOGREGOR
There are few top pianists programming Bach these days. and fewer who foster working relationships with composers of their time. Far from being a big turn- off. such formidable musical intelligence is a powerful element of Joanna MacGregor‘s on- stage charisma. Definitely a woman de nos jnurs. largely eschewing the flamboyant male egos of the 19th century repertoire she is able to draw eclectic audiences from beyond the ‘normal‘ classical constituency. In her Festival programme. Boulez-watchers will want to know that she‘s performing the seminal First Sonata. as important in its way as La Marreau. along with Bach. Berio. Bartok and. never afraid to ruin a good alliteration. Debussy. (Peter Cudmore) I Joanna MacOregor (lntemational Festival) Queen's Hall. 225 5756. 31 Aug. llam. £4—£l3.50.
um:- snuosrens
in an era dominated by speedy young instrumentalists. Fife folk trio Sangsters have won many admirers for their sensitive harmony singing. They formed three years ago. and founder Fiona Forbes smilingly admits: ‘We are
MULGREW MILLER TRIO
4i .4‘
’ Chances are that it you buy new jazz : records in any quantity at all, you will have come across the name at pianist Mulgrew Miller, even it you don’t have one of his own discs as leader. He has been one of the most in-demand players on the highly competitive New York scene since making the move north from his native Mississippi in the late 70s, and his regular gigs have included stints with the Ellington
Orchestra, Woody Shaw, Art Blakey,
Betty Carter and Tony Williams, as well as literally dozens of more casual
sessions.
M“5'°.FES"VAL
j Since leaving Williams’s band last
year, Miller has been concentrating on 5 his own groups, and especially on the trio he brings to Edinburgh. That
1' classic setting is an ideal vehicle for
; his authoritative contemporary take
on the central jazz tradition, and it is
one that he has distinct views on.
‘When you play trio, everything is in
your hands - you’re playing the
, melody, orchestrating it, being in command of the delivery of the tune.
In this trio, we are not trying to create
a stylised sound for the band in the way that Oscar Peterson or Ahmad
Jamal or Bill Evans did, we’re just trying to follow our own vision of the music, and play it the way we feel it at the moment.’
The touring band is the one heard on his newest album, ‘With Our Own Eyes’, his second tor Novus after cutting a halt-dozen tor Orrin Keepnews’s Landmark label. Bassist Richie Goods and drummer Tony Beedus are clearly on a very compatible wavelength with the pianist, and this Scottish debut promises to be a memorable occasion. (Kenny Mathieson)
Mulgrew Miller Trio, TOK Round Midnight Festival (Fringe) Oueen’s Hall (Venue 72) 668 2019, 3 Sept, 7.30pm,
, £8.50, £7 (£4).
what you might call . . . mature. Not a young band. We‘ve started a bit late!‘ All winners of Traditional Music and Song Association singing competitions. their
repertoire extends to
' contemporary songs and compositions by their
; guitarist and keyboard
player Scott Murray. Fiona insists the purists shouldn‘t get upset. ‘I
suppose if you look at Burns‘s stuff. it‘s not
strictly traditional. But it is Scottish.‘ Catch them
on the radio broadcast of
Mr Anderson '3 Fine Times on the afternoon of Friday
26. live from the Festival Theatre. or hear them on
the AMC stage. three fine
v voices wrapped in a sense
of enjoyment and humour. (Norman Chalmers) I Sangsters (Fringe)
Acoustic Music Centre ; (Venue 25) 220 2462. 2
1 Sept. 8.30pm. £5 (£4).
Sangsters
ORKESTAR
SHOIPONJA OE TIRANA
()ne of the most exotic sounds you‘ll hear in Festival Edinburgh originates in that least- understood Mediterranean
‘ and mountain nation of
Albania. Musicians at home with centuries ol tradition. yet unfair wrth
- classical and sophisticated
contemporary Westem forms. ()rkestar Shqtponja de Tirana has astonishing
Orkestar Shqiponja de firana
singers. and tremendous instrumentalists on violin. accordion. clarinet. bass and drums. also playing the traditional llauta (or lute). the two-stringed cifteli and the loder drtnn. The later Cafe venue is also the place to catch wild ceilidh ravers Shooglenifty or The Tartan Amoebas. and witness unplanned sessions between musicians winding down after shows. Watch out for the remarkable Bengali- London percussionist Ansuman Biswas.
(Norman Chalmers)
I Orkestar Shqiponja Oe Tirana (Fringe) Cafe Graffiti (Venue 90) 557 8330. 26. 29. 3t). 31 Aug. I. 3 Sep. 7pm. £4 (£3); part of the Cafe show 9.30pm. £5 (£4); Fri 2 only 7pm. Sun 4 only 9.30pm (with Shooglenifty).
lIJLEEEEHEI!
j TRANSYLVAN QUARTET
They‘ve given themselves an evocative natne. and
the young Romanian
quartet are already
winning friends i throughout liurope with
their vigorous. committed playing. From their wide- ranging repertoire. they have chosen two composers from close to home in Haydn and Bartok. It's interesting to reflect that. despite the popularity of the form. most of the important repertoire has been composed within earshot of the vibrant Slavic folk music that inspired both Haydn and Bartok. so l expect the Transylvans to give a compelling reading ofboth works. And. for the fainthearted. there's the urbane Ravel Quartet as well. (Peter Cudmore) I Transylvan Ouartet (International Festival) Queen's Hall. 225 5756. 30 Aug. 1 lam. £4—£l3.50.
CAPEROAILLIE
Amazed by the experience of playing a couple of Tokyo gigs. Capercaillie
liddler Charlie McKerron got back to Scotland and into costume for the latest Rob Roy movie. being filmed in the Highlands by Michael Caton-Jones. ‘We‘re being the band. an acoustic band in a dance sequence. We‘re all recording. except Donald (Shaw) — you wouldn‘t have had accordion in Rob Roy‘s day.‘
The latest album is scheduled for a 5 September release. ‘lt‘s called. er. (‘u/n'n'uillit'.‘ Charlie admits. ‘We‘ve never used that as a title. But the single is out. It‘s reworked from the Gaelic song “Breishleach”. in linglish. and called
“When You Will Return".
There‘s a few versions of it. one wide-screen mix. Fairly ambient music.‘ Take a Cl) walkman up Calton Hill after the gig and hear it with the Festival Fireworks! (Norman Chalmers)
I Capercaillie (Fringe) Playhouse (Venue 59) 557 2590. l Sept. 7.30pm.£ll (£9).
GARY THOMAS
Saxophonist Gary Thomas makes his Scottish debut as leader of his own lfixile‘s Gate. a flexible band which appears on this occasion as a quartet. with long-time Baltimore associate Paul Bollenback on guitar. Charles Covington playing the currently resurgent Hammond organ. and drummer Terri Lynne Carrington. who should be heard to much better advantage than with Herbie Hancock in the Glasgow festival. Thomas‘s biting brand of contemporary jazz and funk has developed in parallel with the M-Base crew in New York. and marks him out as one of the crucial movers and shakers on the current US scene. Don‘t miss it. (Kenny Mathieson)
I Gary Thomas TDK Round Midnight Festival (Fringe) Queen‘s Hall (Venue 72) 668 2019. 31 Aug. 7.45pm. £8.50. £7 (£4).
52 The List 26 August—8 September I994