With a robust musical tradition to draw on, the Quad City Symphony Orchestra (QCSO) has released its first full-length CD, an assembly of movements and snippets drawn from recordings by Augustana’s WVIK public-radio station.
One of the primary goals of any artist, especially a jazz musician, is to have a distinctive style. Knowledgeable jazz musicians and even fans can hear just a few bars of Clark Terry, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Milt Jackson, Thelonious Monk, and many others and easily recognize who is playing.
The man who goes by the name Fuzz might not realize just how appropriate his moniker is. In talking about his eight-piece funk band Deep Banana Blackout, Fuzz (née James San Giovanni) pretty much apologizes for every decision he and his cohorts have made over the past year.
Sergei Rachmaninoff was an average composer and an excellent performer. He composed mainly in the 20th Century, yet the Romantic idiom dominated his work; while other composers were exploring the edges of modern composition, Rachmaninoff was unable to move beyond the high drama of the 1800s.
Eastern Iowa is fast becoming a cultural hub between Chicago, Minneapolis, and Omaha. With stops in Iowa City by the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Houston Ballet, and most recently mezzo-soprano Frederica Von Stade, Quad Citians have been within a 40-minute drive and a $10 ticket price of world-renowned performers.
The Quad City Symphony Chamber Series is quickly becoming a favorite. Beginning its second year as a concert staple, the regular symphony players kicked the sub-season off on October 21 with a performance at Augustana College’s Wallenberg Hall.
When the Quad City Symphony Orchestra (QCSO) kicked off its concert season on October 6 at the Adler Theatre, the performance couldn't help but be partly covered in darkness. The shroud of pain and uncertainty and musical weeping of the first half seemed fitting given the tragedies in New York, Washington, D.
When the Quad City Symphony Orchestra (QCSO) takes the stage for its season-opening performances next weekend, the audience will have several new experiences - one piece in tribute to the victims of the recent terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, and another that few people anywhere have heard.
In the past two years, the Quad City Symphony (QCSO) under the direction of musical director and conductor Donald Schleicher has demonstrated its ability to program diverse, compelling concerts. Old reliable pieces have been buttressed by less-traditional works, resulting in concerts that are both enjoyable and enlightening.
Walter Trout's voice and guitar playing have a desperation to them, a sense of need that fuels the songs. It's easy to read a bit much into them, perhaps, because while Trout is revered in Europe, he's still searching for his deserved reputation in his native States.

Pages