Laughing his way through to beating cancer
For a local theater company to thrive, it’s important to maintain a positive attitude and take creative risks. So, to kick off its new late-night series, being launched this summer on select Fridays,...
View ArticleEvery performance is different for blues singer Teresa James
Singer Teresa James imbues every note with searing honesty and emotion. For her, blues is the genre that feeds that soulful sensation. “In pop music, half the time they’re not really singing,” James...
View ArticleGG Amos: Playing the blues to be the Guitar Goddess
GG Amos has been playing guitar for almost 50 years. Yet she calls herself “a late bloomer.” The singer-guitarist, based in San Francisco, was in her mid-30s when she discovered the joys of the blues....
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Lisa Fischer: Out of the background, into the spotlight
Lisa Fischer’s singing voice is truly thrilling. Displaying an astonishing range, it soars with honest emotion. That’s why so many other great vocalists have hired her as a background singer. The...
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Making a play for the ‘bad girl’ Shangri-Las
The Shangri-Las were known as the “bad girl” group of the ’60s, singing such timeless hits as “Leader of the Pack,” “Remember (Walkin’ in the Sand)” and “I Can Never Go Home Anymore.” They shared bills...
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What happened with characters from ‘Pages for You’
Sylvia Brownrigg’s latest novel, “Pages for Her,” is a lovely, lyrical, fascinating portrayal of two women, once intimates, whose paths cross again 20 years later. Brownrigg, originally from Los Altos,...
View ArticleA life of living, learning, teaching and playing the blues
Guitarist/singer/songwriter/producer Steve Freund has explored many types of music. But since his teen years, his passion has been aroused by one particular genre — the blues. “I was drawn in by the...
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Prima ballerina had to learn that yes, she was good enough
Stephanie Herman was a prima ballerina, a protégé of legendary choreographer George Balanchine. She worked with Martha Graham and Alvin Ailey. She danced with Mikhail Baryshnikov and Rudolph Nureyev....
View ArticleKenny Wayne Shepherd’s impressive life in the blues
It all started when he was 3 years old. Kenny Wayne Shepherd’s grandmother redeemed her Green Stamps to get him a plastic toy guitar. Little did she know that this would be his first step toward...
View ArticleKenny Barron revels in the never-ending jazz journey
He may have been honored by the National Endowment for the Arts as a Jazz Master but, at 74, pianist/composer/bandleader/educator Kenny Barron is still learning. Joined by bassist Kiyoshi Kitagawa and...
View ArticleMaking music, unapologetic and sassy
Her name is Danielle Walsh. But on stage, she’s known as D. Marie. And the “D” could stand for dynamite, because this vocalist, who appeared on “The Voice,” packs a wallop. With her band, The...
View ArticleFinding religion in music, and the voice of humanity in his cello
Amit Peled’s journey has been remarkable. It began in an Israeli kibbutz, where he dreamed of becoming an NBA player. A childhood crush led him in the direction of classical music. And now he plays a...
View ArticleBuffy Sainte-Marie: Facing the world with courage and compassion
She’s been writing, recording and performing deeply meaningful songs for more than a half a century. At 76, Buffy Sainte-Marie still delivers that intensely affecting vibrato and that fearless pursuit...
View ArticleSeeking truth and freedom with a jazz trumpet
Avishai Cohen is more than a trumpeter. More than a composer. He’s a seeker. Cohen says he and the musicians who share the stage with him must all have the same mindset. “We must all have the state of...
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‘Near Normal Man’ battles Nazis again, for the third time in 7 decades
During World War II, he survived two ghettos, nine concentration camps and two death marches. A Polish Jew, he was starved, beaten, whipped and shot at by Nazis. Yet Ben Stern miraculously survived the...
View ArticleBringing ‘The Prince of Egypt’ to TheatreWorks
It was a story told in the Book of Exodus. In the centuries since, it has been retold many times in many ways, including the 1958 film “The Ten Commandments.” In 1998, DreamWorks presented it from an...
View ArticleDanish jazz violinist returns from Japan to play at the Bing
Mads Tolling is a worldly musician. Raised in Denmark, the Grammy-winning jazz violinist moved to the U.S. to study at Boston’s famed Berklee College of Music. He’s now based in the Bay Area. When...
View ArticleA beautiful voice, singing meaningful Leonard Cohen lyrics
Leonard Cohen is gone. But his music lives on. And Perla Batalla, who sang backup for him for many years, is helping to keep his legacy alive through her “Tribute to Leonard Cohen” concerts. “I feel...
View ArticlePlaying that kindie rock for little fans and their folks
One of Laurie Berkner’s earliest hits was “We Are The Dinosaurs.” But 20 years after she started recording her sparkling original children’s songs, the woman USA Today described as “the undisputed...
View Article‘Enemy of the People’ rings true in modern times
Environment endangered by greed. Idealism versus pragmatism. Political power impacting community. Whistleblowing. Topics ripped from today’s headlines, yes? Yet these were themes tackled by Henrik...
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